Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Revealing Ideal Number of Children by Women: A Socioeconomic Analysis Using Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey

Most of the developing economies including Pakistan are facing the problem of rapid population growth. All the efforts to control higher population growth become useless when the household desire larger number of children. In the study the determinants of ideal number of children revealed by the woman are probed. So along with sociocultural, economic, demographic and attitudinal characteristics of the household, a range of woman characteristics like her education, working status, BMI, exposure to media, ownership of assets, household decision-making, justification of violence and spousal age difference are included in the model. The results have shown that woman’s education, woman’s empowerment through household decision-making and resistance to violence against woman and inter-spousal age difference reduce the number of desired children. Exposure to media regarding the family planning programs has also shown negative impact on the ideal number of children. Wealth index has also been emerged as the strong predictor for keeping the ideal number of children low. On the other hand, son-daughter ratio and good health of the woman proxied by BMI positively impact the ideal number of children. From the policy perspective woman’s education, exposure to media and woman autonomy needs specific attention at the end of family planning programs and women development in Pakistan.
Effect of Organic Production System on the Performance and Meat Quality of Two Purebred Slow-Growing Chicken Breeds

Abstract The objective of the study was to compare the effect of organic and conventional rearing systems on the productivity and meat quality of Yellowleg Partridge (Ż-33) and Rhode Island Red (R-11) chickens. A total of 492 sexed experimental birds (Gallus domesticus) were assigned to four groups. In groups I-C and III-C, the Ż-33 and R-11 chickens were reared under intensive conditions following conventional farming principles. In groups II-O and IV-O, the Ż-33 and R-11 chickens were kept according to organic farming principles. Body weight, feed conversion (kg/kg gain) and mortality were recorded throughout the study. On day 140 of rearing, the native breed chickens were subjected to simplified slaughter analysis, and meat pH, muscle colour, water holding capacity and chilling loss were determined. The meat samples were analysed for the chemical composition and profile of fatty acids, and the peroxidizability index (PI), thrombogenic index (TI) and atherogenicity index (AI) were calculated. The organically raised chickens were characterised by higher body weight (P≤0.01), better feed conversion (P≤0.01) and more favourable fatty acid profile of the muscles compared to the conventionally reared birds. Under organic conditions, the R-11 chickens showed better productivity but slightly poorer fatty acid profile of the muscles compared to the Ż-11 chickens.
The Extent Of Internet Banking Services Usage In Relation With Customers’ Perceived E-Service Quality (PESQ) Of Malaysian Banks In Penang: The Moderating Role Of Adopters Risk Profil

This study investigates extent of Internet banking services usage behavior of customers’within the context of National Internet banking services in Penang-Malaysia. A researchframework based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the modified Perceivede-Service Quality (PeSQ) Model to identify factors that would influence the extent of Internetbanking services usage. The framework includes adopters risk profile, perceived usefulness,ease of use, reliability, responsiveness, security, and continuous improvement. Postgraduatestudents in Universiti Sains Malaysia were used as research sample to test the models.Hierarchical Regression Analysis was used to examine the entire pattern of intercorrelationsamong the 7 proposed constructs and to test related propositions empirically. Perceivedusefulness, ease of use, reliability, responsiveness, security, and continuous improvement hassignificant indirect effect on the extent of Internet banking services usage through adoptersrisk profile, while its direct effect to the extent of Internet banking services usage is notsignificant in this empirical study. Therefore, it can be conclude customers of MalaysianInternet banks in Penang are in early majority categories who are interested in technologyitself and not willing to take risks (risk adverse). Keywords: The extent of usage, Internet banking, Perceived e-Service Quality (PeSQ),Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), risk profile
Process optimization for the development of papaya candy and its shelf-life evaluation

Intensification of use of fruit such as papaya (Carica papaya L.) is expected to minimize losses and support food diversification programme. The objective of this research was to optimize the ingredients and process condition in papaya candy production. This research was divided into three steps namely formula optimization using statistical design techniques, process optimization using response surface methodology, and final product and microbial analysis. Papaya is of explicit quality with great nutritional, medicinal, organoleptic, economic and traditional importance. It is available in plenty during a particular season but all have not been utilized to desired extent. Beside available traditional food products, it could be utilized in development of fast moving consumer food like RTS beverage. However, Consumer trend towards papaya products emphasize the need of its value enhancement with fortification of novel ingredients to promote it as a high valued product. The formula and process optimization was based on sensory parameter using 9 point hedonic rating test involving a semi-trained panel consisting of 6 judges of different age groups having different eating habits were constituted to evaluate the quality. The results showed that optimum formula was a formula with 92.919% papaya Pulp, 68.788% sugar, and 2.795% pectin. The pulp was manually pulped with help power mixer then cocked in open pan on 95 to 105 C, 20 minutes. Analysis of papaya candy made with optimum formula and process showed that papaya candy had hardness, gumminess, chewiness, resilience, moisture, sugar, ash, total phenolic compound, DPPH (RSA), and Ascorbic Acid of 7.887gf, 1.867, 0.328, 0.089, 41.90 ± 0.2, 69.72 ± 0.39, 0.33 ± 0.01, 0.24 ± 0.01, 31.71 ± 0.2, and 30.56 ± 0.1, respectively.
Student perceptions on using blogs for reflective learning in higher educational contexts

