Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
ASSESSING THE CAUSES OF URBAN TRANSPORTATION CHALLENGES IN THE KUMASI METROPOLIS OF GHANA

Due to its capacity to create place utility and contribute to time utility, both of which are necessities for economic and social development, transportation as a logistical driver of supply chain is indispensable in the contemporary world. Within the realm of supply chain, it does not only constitute one of the largest logistical costs but also and crucially, accounts for significant portion of the cost of products and services. Effective transportation system reflects in efficient logistic system and socio-economic development at large. However, it seems the reverse is the case in the Kumasi metropolis and negatively affects business and social activities within the metropolis. This study examines the factors that lead to the challenges of transportation system in the Metropolis. The study used primary data from field survey using questionnaire instrument. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyse the data. It was found that transport infrastructure appeared to be inadequate as most of the road sections have reached critical capacity, where the volume of traffic flow appeared more than the road networks can handle in some sections of the roads. Also, the traffic management system appeared less effective whilst the mass transit services were seen to be inadequate to meet travel demands contributing to the transportation challenges. It is recommended, therefore that, city authorities should improve on the existing transport infrastructure and expand the mass transit services within the metropolis.
The Milky Way and other spiral galaxies

Cosmologists have often considered the Milky Way as a typical spiral galaxy, and its properties have considerably influenced the current scheme of galaxy formation. Here we compare the general properties of the Milky Way disk and halo with those of galaxies selected from the SDSS. Assuming the recent measurements of its circular velocity results in the Milky Way being offset by ∼2 from the fundamental scaling relations. On the basis of their location in the (MK, Rd, Vflat) volume, the fraction of SDSS spirals like the MilkyWay is only 1.2% in sharp contrast with M31, which appears to be quite typical. Comparison of the Milky Way with M31 and with other spirals is also discussed to investigate whether or not there is a fundamental discrepancy between their mass assembly histories. Possibly the Milky Way is one of the very few local galaxies that could be a direct descendant of very distant, z = 2-3 galaxies, thanks to its quiescent history since thick disk formation.
Treating non proportional damping by means of Taylor polynomial approximations

In order to simplify the resolution of the equation of motion, structural damping is generally supposed to be proportional. Indeed, this coarse and unjustified hypothesis leads to uncoupled equations of motion in the modal basis. The aerodynamic and concentrated dampings (dash-pots) are accurately characterized by mathematical laws. These are such that the equations of motion are no longer uncoupled in the modal basis. After presenting the usual ways to solve coupled system of equations, the paper focuses on a method based on Taylor series expansions which allows to partially account for the coupling. After developing the equations related to this method, some examples of application are provided.
The Persistence of Underdevelopment: Institutions, Human Capital or Constituencies

Why is underdevelopment so persistent? One explanation is that poor countries do not have institutions that can support growth. Because institutions (both good and bad) are persistent, underdevelopment is persistent. An alternative view is that underdevelopment comes from poor education. Neither explanation is fully satisfactory, the first because it does not explain why poor economic institutions persist even in fairly democratic but poor societies, and the second because it does not explain why poor education is so persistent. This paper tries to reconcile these two views by arguing that the underlying cause of underdevelopment is the initial distribution of factor endowments. Under certain circumstances, this leads to self-interested constituencies that, in equilibrium, perpetuate the status quo. In other words, poor education policy might well be the proximate cause of underdevelopment, but the deeper (and more long lasting cause) are the initial conditions (like the initial distribution of education) that determine political constituencies, their power, and their incentives. Though the initial conditions may well be a legacy of the colonial past, and may well create a perverse political equilibrium of stagnation, persistence does not require the presence of coercive political institutions. We present some suggestive empirical evidence. On the one hand, such an analysis offers hope that the destiny of societies is not preordained by the institutions they inherited through historical accident. On the other hand, it suggests we need to understand better how to alter factor endowments when societies may not have the internal will to do so.
Tubulocystic Carcinoma of the Kidney With Multiple Focal Clear Cell Characteristics in a Young Male: A Case Report

Tubulocystic carcinoma of the kidney is a rare entity, which are with about 100 cases of these tumors of the kidney all over the world. We have reported a case, of a 43-year-old man who presented with a lump in the right kidney on image examination without other complaints. Final pathologic diagnosis was tubulocystic carcinoma of the kidney with multiple focal clear cells. Six months after the procedure, the patient remained free of disease. This case showed an indolent manner a low-grade malignancy with favorable prognosis in a short-time follow-up.
Federal Impaired Driving Policy: Moving Beyond Half Measures

