Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A SIX-YEAR RECORD OF VOLCANIC ASH DETECTION WITH ENVISAT MIPAS

For the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmo- spheric Sounding (MIPAS) on-board ESA's Envisat a fast detection method for volcanic ash was developed that can be applied globally and for long time series. From radi- ance simulations with the JUelich RApid Spectral SIm- ulation Code (JURASSIC) taking single scattering into account an ash detection threshold was derived based on two spectral windows. This threshold allows to distin- guish between ice clouds and small volcanic ash particles with a scattering radius range of 0.4 - 3.1 µm. For the eruption of the Chilean Puyehue-Cordon Caulle volcano in June 2011 it is demonstrated that the detection thresh- old works well in practice. The analysis of MIPAS data with this new ash detection method shows that all major volcanic eruptions were detected between 2006 to 2012.
BALANCED SINGLE-AND DUAL-BAND BPFS USING RING RESONATORS

This paper presents new balanced singleand dual-band bandpass filters (BPFs), both of which are constructed using two ring resonators. For each BPF, open-circuited stubs are added to one of the two resonators so that the transmitted common-mode (CM) signals can be attenuated, and source-load coupling is established so that two transmission zeros are generated near the edges of each desired differential-mode (DM) passband to sharpen the passband selectivity. The measurement agrees well with the simulation. For the single-band BPF, the measured minimum DM insertion loss is 1.4 dB in the DM passband, in which the CM suppression is larger than 41.6 dB. For the dual-band BPF, the minimum DM insertion losses are 1 and 1.35 dB in the first and second passbands, respectively, in which the CM rejections are larger than 29 and 22 dB. Received 30 March 2011, Accepted 4 May 2011, Scheduled 9 May 2011 Corresponding author: Ching-Her Lee (iecher@cc.ncue.edu.tw).
UNIVERSITY TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER FACTORS AS PREDICTORS OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION

University technology transfer is a collaborative effort between academia and industry involving knowledge sharing and learning. Working closely with their university partners affords biotechnology firms the opportunity to successfully develop licensed inventions and gain access to novel scientific and technological discoveries. These factors may enhance a firm’s entrepreneurial orientation by supporting innovative, proactive, and risk-taking behaviors. This study investigates whether university technology transfer characteristics such as the transfer process, transfer modes (formal and informal), and transfer terms influence entrepreneurial orientation. Using survey data from biotechnology firms that develop human health therapies, the findings suggest that the transfer process and informal technology transfer promote a firm’s ability to act entrepreneurially. Exclusive licensing terms, on the other hand, have a negative influence, and formal technology transfer does not significantly contribute to a firm’s entrepreneurial disposition. Keywords: research, quantitative, entrepreneurship, technology
Accumulation of nitrate in the shoot acts as a signal to regulate shoot‐root allocation in tobacco†

Mutants and transformants of tobacco (Nicotiania tabacum L. cv Gatersleben 1) with decreased expression of nitrate reductase have been used to investigate whether nitrate accumulation in the shoot acts as a signal to alter allocation between shoot and root growth. (a) Transformants with very low (1–3% of wild-type levels) nitrate reductase activity had growth rates, and protein, amino acid and glutamine levels similar to or slightly lower than a nitrate-limited wild-type, but accumulated large amounts of nitrate. These plants should resemble a nitrate-limited wild-type, except in responses where nitrate acts as a signal. (b) Whereas the shoot:root ratio decreases from about 3.5 in a well-fertilized wild-type to about 2 in a nitrate-limited wild-type, the transformants had a very high shoot:root ratio (8–10) when they were grown on high nitrate. When they were grown on lower nitrate concentrations their shoot:root ratio declined progressively to a value similar to that in nitrate-limited wild-types. Mutants with a moderate (30–50%) decrease of nitrate reductase also had a small but highly significant increase of their shoot:root ratio, compared to the wild-type. The increased shoot:root ratio in the mutants and transformants was due to a stimulation of shoot growth and an inhibition of root growth. (c) There was a highly significant correlation between leaf nitrate content and the shoot:root ratio for eight genotypes growing at a wide range of nitrate supply. (d) A similar increase of the shoot:root ratio in nitrate reductase-deficient plants, and correlation between leaf nitrate content and the shoot:root ratio, was found in plants growing on ammonium nitrate. (f) Split-root experiments, in which the transformants were grown with part of their root system in high nitrate and the other part in low nitrate, showed that root growth is inhibited by the accumulation of nitrate in the shoot. High concentrations of nitrate in the rooting medium actually stimulate local root growth. (g) The inhibition of root growth in the transformants was relieved when the transformants were grown on limiting phosphate, even though the nitrate content of the root remained high. This shows that the nitrate-dependent changes in allocation can be overridden by other signals that increase allocation to root growth. (h) The reasons for the changed allocation were investigated in transformants growing normally, and in split-root culture. Accumulation of nitrate in the shoot did not lead to decreased levels of amino acids or protein in the roots. However, it did lead to a strong inhibition of starch synthesis and turnover in the leaves, and to decreased levels of sugars in the root. The rate of root growth was correlated with the root sugar content. It is concluded that these changes of carbon allocation could contribute to the changes in shoot and root growth.
Comparative Analysis on International Airline Industry

