Search results for: spatial presence

Authors: Muchiri Josephine, Qdero Agnes

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The current study was conducted during the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) period, soon after the lifting of the lockdown measures and schools had just re-opened. It investigated the sociodemographic correlates of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among adolescents (13-18 years) who had undergone domestic violence (DV) in Kajiado County, Kenya. The adolescents were administered a sociodemographic questionnaire to ascertain the forms of domestic violence experienced, and those who met the criteria were assessed for the presence of PTSD using the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ). Overall, 93(90.3%) had experienced domestic violence, and 57(61.3%) had PTSD; where the severity and prevalence of PTSD increased with increased age, and it also increased significantly among those in higher academic levels, indicating that PTSD prevalence was chronic and additionally influenced by increased academic pressure. Social connections seemed to mitigate PTSD prevalence, whereas, regarding the family background, those living with guardians seemed to have more severe PTSD.

Keywords: age, education level, gender, post-traumatic stress disorder

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Authors: Amar Sabih, James Nemes

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The occurrence of internal ductile failure within the Adiabatic Shear Band (ASB) in cold-headed products presents a significant barrier in the fast-expanding cold-heading (CH) industry. The presence of internal ductile failure in cold-headed products may lead to catastrophic fracture under tensile loads despite the ductile nature of the material causing expensive industrial recalls. Therefore, this paper presents a new workability criterion that uses stress instability as an indicator to accurately reveal the locus of initiation of internal ductile failures. The concept of the instability criterion is to use the stress ratio at failure as a weighting function to indicate the initiation of ductile failure inside the ASBs. This paper presents a comprehensive experimental, metallurgical, and finite element simulation study to calculate the material constants used in this criterion.

Keywords: adiabatic sher band, ductile failure, stress instability, workability criterion

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Authors: Narender Banwala

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The study critically evaluates that the politics of foreign aid and its effect on Afghanistan. The study argues that dynamics of foreign aid to Afghanistan are not driven solely by the Afghan political, social, and economic realities but much more by the ephemeral political goals of international donor countries. The objective of this paper is to find out the political reality of foreign aid given to Afghanistan in a post 9/11 era. The study analyses the gap between the donor countries' interests and the Afghan government's priorities in aid coordination and management. The aid given to Afghanistan has been accompanied by the political interests of the major powers and therefore violated the core principles of humanitarianism, i.e., humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence. This research attempts to explain the areas which are of high priority, extremely vulnerable, and have been a neglected part since 2001. The study focuses on how as a result of politicization, foreign aid could not yield the expected results even after prolong presence of international donors in Afghanistan. Methodologically, the study includes both qualitative and quantitative data, which are collected by interviews with government officials and other government documents.

Keywords: Afganistan, aid, politics, security

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Authors: Ahmad Forouzantabar, Mohammad Azadi

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This paper presents sliding mode controller for bilateral teleoperation systems with robotic master and slave under constant communication delays. We extend the passivity-based coordination architecture to enhance position and force tracking in the presence of offset in initial conditions, environmental contacts and unknown parameters such as friction coefficient. To address these difficulties, a nonlinear sliding mode controller is designed to approximate the nonlinear dynamics of master and slave robots and improve both position and force tracking. Using the Lyapunov theory, the boundedness of master- slave tracking errors and the stability of the teleoperation system are also guaranteed. Numerical simulations show that proposed controller position and force tracking performances are superior to that of conventional coordination controller tracking performances.

Keywords: Lyapunov stability, teleoperation system, time delay, sliding mode controller

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Authors: Pholosho M. Kgopa, Phatu W. Mashela

