Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ethnobiology and conservation: Why do we need a new journal?

The scientific output in ethnobiology is growing worldwide, particularly in Latin America. This growth has prompted an obvious question: is the quality of these publications growing at the same rate? Assessing the quality of scientific production is not an easy task, although the worldwide adoption of metrics, such as Impact Factor, has become very common (Albuquerque 2010). In the case of impact factor specifically, there is increasing criticism regarding its use to assess the quality of the output from a researcher or institution as a factor in career advancement or to grant research funds. Bruce Alberts (2013), in a recent editorial in Science, rekindled the discussion over the current misuse of the impact factor as a metric. Independent of any discussion of the proper tools to evaluate scientific production, an evaluation of the progress made by a given science is necessary to determine how to proceed. In 2009, we provided an overview of the problems that occur specifically in the field of ethnobotany (Albuquerque and Hanazaki 2009; see also Albuquerque et al. 2011), and we noted some of the misconceptions and suggest solutions for them. From a broader perspective, it is clear that the difficulties of producing interesting articles extend to the entire field of ethnobiology. Now, we aim to propose some suggestions for ethnobiology base in our ideas (see Albuquerque and Hanazaki 2009).
An Exploration of Hospitality Management Competencies in Turkey through Content Analysis of the Job Ads

This paper reports on the hospitality management competencies required to be assigned to a management position in Turkey. The study found out a number of competencies with top priority ranging from 82.1 to 21.4 percent extracted from job ads on the most browsed career websites in Turkey by employing a content analysis as the research method. These core competencies were delineated in the five domains of Sandwith’s Competency Domain Model in order to discover how they pertained to the theory. The in-depth analysis rendered the whole range of domains particularly leadership, technical and interpersonal, partly conceptual/creative and administrative. The study concluded that recruiters mainly look for managers with leadership, technical and interpersonal competencies in Turkey.
Investigation into the Specification of NURF Recruitment to the Genome

INVESTIGATION INTO THE SPECIFICATION OF NURF RECRUITMENT TO THE GENOME by Marissa Irene Mack, B.S A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree Master of Science at Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University, 2015 Major Director: Dr. Joseph W. Landry Assistant Professor Department of Human and Molecular Genetics The nucleosome remodeling factor (NURF) is a mutli-protein complex that plays a role in the regulation of gene expression through its ability to remodel nucleosomes. The largest subunit of this complex, Bptf (Bromodomain PHD Finger Transcription Factor) is important for many cellular processes as a transcriptional regulator and improper function results in disease or malignancy. To further understand the genomewide recruitment of the NURF complex, the interaction partner for the N-terminal PHD finger domain of Bptf was investigated through pull down assays followed by mass spectrometry. It was determined that this domain does not recognize histones; instead it recognizes a nonhistone protein, Thoc4 or Hmgb1. The expression of a cDNA corresponding to Bptf was also tested for expression in mouse ES cells after the addition of two exons found to be missing in the original cDNA. Addition of this sequence did not allow for exogenous Bptf expression in ES cells.
Wave-driven currents and vortex dynamics on barred beaches

We present a theoretical and numerical investigation of longshore currents driven by breaking waves on beaches, especially barred beaches. The novel feature considered here is that the wave envelope is allowed to vary in the alongshore direction, which leads to the generation of strong dipolar vortex structures where the waves are breaking. The nonlinear evolution of these vortex structures is studied in detail using a simple analytical theory to model the effect of a sloping beach. One of our findings is that the vortex evolution provides a robust mechanism through which the preferred location of the longshore current can move shorewards from the location of wave breaking. Such current dislocation is an often-observed (but ill-understood) phenomenon on real barred beaches. To underpin our results, we present a comprehensive theoretical description of the relevant wave–mean interaction theory in the context of a shallow-water model for the beach. Therein we link the radiation-stress theory of Longuet-Higgins & Stewart to recently established results concerning the mean vorticity generation due to breaking waves. This leads to detailed results for the entire life-cycle of the mean-flow vortex evolution, from its initial generation by wave breaking until its eventual dissipative decay due to bottom friction. In order to test and illustrate our theory we also present idealized nonlinear numerical simulations of both waves and vortices using the full shallow-water equations with bottom topography. In these simulations wave breaking occurs through shock formation of the shallow-water waves. We note that because the shallow-water equations also describe the two-dimensional flow of a homentropic perfect gas, our theoretical and numerical results can also be applied to nonlinear acoustics and sound–vortex interactions.
The effectiveness of Japanese sandals use on lower leg function among elderly women living in the community

