Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Commitment in the process of translation and control of strategy in Brazilian agro-industrial cooperatives

This paper deals with the insertion of commitment as a critical success factor in a model of strategy’s translation and control in agro-industrial cooperatives in the context of the Brazilian reality, and more specifically of an agro-industrial cooperative, located in the State of Parana. Based on the theoretical background of strategy’s translation and control and on agro-industrial cooperatives, interviews were conducted with experts on cooperatives, followed by thematic content analysis, cooccurrences and structural analysis. Subsequently an instrumental case study in an agro-industrial cooperative was performed, also by means of interviews with managers, followed by thematic content analysis, co-occurrences and structural analysis. The paper discusses several interactions that commitment has with other factors of the strategy’s translation and control model in agroindustrial cooperatives. It follows that such model must consider the commitment, as a critical success factor, related to the control lever of the cooperative positioning. Commitment leads to the establishment of incentives for cooperation by the cooperative; and the emergence, strengthening and consolidating of member’s fidelity; fundamental conditions for the sustainability of the cooperative system. It also concludes that fidelity is positively influenced by the organizational culture of the cooperative; by the satisfaction of members - derived from the economic performance of their farms -; and also by the integration and control exercised by the technical assistance. This conclu sion, regarding the cultural question, refers to the theoretical concept of commitment as the member’s preference associated with something that is offered, in a different way, by the cooperative, in relation to investor owned firms, and which had its beginning in the cooperative doctrine.
Modelos matemáticos para evolução social: de cooperação à diversidade linguística

One of the features that distinguish human beings from other living species is our culture. However, since behaviors do not fossilize, it is difficult to reconstruct the past to get insights about why we are who we are. Along with ethnographic and experimental data, mathematical models have been used to address the question of how our behaviors were shaped by evolution. This thesis is divided into two parts. In the first part, we will discuss multilevel selection and how the mathematical framework Two-Level Fisher-Wright (TLFW) can help us to understand the evolution of cooperation in human populations. After describing the problem of cooperation by using game theory, we review some of the present theories about why cooperation has evolved. Then, we apply the TLFW framework to the problem of the evolution of altruism in populations of hunter-gatherers, considering a situation in which group conflict drives selection. In the second part, we discuss language diversity and present the importance of studying the competition between languages for helping to preserve them. By drawing a parallel between the evolution of language and social norms, we introduce a mathematical model to analyze the persistence of dialects competing against a national standard language.
Multiple Gaps in the Disk of the Class I Protostar GY 91

We present the highest spatial resolution Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) observations to date of the Class I protostar GY 91 in the ρ Ophiuchus L1688 molecular cloud complex. Our 870 μm and 3 mm dust continuum maps show that the GY 91 disk has a radius of ∼80 au, and an inclination of ∼40°, but most interestingly that the disk has three dark lanes located at 10, 40, and 70 au. We model these features assuming they are gaps in the disk surface density profile and find that their widths are 7, 30, and 10 au. These gaps bear a striking resemblance to the gaps seen in the HL Tau disk, suggesting that there may be Saturn-mass planets hiding in the disk. To constrain the relative ages of GY 91 and HL Tau, we also model the disk and envelope of HL Tau and find that they are of similar ages, although GY 91 may be younger. Although snow lines and magnetic dead zones can also produce dark lanes, if planets are indeed carving these gaps then Saturn-mass planets must form within the first ∼0.5 Myr of the lifetime of protoplanetary disks.
Damage Identification of Urban Overpass Based on Hybrid Neurogenetic Algorithm Using Static and Dynamic Properties

Urban overpass is an important component of transportation system. Health condition of overpass is essential to guarantee the safe operation of urban traffic. Therefore, damage identification of urban overpass possesses important practical significance. In this paper, finite element model of left auxiliary bridge of Qianjin Overpass is constructed and vulnerable sections of structure are chosen as objects for damage recognition. Considering the asymmetry of Qianjin bridge, change rate of modal frequency and strain ratio are selected as input parameters for hybrid neurogenetic algorithm, respectively. Identification effects of damage location and severity are investigated and discussed. The results reveal that the proposed method can successfully identify locations and severities with single and multiple damage locations; its interpolation ability is better than extrapolation ability. Comparative analysis with BP neural network is conducted and reveals that the damage identification accuracy of hybrid neurogenetic algorithm is superior to BP. The effectiveness between dynamic and static properties as input variable is also analyzed. It indicates that the identification effect of strain ratios is more satisfactory than frequency ratio.
A review of ethnomedicine, phytochemical and pharmacological activities of Acacia nilotica (Linn) willd