Increasingly, blogs are being used by educators in higher education for teaching and learning as they have numerous pedagogical benefits. This study describes and analyses the use of blogs as a private journal or e-portfolio for an assessment in a first year bachelor of business programme. Three hundred and fifty students answered an online questionnaire exploring their perceptions of blogs as an assessment tool, in particular ease of use and impact on learning and skills development. Students found numerous benefits of using blogs such as ease of submitting work, increased ownership of learning, and being able to check and improve their work on a regular basis. They also reported that the use of blogs provided flexibility in completing tasks, helped get feedback from lecturers, and increased the quality and quantity of their work. However, there was a lack of consensus on whether blog use improved writing ability of students, increased dialogue between students and lecturers or increased student interest in learning. The challenge for those contemplating using blogs for similar purposes is to ensure that students are provided with sufficient instructions, and constructive, timely feedback.
Climate change in the Western Himalayas of India: a study of local perception and response

This study examines how apple farmers in the western Himalayas of India perceive cli- matic change. This is done by comparing the locally idealized traditional weather cycle with climate change as perceived by the farmers of the region. We use snowfall and rainfall data from 1962-1996 to measure the accuracy of perceptions. Although climate change is usually described by farmers as the temporal displacement of the weather cycle, the changes themselves still are not perceived as altering the idealized weather calendar. Most importantly, perception of climate change is structured by knowledge of crop-climate interaction and by differential apple performance outcomes associated with the changed conditions.
Scaling laws to understand tidal dissipation in fluid planetary regions and stars I - Rotation, stratification and thermal diffusivity

Tidal dissipation in planets and stars is one of the key physical mechanisms driving the evolution of star-planet and planet-moon systems. Several signatures of its action are observed in planetary systems thanks to their orbital architecture and the rotational state of their components. Tidal dissipation inside the fluid layers of celestial bodies are intrinsically linked to the dynamics and the physical properties of the latter. This complex dependence must be characterized. We compute the tidal kinetic energy dissipated by viscous friction and thermal diffusion in a rotating local fluid Cartesian section of a star/planet/moon submitted to a periodic tidal forcing. The properties of tidal gravito-inertial waves excited by the perturbation are derived analytically as explicit functions of the tidal frequency and local fluid parameters (i.e. the rotation, the buoyancy frequency characterizing the entropy stratification, viscous and thermal diffusivities) for periodic normal modes. The sensitivity of the resulting possibly highly resonant dissipation frequency-spectra to a control parameter of the system is either important or negligible depending on the position in the regime diagram relevant for planetary and stellar interiors. For corresponding asymptotic behaviors of tidal gravito-inertial waves dissipated by viscous friction and thermal diffusion, scaling laws for the frequencies, number, width, height and contrast with the non-resonant background of resonances are derived to quantify these variations. We characterize the strong impact of the internal physics and dynamics of fluid planetary layers and stars on the dissipation of tidal kinetic energy in their bulk. We point out the key control parameters that really play a role and demonstrate how it is now necessary to develop ab-initio modeling for tidal dissipation in celestial bodies.
Abiotic and biotic predictors of macroecological patterns in bird and butterfly coloration

Animal color phenotypes are invariably influenced by both their biotic community and the abiotic environments. A host of hypotheses have been proposed for how variables such as solar radiation, habitat shadiness, primary productivity, temperature, rainfall, and community diversity might affect animal color traits. However, while individual factors have been linked to coloration in specific contexts, little is known about which factors are most important across broad taxonomic and geographic scales. Using data collected from 570 species of birds and 424 species of butterflies from Australia, which inhabit an area spanning a latitudinal range of 35° and covering deserts, tropical and temperate forests, savannas, and heathlands, we test multiple hypotheses from the coloration literature and assess their relative importance. We show that bird and butterfly species exhibit more reflective and less saturated colors in better-lit environments, a pattern that is robust across an array of variables expected to influence the intensity or quality of ambient light in an environment. Both taxa display more diverse colors in regions with greater net primary production and longer growing seasons. Models that included variables related to energy inputs and resources in ecosystems have better explanatory power for bird and butterfly coloration overall than do models that included community diversity metrics. However, the diversity of the bird community in an environment was the single most powerful predictor of color pattern variation in both birds and butterflies. We observed strong similarities across taxa in the covariance between color and environmental factors, suggesting the presence of fundamental macroecological drivers of visual appearance across disparate taxa.
REMOVAL OF COBALT AND NICKEL FROM ZINC SULPHATE SOLUTIONS USING ACTIVATED CEMENTATION