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Due to high incidents of marginal land in Limpopo Province, South Africa, and increasing demand for arable land, small-holder farmers tend to continuously cultivate the same fields and at the same time, applying fertilisers to improve yields for meeting local food security. These practices might have an impact on the distribution of trace and essential elements. Therefore, the objective of this investigation was to assess the distribution of essential elements and trace metals in a continuously cultivated and fertilised field, at the University of Limpopo Experimental Farm. Three fields, 3 ha each were identified as continuously cultivated (CC), moderately cultivated (MC) and virgin fields (VF). Each field was divided into 12 equal grids of 50 m × 50 m for sampling. A soil profile was opened in each grid, where soil samples were collected from 0-20; 20-40 and 40-60; 60-80 and 80-100 cm depths for analysis. Samples were analysed for soil texture, pH, electrical conductivity, organic matter content, selected essential elements (Ca, P and Mg), Na and trace elements (Cu, Fe, Ni, and Zn). Results suggested that most of the variables were vertically different, with high concentrations of the test elements except for magnesium. Soil pH in depth 0-20 cm was high (6.44) in CC when compared to that in VF (5.29), but lower than that of MC (7.84). There were no distinctive vertical trends of the variables, except for Mg, Na, and K which displayed a declining trend at 40-60 cm depth when compared to the 0-20 cm depth. Concentrations of Fe, Cu, Zn, and Ni were generally low which might be due to their indirect relationship with soil pH. Continuous cultivation and fertilisation altered soil chemical properties; which could explain the unproductivity of such fields.

Keywords: over-cultivation, soil chemical properties, vertical distribution, spatial distribution

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Authors: Samaneh Abolli, Mahmood Alimohammadi

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The survey analyzed 71 bottled water brands in Tehran, Iran, examining 10 physicochemical parameters and 16 heavy metals. The water quality index (WQI) approach was used to assess water quality, and methods such as carcinogen risk (CR) and hazard index (HI) were employed to evaluate health risks. The results indicated that the bottled water had good quality overall, but some brands were of poor or very poor quality. The study also revealed significant human health risks, especially for children, due to the presence of minerals and heavy metals in bottled water. Correlation analyses and risk assessments for various substances were conducted, providing valuable insights into the potential health impacts of the analyzed bottled water.

Keywords: bottled wate, rwater quality index, health risk assessment, contamination degree, heavy metal evaluation index

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Authors: Pukhtoon Yar

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Peshawar City is experiencing a rapid spatial urban growth primarily as a result of high rate of urbanization along with economic development. This paper was designed to understand the impacts of urbanization on agriculture land use change by particularly focusing on land use change trajectories from the past (1991-2014). We used Landsat imageries (30 meters) for1991along with Spot images (2.5 meters) for year 2014. . The ground truthing of the satellite data was performed by collecting information from Peshawar Development Authority, revenue department, real estate agents and interviews with the officials of city administration. The temporal satellite images were processed by applying supervised maximum likelihood classification technique in ArcGIS 9.3. The procedure resulted into five main classes of land use i.e. built-up area, farmland, barren land, cultivable-wasteland and water bodies. The analysis revealed that, in Peshawar City the built-up environment has been doubled from 8.1 percent in 1991 to over 18.2 percent in 2014 by predominantly encroaching land producing food. Furthermore, the CA-Markov Model predicted that the area under impervious surfaces would continue to flourish during the next three decades. This rapid increase in built-up area is accredited to the lack of proper land use planning and management, which has caused chaotic urban sprawl with detrimental social and environmental consequences.

Keywords: Urban Expansion, Land use, GIS, Remote Sensing, Markov Model, Peshawar City

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Authors: Julia Desiree Velastegui Caceres, Luis Alejandro Velastegui Caceres, Oswaldo Padilla, Eduardo Kirby, Francisco Guerrero, Theofilos Toulkeridis

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It is fundamental to conserve sites of natural and cultural heritage with any available technique or existing methodology of preservation in order to sustain them for the following generations. We propose a further skill to protect the actual view of such sites, in which with high technology instrumentation we are able to digitally preserve natural and cultural heritages applied in Ecuador. In this project the use of laser technology is presented for three-dimensional models, with high accuracy in a relatively short period of time. In Ecuador so far, there are not any records on the use and processing of data obtained by this new technological trend. The importance of the project is the description of the methodology of the laser scanner system using the Faro Laser Scanner Focus 3D 120, the method for 3D modeling of geospatial data and the development of virtual environments in the areas of Cultural and Natural Heritage. In order to inform users this trend in technology in which three-dimensional models are generated, the use of such tools has been developed to be able to be displayed in all kinds of digitally formats. The results of the obtained 3D models allows to demonstrate that this technology is extremely useful in these areas, but also indicating that each data campaign needs an individual slightly different proceeding starting with the data capture and processing to obtain finally the chosen virtual environments.

