Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Queer but Language: A Sociolinguistic Study of Farsi

In this paper we have tried to settle whether Farsi, a secret code language spoken by the hijras, is a language or not. Hijras are a marginalized community that lives in sequestered groups in many cities of India and Pakistan. The present study, by challenging the assertions of Hall, Nagar and Munawar et al., is based on the assumption that hijras’ Farsi is more than a mere code or mixture, and explores, identifies and describes its nature and status as a language. Using ethnographic research methods, the data for the present study has been collected from the spoken language of hijras settled in D. G. Khan and Rawalpindi, two Pakistani urban areas. By employing Bell’s seven point criteria for language analysis, data for the present study has been analysed. Linguistically, Farsi contains its own vocabulary and shows various syntactical and morphological differences from the other ‘mainstream’ languages. Sociolinguistic analysis shows that Farsi is as good a language as any other. However, the number of its lexical items is small which is perhaps because of its limited and private usage. Key terms: Farsi, hijras, queer, sociolinguistics.
From Motherhood to Sister-Solidarity: Home-making as a Counterdiscourse to Corporate Environmental Polluting

This presentation examines the conjunction between women-homemakers and contaminated spaces, both public and private. Learning for the women was embedded in concerns about motherhood and domesticity. Although the women never expressed their solidarity in terms of sisterhood or feminist language, they functioned as a cohesive group consciously aware of their marginalized status as women. But the "girls solidarity" was not the source of political action, rather it was the context for it. Domesticity and motherhood was a substantially stronger antecedent for action that enabled the women to build the notion that they could challenge power relations, values and beliefs of the dominant culture in the community.
Dictionary compression for a scan-based, main-memory database system

The advent of the No-SQL movement and the emergence of innovative, new database technology over the last years reflect the increasing diversification of workloads and the shortcomings of traditional approaches in supporting them. Compression has been studied extensively on traditional systems, yet little has been done to determine if results from those studies can be reproduced in the context of these new workloads and database technologies. This thesis investigates the benefits of dictionary compression in a novel scan-based, in-memory row-store called Crescando. The findings it makes carry over to comparable systems. It is shown how to integrate dictionary compression transparently into Crescando, without breaking with the strong predictability and scalability guarantees the original system provides. This is achieved by exploiting the advantages of a scan-based architecture in combination with attribute-level compression. For the actual dictionary implementation, a range of data structures for storing string-values are considered, including various forms of hash-tables and tries. Based on these data structures, different dictionary candidates are implemented and evaluated on both real-world and synthetic data sets and workloads. The results recommend the use of a novel data structure developed as part of the thesis: the extendible bidi-map. It performs well under a wide range of workloads, due to its small memory footprint and cache-conscious design. In conclusion, adding dictionary compression to Crescando enables significant space savings for many use cases, as well as performance improvements for certain workloads.
Entrepreneurs’ attitudes towards failure – an experiential learning approach

In this paper we employ theories of experiential learning to examine why some entrepreneurs have developed a more positive attitude towards failures compared to others. The empirical findings support our guiding proposition that more favourable attitudes towards failing can be learned through entrepreneurs' life and work. Our results suggest that previous start up experience is strongly associated with a more positive attitude towards failure. Moreover, we also find that experience from closing down a business is associated with a more positive attitude towards failure. In sum, our findings add to our knowledge of why some entrepreneurs have a more positive attitude towards failures compared to others. It also provides some general implications for our understanding of entrepreneurial learning as an experiential process.
Homogenisation of magneto-elastic behaviour: from the grain to the macro scale

The prediction of the reversible evolution of macroscopic magnetostriction strain and magnetisation in ferromagnetic materials is still an open issue. Progress has been recently made in the description of the magneto-elastic behaviour of single crystals. Herein, we propose to extend this procedure to the prediction of the behaviour of textured soft magnetic polycrystals. This extension implies a magneto-mechanical homogenisation. The model proposed is discussed and the results are compared to experimental data obtained on industrial iron-silicon alloys.
DIGITAL MODEL OF WALLS OF PADUA LOW RELIEF

Photogrammetry has been widely used in the recent years in a number of applications, e.g. cultural heritage, surveying buildings and infrastructures. Despite nowadays its use is quite common, most of the used photogrammetric softwares are commercial. This paper aims at comparing the use of a free Matlab tool that is being developed at the University of Padova mostly for educational purposes with that of a commercial (and widely used) software (Agisoft PhotoScan). Despite the above mentioned free Matlab tool is designed to work for airborne photogrammetric, in this work it is used in a slightly different case: the 3D reconstruction of a low relief of the walls of Padova, which is on the façade of the church Santa Maria del Giglio, Venice, Italy.
Decision-Makino in the Classroom and Early Adoles : ents

