Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ardahan Üniversitesi İktisadi ve İdari Bilimler Fakültesi Dergisi

Blockchain technology becomes more and more important and offers great benefits to marketing. Blockchain technology fosters transparency, protects consumer data, increases trust, enables traceability of data, reduces transaction and investment costs, and provides personal products/services. However, there have been only a few implementations of blockchain technology in the field of marketing so far, because it is still not clear whether it will be the “next big thing” for companies' marketing departments or not. The objective of this study is to examine the potential advantages and barriers facing the implementation of blockchain technology in marketing. In this conceptual paper, it is asserted that blockchain technology can provide advantages to companies in their marketing activities, but also reveal the barriers during its adaptation. In this respect, this paper is expected to guide future research on the implementation of blockchain technology in marketing.
Surrogate-based optimization algorithm in application of design of ship dimensions

The design of ship main dimensions is a complex problem involving multiple disciplines and objectives. Due to the high subjectivity of conventional methods that only optimize through qualitative analysis and manual trial and error, they can’t quantitatively analyze accuracy. Therefore, in this paper, the surrogate model is used for regression analysis of the complex ship principal scale problem, and then the multi-objective evolutionary algorithm is used to optimize the feasible solution generated by the surrogate model. Firstly, the regression model of each optimization objective in the ship main scale problem is established. In order to ensure the accuracy of the Surrogate model, the Root-mean-square deviation and correlation coefficient of the training set and the test set should be taken as the measurement indicators. Then, based on pareto dominance rule, the regression values generated by the surrogate model are selected. And through genetic operations such as mutation and crossover, a large number of new individuals are generated, and the outstanding individuals are screened based on elite retention strategies. Finally, experiments show that the proposed method is superior to the algorithm without surrogate model in accuracy and efficiency.
“That’s How You Know.”: Exploring Young Children’s Roles in “That’s How You Know.”: Exploring Young Children’s Roles in Meaning Construction Meaning Construction

Within the classroom, literacy learning plays a central role in what children are asked to adopt to be full functioning members of the culture. Children are asked to negotiate the signs of texts, as well as those of the classroom and larger society. The process of learning to read and write, needless to say, is a complex one. Research in reading has shown that to teach children how to participate in this culture successfully, teachers must build upon what children do well in a meaningful context (Calkins, 1980; Wray, 1997) as opposed to the teaching of skills and items in isolation (Adams, 1990; Chall, 1967; Snow, Burns, & Griffin, 1998). An examination of the roles of intersubjectivity and intertextuality by studies such as this one, provides an opportunity to better define the process young children undertake as they learn to construct meanings for novel texts.
Two novel variants in the 3’UTR of the gene in familial breast and/or ovarian cancer

For the majority of breast and/or ovarian cancer patients tested for BRCA1/2 genes, mutation screening of the coding regions remains negative. MicroRNAs which negatively regulate mRNA translation by binding to 3’ untranslated region (3’UTR) are implicated in cancer. Genetic changes in the 3’UTR of several genes were reported to be associated with higher susceptibility to particular tumor types. The aim of the present study was to analyze the BRCA1 3’UTR in patients tested negative for BRCA1 / 2 deleterious mutations, in order to find variants implicated in the decrease of BRCA1 expression through modification of miRNA binding. Genotyping analyses were performed on genomic DNA of 70 BRCA negatives index cases, selected among patients with breast or ovarian cancer, less than 50 years old, with a strong family history. The co-occurrence of the identified variants with deleterious BRCA1 mutations was then determined in a control population of 210 patients. A luciferase gene reporter assay was used to investigate the impact of the variants on the BRCA1 gene expression. Two novel variants, c. *750A>G and c. *1286C>A, were identified in the 3’UTR of BRCA1 gene, in two patients. The former was found three times in the control population, whereas the latter was absent. The used functional assay did not reveal any effect on the luciferase expression. This study reveals a weak genomic variability in the 3’UTR of the BRCA1 gene. All together, the results led us to classify the variant c. *750A>G as probably neutral, the variant c. *1286C>A remaining unclassified.
UvA-DARE (Digital Academic Developing and analysing novel tools to study endogenous WNT signalling in mice