Keywords: laser scanner system, 3D model, cultural heritage, natural heritage

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Authors: Luz-Marina Roberts, Ancil Kirk, Aisha Donaldson, Anya Seepaul, Jade Lakhan, Shianna Tikasingh

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Climate change has produced a crisis that particularly threatens small island states in the Caribbean. Developers and climate enthusiasts alike are now forced to find new and sustainable ways of building. Focus on existing buildings is particularly needed in Trinidad and Tobago, like other islands, especially as these countries are vulnerable to climate threats and geographic locations with close proximity to a hurricane. Additionally, since many colonial-era style buildings still exist, the idea that they are energy inefficient is at the forefront of the work of policy-makers. The question that remains is can these buildings be retrofitted to reflect the modern era while considering climate resilience. This paper aims to investigate the energy efficiency of colonial-era buildings in Port of Spain and whether these buildings in Trinidad and Tobago, if found to be energy inefficient, can be more energy efficient and sustainable. This involves collecting surveys from building management in colonial-era buildings and researching literature on colonial architecture in the Caribbean and modern innovations in green building designs. Additionally, the data and experiences from the Town and Country Planning Division in the Ministry of Planning and Development of Trinidad and Tobago will inform the paper. This research will aid in re-envisioning how green infrastructure can be applied to urban environments with older buildings and help inform planning policy as it relates to sustainability and energy efficiency.

Keywords: spatial planning, climate resilience, energy efficiency, sustainable development

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Authors: Benjamin Ankomah-Asare, Richard Adade

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Sea level rise (SLR) poses a significant threat to coastal communities globally. Ghana has over the years implemented protective measures such as the construction of groynes and revetment to serve as barriers to sea waves in major cities and towns to prevent sea erosion and flooding. For vulnerable rural coastal communities, the planned retreat is often proposed; however, relocation costs are often underestimated as losses of future social and cultural value are not always adequately taken into account. Through a mixed-methods approach combining qualitative interviews, surveys, and spatial analysis, the study examined the experiences of coastal rural communities in Ghana and assess the effectiveness of relocation strategies in addressing the socio-economic and environmental challenges posed by sea level rise. The study revealed the devastating consequences of sea level rise on these communities, including increased flooding, erosion, and saltwater intrusion into freshwater sources. Moreover, it highlights the adaptive capacities within these communities and how factors such as infrastructure, economic activities, cultural heritage, and governance structures shape their resilience in the face of environmental change. While relocation can be an effective strategy in reducing the risks associated with sea level rise, the study recommends that proper implementation of this adaptation strategy can be achieved when coupled with community-led planning, participatory decision-making, and targeted support for vulnerable groups.

Keywords: sea level rise, relocation, socio-ecological impacts, rural communities

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Authors: Sumayah Mohammed Asiri A., Aviva Levina B., Elizabeth New C., Peter Lay D.

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Pt compounds have been among the most successful anticancer drugs in the last 40 years, but the development of resistance to them is an increasing problem. Cellular homeostasis of an essential metal, Cu, is known to be involved in Pt resistance, but mechanisms of this process are poorly understood. We used a novel ratiometric Cu(I)-sensitive fluorescent probeInCCu1 dye to detect Cu(I) in the mitochondria. Total Cu and labile Cu pool measured using AAS and InCCu1 dye in A2780 cells and their corresponding resistant cells A2780-cis.R cells treated with Cu and cisplatin. The main difference between both cell lines in the presence and absence of Cu(II) is that resistant cells have lower total Cu content but higher labile Cu levels than cisplatin-sensitive cells. This means that resistant cells can metabolize and export excess Cu more efficiently. Furthermore, InCCu1 has emerged not only as an indicator of labile cellular Cu levels in the mitochondria but as a potentially versatile multi-organelle probe.

