Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Herbal Medicine: Safety and Quality Concerns

Herbal products are complex mixtures of organic chemicals that may come from any raw or processed part of a plant, such as leaves, stem, flowers, roots and seeds. It is estimated that 37% of sales of the world’s pharmaceutical products utilized or originated from natural raw material. It appears that dependence upon herbal now are widely acknowledged by the general public and endorsed by the medical profession at large. Current law defined herbs as dietary supplement. In this case, the evidence of efficacy and demonstration of safety not a vital requirement as pharmaceutical drugs. Aligned with increase in worldwide consumption, the safety of herbal medicine is subject of concern. Although herbs are often perceived as “natural”, “green” and “back to nature” rhetoric, many side effects have been reported owing to active ingredients, contaminants, adulteration, or interaction with other drugs. The socio-economic changes plus the technological advances, commercial factors, consumers’ preferences and changing lifestyles has influenced the way herbal drug are being manufactured and distributed. The various ranges of botanical medicine are now available as over-the-counter (OTC) products. Thus, just like pharmaceutical industry, it has become utmost important to assure quality, safety and efficacy of herbal product through the whole manufacturing process.
Tolerance to gamma-irradiation in eggs of the tardigrade Richtersius coronifer depends on stage of development

Tardigrades are known as one of the most radiation tolerant animals on Earth, and several studies on tolerance in adult tardigrades have been published. In contrast, very few studies on radiation tolerance of embryonic stages have been reported. Here we report a study on tolerance to gamma irradiation in eggs of the eutardigrade Richtersius coronifer. Irradiation of eggs collected directly from a natural substrate (moss) showed a clear dose-response, with a steep decline in hatchability at doses up to 0.4 kGy followed by a relatively constant hatchability around 25% up to 2 kGy, and a decline to ca. 5% at 4 kGy above which no eggs hatched. Analysis of the time required for eggs to hatch after irradiation (residual development time) showed that hatching of eggs after exposure to high doses of gamma radiation was associated with short residual development time. Since short residual development time means that the egg was irradiated at a late developmental stage, this suggests that eggs were more tolerant to radiation late in development. This was also confirmed in another experiment in which stage of development at irradiation was controlled. No eggs irradiated at the early developmental stage hatched, and only one egg at middle stage hatched, while eggs irradiated in the late stage hatched at a rate indistinguishable from controls. This suggests that the eggs are more sensitive to radiation in the early stages of development, or that tolerance to radiation is acquired only late in development, shortly before the eggs hatch, hypotheses that are not mutually exclusive. Our study emphasizes the importance of considering specific cell cycle phases and developmental stages in studies of tolerance to radiation in tardigrades, and the potential importance of embryonic studies in revealing the mechanisms behind the radiation tolerance of tardigrades and other cryptobiotic animals.
Microbial growth and activity during the initial stages of seagrass decomposition

Microbial O2 consumption and bacterial growth associated with decaylng Zostera marina increased rapidly in the first 24 h of incubation at the sediment surface. Dunng this period, the detrital complex lost 20 O/o of its initial dry weight. An additional 20 % of the original dry weight was lost in the next 13 d , and 73 % was lost over the entire 6 wk incubation period; changes in the rate of weight loss were consistent w t h changes in the patterns of bacterial activity While the initial response of the detritus-associated bacteria was rapid and substantial, less than 7.5 % of the detrital carbon lost during the first 48 h of incubation was metabolized (assimilated plus respired), although 52 6 "/o was metabolized during the 28 d to 42 d period. Of the plant carbon metabolized, over 80 O/O was m~neralized to CO? The results suggest that if bacterial transformation of plant litter is an important link in the transfer of primary production to aquatic food webs, water column bacteria function as a link and not the bactena associated with detrital part~cles.
Tax evasion behaviour and demographic factors: An exploratory study in Australia

