Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Digestive bottleneck affects foraging decisions in red knots Calidris canutus. II. Patch choice and length of working day

Summary 1. When prey occur at high densities, energy assimilation rates are generally constrained by rates of digestion rather than by rates of collection (i.e. search and handle). As predators usually select patches containing high prey densities, rates of digestion will play an important role in the foraging ecology of a species. 2. The red knot Calidris canutus shows tremendous inter- and intra-individual variation in maximum rates of digestion due to variation in the size of the processing machinery (gizzard and intestine), which makes it a suitable species to study the effects of digestive processing rate on foraging decisions. 3. Here we report on patch use, prey choice, and daily foraging times as a function of gizzard size in free-ranging, radio-marked, red knots. As knots crush their bulky bivalve prey in their gizzard, the size of this organ, which we measured using ultrasonography, determines digestive processing rate. 4. Using the digestive rate model, we a priori modelled patch use, prey choice, and daily foraging times as a function of gizzard mass. Focusing on two contrasting patches, birds with small gizzards were expected to feed on high-quality (soft-bodied) prey found in low densities in the one patch, while birds with large gizzards were expected to feed on low-quality (hard-shelled) prey found in high densities in the other patch. Assuming that red knots aim to balance their energy budget on a daily basis, we expected daily foraging time to decline with gizzard mass. 5. Observed patch and prey choices were in quantitative agreement with these theoretical predictions. Observed daily foraging times were only in qualitative agreement: they declined with gizzard mass but less steeply than predicted. 6. We discuss that red knots might be aiming for a slightly positive energy budget in order to (i) refuel their stores depleted during migration, and (ii) to insure against unpredictability in supply and demand during winter. Red knots arriving from their breeding grounds with small gizzards are only able to realize this aim when densities of soft-bodied prey are high, which is the case in late July and early August. Rapidly declining soft-bodied prey densities throughout late summer pose a major penalty for individuals arriving late at their wintering grounds. 7. The long daily foraging periods required by knots with small gizzards are only feasible through ‘tide-extension’. In our study area, birds can and do raise the daily low tide period from 12 h to almost 17 h by moving along with the tide in an easterly direction, subsequently flying back to their starting point at the high tide roost.
Analysis of the Gut Contents of the Internal Exotic Fish Species Opsariichthys uncirostris uncirostris in the Futatsugawa River, Kyushu Island, Japan

Opsariichthys uncirostris uncirostris was introduced from Lake Biwa to several freshwater areas in Kyusyu Island, and the gut contents of this fish were observed in order to evaluate the effect of internal invasion on native aquatic organisms. The fish specimens were captured in the Futatsugawa river, north- western Kyushu Island, Japan, between February 2007 and January 2008, and their gut contents were examined under a stereomicroscope. The gut contents of this exotic species comprised various prey ani- mals, mainly fishes in most of the seasons. The empty gut ratio was approximately 80% in several seasons and 100% during February and March. This exotic species showed high selectivity for Zacco spp. , Pseudorasbora parva, Tanakia spp. , and Rhodeus spp. , which had large populations at the study sites. In contrast, this exotic species showed no selectivity for Carassius spp. that also had a large population. Acheilognathus spp. that had a small population at this study site showed high selectivity as prey by this exotic species. A. tabira nakamurae, a native species, is listed as threatened in the Japanese Red Data Book. Native species with a small population and high prey selectivity were estimated to be the most nega- tively effected species by the internal invasion of the study site by this exotic species.
Long-Term Trends in Visibility and Its Relationship with Mortality, Air-Quality Index, and Meteorological Factors in Selected Areas of Korea

We investigated temporal trends in atmospheric visibility as well as their relationship to non-accident-related daily mortality, the Comprehensive Air-quality Index (CAI) in Korea, and selected meteorological factors in four cities (Seoul, Busan, Daegu, and Ulsan) and one remote island (Ullungdo) for the period 2001–2009. According to the mean values, Seoul exhibited the lowest visibility (12.2 km), followed by Ullungdo (12.6 km), Ulsan (14.2 km), Daegu (14.7 km), and Busan (17.3 km). Conversely, Ullungdo had the lowest CAI value (82.4) and no respiratory mortality (RM) occurrences at all, and Seoul had both the highest mean CAI value (122) and the highest occurrence of daily RM (5.3). There were negative correlations between visibility and two meteorological parameters (relative humidity and ambient temperature) in all five areas, whereas there were generally positive correlations between visibility and the other two meteorological parameters (precipitation and wind speed). For some lag periods, the mortality in the cities was significantly correlated with visibility and the CAI, whereas mortality in Ullungdo was not. Busan had the highest excess risk for non-accidentrelated daily mortality, followed by Daegu, Seoul, and Ulsan.
A microeconomic system-wide approach to the estimation of the demand for money