Des millions de Canadiens continuent de conduire après avoir consommé de l’alcool, en partie parce qu’ils peuvent le faire sans craindre de se faire arrêter, accuser, et reconnaître coupables. Les amendements du fédéral à la loi réprimant la conduite avec facultés affaiblies des quinze dernières années ont surtout porté sur les pénalités, les questions précises en matière de poursuites, et les failles de longue date. Toutefois, les progrès importants exigent de passer de ces lois soi-disant « sévères » à des lois efficaces (celles qui permettront de réduire de façon marquée la conduite avec facultés affaiblies). En réponse à des problèmes similaires où la conduite avec facultés affaiblies persiste, bon nombre de pays développés ont promulgué pour la conduite à la fois une limite criminelle de 0,05 pour cent d’alcool dans le sang et un alcootest obligatoire, ce qui a permis de réduire considérablement les décès lors des accidents d’automobile. Le présent article examine ces deux mesures dans le contexte du dossier canadien de conduite avec facultés affaiblies et de la loi fédérale actuelle.
Endogenous Flexibility in the Flexible Manufacturing System

type="main"> We investigate the flexible manufacturing system (FMS) by using the spatial price discrimination framework of Pal. The degree of flexibility when producing variants can be increased by increasing the investment or production cost and is endogenously determined. Our result is that private incentives for increasing flexibility are excessive from a social welfare perspective.
Bromeliads as biodiversity amplifiers and habitat segregation of spider communities in a Neotropical rainforest

Abstract Although bromeliads can be important in the organization of invertebrate communities in Neotropical forests, few studies support this assumption. Bromeliads possess a three-dimensional architecture and rosette grouped leaves that provide associated animals with a good place for foraging, reproduction and egg laying, as well as shelter against desiccation and natural enemies. We collected spiders from an area of the Atlantic Rainforest, southeastern Brazil, through manual inspection in bromeliads, beating trays in herbaceous+shrubby vegetation and pitfall traps in the soil, to test if: 1) species subsets that make up the Neotropical forest spider community are compartmentalized into different habitat types (i.e., bromeliads, vegetation and ground), and 2) bromeliads are important elements that structure spider communities because they generate different patterns of abundance distributions and species composition, and thus amplify spider beta diversity. Subsets of spider species were compartmentalized into three habitat types. The presence of bromeliads represented 41% of the increase in total spider richness, and contributed most to explaining the high beta diversity values among habitats. Patterns of abundance distribution of the spider community differed among habitats. These results indicate that bromeliads are key elements in structuring the spider community and highlight the importance of Bromeliaceae as biodiversity amplifiers in Neotropical ecosystems.
North Atlantic and North Sea Climate Change: curl up, shut down, NAO and Ocean Colour

The strength of the North Atlantic Current (NAC) (based on sea-surface elevation slopes derived from altimeter data) is correlated with westerly winds (based on North Atlantic Oscillation [NAO] Index data over a nine year period [1992–2002] with 108 monthly values). The data time window includes the major change in climate forcing over the last 100 years (1995 to 1996). It is shown that the NAO Index can be used for early warning of system failure for the NAC. The correlation response or early warning time scale for western Europe and south England is six months. The decay scale for the NAC and Subtropical Gyre circulation is estimated as three years. Longer period altimeter elevation/circulation changes are discussed. The sea-surface temperature (SST) response of the North Sea to negative and positive NAO conditions is examined. The overall temperature response for the central North Sea to NAO index forcing, reflecting wind induced inflow, shelf circulation and local climate forcing, is ∼5 months. In years with strong North Atlantic winter wind induced inflow, under marked NAO positive conditions, mean temperatures (∼10.5°C) are about 1°C warmer than under negative conditions. In 1996 under extreme negative winter NAO conditions, the North Sea circulation stopped, conditions near the Dogger Bank became more continentally influenced and the winter (March) temperature fell to 3.1°C whereas in 1995 under NAO positive winter conditions the minimum temperature was 6.4°C (February). Seasonal advance of North Atlantic and North Sea temperature is derived in relation to temperature change. Temperature change and monthly NAO Index are discussed with respect to phytoplankton blooms, chlorophyll-a measurements, ocean colour data and the anomalous north-eastern Atlantic 2002 spring/summer bloom SeaWiFS chlorophyll concentrations.
Comparison of Fractal and Rosetta Approaches for Estimation of Soil Water Retention Curve

