Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Private Sector Involvement in Public Procurement Opportunities: An Assessment of the Extent and Effect in Tanzanian Public Entities

The main purpose of this study was to assess the current status of private sector participation in public procurement opportunities and their effect on performance of the procurement function in the Tanzanian public entities . In particular the study intended to establish the extent to which the private sector organizations participate in the public procurement opportunities focusing on accessibility to the opportunities, the existing PPPs arrangements, proportion of contracts awarded to the private firms and the existing buyer – supplier relationships. The target population consisted of all 470 public entities in Tanzania out of which 100 entities purposively constituted the sample size. A mixed - qualitative and quantitative- research design was used as a technique for data collection, presentation and analysis. The study used a multistage stratified random sampling technique in identifying potential respondents. The study was guided by a null hypothesis that there is no considerable effect of private sector participation on performance of the procurement function in the Tanzanian public entities. Data were mainly collected through structured and self administered questionnaires supported with face to face oral interviews. Results of the regression analysis indicated that the coefficient for private sector participation is 0.428 and the t-test value is 3.621. Statistically, this coefficient is significant (p – value =0.000 < 0.05). These findings imply that 43% of the variation in performance of the procurement functions in the public entities was explained by the extent to which private sector organizations participate in the procurement opportunities as offered by the respective public entities. The study recommends that public entities must treat the private sector as a key partner to the well functioning of their procurement departments so that the latter can participate effectively. More specifically, the public entities must put in place commercial disciplines that will create confidence and attract the private sector organizations. Keywords: Private Sector, Procurement Performance. Procurement Function, Public Entity.
Changes in seed rain during secondary succession in a tropical montane cloud forest region in Oaxaca, Mexico

Abstract Seed dispersal is the first stage of colonization, and potentially affects recruitment. This process deserves more attention in tropical montane cloud forests (TMCF), since secondary succession is common owing to episodic disturbances. We studied annual seed rain in 10 nearby forest stands, ≈7 to ≈100 y following shifting agriculture, and one primary forest stand in southern Mexico to test the hypothesis that seed rain is limited at the scale of neighbouring fragments and that such limitation differs among species with different dispersal modes and successional origin. Annual seed rain was heterogeneous among forest fragments probably due to the prevalence of local seed dispersal, differences in stand age and the proportion of zoochory, and may help explain the patchy distribution of species observed in TMCF. Seed rain abundance and species diversity per unit trap area increased with the age of the stand. Biotically dispersed seeds increased towards older stands relative to abiotically dispersed seeds. Late-successional seeds were rarer in early successional stands than pioneer seeds in late-successional stands, suggesting that long-distance dispersal is generally more common for pioneer plants. Seed dispersal appears to constrain forest regeneration and to influence fragment species composition as a function of the distance from the source forests.
A single-phase low-frequency commutation inverter for renewables

Co-generation systems integrating distributed low-power sources with the utility generally ask for an electronic power converter for conditioning the locally generated power and inject current into the grid. If the source provides a DC voltage, the converter should be able to produce a low-distortion, high-power factor AC current. For low-power applications, like photovoltaic panels and fuel cells, a single-phase inverter (DC-AC converter) can be used for connecting the source with the grid. The paper describes a single-phase DC-AC topology for interfacing DC sources with the utility. The commutation of the power switches is at the line frequency. The main advantages of the proposed converter are: (1) negligible switching losses-high efficiency; (2) negligible EMI; (3) the current injected into the grid presents low harmonic distortion and high power factor; (4) higher reliability compared to PWM inverters (due to the simpler control circuitry). The power flux can be controlled either by varying the DC voltage or controlling the switches command.
Rainfall estimation using moving cars as rain gauges – laboratory experiments

The spatial assessment of short time-step precipi- tation is a challenging task. Low density of observation net- works, as well as the bias in radar rainfall estimation moti- vated the new idea of exploiting cars as moving rain gauges with windshield wipers or optical sensors as measurement devices. In a preliminary study, this idea has been tested with computer experiments (Haberlandt and Sester, 2010). The results have shown that a high number of possibly inaccu- rate measurement devices (moving cars) provide more reli- able areal rainfall estimations than a lower number of precise measurement devices (stationary gauges). Instead of assum- ing a relationship between wiper frequency (W ) and rainfall intensity (R) with an arbitrary error, the main objective of this study is to derive valid W -R relationships between sen- sor readings and rainfall intensity by laboratory experiments. Sensor readings involve the wiper speed, as well as optical sensors which can be placed on cars and are usually made for automating wiper activities. A rain simulator with the ca- pability of producing a wide range of rainfall intensities is designed and constructed. The wiper speed and two optical sensors are used in the laboratory to measure rainfall inten- sities, and compare it with tipping bucket readings as refer- ence. Furthermore, the effect of the car speed on the estima- tion of rainfall using a car speed simulator device is investi- gated. The results show that the sensor readings, which are observed from manual wiper speed adjustment according to the front visibility, can be considered as a strong indicator for rainfall intensity, while the automatic wiper adjustment show weaker performance. Also the sensor readings from optical sensors showed promising results toward measuring rainfall rate. It is observed that the car speed has a significant effect on the rainfall measurement. This effect is highly dependent on the rain type as well as the windshield angle.
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND FRAUD: EVIDENCE FROM CHINA

