Search results for: online consumption

Authors: Noritaka Shigei, Kazuto Matsumoto, Yoshiki Nakashima, Hiromi Miyajima

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Although Mobile Wireless Sensor Networks (MWSNs), which consist of mobile sensor nodes (MSNs), can cover a wide range of observation region by using a small number of sensor nodes, they need to construct a network to collect the sensing data on the base station by moving the MSNs. As an effective method, the network construction method based on Virtual Rails (VRs), which is referred to as VR method, has been proposed. In this paper, we propose two types of effective techniques for the VR method. They can prolong the operation time of the network, which is limited by the battery capabilities of MSNs and the energy consumption of MSNs. The first technique, an effective arrangement of VRs, almost equalizes the number of MSNs belonging to each VR. The second technique, an adaptive movement method of MSNs, takes into account the residual energy of battery. In the simulation, we demonstrate that each technique can improve the network lifetime and the combination of both techniques is the most effective.

Keywords: mobile sensor node, relay of sensing data, residual energy, virtual rail, wireless sensor network

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Authors: D. F. Carigma, E. Cruzado, M. J. Hagos, K. Perater, D. Ramos, R. Navarro, R. Galingan

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Korean culture disseminates rapidly across the globe. The young generation is highly engaged in Korean trends, such as Korean pop music, dramas or movies, fashion, food, and beauty standards. With the use of media, the effects of Korean trends may have resulted in the effects of media on people and society, such as addiction, perceptual influence, psychological effect, time consumption, and impulsive spending. The study aimed to determine whether there is a relationship between variable factors affecting the student's academic performance. The proponents used a quantitative approach in the 388 participants at the Technological Institute of the Philippines. This study shows that the Korean trends and the effect of media on people and society correlated to its variable factors. Moreover, this study may help future research in colleges and universities in the Philippines about how the students in higher education who engage in Korean trends affect their behavior and academic performance.

Keywords: academic performance, addiction, effect of media on people and society, Korean trend, perceptual influence, psychological effect

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Authors: Emilia Olivos, R. Arroyave, A. Vargas-Calderon, J. E. Dominguez-Herrera

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More efficient cooling systems are needed to reduce building energy consumption and environmental impact. At present researchers focus mainly on environmentally-friendly magnetic materials and the potential application in cooling devices. The magnetic materials presented in this project belong to a group known as Heusler alloys. These compounds are characterized by a strong coupling between their structure and magnetic properties. Usually, a change in one of them can alter the other, which implies changes in other electronic or structural properties, such as, shape magnetic memory response or the magnetocaloric effect. Those properties and its dependence with external fields make these materials interesting, both from a fundamental point of view, as well as on their different possible applications. In this work, first principles and Monte Carlo simulations have been used to calculate exchange couplings and magnetic properties as a function of an applied magnetic field on Heusler alloys. As a result, we found a large dependence of the magnetic susceptibility, entropy and heat capacity, indicating that the magnetic field can be used in experiments to trigger particular magnetic properties in materials, which are necessary to develop solid-state refrigeration devices.

Keywords: ferromagnetic materials, magnetocaloric effect, materials design, solid state refrigeration

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Authors: Erdinç Vural, Bülent Özdalyan, Serkan Özel

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The four-stroke single cylinder diesel engine has been used in this study, the pistons and valves of the engine have been stabilized, the aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) in different ratios has been added in the power of zirconium (ZrO₂) magnesium oxide (MgO), and has been coated with the plasma spray method. The pistons and valves of the combustion chamber of the engine are coated with 5 different (ZrO₂ + MgO), (ZrO₂ + MgO + 25% Al₂O₃), (ZrO₂ + MgO + 50% Al₂O₃), (ZrO₂ + MgO + 75% Al₂O₃), (Al₂O₃) sample. The material tests have been made for each of the coated engine parts with the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) using Cu Kα radiation surface analysis methods. The engine tests have been repeated for each sample in any electric dynamometer in full power 1600 rpm, 2000 rpm, 2400 rpm and 2800 rpm engine speeds. The material analysis and engine tests have shown that the best performance has been performed with (ZrO₂ + MgO + 50% Al₂O₃). Thus, there is no significant change in HC and Smoke emissions, but NOx emission is increased, as the engine improves power, torque, specific fuel consumption and CO emissions in the tests made with sample A3.