The van Genuchten (vG) function is often used to describe the soil water retention curve (SWRC) of unsaturated soils. The objective of this study was to evaluate a method to determine the vG model parameters m and α of 100 soil samples of Guilan province from the fractal dimension of SWRC. Also, we used two models introduced by Lenhard et al and vG for estimating m from pore size distribution index of Brooks and Corey (BC) model. In both of the mentioned methods, the relationship between pore size distribution index of BC and SWRC fractal dimension was used. Also, vG parameters using Rosetta software were estimated and then, the amounts of vG parameters from the Rosetta, fractal method and RETC were compared. Results showed that Rosetta software had a better estimation of vG parameters than the Rosetta. The estimated vG model parameters m and α obtained with the above-mentioned different methods, in conjunction with measured saturated water contents, were used to estimate water contents at different matric potentials and compared with determined values by RETC via fitting of vG model on the measured values. The estimated SWRC data via fractal method were compared with those obtained with the Rosetta model. Results showed that fractal method had more accurate performance for prediction of SWRC than the Rosetta. Even though, the Rosetta software could lead to better estimates of the vG model parameters than the fractal approach, it was not capable of predicting SWRC as accurately as the fractal approach. This is due to the fact that estimation of the water content is a result of an interaction between the estimated vG model parameters, α and m.
The first data from the Orion laser: measurements of the spectrum of hot dense aluminium

The newly commissioned Orion laser system has been used to study dense plasmas created by a combination of short pulse laser heating and compression by laser driven shocks. Thus the plasma density was systematically varied between 1 and 10g/cc by using aluminium samples buried in plastic foils or diamond sheets. The aluminium was heated to electron temperatures between 500eV and 700eV allowing the plasma conditions to be diagnosed by K- shell emission spectroscopy. The K-shell spectra show the effect of the ionization potential depression as a function of density via the delocalization of n=3 levels and disappearance of n=3 transitions in He-like and H-like aluminium. The data are compared to simulated spectra, which account for the change in the ionization potential by the commonly used Stewart and Pyatt prescription; a simple ion sphere model and an alternative due to Ecker and Kroll suggested by recent X-ray free-electron laser experiments. The experimental data are in reasonable agreement with the model of Stewart and Pyatt, but are in better agreement with a simple ion sphere model. The data indicate that the Ecker and Kröll model overestimates substantially the ionization potential depression in this regime.
Implicit and explicit cognitions in problematic online game use

Playing online games is very popular in recent years. The popularity of video games is accompanied by social concerns regarding excessive video game use, sometimes hyperbolically called “video game addiction” Not only the time they devoted to this, but primarily negative effects of gaming cause problems. Until today The American Psychological Association (APA) did not classify “game addiction” as a psychological disorder. A growing number of researchers consider problematic game use to be a behavioral addiction similar to pathological gambling. In addiction different cognitions play a role. The research in this bachelor thesis focuses on whether implicit and explicit cognitions play a role in excessive video game use. We have the implicit cognitions measured with an implicit association test and compared with explicit cognitions measured through research scales that focus on explicit cognitions. The result shows that there’s no significant correlation between implicit cognitions and subscales of the problematic online game use scale. In our model the addition of implicit cognitions to explicit cognitions does not contribute to a significant increase of the amount of variance of the dependent variable explained by the independent variables. Explanations may be an insufficient amount of extreme gamers and the sample size was relatively small. Setting up a research Implicit Association Test is not easy and stimuli for the IAT should be carefully chosen. Additional research is needed to investigate whether implicit cognitions play a role in problematic online game use.
Applying Computational Scoring Functions to Assess Biomolecular Interactions in Food Science: Applications to the Estrogen Receptors

During the last decade, computational methods, which were for the most part developed to study protein-ligand interactions and especially to discover, design and develop drugs by and for medicinal chemists, have been successfully applied in a variety of food science applications [1,2]. It is now clear, in fact, that drugs and nutritional molecules behave in the same way when binding to a macromolecular target or receptor, and that many of the approaches used so extensively in medicinal chemistry can be easily transferred to the fields of food science. For instance, nuclear receptors are common targets for a number of drug molecules and could be, in the same way, affected by the interaction with food or food-like molecules. Thus, key computational medicinal chemistry methods like molecular dynamics can be used to decipher protein flexibility and to obtain stable models for docking and scoring in food-related studies, and virtual screening is increasingly being applied to identify molecules with potential to act as endocrine disruptors, food mycotoxins, and new nutraceuticals [3,4,5]. All of these methods and simulations are based on protein-ligand interaction phenomena, and represent the basis for any subsequent modification of the targeted receptor's or enzyme's physiological activity. We describe here the energetics of binding of biological complexes, providing a survey of the most common and successful algorithms used in evaluating these energetics, and we report case studies in which computational techniques have been applied to food science issues. In particular, we explore a handful of studies involving the estrogen receptors for which we have a long-term interest.
The Interest Rate Sensitivity of Value and Growth Stocks - Evidence from Listed Real Estate