Keywords: AAS and ICPMS, A2780 and its resistant cells, ratiometric fluorescent sensors, inCCu1, and total and labile Cu

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Authors: L. Slimani, A. Bousri, A. Hamadouche, H. Ben Hamed

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The aim of this experimental and numerical study is to analyze the effects of acoustic streaming generated by 40 kHz ultrasonic waves on heat transfer in forced convection, with and without 40 PPI aluminum metal foam. Preliminary dynamic and thermal studies were done with COMSOL Multiphase, to see heat transfer enhancement degree by inserting a 40PPI metal foam (10 × 2 × 3 cm) on a heat sink, after having determined experimentally its permeability and Forchheimer's coefficient. The results obtained numerically are in accordance with those obtained experimentally, with an enhancement factor of 205% for a velocity of 0.4 m/s compared to an empty channel. The influence of 40 kHz ultrasound on heat transfer was also tested with and without metallic foam. Results show a remarkable increase in Nusselt number in an empty channel with an enhancement factor of 37,5%, while no influence of ultrasound on heat transfer in metal foam presence.

Keywords: acoustic streaming, enhancing heat transfer, laminar flow, metal foam, ultrasound

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Authors: Luís Felipe da Cunha Mendonça

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Normally, rural roads do not have any type of coating, and when they have any coating, they have a high maintenance cost due to the characteristics of natural materials. The Steel Aggregate has specific technical characteristics, which considerably reduce the maintenance costs of rural roads with the execution of the Primary Coating. For use as a primary coating, it must be mixed with clay due to the physical-chemical properties of the material. The application is mainly in the Primary Coating of rural roads due to the cementitious property in the presence of water, offering greater resistance to wear caused by traffic and consequently a longer useful life of the coating. The Steel Aggregate executed on rural roads has reduced particulate emissions and offers normal traffic in any weather condition, as well as creating sustainability. Contribute to the quality of life of communities through improvements in the conditions of rural and urban unpaved roads. Leading to substantial savings in maintenance. Because the durability, if applied correctly, is about 3 years, but if annual monitoring is carried out, it can be extended for more than 5 years.

Keywords: steel slag, co-product, primary coating, steel aggregate

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Authors: Arezoo Ghadi, Adonis Pishdadian, Ehsan Zahedi, Vahideh Rashedi, Mozhgan Mohammadi

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The presence of antibiotics in milk is one of the problems of dairy production units, especially yogurt and cheese, which leads to a decrease in lactic coagulation. Here, to assess the incubation conditions for the fermentation of milk containing antibiotics, concentrations of 50, 75, 100, and 200 ppb of tetracycline were added to each liter of milk. Inoculation process with starter culture performed at three temperatures of 35°C, 45°C, and 50°C. Afterward, pH, acidity, oxidation-reduction potential, and lactic coagulation of yogurt were evaluated. The results showed the existence of antibiotics in milk affects the quality and physicochemical properties of yogurt. However, antibiotic concentration and change in incubation temperature play a crucial role in the lactic coagulation of yogurt, such that the best lactic coagulation was observed at 50°C and a concentration of 50ppb. Hence, for tetracycline concentrations less than 75ppb, a process temperature of 50°C and incubation time of ~10 h recommend for fermentation of milk containing antibiotics.

Keywords: antibiotics residues, yogurt, fermentation parameters, incubation temperature

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Authors: Zahra Yaghoubi

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One of the initial occurrences that, according to observations of those who have temporarily experienced death, arises is encountering beings or individuals possessing supernatural powers. For some, these beings are described as beautiful and radiant, while for others, they are portrayed as dark and terrifying. In some experiences, they are mentioned as young and beautiful individuals. Islamic religious sources refer to these beings as angels or celestial beings assigned by God to take and collect human souls. This research, conducted through library methods, examines and justifies the initial stage of observations from an Islamic perspective based on first and second-hand religious sources. It relies on evidence, observations, and oral narratives of near-death experiencers, as well as interviews published in television programs. The goal is to investigate Islamic sources and validate the presence of angels in near-death experiences. The use of visual interview reports direct reliance on the narrative rather than the written text by someone other than the experiencer, is among the main criteria for enhancing transparency and authenticity in conveying the individual's experiences.