Keywords: ceramic coating, material characterization, engine performance, exhaust emissions

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Authors: Grace Baptie, Jackie Andrade, Alison Bacon, Alyson Norman

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Background: Many women experience their childbirth as traumatic, and 4-6% of mothers present with postnatal posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of their birth. Aims: To measure the relationship between obstetric and subjective experience of childbirth on mothers’ experience of postnatal trauma and identify salient aspects of the birth experience considered traumatic. Methods: Women who had given birth within the last year completed an online mixed-methods survey reporting on their subjective and obstetric birth experience as well as symptoms of postnatal trauma, depression and anxiety. Findings: 29% of mothers experienced their labour as traumatic and 15% met full or partial criteria for PTSD. Feeling supported and in control mediated the relationship between obstetric intervention and postnatal trauma symptoms. Five key themes were identified from the qualitative data regarding aspects of the birth considered traumatic including: obstetric complications; lack of control; concern for baby; psychological trauma and lack of support. Conclusion: Subjective birth experience is a significantly stronger predictor of postnatal trauma than level of medical intervention, the psychological consequences of which can be buffered by an increased level of support and control.

Keywords: birth trauma, perinatal mental health, postnatal PTSD, subjective experience

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Authors: K. R. Mohanapriya, D. Geetharamani

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In last few decades, global atmospheric concentrations of green house gases have been frequently increased because of carbon di oxide (CO2) emission from combustion of fossil fuels. This green house gas emission leads to global warming. In order to reduce green house gas emission, cultivation of microalgae has received attention due to their feasibility of CO2 sequestration. Microalgae can grow and multiply in short period because of their photosynthetic simple unicellular structures and can grow using water unsuitable for human consumption with nutrients that are available at low cost. In the present study, freshwater microalgae were isolated from Noyyal river in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India. The isolated strains were screened for CO2 sequestration potential. The efficient isolate namely Klebsormidium sp was subjected to further study. Quantitative determination of CO2 sequestration potential of the isolate under study has been done. The biomass of the isolate thus obtained was subjected to triglyceride and fatty acid analysis to study the potential application of the isolate for biodiesel production.

Keywords: CO2 sequestration, freshwater microalgae, Klebsormidium sp, biodiesel

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Authors: Camelia Vizireanu, Daniela Istrati, Alina Georgiana Profir, Rodica Mihaela Dinica