This study investigates the relationship between corporate governance and corporate fraud by utilizing logit regression and by employing a sample of 176 firms listed in Chinese stock markets during the period from 2001 to 2005. The results s reveal that: (1) the proportion of independent members in board of directors is lower for firms experiencing corporate fraud than for no-fraud firms; (2) the firms with CEOs being the chairmen of board of directors are more likely to commit corporate fraud than the other firms; (3) the financial incentives to executives are greater for firms experiencing corporate fraud than for no-fraud firms; (4) capital structure has significant and positive effect on corporate fraud in China.
Development of Multiplex PCR to Detect Five Pythium Species Related to Turfgrass Diseases

The objective of this study was to develop multiplex PCR detection method for five Pythium species associated with turfgrass diseases, Pythium aphanidermatum, Pythium arrhenomanes, Pythium graminicola, Pythium torulosum and Pythium vanterpoolii. Species-specific primers and two common primers were designed based on the sequences of the internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA. Another primer set by which all organisms would be amplified in 18S rDNA was used as a positive control. When these total nine primers were applied to the multiplex PCR, all species were individually discriminated in the mixture of five species culture DNA. Furthermore, all five Pythium species were detected in naturally infected plants using the multiplex PCR.
Investigation on Bio-Mineral Precipitation- Mimicking the Natural Phenomenon

Biomineralization is an important and ubiquitous process resulting in biominerals, produced by a range of taxa, from bacteria and to eukarya. Calcium carbonate precipitation was reported in many bacterial species, both in vivo and in vitro conditions which is influenced by various abiotic factors and could transform soluble organic nutrients into insoluble inorganic calcite crystals. Biologically controlled mineralization (BCM) of calcium carbonate involves a remarkable control in size, morphology and phase selection, resulting in complex hierarchical organic- inorganic structures with unusual physicochemical properties. The calcium carbonate thus secreted can be used in various applications and as an additive admixture in building materials. In this study calcareous bacteria were isolated from marine sediments, which were able to produce calcium carbonate crystals by utilizing organic and inorganic nitrogen source indicating the nitrogen and ureolytic cycle as their basic metabolic pathway. Characterisation studies were performed and the most efficient isolate was obtained.
Convergent Innovation in Emerging Healthcare Technology Ecosystems: Addressing Complexity and Integration

Precision Medicine and Digital Health are emerging areas in healthcare, and they are underpinned by convergent or cross-industry innovation. However, convergence results in greater uncertainty and complexity in terms of technologies, value networks, and organization. There has been limited empirical research on emerging and convergent ecosystems, especially in addressing the issue of integration. This research identifies how organizations innovate in emerging and convergent ecosystems, specifically, how they address the challenge of integration. We base our research on empirical analyses using a series of longitudinal case studies employing a combination of case interviews, field observations, and documents. Our findings identify a need to embrace the complexity by adopting a variety of approaches that balance “credibility-seeking” and “advantage-seeking” behaviours, to navigate, negotiate, and nurture both the innovation and ecosystem, in addition to a combination of “analysis” and “synthesis” actions to manage aspects of integration. We contribute to the convergent innovation agenda and provide practical approaches for innovators in this domain.innovation and ecosystem, with a combination of ‘analysis’ and ‘synthesis’ actions to manage aspects of integration. We contribute to the convergent innovation agenda and provide practical approaches for innovators in this domain.
Future Antarctic ozone recovery rates in September–December predicted by CCMVal-2 model simulations

