Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ovarian follicular synchronization, ovulation and oocyte development in llamas and alpacas

The purpose of the studies reported in this thesis was to increase our understanding of the reproductive physiology of South American camelids. Studies were conducted in llamas and alpacas to investigate methods to electively control ovarian follicular dynamics, to determine the effects of hormone preparations or biological factors derived from seminal plasma on ovulation induction, and to evaluate the establishment of superstimulatory protocols to induce a consistent ovarian follicular response for oocyte collection. The first study was designed to compare the efficacy of treatments intended to induce follicular wave synchronization among llamas, and to determine the effect of these treatments on pregnancy rates after fixed-time natural mating. In the first experiment, lutenizing hormone (LH) and follicular ablation treatments were most effective for inducing follicular wave synchronization, while estradiol plus progesterone (E/P) treatment was intermediate. In the second experiment, llamas were assigned randomly to Control, (E/P), and LH groups. A single, fixed-time natural mating was permitted 10 to 12 days after treatment. The pregnancy rate was higher (P<0.05) for synchronized llamas (LH and E/P groups combined) than for non-synchronized llamas (Control group). The second study was done to compare the effects of hormonal treatments and natural mating on ovulation induction, interval to ovulation, and luteal development in llamas. No differences were detected among groups (mated, LH, and GnRH) in ovulation rate (80%, 91%, 80%, respectively; P = 0.6), or interval from treatment to ovulation (30.0 ± 0.5, 29.3 ± 0.6, 29.3 ± 0.7 h, respectively; P = 0.9). Similarly, no differences were detected among groups (mated, LH, and GnRH) in maximum corpus luteum (CL) diameter. The third study documents the existence of an ovulation-inducing factor (OIF) in the seminal plasma of alpacas and llamas. In Experiment 1, female alpacas were given
An Alternative Finite Difference Stability Analysis for a Multiterm Time-Fractional Initial-Boundary Value Problem

A fractional initial-boundary value problem is considered, where the differen-tial operator includes a sum of Caputo temporal derivatives, and the solution has a weak singularity at the initial time t = 0. The problem is solved numerically by a ﬁnite difference method based on applying the L1 method to discretise each temporal derivative on a graded mesh. Stability of this method is proved by generalising the analysis of Stynes et al. , SIAM J.Numer. Anal. 55 (2017), pp.1057-1079, where the case of a single temporal derivative was investigated. This stability result is used to prove a sharp error estimate for the ﬁnite difference method.
The Emerging Role of Public-Private Partnerships in Megaproject Delivery

As civil infrastructure projects have grown in scale and scope, their cost has increased accordingly. As a result, we have entered what has been termed the era of the infrastructure megaproject; those that typically cost more than US$1 billion (oftentimes much more) and also have major impacts on communities, the environment, and public finance. Although constructed works of enormous cost and impact have existed since ancient times and have often been financed by the private sector, what distinguishes the modern megaproject is its unfortunate association with huge delays in delivery time and large cost overruns. This article examines some of the reasons why megaprojects have become synonymous with poor cost and schedule performance and suggests that innovative project delivery methods, broadly termed public—private partnerships (PPP or P3), have the potential to improve project performance by better integration of the project delivery organization in the allocation and management of risk.
Assessment of serum zinc, calcium and magnesium among Sudanese patients with senile cataract in Khartoum State-Sudan

Background: Senile cataract is a vision-impairing disease caused by age, and it is characterized by the gradual progressive thickening of the lens in the eye. The purpose of the study was to assess the serum level of Zinc, Magnesium and Calcium in senile cataract patients. Material and Methods: Ninety four individuals classified into two groups, 50 as case group and 44 as healthy individuals as control group. Atomic absorption spectroscopy was used to measured serum Zinc, Calcium and magnesium. Results: Means of serum Calcium, Magnesium and Zinc levels in patient with senile cataract were 7.82 ± 1.98 mg/dL, 1.31 ± 0.41 mg/L and 0.27 ± 0.04 mg/L respectively, this study revealed that there were significant differences in serum Zinc levels, Magnesium levels, between case and control P-value (0.00 and 0.017) respectively; But insignificant differences in serum Calcium levels P-value (0.16). Conclusion: The study findings that decrease of serum zinc and magnesium levels were play a role in developmental mechanism of the senile cataract or cataract risk factors.
The association between living below the relative poverty line and the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background Because poverty is a multifaceted concept with a complex definition, this concept may not be useful when formulating economic policy. Thus, most governments use the relative poverty line to identify poor participants who may receive economic support. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between living below the relative poverty line and the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods We retrospectively analyzed data from 3,223 individuals included in South Korea. Living below the poverty line was defined as receiving a monthly income less than the minimum cost of living. Results Of the 3,223 participants included in this analysis, 832 (25.8%) met the definition of living below the relative poverty line and 384 (11.9%) had COPD. Of the 3,223 participants, 161 of the 832 (19.4%) living below the poverty line and 223 of the 2,391 (9.3%) living above the poverty line had COPD. In our study, participants living below the poverty line had a 1.4-time higher risk of COPD development compared with those living above the poverty line (OR =1.4; P=0.012). Elderly people living below the poverty line were 1.5-time more likely to be at risk of COPD development than those living above the poverty line (OR =1.5; P=0.021). Conclusions People living below the relative poverty line have an increased prevalence of COPD, especially older people with COPD. From the perspective of COPD disease control, policy makers should consider providing national economic support for the early detection and management of COPD in people living below the relative poverty line.
Building Microservices