‘rhis paper presents an alternative to the standau-d single—equation nmethod of estimatirmg time dermmand for mormey. The alter-native, called the microecononmic system—wide approach to demand analysis, diffei-s in seveial fundamental ways from tine usual moneydemand specification. ‘rhe purpose of this an-tide is to show how the systenm—wide approach can be applied to estimating the demand for money. The results mmdi— cate that mm—sample predictions made using this approach closely track time actual data oven’ the 1969—85 period.
Chapter-VIII GROWTH AND PERFORMANCE OF THE COOPERATIVES AS AN OUTCOME OF HRM PRACTICES

The field of performance management can comprise two separate types of management. In one aspect of performance management, an analyst may view the performance of a company as a whole, and also evaluate the effectiveness of the managers and heads of companies in reaching goals. In another sense, performance management may be a system of evaluating employees to help them reach reasonable goals and thus ensure that the company performs better. This discussion will focus on the latter definition.
A Computer-Aided Technique for Planning Plastic Surgery Based on 3D Face Scans: Preliminary Results

Plastic surgery plays a major role in today’s health care. Planning plastic facial surgery requires dealing with the elusive concept of attractiveness for evaluating aesthetically effective outcomes for a particular face. A number of computer tools have been proposed for previewing possible surgery results and allowing their aesthetical evaluation by surgeons and patients which are based on the manual warping of 2D images or 3D scans. How to manipulate faces, as well as the evaluation of the results, are left to the surgeon’s judgment. In a previous work, we proposed a quantitative approach able to automatically suggest effective patient-specific improvements of facial attractiveness and we applied it to 2D face profiles. In this paper we describe the application of the approach to 3D scans, and present some preliminary results.
Improving hierarchical clustering of genotypic data via principal component analysis

Understanding the genetic structure of germplasm collections is a prerequisite for effective and efficient use of crop genetic resources in genebanks. Currently, hierarchical clustering techniques are most popular for describing genetic structure in germplasm collections. Traditionally performed using dissimilarities based on raw genotypic data, recent studies have shown that cluster analysis can be improved by first condensing the genotypic data using principal component analysis (PCA). Although the two-step approach (PCA followed by cluster analysis) is gaining popularity, no systematic study into its benefits over traditional clustering methods has been performed. In particular, the relationship between the number of principal components (PCs) to be retained and the performance of cluster analysis have not been established. It is also not clear whether genetic data should be scaled before performing PCA. Here we present a detailed study comparing cluster analysis using distances based on condensed data using significant PCs and clustering based on the full dataset. We also studied the effect of data scaling on PCA-based clustering. Using simulations, we show that in discretely subdivided populations, maximum clustering performance is attained by using a subset of PCs that relate to differentiation between subpopulations and that scaling of the data is key to achieving improvement in PCA-based clustering. For scaled data, we report consistently higher clustering success for PCA, particularly at lower levels of population differentiation, while gains for unscaled data are minor. This is confirmed by real data, where PCA-based clustering of scaled genotypic data leads to visible improvements in resolving finer patterns of geographic subdivision. Our results show clearly that proper scaling and reduction of genotypic data is key to improving clustering performance
Corporate Social Responsibility: determinants, consumers' preferences and strategic approach

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a corporate strategy involving social, environmental and human rights concerns into business operations. The aim of CSR is to promote sustainable productive processes with lower impact on the environment and natural resources as well as more respectful of all subjects involved by corporate activities. Accordingly, the core of CSR relies on spreading a corporate culture in which company stakeholders become the centre of business strategies. Undoubtedly, consumers play a central role in influencing these strategies by exercising actively their power on the market. Indeed, through their purchases reward companies that meet their expectation and concerns. The general objective of this study is to extend the literature about CSR providing insights both in terms of firm organization and consumer behaviour. Understanding consumers’ preferences toward the different CSR initiatives was the approach implemented in the research to achieve these aims. Indeed, the results allow on one hand to comprehend consumer purchase decision toward specific corporate social initiatives and on the other are a mean for companies that want to reshape their organizational processes in order to meet their customers’ expectations. Moreover, the research identified common traits able to characterise the ethical consumers by implementing the analysis of personal values.
Big Data, Computational Science, Economics, Finance, Marketing, Management, and Psychology: Connections

The paper provides a review of the literature that connects Big Data, Computational Science, Economics, Finance, Marketing, Management, and Psychology, and discusses research issues that are related to the various disciplines. Academics could develop theoretical models and subsequent econometric and statistical models to estimate the parameters in the associated models, as well as conduct simulation to examine whether the estimators in their theories on estimation and hypothesis testing have good size and high power. Thereafter, academics and practitioners could apply theory to analyse some interesting issues in the seven disciplines and cognate areas.
Rill erosion in natural and disturbed forests: 2. Modeling Approaches