ABSTRACT In many upper-elementary school classrooms, students are given few decision-making prerogatives. In junior high school, it becomes increasingly rare for them to receive the decision-making opportunities they believe they should have. Both person-environment fit theory and pawn theory would predict that a failure to provide students with such opportunities in their mathematics classrooms will prompt them to devalue mathematics. This study tests this hypothesis. Students from 12 school districts in the Transitions in Early Adolescence Project in the Detroit area completed questionnaires in the fall and spring of two successive school years. Reported are data from 1,823 students in grade six during 1983-84 and in grade seven the next year. Assessed were student perceptions of actual and ideal decision-making opportunities in mathematics classrooms. Overall a substantial increase in constraints on students' decision-making prerogatives coincides with the transition to junior high school, and there is a steady increase in lack of decision-making across sixth and seventh grades. Students who experienced a lack of decision-making in their mathematics classrooms perceived mathematics to have less intrinsic and utility value than did students who had more decision-making experiences. Twenty-nine references are listed. (MNS)
2 Properties of Bid-Ask Spread

Many economic markets, including most major stock exchanges, employ market-makers to aid in the transactions and provide a better quality market. This Study is aimed to establish an analytical foundation for electronic market making strategy, by giving a probabilistic interpretation to the Bid-Ask spread. The suggested strategy will be optimized with supervised learning from the high frequency data of the TASE (Tel Aviv Stock Exchange) order book. Based on this foundation, we wish to create an automated securities dealer that will perform the task of providing liquidity to the markets efficiently, and with low downturn risk. We compare the expected performance of the automated dealer with several bench mark measures of market liquidity such as those presented in Roll (1984) and Glosten & Milgrom (1985).
ESTIMATION OF BIOACCUMULATION, TRANSLOCATION AND DISTRIBUTION PATTERNS OF CADMIUM AND LEAD IN COMMONLY CONSUMED GREEN LEAFY VEGETABLES IN COLOMBO DISTRICT, SRI LANKA

Green Leafy Vegetables (GLV) are a key component of the Sri Lankan diet. However, GLV are identified as good heavy metal accumulators, which in turns causes potential health risks for consumers through food chain contaminations. The present study aimed to investigate the bioaccumulation, translocation and distribution patterns of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in five key Sri Lankan GLV ["Kankun" (Ipomoea aquatica), “Mukunuwenna (Alternanthera sessilis), “Thampala” (Amaranthus viridis), “Nivithi” (Basella alba) and “Kohila” (Lasia spinosa)] grown in Colombo District, Sri Lanka. The levels of Cd and Pb in different plant parts (roots, stems and leaves) and the soil underneath were determined using the inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and the bioaccumulation and translocation factors of heavy metals from soil to different plants parts (roots, stems, leaves), were calculated to identify the hyper accumulative species. Irrespective of the species and the location, GLV showed the distribution pattern for Cd and Pb as: roots>stems>leaves. In all the analyzed GLV, roots have accumulated significantly higher concentrations (at P 1. Thus, Lasia spinosa has the potential to use in phytoextraction purposes in future, though it is not safe to consume as a day to day food item. Article DOI: https://dx.doi. org/10.20319/mijst.2018. 42.93112 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.
Planning, Anti-planning and the Infrastructure Crisis Facing Metropolitan Lagos

Many of the 'mega cities' of the global South face an escalating crisis in the adequate provision of basic services such as water, housing and mass transit systems. Lagos-the largest city in sub-Saharan Africa-exemplifies many of these challenges but has tended to be viewed within a narrow analytical frame. In this essay, 'exceptionalist' perspectives on the African city are eschewed in favour of an analysis which frames the experience of Lagos within a wider geopolitical arena of economic instability, petro-capitalist development and regional internecine strife. An historical perspective is developed in order to reveal how structural factors operating through both the colonial and post-colonial periods have militated against any effective resolution to the city's worsening infrastructure crisis. It is concluded that a workable conception of the public realm must form an integral element in any tentative steps towards more progressive approaches to urban policy-making in the post-Abacha era and the return to civilian rule.
Overview of grapevine trunk diseases in France in the 2000s