The influence of different parameters (duration, temperature, zinc dust quantity, concentration of activators - copper and antimony) on the process of activated cementation of Co and Ni has been studied. We have worked with industrial zinc sulphate solutions. During the process of activated cementation of Co and Ni, copper (involved as CuSO4.5H2O) and antimony (involved as Sb2O3) were used as activators. The lowest values of Co content have been obtained at a temperature of 80-85 oC, CCu = 200-300 mg/dm3 and 18 multiple surplus of zinc dust. After adding Cu to the solution, mainly the cementation of Ni is activated, and that of Co is activated to a lower degree. It was found that when GSb : GCo ratio is between 0.5 : 1 and 2 : 1, the solution is purified from Co and Ni to a great degree. After intensive stirring and increasing the duration of the process the cement sediments dissolve reversely. This holds true of Co to a greater extent, as compared to Ni. The results obtained will be used to establish optimal conditions for the carrying out of activated cementation in Zinc Production Plant in KCM SA, Plovdiv.
Moderator Roles of Interpersonal Effects on the Influence of Consumer Ethnocentrism on Intention to Buy Foreign Products: A Cross Cultural Testing

The purpose of this study is to investigate moderator effects of interpersonal effects namely Veblen, snob and bandwagon effects on the influence of consumer ethnocentrism on intention to buy foreign products. These effects were examined through analyzing data gathered from 248 students from Turkey and 230 students from Germany by using multivariate hierarchical regression analysis. Results indicated that moderating effects of interpersonal variables are verified for German sample but not for Turkish sample. Snob and bandwagon effects influence the strength of the effect of ethnocentrism on intention to buy foreign products.
Genome-Scale Approach and the Performance of Phylogenetic Methods

The use of genome-scale approach in phylogenetic analysis is imperative in order to resolve evolutionary relationships over large taxon sets and deep phylogenetic divergences. But yet it is not clear what are the strengths and weaknesses of the various phylogenetic methods or which one should be preferred under genome-scale approach. In this article, the performance of five major phylogenetic methods is evaluated under genome-scale approach using biologically realistic simulated data. The following phylogenetic methods are considered; Bayesian, maximum likelihood (ML), neighbor joining (NJ), NJ maximum composite likelihood (NJ-MCL), and maximum parsimony (MP). Simulation results show that probabilistic methods (i.e., Bayesian and ML methods) are much more accurate than the NJ-MCL, MP and NJ methods. Concerning the consistency of methods, ML is consistent than other methods. This analysis shows that the NJ-MCL, MP, and NJ methods are fast (i.e., computationally efficient), but their accuracy and consistency are very poor compared to Bayesian and ML methods. On the other hand, the Bayesian method is an accurate one, but less consistent than the ML method, and it takes much longer execution time. Therefore, based on the accuracy, consistency and computational efficiency the ML method is the preferred algorithm under genome-scale approach. In addition to the methods performance, this study has investigated several important aspects of genomescale phylogeny; such as how concatenations of longest and smallest genes make effect on the method’s performance, how much datasets are needed to recover the true tree (i.e. true evolutionary history of a group of species or genes), and whether more genes or more characters are important. These are explained in the result section.
Control Routh Array And Its Applications

In this paper the Routh stability criterion [16] has been developed into control Routh array. Some formulas for calculating the array are provided. Certain properties are investigated. Using it, the problem of stabilization of bilinear systems via constant controls is solved. Then by converting the problems, the method of control Routh array is also used to solve some other stability related problems, such as the stabilization of control systems, the stability of uncertain Hurwitz matrix and the stability of interval matrices. Several algorithms have been developed to provide numerical solutions.
Spatial RRR Robot Manipulator Optimum Geometric Design by Means of a Hybrid Algorithm

In the present paper an optimization algorithm to find out the geometric design parameters of an open loop spatial robot with three revolute joints is described. The design variables include the base position, the geometry of the links and the joint angles of the robot and are calculated so that the manipulator will be able to place its end-effector at prescribed poses, avoiding simultaneously singular configurations. The developed algorithm uses the Denavit-Hartenberg parameters and 4x4 homogeneous matrices to obtain the kinematic equations of the robot. The optimization problem is solved with a hybrid method that combines a genetic algorithm, a quasi-Newton algorithm and a constraints handling method. To examine the efficiency of the method, numerical examples for one, three and five prescribed poses of the end-effector are applied.
Retrievals of formaldehyde from ground-based FTIR and MAX-DOAS observations at the Jungfraujoch station and comparisons with GEOS-Chem and IMAGES model simulations

