Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The effect of prior knowledge and academic performance on success in first-year university accounting

It has become common practice in South African universities not to require students to have completed accounting at secondary school level as a prerequisite to enrollment for a diploma or degree in accounting and/or business. The primary objective of this study is an analysis of the effect of a prior knowledge of accounting at secondary school level on the success rate of first-year accounting students. The study also analyses whether academic performance in accounting and mathematics at secondary school is a success factor in first-year accounting and the influence on having mathematical literacy as a subject at secondary school level on the success rate of first year accounting students.
Más que palabras: Hacia una mirada social

Ponemos un especial interes en expresarnos con palabras, pero olvidamos que, en ocasiones, nuestras emociones, nuestra cara e incluso una simple mirada pueden ser mas precisas que la mas detallada de las explicaciones. Recientes investigaciones van mas alla, y senalan que nuestras preferencias, deseos y prejuicios pueden estar influidos por la mirada y las expresiones faciales emocionales que observamos en los demas.
Designing domain-specific hums architectures: an automated approach

The health usage and monitoring systems (HUMS) automation system automates the design of HUMS architectures. The automated design process involves selection of solutions from a large space of designs as well as pure synthesis of designs. Hence the whole objective is to efficiently search for or synthesize designs or parts of designs in the database and to integrate them to form the entire system design. The automation system adopts two approaches in order to produce the designs: (a) Bottom-up approach and (b) Top down approach. Both the approaches are endowed with a suite of quantitative and qualitative techniques that enable a) the selection of matching component instances, b) the determination of design parameters, c) the evaluation of candidate designs at component-level and at system-level, d) the performance of cost-benefit analyses, e) the performance of trade-off analyses, etc. In short, the automation system attempts to capitalize on the knowledge developed from years of experience in engineering, system design and operation of the HUMS systems in order to economically produce the most optimal and domain-specific designs.
Published by CSIRO PUBLISHING for CSIRO Australia and the Australian Academy of Science Initial effects of rabbit haemorrhagic disease on free-living rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) populations in central-western New South Wales

Quarterly spotlight counts of rabbits were conducted at three sites in central-western New South Wales. These counts commenced two years before the arrival of rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) in the winter of 1996. The existing data on quarterly rates of change in rabbit abundance for the three populations provided a unique opportunity to study the effects of RHD on rabbit demography. Prior to the arrival of RHD, all three populations underwent phases of sequential increase and decrease in each year. On the basis of these patterns, RHD had a variable influence on the demography of the three rabbit populations. In 199697, the density of two populations declined over an expected period of increase, while at the third site the density increased as expected from pre-RHD patterns. Twelve months after their failure to generate expected positive rates of increase the two affected populations had returned to the normal sequence of increases and decreases in density although still at comparatively low numbers.
CERN PSB BEAM TESTS OF CNAO SYNCHROTRON'S DIGITAL LLRF

The Italian National Centre for Oncological hAdrontherapy (CNAO), in its final construction phase, uses proton and carbon ion beams to treat patients affected by solid tumours. At the heart of CNAO is a 78meter circumference synchrotron that accelerates particles to up to 400 MeV/u. The synchrotron relies on a digital LLRF system based upon Digital Signal Processors (DSPs) and Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). This system implements cavity servoing and beam control capabilities, such as phase and radial loops. Beam tests of the CNAO synchrotron LLRF system were carried out at CERN’s Proton Synchrotron Booster (PSB) in autumn 2007, to verify the combined DSP/FPGA architecture and the beam control capabilities. For this, a prototype version of CNAO’s LLRF system was adapted to the PSB requirements. This paper outlines the prototype system layout and describes the tests carried out and their results. In particular, system architecture and beam control capabilities were successfully proven by comparison with the PSB operational beam control system and with the help of several existing beam diagnostic systems.
A detection of moving objects under auto adapted background

Intelligent video frequency surveillance not only observes the moving objects of the watched scene in spot,such as human and vehicle etc.,but also analyzes and describes their action.In the digital video supervisory system,it is an important function that captures image sequence from video-stream and detects the moving objects in real time based on image sequence.Use the dectection of moving objects based on the auto-adapted background subtractive method and draw the features with the mathematics morphology method,which has effectively raised the dectecting level because of strengthening the edge examination technology.
Gender-specific impact of age diversity on the performance of small teams: empirical evidence from professional biathlon relays