Keywords: angel, angels of death, Islamic sources, near-death experiences, death, soul

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Authors: R. Harman Dwi, Ryan Avirsa, P. Abraham Ivan

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Understanding of temperatures in the past, present, and future temperatures can be possible to do by analysis abundance of fossil foraminifera. This research was conducted in Sambipitu Formation, Ngalang River, Nglipar, Gunung Kidul Regency. The research method is divided into 3 stages: 1) study of literature, research based on previous researchers, 2) spatial, observation and sampling every 5-10 meters, 3) descriptive, analyzing samples consisting of a 10-gram sample weight, washing sample using 30% peroxide, biostratigraphy analysis, paleotemperature analysis using abundance of fossil, diversity analysis using Simpson diversity index method, and comparing current temperature data. There are two phases based on the appearance of Globorotalia menardii and Pulleniatina obliqueculata pointed to Phase Tropical Area, and the appearance of fossil Globigerinoides ruber and Orbulina universa fossil shows the phase of Subtropical Area. Paleotemperatur based on the appearance of Globorotalia menardii, Globigerinoides trilobus, Globigerinoides ruber, Orbulina universa, and Pulleniatina obliqueculata pointed to Warm Water Area and Warm Water Area (average surface water approximate 25°C).

Keywords: abundance, biostratigraphy, Simpson diversity index method, paleotemperature

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Authors: K. Shahril, A. Nizam, M. Sabri, A. Siti Rohana, H. Salmah

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Chemical modifier (Acrylic Acid) is used as filler treatment to improve mechanical properties and swelling behavior of polypropylene/coconut fiber (PP/CF) composites by creating more adherent bonding between CF filler and PP Matrix. Treated (with chemical modifier) and untreated (without chemical modifier) composites were prepared in the formulation of 10 wt%, 20 wt%, 30 wt%, and 40 wt%. The mechanical testing indicates that composite with 10 wt% of untreated composite has the optimum value of tensile strength, and the composite with chemical modifier shows the tensile strength was increased. By increasing of filler loading, elastic modulus was increased while the elongation at brake was decreased. Meanwhile, the swelling test discerned that the increase of filler loading increased the water absorption of composites and the presence of chemical modifier reduced the equilibrium water absorption percentage.

Keywords: coconut fiber, polypropylene, acid acrylic, ethanol, chemical modifier, composites

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Authors: Dimitris Kokkinos, Panagiotis Prinos

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In the last three decades, climate change has been studied extensively from scientific community, and its consequences are more than clear all around the world. Most countries have carried out a great effort to reduce global warming rates with the ratification and implementation of several international treaties. Moreover, many of them have already adopted national plans in order to adapt to climate change effects and mitigate human and economic losses. Coastal environments, with their inherent physical sensitivity, will face important challenges as a result of projected changes in climate conditions and hundreds of millions of people will be affected. Coastal zones are of high social and economic value and this research focuses on the Mediterranean basin, which is a densely populated and highly urbanized area. With 40% of its land used for human activity and the inevitability of the impacts of the climate change, it is obvious that some form of adaptation measures will be necessary. In this regard, the EU tools, policies and legislation concerning adaptation to climate change are presented. Additionally, the National Adaptation Strategies of State members of the Mediterranean basin are compared and analyzed concerning the coastal areas, along with an overview of projects and programs results focused on coastal issues at different spatial scales. The purpose of this research is to stress the differences between Mediterranean State members at methodologies implemented, to highlight the possible gaps in co-ordination and to emphasize on research initiatives that EU can build upon moving towards an integrated adaptation planning on a region-wide basis.

Keywords: coastal adaptation, Mediterranean Basin, climate change, coastal environments

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Authors: Raymond D. Uzoh, Philip K. Shallsuku, Christopher S. Vaachia

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Selected edible leafy vegetables from North-eastern Nigeria were analysed for their sodium and potassium content in mg/100 g and the ratio Na+/K+ worked out. From experimental results, Venonia amydalina (bitter leaf) contained 150 mg (0.15 g) of sodium and 20500 mg (20.5 g) potassium with a ratio of 0.007, Brassica oleracea var capitata (cabbage) contained 300 mg (0.3 g) of sodium and 19000 mg (19 g) of potassium with a ration of 0.012. Others are Telfairia occidentalis (fluted pumpkin) with 400 mg (0.45 g) of sodium and 19500 mg (19.5 g) of potassium with a ratio of 0.020; Hibiscus sabdriffa (sorrel) has 200 mg (0.2 g) of sodium and 600 mg (0.6 g) of potassium with a ratio of 0.300; and Amarantus caudatus (spinach) contained 450 mg (0.45 g) of sodium and 23000 mg (23 g) of potassium with a ratio of 0.020. The presence of sodium and potassium in foods has become increasingly important as recent studies and dietary information gathered in this research has shown that sodium intake is not the sole consideration in elevated blood pressure but its considered as a ratio Na+/K+ fixed at 0.6. This ratio has been found to be a more important factor, suggesting that our diet should contain 67 % more potassium than sodium.

