Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Direct and indirect measurements of nitrification and denitrification in the rhizosphere of aquatic macrophytes

Coupled nitrification-denitrification rates in the rhizosphere of 4 different aquatic macrophytes, Zostera manna, Lobelia dortmanna, Littorella uniflora and Potamogeton pectinatus, were measured by means of both an indirect and a direct l s ~ technique. Using the indirect technique we estimated the fraction of 02, excreted by plant roots in the rhizosphere, that was used by coupled nitrification-denitrification. Incubations were carried out in ''NH,' amended oxic slurries. This fraction was multiplied with values for root 0, excretion reported in the literature. The indirect technique allowed us to quantify both the oxidation of NH4+ to NO3 . and the reduction of NO3to NH,+ compared to denitrification. Using the direct technique we estimated coupled nitrification-denitrification from the amount of I5Nz labeled gas that accumulated in intact sediment-plant systems. The 2 techniques recorded similar trends. In these cores '"F&+ was added homogeneously to the rhizosphcrr by peifusion. Denitrification activity in the rhizosphere of 2, and P. pectinatus was low (1.5 to 5 1.1rnol N m-' h-') compared to the activity measured in L. dortmanna and L. uniflora vegetated sediments (24 and 30 pm01 N m-2 h-'). The variability in denitrification activity was due to differences in the ability of the plants to oxidize the rhizosphere, and difference in the character of sediment O2 and NO, consumption. This study attempts to clarify how rooted aquatic vegetation affects the sediment nitrogen cycle via oxygen excretion from the roots. Rhizosphere associated nitrogen transformations (coupled nitrification-denitrification) are central to the understanding of nutrient cycling in shallow aquatic ecosystems
Reading Comprehension: Out of the Ivory Tower and into the Classroom.

ABSTRACT To determine what effect the elimination of all literal questioning would have on students' literal comprehension abilities as well as inferential abilities, a five-month study was conducted with four groups of third and fourth grade students (n-33) who were reading on grade level in their school's adopted basal series. Two different third and fourth grade reading groups were divided into experimental and control groups and were pretested and posttested using the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test, comprehension subtest. The comprehension subtest provides separate scores for literal, inferential, and total comprehension. The control group received regular basal instruction for the duration of the study, and the experimental groups received a variation of typical basal instruction. The variation consisted of allowing the two teachers with experimental groups to pose only inferential or higher level questions following basal selectiors. Results showed that in the whole group comparison, the experimental group performed significantly better on the inferential comprehension subtest as compared to the control group. There were no significant differences on literal comprehension between the two groups. However, the experimental group did perform better on literal comprehension and the difference in mean scores approached significance. When compared by grade levels, there was no significant difference between literal and inferential scores, but inferential scores approached significance as indicated by the mean figures. (HOD)
A Review on Automated Disease Diagnosis Techniques

: The development of computer technologies and increased expenditure of healthcare are the reasons for innovation of automated disease inference system. Automated disease inference system will give the disease information which a person is facing on the basis of health related questions. Using this system health seeker will get immediate response as compared to the existing system. Diseases and symptoms are collected and used as the Question Answer pairs. In this paper, a survey of different techniques for automatic disease diagnosis is done. In shallow learning methods, which make use of patient details from hospital records with structured fields, they can focus on only a single or a few diseases. The automated scheme can deals with wide range of diseases which posses scalability and generalizability.
Anti‐cyclonic eddies northwest of Luzon in summer–fall observed by satellite altimeters

Anti‐cyclonic eddies northwest of Luzon of the Philippines in summer‐fall are identified in the merged data products of satellite altimeters of Topex/Poseidon, Jason‐1 and European Research Satellites. The generation and propagation of the anti‐cyclonic eddies, which are confirmed by satellite ocean color data, are found to be a seasonal phenomenon that is phase‐locked to the onset of the southwesterly monsoon and the relaxation of the cyclonic wind curl in the northeastern South China Sea. The eddies originate from northwest of Luzon in summer, move across the northeastern South China Sea to reach the China continental slope in fall, and propagate southwestward along the continental slope in fall–winter, inducing shelfbreak current variations in the western South China Sea in fall–winter. The anti‐cyclonic eddy discovered by Li et al. (1998) in the northern South China Sea is found to originate from northwest of Luzon and carry primarily the South China Sea waters. It does not appear to be an eddy shed from the Kuroshio in the Luzon Strait area as alluded by Li et al. (1998) and others.
Fossil group origins V. The dependence of the luminosity function on the magnitude gap