As forest management scenarios become more complex, the ability to more accurately predict erosion from those scenarios becomes more important. In this second part of a two‐part study we report model parameters based on 66 simulated runoff experiments in two disturbed forests in the northwestern U.S. The 5 disturbance classes were natural, 10‐month old and 2‐week old low soil burn severity, high soil burn severity, and logging skid trails. In these environments the erosion rates were clearly detachment limited, and the rill erodibility parameters calculated from four hydraulic variables increased by orders of magnitude. The soil shear stress based erodibility parameter, Kr, was 1.5 × 10−6 s m−1in the natural plots, 2.0 × 10−4 s m−1 in the high soil burn severity plots, and 1.7 × 10−3 s m−1 in the skid trail plots; Kr values for the low soil burn severity plots had negative sign. The erodibility value for the skid trail plots fell within ranges reported for tilled agricultural fields and also for forest roads. The Kr values decreased as erosion occurred in the plots and therefore should not be a constant parameter. The stream power produced the largest R2 value (0.41) when hydraulic predictors and the sediment flux were log‐transformed, but none of the four hydraulic variables (soil shear stress, stream power, unit stream power, and unit length shear force) explained much of the variability in sediment flux rates across the five levels of disturbance when evaluated in the linear form of the erosion models under consideration.
Experimental tests of the Peyrard-Bishop model applied to the melting of very short DNA chains

The melting curves of short heterogeneous DNA chains in solution are calculated on the basis of statistical thermodynamics, and compared to experiments. The computation of the partition function is based on the Peyrard-Bishop Hamiltonian, which has already been adopted in a theoretical description of the melting of long DNA chains. In the case of short chains it is necessary to consider not only the breaking of the hydrogen bonds between single base pairs, but also the complete dissociation of the two strands forming the double helix. @S1063-651X~98! 02709-3#
The Effect Of Benevolent Leadership On Organizational Citizenship Behavior (OCB) : Mediating Role Of Ethics Climate

--------------------------------------------------------ABSTRACT----------------------------------------------------------This study was conducted to examine the effect of benevolent leadership (ethics sensitivity, spirituality, positive engagement, and community responses) to organizational citizenship behavior (OCB), either directly, or through mediation Ethics Climate. The study was based on a survey of 200 respondents. Respondents were used in this study came from Department of Education and Culture in Kendari. The research data used cross sections data so it is possible perception of respondents is different because of the time and place, so it is advisable to research will be able to use time series. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences used to test the hypothesis. The results showed that ethics sensitivity has significant positive effect on OCB. Ethics Climate mediates the relationship between ethics sensitivity and OCB. Spirituality has no effect on OCB. Ethics Climate does not mediate the relationship between spirituality and OCB. Positive engagement does not affect the OCB. Ethics Climate does not mediate the relationship between positive Positive engagement and OCB. Community response had no effect on OCB. But Ethics Climate response mediates the relationship between community and OCB. Ethics Climate has significant and positive effect on OCB.
Robust gigahertz fiber quantum key distribution

We present recent results on an innovative fiber based short wavelength gigahertz clock rate quantum key distribution system operating over a standard telecommunications optical fiber quantum channel. This system is designed to be robust against environmentally induced changes in the polarization evolution of the photons in the optical fiber quantum channel and against path-length drift in the interferometers which could otherwise compromise system performance. Experimental results are presented for error rate, net bit rate and stability for different silicon single-photon avalanche diode detector types.
Study of the Adsorption Efficiency of an Eco-Friendly Carbohydrate Polymer for Contaminated Aqueous Solution by Organophosphorus Pesticide

The removal of pesticide (ethoprophos) from aqueous solution using a natural biosorbent such as chitosan (CH) prepared from a biopolymer waste obtained from marine industry was studied. The Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD) were used to study the structure of the adsorbent. The biosorption studies were carried out under various parameters, such as biosorbent dose, initial pesticide concentration and contact time. The experimental results show that the removal percentage of ethoprophos increased from 85.693% to 89.234%, as adsorbent dose (CH) increased from 0.02 to 0.1 g/100ml. The equilibrium uptake was increased with an increase in the initial pesticide concentration in solution. Biosorption kinetic data were fitted well with the pseudo-second order kinetic model. The experimental isotherms data were analyzed using Freundlich, Langmuir, Temkin and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) isotherm equations. The best fit was obtained by Freundlich isotherm with high correlation coefficients. That the value of energy calculated from the D-R isotherm was 5.56 KJ/mol suggests the adsorption of ethoprophos on Chitosan is physical. All the results indicating CH was chosen as low-cost biosorbent could be applied for the removal of organophosphorous pesticide from aqueous solutions.
Exponential Stability and Robust H∞ Control for Discrete-Time Time-Delay Infinite Markov Jump Systems