The primary purpose of this paper is to estimate an industrial inefficiency level for several airline firms, and to analyze a difference of the level in international scope. In judging the level of inefficiency, we use time series data for the estimation of a gap between theoretical frontier and real operational level. Using methods based upon the cost functional approach, we find that the managerial cost for Japan's airline firm is relatively higher than the one for other firms, including the United States, Europe, and Asia. We also find a relatively low level of operational cost for Singapore Airline which is marked for quite distinguishing efficient level.
Investing at Home and Abroad: Different Costs, Different People?

We investigate US households’ direct investment in stocks, bonds and liquid accounts and their foreign counterparts, in order to identify the different participation hurdles affecting asset investment domestically and overseas. To this end, we estimate a trivariate probit model with three further selection equations that allows correlations among unobservables of all possible asset choices. Our results point to the existence of a second hurdle that stock owners need to overcome in order to invest in foreign stocks. On the other hand, we find little evidence for additional pecuniary or informational costs associated with investment in foreign bonds and liquid accounts.
Efecto diurético de la fracción con contenido de alcaloides extraída de Selaginella lepidophylla (Hook. et Grev.) Spring

Las partes aereas de Selaginella lepidophylla (Hook. et Grev.) Spring, son usadas en la medicina tradicional mexicana para tratar enfermedades renales. El objetivo del estudio fue medir la respuesta diuretica de un extracto acuoso (200 mg/kg) y de diferentes dosis de la fraccion de alcaloides (10, 40 y 100 mg/kg) de esta planta y compararla con la inducida por furosemida (4 mg/kg). El extracto, la fraccion de alcaloides, la furosemida y el vehiculo fueron administrados por via oral a ratas adultas y se midieron los efectos en el balance de sodio, potasio e hidrico. El extracto, la fraccion de alcaloides y la furosemida produjeron importantes y significativos incrementos en la excrecion urinaria de sodio, potasio y agua con respecto al grupo testigo. Este incremento fue dependiente de la dosis de la fraccion de alcaloides, la dosis mas alta produjo el mayor efecto. El incremento en la excrecion de potasio fue menor al de furosemida. Los resultados sugieren que el extracto acuoso y la fraccion rica en alcaloides de S. lepidophylla inducen una respuesta diuretica.
Adsorption kinetics of 2-chloroacétophénone and 4- bromoacétophénone thiosemicarbazone on Oueme Valley clays (R. Benin)

Laboratoire National de Pharmacognosie, Centre Beninois de la Recherche Scientifique et Technique (CBRST), BP 06 Oganla, Porto-Novo, Benin. Laboratory of Physic and Synthesis Organic Chemistry (LaCOPS), University of Abomey-Calavi, Faculty of Sciences and Technics (FAST),BP: 4521 Cotonou, Benin. Laboratory of Physical Chemistry, University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Faculty of Sciences and Technics (FAST), Cotonou, Benin. Louvain Drug Research Institute (LDRI), School of Pharmacy, Université catholique de Louvain, B1 7203 Avenue Emmanuel Mounier 72, B-1200 Brussels, Belgium.
Sentiment Classification for Consumer Word-of-Mouth in Chinese: Comparison between Supervised and Unsupervised Approaches