This paper analyzes the return sensitivity of value and growth stocks to changes of five interest rate proxies. The analysis is based on monthly data over the 2000 to 2014 period for a global sample of 487 listed real estate companies in 24 countries. This rich setting offers substantial heterogeneity in interest rates across time and countries. We find that value stocks are more sensitive to changes in the short-term rate than growth stocks. This is consistent with the theory that investors with a short investment horizon trade-off the high initial yield of value stocks against a lower risk short-term rate. In contrast, growth stocks are more sensitive to changes in the long-term rate, which is consistent with the future cash flows of growth stocks being discounted at a higher rate. We also find that value stocks are more sensitive to changes in the credit yield. Since credit costs have a direct impact on a firm’s cost of capital, this result is consistent with risk-based theories of the value premium, which argue that value stocks are riskier, because they tend to have higher leverage and a larger default probability.
Applying the Tripartite Model to the Link between Non-Suicidal Self-Injury and Suicidal Risk

Objectives: The current study applies and expands the Tripartite Model of Anxiety and Depression to elaborate the link between non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicidal behavior. We propose a structural model of NSSI and suicidal risk, in which negative affect (NA) predicts both anxiety and depression, low positive affect (PA) predicts depression only, anxiety is linked to NSSI, and depression is linked to suicidal risk. Method: Four hundreds and eighty seven undergraduates participated. Data were collected by administering self-report questionnaires including the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, the Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory, the Scale of Suicidal Risk, and the Symptom Checklist-90-R. We performed hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling to test the proposed structural model. Results: The results largely support the proposed structural model, with one exception: anxiety was strongly associated with NSSI and to a lesser extent with suicidal risk. The conclusions of this study are as follows: The co-occurrence of NSSI and suicidal risk is due to NA and anxiety, and suicidal risk can be differentiated by the presence depression and low PA. That is, in this model, there are two pathways. First, NA predicts anxiety and depression, and predicts NSSI and suicidal risk through the mediation of anxiety. NA also predicts suicidal risk through the mediation of depression. Second, low PA predicts depression and also predicts suicidal risk through the mediation of depression. Further theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
Sea-surface temperature and dynamic height distributions in the central tropical south-atlantic ocean

RÉSUMÉ R. L. Molinari * National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Atlantic Oceanographie and MeteorologicalLaboratories, 4301 Rickenbacker Causeway, Miami, Florida 33149, U.S.A. * Prepared while visiting scientist at: Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Laboratoire d'Océanographie Physique, Laboratoire associé au CNRS no 175, 43-45, rue Cuvier, 75231 Paris Cedex 05, France. Received 29/3/82, in revised form 117/82, accepted 27/7/82. Dynamic height and temperature observations collected during four cruises to the central tropical South Atlantic Ocean are presented. The dynamic topographies of the sea-surface along sections extending from 1 oN to 9°S during two different austral summer and two different austral winter cruises are similar to topographies given earlier. They support the contention of Katz (1981) that the dynamic relief of the sea-surface in the Atlantic varies in phase with changes in the surface wind stress fteld. Synoptic and climatological sea-surface temperature (SST) distributions during early austral winter (June-July) are more symmetric with respect to the equator than SST distributions later in austral winter (August-September). Comparison of the observations with results from various numerical modelling efforts suggests that the early winter pattern may represent an ocean response to an increase in zonal winds, while the late winter pattern may include an additional response to an increase of meridional winds. Oceanol. Acta, 1983, 6, 1, 29-34. Répartitions de la température de surface et de la hauteur dynamique au centre de l'Océan tropical Atlantique Sud. Des observations de hauteur dynamique et de température ont été effectuées au cours de quatre campagnes au centre de la partie tropicale de l'Océan Atlantique Sud. Pendant deux étés et deux hivers de l'hémisphère austral, la topographie dynamique de la surface le long de sections méridiennes, entre 1 oN et 9°S, est semblable aux topographies observées précédemment, ce qui conftrme le résultat de Katz (1981), selon lequel les variations annuelles du relief dynamique de la surface de l'Atlantique central sont en phase avec celles du champ de tension du vent. Les répartitions synoptiques et climatologiques de la température de surface présentent une symétrie par rapport à l'équateur qui est plus marquée au début de l'hiver austral (juin-juillet) que plus tard dans cette saison (août-septembre). La comparaison des observations avec les résultats de différents modèles numériques suggère qu'au début de l'hiver, l'océan répond à un renforcement des vents zonaux, tandis qu'à la fm de l'hiver, il répond aussi à un renforcement des vents méridiens. Oceanol. Acta, 1983, 6, 1, 29-34. 0399-1784/1983/29/$ 5.00/@ Gauthier-Villars 29