The tax compliance behavioural literature indicates that, among other factors, demographic variables play an important role in the compliance behaviour of taxpayers. This exploratory study investigated the relationship between demographic variables and Australian personal taxpayers’ attitudes towards tax evasion. An electronic survey of 300 Australian personal taxpayers’ was conducted by a market research company on behalf of the author. The findings revealed that, for the majority of the demographic variables analysed, statistically significant relationships were established with Australian’s attitudes towards tax evasion. These results provide useful information for revenue collecting authorities and have implications for tax policy development.
The Effects of Various Sales Promotions on Sales Promotion Attitudes in Fashion Stores

This paper studied the effects of consumers' fashion item sales promotion attitude, depending on different sales promotions (monetary vs. non monetary) and sales promotion benefit timing (immediate vs. delayed) in fashion stores (high involvement product brand vs. low involvement). Three hypotheses were developed. H1; Monetary promotion is more effective than non-monetary promotion in fashion stores. H2; Immediate benefit is more effective than delayed benefit for both monetary and non-monetary promotions in fashion stores. H3; High-involvement fashion brand is more promotion elastic than low-involvement. Data were solicited from 300 female college student and between subjects experiment were designed. The results found out that monetary sales promotion effect was more positive than non-monetary and H1 was supported. Furthermore immediate benefit method was more effective than delayed benefit and H2 was supported as well. Significant interaction between sales promotion type and benefit timing was obtained. However, brand involvement effect was not found to the sales promotion attitudes.
The emerging shape and form of innovation networks and institutions

LSE has developed LSE Research Online so that users may access research output of the School. Copyright © and Moral Rights for the papers on this site are retained by the individual authors and/or other copyright owners. Users may download and/or print one copy of any article(s) in LSE Research Online to facilitate their private study or for non-commercial research. You may not engage in further distribution of the material or use it for any profit-making activities or any commercial gain. You may freely distribute the URL (http://eprints.lse.ac.uk) of the LSE Research Online website.
Meat fatty acids profile of kid goats from Serpentina breed

The paper refers to the fatty acids (FA) profile of intramuscular fat in three muscle sites: longissimus dorsi (LD), leg, shoulder and the FA profile of perirenal fat (PRF). Kid goats were raised on three farms with distinct feeding management (1, 2 and 3) and slaughtered in December, at 10-12 kg live weight. From farm 3, intramuscular fat and PRF FA profile of kid goats slaughtered in April were compared to those from December. All goats grazed natural pastures and only goats and kids raised on farms 1 and 2 were supplemented. The saturated fatty acids (S) content was higher in PRF while the intramuscular fat of the different muscle samples showed a similar concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids (P). Meat from kids raised on farm 3 and slaughtered in December was richer in conjugated linoleic acids, C18:2 cis9,trans11 (CLA) and in n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, with a dietetic advantage due to a lower n-6/n-3 fatty acids ratio. This result shows the advantage of a feeding system based only on pasture. Spring raised kids showed the same advantages in the FA profile: n-6/n-3 fatty acids ratio decreased from 2.25 to 1.60 and CLA increased from 0.45 to 0.66%, suggesting the higher quality of pastures during spring. A discriminant analysis using the FA profile of intramuscular fat of LD allowed the identification of the different feeding systems.
Microstructure control of unidirectional growth of gCu 6 Sn 5 in microbumps on h 111 i oriented and nanotwinned Cu

Anisotropic microstructure is becoming a critical issue in microbumps used in 3-D integrated circuit packaging. We report here an experimental approach for controlling the microstructure of g-Cu6Sn5 intermetallic compound in microbumps by using h1 11i oriented and nanotwinned Cu pads as the under-bump-metallization. By electroplating arrays of large numbers of h111i oriented and nanotwinned Cu pads and by electroplating the Sn2.3Ag solder on the pads, we form g-Cu6Sn5 in the reflow at 260 C for 1 min. The g-Cu6Sn5 showed a highly preferential growth along the h0001i direction. As reflow time is extended, the preferred texture of g-Cu6Sn5 changed to {2 1 1 3}. The results indicate that we can control the uniform microstructure of g-Cu6Sn5 intermetallic by controlling the microstructure of the Cu under-bump-metallization. 2013 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Production of hybrid strains among Pleutorus and Lentinula and evaluation of their mycelial growth kinetics on malt extract agar and wheat grain using the Gompertz and Hill models