Sentiment classification aims at mining word-of-mouth, reviews of consumers, for a product or service by automatically classifying reviews as positive or negative. Few empirical studies have been conducted in comparing the different effects between machine learning and semantic orientation approaches on Chinese sentiment classification. This paper adopts three supervised learning approaches and a web-based semantic orientation approach, PMI-IR, to Chinese reviews. The results show that SVM outperforms naive bayes and N-gram model on various sizes of training examples, but does not obviously exceeds the semantic orientation approach when the number of training examples is smaller than 300.
Enhancing Stellar Spectroscopy with Extreme Adaptive Optics and Photonics

Extreme adaptive optics (AO) systems are now in operation across the globe. These systems, capable of high order wavefront correction, deliver Strehl ratios of ∼ 90 % in the near-infrared. Originally intended for the direct imaging of exoplanets, these systems are often equipped with advanced coronagraphs that suppress the on-axis-star, interferometers to calibrate wavefront errors, and low order wavefront sensors to stabilize any tip/tilt residuals to a degree never seen before. Such systems are well positioned to facilitate the detailed spectroscopic characterization of faint substellar companions at small angular separations from the host star. Additionally, the increased light concentration of the point-spread function and the unprecedented stability create opportunities in other fields of astronomy as well, including spectroscopy. With such Strehl ratios, efficient injection into single-mode fibers (SMFs) or photonic lanterns becomes possible. With diffraction-limited components feeding the instrument, calibrating a spectrograph’s line profile becomes considerably easier, as modal noise or imperfect scrambling of the fiber output are no longer an issue. It also opens up the possibility of exploiting photonic technologies for their advanced functionalities, inherent replicability, and small, lightweight footprint to design and build future instrumentation. In this work, we outline how extreme AO systems will enable advanced photonic and diffraction-limited technologies to be exploited in spectrograph design and the impact it will have on spectroscopy. We illustrate that the precision of an instrument based on these technologies, with light injected from an efficient SMF feed would be entirely limited by the spectral content and stellar noise alone on cool stars and would be capable of achieving a radial velocity precision of several m/s; the level required for detecting an exo-Earth in the habitable zone of a nearby M-dwarf.
Financial risk indicators to evaluate inventory management policies

This work takes the theory behind the VaR (Value at Risk) indicator, as it is used at financial sector, and applies it to economic valuation of projects in the real sector, particularly in manufacturing, and specifically in the valuation of economics effects of holding some inventory policy. The idea is to study the VaR over the Present Value of a Company, and the variations induced on this indicator for the changes made to the account “working capital”, related to inventory policies. The VaR will be calculated using Monte Carlo Simulation, and a case study will be presented and analyzed.
Water Quality Remediation Using Geotextile in Fish Hatchery Systems

This study was designed to use Aquamat™ in the daily exchange and flow-through culture systems of fish hatchery for improving the quality of seawater. Aquamat™ is a commercial innovative product fabricated from highly specialized synthetic polymers that forms a three dimensional structure. Results showed that the Aquamat™ reduced ammonia (NH3-N), total suspended solids (TSS) and dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations in the daily exchange system but not in the flow-through system. Average values of NH3-N (F=0.028; t=-2.006; P=0.047), TSS (F=4.550; t=-2.787; P=0.006) and DO (F=25.085; t=-2.833; P=0.005) concentrations were significantly lower in the culture tank with Aquamat™ than the culture tank without Aquamat™. Fish biomass gain was significantly higher (F=2.177; t=-4.296; P=0.001) in the culture tanks of with Aquamat™ than without Aquamat™. The bacterial density was significantly higher (F=11.437; df=2; P=0.000) on the surface of Aquamat™ than in the seawater of culture tanks with and without Aquamat™. This study suggests that the Aquamat™ provides surface area for fish to hide from cannibalism activity, thereby reducing mortality. It was also found that the extra feeds and fish wastes attached to the surface of Aquamat™, reduced TSS concentration in the water with culture system. The surface of Aquamat™ also provided places for microbes to grow and increased the nitrification process. The nitrification processes converted NH3-N to NO2-N then NO3-N with help from nitrifier bacteria and DO concentrations, which reduced NH3-N toxicity in the culture system. However, result also showed that the Aquamat™ increased the NO2-N and NO3-N concentrations in the culture system. This study suggests that the Aquamat™ is still not capable of eliminating the entire amount of dissolved inorganic nitrogen in the culture system for water quality management in a fish hatchery system.
The demand factors for cesareans in Portugal { some preliminary results

