Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Novel microsatellite markers for Bactris gasipaes (Palmae)

Ten new polymorphic microsatellites were isolated and characterized in Bactris gasipaes using a microsatellite enrichment protocol and selective hybridization with oligonucleotide probes. The loci are highly polymorphic, with a mean of 14.6 alleles per locus and a mean expected heterozygosity of 0.83 among 62 individuals of the Pampa Hermosa landrace. These microsatellites will be useful for population genetic analysis and germplasm characterization for heart-of-palm breeding.
Intensity Based Estimation of Extreme Loss Event Probability and Value-at-Risk

We develop a methodology for the estimation of extreme loss event probability and the value at risk, which takes into account both the magnitudes and the intensity of the extreme losses. Specifically, the extreme loss magnitudes are modeled with a generalized Pareto distribution, whereas their intensity is captured by an autoregressive conditional duration model, a type of self-exciting point process. This allows for an explicit interaction between the magnitude of the past losses and the intensity of future extreme losses. The intensity is further used in the estimation of extreme loss event probability. The method is illustrated and backtested on 10 assets and compared with the established and baseline methods. The results show that our method outperforms the baseline methods, competes with an established method, and provides additional insight and interpretation into the prediction of extreme loss event probability.
IκB Kinase Is an Essential Component of the Tpl2 Signaling Pathway

ABSTRACT IκB kinase (IKK), a key regulator of immune and inflammatory responses, is known as an effector kinase mediating activation of the transcription factor NF-κB. Whether IKK also participates in other signaling events is not known. Here we show that IKK serves as an essential component of a signaling pathway that involves activation of the Tpl2 kinase and its downstream targets, MEK1 and ERK. Inhibition of IKKβ in macrophages eliminates Tpl2 activation and ERK phosphorylation induced by lipopolysaccharide and tumor necrosis factor alpha. Using IKK-deficient murine fibroblasts, we further demonstrate that IKKβ, but not IKKα, is required for Tpl2 activation. Moreover, this novel function of IKKβ appears to involve phosphorylation and degradation of the Tpl2 inhibitor NF-κB1/p105. These findings suggest that IKKβ exerts its immune-regulatory functions by targeting different downstream signaling pathways.
Do Cryptocurrencies Have Fundamental Values?

This paper studies the role of technological fundamentals in Initial Coin Offering (ICO) successes and valuations. Using various machine learning methods, we construct four technology indexes for all cryptocurrencies from their ICO whitepapers. We find that the cryptocurrencies with high technology indexes are more likely to succeed and less likely to be delisted subsequently. Moreover, the technology indexes strongly and positively predict the long-run performances of the ICOs. Overall, the results suggest that technological fundamentals are an important determinant of cryptocurrency valuations.
Physical and chemical composition of swamp and water buffalo milk: a comparative study

Abstract The research was carried out to compare the physical and chemical parameters of Swamp and Water buffalo milk collected from Senbari village in Trishal Upazila under Mymensingh district of Bangladesh. Results revealed that average color, flavor and taste score of Swamp and Water buffalo milk differed significantly (P<0.01). The specific gravity of Swamp buffalo milk slightly differed (P>0.05) with Water buffalo milk. Texture of all samples was normal. It was observed that average fat, total solids (TS), solids-not-fat (SNF) and protein content differed significantly (P<0.01) with Swamp and Water buffalo milk. Lactose content was also differed significantly (P<0.05) with the same. However, no differences (P>0.05) were found among, acidity, water. From these results, it may be inferred that the quality of Swamp buffalo milk is superior to that of Water buffalo milk.
The application of deep learning techniques in the electroencephalogram (EEG) analysis

In this paper, we show in a nutshell a characteristic of EEG signal, approaches in the analysis of this biosignal and the possible usage in the diagnosis. It will be depicted also the recent application of deep learning methods likewise the advantages of new type of neural networks: neural ordinary differential equations (ODE). ODE networks seems to be great promise to EEG analysis and its accuracy.
The Trematode Parasites of North Queensland. I

