Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Empirical Exploration of Communication and Coordination Practices in Offshore Software Development Outsourcing

Offshore software development outsourcing (OSDO) has become an increasingly popular Global Software Engineering (GSE) paradigm for companies to rely the permanent improvement and tailoring with lower cost, in order to develop high quality software more efficiently. However, OSDO is not out of risks and software development organizations face various challenges like geographical dispersion, cultural and language differences, communication and coordination challenges and lack of ICTs etc. A research survey was conducted in OSDO industry to explore different communication and coordination challenges and its mitigation in OSDO relationships. Data were collected through questionnaire survey from 42 experts relevant to outsourcing companies. Our findings reveal that cultural differences, geographical dispersion, language differences, lack of ICT/technological cohesion, lack of credence and lack of informal/face-to-face communication are the critical challenges faced by OSDO vendors in communication and coordination process with their client organizations in outsourcing relationships. We have also identified a total of 75 practices in order to mitigate these critical challenges. The understanding of these challenges and its practices will assist OSDO vendors in order to successfully plan and manage communication and coordination activities in OSDO relationship with their clients.
Voice and telephony over ATM (VTOA) to the desktop

This paper describes the direction the ATM Forum (ATMF) is adopting for the support of voice and telephony over ATM (VTOA) to the desktop. The goals of the ATMF are clearly outlined, along with the functional requirements of VTOA. The areas of access and interworking are both covered, in addition to the services and features supported.
A Four-Stage XRAM Generator as Inductive Pulsed Power Supply for a Small-Caliber Railgun

A four-stage XRAM generator is built and then applied to a railgun having a caliber of 15 × 15 mm. The XRAM generator is based on 1-mH Brooks coils and on standard high-power thyristors which are employed as opening switches according to the ICCOS countercurrent commutation principle. The coils of the generator are charged with a current of 10 kA, which corresponds to an energy of 200 kJ. The current is successfully commutated and a pulse with a maximum current of 40 kA is applied to the railgun. Consequently, a projectile with a total weight of 33 g is accelerated to 157 m/s within the railgun length of 2.1 m. The semiconductor switches are exposed to a steep voltage rise due to the muzzle flash when the projectile leaves the railgun without their critical limit being exceeded. Thus, the successful operation of the XRAM generator using semiconductor switches during railgun experiments is demonstrated. Furthermore, we are able to show in a further experiment that the muzzle flash of the railgun can be significantly reduced by switching the XRAM back into charging mode when the projectile leaves the bore. This method also allows the conservation of the energy that remains in the coils after the exit of the projectile from the railgun.
Annually Resolved Ice Core Records of Tropical Climate Variability over the Past ~1800 Years

Quelccaya Ice Cap Ice cores drilled in the ice sheets of Greenland and Antarctica are some of the most important sources of information about the paleoclimate of high latitudes. Comparable records from the tropics are rare, however, because there are so few locations at which long-lived, undisturbed ice can be found. Thompson et al. (p. 945, published online 4 April) report results obtained from one of the few such sites, the Quelccaya ice cap in the Peruvian Andes. The annually resolved data, extending back 1800 years, provide a detailed chronicle of changes in the isotopic composition of the oxygen in the ice, which are related to the sea surface temperature of the water's source. Analyses of a collection of major ions such as ammonium and nitrate reveal how atmospheric circulation in the region varied over that period. Finally, the radiocarbon content of ancient plants—recently exposed by the retreat of the ice sheet—reveals that Quelccaya has not been smaller for at least six thousand years. A record from the Quelccaya ice cap in Peru shows the variability of climate in the tropical Andes. Ice cores from low latitudes can provide a wealth of unique information about past climate in the tropics, but they are difficult to recover and few exist. Here, we report annually resolved ice core records from the Quelccaya ice cap (5670 meters above sea level) in Peru that extend back ~1800 years and provide a high-resolution record of climate variability there. Oxygen isotopic ratios (δ18O) are linked to sea surface temperatures in the tropical eastern Pacific, whereas concentrations of ammonium and nitrate document the dominant role played by the migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone in the region of the tropical Andes. Quelccaya continues to retreat and thin. Radiocarbon dates on wetland plants exposed along its retreating margins indicate that it has not been smaller for at least six millennia.
Vortex dynamics in the wake of wall-mounted cylinders : experiment and simulation