I have several comments on the paper. The major comment is that at times it’s a little tedious to read, namely over long stretches of text it is presenting a sequence of numerical facts extracted from the data set. I suggest that some of the text could be shortened and some of the findings summarized in one or more tables. This would shorten the paper and make it more readable. Along the same lines, several sentences (explaining details of figures) in the main text should become figure captions. The claim that the analysis is more robust when using medians rather than means should be substantiated. I fail to see why using 1975 as the base year should be superior to using 1980 as the base year. In both cases, the TOC is already noticeably affected by anthropogenic ozone depletion (figures 1 and 2), but choosing 1975 makes the results incomparable with other published results on this that often refer to the 1980 baseline. If a deviation from 1980 is necessary, it would make sense to refer to the start of the simulations, i.e., 1960-1969. Finally, more reference to previous studies on the same set of data (e.g., Austin et al., 2010, and SPARC, 2010, chapter 9) are needed because the recovery of the ozone hole has been studied before in a few papers, using slightly different techniques. The paper does not adequately discuss these papers. Apart from the subtle differences in approach (bootstrapping instead of averaging) I didn’t get a sense of what the fundamental differences are w.r. t. these earlier studies. On the whole, I think the paper is publishable subject to a major revision which needs to focus on what’s new relative to existing literature, and how the presentation can be improved.
The Story of "Woe"

In contrast to the received consensus in the historical- comparative linguistic community, we argue that syntactic reconstruction is both a plausible and a feasible enterprise. We illustrate this with an investigation of the syntactic behavior of *wai ‘woe’ across five subbranches of Indo- European, i.e. Indo-Iranian, Italic, Baltic, Slavic and Germanic. The adverbial interjection *wai ‘woe’ is found instantiating three different constructions, which we label: 1) the Bare Exclamative Construction, 2) the Dative Exclamative Construction, and 3) the Predicative Construction. We suggest that the Predicative Construction is archaic in the Indo-European languages, and that the Dative Exclamative Construction has developed from a focalized variant of the Predicative Construction, used in exclamatory context, since ‘woe’ is the quintessential candidate for being focused in situations of adversity. On the basis of the comparative evidence, all three constructions must be reconstructed for Proto-Indo-European, as well as a subject– verb construction, which determines the default word order properties between the subject and the verb, and finally a focus construction where focalized material occurs in first position. We couch our analysis within the formalism of Sign- Based Construction Grammar, establishing beyond doubt that syntactic reconstruction is a viable endeavor within historical- comparative linguistics.
PM Is Early Intervention an Effective Method for Preventing Language Deficits in Children with Hearing Loss ?

The presence of hearing loss can cause severe detriments to a child's ability to develop efficient communication skills, which can affect the ability to adopt normal social and educational skills. However, it has been suggested that intervening at a young age can diminish these delays. Several research studies have been conducted to discuss the validity of whether early intervention (EI) yields positive results on communication skills in children who have some degree of hearing loss. The participants, who were utilized in the conducted research, were all placed into intervention programs of different degrees in early stages of their lives. The specific way in which this research was conducted was to look at the effects of not only how early the intervention programs began but also the time in which it was discovered that the child had a degree of hearing loss. Communication abilities were assessed over periods of times to examine improvements and these results were compared to others who had no hearing loss to see if the development was on target with specific ages. Both intervention methods in a group setting as well as individual sessions have been deemed effective. The data concluded through different research studies can be examined to evaluate the efficiency of these intervention programs, and an individual's improvements in regards to expressive and/or receptive language abilities. 2 Academic Festival, Event 98 [2018] https://digitalcommons.sacredheart. edu/acadfest/2018/all/98 EARLY INTERVENTION AND LANGUAGE DEFICITS 3
PALEOCENE PALYNOMORPH ASSEMBLAGES FROM THE NACIMIENTO FORMATION, SAN JUAN BASIN, NEW MEXICO