The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy of specially designed zori, a Japanese-style sandal, for enhancing walking performance. A total of 89 women aged 59 - 75 were randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group. The intervention group wore the zori for 6 months while the control group did not. We conducted physical assessments, including The Good Walker’s Index, which consisted of a 10-m walking time measurement, maximal step length, the 40/20-cm step test and tandem gait, and measurement of the toe-gap force (TGF). Additionally, bare foot plantar pressure distribution was measured using a foot-mapping sensor, while gait characteristics were measured using three dimensional sensors. In the intervention group, means for TGF improved significantly between baseline and three months and between baseline and six months, but this improvement was not evident in the control group. In the intervention group, the means for pressure and surface areas of both left and right feet significantly decreased over time compared with the control group. Three-dimensional analysis found that left and right ankle height was enhanced in the intervention group, and their walking speed was improved by the extension of their stride length and an increase in the height of the tiptoe in one cycle. The findings in our study indicate that zori can be useful in improving lower leg function through TGF enhancement and adjustment of the pressure pattern.
Generation mean analysis of fruit quality traits in eggplant ('Solanum melongena' L.)

Very limited information is available on gene action for eggplant fruit quality parameters related to consumer market. Therefore, a detailed study on key quality traits of eggplant was carried out to examine the gene action to support the breeding approach. In the present study, six parents were inter-crossed to study gene action governing different fruit quality traits in eggplant. The parents were selected on the basis of phenotypic superiority and divergent fruit quality traits i.e size, shape, colour and bitterness. Four crosses were made among the six parents viz., Doli-5 x GBL-1 (cross 1), Doli-5 x KS-331 (cross 2), Pusa Uttam x KS-331 (cross 3) and AB 07-02 x GOB 1 (cross 4) to generate six populations for study of ten fruit quality parameters. The generation mean analysis in six populations, namely P1, P2, F1, F2, B1 and B2 revealed significant digenic interactions for all the characters in majority of the crosses studied. Character and cross combination revealed the adequacy of simple additive dominance model for anthocyanin content (in crosses 2 and 3), glycolalkaloid content (in crosses 2, 3 and 4), dry matter content (in cross 4) and reducing sugars (in cross 2) indicating the absence of non-allelic interactions. Most of the crosses for all the quality traits showed low magnitude of dominance and environmental variances, revealing higher estimates of broad and narrow-sense heritabilities. Duplicate type of epistasis was observed in glycoalkaloid content (in cross 1), oil content in seeds (in cross 1), dry matter content (in cross 3), total phenol content (in cross 3) , total soluble sugars (in cross 3), reducing sugars (in cross 3), polyphenol oxidase activity (in cross 3) and 1000 seed weight (all crosses) suggesting that the selection intensity should be mild in the earlier and intense in the later generations because it marks the progress through selection. However, in few cases the average dominance ratio was more than unity which showed the importance of the dominance gene effects. These results indicated that for the improvement of eggplant, additive variation is of great importance and makes it possible to successfully select better individuals in segregating populations, since the selective gains will depend only on gametic variation. Therefore, backcross, pedigree, single-seed descent or gametic selection methods are recommended to advance the segregating populations.
Unemployment among immigrants in European labour markets: an analysis of origin and destination effects

This article presents a multilevel analysis of 1363 male and female first- and second-generation immigrants’ unemployment rates. In addition to individual characteristics, the effects of macro-characteristics of 13 destination countries in the EU and of more than 100 origin countries of the immigrants are analysed. Immigrants are found to be more often unemployed in countries where natives have higher unemployment rates. Immigrants’ unemployment rates are lower in countries with a larger segment of low-status jobs, with higher immigration rates and with a higher GDP per capita. Destination countries’ integration policies and welfare state regimes do not affect the unemployment risk of immigrants. At the level of origin countries, immigrants from more politically stable and free, more developed and more wealthy societies are found to be less often unemployed. Immigrants coming from Islamic countries have higher rates of unemployment, while those originating from Western Europe are less likely to be unemployed.
Algoritma Enkripsi Selektif Citra Digital dalam

This paper presents a selective image encryption in frequency domain. At first, the image is transformed into frequency domain with Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT), and then DCT coefficients are scanned in zigzag, and elements of the low-frequency sub-band are extracted. Encryption is performed only on selected elements by scrambling them using 2D chaos map, namely Arnold Cat Map. Next, IDCT is applied to obtain the encrypted image. The encryption algorithm is included in lossy encryption. Experiments on both grayscale images and color images show that the images can be encrypted succesfully. Histograms of the encrypted images differ significantly from histogram of the original images, and the pixels in the encrypted images are not longer correlated. Kata Kunci. Image, selective encryption, frequency domain, DCT, Arnold Cat Map, chaos Rinaldi Munir: ALGORITMA ENKRIPSI SELEKTIF CITRA DIGITAL DALAM RANAH FREKUENSI 67 BERBASIS PERMUTASI CHAOS
Development and Psychometric Evaluation of Persian version of the Quick Speech in Noise Test in Persian Speaking 18-25 Years Old Normal Adults

