Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ludwig’s angina: an analysis of sixteen cases in a suburban Nigerian tertiary facility.

Objective: To document the prevalence and management of Ludwig’s angina in a suburban population. Methods: All consecutive cases of Ludwig’s angina seen and managed at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital, Ile-Ife, Nigeria between 1988 and 2002. Results: There were 16 cases with 10 males and 6 females whose ages ranged from 8 to 75 years; mean+ SD; 43.8 + 19.9 years. Symptom duration ranged from one day to three weeks; mean + SD; 6.4 + 4.9 days of the onset of illness. Odontogenic infection was the commonest etiologic factor in 12 cases (75%) and 4 of these were attributed to post dental extraction sepsis. Seven patients had underlying disease such as diabetes mellitus, lobar pneumonia, severe anaemia and mental retardation. The commonest was diabetes mellitus in 4 cases. Microbiological investigations showed a polymicrobial nature of the infection with Staphylococcus aureus (6 cases) out of 11 patients that had the examination. Treatment involved high doses of broad-spectrum parenteral antibiotics, immediate surgical drainage under local and general anaesthesia in 14 (75%) and single patients respectively. This was in addition to extraction of involved tooth/teeth where applicable. The complications recorded in 5 cases (31.3%) were septicaemia, mediastinitis, empyema thoracic, necrotising fasciitis, laryngeal spasm and renal failure. Mortality occurred in 4 cases (25%). Conclusions: Ludwig’s angina is a serious disease and late presentation remains a typical feature. Associated co-morbid condition is common. Prompt clinical evaluation and definitive care will considerably improve its prognosis and reduce the high mortality associated with the condition Key words: Ludwig’s Angina, Suburban Population, Tertiary Facility.
Isomorfismo institucional de empresas industriales

The article aims to research the reasons of why Russian industrial enterprises tend to use the strategy of institutional isomorphism. The author introduces the notion of ‘institutional rent of an en-terprise’ after clarifying the kinds of economic rents and the essence of the isomorphism theory. Rus-sian enterprises prefer the isomorphism’s strategy due to the specifics of the industrial policy and other institutional factors. This trend resulted in the essential increase of institutional rents over adaptation costs. The use of such a strategy might lead to the operation of economically ineffective enterprises on the market.
Experimental methods to determine model parameters for failure modes of CFRP

The focus of this thesis is to develop methods to predict the damage response of Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polymers (CFRP). In the pursuit of reducing the manufacturing cost and weight of CFRP components, it is crucial to enable modelling of the non-linear response associated with various failure modes. Two failure modes are considered in this thesis: fibre compressive failure and interlaminar delamination. Multidirectional laminated composites are commonly used when a low weight is desired due to their high specific strength and stiffness. In a carbon/epoxy composite, almost exclusively the fibres carry the load. However, along the fibre direction, the compressive strength is considerably lower than the tensile strength. With the same reasoning, the transverse strength is considerably lower than the in-plane strength. This makes delamination and fibre compressive failure two of the major concerns in structural design. Moreover, the presence of delaminations severely reduces the compressive strength of a laminate. This can cause catastrophic failure of the structure. In Paper A, we suggest a test method for determining fracture properties associated with fibre compressive failure. A modified compact compression specimen is designed for this purpose and compressive failure takes place in a region consisting exclusively of fibres oriented parallel to the loading direction. The evaluation method is based on a generalized J-integral and full field measurements of the strain field on the surface of the specimen. Thus, the method is not restricted to small damage zones. Paper B focuses on measuring cohesive laws for delamination in pure mode loading. The cohesive laws in mode I and mode II are measured with the DCB- and ENF-specimen, respectively. With a method based on the J-integral, the energy release rate associated with the crack tip separation is measured directly. From this, the cohesive laws are derived. It is concluded that the nonlinear response at the crack tip is crucial in the evaluation of the mode II fracture energy.
The Importance of Corporate Foreign Debt as an Alternative to Currency Derivatives in Actual Management of Exchange Rate Exposures

