Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DISPERSION MODELING FOR REGULATORY APPLICATIONS by Gligor KANEVCE and Ljubica KANEVCE

Air qual ity sim u la tion mod els are ex ten sively used in as sess ing the im pacts of com bus tion plants. A wide va ri ety of mod els are avail able. In or der to rec om mend the most ap pro pri ate air qual ity mod el ing tech nique that should be in cor po rated into a stan dard reg u la tory frame work in the Re pub lic of Mac e do nia the per for mances of three Gaussi an-plume at mo spheric dis per sion mod els, ADMS 3, OML, and ISCST3 have been ana lysed. The mod els have been tested against the ground level mea sure ments of the daily mean SO2 con cen tra tions ob tained at the four lo ca tions around the Ther mal Power Plant of Bitola. Two ex per i men tal cam paigns have been per formed. The three model re sults and the mea sure ments at the pre sented lo ca tions for 365 days in the year are com pared. An anal y sis of the ob tained re sults is pre sented in the pa per as well. The me te o ro log i cal pre pro cessor MADAM_MP has been used to pro vide the re quired bound ary layer pa ram e ters for es ti ma tion of the trans port and dif fu sion of pol lut ants re leased from the stacks. Us ing the MADAM_MP a year of hourly val ues for the mix ing height, Monin-Obukhov length, sur face fric tion ve loc ity, sen si ble heat flux, and Pasquill's sta bil ity class, have been cal cu lated from the avail able me te o ro log i cal data set. The ap proach and the main equa tions for the bound ary layer pa ram e ters es ti ma tion are pre sented in this pa per.
Hybridization behaviour between two common European cyprinid fish species - silver bream, Blicca bjoerkna and common bream, Abramis brama - in a controlled environment.

The egg release–mating comparison, heterospecific matings and mating success under two hybridization conditions – (i) mixing one sex per species and (ii) mixing both sexes from each species – were investigated to determine whether silver bream Blicca bjoerkna and common bream Abramis brama can hybridize in nature.The results revealed that non-matings in hybridization experiments of silver bream females × common bream males can be explained by territorial and aggressiveness activities observed in common bream. In common bream females × silver bream males, heterospecific matings were observed but their numbers were significantly lower than the spawning numbers, and in this experiment, a female mated with one to four heterospecific males. In mixing both sexes from both species, similar spawning – mating numbers were observed but heterospecific matings accounted for only 27% of the total matings, with 24% accounting for heterospecific matings between common bream females and silver bream males, directly or by opportunism. Mating success was characterized by the occurrence of fertilized eggs after matings.Natural hybridization occurred preferentially between common bream females and silver bream males.
ACCEPTANCE AND APPLICATION OF ISLAMIC FINANCIAL PLANNING AMONG SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES HALAL OPERATOR IN PENINSULAR OF MALAYSIA

Halal Industry in Malaysia has created employment opportunities especially among Small, medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). High demand for Halal products especially from Islamic countries has put Halal industry as one of the national agenda priorities. In the Eleventh Malaysia Plan (11MP), the halal industry had been given special emphasis by the Prime Minister to ensuring the halal industry is highly and persistently competitive. In Asia, Malaysia has been considered as a leader in the development of the Halal hub center. However, halal industry is not only about halal food production, but also it covers Islamic finance services which prohibit interest (riba), uncertainties (gharar) and gambling (maysir). Islamic financial planning is one of the important parts of Islamic finance because it plays a big role in providing Shariah compliant funds and investment opportunities especially for SMEs halal operators. The holistic approach to halal industry should also cover not only halal food production, but also Islamic financial planning which includes activities such as how to create, increase, purify and to protect wealth from Islamic perspective. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between acceptance of Islamic finance and the application of Islamic financial planning among SMEs halal operators in Peninsular Malaysia. The findings of this study reveal that the acceptance of Islamic finance was significantly correlated with the application of Islamic financial planning among SMEs halal operator. These finding indicated the important of integration between acceptance on the Halal industry with Islamic financial planning activities. SMEs Halal operators should be able to accept the Islamic finance principles. This relationship recognises the importance of acceptance and practice of Islamic financial planning among halal SMEs operators in promoting halal products and services and boost demand for Malaysian halal products at the international level.
Pygmalion in the reintegration process: Desistance from crime through the looking glass

