Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Is the Standardization of Compulsory Education School Helpful to Improve Students’ Performance? An Empirical Analysis Based on Monitoring Data in Province A

The standardization of compulsory education schools is an essential measure to promote education balance and improve education quality. However, when the implementation effect of this policy was evaluated, the improvement of input factors such as facilities and equipments, teaching faculty and funding were only focused on, but with less attention was paid to the impact of the standardization on students’ academic performance. This kind of imbalance makes it difficult to fully grasp the real effects of standardization and its potential problems, which may lead to deviations in the direction of standardization construction. Therefore, this study used the monitoring data in province A that includes the standardized construction of compulsory education schools and academic quality of students to analyze the correlation between standardization construction and student performance through Ordinary Least Square (OLS). Further, a Regression Discontinuity Design (RDD) was used to analyze whether standardization construction is the cause of differences in student performance. The results showed that there was no significant correlation between standardization construction and elementary school students’ performance, and negative correlation with middle school students’ performance; no substential causal relationship exists between standardization construction and student performance. This is majorly due to the emphasis on the conditions of school-running was set too much, and then the student performance was neglected. Therefore, future evaluation should be gradually changed while deepening the standardization construction with more attention paid to the connotative development and efforts made to the improvement of the education quality. Liu et al. Standardization of Compulsory Education School and Students’ Performance. Vol.5, No.1, 2020 592 Best Evid Chin Edu 2020; 5(1):591-608. Doi: 10.15354/bece.20. ar039.
Determinants socio-economiques et environnementaux du respect des Recommandations en fertilisation minerale de quelques legumes feuilles traditionnels au Benin

L’etude a ete conduite au Nord et au Centre du Benin aupres de 130 maraichers produisant essentiellement des legumes feuilles traditionnels (LFTs). L’objectif est d’identifier les determinants du respect des doses recommandees en fertilisation minerale en production maraichere. Lesdonnees collectees sont relatives aux caracteristiques socioeconomiques du producteur (sexe, appartenance a une association, source de revenu, l’utilisation de semences ameliorees, la pratique de la fertilisation organique) et les facteurs lies a l’environnement dans lequel le producteur opere (acces au micro-credit, le contact avec les services techniques de vulgarisation agricole, la pression conciere et la distance entre la source d’approvisionnement en engrais mineraux et l’exploitation du producteur). Une regression logistique a permis d’analyser les donnees. Il ressort que le contact frequent avec les services de vulgarisation et l’inexistence de pression fonciere predisposent le producteur a respecter les recommandations en fertilisation minerale. Par contre, la facilite d’approvisionnement en engrais mineraux dans le circuit formel subventionne et l’utilisation des semences ameliorees les predispose a ne pas respecter les recommandations. Ces resultats montrent les limites des subventions pour les engrais mineraux et leur utilisation par les agriculteurs. Mots cles : Benin, fertilisation minerale, innovations agricoles, legumes feuilles traditionnels English Title: Socio-economic and environmental determinants of inorganic fertilization of indigenous leafy vegetables production in Benin This study was conducted in northern and central Benin with 130 farms where indigenous leafy vegetables (ILVs) are the main crops. The aim was to identify the determinants of the respect of the recommended doses in mineral fertilization in ILVs cultivation. Data used are related to socioeconomic characteristics of producer (sex, membership, sources of income, use of improved seeds, organic fertilization) and environmental factors (access to credit, contact with extension services, land pressure and fertilizers’ source). Logistic regression was performed for data analysis. It appeared that frequent contact with extension services and lack of land pressure predispose the producer to respect the recommendations. On the other hand, the supply of mineral fertilizers in the subsidized formal circuit and the use of improved seeds predisposes them to not respect the recommendations. These results raise the limits of input subsidies, especially mineral fertilizers on their use by farmers. Keywords: Benin, mineral fertilization, agricultural innovations, indigenous leafy vegetables
Colour patterns and body postures related to prey capture in Sepiola affinis (Mollusca: Cephalopoda)

During prey capture, S. affinis exhibits a great variety of colour patterns, with rapid colour changes occurring especially during ejection of the tentacles. During prey ingestion, many different patterns are observed, though some occur very rarely. Ontogenetic changes of colour patterning occur between early juveniles and adult stages. Distinctive body postures appear particularly frequently in juvenile animals when disturbed. Both colour patterns and body postures appear as short‐lasting (acute) or long‐lasting (chronic) expressions, but only colour patterns may appear flash‐like (fractions of a second). Functional aspects of patterning are discussed.
Review and synthesis of experimental data on organic matter decomposition with respect to the effect of temperature, moisture, and acidity