The Nacimiento Formation bears vertebrate faunas that are types for the Puercan and Torrejonian North American Land Mammal Ages (NALMAs). A biostratigraphy based on therian mammal distribution in the Nacimiento Formation can be tied to magnetostratigraphy. This is correlated to a geomagnetic polarity time scale, forming an important geochronologic and biochronologic framework for regional correlation. Two palynomorph assemblages recovered from the Paleocene Nacimiento Formation in Kimbeto Arroyo, San Juan Basin, New Mexico, can be correlated to a Paleocene palynostratigraphic zonation of western North America, providing an independent and significant biochronologic correlation. The first sample (SJB03-17) is from a carbonaceous mudstone ~1 m (~3 ft) below strata of the Puercan (Pu2) NALMAs and in a zone of normal magnetic polarity correlated with polarity subchron C29n. It yielded an assemblage including Arecipites sp. , Corollina sp. , Laevigatosporites sp. , Momipites tenuipolus, Nyssapollenites spp. , Pityosporites sp. , Tricolpites anguloluminosus, Tricolpites spp. , and Ulmipollenites krempii. The second sample (SJB03-19) is from a carbonaceous mudstone approximately 2 m (6.5 ft) above strata that yield a basal Torrejonian (To1) NALMA vertebrate fauna and within a succeeding zone of normal magnetic polarity correlated with polarity subchron C28n. It yielded an assemblage including Cicatricosisporites sp. , Corollina sp. (common), Laevigatosporites sp. , Momipites triorbicularis (common), Pityosporites spp. , Tricolpites anguloluminosus, Ulmipollenites krempii, and Zlivisporis novomexicanum. SJB03-17 contains Momipites tenuipolus, a taxon that is widespread in the lower Paleocene in the Western Interior. Its occurrence in this sample in the lower Nacimiento Formation is consistent with its known stratigraphic range. SJB03-19 yields Momipites triorbicularis, a taxon that indicates a correlation with Paleocene palynostratigraphic Zone P3 (the Momipites actinus–Aquilapollenites spinulosus Interval Biozone), a zone identified throughout the lower Paleocene of the Western Interior. The identification of Zone P3 in the Nacimiento Formation closely associated with a To1 vertebrate assemblage firmly establishes a correlation between a Paleocene palynostratigraphic and vertebrate biostratigraphic zonation. This is consistent with most recent age correlations proposed for the Nacimiento Formation and provides an important biochronologic correlation for the Western Interior.
Relational governance, communication and the performance of biotechnology partnerships

Purpose – Emerging biotechnology firms rely on a network of socio‐economic partnerships that can be classified as “interimistic” or close, collaborative but relatively short‐lived. Few studies have assessed the importance of relational governance to the performance of these partnerships. The purposes of this research were to determine the effect of relational governance on the performance of financial partnerships and to compare biotechnology manager assessments of their financial and non‐financial partnerships.Design/methodology/approach – Interviews were conducted with managers of emerging biotechnology companies and lead investors in Canada, France and Germany. Relational governance was assessed by relational norms such as flexibility, information sharing, solidarity and fairness. Performance was assessed by overall effectiveness and partnership benefits. First, the contribution of relational governance to partnership effectiveness and benefits was examined. Second, for the financial partnerships, the .
Cluster Analysis of Regional Tourism Resource Exploitation in Shaanxi

A tourism resource exploitation evaluation system is constructed based on the compilation of data and information related to tourism resources in Shaanxi; cluster analysis is used to form superior and inferior regions in tourism resource distribution in Shaanxi, further to form core and peripheral regions in regional tourism development. It is suggested that a strategy which optimizes the core region, drives the peripheral regions and realizes advantage complementation and win-win cooperation between the core and peripheral regions should be implemented in tourism development, so as to achieve coordinated tourism development throughout Shaanxi.
NUMERICAL STUDY OF NORMAL PRESSURE DISTRIBUTION IN ENTRANCE FLOW BETWEEN PARALLEL PLATES, I. FINITE DIFFERENCE CALCULATIONS

This paper deals with the computation of o w between two parallel plates, including the pressure distribution in the entrance region. There are few implicit solutions available for the pressure distribution in the normal or -direction of such o ws. The pressure distribution in the -direction is thus computed for the rst time for o w between parallel plates. The minimum critical Reynolds number for laminar-turbulent transition is known to be in the range from 1300 to 1400, and we have thus focused our nite difference computations of the pressure gradient in the -direction at Reynolds numbers ( ) between 100 and 5000. Our results have enabled us to conclude that a large difference in pressure between the wall and the centerline exists near the inlet for a low and decreased as increased. The pressure at the wall is lower than that in the central core for , indicating that the pressure distribution is contrary to Bernoulli's law across parallel plates, although the law does not apply to viscous o w.
Internal Energy of the Classical Two‐ and Three‐Dimensional One‐Component‐Plasma

We summarize several semi‐phenomenological approaches to estimate the internal energy of one‐componentplasma (OCP) in two (2D) and three (3D) dimensions. Particular attention is given to a hybrid approach, which reproduces the Debye‐Hückel asymptote in the limit of weak coupling, the ion sphere (3D) and ion disc (2D) asymptotes in the limit of strong coupling, and provides reasonable interpolation between these two limits. More accurate ways to estimate the internal energy of 2D and 3D OCP are also discussed. The accuracy of these analytic results is quantified by comparison with existing data from numerical simulations. The relevance of the KTHNY theory in locating melting transition in 2D OCP is briefly discussed. (© 2016 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)