The study of desistance from crime has come of age in recent years, and there are now several, competing theories to account for the ability of long-term offenders to abstain from criminal behavior. Most prominently, recent explanations have borrowed elements from informal social control theory, differential association theory and cognitive psychology. In the following, we argue that labeling theory may be a neglected factor in understanding the desistance process. Drawing on interview data collected as part of a study of an offender reintegration program, we illustrate how the idea of the “looking-glass self-concept” and others is a useful metaphor in understanding the process of rehabilitation or recovery in treatment programs.
Structural Changes and Productivity Trends: Evidence from Jordan's Manufacturing

This paper examines the impacts of innovations, structural changes, technological changes, FDI, investment, and the effect of treaty and regulations of World Trade Organisation (W.T.O) on economy in an Arab country: Jordan. The data series were collected from different sources for the period from 2001 to 2014. The data of inputs and outputs were transferred to logarithm. Translog (Transcendental Logarithmic) method used an estimated series by least square time series (LST), once with dummies of industries and other times, without a Translog production function. The other model is utilised in the analysis of data such as fixed effects and random effects to estimate the (KLAMS) function. Then, LML (Limited Maximum Likelihood) method to capture the coefficients of productivity manufacturing industries in Jordan and estimate the coefficients of independent variables such as chemical and fertilizer, petroleum and service sectors among other variables of production function. Positive relationship remarked the signs of innovation and technology. Total Factor Productivity (TFP) and W.T. O. were tagged time. (t-1) is used to show the impact of the total gross productivity on these variable, the elasticity for these variables sometimes is too weak and in some cases, close to one. It means that capital and labour demands are more elastic than demand of materials, foreign direct investment (FDI) and innovations and structural changes. Hence, the paper presents an alternative set of estimates of TFP growth of Jordan manufacturing industry, the water demand increased in the period of the study within 8 percent while the industrial productivity increased 5.5 percent as a compound average. To sum up, fixed effects are acceptable more than random effects in Jordan industries series.
The impact of dust storms on the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea

Abstract. Located in the dust belt, the Arabian Peninsula is a major source of atmospheric dust. Frequent dust outbreaks and some 15 to 20 dust storms per year have profound effects on all aspects of human activity and natural processes in this region. To quantify the effect of severe dust events on radiation fluxes and regional climate characteristics, we simulated the storm that occurred from 18 to 20 March 2012 using a regional weather research forecast model fully coupled with the chemistry/aerosol module (WRF–Chem). This storm swept over a remarkably large area affecting the entire Middle East, northeastern Africa, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. It was caused by a southward propagating cold front, and the associated winds activated the dust production in river valleys of the lower Tigris and Euphrates in Iraq; the coastal areas in Kuwait, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates; the Rub al Khali, An Nafud, and Ad Dahna deserts; and along the Red Sea coast on the west side of the Arabian Peninsula. Our simulation results compare well with available ground-based and satellite observations. We estimate the total amount of dust generated by the storm to have reached 94 Mt. Approximately 78% of this dust was deposited within the calculation domain. The Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf received 5.3 Mt and the Red Sea 1.2 Mt of dust. Dust particles bring nutrients to marine ecosystems, which is especially important for the oligotrophic Northern Red Sea. However, their contribution to the nutrient balance in the Red Sea remains largely unknown. By scaling the effect of one storm to the number of dust storms observed annually over the Red Sea, we estimate the annual dust deposition to the Red Sea, associated with major dust storms, to be 6 Mt.
Rates of Shoreline Progradation during the Last 1700 Years at Beachmere, Southeastern Queensland, Australia, Based on Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating of Beach Ridges