A review and synthesis of experimental decomposition data was performed with the objective of finding parameter values for a decomposition model. Experimental data were retrieved from the literature and included data on mass loss rates, nitrogen mineralization rates, carbon dioxide evolution rates, and growth rates of bacteria and fungi. Environmental variables included in the synthesis were air temperature, soil moisture, and soil acidity (concentration of H+ and Al3+ in soil solution). The variables were assumed to act as separate, multiplicative rate regulating factors on soil microbial processes. The model outline includes four organic matter pools: (i) easily decomposable compounds, (ii) holocellulose, (iii) lignin, and (iv) resistant compounds. It was assumed that the decomposition of the easily decomposable substances can be modeled as the growth rate of bacteria, while the decomposition of lignin and resistant compounds can be modeled as the growth rate of fungi. The decomposition of the substance.
Applying Differential Neural Networks to Characterize Microbial Interactions in an Ex Vivo Gastrointestinal Gut Simulator

The structure of mixed microbial cultures—such as the human gut microbiota—is influenced by a complex interplay of interactions among its community members. The objective of this study was to propose a strategy to characterize microbial interactions between particular members of the community occurring in a simulator of the human gastrointestinal tract used as the experimental system. Four runs were carried out separately in the simulator: two of them were fed with a normal diet (control system), and two more had the same diet supplemented with agave fructans (fructan-supplemented system). The growth kinetics of Lactobacillus spp. , Bifidobacterium spp. , Salmonella spp. , and Clostridium spp. were assessed in the different colon sections of the simulator for a nine-day period. The time series of microbial concentrations were used to estimate specific growth rates and pair-wise interaction coefficients as considered by the generalized Lotka-Volterra (gLV) model. A differential neural network (DNN) composed of a time-adaptive set of differential equations was applied for the nonparametric identification of the mixed microbial culture, and an optimization technique was used to determine the interaction parameters, considering the DNN identification results and the structure of the gLV model. The assessment of the fructan-supplemented system showed that microbial interactions changed significantly after prebiotics administration, demonstrating their modulating effect on microbial interactions. The strategy proposed here was applied satisfactorily to gain quantitative and qualitative knowledge of a broad spectrum of microbial interactions in the gut community, as described by the gLV model. In the future, it may be utilized to study microbial interactions within mixed cultures using other experimental approaches and other mathematical models (e.g., metabolic models), which will yield crucial information for optimizing mixed microbial cultures to perform certain processes—such as environmental bioremediation or modulation of gut microbiota—and to predict their dynamics.
Morphological and phylogenetic comparisons of Neodenticula seminae (Bacillariophyta) populations between the subarctic Pacific and the Gulf of St. Lawrence

Neodenticula seminae is a very important member of modern diatom assemblages in the Bering Sea and at middle to high latitudes of the North Pacific. In the North Atlantic, this species was considered extinct until it was recorded in high abundance in the 2001 spring phytoplankton bloom of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Eastern Canada. Here, we discuss some of the most distinctive features of its morphology, including variation in some characters between the subarctic Pacific and the Gulf of St. Lawrence specimens. Most importantly, we observed that the deck and basal ridges, and the solid-walled costae (formerly known as primary pseudosepta) characteristic of N. seminae were present in the subarctic Pacific material, but were absent or vestigial in the Gulf of St. Lawrence material and in cultures from both regions. This morphological variation was most likely due to differences in physico–chemical water properties between the subarctic Pacific and the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Phylogenetic analyses of the internal transcribed spacer regions of the nuclear ribosomal DNA showed that the strains of N. seminae collected in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the subarctic Pacific clustered in two sister clades, but differed from each other only slightly more than the variation among the subarctic Pacific strains. These results confirmed the reappearance of N. seminae in the NW Atlantic after an absence of ∼0.8 Ma. In addition, the phylogenetic analyses based on the large subunit of the nuclear ribosomal DNA positioned N. seminae firmly within the Bacillariaceae (i.e. diatoms with a fibulate raphe system) and proved a close relationship to species of Fragilariopsis.
A COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF AGE DETERMINATION IN THE SHARPTOOTH CATFISH CLARIAS GARIEPINUS

SUMMARY Growth of the sharptooth catfish Clarias gariepinus from four southern African impoundments was estimated by back-calculating age from vertebrae and spines. Length frequency analysis supported the growth estimates derived from vertebrae but not those from spines. - Spines under-estimated the age of fish from all four dams; this discrepancy increased with age. Ring formation occurred in the winter months (April to July) and not at the time of spawning (November to February) or low water levels (August to December). A critical review of ageing studies shows a lack of consistency in the choice of formula used for back-calculation. The correct choice of formula for age and growth estimates derived from back-calculation must be based upon detailed analysis of fish size versus body part size. Unquestioning acceptance of the Lee equation with its “correction factor” should he avoided.
The Ecology of the Tamar Estuary V. Under-Water Illumination. Revision of Data for Red Light

New values for the extinction coefficient of red light in distilled water require that published results for this coefficient in waters from the Tamar Estuary shall be increased by o.1, 1.3 and 2.0 at 610, 720 and 750 mμ respectively. Earlier deductions as to the favourable transmission of red light in turbid estuarine waters apply only up to about 680 mμ. That part of the extinction coefficient due to suspensoids and colouring matter was inversely proportional to the first power of the wave-length. Other conclusions remain unaffected.
Effect of water stress on growth, water use efficiency and gas exchange as related to osmotic adjustment of two halophytes Atriplex spp.