Background: One of the common problems of those who refer to audiology clinics, is difficulty of hearing in noisy conditions. Different tests have been developed for diagnosis and quantification of reduced ability of speech perception in noise and the Quick Speech-in-Noise test is one of the most appropriate of them. The goal of the present study was to develop and validate the Persian version of the Quick Speech-in-Noise Test in normal, Persian speaking, 18-25 year-old participants. Methods: This study had two main stages: first, developing the test materials and determining the content validity and the second, determining the equivalency of the test material lists, and assessing the reliability of them. In the first stage, sentences having content validity were developed and recorded. In the second stage,in order to determine list equivalency, the lists were presented to 60 Persian-speaking (gender balanced), 18-25 year-old students and the average SNR-50 for each list was calculated using the Spearman-Karber formula. In order to determine the reliability of the test, the test was again administered to15of the primary participants, two weeks later. Results : among80 sentences developed, 60 received enough credits from audiologists and speech therapists. Average SNR-50 in the Persian language was calculated as -0.25 dB. Thirty six content valid sentences, according to special criteria, were divided into six lists each containing 6sentences. The SNR-50 for each list revealed that lists number 2,3, 4and 5 were equivalent. Examination of test-retest reliability indicated that lists number 1,2,3,4 and 6 were reliable (P<0.05). Conclusion : Present study was developing three equivalent and reliable lists (number 2,3,4) for the Persian version of the Q-SIN test which are useful for diagnosing and selecting the best rehabilitation method for people with reduced speech perception in noise.
The Suitability of Models to Prefigure Organic Functions and to Avoid Item Dispersion of a Variable Indexing on Height Rather than BSA Shown by Comparing Two Studies

A previous study based on theoretical data on the glomerular filtration rate evaluated the effect of different indexations on the distribution of the indexed values versus the distribution of the non-indexed values this study showed that the lowest dispersion of values was due to indexation based on height. Consequently, we planned to confirm these theoretical results by comparing them to a parallel study based on the values of the clearance of creatinine in a real population of patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis. This study showed a very strong correlation between the results of the theoretical study and the study of the real population, thus demonstrating the suitability of this preliminary approach for research using theoretical models to preview and confirm the results of a study using a real population.nbsp
Appendix H Hygroscopicity of Secondary Organic Aerosols Formed by Oxidation of Cycloalkenes , Monoterpenes , Sesquiterpenes , and Related Compounds *

A series of experiments has been conducted in the Caltech indoor smog chamber facility to investigate the water uptake properties of aerosol formed by oxidation of various organic precursors. Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) from simple and substituted cycloalkenes (C 5-C8) is produced in dark ozonolysis experiments in a dry chamber (RH∼5%). Biogenic SOA from monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and oxygenated terpenes is formed by photooxidation in a humid chamber ( ∼50% RH). Using the hygroscopicity tandem differential mobility analyzer (HTDMA), we measure the diameter-based hygroscopic growth factor ( GF) of the SOA as a function of time and relative humidity. All SOA studied is found to be slightly hygroscopic, with smaller water uptake than that of typical inorganic aerosol substances. The aerosol water uptake increases with time early in the experiments for the cycloalkene SOA, but decreases with time for the sesquiterpene SOA. This behavior could indicate competing effects between the formation of more highly oxidized polar compounds (more hygroscopic), and formation of longer-chained oligomers (less hygroscopic). All SOA also exhibit a smooth water uptake with RH with no deliquescence or efflorescence. The water uptake curves are found to be fitted well with an empirical three-parameter functional form. The measured pure organic GF values at 85% RH are between 1.09–1.16 for SOA from ozonolysis of cycloalkenes, 1.01–1.04 for sesquiterpene photooxidation SOA, and 1.06–1.10 for the monoterpene and oxygenated terpene SOA. TheGF of pure SOA ( GForg) in experiments in which inorganic seed aerosol is used is determined by assuming volume-weighted water uptake (Zdanovskii-StokesRobinson or “ZSR” approach) and using the size-resolved Correspondence to: J. H. Seinfeld (seinfeld@caltech.edu) organic mass fraction measured by the Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer. Knowing the water content associated with the inorganic fraction yieldsGForg values. However, for each precursor, the GForg values computed from different HTDMA-classified diameters agree with each other to varying degrees. Comparing growth factors from different precursors, we find that GForg is inversely proportional to the precursor molecular weight and SOA yield, which is likely a result of the fact that higher-molecular weight precursors tend to produce larger and less hygroscopic oxidation products.
Evaluation of Capital Budgeting and Investment Decisions in Nigeria —A Study of Selected Industrial Firms in Imo State