The National Grapevine Trunk Disease Survey was conducted in France from 2003 to 2008 to monitor grapevine trunk diseases (GTDs), eutypa dieback and esca/black dead arm (BDA). Data collected from seven regions, 329 vineyards and 12 cultivars were analysed. There were great variations amongst regions in the incidence of GTDs. For esca/BDA, two groups were distinguished: vineyards in Jura and Charentes had greater incidence (93–95%) than those of Bordeaux, Alsace and Bourgogne (54–82%). Incidence increased in Charentes over the 6-year survey, with the highest values being recorded during the last 2 years. For eutypa dieback, all vineyards of Charentes were affected, with 17 to 25% of vines expressing symptoms; for the other regions, 52 to 80% of vineyards were affected, with incidences below 3%. Cultivars Savagnin and Trousseau in Jura were especially affected by esca/BDA. Instead, Ugni Blanc in Charentes was most affected by eutypa dieback. One cultivar could be significantly more affected in one region than in another. The global health status of the vineyards was also investigated. (i) For four regions, 82% (Jura) to 87% (Alsace) of the grapevines were healthy, but this percentage decreased steadily (67%) in Charentes. (ii) Plants infected by GTDs were 32 and 18% in Jura and Charentes respectively, and only 2.9% in the Bourgogne region. (iii) The unproductive plants, i.e. dead, missing, replanted or restored, represented a significant part of the losses (6.6% in Charentes to 9.9% in Jura). The extension of GTDs is discussed with regard to the abiotic and biotic factors that may favour the diseases.
Seroprevalence of brucellosis in different animal species of Kailali district, Nepal

Introduction: Brucellosis is a contagious disease of livestock with significant economic impact. It is also a zoonotic disease, highly infectious for humans causing a disease called undulant fever or Malta fever. This study was carried out to determine the sero-status of Brucella spp . infection in cattle (cows), buffalo and goat in Kailali district of Far Western Region of Nepal. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Kailali district of Nepal during a period from September, 2012 to January, 2013. A total of 233 animal blood samples (50 Cattle, 67 Buffalo and 116 Goat) were collected and tested for Brucella antibody by plate agglutination test (PAT). Results: The seroprevalence of Brucellosis was 12% (28/233). Thirty two percentage (16/50) of cattle, 13.4% (9/67) of buffaloes, and 2.6% (3/113) goats were sero positive (p 0.05) and was higher in younger cattles and older buffalo and goats (p>0.05). Conclusions: This study showed that brucellosis exists as a potential threat in animals of Kailali district. This could be a potential source of infection to humans. Considering the high economic losses it can impart on livestock sector and the possible human health abnormalities, timely facilitation of awareness generation program and adoption of proper prevention and control strategies are recommended. DOI: http://doi.dx. org/10.3126/ijim.v2i1. 8005 Int J Infect Microbiol 2013;2(1):22-25
Effects of the Porcine LEPR Polymorphism (Hpaii) on Carcass Traits in Large White × Landrace Crossbred Pigs

The aim of the study was to establish the relationship between leptin receptor (LEPR) gene polymorphism and carcass quality traits in pigs (LWxL). The genotypes of LEPR gene were determined in 106 hybrid pigs. The polymorphism of LEPR gene was analyzed by PCR-RFLP method using the Hpa II restriction enzyme. Three genotypes were identified, 45 being animals AA, 42 AB and 19 BB. The back-fat thickness (BFT) was higher and percentage of lean meat (LM) was lower in AA genotype compared to BB genotype (19.05  17.21, 54.53  55.68). The significant effect of back-fat thickness was observed between AA (19.05) to AB (17.46) and BB (17.21) genotypes. Statistically most significant were correlations between BFT (-0.7417) to LM percentage and percentage of thigh in BB genotype. Our results suggest that LEPR gene provide a useful tool to improve carcass/meat quality in pigs.
Diversity of Chinese Indigenous Goat Breeds: A Conservation Perspective - A Review -

In this manuscript, a review of the diversity of Chinese indigenous goat breeds according to data from body stature and appearance, chromosome group, blood proteins, DNA molecular markers (mitochondria DNA, random amplified polymorphic DNA, microsatellite DNA, major histocompatibility complex) has been introduced. All of these provide efficient tools for the diversity analysis of Chinese indigenous goat breeds and are very important for biodiversity conservation, restoration of declining goat breeds, the priority defining in Chinese indigenous goat breeds' protection and the selection of nature preservation zones. Many Chinese indigenous goat breeds with small population size in the isolated mountains or reservoir areas are verging the potential threat of extinction, effectively lost with the rapid destroying of ecological environment. On the other hand, as a result of the introduction of modern commercial goat breeds and shortage of effective conservation, some populations, such as Small-xiang goat and Tibetan goat decrease rapidly in number of sires. In the interests of the long-term future of the goat breeds in China, conservation of goat breeds' genetic resources should be considered urgently and some conservation measures should be adopted. In addition, the continuing development of molecular biology will further enhance conservation of diversity of Chinese indigenous goat breeds.
Willingness-to-Pay in Non-Profit Sports Clubs