Abstract The optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating method was used to determine the geochronology of seven relict beach ridges that sit immediately behind the modern beach at Beachmere, a low-energy sandy coast within Moreton Bay, Queensland. Between 2600 ± 400 and 1700 ± 130 years ago, the shoreline eroded and foreshore sediment was deposited over the older beach deposit. Subsequently, there was a 1500-year period of shoreline progradation: the shoreline advanced 0.16 m/y between 1700 ± 130 and 1140 ± 80 years ago; and 0.41 m/y between 1140 ± 80 and around 200 years ago. Shortly after 690 ± 60 years ago, a series of well-developed regularly spaced beach ridges gave way to an intertidal flat and then deposition of a set of lower amplitude, closely spaced beach ridges. The younger ridges were deposited between 230 ± 40 and 140 ± 50 years ago, at a rate of around 1.06 m/y. During the last several decades, much of the Beachmere shoreline has eroded into these younger relict ridges. Drivers of these changes in shoreline sedimentary regime are yet to be accurately determined; however, it seems likely they are related to switches that occur in the nearshore sand transport pathway. Our results demonstrate the utility of the OSL method for providing insights into coastal change that occurred in the historical and recent geological period. Better understanding the tempo of shoreline change in the recent past is particularly relevant for assessments of vulnerability to erosion of rapidly developing, low-lying sandy coasts such as northern Moreton Bay.
The Deep-sea Fish Fauna of the Northern Gulf of Mexico

As a part of the Deep Gulf of Mexico Benthos (DGoMB) project, fishes were sampled in May and June 2000. 46 stations were occupied using a 41' semi-balloon otter trawl along transects which ran from shallow to deep water and from northern Florida to off southern Texas. 1073 individuals in 121 demersal fish species were taken. Cluster analyses showed the fish fauna is zoned with depth. Assemblages were identified on the shelf (188-216 m), upper slope (315-785 m), mid-slope (680-1359 m), lower slope (1780-2460 m), and the rise (2248-3075 m). The most abundant species found on the shelf was the small caproid Antigonia capros. Deeper, the fauna is dominated by Macrouridae: Bathygadus macrops and Caelorinchus caribbaeus on the upper slope and Nezumia cyrano and N. aequalis at midslope. The lower slope and rise are dominated by Ophidiidae: Dicrolene kanazawai and Acanthonus armatus respectively. Species richness is highest on the upper slope (53 species) and decreases with depth; the rise has 17 species. Abundance, too, is greatest on the upper slope, especially in the Mississippi Trough and DeSoto Canyon, and declines greatly with depth. Data on fishes support DGoMB hypotheses relating to depth zonation and eastwest abundance, but, because of limited samples, are inconclusive for others. There do not appear to be species of commercial interest in the deep demersal fish fauna.
A Prisoner's Dilemma Tariff Setting Game with an Escape Clause

This paper attempts to provide a game theoretic rationale for the inclusion of escape clause mechanisms in trade agreements, by examining the effects of uncertain outcomes on the sustainability of cooperation in an infinitely repeated Prisoner’s Dilemma tariff setting game. Since, in the presence of uncertainty affecting the outcome under cooperation, deviations and thus the breakdown of cooperation may occur, it is necessary to design an agreement such that cooperation can be sustained under all contingencies. The introduction of an escape clause that allows a shock-affected country to temporarily deviate, while sufficiently compensating its trading partner in order to alleviate the loss from being exposed to the deviation, offers such a possibility. It is shown that with such a mechanism cooperative behavior can always be sustained. Moreover, the expected per-period payoff increases as compared to the case when there is no escape clause. For a sufficiently high discount factor, the threshold level for temporary deviation through the escape clause will be at the efficient level. It is shown that, when the optimal compensation cost can be applied, the optimal cooperative is strictly smaller than the optimal cooperative tariff in the absence of uncertainty. Furthermore it is shown that a decrease in the cooperative tariff unambiguously leads to an increase in the use of the escape clause.
Psychological career resources and organisational commitment : exploring sociodemographic differences