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Globally, there is a great interest in promoting the consumption of fruit and vegetables to improve health. Due to the content of essential compounds such as antioxidants, important amounts of fruits and vegetables should be included in the daily diet. Juices are good sources of vitamins and can also help increase overall fruit and vegetable consumption. Starting from this trend (introduction into the daily diet of vegetables and fruits) as well as the desire to diversify the range of functional products for both adults and children, a fermented juice was made using probiotic microorganisms based on root vegetables, with potential beneficial effects in the diet of children, vegetarians and people with lactose intolerance. The three vegetables selected for this study, red beet, carrot, and celery bring a significant contribution to functional compounds such as carotenoids, flavonoids, betalain, vitamin B and C, minerals and fiber. By fermentation, the functional value of the vegetable juice increases due to the improved stability of these compounds. The combination of probiotic microorganisms and vegetable fibers resulted in a nutrient-rich synbiotic product. The stability of the nutritional and sensory qualities of the obtained synbiotic product has been tested throughout its shelf life. The evaluation of the physico-chemical changes of the synbiotic drink during storage confirmed that: (i) vegetable juice enriched with honey and vegetable pulp is an important source of nutritional compounds, especially carbohydrates and fiber; (ii) microwave treatment used to inhibit pathogenic microflora did not significantly affect nutritional compounds in vegetable juice, vitamin C concentration remained at baseline and beta-carotene concentration increased due to increased bioavailability; (iii) fermentation has improved the nutritional quality of vegetable juice by increasing the content of B vitamins, polyphenols and flavonoids and has a good antioxidant capacity throughout the shelf life; (iv) the FTIR and Raman spectra have highlighted the results obtained using physicochemical methods. Based on the analysis of IR absorption frequencies, the most striking bands belong to the frequencies 3330 cm⁻¹, 1636 cm⁻¹ and 1050 cm⁻¹, specific for groups of compounds such as polyphenols, carbohydrates, fatty acids, and proteins. Statistical data processing revealed a good correlation between the content of flavonoids, betalain, β-carotene, ascorbic acid and polyphenols, the fermented juice having a stable antioxidant activity. Also, principal components analysis showed that there was a negative correlation between the evolution of the concentration of B vitamins and antioxidant activity. Acknowledgment: This study has been founded by the Francophone University Agency, Project Réseau régional dans le domaine de la santé, la nutrition et la sécurité alimentaire (SaIN), No. at Dunarea de Jos University of Galati 21899/ 06.09.2017 and by the Sectorial Operational Programme Human Resources Development of the Romanian Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports trough the Financial Agreement POSDRU/159/1.5/S/132397 ExcelDOC.

Keywords: bioactive compounds, fermentation, synbiotic drink from vegetables, stability during storage

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Authors: Pengfan Wu, Xiaoan Chen, Ye He, Tianchi Chen

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This paper introduces the design of an unpowered knee exoskeleton to assist human walking by redistributing the moment of the knee joint during stair descent (SD). Considering the knee moment varying with the knee joint angle and the work of the knee joint is all negative, the custom-built spring was used to convert negative work into the potential energy of the spring during flexion, and the obtained energy work as assistance during extension to reduce the consumption of lower limb muscles. The human-machine adaptability problem was left by traditional rigid wearable due to the knee involves sliding and rotating without a fixed-axis rotation, and this paper designed the two-direction grooves to follow the human-knee kinematics, and the wire spring provides a certain resistance to the pin in the groove to prevent extra degrees of freedom. The experiment was performed on a normal stair by healthy young wearing the device on both legs with the surface electromyography recorded. The results show that the quadriceps (knee extensor) were reduced significantly.

Keywords: unpowered exoskeleton, stair descent, knee compliant joint, energy redistribution

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Authors: H. Parveen Begam, M. A. Maluk Mohamed

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Grid computing is an environment that allows sharing and coordinated use of diverse resources in dynamic, heterogeneous and distributed environment using Virtual Organization (VO). Security is a critical issue due to the open nature of the wireless channels in the grid computing which requires three fundamental services: authentication, authorization, and encryption. The privacy and anonymity are considered as an important factor while communicating over publicly spanned network like web. To ensure a high level of security we explored an extension of onion routing, which has been used with dynamic token exchange along with protection of privacy and anonymity of individual identity. To improve the performance of encrypting the layers, the elliptic curve cryptography is used. Compared to traditional cryptosystems like RSA (Rivest-Shamir-Adelman), ECC (Elliptic Curve Cryptosystem) offers equivalent security with smaller key sizes which result in faster computations, lower power consumption, as well as memory and bandwidth savings. This paper presents the estimation of the performance improvements of onion routing using ECC as well as the comparison graph between performance level of RSA and ECC.