Distributed systems have become more fine-grained in the past 10 years, shifting from code-heavy monolithic applications to smaller, self-contained microservices. But developing these systems brings its own set of headaches. With lots of examples and practical advice, this book takes a holistic view of the topics that system architects and administrators must consider when building, managing, and evolving microservice architectures. Microservice technologies are moving quickly. Author Sam Newman provides you with a firm grounding in the concepts while diving into current solutions for modeling, integrating, testing, deploying, and monitoring your own autonomous services. You'll follow a fictional company throughout the book to learn how building a microservice architecture affects a single domain.
Book Reviews

In 1984, Shulman and Carey published an article in which they discuss the field of Psychology as it relates to the study of reasoning and civility. They identify four faces that Psychology has exhibited since its emergence in the late 19th century. The four faces are differentiated in terms of their perspectives on the human capacity to reason. These views include: man as a rational animal (the underpinning of positivism/behaviorism), man as irrational (best represented in the form of Freudian psychology), man as boundedly rational (the emergence of cognitive psychology and information processing models), and man as collectively rational (related to social learning theory). In so far as these four faces represent distinctly different views of the learner, they have come to represent alternative paradigms for the discipline of Psychology. Shulman and Carey go on to argue that our views of curriculum, instruction, assessment, research (and so on) are intimately tied to three of the four views of man (The man as irrational perspective is not discussed because it is unrelated to the study of reasoning). Through their thoughtful reasoning and writing these authors not only succeed in making the field of psychology appear orderly and coherent, but also in suggesting what appears promising on the horizon. These authors argue for the worth of all of the paradigms for uncovering new knowledge. Rather than seeing one as replacing or displacing another, they argue for an additive value that each new paradigm brings with it. Jerome Bruner, in Acts of Meaning, assumes a no less reasoned but far more radical and impassioned stance regarding Psychology and its future. Bruner opens the book by stating that the field of psychology has become fragmented as never before. He asserts that the wider intellectual community ignores the scientific journals of psychology " . which seem to outsiders to contain intellectually unsituated little studies, each a response to a handful of like little studies" (p. xi). Reductionism and positivism, he believes, have led the field to the study of parts outside of any coherent context. Bruner recounts his experiences and participation in the cognitive revolution of the late 50s and 60s. The revolution was intended to bring the "mind back . into the human sciences after a long cold winter of objectivism . " (p. 1). The revolution was diverted from its main purpose, however; and although it may have achieved technical success, the concept of the mind it had sought to reestablish was dehumanized. There was a shift in focus from meaning to information . from constructing meaning to information processing. The field became fixated on inquiry into the nature and capacity of the cognitive system as its primary goal. The computer metaphor for cognition took hold. With hindsight we see the progress represented in the
Grebes and flamingos: standards of evidence, adjudication of disputes, and societal politics in avian systematics

The recent proposal of a sister‐group relationship between the Neoavian grebes (Podicipedidae) and flamingos (Phoenicopteridae) is chronicled, and morphological evidence claimed to be supportive of the grouping is examined. The hypothesis arose from an exiguous amalgam of molecular inferences, advanced in part by a pervasive, unsupported superiority conferred upon sequence data, and adopted by several societal committees on avian classification. Morphological characters marshalled specifically to support the hypothesis were found to be erroneous, and associated phylogenetic analyses, where given, were ambiguous. A combined analysis of large data sets for morphology and RAG‐1 sequences found flamingos and storks to be sister groups but with reduced support. This example illustrates problems attending the synthesis of contradictory evidence and evaluation of unprecedented hypotheses, and reveals the informality by which revisions are adopted. Procedures for rational synthesis of evidence are needed for progress during this challenging but promising period of diversified phylogenetics, without which disputes will be dominated increasingly by polarized, intransigent prejudice regarding methods and data. © The Willi Hennig Society 2010.
Non-contact measurement of complex surface object volume based on Image processing of double image field

At present, most of the measurement of complex surface volume is based on contact-type manual measurement. The design system uses non-contact photoelectric method to measure the volume of the object. The laser is used to position the center, the object is placed on the rotating stage, and the double camera is captured by the industrial camera. , based on Matlab image processing, calculate its volume, its high precision, speed.
Yield losses in wheat from yellow spot: comparison of estimates derived from single tillers and plots.

