Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of the concurrent use of multiple descriptors to detect anthropogenic impacts in marine coastal systems

Abstract This study is aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of multiple environmental descriptors to detect anthropogenic impacts in marine coastal system. To achieve this objective, data obtained from an area subjected to different sources of pollution were compared with those of reference areas through multivariate and univariate analyses. The following environmental components were used: metal concentration in sediments, structure of soft-bottom macrozoobenthos assemblages, biometrical and lepidochronological variables of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica, epiphytes and vagile fauna of P. oceanica meadows. Differences between disturbed and reference conditions were clearly detected by chemical analyses and soft-bottom assemblages, Posidonia oceanica descriptors showed variable sensitivity and vagile fauna associated to seagrass meadows did not highlight significant differences between conditions. Results showed the effectiveness of the use of multiple descriptors and both univariate and multivariate approaches to evaluate the ecological quality of coastal marine areas when more sources of pollution are concurrently present.
Soft versus Hard Commitments: A Test on Savings Behaviors

Many Americans save too little, leaving them vulnerable to unexpected financial shocks. Finding ways to help Americans develop emergency savings funds could greatly improve welfare. A wealth of previous literature has demonstrated the central roles played by patience and self-control in achieving sufficient savings. When people lack patience or self-control, well-designed interventions may help improve financial stability. Increasingly, interventions intended to improve savings behavior have taken the form of externally restricted accounts such as 'commitment accounts' that include hefty fees for early withdrawal or that disallow withdrawals altogether for a pre-specified time. Yet, such hard commitment accounts may not appeal to impatient individuals, those who do not anticipate their own self-control problems, or to the poor for whom restrictions on scarce funds can be particularly painful. We test a new 'soft' commitment account that asks borrowers to think about their savings goals, how it would feel to achieve them, and make a pledge to work towards these goals (potentially increasing one's intrinsic motivation), yet has no external restrictions on savings behavior. In a six-month randomized savings experiment we find that such soft commitments can significantly increase amounts saved on day one relative to either a hard commitment account (with external restrictions on withdrawals) or a traditional savings account. Additionally, the soft commitments significantly increased final savings balances relative to no form of commitment and were particularly effective for impatient individuals. However, despite the inherent illiquidity, the hard commitment account proved most effective in building savings balances amongst our participants at the end of six months.
Digestibility, milk production, and udder health of Etawah goats fed with fermented coffee husk.

This study was carried out to assess the utilization of coffee husk fermented by Pleurotus ostreatus as feed supplement by measuring the digestibility, milk production and udder health of Etawah goats suffered from subclinical mastitis (+1). There were three experimental diets consisted of T0 (control diet/basal diet without fermented coffee husk), T1 (basal diet with 6% fermented coffee husk) and T2 (basal diet with 6% fermented coffee husk soaked in crude palm oil for an hour before using). Basal diet consisted of napier grass (60%) and concentrate (40%). The results showed that supplementation of lactating Etawah does with fermented coffee husk did not affect the palatability of the diets, but increased the protein and crude fiber consumption (P<0.05). There was no significant effect on nutrient digestibility and milk production while milk composition (protein, fat, total solid) increased in supplemented groups (P<0.05). The persistency of milk production and the somatic cells count were not different. There was an improvement of somatic cells count on supplemented groups. In conclusion, fermented coffee husk could be used as feed supplement without any negative effects on digestibility and milk production. The positive effects to udder health could be expected from including fermented coffee husk in diets. Key words: coffee husk, Etawah goat, fermented, performance, supplement
Optimising an integrated pest-management strategy for a spatially structured population of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) using meta-population modelling