ABSTRACT Research question A growing strand of studies either analyzes the effects of age or gender diversity on team performance. We contribute to this literature by analyzing whether there is a gender-specific impact of age diversity on team performance. Based on the categorization-elaboration model, we first predict that age diversity in teams leads to better team performance. Second, we hypothesize that gender-mixed teams with age diversity perform significantly worse than single-sex teams with age diversity. Research methods Our research question is analyzed for biathlon relays of the seasons 2009/10–2016/17. We apply pooled OLS, Tobit and random effects regressions to explain the relay's shooting precision by the relay's age diversity and the gender composition including several controls. Results and findings The empirical analysis for male, female and gender-mixed professional biathlon relays supports our first hypothesis. Moreover, gender-mixed teams significantly outperform all-female teams. Implications Implications of this finding are that sport officials and coaches of professional athletes, should be aware of the positive effect of age diversity on team performance but consider that this link might depend on the gender composition of the respective team.
COMPETENCIAS INTERCULTURALES EN LA SOCIEDAD DIGITAL DEL CONOCIMIENTO

El articulo recopila los resultados parciales de una investigacion con relacion al desarrollo de habilidades linguisticas y competencias interculturales. Proporciona en tres etapas una mirada hacia el desarrollo y utilizacion de las competencias digitales por parte de los estudiantes del programa de Lenguas Modernas de la ECCI. Mediante la indagacion de antecedentes y estudios realizados en otros contextos, se vinculan las dos tematicas centrales de la investigacion: las competencias digitales y las competencias interculturales. Se recurrio a la implementacion de instrumentos de recoleccion de datos que permitieran acercarse a la poblacion seleccionada para identificar las competencias claves en cuanto a la gestion compleja del conocimiento, en relacion con las tecnologias y el desarrollo intercultural de los estudiantes de lenguas modernas. Finalmente, a traves de una herramienta digital (video-juego), se ausculto la integracion de competencias en TIC en los los planes de estudios, de tal manera que se pudiera potenciar el desarrollo del lenguaje a traves de una vivencia intercultural.
Aviation induced diurnal North Atlantic cirrus cover cycle

Aviation induced cirrus (AIC) cover is identified from mean diurnal cycles of cirrus cover and air traffic density in the North Atlantic flight corridor. Traffic data for this region show an aviation “fingerprint” with two maxima during morning eastbound and afternoon westbound traffic. The same aviation fingerprint is found in cirrus cover. Cycle differences between west and east domain parts allow separating between aviation and natural diurnal changes. Cirrus cover is derived from 8 years of Meteosat infrared data. Linear contrail cover is estimated from the same data. Background cirrus without aviation impact is estimated from cirrus observations over the South Atlantic and from numerical weather prediction forecast. The cirrus cover cycle is well approximated by linear response to traffic density with fitted delay times of 2.3–4.1 h, implying AIC cover of 1–2%, more than expected from recent models.
Capturing Changes in HIV-Infected Breastfeeding Mothers’ Cognitive Processes from Before Delivery to 5 Months Postpartum: An Application of the Pile-Sorting Technique in Haiti

Abstract Background The cognitive processes involved in individuals’ perceptions and prioritization of information, and how these change with experience or exposure to interventions, are rarely examined in the evaluation of nutrition interventions. Exclusive breastfeeding counseling is a common infant and young-child feeding intervention and is used to promote HIV-free survival in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission programs. However, it is often designed without adequate attention to the changes in mothers’ perceptions over the course of their early breastfeeding experiences. Objective The aim of this study was to identify HIV-infected breastfeeding mothers’ cognitive structure (their organization of messages and ideas) of infant feeding messages and to characterize whether their cognitive organization of infant feeding messages changed from pregnancy through the first 5 mo postpartum. Methods With the use of semistructured interviews and the cognitive mapping technique of pile sorting, we interviewed 30 HIV-infected breastfeeding mothers in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. We asked them to sort and rate 18 infant feeding messages 3 times (during pregnancy, 0- to 1-mo postpartum, and 3- to 5-mo postpartum). We analyzed their responses by using multidimensional scaling, property fitting, and partition analyses. Results At all 3 visits, we found consistency in women's cognitive mapping of messages. For example, mothers consistently differentiated messages pertinent for exclusive breastfeeding compared with those that pertained to other practices. However, subtle variations in mothers’ cognition over time were also evident, particularly at 0- to 1-mo postpartum, when message proximity was tightly clustered compared with the earlier and later periods. Conclusions We conclude that mothers share a common cognitive organization of infant feeding messages and that this organization changes over time. Attention to variations in cognition can support context-sensitive, patient-centered counseling by practitioners and improve the effectiveness of nutrition interventions. Pile sorting is an efficient, systematic technique to examine cognitive processes related to health and nutrition.
Existence of traveling wave solutions for Ginzburg-Landau-type problems in infinite cylinder