The study was primarily undertaken to evaluate the processes of capital budgeting and investment decision in Nigeria. Particularly, it is an evaluation of the processes of capital budgeting and investment in capital assets in some manufacturing firms operating in Imo state. This study is aimed at evaluating the processes and procedures that Nigerian manufacturing firms adopt when budgeting for their long-term investments and the organizational structures that drive capital budgeting and investment decisions in the selected manufacturing firms as well as the impact of the economic environment on their ability to budget effectively. The study involved a survey of eight (8) out of the fourteen (14) active manufacturing firms in the state. A sample size of two hundred and forty (240) respondents was drawn from the selected firms, they were administered with structured questionnaire. The data collected were analyzed using tables, frequency, percentages, descriptive statistics, the t-test of population mean and the z-test of difference of means. The analysis revealed that: the firms budget for their capital investments using mainly the payback method of investment appraisal. The researcher therefore concluded that mangers tend to be overconfident in that they overestimate the precision of their information and their ability to control risk; and though the sampled firms understand the obvious advantages of the net present value and the other sophisticated investment appraisal techniques over the payback method, they still adopt the later because of the nature of their economic environment, their size, lack of sufficiently qualified personnel, paucity of funds and their weak organizational structure. The researcher recommended that firms should hire risk-averse managers to make investment decisions on their behalf because the manager’s overconfidence serves to reduce the moral hazard that his risk aversion creates. Government at all levels in Nigeria should put in place a revolving fund to meet the long-term funding needs of the manufacturing sector which most of the banks are unwilling to provide at affordable interest rates. The present heavy tax burden on manufacturing firms by the Federal, States and Local governments should be discouraged.
A simple model of eating decisions and weight with rational and forward-looking agents

Several empirical papers in the economics of obesity literature find that changes in aggregate food prices over time have little effect on the population body-mass index or obesity prevalence, while changes in the price of selected food items drastically affects what people eat. We propose a simple dynamic model with rational agents to further examine the impact of changes in food prices and household real income on eating decisions and weight of men and women between 1971 and 2006. We also introduce a new measure for food prices which considers the price per calorie consumed rather than prices of specific food items. After careful calibration of the model using evidence from medical research on obesity, we find that prices determine the allocation of calories across food types, while income determine the total number of calories consumed and thus individuals’ weight. Based on our results, we share the view that taxes on food will impact what people eat but will have limited effect on reducing the population body-mass index or the obesity prevalence.
Inequality of opportunities in health: the influence of parents' social status and health status

We may consider the role of social and familial determinism among the range of causes of inequality of opportunity in health. Health status in adulthood is affected by an individual’s social background. two hypotheses are proposed in the literature: the direct effect of living conditions during childhood on adult health; the indirect effect of the family background on the future socio-economic status. We propose a third hypothesis in our study: the health status transmission from one generation to the next , based on a common genetic inheritance, and copying parental behaviours (health preferences, risky behaviours). These three hypotheses are tested for the first time on French data from the 2004-2005 sHARE survey. the results suggest that health status in adulthood is directly affected by the mother’s social status, and that father’s social status has an indirect effect gi ven its influence on childhood socioeconomic status. Without disregarding the effect of social background, the health status of both parents has a direct effect on the descendant’s health in adulthood. Finally, the role of education is of importance as education level has a significant effect on social inequalities in health in adulthood.
The Technological Dimension of a Massive Open Online Course: The Case of the CCK08 Course Tools

In 2008, a new term emerged in the already crowded e-learning landscape: MOOC, or massive open online course. Lifelong learners can now use various tools to build and manage their own learning networks, and MOOCs may provide opportunities to test such networks. This paper focuses on the technological aspects of one MOOC, the Connectivism and Connective Knowledge (CCK08) course, in order to investigate lifelong learners’ attitudes towards learning network technologies. The research framework is represented by three perspectives: (a) lifelong learning in relation to open education, with a focus on the effective use of learning tools; (b) the more recent personal knowledge management (PKM) skills approach; and (c) the usability of web-based learning tools. Findings from a survey of CCK08 participants show that the course attracted mainly adult, informal learners, who were unconcerned about course completion and who cited a lack of time as the main reason for incompletion. Time constraints, language barriers, and ICT skills affected the participants’ choice of tools; for example, learners favoured the passive, filtered mailing list over interactive but time-consuming discussion forums and blogs. Some recommendations for future MOOCs include highlighting the pedagogical purpose of the tools offered (e.g., learning network skill-building) and stating clearly that the learners can choose which tools they prefer to use. Further research on sustainability and instructor workload issues should be conducted to determine the cost and effectiveness of MOOCs. Investigation is also necessary to understand whether such terms as course , drop-out , and attrition are appropriate in relation to MOOCs.