To evaluate strategies within a carp-control plan, we developed a meta-population model of the geographic arrangement, biological connections and ‘unfished’ stock structure of the pest population of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) in a large river catchment. The model was tuned to recent observations of biomass. Published data were used to estimate sampling biases and yield from available carp-control tools. We simulated proposed carp-removal activities and also the potential effects of biological-control options; cyprinid herpesvirus-3 (CHV-3) and daughterless-carp gene technology. Outputs compared the population abundance before carp control (before 2009) and after a ~70-year period of sustained management. Models suggest that the proposed levels of carp removal may reduce biomass by ~50%. Although substantial, this control level may not be sufficient to reduce carp biomass densities below thresholds associated with ecological damage. In contrast, a CHV-3 bio-control program has potential to reduce carp biomass densities to, or exceeding, target levels, if mortality rates exceed 30% and broad-scale outbreaks occur in at least 40% of years, despite the likely development of resistance. A synergistic bio-control program using CHV-3, followed by a gene technology-based sex-ratio distortion program, is potentially the most effective strategy for reducing carp biomass by over 90% in the long term.
Being a Member of a Cooperative Bank: Ethical of Financial Decision?

The definition of co-operative banks given by the International Cooperative Banking Association (ICBA) states that co-operative members, who buy and hold member shares, believe in the ethical values of honesty, openness, social responsibility and caring for others. Using a unique database of 246,120 clients/members at a cooperative bank, we show that the trading volume of member shares is far from negligible. The analysis of clients’ portfolios over a 13-month period shows that clients use member shares as standard savings and investment vehicles. These results show that the reasons given by the ICBA to become a member of a cooperative bank are unimportant in the decision process.
Ammonium sulfate gradient loading of brucine into liposomes: effect of phospholipid composition on entrapment efficiency and physicochemical properties in vitro

Background: Brucine, the major active alkaloid constituent extracted from traditional Chinese herbal medicine Nux vomica, had been found to possess remarkable antitumor, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory activities. In this study, we attempted to encapsulate brucine into liposomes to improve its therapeutic effects. The entrapment efficiency (EE) and the stability of liposomes are two key factors associated with the therapeutic effects of liposomal drugs. We developed a novel liposome-based brucine formulation that was composed of soybean phosphatidylcholine (SPC) and hydrogenated soybean phosphatidylcholine (HSPC). Method: The liposomes with different phospholipid composition were characterized for their EE, vesicle size, drug release profile, and leakage in vitro. Results: The molar ratio of HSPC/SPC = 1:9 was determined as the optimum ratio. Compared with conventional liposomes composed of only SPC or HSPC, EE of the brucine-loaded novel liposomes was increased markedly, especially at high drug/lipid molar ratios. The results of drug release showed that the novel liposomes were more stable than the conventional SPC liposomes in the presence of fetal calf serum. In addition, the results of the leakage experiments revealed that the novel liposomes also had better stability in phosphate buffer solution (PBS) with respect to drug retention. Although the conventional HSPC liposomes is more stable than the novel liposomes, the novel liposomes composed of 10% HSPC and 90% SPC may still have promising application potential because HSPC is much more expensive than SPC. Conclusion: Taken together, efficient encapsulation of brucine into the novel liposomes, their improved stability, and the price of phospholipids indicate that the novel liposomes may act as promising carriers for active alkaloids such as brucine.
Promotion of Autolysis in Lactobacilli

The conditions of promotion of autolysis of three strains of Lactobacilli were investigated. The autolysis of L. acidophilus, L. helveticus and L. casei at exponential phase was remarkably enhanced by freezing storage at −20°C overnight.The turbidity decrease of L. acidophilus’ cell suspension corresponds to the increase of cell free nitrogen compounds, glucosamine and DNA component. All these compounds were more rapidly released from the cells stored at −20°C than those stored at 3°C. The cells which were harvested at the exponential phase had higher autolytic activity than those at stationary phase. The storage of the cells at −20°C for 2 days or more could effectively promote the autolysis.The activity was increased by Ca2+ or Mg2+. Optimum pH of the autolytic enzyme of L. acidophilus was 6~7.
Altering Milk Composition by Feeding