Cell growth and differentiation are often driven by subtle changes in gene expression. Many challenges still exist in detecting these changes, particularly in the context of a complex, developing tissue. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) allows relatively high throughput evaluation of multiple genes and developmental time points. Proper quantification of gene expression levels by qRT-PCR requires normalization to one or more reference genes. Traditionally, these genes have been selected based on their presumed “housekeeping” function, with the implicit assumption that they are stably expressed over the entire experimental set. However, this is rarely tested empirically. Here we describe the identification of novel reference genes for the mouse mammary gland based on their stable expression in published microarray datasets. We compared eight novel candidate reference genes ( Arpc3, Clock, Ctbp1, Phf7, Prdx1, Sugp2, Taf11 and Usp7) to eight traditional ones ( 18S, Actb, Gapdh , Hmbs , Hprt , Rpl13a , Sdha and Tbp ) and analysed all genes for stable expression in the mouse mammary gland from pre-puberty to adulthood using four different algorithms (GeNorm, DeltaCt, BestKeeper and NormFinder). Prdx1, Phf7 and Ctbp1 were validated as novel and reliable, tissue-specific reference genes that outperform traditional reference genes in qRT-PCR studies of postnatal mammary gland development. Prdx1 , Phf7 and Ctbp1 as novel, tissue-specific reference genes for qRT-PCR studies of the postnatal mouse mammary gland, and validated that this reference gene set is suitable for detecting subtle gene expression changes that occur during the pre-pubertal, pubertal and adult stages.
Water Contamination and Health: Integration of Exposure Assessment, Toxicology, and Risk Assessment

Part 1 Water Contaminants - Monitoring, Treatment, and Health Impact: A Retrospective on Drinking Water. Chemicals in California Drinking Water - Source of Contamination, Risk Assessment and Drinking Water Standards. Reactions of Drinking Water Contaminants with Aqueous Chlorine and Monochloramine. Part 2 Exposure Assessment of Water Contaminants - Specific Dosimetry on Radon and Chloroform: Benefit of Deriving Drinking Water Standards Based on Comprehensive Assessments of Exposure. Chloroform Exposure and the Body Burden Associated with Swimming in Chlorinated Pools. Percutaneous Absorpton of Chemicals from Water Simulating Swimming and Bathing and from Vapour Exposure. A Comparison of Two Pathways to Human for Radon from Drinking Water - Inhalation and Ingestion. Part 3 Methodology Development and Exposure Assessment and Dose Estimates: Use of Pharmacokinetic Models to Estimate Internal Dose from Exposure. Pharmacokinetic Interactions of Drinking-Water Contaminants. Need for Physiologically-Based Toxicokinetic Models in Estimating Target Organ Dosage Following Oral Ingestion of Cadmuim. Estimating Dermal and Inhalation Exposure to Volatile Chemicals in Domestic Water. Percutaneous Absorption of Dilute Aqueous Chlorinated Organic Solvents in the Hairless Guinea Pig. Predictive Model for Dermal Exposure Assessment. Part 4 Human Health Risk Assessment and Water Contaminants: Estimating Human Health Risks for Trichloroethylene, a Water Contaminant, Using Physiological Models. Risk Assessment Based on Data from the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory. Empirical Comparisons of Carcinogen Potencies Across Species and Their Bearing on Appropriate Scaling of Doses for Risk Assessment. Modelling Risks from Water Contaminants - The Application of Concentration-Response Models. Part 5 Epidemiological Evaluation of Water Contaminants and Toxicological End Points. (Part contents).
The sustainability potential of traditional architecture in the Arab world : with reference to domestic buildings in the UAE