Investigations of the flow field around wall-mounted cylinders in a cross flow as shown in Figure 1 can help to better understand bluff body aerodynamics. Furthermore, cylinder-like structures appear in many technical applications such as antennas and attaching parts of vehicles, high-rise buildings or supports in internal and external flows. In literature much attention has been paid to the topic. Nevertheless there are remaining questions. This work will focus on the main flow structures depending on the geometry of the cylinder and the unsteady behavior of the flow.
AU INTERCALIBRATION OF CHLOROPHYLL A BETWEEN DENMARK , NORWAY AND SWEDEN Western Baltic ( BC 6 ) , Kattegat ( NEA 8 b ) and Skagerrak ( NEA 8 a , NEA 9 and NEA 10 )

This report documents the intercalibration of chlorophyll a between Denmark, Norway and Sweden in the shared types within the Baltic and Northeast Atlantic geographical intercalibration groups. A large dataset, combining monitoring data from the three countries, has been used to establish relationships between national metrics for chlorophyll a. Potential adjustment for biogeographical differences was deemed unnecessary. Based on these relationships, present national reference conditions and class boundaries for chlorophyll a were compared on a common scale. In most cases, differences were small and intercalibrated values were obtained by averaging translated national reference conditions and boundaries. In a few cases, intercalibrated values were modified to better reflect the land-sea gradient and to be consistent with OSPAR’s values for the open Skagerrak. The intercalibrated values will be submitted by the national agencies in Denmark, Norway and Sweden to the European Commission decision on intercalibration.
Genetic Variability and QTL Mapping for Seed Germination Characters under Water Stress in Sunflower

The objective of this research was to study the genetic control of germination variables under normal and water deficit conditions in sunflower. A population of 100 recombinant inbred lines obtained from a cross between PAC2 and RHA266 was used in the present study. The experiment was performed as a randomized complete block design with three replications. Germination variables were time to starting germination (TSG), time to maximum germination (TMG), time to 50% germination (T50%G) and percentage of seed germination (PSG). The putative causes of variation in germination, oil content (OC) and 1000 grain weight (1000GW) were also measured. Positive correlations were obtained between different times to germination for normal and stress conditions. Positive correlations were observed between PSG and OC, as well as between 1000 GW and the different times to germination. Several non-specific QTLs to water deficit were detected for germination parameters. “HA1837”, “SSL27“and “ORS671_1” were the SSR markers associated with QTLs detected for germination characters independent of germination environments. The most important specific QTL was associated with “ORS677” SSR marker in the water stress condition, explaining 24% of the phenotypic variance for PSG.
Effects of Temperature on the Development of Stenoma impressella (Lepidoptera: Elachistidae) on Oil Palm in Colombia

Abstract Stenoma impressella Busck (Lepidoptera: Elachistidae) is an important oil palm pest and its life history and life table parameters were studied at various temperatures, from 16 °C to 40 °C. Females and males developed successfully into adults between 20 °C and 36 °C. However, no eggs were found at 10 °C and all the adults died after exposure to 40 °C. The developmental time from egg to adult was higher (170.5 days) at 15 °C and lower (76.6 days) at 35 °C. Therefore, temperature has a strong effect on the development of S. impressella from 15 °C to 35 °C. The reproductive period varied between 15–35 °C with 6.82 to 3.24 days for pre-oviposition, 17.5 to 4.89 days for oviposition, and 5.29 to 0.82 days for the postoviposition period. Female longevity was longer than that of the male, at all temperatures. The population growth parameters of S. impressella net reproductive rate (R0), intrinsic rate increase (rm), finite increase rate (&lgr;), mean generation time (T) and doubling time (D) were significantly affected by temperature. Temperature affects S. impressella populations by reducing or increasing their possible occurrence in the palm trees. The effect of temperature on the development, survival and reproduction of S. impressella can be useful for predicting its long-term population fluctuation as an invasive pest of oil palm plantations.
Staff behaviour in pre-school centres.