Keywords: grid computing, privacy, anonymity, onion routing, ECC, RSA

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Authors: V. Howard, R. Maguire, S. Corrigan

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Background: Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) is a chronic autoimmune disease, typically diagnosed in childhood. T1D puts an enormous strain on families; controlling blood-glucose in children is difficult and the consequences of poor control for patient health are significant. Successful illness management and better health outcomes can be dependent on quality of caregiving. On diagnosis, parent-caregivers face a steep learning curve as T1D care requires a significant level of knowledge to inform complex decision making throughout the day. The majority of illness management is carried out in the home setting, independent of clinical health providers. Parent-caregivers vary in their level of knowledge and their level of engagement in applying this knowledge in the practice of illness management. Enabling researchers to quantify these aspects of the caregiver experience is key to identifying targets for psychosocial support interventions, which are desirable for reducing stress and anxiety in this highly burdened cohort, and supporting better health outcomes in children. Currently, there are limited tools available that are designed to capture this information. Where tools do exist, they are not comprehensive and do not adequately capture the lived experience. Objectives: Development of quantitative tools, informed by lived experience, to enable researchers gather data on parent-caregiver knowledge and engagement, which accurately represents the experience/cohort and enables exploration of questions that are of real-world value to the cohort themselves. Methods: This research employed an engaged approach to address the problem of quantifying two key aspects of caregiver diabetes management: Knowledge and engagement. The research process was multi-staged and iterative. Stage 1: Working from a constructivist standpoint, literature was reviewed to identify relevant questionnaires, scales and single-item measures of T1D caregiver knowledge and engagement, and harvest candidate questionnaire items. Stage 2: Aggregated findings from the review were circulated among a PPI (patient and public involvement) expert panel of caregivers (n=6), for discussion and feedback. Stage 3: In collaboration with the expert panel, data were interpreted through the lens of lived experience to create a long-list of candidate items for novel questionnaires. Items were categorized as either ‘knowledge’ or ‘engagement’. Stage 4: A Delphi-method process (iterative surveys) was used to prioritize question items and generate novel questions that further captured the lived experience. Stage 5: Both questionnaires were piloted to refine wording of text to increase accessibility and limit socially desirable responding. Stage 6: Tools were piloted using an online survey that was deployed using an online peer-support group for caregivers for Juveniles with T1D. Ongoing Research: 123 parent-caregivers completed the survey. Data analysis is ongoing to establish face and content validity qualitatively and through exploratory factor analysis. Reliability will be established using an alternative-form method and Cronbach’s alpha will assess internal consistency. Work will be completed by early 2024. Conclusion: These tools will enable researchers to gain deeper insights into caregiving practices among parents of juveniles with T1D. Development was driven by lived experience, illustrating the value of engaged research at all levels of the research process.

Keywords: caregiving, engaged research, juvenile type 1 diabetes, quantified engagement and knowledge

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Authors: Ruslan Salmurzauli, Sabir Nurtazin, Buho Hoshino, Niels Thevs, A. B. Yeszhanov, Aiman Imentai

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This article presents the results of a research on the transformation of the diverse ecosystems of the Ili delta during the period 1979-2014 based on the analysis of the hydrological regime dynamics, weather conditions and satellite images. Conclusions have been drawn on the decisive importance of the water runoff of the Ili River in the negative changes and environmental degradation in delta areas over the past forty-five years. The increase of water consumption in the Chinese and Kazakhstan parts of the Ili-Balkhash basin caused desiccation and desertification of many hydromorphic delta ecosystems and the reduction of water flow into Lake Balkhash. We demonstrate that a significant reduction of watering of the delta areas could drastically accelerate the aridization and degradation of the hydromorphic ecosystems. Under runoff decrease, a transformation process of the delta ecosystems begins from the head part and gradually spread northward to the periphery of the delta. The desertification is most clearly expressed in the central and western parts of the delta areas.