During the last two or three decades, when so much publicity was given to our doubtful future on this planet, thinking of nature and concern about environment became an important issue all over the world. Rapid developments in different fields: industry, transportation, communication, and construction, caused radical environmental changes. This affected atmosphere components and the vegetation cover, which may change the balance of environment causing natural resources depletion. Architecture plays an important role in this earth environmental crisis due to the great amount of consumed resources and waste and emissions released. Sustainable development, based on the definition of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), is to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (WCED, 1987, P.9). This definition refers to the significance of changing the way we live and build to respect environment through efficient use of natural and renewable resources without damaging the nature or affecting the environment. In the past, when the building envelope was the main element man used to protect himself from a harsh climate, he had to depend on passive energy and natural resources, such as sun, wind and earth. Passive energy involves the use of natural energy sources for environmental, healthy, and economical reasons in our buildings. Traditional architecture, in the Arab world, represents a living witness for the suitability of this architecture to the local environment, which incorporated the essence of sustainable architecture. This research is concerned on identifying the sustainability potential inherent within one type of traditional architecture: the house, where the family spends most of its time for living and doing private activities. The house was the oasis of the family in the middle of the hot desert climate that characterizes most of the Arab world region. The accommodation of the house with the ambient environment was achieved using natural resources in sustainable approaches. There was an efficient interaction between architecture and natural resources as sun, wind, high seasonal & daily temperature fluctuation, site topography, available building materials and cultural values.
Deep characterization of the protein lysine acetylation in human gut microbiome and its alterations in patients with Crohn’s disease

Metagenomic and metaproteomic approaches have been used to study the composition and functions of the microbiota. However, no studies have examined post-translational modifications (PTM) on human microbiome proteins at the metaproteome level, and it remains unknown whether the microbial PTM is altered or not in patient microbiome. Herein we used anti-acetyl-lysine (Kac) antibody enrichment strategy and mass spectrometry to characterize the protein lysine acetylation in human microbiome, which successfully identified 35,200 Kac peptides corresponding to 31,821 Kac sites from the microbial or host proteins in human gut microbiome samples. The gut microbial proteins exhibited Kac motifs that were distinct from those of human proteins. Functional analysis showed that microbial Kac proteins were significantly enriched in energy production and abundant in enzymes related to transferases and oxidoreductases. Applying to the analysis of pediatric Crohn’s disease (CD) patient microbiome identified 52 host and 136 microbial protein Kac sites that were differentially abundant in CD versus controls. Interestingly, most of the decreased Kac sites in CD were derived from Firmicutes and most of the increased sites were derived from Bacteroidetes. Forty-six out of the 52 differentially abundant human protein Kac sites were increased in CD patients, including those on calprotectin, lactotransferrin and immunoglobulins. Taken together, this study provides an efficient approach to study the lysine acetylation in microbiome and revealed taxon-specific alterations in the lysine acetylome as well as changes in host protein acetylation levels in intestinal samples during the on-set of disease in CD patients.
The Central Limit Theorem: Generalization, Localization, and Application to Random Walks

In the following paper, we examine three forms of the central limit theorem: the classical version, the generalized version with the finite variance assumption weakened, and the discrete localized version. We also apply the localized version to random walks to prove recurrence in dimensions of 2 or less and transience in dimensions of 3 or more. Definition 1.1 We define (Ω,F , P ) to be a probability space, where Ω is a sample space, P is a probability measure (i.e. P (Ω) = 1), and F is the event space (defined to be the σ-algebra of some P -measurable sets of Ω). In the following section, we will take Ω to be the open interval (0, 1), F to be the Borel sets (smallest σ-algebra containing the open intervals of (0, 1)), and P to be the Lebesgue measure. Definition 1.2 A real valued function X defined on Ω is said to be a random variable if for every Borel set B ⊆ R we have
Approximating Minimum Cost Connectivity Problems via Uncrossable Bifamilies and Spider-Cover Decompositions