Summary Staff were observed in pre-school centres with three different kinds of educational orientation, traditional free-play nursery schools, nursery schools which used a language teaching session and nurseries run on free-play lines but not staffed by teachers. Half of the centres selected contained predominantly working-class children, half predominantly middle-class. Significantly more “cognitive” staff behaviour was observed in middle-class than working-class centres, and the amount of “cognitive” staff behaviour was also significantly influenced by the educational orientation of the centre. The working-class children in schools with a language programme had significantly higher language test scares than other working-class children.
Characterization in vitro and in vivo of the pig analogue of human CD59 using new monoclonal antibodies

CD59 is the sole characterized regulator of the complement membrane attack complex in humans. It is very widely and abundantly distributed, being present on all circulating cells, endothelia and epithelia, and in most tissues. CD59 analogues in rodents are distributed similarly. Interest in complement regulation in the pig has developed out of the current enthusiasm to exploit this species as a donor in xenotransplantation of organs to humans. We have recently isolated and cloned the pig analogue of human CD59. We here report the development and characterization of monoclonal antibodies against pig CD59. We have used these antibodies to develop efficient methods for the purification of pig CD59 to homogeneity from erythrocyte membranes and have obtained new information on the structure and function of the purified protein. The antibodies were found to function well in immunohistochemistry and have been used to perform a comprehensive survey of the expression and distribution of pig CD59 on cells and in organs of normal pigs. Pig CD59, like human CD59, is broadly expressed but there are some striking differences in tissue distribution, notably the apparent lack of pig CD59 on circulating platelets and on a subset of leucocytes in blood and lymphoid organs. The reported findings have important implications for the current approaches to avoiding complement‐mediated hyperacute rejection in pig‐to‐human xenografts.
The Migraine Attack as a Homeostatic, Neuroprotective Response to Brain Oxidative Stress: Preliminary Evidence for a Theory

Previous research has suggested that migraineurs show higher levels of oxidative stress (lipid peroxides) between migraine attacks and that migraine triggers may further increase brain oxidative stress. Oxidative stress is transduced into a neural signal by the TRPA1 ion channel on meningeal pain receptors, eliciting neurogenic inflammation, a key event in migraine. Thus, migraines may be a response to brain oxidative stress.
Afferent C units responding to mechanical, thermal and chemical stimuli in human non-glabrous skin.

C unit activity was recorded with microelectrodes from intact sensory fascicles in the human peroneal nerve. The analysis includes 46 afferent units with receptive fields predominantly on the dorsum of the foot and ankle. 16 units were tested quantitatively. Another 30 units were tested qualitatively by a combination of electrical and natural stimuli in the skin. This method was valuable for a reliable identification of activity in individual afferent C elements, when several C units with similar potential amplitudes responded to testing in the skin. The units were not spontaneously active at normal skin temperatures but one unit showed a low frequency discharge at a skin temperature of 22o C. Cooling by ether evaporation was an inefficient stimulus except for 2 units. Gentle mechanical stimuli did not activate any of the units, whereas afferent C unit impulses were induced by moderately intense mechanical stimuli, noxious heat and various chemical irritants. The sensations produced by stimuli inducing intense afferent C unit activity were reported as “burning or delayed pain”, whereas stimuli eliciting low frequency activity often were reported as “itch”. It is concluded that polymodal C receptors, similar with “polymodal nociceptors” in the cat and monkey, are numerous in skin areas sparsely covered with hairs on the dorsum of the foot and ankle in man, whereas no low threshold C mechanoreceptors were identified. The experiments do not exclude the possibility that both delayed pain and burning itch sensations may be mediated by different impulse patterns from polymodal C receptors.
Ethnicity and Elderly Suicide in Singapore