This empirical study of the exchange rate exposure management of Danish non-financial firms listed on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange shows that debt denominated in foreign currency ("foreign debt") is a very important alternative to the use of currency derivatives. The results show that the relative importance of foreign debt is positively related to (1) the extent of foreign subsidiaries, (2) the relative value of assets in place, (3) the size of the firm, and (4) the debt ratio. The pivotal role of time horizon is emphasized. These findings are important to firms in other countries with open economies.
Valorisation of Waste Chicken Feathers: Green Oil Sorbent

The threat of oil pollution increases with the development of large-scale off-shore petroleum industrial activities. Recently, reducing waste materials through reuse has contributed to sustainable manufacturing in many industries. With development of large-scale poultry farming industries, the disposal of large amounts of waste chicken feathers has become a huge problem. Thus, sustainable methods for valorisation of this waste are needed. This paper examines beneficiation of waste chicken feathers via conversion into sorbents for clean-up of oil spills in water bodies to replace conventionally used synthetic adsorbents that are costly. Chicken feathers have a very high capacity for adsorption of liquid oils (up to 16.21 g of oil/g of chicken feather) at fast uptake time (10 min). The removal efficiency of oils in spills increases with increment in contact time with the sorbent. Untreated waste chicken feathers exhibited slow sorption rate for oil due to the presence of grease and other impurities on the surface of feathers. More than 85% of the oil adsorbed by chicken feathers can be recovered. Thus, waste chicken feathers show very attractive and promising adsorption/absorption properties for oil spill clean-up applications to replace polymer-based adsorbents due to their high oil absorption capacities. Both untreated and treated chicken feathers show promising potential for use as oil absorbents.
Zinc-induced genotoxic effects in root meristems of barley seedlings.

The pollution increase, as a result of the release into environment of genotoxic chemicals, including heavy metals, largely affects the ecosystems and the health of living organisms. Although zinc is not considered highly phytotoxic, its excess becomes noxious. In literature, the reports on zinc genotoxicity are equivocal. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the amplitude of cytogenetic damage induced in Hordeum vulgare L. cv. â€˜Madalinâ€™ after seed treatment with different concentrations (10, 100, 250, 500 I¼M) of Zn +2 , provided as zinc sulphate and zinc acetate. The mitostimulatory effect was present at all concentrations of both zinc compounds. The rate of ana-telophase aberrations exceeded by 2 - 3 times the control, and the frequency of metaphase disturbances was 5.0-10.0 times higher than the control. The results indicate the clastogenic and aneugenic potential of zinc in barley and constitute a signal about the risks of its increasing presence into the environment, with repercussions on living systems, even on human health, due to the extensive use of zinc compounds including as pesticides.
Microfinance institutions ’ failure to address poverty : A narrative critical literature review

This critical literature review begins by giving a short introduction to the microfinance industry. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are explained and an account is given of their dual performance goals of financial performance (‘financial sustainability’) and social performance (‘outreach’). While MFIs’ social performance is directly aimed at poverty reduction, it is noteworthy that often they fail to address poverty (i.e., they fail to deliver outreach). The aim of the paper is to answer the following research question: Why have microfinance institutions (MFIs) failed to address poverty? In order to establish the reason, the first step is to look at how the MFIs are managed and controlled, i.e. to examine MFIs’ corporate governance literature. This critical literature review was conducted using systematic on-line searches in the databases Scopus and Web of Knowledge; the main key words used were microfinance, gender, corporate governance and performance. The unconvincing nature of the findings of a review of the corporate governance literature suggests that another factor should be taken into consideration: that of gender; after all, MFIs are mainly used by women. The findings from reviewing the microfinance literature suggests that microfinance gender literature may explain why MFIs have not adequately addressed poverty, but this literature consists of a few studies only and further studies are needed. The literature on gender in general is more substantial, however. Some 1 Sigurdur Gudjonsson is an Adjunct at the University of Akureyri. Email: sigurdurg@ unak.is Tímarit um viðskipti og efnahagsmál, 14. árgangur, 1. tölublað, 2017 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License. © Tímarit um viðskipti og efnahagsmál www.efnahagsmal. is 80 | Sigurdur Gudjonsson: Microfinance institutions failure to address poverty account of it will be given in this literature review. The findings of this literature review should benefit policymakers on the one hand, who are in a position to advance gender equality, while on the other hand it should be of use to academics, who can research MFIs in relation to gender; further studies of gender in MFIs are encouraged.
JOINT-CHOICE MODEL FOR FREQUENCY, DESTINATION, AND TRAVEL MODE FOR SHOPPING TRIPS