Keywords: vegetables, sodium, potassium, blood pressure, diet, foods

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Authors: Kumaresh Selvakumar, Man Young Kim

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The presence of a catalyst inside an engine enables complete combustion at lower temperatures which promote desired chemical reactions. The objective of this work is to design and simulate a catalytic combustor by using CHEMKIN with detailed gas and surface chemistries. The simplified approach with single catalyst channel using plug flow reactor (PFR) can be used to predict reasonably well with the effect of various operating parameters such as the inlet temperature, velocity and fuel/air ratios. The numerical results are validated by comparing the surface chemistries in single channel catalytic combustor. The catalytic combustor operates at much lower temperature than the conventional combustor since lean-fuel mixture is used where the complete methane conversion is achieved. The coupling between gas and surface reactions in the catalyst bed is studied by investigating the commencement of flame ignition with respect to the surface site species.

Keywords: catalytic combustion, honeycomb monolith, plug flow reactor, surface reactions

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Authors: Selena Ferrian, Erin Mccaffrey, Toshie Saito, Aiqin Cao, Noah Greenwald, Mark Robert Nicolls, Trevor Bruce, Roham T. Zamanian, Patricia Del Rosario, Marlene Rabinovitch, Michael Angelo

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Recent experimental and clinical observations are advancing immunotherapies to clinical trials in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, comprehensive mapping of the immune landscape in pulmonary arteries (PAs) is necessary to understand how immune cell subsets interact to induce pulmonary vascular pathology. We used multiplexed ion beam imaging by time-of-flight (MIBI-TOF) to interrogate the immune landscape in PAs from idiopathic (IPAH) and hereditary (HPAH) PAH patients. Massive immune infiltration in I/HPAH was observed with intramural infiltration linked to PA occlusive changes. The spatial context of CD11c+DCs expressing SAMHD1, TIM-3 and IDO-1 within immune-enriched microenvironments and neutrophils were associated with greater immune activation in HPAH. Furthermore, CD11c-DC3s (mo-DC-like cells) within a smooth muscle cell (SMC) enriched microenvironment were linked to vessel score, proliferating SMCs, and inflamed endothelial cells. Experimental data in cultured cells reinforced a causal relationship between neutrophils and mo-DCs in mediating pulmonary arterial SMC proliferation. These findings merit consideration in developing effective immunotherapies for PAH.

Keywords: pulmonary arterial hypertension, vascular remodeling, indoleamine 2-3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO-1), neutrophils, monocyte-derived dendritic cells, BMPR2 mutation, interferon gamma (IFN-γ)

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Authors: Ahmed El-Ghorab

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Indigenous foods are promising sources of various chemical bioactive compounds such as vitamins, phenolic compounds and carotenoids. Therefore, the presence o different bioactive compounds in fruits could be used to retard or prevent various diseases such as cardiovascular and cancer. This is an update report on nutritional compositions and health promoting phytochemicals of different indigenous food . This different type of fruits and/ or other sources such as spices, aromatic plants, grains by-products, which containing bioactive compounds might be used as functional foods or for nutraceutical purposes. most common bioactive compounds are vitamin C, polyphenol, β- carotene and lycopene contents. In recent years, there has been a global trend toward the use of natural phytochemical as antioxidants and functional ingredients, which are present in natural resources such as vegetables, fruits, oilseeds and herbs.. Our future trend the Use of Natural antioxidants as a promising alternative to use of synthetic antioxidants and the Production of natural antioxidant on commercial scale to maximize the value addition of indigenous food waste as a good source of bioactive compounds such as antioxidants.