In the cosmopolitan city of Singapore the annual suicide rates in the general population from 1985 to 1991 remained fairly constant, with a mean of 15.3 per 100,000. It was highest among Indians (19.5 per 100,000), followed by Chinese (16.2 per 100,000) and Malays (2.3 per 100,000). The suicide rates were higher in elderly people (aged 65 years and over) than in younger age groups (10 to 64 years) and in males than in females. For the elderly, the mean annual suicide rate for this period was 52.0 per 100,000. However, it was highest among Chinese, with 59.3 per 100,000, followed by Indians at 33.9 per 100,000, and, again, lowest among Malays, with 3.0 per 100,000. Possible sociocultural factors are proposed to account for differences in suicide rates among these ethnic groups.
Does a coxib-associated thrombotic risk limit the clinical use of the compounds as analgesic anti-inflammatory drugs?

Summary Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs) and selective cyclooxygenase (COX-2) inhibitors (coxibs) are commonly used as analgesic and anti-inflammatory agents.Selective COX-2 inhibitors or coxibs were primarily developed asa response to the gastrointestinal toxicity of conventional NSAIDs but may have other side effects. Currently available data suggests definite prothrombotic risk with the coxibs, and the magnitude of risk may vary with individual agents. Based on available data, coxibs should be restricted to use as 2nd-line, possibly as 3rd-line, agents for carefully chosen patients and randomized trials versus placebo or an accepted comparator must be performed to define the overall safety profile in diverse patient populations.The recently announced Prospective Randomized Evaluation of Celecoxib Integrated Safety vs. Ibuprofen or Naproxen (PRECISION) trial will assess the relative cardiovascular safety of three of the most commonly used pain relievers in the treatment of arthritis patients,ibuprofen,naproxen and celecoxib.The study will enroll patients with osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis, who have known coronary heart disease or who have multiple risk factors for heart disease and also some patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Patients will be followed for an average of two years to track the occurrence of serious cardiovascular events, including death, heart attack and stroke. This study should provide some definitive evidence of the relative cardiovascular safety of the available anti-inflammatory agents but would be even more useful if it included an arm where patients were treated with analgesics such as acetaminophen and/or moderate strength narcotics.
Head Circumference and Developmental Ability at the Age of Seven Years

ABSTRACT. Data on 365 children who had been small (SGA) average (AGA) or large (LGA) for gestational age at birth were analysed at the age of seven years. Significant positive correlations were found between head circumference and developmental scores in the SGA and LGA groups. These were mainly due to associations between relatively small heads and low scores. Familial factors, social class and sex affect both head circumference and developmental ability at this age. Their influences on these two parameters differ in degree; and in the case of sex, in direction. When account was taken of these other factors the contribution of birth‐weight group to the variance in head circumference remained high; but its contribution to developmental scores was reduced.
Characterization of a novel brain‐derived microglial cell line isolated from neonatal rat brain

We observed highly aggressively proliferating immortalized (HAPI) cells growing in cultures that had been enriched for microglia. The cells were initially obtained from mixed glial cultures prepared from 3‐day‐old rat brains. HAPI cells are typically round with few or no processes when cultured in 10% serum containing medium. As the percentage of serum in the medium is decreased, the HAPI cells have more processes. HAPI cells stain for the isolectin B4, OX‐42, and GLUT5, which are markers for microglial cells, but the cells do not immunolabel with A2B5, a marker of cells in the oligodendroglial cell lineage, or with the astrocyte‐specific marker, glial fibrillary aciidic protein (GFAP). In addition, HAPI cells are capable of phagocytosis. We conclude that HAPI cells are of microglia/macrophage lineage. Exposing HAPI cells to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induces the mRNAs for tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). LPS exposure also induces secretion of TNF‐α and production of nitric oxide (NO) in HAPI cells. Because activation of microglia is associated with an increase in iron accumulation and ferritin expression, we tested the hypothesis that iron status affects the production of TNF‐α and NO. Our studies demonstrate that both iron chelation and iron loading diminished the LPS‐induced effect of TNF‐α and NO. The results of this study indicate that HAPI cells possess the characteristics of microglia/brain macrophages, providing an alternative cell culture model for the study of microglia. In addition, we demonstrate that the activation of microglial cells could be modified by iron. GLIA 35:53–62, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Effects of High Concentrations of Inorganic Salts on Swarming Ability in Fluorescent Pseudomonas Strains