Abstract Nutrition offers a means of making rapid changes in milk composition, but the relationship between feed constituents and milk composition is complex. The greatest changes can be brought about in the concentration of milk fat. Particularly important dietary factors are the amount of roughage, forage:concentrate ratio, the carbohydrate composition of the con-centrates, lipids, intake, and meal frequency. Far smaller changes are possible in milk protein concentration. The best documented effects are for intake and lipid supplements. Dietary protein has only small effects on either milk fat or protein concentration. Very small changes in lactose concentration occur sometimes in response to diet but they are inconsistent and not of practical value. Exploitation of these possibilities requires repeatable responses and accurate prediction of overall animal performance. Empirical prediction equations have been developed for some factors but the complexity of the interrelationships of the several different responses to a single dietary change suggest that mechanistic models covering complete nutrient utilization by the dairy cow may be necessary. Whatever the technical developments, economic factors will be the final determinant of the uptake of such techniques by the dairy farmer.
Territoriality and microhabitat selection in two intertidal New Zealand fish

Aspects of territoriality and microhabitat selection in Acanthoclinus fuscus and Forsterygion nigripenne robustum were studied in intra- and interspecific confrontation experiments under tidal and constant conditions. In both species aggressive responses were closely related to activity with maximal frequencies during the first 2 h of the experiments. Under tidal conditions activity was higher than at constant water level. Size predominantly affected contest outcome in both species. Initiation of the first bout and past experience were further important factors, whereas prior residence did not influence dominance relationships. Dominant individuals defended access to shelter and low tide pools as critical resources. A. fuscus preferred tubes matching the body size for cover, whereas F. n. robustum spent more time in caves and on open areas. Furthermore, A. fuscus preferred shallower water and was able to sustain long periods out of water. The different microhabitat preferences may reduce interspecific competition. Although A. fuscus did not win significantly more trials, higher aggressive tendencies were observed in this species.
Context-Specific Images of the Archetypical Bureaucrat: Persistence and Diffusion of the Bureaucracy Stereotype

When the word ‘bureaucrat’ is used, it often bears no relation to the concept of ‘bureaucracy’ as an efficient way of organizing an administration, as it does in Max Weber’s writings (Weber, 1922). Even ‘civil servant’ carries a negative connotation. Civil servants are lazy and risk avoiding (Merton, 1940). If a civil servant takes initiative, this is considered as being engendered by the wish to protect one’s own or one’s administration’s interests, as the public choice approach would state (Niskanen, 1971; Dunleavy, 1992). These connotations pervade all uses of the words. There are many jokes about civil servants. Most officials in TV-series are corrupt. The alienation between the administration and citizens is also a common theme in literature. Beck-Jørgensen analyzed novels in which government-citizen relations took a central place (e.g. Kafka’s ‘The Castle’). His analysis showed that when dealing with the alienation between the citizen and government, novels or the characters in them never refer to concrete activities, facts, or events, but to perceived aims, consequences and contexts of the administration in question (Beck Jorgensen, 1994). Evaluations of government are not only based on ‘objective’ facts, but also on pre-established images. Context determines when these pre-established images (stereotypes) surface, and when an ‘honest’ evaluation of government is made. Even though we find similar processes throughout the entire government, we will focus on the image of ‘civil servants’ and ‘bureaucrats’. Part of the image of the administration is generated by stereotypes. We will not only focus on the content of these stereotypes, but also on the factors that determine their persistence and diffusion despite observations to the contrary. Governments worldwide are making efforts to modernize their administrations in order to give them a more positive image. The existence of negative stereotypes of the administration suggests that any modernizing efforts by governments are bound to fail. In this article we want to do two things: first, we want to show how stereotyping theory can help to explain citizens’ image of government, and second, we’d like to show how, by approaching the stereotype of civil servants as a social norm, the image of civil servants is diffused and preserved.
Skewed Generalized T and Nested Probability Distributions: Specification and Moments