Keywords: bioactive compounds, antioxidants, by-product, indigenous foods, phenolic compounds

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Authors: Valeda Dent

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This study explores reading and library factors related to secondary school student academic outcomes in rural areas in Uganda. This mixed methods study utilized quantitative data collected as part of a more extensive project to explore six student factors in relation to students’ school, library, and home environments. The Kitengesa Community Library in Uganda (www.kitengesalibrary.org) served as the site for this study. The factors explored for this study include reading frequency, library use frequency, library access, overall grade average (OGA), and presence and type of reading materials in the home. Results indicated that both reading frequency and certain types of reading materials read for recreational purposes are correlated with higher OGA. Reading frequency was positively correlated with student OGA for all students.

Keywords: rural village libraries, secondary school students, reading, academic achievement

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Authors: Shahbaz Amin, Sabir Hussain Shah, Sahib Khan

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This paper presents a thorough review concerning the design types of axial flux permanent magnet machines (AFPM) in terms of different features such as construction, design, materials, and manufacturing. Particular emphasis is given on the design and performance analysis of AFPM machines. A comparison among different permanent magnet machines is also provided. First of all, early and modern axial flux machines are mentioned. Secondly, rotor construction of different axial flux machines is described, then different stator constructions are mentioned depending upon the presence of slots and stator back iron. Then according to the arrangement of the rotor stator structure the machines are classified into single, double and multi-stack arrangements. Advantages, disadvantages and applications of each type of rotor and stator are pointed out. Finally on the basis of the reviewed literature merits, demerits, features and application of different axial flux machines structures are explained and clarified. Thus, this paper provides connection between the machines that are currently being used in industry and the developments of AFPM throughout the years.

Keywords: axial flux machines, axial flux applications, coreless machines, PM machines

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Authors: Ali Bagherpour, Masoud Soltanialvar

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Campylobacter species are common bacterial pathogens associated with human gastroenteritis which are generally transmitted through foods of animal origin. This study was carried out to determine the prevalence of Campylobacter species in poultry meat and by products in the city of Dezful in Iran. Since April 2012 to July 2013, a total of 400 samples including meat (n = 100), liver (n = 100), gizzard (n = 100), and poultry heart (n = 100), were randomly collected from Dezful industrial poultry abattoir and were experimented in order to investigate presence of Campylobacter species. According to culture test, 251 samples out of 400 samples under study (69%) were contaminated with Campylobacter species. The highest prevalence of Campylobacter species was observed in poultry's liver (78.3%) and then in gizzard (75.8%), heart (65%) and meat (56.7%). The most common isolated Campylobacter were C. jejuni (90.9%) and the rest were C. coli (9.1%). There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) in the prevalence of Campylobacter species between the meat samples taken in the summer (86.7%). The results of this study indicate the importance of edible offal of poultries as the potential source of Campylobacter infections.

Keywords: Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, poultry, meat, products

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Authors: Aitor Barbero-López, Soumaya Chibily, Gerhard Scheepers, Thomas Grahn, Martti Venäläinen, Antti Haapala

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Wood decay is addressed continuously within the wood industry through use and development of wood preservatives. The increasing awareness on the negative effects of many chemicals towards the environment is causing political restrictions in their use and creating more urgent need for research on green alternatives. This paper discusses some of the possible natural extracts for wood preserving applications and compares the analytical methods available for testing their behavior and efficiency against decay fungi. The results indicate that natural extracts have interesting chemical constituents that delay fungal growth but vary in efficiency depending on the chemical concentration and substrate used. Results also suggest that presence and redistribution of preservatives in wood during exposure trials can be assessed by spectral imaging methods although standardized methods are not available. This study concludes that, in addition to the many standard methods available, there is a need to develop new faster methods for screening potential preservative formulation while maintaining the comparability and relevance of results.

Keywords: analytics, methods, preservatives, wood decay

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Authors: Alam Zeb, Glen W. Armstrong, Muhammad Qasim

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Loss of forest cover is one of the most important land cover changes and has been of great concern to policy makers. This study quantified forest cover changes over pre logging ban (1973-1993) and post logging ban (1993-2015) to examine the role of geophysical factors and spatial attributes of land in the two periods. We show that despite a complete ban on green felling, forest cover decreased by 28% and mostly converted to rangeland. Nevertheless, the logging ban was completely effective in controlling agriculture expansion. The binary logistic regression revealed that the south facing aspects at low elevation witnessed more deforestation in the pre-ban period compared to post-ban. Opposite to deforestation, forest degradation was more prominent on the northern aspects at higher elevation during the policy period. Agriculture expansion was widespread in the low elevation flat areas with gentle slope, while during the policy period agriculture contraction in the form of regeneration was observed on the low elevation areas of north facing slopes. All proximity variables, except distance to administrative boundary, showed a similar trend across the two periods and were important explanatory variables in understanding forest and agriculture expansion. The changes in determinants of forest and agriculture expansion and contraction over the two periods might be attributed to the influence of policy and a general decrease in resource availability.