Keywords: Ili-Balkhash basin, Ili river delta, runoff, hydrological regime, transformation of ecosystems, remote sensing

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Authors: Muhammad Fathurridho

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Grammar as a rule used by every language to be understood by everyone is always related to syntax and morphology. Arabic grammar is different with another languages’ grammars. It has more rules and difficulties. This paper aims to investigate and describe the English grammatical errors of machine translation systems in translating Arabic sentences, including declarative, exclamation, imperative, and interrogative sentences, specifically in year 2018 which can be supported with artificial intelligence’s role. The Arabic sample sentences which are divided into two; verbal and nominal sentence of several Arabic published texts will be examined as the source language samples. The translated sentences done by several popular online machine translation systems, including Google Translate, Microsoft Bing, Babylon, Facebook, Hellotalk, Worldlingo, Yandex Translate, and Tradukka Translate are the material objects of this research. Descriptive method that will be taken to finish this research will show the grammatical errors of English target language, and classify them. The conclusion of this paper has showed that the grammatical errors of machine translation results are varied and generally classified into morphological, syntactical, and semantic errors in all type of Arabic words (Noun, Verb, and Particle), and it will be one of the evaluations for machine translation’s providers to correct them in order to improve their understandable results.

Keywords: Arabic, Arabic-English translation, machine translation, grammatical errors

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Authors: Bukra Kalayci, Geraldine Brennan

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Introduction: Over the last decade, a proliferation of literature related to textile and fashion business in the context of sustainable production and consumption has emerged. However, the economic and environmental benefits of solid waste recovery have not been comprehensively searched. Therefore at the end-of-life or end-of-use textile waste management remains a gap. Solid textile waste reuse and recycling principles of the circular economy need to be developed to close the disposal stage of the textile supply chain. The environmental problems associated with the over-production and –consumption of textile products arise. Together with growing population and fast fashion culture the share of solid textile waste in municipal waste is increasing. Focusing on post-consumer textile waste literature, this research explores the opportunities, obstacles and enablers or success factors associated with closed-loop textile business systems. Methodology: A systematic literature review was conducted in order to identify best practices and gaps from the existing body of knowledge related to closed-loop post-consumer textile waste initiatives over the last decade. Selected keywords namely: ‘cradle-to-cradle ‘, ‘circular* economy* ‘, ‘closed-loop* ‘, ‘end-of-life* ‘, ‘reverse* logistic* ‘, ‘take-back* ‘, ‘remanufacture* ‘, ‘upcycle* ‘ with the combination of (and) ‘fashion* ‘, ‘garment* ‘, ‘textile* ‘, ‘apparel* ‘, clothing* ‘ were used and the time frame of the review was set between 2005 to 2017. In order to obtain a broad coverage, Web of Knowledge and Science Direct databases were used, and peer-reviewed journal articles were chosen. The keyword search identified 299 number of papers which was further refined into 54 relevant papers that form the basis of the in-depth thematic analysis. Preliminary findings: A key finding was that the existing literature is predominantly conceptual rather than applied or empirical work. Moreover, the enablers or success factors, obstacles and opportunities to implement closed-loop systems in the textile industry were not clearly articulated and the following considerations were also largely overlooked in the literature. While the circular economy suggests multiple cycles of discarded products, components or materials, most research has to date tended to focus on a single cycle. Thus the calculations of environmental and economic benefits of closed-loop systems are limited to one cycle which does not adequately explore the feasibility or potential benefits of multiple cycles. Additionally, the time period textile products spend between point of sale, and end-of-use/end-of-life return is a crucial factor. Despite past efforts to study closed-loop textile systems a clear gap in the literature is the lack of a clear evaluation framework which enables manufacturers to clarify the reusability potential of textile products through consideration of indicators related too: quality, design, lifetime, length of time between manufacture and product return, volume of collected disposed products, material properties, and brand segment considerations (e.g. fast fashion versus luxury brands).

Keywords: circular fashion, closed loop business, product service systems, solid textile waste elimination

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Authors: I. O. Oyatayo, K. T. Oyatayo, B. Mamman

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This study was aimed at the assessment of heavy metal pollution of the water in river Benue along Ibi, Taraba State, Nigeria. Water samples were collected at ten sampling points over a distance of 100 meters each. The following water quality parameters were determined: TDS, copper, zinc, chromium, iron, mercury, nickel, and manganese, and the results were compared with the Nigerian Standard for Drinking Water Quality (NSDWQ) and WHO maximum permitted limits. The water quality analysis was conducted using the atomic absorption spectrophotometer (Model: 01-0960-00) at 510 nm. The mean value concentrations of copper, zinc, chromium, nickel, mercury, and mercury are within the permissible limits, while that of iron is above the limit. The summary of ANOVA single-factor statistics with a specified rejection level at α 0.05 is insignificant. The study concludes that the quality of water from river Benue along Ibi is deteriorating and unfit for human consumption. It was recommended that residents of the study area should be enlightened on the effects of indiscriminate dumping of waste and the proper handling and application of fertilizer and herbicides, as some of these end up in the river via surface runoff.