It is only within the last half-dozen years that any serious attempt has been made to deal systematically with the parasitic worms of Australia. In 1909 Dr T. Harvey Johnston commenced what has proved to be a most extensive and successful survey of the cestode parasites. Dealing at first chiefly with Southern forms, he has latterly (1912) continued his investigations in Queensland and has extended them to include Nematodes and Echinorhynchs. Some years previously (1901) Dr S. J. Johnston of Sydney had started a study of the Trematode parasites, but this did not lead to any outstanding results until last year, when his important paper on the Trematode parasites of Australian frogs appeared. He has followed this up by another important work on Trematodes from North Queensland, which has appeared during the present year.
GENETIC VARIABILITY IN STRAINS OF VOLVARIELLA VOLVACEA COLLECTED FROM THE STATE OF ODISHA, INDIA

Volvariella volvacea, the straw mushroom is an edible mushroom of tropics and sub-tropics, valued for its flavor, texture and nutraceutical properties. However, it is among the least studied mushrooms in India with respect to genetic variability and strain improvement programme. The present study aimed at studying the genetic variability in wild Volvariella germplasm collected from different regions of the state of Odisha, India. The mycelial cultures raised from V. volvacea fruit bodies, collected from nine different locations spread in seven districts of Odisha were used in the study. Out of total ten strains, seven were fast growing (>90 mm radial growth), while rest three were slow growing. The strains also exhibited variability in other mycelial growth characteristics and extracellular lignocellulolytic enzymes activity profiles. Fastest growing strain OSM-1 exhibited highest activity of exo-glucanase, low of endo-glucanase and superior levels of β-glucosidase and xylanase. Laccase activity was comparatively low in slow growing strains compared to fast growing strains. In grow out trials, four strains including three slow growing (OSM-5, OSM-8 and OSM-10) and one fast growing (OSM-2) did not colonize the spawn substrate. Highest fruit body yield was recorded in strain OSM-9 (23.60 kg/100 kg dry substrate), followed by strain OSM-3 (17.47 kg/100 kg dry substrate). Rest four strains gave negligible yield. The fruit bodies of strain OSM-9 were very light in weight (7.80 g) compared to strain OSM-3 (15.85 g). The strains formed two separate groups with respect to length of their 5.8S rRNA gene amplicons and the neighbor joining tree deduced from the 5.8S rRNA gene sequences. Group-I comprised of all fast growing strains (OSM-01 to OSM-04 and OSM-07), while groupII with three slow growing (OSM-5, OSM-8 and OSM-10) along with two fast growing strains (OSM-6 and OSM-9). The ClustalW2 analysis exhibited deletions at two base pairs, one each in ITS-1 and ITS-2 regions, and substitution at four different places in ITS-1 region in strains of group-II. The present study paves the way for further breeding programmes in this mushroom.
Germination and post-germination growth to carrot seedling emergence: predictive threshold models and sources of variation between sowing occasions

Cumulative germination curves were recorded for carrot (Daucus carota L.) seeds at a range of constant temperatures (T) and water potentials (Ψ) in the laboratory and under variable soil conditions in 15 seed-bed environments in the field. A single base temperature (Tb), a distribution of base water potentials (Ψb(G)) for percentiles (G) of the population and the hydrothermal time constant (Hg) were determined from laboratory data. Although less effective at low Ψ, it was possible, using these germination parameters, to satisfactorily describe the effect of T and Ψ on germination rates under constant conditions according to the threshold models of thermal and hydrothermal time. These models were applied to field data with the condition that the germination process ceased if T<Tb for thermal time and additionally Ψ<Ψb(G) for hydrothermal time. Neither model accurately predicted germination patterns in the field. However, the pattern of germination was adequately described in most situations by a modified threshold model in which the predicted progress towards germination was unaffected by soil Ψ, provided it remained above Ψb(G), and was therefore more rapid under variable seed bed conditions than hydrothermal time. In this modified threshold model, the condition Ψ<Ψb(G) had to be fulfilled at the initiation of radicle extension before germination occurred. This result implies that the initiation of radicle growth operates as a moisture-sensitive step that can determine germination and seedling emergence timing under variable soil-moisture conditions. Seedling emergence was also recorded in the field and used to determine, separately, the impact of germination and post-germination growth on the variation in seedling emergence patterns. The analysis suggests that delays in seedling emergence occur largely in the germination phase, but that seedling losses and variation in the spread of seedling emergence times within the population occur largely during the post-germination growth phase.
Reproduction of the earthworm Lumbricus terrestris Linné after the first mating