We did tests using swarm plates, to examine the effects of various salts and their concentrations on the chemotaxis of fluorescent Pseudomonas strains. As a result, we found that the swarming ability of the Pseudomonas strains was inhibited by high concentrations of Ca2+. The growth of the strains was not affected at the high concentration of Ca2+, but the cells grown in swarm agar under the condition were extended in the filaments. Most of the cells had reached 10 μm to 40 μm in length. Such cell elongation was not observed with salts other than calcium salts. A significant correlation between the cell elongation and the decrease of swarming ability by the high concentration of Ca2+ was observed.
You’ve told me what you have found, but you haven’t told me the so-what

It is just over two years since Professor Brian Whipp PhD DSc passed away on 20 October 2011. His contributions to the physiology of exercise were profound and appropriately, they have been enduring. His work on tolerance to exercise advanced not only our knowledge and understanding of underlying mechanisms but also continued long-standing traditions characterised by the work of A. V. Hill of ingenuity. Brian played lead roles in the development of breath-by-breath gas-analysis systems that today, tend to be taken for granted. Moreover, Brian’s personal qualities inspired many. He was fastidious, probing and exacting. He was also immensely supportive and many can count themselves fortunate to have benefitted from his tutelage. It is perhaps fitting then to mark the anniversary of Brian’s passing by recounting one of his many sayings. We have chosen the one that heads this editorial. In research, the process is driven by the research question. The question should be a good one. So how do we know if it is “good”? There are perhaps two metrics (Winter, 2011) against which “goodness” can be judged. Answering the question should (1) advance knowledge and understanding or (2) change practice. If we can do both, we really have done well. In the context of advancing knowledge, care has to be taken when claiming “newness”. This has been highlighted in previous editorials (Nevill, 2001; Winter, 2008). Moreover, preparations in the UK for the REF2014 must include statements about the “impact” that work has made. Principally although not necessarily, this is evaluated in the context either of how outcomes of research have changed or are likely to change practice. So, it is important to report not only what a study has found but also, the implications of the finding, or of course, findings. Outcomes should be stated clearly, simply and unequivocally. Hence, Brian’s “so-what? ” We would do well to heed Brian’s advice.
Functional analysis of the Helicobacter pylori principal sigma subunit of RNA polymerase reveals that the spacer region is important for efficient transcription

We have cloned the rpoD gene encoding the principal sigma (σ) factor of Helicobacter pylori. The deduced amino acid sequence reveals a predicted polypeptide of 676 residues that has amino acid homology with the principal σ factors of a number of divergent prokaryotes. We have designated this factor σ80. Amino acid sequence analysis suggests that region 1.1 is missing in σ80 and that a region with homology to a regulatory protein from Bacillus subtilis phage SPO1 is present. Genetic studies have indicated that σ80 is not compatible with the transcriptional machinery of Escherichia coli. However, in vitroσ80 could be assembled into the E. coli RNA polymerase and could bind to E. coli and H. pylori promoters, suggesting that the σ80‐containing RNA polymerase has the same stoichiometry as the native complex. By exchanging protein domains between E. coli and H. pyloriσ factors, we demonstrate that the σ80 domain inhibiting transcription from E. coli promoters is confined within the non‐conserved spacer region, implying that the spacer region of prokaryotic primary σ factors plays an important role in the process of transcription. Consistent with its restricted niche and with the availability of a very restricted number of transcriptional regulators, H. pylori may have evolved a spacer region of the σ factor to modulate total transcription and to quickly respond to microenvironmental changes.