The aim of the study was to explore the way in which people from various gender, age, ethnic, marital and job level groups differ in terms of their psychological career resources (as measured by the Psychological Career Resources Inventory) and organisational commitment (as measured by the Organisational Commitment Scale). Participants comprising a convenience sample of 358 employed adults at both managerial and staff levels in the field of economic and management services participated in the study. The results of non-parametric tests indicated that there were significant differences between the various sociodemographic groups in terms of the measured variables. The results contribute new knowledge that can be used to inform career development practices directed to retaining valuable staff (especially those from historically disadvantaged groups) in the South African work context.
Volatility Forecasting Performance: Evaluation of GARCH type volatility models on Nordic equity indices

This thesis examines the volatility forecasting performance of six commonly used forecasting models; the simple moving average, the exponentially weighted moving average, the ARCH model, the GARCH model, the EGARCH model and the GJR-GARCH model. The dataset used in this report are three different Nordic equity indices, OMXS30, OMXC20 and OMXH25. The objective of this paper is to compare the volatility models in terms of the in-sample and out-of-sample fit. The results were very mixed. In terms of the in-sample fit, the result was clear and unequivocally implied that assuming a heavier tailed error distribution than the normal distribution and modeling the conditional mean significantly improves the fit. Moreover a main conclusion is that yes, the more complex models do provide a better in-sample fit than the more parsimonious models. However in terms of the out-of-sample forecasting performance the result was inconclusive. There is not a single volatility model that is preferred based on all the loss functions. An important finding is however not only that the ranking differs when using different loss functions but how dramatically it can differ. This illuminates the importance of choosing an adequate loss function for the intended purpose of the forecast. Moreover it is not necessarily the model with the best in-sample fit that produces the best out-of-sample forecast. Since the out-of-sample forecast performance is so vital to the objective of the analysis one can question whether the in-sample fit should even be used at all to support the choice of a specific volatility model.
Fiscal Policy and Uncertainty

Government fiscal aggregates are often manipulated over the course of the business cycle in order to provide counter-cyclical stimulus. Changes that are not discretionary--the so-called "built-in stabilizers"--also significantly vary over the business cycle, in a manner that is even more predictable than the periodic discretionary measures. Such measures introduce important bi-directional interactions between policy and uncertainty. On the one hand, activist policy may heighten the general level of uncertainty in the economy, by adding policy ambiguity to the more fundamental sources of uncertainty. On the other hand, the design of optimal policy itself depends crucially on levels of uncertainty concerning the state of the economy in the short and long run. In this paper we review recent work that explores the impact of uncertainty on optimal policy design, proceeding from the short to the long run. Copyright 2002 by Blackwell Publishers Ltd.
Overview of phenotypic plasticity in echinoid larvae, 'Echinopluteus transversus' type vs. typical echinoplutei

Many sea urchin echinoplutei exhibit phenotypic plasticity, increasing arm length to enhance food capture in nutrient poor conditions. We tested this phenomenon in species with contrasting larval forms reared in similar feeding conditions. Heliocidaris tuberculata has a typical echinopluteus larva with 4 pairs of arms while Centrostephanus rodgersii larvae have only 1 pair of arms (‘Echinopluteus transversus ’ type larva). Larvae were exposed to high, medium and no food treatments. The ratio ‘postoral arm length’ to ‘midline body length’ (PO:MBL) was used to document phenotypic plasticity. Fed H. tuberculata larvae developed short postoral arms and low PO:MBL, while starved larvae developed long postoral arms and high PO:MBL, indicative of plastic arm growth. In contrast, well fed C. rodgersii larvae had the longest arms and high PO:MBL, indicating the absence of plastic arm growth. Taking MBL into account, ANCOVA revealed that differences among treatments were due to PO. The hypothesis that starved C. rodgersii larvae would develop long arms was not supported. Principal component analysis confirmed that larvae in different food treatments had distinct morphologies and that H. tuberculata and C. rodgersii had opposite growth patterns with respect to food treatment. We suggest that ‘Echinopluteus transversus ’ type larvae are adapted for long distance dispersal, and with only 2 arms for feeding and swimming, there may be an imperative to maintain arm length irrespective of food conditions. Phenotypic plasticity in echinopluteal arm growth is not universal and may be influenced by phylogeny, latitude and the hydromechanics of larval form.
EVALUATION OF GASTROPROTECTIVE EFFECT OF COENZYME Q 10 AND L - GLUTAMINE IN STRESS AND ETHANOL-INDUCED PEPTIC ULCER IN WISTAR RATS: A NOVEL PRECLINICAL STUDY