The aim of this work is to determine the demand factors for cesareans in Portugal. This work is exploratory and preliminary. Data is aggregated in NUTSII , for the period 2002-10. The number of cesareans performed is count data which requires the estimation of this panel data by a negative binomial with fixed effects. The main result is the evidence that there may be induced demand for cesareans in Portugal. Further research is needed.
Water in the critical zone: soil, water and life from profile to planet

Abstract. Earth is unique in the combination of abundant liquid water, plate tectonics and life, providing the broad context within which the critical zone exists, as the surface skin of the land. Global differences in the availability of water provide a major control on the balance of processes operating in the soil, allowing the development of environments as diverse as those dominated by organic soils, by salty deserts or by deeply weathered lateritic profiles. Within the critical zone, despite the importance of water, the complexity of its relationships with the soil material continue to provide many fundamental barriers to our improved understanding, at the scales of pore, hillslope and landscape. Water is also a vital resource for the survival of increasing human populations. Intensive agriculture first developed in semi-arid areas where the availability of solar energy could be combined with irrigation water from more humid areas, minimising the problems of weed control with primitive tillage techniques. Today the challenge to feed the world requires improved, and perhaps novel, ways to optimise the combination of solar energy and water at a sustainable economic and environmental cost.
Challenges of Fiscal Policy in Emerging and Developing Economies

ABSTRACT This article presents a systematic analysis of the availability and use of fiscal space in emerging and developing economies. We report two major results. First, emerging and developing economies built fiscal space in the run-up to the Great Recession of 2008–2009, which was then used for stimulus. Since then, fiscal space has shrunk and remains narrow as these economies have taken advantage of historically low interest rates. Second, fiscal policy in emerging and developing economies has become countercyclical (or less procyclical), i.e., “graduated,” since the 1980s, as most clearly demonstrated during the Great Recession. The move towards graduation is most pronounced for those economies with greater fiscal space, which suggests that fiscal space matters for a government’s ability to implement countercyclical fiscal policy.
Stimulating Lecturers’ Innovative Behaviour in Malaysian Polytechnics

Technical and vocational education that has been laid out approximately a century ago provides animportant route for secondary school leavers to gain access to post-secondary technical and vocationaleducational and training and be successfully employed. Polytechnics of Ministry of Higher Educationwere established to produce semi-skilled employees to fulfil the needs of public and private sectors inthe field of commerce, engineering and hospitality. However, a majority of graduates from polytechnicsdo not join the work force straight away but instead further their studies first to seek their bachelordegrees from universities and colleges before entering the work force. In the effort to improve theemployability skills of graduates of Polytechnics, the Annual Report of Tracer Study 2007 proposes anaction plan that comprises strengthens problem solving skills and enhances creativity throughinnovative teaching. The action plan also suggests for the strengthening of student oriented learningapproaches through interactive learning practices in e-learning environment, increase group learningactivities and improve the lecturers’ skills in the aspect of outcome-based learning.
Aggregation characteristics of three species of Coccinellidae (Coleoptera) at hibernation sites