This paper describes the estimation of a disaggregate joint- choice model for frequency, destination, and travel mode for shopping trips. The model builds on earlier research by Ben-Akiva in Transportation Research Record 526 that argued for the replacement of aggregate conditional (or sequential) model systems with disaggregate joint (or simultaneous) models and presented a model for the joint choice of destination and mode for shipping trips. The extension of this general model by use of the same multinomial logit form and a similar specification to include travel-frequency choice is an attempt to provide a more complete version of the joint-model structure. Estimation of the expanded joint-choice model proved to be feasible and resulted in behaviorally and statistically acceptable parameter values. All variables produced coefficients of the expected signs and magnitudes consistent with the behavioral notions on which the model specification was based. In general, the estimation of joint-choice models for travel demand was shown to be a computationally tractable alternative to the less acceptable conditional approaches that have been used in the past. An example of the application of the shopping model (combined with a previously estimated modal-choice model for work trips) to the evaluation of transportation policy options is used to highlight some of the features of both the particular models used and the general modeling approach that they represent.
Comparing Empetro nigri-Pinetum and Vaccinio uliginosi-Betuletum pubescentis soils in terms of organic matter stocks and ecochemical indices in the Słowiński National Park

Abstract We conducted comparative studies on soil organic matter stocks and indices of the soil’s ecochemical state under Empetro nigri-Pinetum (En-P) and Vaccinio uliginosi-Betuletum pubescentis (Vu-Bp) in the Słowiński National Park. The investigated plant communities are associated with Arenosols that developed from eolian sands and are exposed to high groundwater levels. The presence of fossil Histosol at a depth of 75 cm in the Vu-Bp stand, which lies below the current groundwater level, is the factor that sets both stands apart. The fossil soil strongly differs from Arenosol in terms of its chemical composition. A high abundance of nutrients in bioavailable forms in the soil is one of the reasons for natural renewal of downy birch in the stand, which presence in turn affects the turnover of elements and the properties of Arenosol. The results of our studies confirm the existence of strong feedback between the soil and plant communities. Soils under the mixed pine-birch Vu-Bp stand are characterized by smaller stocks of organic matter and total organic carbon (TOC) contained in the ectohumus as compared to the soils under the pure pine En-P stand. The opposite is found in the humic horizon. Additionally, in the Vu-Bp stand we observed greater accumulation of total nitrogen (TN) in ectohumus, which is reflected in lower TOC:TN ratios. The contents of TN and TOC:TN ratios in humic horizons were similar in both stands. The soils under En-P were more strongly acidified, especially in O-horizons. Mineral horizons in both stands were characterized by a very small sorptive capacity, which increased in ectohumus and fossil soil. Significant differences between the stands were observed in the ionic composition of sorptive complexes. The soils under Vu-Bp stand were more strongly saturated with basic cations, predominantly calcium. In soil solums of both stands, we observed a deficit of bioavailable potassium and magnesium, which was partially compensated by significant amounts of these components in ectohumus and fossil soil in the Vu-Bp stand. Despite a strongly acidic pH, molar Ca:Al ratios suggest that there are no phytotoxic effects due to free aluminium in ectohumus, while they are unlikely in mineral horizons. The risk of phytotoxic effects is reduced by the influx of calcium from groundwater.
Universality and speedup in equilibrium and nonlinear rheology predictions of the fixed slip-link model