Losses in wheat yield associated with yellow spot (Pyrenophora tritici-repentis) have been examined in a field experiment where developn~ent of crop and disease were promoted with sprinkler irrigation. Different amounts of infected wheat stubble were applied to initiate epidemics in four treatments, while fungicide sprays were used to reduce the severity of yellow spot in a fifth treatment. The relationship between severity of yellow spot and the amount of infected stubble at first appeared to be linear but became more noticeably logarithmic as the epidemics progressed. Under conditions favouring disease development, a loss in grain yield of c. 49% was measured in the most severely diseased treatment relative to the sprayed treatment, with grain number per unit area and grain size both being reduced. The percentage loss in grain yield was less for main stems than for later heads. Regression analyses of disease severity with grain yield and its components using 50 main stems in each plot gave different estimates of yield loss, depending on the growth stage at which disease severity was assessed. These estimates of yield loss and those provided by a previously developed disease-loss relationship severely underestimated the overall loss in grain yield. However, there was better agreement between estimates derived from the regressions and loss in grain yield on main stems. Possible reasons for the discrepancies in estimates of loss in grain yield are discussed.
Linking nitrogen in estuarine producers to land‐derived sources

It is clear that anthropogenic nitrogen inputs from watersheds to estuaries stimulate eutrophication. It has been difficult, however, to explicitly link anthropogenic N entering estuaries to N found in estuarine producers. To explore this link, we compared stable isotope ratios of N in groundwater and producers from the Waquoit Bay watershedestuary system, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The δ15N values of groundwater nitrate within the Waquoit Bay watershed increase from −0.9‰ to + 14.9‰ as wastewater contributions increase from 4 to 86% of the total N pool. As a result, the average δ15N of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN, nitrate + ammonium) received by different estuaries around Waquoit Bay increases from +0.5‰ to +9.5‰. This increase is strongly correlated to increases in δ15N of eelgrass, macroalgae, cordgrass, and suspended particulate organic matter. The increase of all producers examined in Waquoit Bay with increasing δ15N of DIN in groundwater demonstrates a tight coupling between N contributed to coastal watersheds and N used by primary producers in estuaries. The ability to identify effects of increasing wastewater N loads on δ15N of estuarine producers may provide a means to reliably identify incipient eutrophication in coastal waters.
Book Review

After Lean Production is an edited volume that presents the results of an ambitious project to uncover whether lean production systems have become dominant in the world auto assembly industry as was predicted by Womack, Jones, and Roos (1990) in The Machine That Changed the World. Through broad survey data and in-depth case studies, the authors show that although lean production systems do seem to be diffusing throughout the world, there is much variation not only across countries and firms, but within firms as well. They argue quite persuasively that to understand the adoption of manufacturing and employment systems consistent with the lean production paradigm, it is imperative that one take a multiple stakeholder approach that truly acknowledges the influence of exposure to international competition, employer preferences and culture, unions, and governments. It is only by understanding these influences that we can understand the variations in production and work systems adopted throughout the world.
No More Blaming the Victim: Therapy in the Interest of Social Justice