In Germany, some sports clubs increasingly encounter financial problems due to decreasing public subsidies. A way to compensate for the decrease is to increase membership fees. Therefore, the aim of this study is to analyze members’ willingness-topay (WTP) for membership fees and to identify determinants of WTP. For this study, active, adult members (n = 10,013) in 21 sports were surveyed. The results show that members paid an average annual membership fee of ? 148 and stated an average WTP of ? 265. The consumer surplus for all sports amounted to ? 113 on average. The results of the regression analysis reveal that WTP is determined significantly by the current membership fee, personal income, level of education, years of participation, and level of performance. The findings of the study suggest that increasing membership fees might be one option for sports clubs experiencing financial problems. Sport-specific differences have to be considered in this regard.
Money Changes Everything: Funding Shocks and Optimal Admissions and Financial Aid Policies in Higher Education.

The paper examines the effect of a shock to university funding on tuition net of financial aid, admissions selectivity, and enrollment levels chosen by an optimizing university. Whereas a positive shock, such as a major donation, results in lower net tuition and greater selectivity with respect to all students, its effect on enrollment may not be uniform. Student categories given little weight in the university’s utility function may be treated as “inferior goods,” that is, their enrollment may be decreased in the face of a positive shock, while other student categories see enrollments increased. Such students are charged net tuition well above their marginal cost of enrollment and play primarily a revenuerather than prestige-generating role for the university. Inferences are drawn from the analytical framework concerning the effect on tuition levels of an increase in federal direct-to-student aid, permitting a new perspective on evidence relating to the Bennett hypothesis.
Are Social Media Challenging Politics? Interaction in Catalan Parties' Facebook Pages and among Catalan MPs' Twitter Accounts

Aquesta dissertacio es centra en trobar plausibles i refutables explicacions a les interaccions dels partits catalans i els seus representants a Facebook i a Twitter. Intenta donar resposta a una pregunta clara i simple: estan les xarxes socials desafiant la Politica? La dissertacio vol donar resposta a aquesta pregunta mitjancant l'us de metodes estadistics i d'analisi de xarxes. La tesis mostra que les interaccions dels partits i dels seus representants a les xarxes socials depenen de factors contextuals, organitzatius, ideologics, electorals i de xarxa. A mes a mes, els resultats de la dissertacio apunten que les xarxes socials estan obrint una nova arena politica en la que apareixent nous liders d'opinio que competeixen amb els liders dels partits politics. En definitiva, aquesta tesis corrobora que les xarxes socials estan desafiant la Politica al obrir una nova arena politica en xarxa en la que els partits politics i els seus representants maniobren per garantir la seva supervivencia politica.
Overview of Turkey Semen Storage: Focus on Cryopreservation – A Review

Abstract This review updates the current state of technologies available for turkey semen storage (hypothermic- liquid storage and cryopreservation), with special attention paid to cryopreservation. Liquid semen can be stored for up to 24 or 48 h at temperatures around 5°C, while cryopreservation allows long-term storage at -196°C. The possibility of using frozen turkey semen for artificial insemination (AI) would have practical benefits for turkey production. Reported fertility rates in response to AI using frozen/thawed semen range from 15.8 to 84.3%. Unsatisfactory fertility may be attributed to an inability of turkey spermatozoa to successfully survive the freezing/thawing process, and this, along with the high variability observed, makes this technique unacceptable for commercial breeding programs. There is therefore a need to standardize the whole freezing and thawing process to improve the post-thaw quality of turkey semen and minimize variability in results. Finding an efficient freezing protocol for turkey semen will allow for the creation of a sperm cryobank, improving current prospects for the commercial use of frozen turkey semen and also for the long-term conservation of the genetic diversity of this bird.
A COMPACT ULTRA-WIDE BAND MICROSTRIP SLOTTED ANTENNA WITH DUAL BAND NOTCHED

This paper presents a design of a compact and simp le ultra-wide band planar antenna with dual band notched. The antenna consists of a microstrip-fed line and two rectangular slots in the ground plane. The design produces a wide band operation with return loss less than -10dB in the f requency range of 2 to 9.5 GHz. By using a rectangular patch in conjunction wi th a U patch and etching a U-shaped slot in the feed line, the band of the ant enna is increased with two notched bands of central frequencies at 3.5GHz and 5.5 GHz. Defected ground plane and an open shunt stub are proposed to improve the impedance bandwidth of the presented antenna. Parametric stud ies of antenna elements are presented. The proposed antenna is fabricated. The measured data show very good agreement with the simulated results.