Three inter-generic hybrid strains were obtained by pairing compatible neohaplonts recovered by dedikaryotization of four parental strains, i.e. Pleurotus ostreatus (CC060), Pleurotus djamor (CC051) and Lentinula edodes (CC003 and CC004). Fifteen neohaplonts were recovered employing homogenization time periods for Pleurotus spp. since 60 to 90 s, and for Lentinula edodes strains time periods ranged from 5 to 20 s, and incubation at 28 °C in a peptone-glucose solution (PGS). The mycelial growth of the parental and hybrid strains was determined on malt extract agar (MEA) and wheat grain by calculating the parameters A, B and C of nonlinear regression models. For the parameter A, the mycelial growth on MEA showed values ranged from 1.08 to 1.28, and for the parameter B since 5.65 to 20.85. On the other hand, the A values by mycelium growth on wheat grain ranged from 1.57 to 16.13, for B since 28.36 to 86.53 and for C were in an interval from 11.89 to 44.24. Parental and hybrid strains presented instantaneous velocity values on MEA since 2.88 to 7.26 cm2•day-1, whereas on wheat grain were in an interval from 5.45 to 10.05 cm3•day-1. Furthemore, the µmax values on MEA and wheat grain were calculated by using the Gompertz model and the λ values on both medium were estimated by using the Hill model, the µmax values on MEA ranged from 0.26 to 1.69 day-1 and λ values in an interval from 0.41 to 2.74, whereas the µmax values on wheat grain ranged from 0.05 to 0.43 day-1 and λ since 1.82 to 28 h. Moreover, the estimated equations based on nonlinear models were used to calculate the µmax values on MEA and wheat grain of the strains and the λ values were obtained by using the µmax values of the proposed equations on the Hill model, the µmax values on MEA ranged from 0.44 to 1.27 day-1 and the λ values between 0.57 to 1.72 h, while the µmax values on wheat grain ranged from 0.04 to 0.64 day-1 and λ values in an interval from 1.26 to 20.11 h. The results evidenced that the hybrid strains of PleurotusxLentinula presented highest rate of growth in comparison with the parental, encouraging the production of hybrid strain and their use in the industrial field.
Detection of the Effects of Sodium Bicarbonate Supplement on Blood Lactate and Heart Rate Values of Female Futsal Players Before and After Yo-Yo/1 Test

Abstract The prime aim of the present study is to examine the effects of sodium bicarbonate supplement on the blood lactate and heart rate values of female futsal players before and after Yo-Yo/1 test. 15 women futsal players in experimental group, 14 women futsal players in control group, and a total 29 athletes participated voluntarily. The blood samples collected from fingertips helped a lot, while blood lactate values of the athletes were measured before and after Yo-Yo/1 test. Heart rate values of the participant athletes were recorded using polar watch during the test. Paired sample t-test was used to detect the differences between the pre-test and post-test blood lactate, heart rate (HR) and maximal running distance values of the participating athletes. The difference between the post-exercise blood lactate and maximal running distance values of the participant female futsal players was found to be significant (p < 0.05).
C V ] 2 5 M ay 2 01 4 BOUNDARY INTERPOLATION FOR SLICE HYPERHOLOMORPHIC SCHUR FUNCTIONS

A boundary Nevanlinna-Pick interpolation problem is posed and solved in the quaternionic setting. Given nonnegative real numbers κ1, . , κN , quaternions p1, . , pN all of modulus 1, so that the 2-spheres determined by each point do not intersect and pu 6= 1 for u = 1, . , N , and quaternions s1, . , sN , we wish to find a slice hyperholomorphic Schur function s so that lim r→1 r∈(0,1) s(rpu) = su for u = 1, . , N, and lim r→1 r∈(0,1) 1− s(rpu)su 1− r ≤ κu, for u = 1, . , N. Our arguments relies on the theory of slice hyperholomorphic functions and reproducing kernel Hilbert spaces.
Evaluation of Local Community Participation in Joint Forest and Wildlife Resources Management: the case of Dodola-WAJIB , West-Arsi, Ethiopia