Atriplex halimus L. is known in the Mediterranean basin and along the coastal areas of Sardinia for its adaptability to salinity, although less information is available on the resistance of this species to water stress in absence of salinity. The effect of water stress on growth and water utilisation was investigated in two Atriplex species: A. halimus originating of south Sardinian island and the exotic species Atriplex nummularia Lindl. , originating in Australia and widely used in land restoration of arid areas. Water stress was applied to young plants growing in 20L pots with a sufficient water reserve to store a potentially sufficient water reserve to maintain substrate near to field capacity (30%) between irrigations. Watering was at 70% (control) or 40% (stress) of field capacity. In order to simulate the grazing by livestock, four plant biomass cuttings were conducted at times T0, T1, T2 and T3, corresponding to one cutting at the end of well watered phase (T0) before water stress induction, two cuttings after cycles of 5 weeks each during full summer (T1) and late summer (T2) and one cutting during autumn (T3). All plants remained alive until the end of treatment although growth was strongly reduced. Leaf dry weight (DW) and water use efficiency (WUE) were determined for all cuttings; relative water content (RWC), turgid weight:dry weight ratio (TW:DW), water potential (Ψw), osmotic potential (Ψs), CO2 assimilation, osmotic adjustment (OA), abscisic acid (ABA) and sugar accumulation were determined for the late summer cutting at T2. Water stress induced a decrease in DW, RWC, Ψw, Ψs, TW:DW and CO2 assimilation for both species, but an increase in WUE expressed in terms of dry matter production and a high accumulation of ABA and total sugars mainly for A. halimus. This suggests a more developed adaptive mechanism in this selection. Indeed, the clone was selected from the southern part of the island, where natural populations of saltbush are more exposed to abiotic stresses, mainly the water stress generated not by salinity. A. nummularia showed a greater OA and a positive net solute accumulation as than A. halimus, suggesting that water stress resistance in A. halimus is linked to a higher WUE rather than a greater osmotic adjustment.
Biology of Uterine Myomas and Myometrium In Vitro

Uterine leiomyomas are a major public health problem for women of reproductive age. For many years, uterine leiomyomas have been the most common indication for hysterectomy. Despite their major impact on women's health, current knowledge of the pathobiology of these common smooth muscle tumors remains limited. Uterine leiomyomas are thought to be monoclonal tumors derived from a single myometrial cell. However, the factors involved in their initiation and growth remain poorly understood. The two major goals within the rapidly evolving field of myoma biology are: (1) to identify the factors involved in the neoplastic transformation of uterine smooth muscle, and (2) to identify the factors involved in the regulation of myoma growth. This article will review current understanding of the factors involved in the development and growth of uterine leiomyomas. This will include an examination of the potential roles of sex steroids, protein hormones, growth factors, chromosomal rearrangements, and the extracellular matrix. As background, the in vitro and animal models studied within the field of myoma biology will be discussed.
Isolation and characterization of microsatellites in the woody shrub, Calothamnus quadrifidus (Myrtaceae)

Microsatellite loci were developed for genetic analysis of the bird pollinated woody shrub Calothamnus quadrifidus. A genomic library was constructed and screened with dinucleotide and trinucleotide repeat sequences. Ten dinucleotide microsatellite markers were developed, and polymorphism in a population of C. quadrifidus was investigated for six of these markers, which showed an average of 12.7 alleles per locus. Mendelian inheritance of the loci was confirmed through analysis of open pollinated progeny arrays of 10 plants. These loci will be used to study gene flow patterns between isolated populations of this species in southwest Western Australia.
Seasonality of soil water exchange in the soybean growing season in southern Brazil

The processes of water transfer in the soil-plant-atmosphere system are strongly affected by soil use and management. Differences in the dynamics of soil water transfer between no-tillage (NT) and conventional tillage (CT) practices during a soybean (Glycine max) growing season in southern Brazil were assessed in this study. All the water balance components were analyzed during the soybean growing season (2009/2010). Rainfall, runoff, soil water storage and hydro-physical soil properties were analyzed under two tillage systems. The land-atmosphere water vapor exchanges, obtained from eddy covariance stations, were analyzed with regard to the soybean agroecosystem. Characterizations of soil water storage were also formulated in the 2006/2007 and 2008/2009 soybean growing seasons under the NT system. During the periods without rain, the soil water content under NT was greater than under CT. The soil superficial layer, more porous under NT, contributed to less runoff during rainy events. Moreover, under NT conditions the water supply was always high, between 0.2 - 0.5 m. The total evapotranspiration in the soybean agroecosystem growing season was 410.8 mm.
Arctic Surface Properties and Their Impact on Microwave Satellite Water Vapor Column Retrievals