We study a class of systems of reaction-diffusion equations in infinite cylinders. These systems of equations arise within the context of Ginzburg-Landau theories and describe the kinetics of phase transformation in second-order or weakly first-order phase transitions with non-conserved order parameter. We use a novel variational characterization to study existence of traveling wave solutions under very general assumptions on the nonlinearities. These solutions are a special class of the traveling wave solutions which are characterized by a fast exponential decay in the direction of propagation. Our main result is a simple verifiable criterion for existence of these traveling waves. We also prove boundedness, regularity, and some other properties of the obtained solutions, as well as several sufficient conditions for existence or nonexistence of such traveling waves, and give rigorous upper and lower bounds for their speed. In addition, we prove that the speed of the obtained solutions gives a sharp upper bound for the propagation speed of a class of disturbances which are initially sufficiently localized. We give a sample application of our results using a computer-assisted approach.
Scalable Gaussian Process Inference with Finite-data Mean and Variance Guarantees

Gaussian processes (GPs) offer a flexible class of priors for nonparametric Bayesian regression, but popular GP posterior inference methods are typically prohibitively slow or lack desirable finite-data guarantees on quality. We develop an approach to scalable approximate GP regression with finite-data guarantees on the accuracy of pointwise posterior mean and variance estimates. Our main contribution is a novel objective for approximate inference in the nonparametric setting: the preconditioned Fisher (pF) divergence. We show that unlike the Kullback--Leibler divergence (used in variational inference), the pF divergence bounds the 2-Wasserstein distance, which in turn provides tight bounds the pointwise difference of the mean and variance functions. We demonstrate that, for sparse GP likelihood approximations, we can minimize the pF divergence efficiently. Our experiments show that optimizing the pF divergence has the same computational requirements as variational sparse GPs while providing comparable empirical performance--in addition to our novel finite-data quality guarantees.
A new Lower Cretaceous ichthyosaur from Russia reveals skull shape conservatism within Ophthalmosaurinae

Abstract Ophthalmosaurinae is a recently recognized clade of derived ichthyosaurs (marine reptiles) ranging from the Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) to the late Albian (late Early Cretaceous). Whereas the Middle–Late Jurassic ophthalmosaurine Ophthalmosaurus is often regarded as a hyperspecialized deep diver, very little is known about the anatomy, evolutionary history and ecology of Cretaceous ophthalmosaurines because of the scarcity of the fossils and the lack of well-preserved skull material. Here, we describe the skull of a new basal ophthalmosaurine ichthyosaur, Leninia stellans gen. et sp. nov., from the lower Aptian of western Russia, and compare the ocular characteristics of ophthalmosaurids. Leninia is recovered as a basal ophthalmosaurine; it possesses unique traits such as a star-shaped frontal–parietal suture as well as features previously thought to be unique to Ophthalmosaurus such as a supratemporal–stapes contact. A large sclerotic aperture – significantly larger than in platypterygiine ophthalmosaurids and similar to that of the largest-eyed modern animals (giant and colossal squids) – and reduced dentition appear widespread within ophthalmosaurines. This conservatism suggests ophthalmosaurine ophthalmosaurids occupied similar ecological niche(s) throughout their long evolutionary history.
Zumba Fitness and Women's Cardiovascular Health: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW.

PURPOSE Zumba fitness (ZF) is a well-known exercise program involving dance and fitness. Despite its increasing popularity, no analysis has been conducted on studies focusing on the cardiovascular (CV) profile of women who performed this activity. The aim of this systematic review is to provide insights into the impact of ZF on women's CV health. METHODS Five clinical databases were searched. To be included, the articles had to include (1) women with or without CV risk factors (CVRF) and (2) CV-related outcomes resulting from a ZF program. RESULTS Ten studies (322 women; 181 healthy, 141 with CVRF) were included. In healthy women, low absolute effect sizes for maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max), anthropometric and body composition profile after 8 and 12 wk of ZF were found compared with nonparticipants. Moderate to large absolute effect sizes were recorded for VO2max and body composition following 40 wk of ZF. Findings proved promising but less consistent for ZF studies involving women with CVRF due to the absence of control groups. CONCLUSIONS Data describe ZF as feasible for healthy women and a promising fitness option for those with CVRF. Because of the low quality of the studies on women with CVRF and the overall small sample size along with discrepancies such as the average length of the studies on healthy women, cautious interpretation of the findings is recommended. Further investigations with a standardized design are needed to verify whether ZF may be considered as an alternative fitness option in primary prevention of CV disease in women.
Big Data Analytics for Sophisticated Attack Detection

The number and complexity of cyber-attacks has been increasing steadily in recent years. The major players in today’s cyber conflicts are well organized and heavily funded teams with specific goals and objectives, some of which are working under a state umbrella. Adversaries are targeting the communication and information systems of government, military and industrial organizations and are willing to use large amounts of money, time and expertise to reach their goals. It is important to understand the problems and limitations that current technologies face against advanced persistent threats (APT) and the possible benefits that big data analytics could provide.
Phenotypic typing and epidemiological survey of antifungal resistance of Candida species detected in clinical samples of Italian patients in a 17 months' period.