The discrete slip-link model (DSM) was developed to describe the dynamics of flexible entangled polymer melts. With just three molecular-weight- and chain-architecture-independent parameters—the molecular weight of a Kuhn step MK; entanglement activity β; and Kuhn step shuffling characteristic time τK—DSM is able to predict simultaneously the linear viscoelasticity of monodisperse linear, polydisperse linear, and branched systems. Without any adjustment, DSM shows excellent agreement with shear flow experiments and elongational flows with stretch up to ∼10–20. Universality observed between entangled melts with the notable exception of high-strain elongations suggests that the average number of entanglements per chain is the primary characteristic of the system. Therefore, theoretical predictions for systems with differing numbers of Kuhn steps per chain but roughly the same number of entanglements should be equivalent when rescaled. In this work, we present a scaling of the DSM parameters, which has no si.
FORMING ADAPTED TEAMS ORIENTED TO COLLABORATION : DETAILED DESIGN AND CASE STUDY

Collaborative work is becoming more important, because of the increasing size and complexity of problems. There are various tools to do collaborative work that facilitate information sharing, activity collaboration among team members, and progress tracking during the execution of the collaborative work. A previous step to the collaboration process is to select the members of the team that will cooperate to reach the established goals. Previous works presented MATEO (Making Adapted TEams Oriented to collaboration), a generic system to adapt team forming taking into account team candidates’ characteristics, context (both individual and collective), and teamforming criteria. An adapted team is a team whose members have been selected according their personal characteristics and collaboration capabilities. This paper complements the previous work, explaining the detailed design of MATEO and its validation in a case study in which MATEO is integrated into a collaborative work platform named AYLLU.
Synthesis, Characterization and CMC Determination of Surfactant-Cobalt(III) Complexes

A number of mixed ligand surfactant-Cobalt(III) complexes of the type cis-[Co(phendione) 2 AX] 2+ and cis-[Co(phendione) 2 A 2 ] 3+ (phendione = 1,10-phenanthroline-5,6-dione, A = dodecylamine or cetylamine, X= Cl) were synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, UV–Vis, Infra-red and NMR spectroscopy methods. The critical micelle concentration (CMC) values of these complexes in aqueous solution were obtained from conductance measurements. The specific conductivity data (at 303, 308 and 313 K) served for the evaluation of the temperature dependent CMC and the thermodynamics of micellization.
Effect of Equivalence Ratio on Composition and performance of Biogas and Gasoline Exhaust from Spark Ignition Engine by Mathematical Modeling

This paper presents the numerical computationnal of pressure, temperature and exhaust characteristics of spark ignition engine with biogas as fuel. The solution of non-linear combustion equation systems have been computed, that based on a quasi-one-dimensional engine model, high order iteration method with the equilibrium constants method. Computer program was used to calculate the mole fractions of 10 combustion products when biogas and gasoline fuel are burnt along with variable equivalence ratios. In cylinder chamber model is based on the classical two-zone approach, wherein parameters like heat transfer from the cylinder, blow by energy loss and heat release rate are also considered and calculated. Biogas is defined as fuel produced from using anaerobic digestion of biodegradable or waste materials and the constituents are C 5 H 7 O 2 N, CH 4 , CO 2 N 2 H 2 O of biogas and C 7 H1 7 of gosoline. Which general fuel model is specified by way of its C a H b O c N d values. The curve-fitted coefficients of energy were then employed to simulate air and fuels data along with frozen composition and practical chemical equilibrium routines from Gill data. The calculated data were used to plot the various pressure and temperature with the crank angle of each step of four stroke engine cycle and combustion products versus equivalence ratio. All results were compared with gasoline as reference fuel in the spark ignition engine according to the same numerical method.
Biogeosciences Effects of stoichiometry and temperature perturbations on beech leaf litter decomposition , enzyme activities and protein expression