Mature virgin individuals of the simultaneously hermaphroditic earthworm Lumbricus terrestris Linne were housed in small groups and allowed access to each other under continuous video observation. After copulation, earthworms were isolated and thereafter their mass and the number of cocoons they produced were recorded monthly. Mated individuals produced cocoons for up to 12 months after the mating, while unmated individuals produced no cocoons. Hatchability of cocoons ranged from 76 to 62% over the 5 months following the mating, but decreased to 11% in the sixth month. Cocoons produced beyond that period failed to hatch. The median period of viable cocoon production was 3 months. Monthly cocoon production peaked 2-3 months after the mating, when 2-3 (1-2 viable) cocoons per individual were produced. Median total production of viable cocoons was 5 per individual (range 0-21). There was no discernible relationship between cocoon production and length of copulation, individual longevity, or individual mass a.
Caciotta della Garfagnana cheese: selection and evaluation of autochthonous mesophilic lactic acid bacteria as starter cultures

The aim of this study was to isolate, identify and select, with respect to acidification and proteolytic activities, the autochthonous mesophilic lactic acid bacteria (LAB) present in milk and Caciotta della Garfagnana, a cheese produced either with raw or thermised cow’s milk in small dairies and family plants of Garfagnana (Tuscany), to obtain LAB strains with attributes suitable to be employed as starter cultures in this type of cheese, particularly when thermised milk is used to control spoilage microflora. Samples of raw milk, curd and cheese were collected from three representative farmers of the production area and used to isolate autochthonous LAB. Phenotypic and genotypic (species-specific PCR assay) identification of isolated LAB was done. Twenty-eight strains of LAB isolated from milk, curd and cheese were screened for acidifying and proteolytic activities. LAB strains with the better attributes were used as mesophilic starter cultures in technological trials: experimental cheeses manufactured with the addition of autochthonous LAB and control cheeses were compared for LAB and pH evolution. Experimental cheeses presented a significant increase in the mesophilic lactic acid microflora up to 14 days of ripening and significantly lower pH values up to seven days of ripening. The use of wild selected mesophilic lactic acid bacteria, together with thermisation of milk, for the Caciotta della Garfagnana looks very promising and could help to both standardise the production and improve quality and traditional characteristics of this type of cheese.
Cross-border Value Added Tax Fraud In The European Union

This paper proposes a quantification of Value Added Tax (VAT) fraud eliminated through the implementation of the Reverse Charge Mechanism to domestic transactions, a measure reforming the EU VAT rules and preventing traders from exploiting a weakness of the system that allowed them to collect VAT without remitting it to the tax authorities. The targeted fraud schemes involve cross-border transactions and result in firms misreporting their transactions, which in turn affects trade statistics. I estimate pre-reform fraud levels based on how discrepancies between trade statistics reported by importing and exporting countries change at the time of reform. Based on 54 reform episodes in 24 countries over 2004-2019, I find that fraud worth up to 1.6 billion EUR annually is removed thanks to the reform. Although large in absolute terms, this only represents a tiny fraction of total VAT revenues in the EU.
From Housing Bust to Credit Crunch: Evidence from Small Business Loans (Effondrement du marché immobilier et contraction du crédit: résultats dérivés des prêts aux petites entreprises)