We give approximation algorithms for the {\sf \footnotesize Gene\-ralized Steiner Network} ({\sf \small GSN}) problem. The input consists of a graph $G=(V, E)$ with edge/node costs, a node subset $S \subseteq V$, and connectivity requirements $\{r(s, t):s, t \in T \subseteq V\}$. The goal is to find a minimum cost subgraph $H$ that for all $s, t \in T$contains $r(s, t)$ pairwise edge-disjoint $st$-paths so that no two of them have a node in $S-\{s, t\}$ in common. Three extensively studied particular cases are: {\sf \footnotesize Edge-GSN} ($S=\emptyset$), {\sf \footnotesize Node-GSN} ($S=V$), and {\sf \footnotesize Element-GSN} ($r(s, t)=0$ whenever $s \in S$ or $t \in S$). Let $k=\max_{s, t \in T} r(s, t)$. In {\sf \footnotesize Rooted GSN} there is $s \in T$ so that $r(u, t)=0$ for all $u \neq s$, and in the {\sf \footnotesize Subset {\normalsize $k$}-Connected Subgraph} problem $r(s, t)=k$ for all $s, t \in T$. For edge costs, our ratios are $O(k^2)$ for {\sf \footnotesize Rooted GSN} and $O(k^2 \log k)$ for {\sf \footnotesize Subset {\normalsize $k$}-Connected Subgraph}. This improves the previous ratio $O(k^2 \log n)$ and settles the approximability of these problems to a constant for bounded $k$. For node-cost, our ratios are: \begin{itemize}\item$O(k \log |T|)$ \ for {\sf \footnotesize Element-GSN}, matching the best known ratio for {\sf \footnotesize Edge-GSN}. \item$O(k^2 \log |T|)$ for {\sf \footnotesize Rooted GSN} and $O(k^3 \log |T|)$ for {\sf \footnotesize Subset {\normalsize $k$}-Connected Subgraph}, improving the ratio $O(k^8 \log^2 |T|)$. \item$O(k^4 \log^2 |T|)$ for {\sf \footnotesize GSN}; this is the first non-trivial approximation algorithm for the problem. \end{itemize}
The Lunar Crisium Basin: Geology, Rings, and Deposits

The Crisium basin is on the eastern edge of the lunar near side north of Mare Fecunditatis and southeast of Mare Serenitatis. The basin impact appears to have occurred within typical highlands, although evidence exists that mare volcanism was active in this region prior to and immediately after the impact [I]. The basin interior is mare-flooded, obscuring relations for the basin floor and causing controversy regarding the true topographic rim of the basin [2,3].
Solving RCPSP/max by Lazy Clause Generation

We present a generic exact method for minimizing the project duration of the resource-constrained project scheduling problem with generalized precedence relations ( Rcpsp /max). This is a very general scheduling model with applications areas such as project management and production planning. Our method uses lazy clause generation, i.e. , a hybrid of ﬁnite domain and Boolean satisﬁability solving, in order to apply no-good learning and conﬂict-driven search to the solution generation. Our experiments show the beneﬁt of lazy clause generation for ﬁnding an optimal solution and proving its optimality in comparison to other state-of-the-art exact and non-exact methods. In comparison to other methods, our method is able to ﬁnd better solutions faster on the Rcpsp /max benchmarks. Indeed our method closes 573 open problem instances and generates better solutions in most of the remaining instances. Surprisingly, although ours is an exact method, it out-performs the published non-exact methods on these benchmarks in terms of the quality of solutions.
3D Spectral Element Method Simulations of the Seismic Response in the Caracas Basin

- This paper presents the first results of 3D simulations of the seismic response in the Caracas basin using the spectral element method. The seismic response of the basin is obtained by the excitation of an incident plane wave which is efficiently implemented via its traction and velocity at the rock sediments interface. A generalized filtering perfectly matched layer allows for a better absorption of surface waves in elongated basins. Our simulations clearly show combined effects from the topography and the basin, with diffracted waves coming from the mountains, and low frequency energy trapped in the deepest part of the basin. Spectral ratio exhibits focalization and 3D amplification effects.
A Study on the Causes of Work Stress among Malaysia Civil Defense Force (MCDF) Personnel

Life in the modern world today is full of frustrations, demands and deadlines as stress has become a norm for many people. Since the harsh episode of the pandemic, stress is the normal physical response that disturbs our balance. Many experienced work-related ill health cases due to work-related stress, depression and anxiety. Therefore, work stress is inevitable. Work stress is increasing in Malaysia, especially since the pandemic and it continues to pose a major global health threat until now. Alarmingly, stress has become a modern epidemic and has influenced poor public health. Many past researches reviewed the prevalence of occupational stress and the causes of its prediction among the Malaysian population and found many occupational stress severe incidents. The Malaysian government mobilized the Malaysia Civil Defense Force (MCDF) for several responsibilities to save lives and properties. Based on the nature of MCDF work, stress is a major issue. There are many factors of stress; operational, organizational and lifestyle to name a few. Organizational stress highlights employees’ attachment to the organization, operational stress highlights employees' experience doing the work, and lifestyle stress highlights individual ways of living. Therefore, the researchers attempt to examine the relationships between operational, organizational and lifestyle factors and the most influencing factor that may cause stress among a population of 180 personnel of MCDF, while carrying out their work assignments in Klang Valley.
How to Influence Tourists Visiting Protected Areas to Make Choices that Make a Difference for Climate Change