An impressive abound medicinal plants have been utilized for the treatment of diseases from the time immemorial. The medicinal plants used in traditional medicine still plays an important role in emerging and developing countries since; they are inexpensive, effective and have natural origin. Acacia arabica commonly known as babul belongs to the family Fabaceae is widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical plains all over India, Sri Lanka, and Sudan, this plant is native to Egypt. Almost all its parts such as root, bark, leaves, flower, gum, pods etc are used in medication. The qualitative phytochemical study of different part of plant extract like leaves and fruits contain tannin; flowers contain stearic acid, kaempferol-3- glucoside, isoquercetin, leucocyanidin; pods contain tannin gum contain Arabic acid combined with calcium, magnesium and potassium. Moreover, polyphenolic compounds have also been reported in pods and bark. In traditional medicine, it is used for bleeding diseases, prolapse, leucorrhoea etc and experimental studies of A. arabica showed antihypertensive, antispasmodic, antibacterial, antifungal, antioxidant activity etc. The present review is an attempt to explore and comprehensively highlight the ethnomedicine uses, phytochemical properties and pharmacological uses of Acacia arabica reported till date.
An empirical validation of a base-excitation model to predict harvestable energy from a suspended-load backpack system

Suspended-load backpacks have been proposed as a way to provide power for small electronic devices by capturing the mechanical energy generated by the vertical movement of the suspended load and converting it into electrical energy. The aim of the current study was to build a base excitation model able to predict the relative velocity of the load (an index of the amount of harvestable energy of such a system) using as inputs the mass of the suspended load, the walking speed and the leg length of the user. Nine human participants walked on a treadmill under two load conditions (15.8 kg and 22.6 kg load) and three walking speed conditions (1.16 m/s, 1.43 m/s and 1.70 m/s). The predictions of the load velocity by the base-excitation model under these conditions were then compared with the measured load velocity. The results of this study showed a moderately strong correlation (0.76) between the root mean square of the predicted and measured relative velocity of the load, and the average absolute error of these predictions was 24.2%. These results provide support for the utility of this approach and also provide motivation for further refinement of the base excitation model for the prediction of the amount of energy able to be harvested from suspended-load backpack systems.
Cigarette Smoking among Iranian University Students: Reasons and Attitudes

Objective: According to the fact that university students are role models for the whole society, this study was performed to evaluate reasons of and attitudes toward cigarette smoking among Iranian university students. Methods: This study was performed as a cross-sectional self-reported questionnaire based study among university students of Kerman city of Iran. Our questionnaire was attributed to 1750 university students who were selected randomly. Current smoking was defined as using cigarette within the last 30 days. Participants’ demographic data in addition to their reasons for and attitudes toward smoking were obtained. Frequency, distribution and factor analysis of attitude items followed by a varimax rotation was used to evaluate the attitudinal statements. Results: From 1750 university students, who filled our questionnaire, 31% were ever smokers (51% males and 15% females) and 11% were current smokers (21.5% males and 2% females). Avoiding depression and taking pleasure were the reasons mentioned as important reasons the most frequently. Besides, the most frequently attitudinal statements were as follows:” My parents upset knowing my habit” and “Cigarette causes disease”. Furthermore, the mean score of encouraging attitudes was significantly higher among males, current smokers and those with a tendency toward cigarette smoking. Conclusion: This study confirmed that addressing attitudes toward smoking while developing preventive strategies against it among university students is an obvious necessity.
SHEAR MECHANISM AND SHEAR STRENGTH PREDICTION OF REINFORCED CONCRETE T-BEAMS

Shear failure in reinforced concrete beams are sudden failures and should be avoided at all times. However, the shear behaviour of a reinforced concrete beam is a complex mechanism and requires in-depth study. To understand the shear mechanism, two (2) simply supported reinforced concrete T-beams, BEAM1 and BEAM2 were tested until failure subjected to a 4-point bending test. Both beams were designed to the recommendations and specifications of two (2) established design codes by ACI318-08 and Eurocode2 (EC2). The study comprises of two reinforced concrete T-beams having similar variables and parameters with longitudinal reinforcement of ρ = 2.15% and shear span-to-effective depth ratio (a v /d) of 3.5. Shear reinforcement or stirrups has been added to the specimen and its spacing of stirrups has been provided with the provisions of the codes. The findings from the study indicate that ACI318-08 and EC2 design codes shows significant differences in determining its shear strength capacity V n and concrete shear resistance V c of the T-beams. However, both results were less conservative in its prediction when compared to the experimental results.
Forest Restoration and Fire: Principles in the Context of Place