<b>English Abstract:</b> This paper provides evidence that the 2007–2009 housing bust in the United States precipitated a “credit crunch” for small businesses. To remove demand‐driven correlations, we rely on within‐city comparisons. We ask whether banks whose mortgage portfolios were more heavily weighted in harder‐hit cities cut back lending to a greater extent in all cities where they make small business loans, relative to other banks in those cities. The evidence is consistent with a credit crunch. Large banks reacted with heavier cuts, but consistent evidence is also found among smaller banks. Quantitatively, the detected contribution to the overall decline in lending from the crunch appears modest. <b>French Abstract:</b> Effondrement du marché immobilier et contraction du crédit: résultats dérivés des prêts aux petites entreprises. Ce texte montre que l’effondrement du marché immobilier aux États‐Unis en 2007‐2009 a précipité une contraction du crédit pour les petites entreprises. Pour éliminer les corrélations en provenance de la demande, on s’en tient des comparaisons à l’intérieur de mêmes villes. On se demande si les banques dont les portefeuilles d’hypothèques étaient davantage plombés par les villes les plus durement touchées ont sabré dans les prêts aux petites entreprises dans toutes les villes dans lesquelles elles opéraient, que les autres banques qui opéraient dans ces villes. Les résultats sont cohérents avec l’idée d’une contraction du crédit. Les grandes banques ont réagi avec des contractions plus fortes, mais les petites banques ont réagi aussi dans le même sens. Quantitativement, la contribution au déclin total des prêts dans la contraction du crédit paraît modeste.
The social-psychological perspective on executive compensation: evidence from a two-tier board system

This paper investigates whether and how social-psychological mechanisms, namely reciprocity, demographic similarity, and similar experiences, affect CEO compensation packages with respect to the levels of total, fixed, and short- and mid-term compensation and the variable proportion of the compensation package. We use evidence from Germany as it is considered a prototype of a two-tier board system. Given the primary roles of both the CEO and the chair of the supervisory board, we especially highlight social-psychological mechanisms in the process leading to the final compensation package. Using a hand-collected sample of non-financial constituents of the German HDAX, we find that reciprocity can lead to a compensation package that is more favorable for the CEO. Results on similarity are ambivalent such that the effects of similarity on CEO compensation—both positive and negative—may depend on the dimension of similarity. Finally, the chair’s CEO experience, both inside and outside the focal company, also plays an essential role in shaping CEO compensation. More specifically, CEO experience in general is associated with more favorable compensation. However, having a chair that has been CEO at the focal company correlates with less favorable compensation packages except for when the CEO has also been recruited internally.
Private Equity Demystified: An Explanatory Guide - 3rd Edition

Private Equity Demystified is published as part of the ICAEW Corporate Finance Faculty’s thought leadership programme, Financing Change and includes a review of major academic studies on private equity globally. This not only outlines what is known, but highlights what isn’t yet known about the impact of private equity and areas where evidence is lacking.The aim of the report is to provide the material for a better informed debate and as a response to the increasing public scrutiny by regulators, governments and other stakeholders, such as trades unions and the media on the issues surrounding private equity.
Changed plant and animal life cycles from 1952 to 2000 in the Mediterranean region