Microbes are major players in leaf litter decomposition and therefore advances in the understanding of their control on element cycling are of paramount importance. Our aim was to investigate the influence of leaf litter stoichiometry in terms of carbon (C) : nitrogen (N) : phosphorus (P) ratios on the decomposition processes and to track changes in microbial community structures and functions in response to temperature stress treatments. To elucidate how the stoichiometry of beech leaf litter ( Fagus sylvaticaL.) and stress treatments interactively affect the microbial decomposition processes, a terrestrial microcosm experiment was conducted. Beech litter from different Austrian sites covering C : N ratios from 39 to 61 and C: P ratios from 666 to 1729 were incubated at 15 C and 60 % moisture for six months. Part of the microcosms were then subjected to severe changes in temperature ( +30C and−15C) to monitor the influence of temperature stress. Extracellular enzyme activities were assayed and respiratory activities measured. A semiquantitative metaproteomics approach (1D-SDS PAGE combined with liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry; unique spectral counting) was employed to investigate the impact of the applied stress treatments in dependency of litter stoichiometry on structure and function of the decomposing community. In litter with narrow C : nutrient (C : N, C : P) ratios, microbial decomposers were most abundant. Cellulase, chitinase, phosphatase and protease activity decreased after heat and freezing treatments. Decomposer communities and specific functions varied with site, i.e. stoichiometry. The applied stress combined with the respective time of sampling evoked changes of enzyme activities and litter pH. Freezing treatments resulted in a decline in residual plant litter material and increased fungal abundance, indicating slightly accelerated decomposition. Overall, a strong effect of litter stoichiometry on microbial community structures and functions was detected, but decomposition was mainly driven by a combination of the investigated factors. Temperature perturbations resulted in shortto medium-term alterations of microbial functions; especially high temperature treatments blocked decomposing enzymes.
A Practical Design for a Multivariable Proportional-Integral Controller in Industrial Applications

This paper proposes a robust proportional−integral (PI) controller design for multivariable complex processes to achieve both well-decoupled and well-damped output behavior. By reformulating PI-controlled processes in a way similar to the LQG/LTR control design problem, the proposed model matching technique in the first design stage successfully results in the robust PI controller with well-decoupled output behavior and sufficient stability. Moreover, control performance can be further improved to achieve well-damped responses by applying gain modification in a second design stage. Both simulated results using chemical processes and experimental results using a wind tunnel have proven the feasibility of the proposed PI controller design in real applications.
Zero day exploits and national readiness for cyber-warfare

A zero day vulnerability is an unknown exploit that divulges security flaws in software before such a flaw is publicly reported or announced. But how should a nation react to a zero day? This question is a concern for most national governments, and one that requires a systematic approach for its resolution. The securities of critical infrastructure of nations and states have been severally violated by cybercriminals. Nation-state espionage and the possible disruption and circumvention of the security of critical networks has been on the increase. Most of these violations are possible through detectable operational bypasses, which are rather ignored by security administrators. One common instance of a detectable operational bypass is the non-application of periodic security updates and upgrades from software and hardware vendors. Every software is not necessarily in its final state, and the application of periodic updates allow for the patching of vulnerable systems, making them to be secure enough to withstand an exploit. To have control over the security of critical national assets, a nation must be “cyber-ready” through the proper management of vulnerabilities and the deployment of the rightful technology in the cyberspace for hunting, detecting and preventing cyber-attacks and espionage. To this effect, this paper discusses the implications of zero day exploits and highlights the dangers posed by this cankerworm for an unprepared nation. The paper also adopts the defence-in-depth strategy for national readiness and a foolproof system that enforces the security of critical national infrastructure at all levels. Keywords: exploits, zero day, vulnerability, cyberspace, cyber-warfare