In this paper, exponential stability and robust H∞ control problem are investigated for a class of discrete-time time-delay stochastic systems with infinite Markov jump and multiplicative noises. The jumping parameters are modeled as an infinite-state Markov chain. By using a novel Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional, a new sufficient condition in terms of matrix inequalities is derived to guarantee the mean square exponential stability of the equilibrium point. Then some sufficient conditions for the existence of feedback controller are presented to guarantee that the resulting closed-loop system has mean square exponential stability for the zero exogenous disturbance and satisfies a prescribed H∞ performance level. Numerical simulations are exploited to validate the applicability of developed theoretical results.
ECHANTILLONNAGE COMPRIME POUR LES SIGNAUX ASTROPHYSIQUES

La conception d'une architecture de recepteur radio base sur l'echantillonnage comprime (compressed sampling CS) necessite, en premier lieu, de trouver une base de parcimonie appropriee au signal etudie. Dans ce papier, nous analysons un signal astrophysique (signal Jovien de bande passante [0,40 MHz]) en relevant son information utile et nous etudions sa compressibilite. Le resultat experimental montre que le signal est compressible dans le domaine frequentiel avec un facteur de compressibilite de 1/10
Profits in reverse? An examination of the decisive factors for reverse supply chain profitability

Although the concept of the reverse supply chain (RSC) is not unknown in industry, an inhibitor for its successful use is low (or no) profitability. A research challenge is investigating ways to establish the RSC as a profit-creating center in the organization. This paper contributes to this challenge by examining the factors decisive for whether a firm will achieve profits from operating a RSC. By combining a literature review and multiple case study, the paper identifies a set of factors that prohibit or advance RSC-profitability and develops a set of propositions that define the relation between each factor and RSC-profitability.
Solar radiative effects of a Saharan dust plume observed during SAMUM assuming spheroidal model particles

The solar optical properties of Saharan mineral dust observed during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM) were explored based on measured size-number distributions and chemical composition. The size-resolved complex refractive index of the dust was derived with real parts of 1.51–1.55 and imaginary parts of 0.0008–0.006 at 550 nm wavelength. At this spectral range a single scattering albedo ωo and an asymmetry parameter g of about 0.8 were derived. These values were largely determined by the presence of coarse particles. Backscatter coefficients and lidar ratios calculated with Mie theory (spherical particles) were not found to be in agreement with independently measured lidar data. Obviously the measured Saharan mineral dust particles were of non-spherical shape. With the help of these lidar and sun photometer measurements the particle shape as well as the spherical equivalence were estimated. It turned out that volume equivalent oblate spheroids with an effective axis ratio of 1:1.6 matched these data best. This aspect ratio was also confirmed by independent single particle analyses using a scanning electron microscope. In order to perform the non-spherical computations, a database of single particle optical properties was assembled for oblate and prolate spheroidal particles. These data were also the basis for simulating the non-sphericity effects on the dust optical properties: ωo is influenced by up to a magnitude of only 1% and g is diminished by up to 4% assuming volume equivalent oblate spheroids with an axis ratio of 1:1.6 instead of spheres. Changes in the extinction optical depth are within 3.5%. Non-spherical particles affect the downwelling radiative transfer close to the bottom of the atmosphere, however, they significantly enhance the backscattering towards the top of the atmosphere: Compared to Mie theory the particle non-sphericity leads to forced cooling of the Earth-atmosphere system in the solar spectral range for both dust over ocean and desert.
Chapter 3 Bird ’ sEye View of Forest Hydrology : Novel Approaches Using Remote Sensing Techniques

Without question, better scientific understanding of hydrological processes in forested environments will be a product of the synergistic play of theory and data. Remote sensing (RS) from satellite and airborne platforms, along with many other sources of hydrological data such as wireless sensor arrays and ground-based radar networks, is playing and will continue to play a vital role in better understanding the hydrosphere by providing the next generation of datasets to the hydrological community. RS systems are planetary macroscopes that allow the study of ecosystems from a completely new vantage point, facilitating a holistic perspective like viewing the Earth does for astronauts. RS allows us to (1) view large geographic areas instantaneously; (2) spatially integrate over heterogeneous surfaces at a range of resolutions; (3) be totally unobtrusive; and (4) be cost effective compared to ground-based approaches. While there are challenges relating RS data recorded in radiance or backscatter to variables of interest, and RS systems have poor temporal resolution compared to ground-based measurement devices, RS and spatial analytical techniques such as digital terrain analysis and distributed hydrological modeling embedded in Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have allowed hydrologists to better understand the movement of water across a landscape. This is a synthesis of state-of-the-art research on how RS has informed the study of hydrology, with an explicit focus on forested landscapes. Although there have been other excellent reviews published on RS and other geocomputing approaches for hydrological research, none have focused specifically on forest hydrology