Introduction Yeast pathogens are emerging agents of nosocomial as well as community-acquired infections and their rapid and accurate identification is crucial for a better management of high-risk patients and for an adequate treatment. Methods We performed a retrospective review of 156 yeast isolates collected during a 17 months' period of regular clinical practice at the Microbiology Department of San Camillo Hospital in Treviso, Italy and analyzed by the traditional culture-based method combined with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). Results Out of all the samples collected MALDI-TOF MS was able to characterize with a MT score ≥1.7 (accurate result at species level) 12 different yeast and yeast-like species from 140 samples: Candida albicans (63.7%), Candida glabrata (13.6%), Saccharomyces cerevisiae (6.5%), Candida parapsilosis (5.7%), Candida tropicalis (2.1%), Candida pararugosa (2.1%), Candida guilliermondii (2.1%), Candida kefyr (1.4%), Candida lusitaniae (0.7%), Candida palmioleophila (0.7%), Geotrichum silvicola (0.7%), Rhodotorula mucilaginosa (0.7%). Susceptibility testing toward seven common antifungal agents showed a characteristic MIC distribution of C. albicans isolates for echinocandins: particularly we noticed that 72% and 46% of C. albicans showed an MIC value close to clinical breakpoint as defined by EUCAST, respectively for anidulafungin and micafungin. Conclusion Accurate identification of microorganisms and the study of their antifungal susceptibility allow to understand the epidemiology of a particular area, permitting the choice of the most appropriate early antifungal treatment.
The aerobic exercise training in hypertension: a matter of baking ingredients.

E xercise training is worldwide considered pivotal for maintaining and restoring general population health. Its potential beneficial effects touch several domains: metabolic, haemodynamic, psychological, and social. The European guidelines for hypertension recommend physical activity among the nonpharmacological interventions to manage ‘all patients with hypertension’ [1], and the harder effort is advocated in order to fight against sedentary living. In the domain of the exercise training, there are nonetheless many features to be considered. Indeed, haemodynamic modifications linked to exercise strictly depend on the type and the duration of the effort as well as the background of the individual who is going to be trained (i.e. age, sex, hypertensive or not, previously trained, or sedentary . . .). In literature, since several years, many attempts have been made to investigate the haemodynamic response to different exercise-training programs, with not always coherent conclusions. In 1987, Douglas et al. [2] reported on the effect of prolonged and high-intensity exercise (triathlon) on left ventricular function and found that immediately after the competition, the athletes presented reduced fractional shortening, driven by altered contractility and preload. These alterations recovered 1 day after the exercise, suggesting cardiac ‘fatigue. ’ Similarly, 20 years later, Aslani et al. [3] demonstrated that the Ranger training program (consisting in 8 weeks of exhaustive exercise) was associated with impaired left ventricular function. As such, from the available data, it appears that high-intensity exercise is acutely and chronically associated with impaired haemodynamics. In addition, even aerobic exercise, when extremely vigorous like the marathon, is chronically associated with increased arterial stiffness [4]. Concerning aerobic exercise, there are no univocal data about its final effect on haemodynamics, also because of a
Automated identification of distinct events in an assembly process using tracking of body postures

An ergonomic assembly process is safer for operators and is more efficient in quality, time, cost and productivity. An assembly process is carried out in a series of distinct events. Ergonomic assessment of an assembly process therefore involves identification of the distinct events within the process and assessment of difficulty in carrying out each event, so that the process can be improved in an event-specific manner. So far, such assessment of assembly is carried out using video by identifying key frames manually. Manual identification of key frames consumes more time. To resolve this drawback, a novel approach has been proposed for tracking the body segments using electromagnetic trackers. It is done automatically in real time. Then, a data smoothening method is used for analysing automatically the tracked data to identify distinct events in an assembly process. An experiment in a laboratory setting is used in this study to test the following hypothesis: ‘An event is characterized by gross movements at its beginning and its end’. This hypothesis encapsulates the essence of the signature in postural data, which is used by the proposed method for identifying distinct events within an assembly; the tracked data were used to identify this signature automatically from the trackers and the tracked data set with a threshold of movement for each body segment; using this threshold, gross motions and thereby starts and ends of distinct events can be identified. The method of identifying events was based on a reach experiment; thus, the variation of torso angle was studied in this work. The result of the study indicates that this method can be applied easily in detecting events in an assembly. Performance of the proposed method is compared with the traditional method and it is observed that the proposed approach outperforms traditional method in terms of time and accuracy.