can be difficult to manage in the classroom as students struggle with their identity and “voice,” negotiate relative privilege, and cope with negative emotions. Similarly, the chapters on mentoring (Chapter 9) and educational institutions (Chapter 10) provide good reviews of the relevant literature and identify prominent issues as teachers strive to approach their work in ways that are consistent with feminist and multicultural perspectives, despite substantial interpersonal and institutional pressure to operate hierarchically. In describing current literature, the authors highlight the need for additional research focused on diverse populations of students. It is significant in the evaluation of the pedagogical theories described in the first part of the book that they suffer from lack of empirical support. Minimal research has been conducted to evaluate whether feminist and multicultural pedagogical models are effective for students in classrooms (p. 110), or for teachers and students in mentoring relationships (p. 150). I found the second part of the book less satisfying because it did not provide guidance for practice as therapists or teachers. However, Teaching and Social Justice achieves the stated purpose— theoretical review and integration. In discussing academic contexts, the authors call for integration of the described theories in interactions with students, but provide little guidance on how this can be done. Whereas other books exist that are more explicitly focused on providing teaching guidance (e.g., Adams, Bell, & Griffin, 1997; Bronstein & Quina, 2003; Fisher, 2001), these previous volumes do not succinctly describe the connection between the techniques and specific theory, and do not address teaching in a way that integrates theory. The beauty and frustration of this book is that it accurately describes the complexity of problems facing teachers who wish to integrate and use multicultural and feminist theory in their classrooms but does not explain how this could be done. The readability and style of Teaching and Social Justice are very good. Although the writing tends to rely on complex terminology, this cannot be helped. The content is dense, but the authors have been as clear as possible. Moreover, the editors have done an exceptional job of maintaining a consistent structure and style throughout the chapters, enhancing the quality and readability of the text. Although individual chapters could stand alone (e.g., to explicate theoretical perspectives), presented together they create a unified whole. The book is an excellent resource for creative teachers who can build on the substantial theoretical foundation laid out here as they work toward social justice.
Information Technologies (IT) Applications for Construction: (Case Study: The Tallest Silo of the World)

Computing and communication technology, also commonly known as information technology (IT) which is expanding fast becomes to be an important assistant tool to assign priorities in all aspects of project planning of systems. While the use of IT systems have received great attention during the last decades, there have been few studies with focus on the relationship between information technology and using of such systems in organization of construction projects. Construction projects are specific, unique, and many are complex with varied time constraints and budgets. Often the discussion of IT technologies of interest to construction is centered on the most recent tools that general developments in commercial IT or in Computer science research have to offer. The correct and relevant management of information resources within construction impacts both the success of projects and overall performance of the individual project participants which can make sure that all participants execute and control project plans in appropriate time. This is significantly influenced by how project managers acquire, use, store, re-use and integrate relevant information to assist in the production of project estimates. The present paper describes literature related to IT implementation and its services in the construction industry with the purpose of highlighting the suitable conceptual IT model in the context of the construction of the world tallest silo in Zurich. It also presents some of the structured methods such as computer aided design (CAD) and computer aided manufacturing (CAM) that have significant importance in the management of the construction processes. The focus of this research was to gather the experiences of the Swissmill project management team in the use and application of IT programs to assess the benefits realized by all project participants. Finally, the study reveals that using the decision-tree-plan would be a more sustainable way of selecting the best alternative which can help executives manage issues faced in large-scale, complex projects more effectively. Results obtained by implementing IT methods, demonstrate great capabilities of this approach for complicated challenging problems in the Silo construction project.
Reactive Interfaces: Combining Events and Expressing Signals

There are numerous attempts to design interfaces and abstractions for event handling in reactive applications. A common solution is to provide a set of combinator functions to manipulate and compose event streams, a technique originating from functional programming. Rich combinator libraries are essentially a domain speciﬁc language for common event operations. Another kind of interface for reactive abstractions are signal expressions, a syntactical construct to combine and transform signals – values that change over time. Each existing library has developed its own set of interfaces for reactive programming, often inﬂuenced by the interface of earlier libraries, and the actual need to support speciﬁc case studies. However, no systematization of the developed interfaces exists. In this paper, we analyze the different interfaces provided by reactive languages. We group operations into several categories which relate to usages of reactive programming libraries, discuss how the choice of features inﬂuences the expressiveness of the respective library, and which implications interfaces have on the language implementation.
Long‐term acclimation of leaf production, development, longevity and quality following 3 yr exposure to free‐air CO2 enrichment during canopy closure in Populus

Summary • The effects of elevated CO 2 on leaf development in three genotypes of Populus were investigated during canopy closure, following exposure to elevated CO 2 over 3 yr using free-air enrichment. • Leaf quality was altered such that nitrogen concentration per unit d. wt ( N mass ) declined on average by 22 and 13% for sun and shade leaves, respectively, in elevated CO 2 . There was little evidence that this was the result of ‘dilution’ following accumulation of nonstructural carbohydrates. Most likely, this was the result of increased leaf thickness. Specific leaf area declined in elevated CO 2 on average by 29 and 5% for sun and shade leaves, respectively. • Autumnal senescence was delayed in elevated CO 2 with a 10% increase in the number of days at which 50% leaf loss occurred in elevated as compared with ambient CO 2 . • These data suggest that changes in leaf quality may be predicted following longterm acclimation of fast-growing forest trees to elevated CO 2 , and that canopy longevity may increase, with important implications for forest productivity.