Currently, participatory approach has been advocated as a key instrument to achieve sustainable use of natural resources like forest and wildlife. Likewise, the current Ethiopian government has shown the political will to involve local communities in rural development projects giving special focus for forest and wildlife enterprises. However, the extent of residents’ involvement in making decision is unclear. This study was aimed at examining the place forest dwellers have in co-management activities and level of their participation to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the enterprise for sustainable use of forest and wildlife resources in Dodola-WAJIB. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Qualitative data were generated from WAJIB executive committee members, forest block leaders, ordinary WAJIB members, youths and experts via focus group discussion, key informant interview, formal interview, and field observation. Quantitative data were gathered from randomly selected one hundred and thirty three WAJIB members through household survey. Related documents were analyzed to produce secondary data. The data obtained via both (qualitative and quantitative) techniques were analyzed by using thematic narrative and descriptive statistics. Findings showed that participation of the forest dwellers in joint forest and wildlife management activities is generally low. It was found out that the level of forest dwellers participation in co-management activities is the highest (55.08%) at implementation phase and the lowest (25.57%) at planning stage. Generally, the extent of involvement and empowerment on the part of the local community is more limited to consultation; hence, it needs fundamental shift in the approach to conservation and participation of forest dwellers. Key w ords: Empowerment, Forest Dwellers, Participatory approach
Rapid Thermal Annealing and Hydrogen Passivation of Polycrystalline Silicon Thin-Film Solar Cells on Low-Temperature Glass

The changes in open-circuit voltage ( V o c ), short-circuit current density ( J s c ), and internal quantum efficiency (IQE) of aLuminum induced crystallization, ion-assisted deposition (ALICIA) polycrystalline silicon thin-film solar cells on low-temperature glass substrates due to rapid thermal anneal (RTA) treatment and subsequent remote microwave hydrogen plasma passivation (hydrogenation) are examined. V o c improvements from 130 mV to 430 mV, J s c improvements from 1.2 mA/cm2 to 11.3 mA/cm2, and peak IQE improvements from 16% to > 70% are achieved. A 1-second RTA plateau at 1000°C followed by hydrogenation increases the J s c by a factor of 5.5. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy measurements are used to determine the concentration profiles of dopants, impurities, and hydrogen. Computer modeling based on simulations of the measured IQE data reveals that the minority carrier lifetime in the absorber region increases by 3 orders of magnitude to about 1 nanosecond (corresponding to a diffusion length of at least 1 μ m) due to RTA and subsequent hydrogenation. The evaluation of the changes in the quantum efficiency and V o c due to RTA and hydrogenation with computer modeling significantly improves the understanding of the limiting factors to cell performance.
Input-output multipliers in a small open economy. An application to tourism.

The small open economy model implies short-run supply constraints in traded and partially traded sectors — which could significantly reduce sectoral multiplier values. As an illustration, this paper estimates income multipliers for export tourism in Ireland under different assumptions about the tradedness of supplying sectors. The limited usefulness of such multipliers to long-run policy making is also highlighted. 'he weaknesses of tourism multiplier estimates based on input-output A data are well documented (see Bryden and Faber, 1971;Bryden, 1973; Diamond, 1976 and 1977; and Archer, 1977). The purpose of this paper is to extend this discussion to incorporate a consideration of the implications of the small open economy model for these estimates. Section II considers the issue of supply constraints in estimating multi­ pliers and illustrates by means of a simple example the implications of the small open economy model in this respect. Section III contains various estimates of the income multiplier for export tourism in Ireland under different assumptions concerning the tradedness of, and, therefore, supply constraints in, a few sectors. Section IV concludes the paper.
A Gender Study on College Students’ Self-Efficacy in Health Care Behavior

The purpose of the present gender study is to compare college students’ self-efficacy profiles in health care behavior. The overall sample consisted of 1,995 subjects: 862 women and 1,133 men. All subjects were freshman students enrolled in The Autonomous University of Chihuahua. The average age was 18.18 years (SD=0.68). A quantitative methodology aided in the survey-like descriptive design. The self-efficacy perception differences found between men and women suggest that any kind of action aimed at improving perceived self-efficacy must take gender into consideration. Further research should seek these findings in larger samples.
Tutte's invariant approach for Brownian motion reflected in the quadrant