In nature we observe galaxy aggregations that span a wide range of magnitude gaps between the two first-ranked galaxies of a system ($\Delta m_{12}$). There are systems with gaps close to zero (e.g., the Coma cluster), and at the other extreme of the distribution, the largest gaps are found among the so-called fossil systems. Fossil and non-fossil systems could have different galaxy populations that should be reflected in their luminosity functions. In this work we study, for the first time, the dependence of the luminosity function parameters on $\Delta m_{12}$ using data obtained by the fossil group origins (FOGO) project. We constructed a hybrid luminosity function for 102 groups and clusters at $z \le 0.25$. We stacked all the individual luminosity functions, dividing them into bins of $\Delta m_{12}$, and studied their best-fit Schechter parameters. We additionally computed a relative luminosity function, expressed as a function of the central galaxy luminosity, which boosts our capacity to detect differences, especially at the bright end. We find trends as a function of $\Delta m_{12}$ at both the bright and faint ends of the luminosity function. In particular, at the bright end, the larger the magnitude gap, the fainter the characteristic magnitude $M^\ast$. We also find differences at the faint end. In this region, the larger the gap, the flatter the faint-end slope $\alpha$. The differences found at the bright end support a dissipationless, dynamical friction-driven merging model for the growth of the central galaxy in group- and cluster-sized halos. The differences in the faint end cannot be explained by this mechanism. Other processes, such as enhanced tidal disruption due to early infall and/or prevalence of eccentric orbits, may play a role. However, a larger sample of systems with $\Delta m_{12} > 1.5$ is needed to establish the differences at the faint end.
Some thoughts on nominal convergence, its drivers and determinants for the new eu member states preparing the euro adoption

The article analyses the process of nominal convergence of the new EU member states (NMS) with particular attention paid to some applied and theoretical aspects, which may have impact on the process of the euro adoption. Chapter two addresses selected theoretical and methodological issues connected with the International Comparison Project (ICP). It discusses determinants and influences affecting price level convergence and some issues that have set off new trends, such as the globalization or process of the on-going European integration. This chapter also presents a brief summary of the main trends of price convergence observed by focusing on changes of comparative price levels (CPL) for various disaggregated items of GDP. It also deals with potential issues and problems arising in this context. Chapter three is aimed at an empirical verification of price convergence and at a search for main driving factors using data for the NMS and the old EU member states over 11 years (1995-2006). There are some differences in results depending on the applied econometric method. The most important determinants of price level are GDP and population, the openness and public finance's indicators are not significant. The last section summarises the main findings.
Teaching in Visual Programming Environments

This article is an extension of the authors’ previous work “Toward a Framework of Programming Pedagogy” (Lau & Yuen, 2009). It aims to highlight the recent development of programming pedagogy, in particular those related to visual programming environments. The persistent problems of high attritions among students and under-representation of females in the computing academia have been widely documented. For example, Sloan and Troy (2008) found that the annual attrition rate among freshmen and sophomores who majored in computer science (CS) in the US has been reported to average 19% and at some schools to be 66%. According to Lasserre and Szostak (2011), the dropout rate in CS courses was between 30% to 50%. While females earned 57% of all the undergraduate degrees in the US in 2009, only 18% of all the computer and information sciences graduates were females (National Center for Women & Information Technology, 2010). To address the problems more fundamentally, it is argued that more effort should be made to transform computing education in high school. Cuny (2012) described an ambitious project called CS 10K that “aims to develop effective new high school computing curricula and get it into 10,000 high schools taught by 10,000 well-prepared teachers by 2016” (p. 35) in the US. Internationally, many other countries also seize the opportunity to revamp their high school CS curricula. The Shut Down or Restart? The Way Forward for Computing in the UK Schools (SDoR? ) report supported the replacement of information and communication technology (ICT) with three inter-related concepts, namely digital literacy, information technology, and CS in the national curriculum (Snyder, 2012) among other recommendations. All these initiatives were aimed to attract and retain students in CS programmes. Programming pedagogy has played a significant role in the teaching and learning of computer programming, which often includes the use of a variety of programming tools (Pears et al., 2007). These tools aid novice programmers to develop programs through program visualisation and algorithm animation (Yuen, 1999, 2006). In our previous review on programming pedagogy (Lau & Yuen, 2009), we identified seven approaches of teaching computer programming based on an initial framework that conceptualised pedagogy along the two dimensions, namely programming knowledge and programming representation. We also predicted that with a trend towards user friendliness, there will be a gradual shift from concept-textual pedagogy to concept-visual pedagogy, which is realised through visual programming. As such, this article examines the recent use of visual programming environments in classrooms and reports its effectiveness. It first gives a synopsis of the seven programming pedagogies. Next it focuses on the discussion of three popular integrated development environments (IDEs) that support visual programming: Alice, Greenfoot, and Scratch. Finally, it envisages the future of visual programming and concludes with suggestions for further developments.
Default Prediction for Small-Medium Enterprises in Emerging Market: Evidence from Thailand