Objective: Coenzyme Q 10 (CoQ10) and L-glutamine have antioxidant property their role in peptic ulcer diseases is not well known. Hence, the aim of present study is to evaluate the gastroprotective role of CoQ10 and L-glutamine in stress and ethanol-induced peptic ulcers in Wistar albino rats.Methods: A total of 90 rats were used for the conduct of study in two experimental models, the stress- and the ethanol-induced ulcer model. Each model consists of eight groups with six rats in each group. Sucralfate and pantoprazole were used as standard drugs along with CoQ10 and L- glutamine as test drugs. Drugs were administered for 10 days in stress model and 7 days in case of ethanol model. Statistically analyzed using analysis of variance and post-hoc test with significance as p>0.05Results: CoQ10 and L- glutamine when used alone as well in combination with pantoprazole and sucralfate showed no ulcer formation. Test drugs showed decrease in gastric acid secretion, decreased total and free acidity levels, higher gastric pH, increased mucous secreting ability, higher levels of reduced glutathione levels in both tissue as well as blood and lower malondialdehyde levels when compared with pantoprazole and sucralfate suggestive of their antioxidative benefit, in both the models.Conclusion: Well-designed clinical trials can be done to evaluate the use of CoQ10 and L- glutamine in the treatment of peptic ulcer disease due to various etiology.
Effect of salt stress on growth of sorghum germplasms at vegetative stage

Soil salinity is an increasing problem in the world and main obstacle to agricultural productivity especially in areas where irrigation is necessary. It adversely affects plant growth and development. Adoption of salt tolerant variety is more important here and so screening of salt tolerant germplasms is essential. For this reason, a germination test under salinity and a hydroponic experiment were conducted at Plant Physiology Laboratory, Department of Crop Botany, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh to investigate the effect of NaCl on germination, morphological characters and growth of sorghum seedlings. The experiment comprised of two levels of NaCl concentration viz. Control (without NaCl and EC 1.36 dSm −1 in hydroponic culture) and 80 mM NaCl and five sorghum germplasms viz. BD 700, BD 703, BD 707, BD 710 and BD 726. There were 10 (5×2) treatments in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Results showed that germination percentage, hypocotyls and epicotyls length, root and shoot length, leaf length, leaf sheath length, fresh and dry mass production were influenced by NaCl stress. However, among tested germplasms, BD 707 showed the best performance considering the seedlings growth, germination percentage and other parameters. BD 710 and BD 703 showed the highest sensitivity to NaCl stress based on the above parameters studied. These results suggested that sorghum is able to grow with moderate salinity. J. Bangladesh Agril. Univ. 16(1): 67-72, April 2018
Progress in Dielectrophoretic Assembly of Carbon Nanotubes for Sensing Application

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have shown their potential for broad applications in field effect transistor, field emission, interconnects, energy storage, biomedicine, and many others, due to their excellent electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties. One requirement for many of these applications is to assemble CNTs into designated devices. As a promising nanomanipulation method, dielectrophoresis (DEP) has been widely applied to assemble CNTs in the fabrication of CNT-based nanodevices. This paper presents a brief review of the progress in CNT-based nanosensors and the application of DEP in device making. These sensors focus on the sensing of gases, temperature, bioparticles, light, pressure, stress, and strain.