Abstract. As an ubiquitous product of the oxidation of many volatile organic compounds (VOCs), formaldehyde (HCHO) plays a key role as a short-lived and reactive intermediate in the atmospheric photo-oxidation pathways leading to the formation of tropospheric ozone and secondary organic aerosols. In this study, HCHO profiles have been successfully retrieved from ground-based Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) solar spectra and UV-visible Multi-AXis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) scans recorded during the July 2010–December 2012 time period at the Jungfraujoch station (Swiss Alps, 46.5° N, 8.0° E, 3580 m a.s.l.). Analysis of the retrieved products has revealed different vertical sensitivity between both remote sensing techniques. Furthermore, HCHO amounts simulated by two state-of-the-art chemical transport models (CTMs), GEOS-Chem and IMAGES v2, have been compared to FTIR total columns and MAX-DOAS 3.6–8 km partial columns, accounting for the respective vertical resolution of each ground-based instrument. Using the CTM outputs as the intermediate, FTIR and MAX-DOAS retrievals have shown consistent seasonal modulations of HCHO throughout the investigated period, characterized by summertime maximum and wintertime minimum. Such comparisons have also highlighted that FTIR and MAX-DOAS provide complementary products for the HCHO retrieval above the Jungfraujoch station. Finally, tests have revealed that the updated IR parameters from the HITRAN 2012 database have a cumulative effect and significantly decrease the retrieved HCHO columns with respect to the use of the HITRAN 2008 compilation.
Customer-Centric View of Sustainable Buildings: The Case of LEED®

The number of buildings that employ sustainable design, construction and operating strategies, have been increasing around the world. This increase encourages third party organizations to develop means to certify these buildings and determine their level of sustainability. LEED® rates buildings based on five major categories. This study presents the results of a preliminary and exploratory survey conducted on over 200 university students in an effort to quantify the importance of the five major LEED categories based on an occupant perspective. Respondents were asked to rank LEED categories by level of importance, where Materials and Resources was ranked the most important and Water Efficiency was ranked the least important. The analysis of the results help identify what the building occupants value most, allowing the authors to continue their research toward developing marketing strategies for sustainable buildings. Although LEED has set some category weights based on environmental impacts of its credits, the current marketing and building industry literature lacks research on how to determine the social and economic importance of LEED categories. The authors in this paper present information on how the determination of a customer and occupant centric view of sustainable buildings can help market these buildings and thus increase their numbers in the building industry.
Digital Horticulture: Adoption and Enhancement of Information Management in the Dutch Horticulture

The study presented in this paper shows that the Du tch horticulture is active in the field of information management. Much progress is made, among others in the development and adoption of eBusiness standards. However, the devel opment of information management in the sector is still fragmented and too slow. Furthe rmore, it is found that most projects work on inter-enterprise integration, the focus is on da ta exchange and most projects have an operational perspective. As a result, the ambition of the sector to be leading in the field of information management in horticulture chains is hi ndered. To overcome this, the program Digital Horticulture was formulated to coordinate I CT initiatives within and between horticultural sub-sectors (various vegetables and o rnamentals), in close cooperation with governments and research/education. The study has defined four key areas for future development: information standards, chain informati on management, enterprise information systems, Business-to-Government and ICT Knowledge and Competences. In these areas, the Digital Horticulture program will support the excha nge of knowledge, development of shared visions, alignment of ICT projects, common representation in international standardisation bodies, and business-driven research.
Direct observation of aerosol particles in aged agricultural biomass burning plumes impacting urban atmospheres

Direct observation of aerosol particles in aged agricultural biomass burning plumes impacting urban atmospheres W. Y. Li and L. Y. Shao Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250100, China State Key Laboratory of Coal Resources and Safe Mining & College of Geoscience and Surveying Engineering, China University of Mining and Technology, Beijing 100083, China School of Earth and Space Exploration and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287-1404, USA Received: 26 January 2010 – Accepted: 20 April 2010 – Published: 22 April 2010 Correspondence to: L. Y. Shao (shaol@cumtb.edu.cn) Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of the European Geosciences Union.
Multi-scale extension of discriminant PLS for fault detection and diagnosis

A new approach based on the Partial Least Squares (PLS) and Wavelet Transform is presented for the industrial process monitoring. A different scheme for applying PLS for multiple faults diagnosis is used in this approach. Because of multi-scale nature of the variable measurements in the most of industrial processes the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) is applied to extract the multi-scale features of these measurements. Comparison of the ability of this MultiScale PLS (MSPLS) algorithm with the PLS to diagnosis the multiple faults in the Tennessee Eastman process (TEP) benchmark, demonstrates the efficiency of the proposed approach and indicates that this MSPLS algorithm can be useful for process monitoring and detection and diagnosis multiple faults.