This paper presents a unified framework for the popular Skewed Generalized t (SGT) distribution and its special cases the Skewed Generalized Error Distribution (SGED), the skewed student’s t, the skewed Laplace and skewed normal distributions. The analytical moment equations presented can be useful to researchers in statistics, finance and econometrics working in the areas of estimation, asset pricing and risk management. The unified framework presented helps avoid confusions related to the interpretation of their parameters and results.
The Dual Index Model That Astutely Augurs Stock Prices Using Sectoral Indices – An Empirical Evaluation of Securities That Are Not Constituents of India's Premier Stock Exchange Index Namely BSE-Sensex

The concept of Single index model for pricing of assets had been widely used as a simple tool for forecasting returns of individual securities in tune with the movements of a general market index. The Capital Asset Pricing Model, a footing based on the fact that the alpha component and the residual risk tends toward zero as the number of securities are increased, reduces the single-index model equation to the market return multiplied by the risky portfolio's beta. The fundamental analysis and technical analysis have been the pillar stones on which asset pricing was built. However, no attempts have been made so far to connect technicals to fundamentals of a security. With single index model and multi factor model at the two extremes, an intermediate model, that augments the technicals of a stock to its fundamentals, is the critical idea postulated, to predict future prices. The model referred to Dual Index Model, empirically tests the security returns of two securities that are not constituents of general market index of India's premier stock exchange, the Bombay Stock Exchange, namely BSE-Sensex The dual index model, proposed in this paper, attempts to augment fundamental factors affecting security prices, such as company, industry and economy factors into the technical framework of regressing excess return on individual security with the fundamentals as regressors. While the company factors are decomposed into the expected excess return of the individual stock due to firm-specific factors that are commonly denoted by its alpha coefficient (α) or intercept or predictor constant, the industry factors and economic factors represented by excess returns on sectoral index and market index respectively are assumed to additional predictors in the multi regression, where the excess returns on security returns is the dependent variable. The effectiveness of the dual index model in precisely predicting returns, in the case of securities that are not constituents of the market index, is brought under the scanner and it has been conclusively evidenced that when sectoral index and market index are not highly correlated the dual index model is much superior to single index model in forecasting returns, be it forecast for a short period or long.
Predicting and Decomposing the Risk of Data-driven Portfolios

Sophisticated algorithmic techniques are complementing human judgement across the fund industry. Whatever the type of rebalancing that occurs in the course of a longer horizon, it probably violates the buy-and-hold assumption. In this article, we develop the methodology to predict, dissect and interpret the h-day financial risk in data-driven portfolios. Our risk budgeting approach is based on a flexible risk factor model that accommodates the dynamics in portfolio composition directly within the risk factors. Once these factors are defined, we cast portfolio risk measures, such as value-at-risk, into an additive mean-variance-skewness-kurtosis format. The simulation study confirms the gains in accuracy compared to the widespread square-root-of-time rule. Our main empirical findings rely on the two-decade performance of a portfolio insurance investment strategy. Rather than looking at total portfolio risk, we conclude that it is more informative to look inside the portfolio.
Impact of Capital Structure on Firm Value: Evidence from Nifty

This study examines the effect of capital structure on value of firm of automobile companies during 2009 to 2018. Variables including size. Profitability, Tangibility. Growth and age taken for examining value of firm . the study found that the relation indicates leverage, profit, size, tangibility, and liquidity age are significantly effect on value of firm. Moreover, fertilizer sector found insignificant. Other macro economic factors i.e. GDP found insignificant but inflation rate significant with price to book value.
Lysine Requirement of Fast Growing Chickens - Effects of Age, Sex, Level of Protein Deposition and Dietary Lysine Efficiency