Keywords: forest conservation , wood harvesting ban, logistic regression, deforestation, forest degradation, agriculture expansion, Chitral, Pakistan

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Authors: Kahlil Fredrick Cui, Marissa Pastor

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Earthquakes are complex phenomena, exhibiting complex correlations in space, time, and magnitude. Recently, the concept of complex networks has been used to shed light on the statistical and dynamical characteristics of regional seismicity. In this work, we study the relationships and interactions of seismic regions in Chile, Japan, and the Philippines through weighted and directed complex network analysis. Geographical areas are digitized into cells of fixed dimensions which in turn become the nodes of the network when an earthquake has occurred therein. Nodes are linked if a correlation exists between them as determined and measured by a correlation metric. The networks are found to be scale-free, exhibiting power-law behavior in the distributions of their different centrality measures: the in- and out-degree and the in- and out-strength. The evidence is also found of preferential interaction between seismically active regions through their degree-degree correlations suggesting that seismicity is dictated by the activity of a few active regions. The importance of a seismic region to the overall seismicity is measured using a generalized centrality metric taken to be an indicator of its activity or passivity. The spatial distribution of earthquake activity indicates the areas where strong earthquakes have occurred in the past while the passivity distribution points toward the likely locations an earthquake would occur whenever another one happens elsewhere. Finally, we propose a method that would project the location of the next possible earthquake using the generalized centralities coupled with correlations calculated between the latest earthquakes and a geographical point in the future.

Keywords: complex networks, correlations, earthquake, hazard assessment

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Authors: Naveed Chughtai, Salman Atif, Azhar Ali Taj, Murtaza Asghar Bukhari

Abstract:

Accessible transport systems play a crucial role in infrastructure management and ease of access to destinations. Thus, the necessity of knowledge of service coverage and service deprived areas is a prerequisite for devising policies. Integration of PTALs model with GIS network analysis models (Service Area Analysis, Closest Facility Analysis) facilitates the analysis of deprived areas. In this research, models presented determine the accessibility. The empirical evidence suggests that current bus network system caters only 18.5% of whole population. Using network analysis results as inputs for PTALs, it is seen that excellent accessibility indexed bands cover a limited areas, while 78.8% of area is totally deprived of any service. To cater the unserved catchment, new route alignments are proposed while keeping in focus the Socio-economic characteristics, land-use type and net population density of the deprived area. Change in accessibility with proposed routes show a 10% increment in service delivery and enhancement in terms of served population is up to 20.4%. PTALs result shows a decrement of 60 Km2 in unserved band. The result of this study can be used for planning, transport infrastructure management, allocation of new route alignments in combination with future land-use development and for adequate spatial distribution of service access points.

Keywords: GIS, public transport accessibility, PTALs, accessibility index, service area analysis, closest facility analysis

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Authors: Nour Ismail, Sahar El Kardawy, Bassant Badwy

Abstract:

Radiofrequency (RF) lesioning of nerves have been commonly used to alleviate chronic pain, where RF current preventing transmission of pain signals through the nerve by heating the nerve causing the pain. There are some factors that affect the temperature distribution and the nerve lesion size, one of these factors is the inhomogeneities in the tissue medium. Our objective is to calculate the temperature distribution and the nerve lesion size in a nonhomogenous medium surrounding the RF electrode. A two 3-D finite element models are used to compare the temperature distribution in the homogeneous and nonhomogeneous medium. Also the effect of temperature-dependent electric conductivity on maximum temperature and lesion size is observed. Results show that the presence of a nonhomogeneous medium around the RF electrode has a valuable effect on the temperature distribution and lesion size. The dependency of electric conductivity on tissue temperature increased lesion size.

Keywords: finite element model, nerve lesioning, pain relief, radiofrequency lesion

Procedia PDF Downloads 417