Adults of some coccinellid species overwinter in aggregations consisting of many individuals. They may clump because adults are attracted to particular environmental stimuli and/or of an innate tendency to join conspecific individuals. Aggregation behaviour was studied in Coccinella septempunctata L. , which forms small clumps, and Ceratomegilla undecimnotata (Schneider) and Hippodamia variegata (Goeze), which form large clumps. Adults were recorded at five hilltop hibernacula (400-1500 m altitude) in central Europe (50-51°N, 14-16°E) for periods up to 27 years. The hibernacula occur in areas sparsely covered with iso- lated grass tussocks or completely with stones. Numbers of adults recorded under each of 300-900 stones or among the stems of the grass tussocks were counted every year at each hibernaculum. The degree of aggregation was determined using Taylor's power law. The coccinellid distributions became more aggregated and the size of the aggregations increased as their abundance increased, less in C. septempunctata than in the other two species. Aggregations formed even in the absence of prominent structures, which may attract immigrants, and even when unoccupied stones or tussocks suitable for overwintering were available. Aggregations may be established and their size limited by the strength of the intrinsic preference to join conspecifics. The supposed advantage of aggre- gated overwintering must be greater than the risk associated with the easy spread of diseases.
SYNTHESIS AND IDENTIFICATION OF SEVERAL SCHIFF BASES DERIVATIVES AND THEIR ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY ON COMMON PATHOGENIC BACTERIA

This research involves synthesis of some Schiff base compounds [A1A3] were prepared from condensation of [4-(dimethylamino) benzaldehyde and 4-hydroxy benzaldehyde and 4-chloro benzaldehyde] in absolute ethanol. Each from the prepared compounds are distinguished with [FT.IR] spectroscopy, additionally to the progression of the steps of reaction through the technique of [TLC], by utilizing (ethanol-toluene,1:1) as solvent . The following scheme [1] explains the steps of reaction and the prepared compounds. Antibacterial efficiency of A1, A2 and A3 compounds were tested against eight human pathogens like two gram +ve bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus agalactiae) as well as five gram -ve bacteria (Escherichia coli, Enterobacter cloacae, Proteus mirabilis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeroginosa and Salmonella typhi) using agar well diffusion method. All compounds showed significant activity against pathogenic bacteria, but the A2 compound showed maximum inhibition zone and antibacterial activity against all pathogenic bacteria. The minimum inhibition zone was determined in A3 compound showing less antibacterial activity against the experimental bacteria. World Journal of Pharmaceutical Research SJIF Impact Factor 7.523 Volume 6, Issue 6, 1425-1436. Research Article ISSN 2277– 7105 *Corresponding Author
Characterization of alginate/silver nanobiocomposites synthesized by solution plasma process and their antimicrobial properties

Solution plasma process (SPP) was adopted to prepare alginate/silver nanoparticle (AL/AgNP) biocomposites. The biocomposites were synthesized in solutions of varying concentrations of AgNO3 (1-5 mM) and alginate (0.1-0.3%, w/w) by discharging plasma for 7 min at 800 V with 30 kHz frequency using a pulsed unipolar power supply. The AL/AgNP emulsion was fabricated into 3D scaffolds by freeze drying and lyophilization and then stabilized by cross-linking via UV irradiation. UV-Vis spectroscopy of the biocomposites showed a characteristic absorbance at the maximum of 415-440 nm with increase in the intensity of the peaks as the concentration of AgNO3 increased. FE-SEM analysis showed that the 3D scaffolds had microporous structures with fine and uniform pores of 3-9 ± 2.0 µm in diameter. TEM analysis revealed that AgNPs in the biocomposites were in spherical shape with size range of 5-40 ± 2.0 nm (AL0.3/Ag5) and well distributed in the matrix. The AL/AgNP biocomposites showed microbicidal activity against 9 human pathogens with MIC of 9.6-21 µg/mL for bacteria and 85-425 µg/mL for fungi. Almost all of the E. coli cells (99.8%) were killed by the treatment with 42.5 µg/mL of AgNPs at room temperature for 1 h.
Why Don't Enterprise Zones Work? Estimates of the Extent that EZ Benefits are Capitalized into Property Values

The study examines the impact of local Enterprise Zones (EZs) on commercial and industrial property values. Currently, 43 states have established EZ programs to target development incentives to economically distressed areas. While there is a substantial body of literature analyzing the effectiveness of EZ programs, the research has yielded varied findings. The varied results of EZ programs could potentially arise as EZ property values are bid up by businesses seeking to expand or locate operations in the EZs. This would reduce amounts that these businesses would otherwise spend on capital assets or labor. A hedonic price model is estimated to determine the effect of EZ status and nearby EZ activity on property values. The empirical results imply that EZ status may, in some instances, have a positive impact on EZ property values. However, the empirical results also suggest that these potential price effects may diminish as EZs are designated in other nearby locations.