How to InfluenCe tourIStS vISItIng ProteCteD areaS to Make CHoICeS tHat Make a DIfferenCe for ClIMate CHange B. Weiler1, T. Brown2, J. Curtis1 1Monash University, Berwick, VIC, Australia 2Griffith University, Brisbane, QLD, Australia Despite scientists attributing much of climate change to human behaviour, and that influencing human behaviour is clearly a key strategy for slowing climate change, surprisingly little research effort is being expended on how to foster appropriate human behaviour in the global endeavour to secure a sustainable future. This is evident in both protected area management and tourism management, which are fields that are rightly concerned with managing the impacts of climate change, but so far have put few resources toward using persuasive communication (as opposed to more restrictive direct management measures) to influence visitor behaviour. In particular, the use of research underpinned by theories of behaviour change and communication has been very limited (Ballantyne & Hughes, 2006; Beeton, Weiler, & Ham, 2005; Marion & Reid, 2007; McKenzie-Mohr, 2000).
Ellagic acid effects on disease severity, levels of cytokines and T-bet, RORγt, and GATA3 genes expression in multiple sclerosis patients: a multicentral-triple blind randomized clinical trial

Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease. Ellagic acid is a natural polyphenol and affects the fate of neurons through its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The present study aimed to investigate ellagic acid effects on disease severity, the expression of involved genes in the pathogenesis of MS, and the levels of related cytokines. Methods The present study was a triple-blind clinical trial. Eligible patients were randomly assigned to two groups: Ellagic acid (25 subjects) for 12 weeks, receiving 180 mg of Ellagic acid (Axenic, Australia) and the control group (25 subjects) receiving a placebo, before the main meals. Before and after the study, the data including general information, foods intake, physical activity, anthropometric data, expanded disability status scale (EDSS), general health questionnaire (GHQ) and pain rating index (PRI), fatigue severity scale (FSS) were assessed, as well as serum levels of interferon-gamma (IFNγ), interleukin-17 (IL-17), interleukin-4 (IL-4) and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β), nitric-oxide (NO) using enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) method and expression of T-box transcription factor (Tbet), GATA Binding Protein 3 (GATA3), retinoic acid-related orphan receptor-γt (RORγt) and Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) genes were determined using Real-Time Quantitative Reverse Transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) method. Findings Ellagic acid supplementation led to a reduction in IFNγ, IL-17, NO and increased IL-4 in the ellagic acid group, however in the placebo group no such changes were observed (−24.52 ± 3.79 vs. -0.05 ± 0.02, p < 0.01; −5.37 ± 0.92 vs. 2.03 ± 1.03, p < 0.01; −18.03 ± 1.02 vs. -0.06 ± 0.05, p < 0.01, 14.69 ± 0.47 vs. -0.09 ± 0.14, p < 0.01, respectively). Ellagic acid supplementation had no effect on TGF-β in any of the study groups (p > 0.05). Also, the Tbet and RORγt genes expression decreased, and the GATA3 gene expression in the group receiving ellagic acid compared to control group significantly increased (0.52 ± 0.29 vs. 1.51 ± 0.18, p < 0.01, 0.49 ± 0.18 vs. 1.38 ± 0.14, p < 0.01, 1.71 ± 0.39 vs. 0.27 ± 0.10, p < 0.01). Also, ellagic acid supplementation led to significant decrease in EDSS, FSS and GHQ scores (p < 0.05), and no significant changes observed in PRI score (p > 0.05). Conclusion Ellagic acid supplementation can improve the health status of MS patients by reduction of the inflammatory cytokines and Tbet and RORγt gene expression, and increment of anti-inflammatory cytokines and GATA3 gene expression. Clinical trial registration: (https://en.irct.ir/trial/53020), IRCT20120415009472N22.