The available data on climate over the past century indicate that the earth is warming. Important biological effects, including changes of plant and animal life cycle events, have already been reported. However, evidence of such effects is still scarce and has been mostly limited to northern latitudes. Here we provide the first long‐term (1952–2000) evidence of altered life cycles for some of the most abundant Mediterranean plants and birds, and one butterfly species. Average annual temperatures in the study area (Cardedeu, NE Spain) have increased by 1.4 °C over the observation period while precipitation remained unchanged. A conservative linear treatment of the data shows that leaves unfold on average 16 days earlier, leaves fall on average 13 days later, and plants flower on average 6 days earlier than in 1952. Fruiting occurs on average 9 days earlier than in 1974. Butterflies appear 11 days earlier, but spring migratory birds arrive 15 days later than in 1952. The stronger changes both in temperature and in phenophases timing occurred in the last 25 years. There are no significant relationships among changes in phenophases and the average date for each phenophase and species. There are not either significant differences among species with different Raunkiaer life‐forms or different origin (native, exotic or agricultural). However, there is a wide range of phenological alterations among the different species, which may alter their competitive ability, and thus, their ecology and conservation, and the structure and functioning of ecosystems. Moreover, the lengthening of plant growing season in this and other northern hemisphere regions may contribute to a global increase in biospheric activity.
Uncertainty of simulated groundwater recharge at different global warming levels: a global-scale multi-model ensemble study

Abstract. Billions of people rely on groundwater as being an accessible source of drinking water and for irrigation, especially in times of drought. Its importance will likely increase with a changing climate. It is still unclear, however, how climate change will impact groundwater systems globally and, thus, the availability of this vital resource. Groundwater recharge is an important indicator for groundwater availability, but it is a water flux that is difficult to estimate as uncertainties in the water balance accumulate, leading to possibly large errors in particular in dry regions. This study investigates uncertainties in groundwater recharge projections using a multi-model ensemble of eight global hydrological models (GHMs) that are driven by the bias-adjusted output of four global circulation models (GCMs). Pre-industrial and current groundwater recharge values are compared with recharge for different global warming (GW) levels as a result of three representative concentration pathways (RCPs). Results suggest that projected changes strongly vary among the different GHM–GCM combinations, and statistically significant changes are only computed for a few regions of the world. Statistically significant GWR increases are projected for northern Europe and some parts of the Arctic, East Africa, and India. Statistically significant decreases are simulated in southern Chile, parts of Brazil, central USA, the Mediterranean, and southeastern China. In some regions, reversals of groundwater recharge trends can be observed with global warming. Because most GHMs do not simulate the impact of changing atmospheric CO2 and climate on vegetation and, thus, evapotranspiration, we investigate how estimated changes in GWR are affected by the inclusion of these processes. In some regions, inclusion leads to differences in groundwater recharge changes of up to 100 mm per year. Most GHMs with active vegetation simulate less severe decreases in groundwater recharge than GHMs without active vegetation and, in some regions, even increases instead of decreases are simulated. However, in regions where GCMs predict decreases in precipitation and where groundwater availability is the most important, model agreement among GHMs with active vegetation is the lowest. Overall, large uncertainties in the model outcomes suggest that additional research on simulating groundwater processes in GHMs is necessary.
Habitat Characteristics of Raccoon Daytime Resting Sites in Southern Illinois

ABSTRACT Although much is known about raccoon (Procyon lotor) denning ecology, little information is available regarding habitat correlates to raccoon daytime resting site (DRS) selection at multiple spatial scales. We studied the influence of habitat factors on DRS selection of raccoons in the Mississippi River bottomlands of southern Illinois. During 2003–2005, 54 adult females were equipped with radiocollars and were tracked to 313 DRS. Using field measurements and remotely sensed data, 156 microhabitat (e.g., den height) and macrohabitat (e.g., forest patch size) variables were measured at: (1) breeding season DRS (1 Dec.–1 Mar.), (2) cub-rearing season DRS (15 Mar.–30 Jun.) and (3) control locations. Tree cavities represented 73% of DRS; the remaining 27% were more exposed DRS. A 5-variable multinomial logistic regression model incorporating tree circumference at breast height, den height, distance to nearest road, distance to nearest water and number of nearby dens was significant (P < 0.001) and correctly classified 71% of DRS and control locations. Thus, microhabitat variables, but not macrohabitat variables, were influential in the selection of DRS for raccoons on our study area. Our study elucidates the importance of microhabitat in the selection of raccoon DRS and provides additional insight into how raccoons use the landscape.