Abstract: There is broad consensus that active management through thinning and fire is urgently needed in many forests of the western United States. This consensus stems from physically based models of fire behavior and substantial empirical evidence. But the types of thinning and fire and where they are applied are the subjects of much debate. We propose that low thinning is the most appropriate type of thinning practice. Treating surface fuels, reducing ladder fuels, and opening overstory canopies generally produce fire‐safe forest conditions, but large, fire‐resistant trees are also important components of fire‐safe forests. The context of place is critical in assigning priority for the limited resources that will be available for restoration treatments. Historical low‐severity fire regimes, because of their current high hazards and dominance by fire‐resistant species, are the highest priority for treatment. Mixed‐severity fire regimes are of intermediate priority, and high‐severity fire regimes are of lowest priority. Classification systems based on potential vegetation will help identify these fire regimes at a local scale.
Managers’ Private Information, Investor Underreaction and Long‐Run SEO Performance

For a sample of 2,879 SEOs by US stocks from 1970 to 2004, this paper decomposes an average three-year post-issue buy-and-hold abnormal return of −25.9% (relative to size- and B/M-matched non-issuing stocks) into two components. One component, representing 41% of the total, is due to lower risk exposure. The second component, representing the remaining 59%, is abnormal performance related to the surprise element of the issue decision, which the paper attributes to managers’ private information that the market does not incorporate into the announcement return. This second component results in abnormal returns during the 16 months after the offering.
Generalisations of Roth's theorem on finite abelian groups

Roth’s theorem, proved by Roth in 1953, states that when A ⊆ [1, N ] with A dense enough, A has a three term arithmetic progression (3-AP). Since then the bound originally given by Roth has been improved upon by number theorists several times. The theorem can also be generalized to finite abelian groups. In 1994 Meshulam worked on finding an upper bound for subsets containing only trivial 3-APs based on the number of components in a finite abelian group. Meshulams bound holds for finite abelian groups of odd order. In 2003 Lev generalised Meshulams result for almost all finite abelian groups. In 2009 Liu and Spencer generalised the concept of a 3-AP to a linear equation and obtained a similar bound depending on the number of components of the group. In 2011, Liu, Spencer and Zhao generalised the 3-AP to a system of linear equations. This thesis is an overview of these results.
Diaspora Investment Impact Transnational ties and homeland investment

The diaspora has increasingly become the focus of attention in the migration and development field. As scholars and policymakers look for ways to harness the diasporas for development purposes, studying the factors that determine the impact of diaspora presence on economic outcomes becomes increasingly relevant. This thesis contributes to the study of migration linkages by examining how diasporas’ transnational ties influence cross-border capital flows. While previous literature has found evidence of a migration-investment nexus – demonstrating that larger migrant stocks are associated with more investment to the home country – earlier models have largely ignored the non-tangible linkages of diaspora engagement. In this thesis we propose three main determinants for diasporas’ investment impact: (i) absolute and relative diaspora population; (ii) patriotic sentiments; and (iii) the extent of community participation. Estimating a cross-sectional gravity model for portfolio and direct investment, we find a positive relationship between diaspora presence and homeland investment. We show that nationalism and blind patriotism appear to dampen the overall positive effect of diaspora presence on investment, while constructive patriotism and a culture of active community participation are both associated with an enhanced diaspora investment impact. We conclude that tangible and nontangible linkages jointly influence outcomes within migration systems and that to fully understand the diaspora’s role in bridging the home and the host country, the nature of migrants’ transnational ties has to be considered. Under the right circumstances, significant linkage effects can be captured by mobilising diasporic engagement.
Tidal signatures in mesospheric turbulence

We search for the presence of tidal signatures in high latitude mesospheric turbulence as parameterized by turbulent energy dissipation rate estimated using a medium frequency radar, quantifying our findings with the aid of cor- relation analyses. A diurnal periodicity is not particularly evident during the winter and spring months but is a striking feature of the summer mesopause. While semidiurnal varia- tion is present to some degree all year round, it is particularly pronounced in winter. We find that the maximum in the sum- mer 24-h variation corresponds to that of the westward phase of the diurnal tide, and that the maximum in the winter 12h variation corresponds to that of the southward phase of the semidiurnal tide. This information is used to infer the hor- izontal propagation direction of gravity waves: during the summer the eastward direction is consistent with closure of the summer vortex, while in winter the inferred directions require more complex arguments.
Numerical Investigation of Flow Structure Interaction Coupling Effects in Hard Disk Drives

This paper studies the flow structural interaction (FSI) within a hard disk drive (HDD) through the use of a novel coupling method. The interaction studied was the fluid induced vibration in the HDD. A two step coupling approach was used, where the fluid and structural components were solved sequentially. The result obtained was a ratio of 0.65 between the vibration amplitudes of a fixed head stack assembly (HSA) and a moving HSA. The ratio was next applied on a real 3.5 inch HDD, to allow the parameter to be further improved upon. A new benchmark index of 0.69 was developed from this. This parameter may allow future researchers to model the out of plane vibrations of a HSA easily, saving precious time. A 31% more accurate simulation of FSI within 3.5 inch HDD at 15000 rpm is achieved by the use of this new coupling method and benchmark index.
Hydrological and metabolic controls on dissolved carbon dynamics in groundwater and export to surface waters in a temperate pine forest