N-balance studies were carried out to assess the lysine requirement of fast growing chickens (Cobb 500) at different sex and age depending on crude protein deposition and efficiency of dietary lysine utilisation. The experiments were conducted within three age periods (I : 10-25d ; II : 30-45d ; III : 50-65d) and 72 chickens (36 males, 36 females) per age period. Experimental diets with six levels of graded CP content were based on high protein (HP)-soybean meal, wheat gluten and crystalline amino acids (L-Thr, DL-Met, L-Arg) in order to create lysine (4.30g Lys/100gCP) as the first limiting dietary amino acid (constant ratio Lys : Met+Cys : Thr : Arg=1 : 1.01 : 0.91 : 1.14). For application of a nonlinear N-utilization model, nitrogen maintenance requirement (NMR) and theoretical maximum for daily nitrogen retention (NRmaxT) were established as model parameters for further assessment of the lysine requirement depending on age, sex and daily CP-deposition. As an example, the calculated lysine requirement concentration for 60% of the theoretical potential for daily CP-deposition (10-25d : 1.10% lysine, 60g daily feed intake ; 30-45d : 1.03% lysine, 140g daily feed intake ; 50-65d : 0.96% lysine, 170g daily feed intake) was in close agreement with published data. However, the predicted feed intake is one of the most important factors of influence when amino acid requirement concentrations are established. The level of daily CP-deposition and the dietary amino acid efficiency as important factors influencing the amino acid requirement data need more attention in future requirement studies.
Evidence for Gustatorial Courtship in a Haplogyne Spider (Hedypsilus Culicinus: Pholcidae: Araneae)

Gustatorial courtship, which is so far only known from two entelegyne families among spiders, is for the first time documented in a haplogyne spider, Hedypsilus culicinus Simon, 1893 (Pholcidae). The convergence to entelegynes is explained by (1) comparable mating position, and (2) body proportions.
NO DELETERIOUS ALTERATIONS IN POSIDONIA BEDS IN THE BAY OF MENTON (FRANCE) EIGHT YEARS AFTER CAULERPA TAXIFOLIA COLONIZATION

High‐resolution multispectral imagery, aerial photography, and SCUBA diving surveys were used to determine if there had been any significant alteration in the dimensions of Posidonia oceanica beds in the Bay of Menton, French Riviera, since colonization of the green alga Caulerpa taxifolia began in the late 1980s. After 8 years of direct contact, there was no evidence of a decrease in the abundance of P. oceanica. On the contrary, the integrity of a seagrass bed had increased in the first area colonized by Caulerpa taxifolia on the eastern side of Cape Martin and, in a more recently colonized central part of the bay, established tufts of Posidonia were isolated from the alga by well‐defined exclusion zones.
Herpes Simplex Virus: Characteristics of a Strain Which Produces Unusually Large Multinucleated Giant Cells in Tissue Culture

In a previous study9,10HeLa cultures were inoculated with herpes simplex virus and nourished with growth medium which contained neutralizing antibody. These cultures could be serially subcultured without loss of the cells or elimination of the virus as long as the growth medium contained a high level of neutralizing antibody. At the 17th subculture of one group of cultures it was noted that the appearance of the plaques of infected cells had changed. The plaque was no longer made up of small multinucleated giant cells and rounded cells lying singly or in clumps but was composed almost entirely of a plaque of large multinucleated syncytial giant cells. Since preliminary cross neutralization tests indicated the virus which produced the syncytial giant-cell plaque was herpes simplex virus, it was decided to study this strain in more detail. The history of the origin of the syncytial giant-cell-forming strain of herpes virus follows
Molecular Genetics, Risk Aversion, Return Perceptions, and Stock Market Participation

We show that molecular variation in DNA related to cognition, personality, health, and body shape, predicts an individual’s equity market participation and risk aversion. Moreover, the molecular genetic endowments predict individuals’ return perceptions, most of which we find to be strikingly biased. The genetic endowments also strongly associate with many of the investor characteristics (e.g., trust, sociability, wealth) shown to explain heterogeneity in equity market participation. Our analysis helps elucidate why financial choices are heritable and how genetic endowments can help explain the links between financial choices, risk aversion, beliefs, and other variables known to explain stock market participation.