Small-medium enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the economy worldwide and they normally need to borrow funds from financial institutions. Thus, an accurate credit risk model to predict the probability that these firms might be bankrupt and cannot pay back the loans on time is very crucial. However, the studies based on SME data are very rare especially for those in emerging markets. This study develops the SME models by employing both the Multivariate Discriminant Analysis (MDA) and Logistic Regression Analysis (Logit) model in predicting bankruptcy of SMEs in Thailand. The samples cover the period 2000 – 2010. The result shows that the Logit model gives higher predictive accuracy level at 85.5 percent for out-of-sample test. Moreover, the combined forecasts of bankruptcy firms from both MDA and Logit models could help achieve even higher predictive accuracy level.
Study of the mixed layer depth variations within the north Indian Ocean using a 1-D model

[1] Mixed layer depth (MLD) over the north Indian Ocean (30°S to 30°N and 40°E to 110°E) is computed using the simple one-dimensional model of Price et al. [1986] forced by satellite-derived parameters (winds and chlorophyll). Seasonal chlorophyll observations obtained from the Coastal Zone Color Scanner allow us to examine how biology interacts with physics in the upper ocean by changing the absorption of light and thus the heating by penetrative solar radiation, an effect we refer to as biological heating. Our analysis focus mainly on two aspects: the importance of varying biology in the model simulations relative to runs with constant biology and secondly, the contribution of biology to the seasonal variability of the MLD. The model results are compared with observations from a surface mooring deployed for I year (October 1994 to October 1995) in the central Arabian Sea and also with available conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) observations from the Arabian Sea during the period 1994-1995. The effect of biological heating on the upper ocean thermal structure in central Arabian Sea is found to be greatest in August. In other months it is either the wind, which is the controlling factor in mixed layer variations, or the density variations due to winter cooling and internal dynamics. A large number of CTD observations collected under the Joint Global Ocean Flux study and World Ocean Circulation Experiment have been used to validate model results. We find an overall improvement by approximately 2-3 m in root-mean-square error in MLD estimates when seasonally varying chlorophyll observations are used in the model.
Cooperation Networks and Innovation

Recent developments in innovation theory and policy have led policy makers to assign particular importance to supporting networks of cooperation among heterogeneous economic actors, especially in production systems composed of small and medium enterprises. Such innovative policies call for parallel innovations in policy analysis, monitoring and assessment. Our analysis of a policy experiment aimed at supporting innovation networks in the Italian region of Tuscany intends to address some issues connected with the design, monitoring and evaluation of such interventions. Combining tools from ethnographic research and social networks analysis, the article explores the structural elements of the policy programme, its macroscopic impact on the regional innovation system and the success of individual networks in attaining their specific objectives.This innovative approach allows us to derive some general methodological suggestions for the design and evaluation of similar programmes.
Computational Nutrition: An Algorithm to Generate a Diet Plan to Meet Specific Nutritional Requirements

Many methods have been proposed to generate meal plans, but most of them only consider proximates. However, the human body requires a combination of proximates and several macronutrients, micronutrients, vitamins, and minerals. Furthermore, the models designed to generate these meal plans do not take into account an individual’s specific nutritional needs. These needs are often expressed as a combination of lower bound amount (LBA), ideal amount (IA), and upper bound amount (UBA) necessary for the human body to thrive. The aim of this project is to generate an algorithm to produce a list of food items that will meet specific nutritional requirements. With the proposed algorithm, each nutrient receives a score based on the amount of nutrient contained in the food list in relation to the LBA, IA, and UBA. These scores are aggregated to give the meal plan an overall score.
Social networks: the future of marketing for small business

Purpose – The authors review recent developments in online marketing strategy that demonstrate the growing power of online communities in building brand reputations and customer relationships.Design/methodologies/approach – This work draws upon the results of an ongoing research project that is investigating the use of new technologies by entrepreneurial growing businesses in the London area. A range of examples from our 30 case study businesses are drawn upon to illustrate some of the opportunities and threats associated with these new marketing priorities.Findings – The authors conclude that social networks will play a key role in the future of marketing; externally they can replace customer annoyance with engagement, and internally they help to transform the traditional focus on control with an open and collaborative approach that is more conducive to success in the modern business environment.Research limitations/implications – Further research should aim to track this activity as it integrates with m.
Xarxa arterial del camp de Tarragona

En aquest estudi es preten demostrar que aquest model plantejat, en forma de T invertida, no resoldra els problemes de litoralitzacio presents i, el que es mes important, no es el model idoni per solucionar la mancanca de vertebracio interna que existeix actualment a l’ambit.
Dynamique des entités géographiques et lois d’échelle dans les systèmes complexes : la question de l’ergodicité