We studied the export of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from forested shallow groundwater to first order streams, based on groundwater and surface water sampling and discharge data. In the 15 selected forested and sandy watershed, owing to the very low slope and the high permeability of the soil, hydrology occurs exclusively through drainage of shallow groundwater and no surface runoff occurs. A forest plot on the studied watershed was instrumented for continuous measurements of precipitation, evapotranspiration and net ecosystem exchanges of sensible and latent heat fluxes as well as CO2 fluxes. Shallow groundwater was sampled at 3 piezometers located in different pines plots, surface waters in 6 first order streams with catchments dominated by pines; and river discharge was modeled based on 20 4 gauging stations. On a monthly basis and at the plot scale, we found a good consistency between precipitation and the sum of evapotranspiration, shallow groundwater storage and drainage. DOC and DIC stocks in groundwater and exports to first order streams varied drastically during the hydrological cycle, in relation with water table depth and amplitude. In the groundwater, DOC concentrations were maximal in winter when the water table reached the superficial organic-rich layer of the soil. In contrast, DIC in groundwater, which was in majority in the form of excess CO2, showed maximum 25 concentrations at low water table during late summer, concomitantly with heterotrophic conditions in the forest ecosystem. Our data also suggest that a large part of the DOC mobilized at high water table was mineralized to DIC during the following months within the groundwater itself. In first order streams, DOC and DIC followed a similar seasonal trend as in groundwater but with lower concentrations. On an annual basis, leaching of C to streams occurred as DIC and DOC in similar proportion, but DOC export occurred in majority during short periods of highest water table, whereas DIC export was 30 more constant throughout the year. Leaching of forest C to first order streams represented a small portion (about 2%) of the net land CO2 sink. In addition, about 65% of the DIC exported from groundwater was not found in streams, as it returned very fast to the atmosphere through CO2 degassing.
Synoptic and dynamic aspects of an extreme springtime Saharan dust outbreak

In March 2004, a large‐scale, strong and persistent outbreak of Saharan dust on to the adjacent tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean was observed in satellite imagery. Surface observations show that the event was accompanied by unusual weather conditions across large parts of North Africa including low temperatures and strong winds over the Sahara, extreme precipitation in Libya and a heat wave on the Guinea coast. The dust outbreak was associated with an unseasonally southerly position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone and a delayed northward progression of the African monsoon.
The relation between bacterioplankton and phytoplankton production in the mid Adriatic Sea

The ratio of bacterioplankton :phytoplankton production was studied on a monthly basis from January 1980 to September 1982 in the area of the coastal and open mid Adriatic Sea. Bacterial production constituted significant percentages of phytoplankton production at both sites. Bacterioplankton production amounted to, on average, 9 to 28 % of phytoplankton production in the coastal sea upper layers, and 10 to 40% in the open sea. On some occasions, bacterioplankton production exceeded phytoplankton production. This occurred during the summer when bacterioplankton production was maximal and the phytoplankton bloom was declining in the surface as well as in deeper layers where primary production was very low due to poor light penetration. Our results suggest that bacterial biomass could be a significant source of carbon for higher trophic levels in the Adriatic, particularly in the oligotrophic open area.
Phylogenetic diversity and endemism: metrics for identifying critical regions of conifer conservation in Australia

Accurately and sufficiently quantifying biodiversity is integral for conservation. Traditional metrics for measuring biodiversity, species richness (SR) and weighted endemism (WE), do not take into account the evolutionary history of organisms. Phylogenetic diversity (PD) addresses the shortcomings of SR by quantifying the evolutionary connections among the species present in an area. Phylogenetic endemism (PE) addresses the shortcomings of WE and represents the ranges of the branches of the evolutionary tree connecting the species in an area. Australia, with its advanced digitization of spatial reference data is the best model system for quantitative studies of biodiversity at present. I created a phylogeny for the 39 indigenous Australian conifer species using matK and rbcL sequences from GenBank and sequencing the 4 species for which there were no existing data. I used spatial data from Australia’s Virtual Herbarium and removed records of conifers that were not naturally-occurring. I then used Biodiverse v 0.17 to calculate PD, PE and two derived metrics, Relative Phylogenetic Diversity (RPD) and Relative Phylogenetic Endemism (RPE). These metrics identify regions with statistically significantly high or low levels of PD and PE based on randomization tests. The results show that conifer RPD is significantly low on the Northeast coast of Australia, although conifer PD is high in the same region. RPE is significantly high along the Northeast coast, in the same region that RPD is low. Most of these regions are currently encompassed by legally protected Australian Reserves. More precise estimates of biodiversity can be used by conservation policy-makers.