Wintertime Arctic surface emissivities are retrieved from Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) passive microwave measurements at 88.2, 165.5, and 183.31 GHz. Surface emitting layer temperatures are simultaneously retrieved at 183.31 GHz. Random errors in emissivities are estimated to be 2.0%, 2.0%, and 3.5% at 88.2, 165.5, and 183.31 GHz, respectively, and the random errors in surface emitting layer temperatures are 4.3 K. A series of tests on the retrieved products reveal that land and sea ice are Lambertian reflectors and ocean is a specular reflector. The retrieved emissivities show broad agreement with products from published databases, with differences partly due to the uncertainties in surface emitting layer temperatures. The geographical distribution of 165.5/183.31 GHz surface reflectance ratios over land and sea ice, which is important for the retrieval of microwave satellite water vapor column (WVC), is presented. Neglecting the geographical variations leads to random errors in retrieved wintertime Arctic WVCs of approximately 1.8% and 25% in the mid (1.5 – 9 kgm−2) and extended (8 – 15 kgm−2) slant column retrieval regimes, respectively. Choosing specular instead of Lambertian reflection in the surface emissivity retrievals over land and sea ice causes systematic WVC retrieval errors of up to −4.1%.
Effect of intraperitoneal passive implantable transponder (PIT) tags on the growth and survival of juvenile snapper, Pagrus auratus (Bloch and Schneider)

This study examined whether passive implantable transponder (PIT) tags could be used to mark individually juvenile snapper, Pagrus auratus (Bloch and Schneider), without affecting their growth. Fifty juvenile snapper (25 tagged and 25 untagged controls) were placed in each of four 2000–1 tanks. At the start of the experiment the snapper had a mean weight of 59 ± 18g (SD). After 70 days, the mean weight of all fish was 115 ± 31 g (SD) and there was no significant difference between the growth of tagged and untagged fish. Apparent tag loss ranged from 4 to 8%.
Habitat use during post-pre-breeding period in a Rock Sparrow Petronia petronia population

Most studies focusing on Rock Sparrow populations concern their breeding biology. With this study, we aim to investigate the wintering habitat and social behaviour outside the breeding period. In the study area the species is present all year long, and, outside the breeding period, birds frequently gather together on flocks of different size (3-150 individuals), which are larger in the coldest months. The habitat types most used by the species were cereal fields with crops in their first stage of development (17.71% ± 4.72 Standard Deviation) and arable stubbles, both of them with bushes and trees on their boundaries (82.4%), which likely provide shelters from predators. The bird species most frequently associated with Rock Sparrow flocks were Tree Sparrow, Starling and Crested Lark. Holes in the roof tiles of the same abandoned buildings used for breeding were also used as night shelters. The average hours of leaving and returning to the shelters was strictly related to the photoperiod (rs = -0.9405; 0.8810).
A GIS Approach to Analyzing the Spatial Pattern of Baseline Resilience Indicators for Community (BRIC)

We explore the baseline resilience to natural hazards through the Baseline Resilience Indicators for Community (BRIC) in northeastern Taiwan. Based on the specific situation of our study site, we slightly modified the BRIC. Due to the correlation between some of the subcomponents, we apply principal component analysis (PCA) to solve this issue. Therefore, we slightly changed the classification of subcomponents. We aggregated economic resilience, social resilience, and community capital resilience into socioeconomic community resilience. The result of geographically weighted regression (GWR) shows that even though we modified the indicator, the BRIC we built is still valid. Through spatial autocorrelation analysis, it reveals that the urban region in plain areas is the cluster of high resilience areas. On the other hand, almost all the entire mountain areas are the cluster of low resilience areas. The topography is the most important factor to cause this distribution. Plain areas have favorable characteristics to trigger development and create high socioeconomic community resilience. Mountain areas, on the other hand, do not have these advantages. The distribution of institutional and infrastructure subcomponents shows no particular pattern. That is to say, institutional and infrastructure subcomponents do not influence the distribution of BRIC. The difference in socioeconomic community resilience causes the uneven distribution of baseline resilience to natural hazards. Nevertheless, the distribution of institutional and infrastructure resources is also a crucial issue. In our case, although the distribution of institutional and infrastructure follows the “distributive justice” approach and distribution randomly, whether it is an appropriate approach is still under debate.