Les lois invariantes d’echelle mesurees sur des entites geographiques revelent la forme des processus dynamiques qui engendrent les inegalites de dimension. Deux interpretations de leur application aux systemes de villes sont ici discutees. Selon des physiciens, la valeur de l’exposant des lois de puissance differencierait les activites urbaines susceptibles de realiser des economies d’echelle, avec des exposants inferieurs a un, de celles qui sont simplement proportionnelles a la population parce qu’elles satisfont des besoins universels, tandis que d’autres, plus que proportionnelles, seraient porteuses de croissances de plus en plus rapides et de menaces de crises. Cette interpretation de lois transversales dans les termes de la trajectoire longitudinale d’une seule ville, suppose que le systeme de villes soit ergodique. Cette condition n’est pas verifiee selon une theorie evolutive des villes qui integre division spatiale du travail et diffusion hierarchique des innovations.
Suppressive effects of grape marc compost on phytopathogenic oomycetes

Abstract Suppression of soil-borne diseases of horticultural crops by compost has been attributed to the activities of antagonistic micro-organisms. A great diversity of biological control agents naturally colonize compost. This is especially true for biological control agents effective against the soil-borne oomycete pathogens. The purpose of this research was to determine the suppressive capacity of grape marc compost against Pythium aphanidermatum and Phytophthora parasitica. Antagonist in vitro assays were performed with 432 microbial morphologies isolated from grape marc compost. Seven micro-organisms were selected for further bioassay with cucumber – P. aphanidermatum, and two micro-organisms for tomato – P. parasitica. Those experiments indicate that grape marc compost reduces the severity of Pythium dumping-off on cucumber, but do not reduce the severity of Phytophthora root rot on tomato. The enrichment of compost or vermiculite with the selected microbes for compost do not improve the suppressive effects.
Evaluation of the modified 3D free-surface Green’s function for potential flow in a numerical towing tank

What is derived in this paper is the potential flow around the marine structures in the numerical towing tank. The Green’s formula and image method is employed to solve the boundary value problem. The Green’s function satisfies the Laplace equation and the boundary conditions on the bottom, walls and free surface. The Green's function consists of three parts. The first part is correlated with spatial spacing between the source and a field point. The second part consists of the free surface disturbance. The radiation condition is dealt with in the third part to ensure that the waves vanish upstream of the source. An infinite series is obtained for each part of the Green’s function using the image method. Effects of the numerical towing tank’s width and depth on the solution are investigated, and the flow patterns due to the presence of a singularity with constant strength in the uniform flow are computed. Uniform motion of a submerged sphere and ellipsoid are simulated and compared with the analytical solutions and other numerical results. Wave profiles are computed for a sphere and an ellipsoid to show the effect of the tank width on the solution.
Crisis Effect on the Relationship between Stock Returns and Volatility in Iran

The main object in this is to evaluate the possibility of any changes might have happened due to the crises in Tehran Stock Market, concerning the relationship between stock return and the volatility. We have estimated the relationship between Tehran stock market returns and conditional volatility concerning pre and post crises data and for the whole period. Using parametric–GARCH-in mean model has shown positive and significant relationship from 1997 to 2007. But this relationship have been affected by crisis. There is negative (significant) relationship before crisis and positive (but not significant) after crisis.
Creative Problem Solving Styles and Personality Types in Macau College Students: A Canonical Correlation Analysis

Within the existing creativity-training programs, the Creative Problem Solving (CPS) model may be the most effective tool for facilitating individual creativity. Among various factors that influence individuals’ creative performance, personality is widely considered one of most important factors. By far the most popular measure of personality types is the MBTI; unsurprisingly, the relationship between the MBTI and creativity has been extensively studied. However, relatively little research has touched on the relation between personality types and CPS. The purpose of this study was to use the KTS II as its instrument for measuring personality types, and FourSight as its instrument for measuring CPS styles. In our Macau business undergraduates, canonical correlation analysis shows that a link exists between personality types and CPS styles, and that this link is not gender-dependent. However, the variable thinking is the only valid and influential predictor of the canonical function. It is apparent that more empirical investigations are needed to confirm our findings.
Genomic scores are independent of disease volume in men with favorable risk prostate cancer—implications for choosing men for active surveillance

For low-risk prostate cancer, active surveillance (AS) has been increasingly proposed as the preferential initial management strategy. AS entails a strategy by which selected men are managed expectantly with the intention to apply potentially curative treatment in case of progression signs (1). Progression mainly occurs during the 2 first years with differed treatment rates ranging from 20% to 40% among prospective series (1,2). This “rapid” progression could be explained by a not ideal initial selection rather than a real pathological progression of truly very low risk prostate cancer. Thus, for treatment decisions and inclusion of patients in AS protocols, clinicians have to deal with this clinically meaningful risk of reclassification (3-5).