We consider a Brownian motion with drift in the quarter plane with orthogonal reflection on the axes. The Laplace transform of its asymptotic distribution satisfies a functional equation, which is reminiscent from equations arising in the enumeration of (discrete) quadrant walks. We develop a Tutte's invariant approach to this continuous setting, and we obtain an explicit formula for the Laplace transform in terms of generalized Chebyshev polynomials.
The physics of Lyman α escape from high-redshift galaxies

Lyman-alpha (Ly{\alpha}) photons from ionizing sources and cooling radiation undergo a complex resonant scattering process that generates unique spectral signatures in high-redshift galaxies. We present a detailed Ly{\alpha} radiative transfer study of a cosmological zoom-in simulation from the Feedback In Realistic Environments (FIRE) project. We focus on the time, spatial, and angular properties of the Ly{\alpha} emission over a redshift range of z = 5-7, after escaping the galaxy and being transmitted through the intergalactic medium (IGM). Over this epoch, our target galaxy has an average stellar mass of $M_{\rm star} \approx 5 \times 10^8 {\rm M}_\odot$. We find that many of the interesting features of the Ly{\alpha} line can be understood in terms of the galaxy's star formation history. The time variability, spatial morphology, and anisotropy of Ly{\alpha} properties are consistent with current observations. For example, the rest frame equivalent width has a ${\rm EW}_{{\rm Ly}\alpha,0} > 20 {\rm \AA}$ duty cycle of 62% with a non-negligible number of sightlines with $> 100 {\rm \AA}$, associated with outflowing regions of a starburst with greater coincident UV continuum absorption, as these conditions generate redder, narrower (or single peaked) line profiles. The lowest equivalent widths correspond to cosmological filaments, which have little impact on UV continuum photons but efficiently trap Ly{\alpha} and produce bluer, broader lines with less transmission through the IGM. We also show that in dense self-shielding, low-metallicity filaments and satellites Ly{\alpha} radiation pressure can be dynamically important. Finally, despite a significant reduction in surface brightness with increasing redshift, Ly{\alpha} detections and spectroscopy of high-$z$ galaxies with the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope is feasible.
Seasonal Abundance and Diversity of Aquatic Insects in Rivers in Gunung Jerai Forest Reserve , Malaysia

Seasonal changes in Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (EPT) community was studied at rivers in Gunung Jerai Forest Reserve, Kedah, Malaysia. The rivers were visited monthly from September 2007 to August 2008 to sample aquatic insects using D-pond nets. More EPT were found in the wet season (10664 individuals) compared with the dry season (6599 individuals). In all rivers, ephemeropteran populations was highest during the wet season (z=-2.465, p=0.014). Meanwhile, the plecopteran population was low and almost constant throughout seasons in all rivers (z=-2.280, p=0.023). Trichopterans exhibited the highest peak of abundance in the dry season (z=-6.096, p=0.00). Concomitantly, higher diversity was recorded in the dry season (29 taxa) compared with 25 taxa recorded in wet season from all rivers. Tupah River had the most diverse EPT assemblage during the dry season. In wet season, the abundance of ephemeropterans genera such as Baetis, Platybaetis, Campsoneuria and Thalerosphyrus increased tremendously especially in Teroi River.
Measuring Attitudes toward Gender Norms among Young Men in Brazil

This article describes the development and psychometric evaluation of a twenty-four-item scale to measure attitudes toward gender norms among young men: the Gender-Equitable Men (GEM) Scale. Scale items on gender norms related to sexual and reproductive health, sexual relations, violence, domestic work, and homophobia are designed. Items are based on previous qualitative work in the community and a literature review and administered to a household sample of 742 men, including 223 young men ages fifteen to twenty-four, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The current analysis focuses on the young men, as they were the main audience for a planned intervention to promote gender equitable and HIV risk reduction behaviors. Factor analyses support two subscales, and the scale is internally consistent (alpha = .81). As hypothesized, more support for equitable norms (i.e., higher GEM Scale scores) is significantly associated with less self-reported partner violence, more contraceptive use, and a higher education level.