Keywords: heavy, metal, pollution, river, Ibi

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Authors: Priyadarshini Alok

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The present situation in India envisages that because of the surge in population and the economy, cities are expected to spill over to hinterland areas. The consumption-led factors such as land, labor, etc. will be boosted. Hence, the need for regional connectivity becomes obligatory. But, there is enormous pressure upon the land; proving itself through rising traffic congestion, roads, and railway accidents. Air transport is practical, but due to decreasing availability of land, this will not be a wise solution. What with the introduction of seaplanes in the country which was once the vital asset in the world prior to Second World War. Maldives has proved it. Seaplanes offer natural landing site and are time and cost-efficient. Seaplanes in accordance with UDAN can prove to be the solution in linking various regions with other states. This research paper aims to offer the feasibility analysis along with site justification of the potential areas in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India; for the operation of seaplanes. The standards are taken from the US Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration for the analysis. The conflation of Seaplanes with UDAN will offer an alternate mode of air connectivity, strengthen the transport network by simulation of connectivity to unserved and under-served areas and boost the nation's economy.

Keywords: connectivity, seaplanes, transport, UDAN

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Authors: Noorhaslinda Kulub Abd. Rashid, Zuraini Anang, Bayu Taufiq Possumah, Suriyani Muhamad, Fauziah Abu Hasan, Hairunnizam Wahid

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Reality of Malaysian lives today, especially the households, are not exempted from using a variety of good products and services that are particularly materialistic. In fact, the pace and sophistication of the technology is seen as a major catalyst to the pattern of community life. In facing the challenges of the current economy, the key role to be played by household is managing the pattern of expenditure, income and loan debts regularly and blessed by Allah. Unfortunately, the world today is witnessing the average household could owe solely to meet their needs with existing spending limits. This study aims to measure the ‘Religious Index of Household Expenditure’ (IKM) and analyze how far the religious influence to the pattern of household expenditure based on the 441 Muslim households. The results showed only a 5-item spending, food, housing, transportation, education, and recreation and entertainment that has a significant relationship with IKM. Therefore, Islamic consumer education is a must to establish sustainable consumptions in order to speed up the internalization of sustainable lifestyle among Malaysians.

Keywords: ‘Religious Index of Household Expenditure’ (IKM), income, sustainable consumptions, household expenditure

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Authors: Hilary J. Watsilla, Narasimha R. Vajjhala

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Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has made information access easier and affordable. Academic research has also benefited from this, with online journals and academic resource readily available by the click of a button. However, there are limited ways of assessing and controlling the quality of the academic research mostly in public institution. Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa with a significant number of universities and young population. The quality of knowledge created by academic researchers, however, needs to be evaluated due to the high number of predatory journals published by academia. The purpose of this qualitative study is to look at the knowledge creation, acquisition, and assimilation process by academic researchers in public universities in Nigeria. Qualitative research will be carried out using in-depth interviews and observations. Academic researchers will be interviewed and absorptive capacity theory will be used as the theoretical framework to guide the research. The findings from this study should help understand the impact of ICT on the knowledge creation process in academic research and to understand how ICT can affect the quality of knowledge produced by researchers. The findings from this study should help add value to the existing body of knowledge on the quality of academic research, especially in Africa where there is limited availability of quality academic research. As this study is limited to Nigerian universities, the outcome may not be generalized to other developing countries.

Keywords: knowledge creation, academic research, university, information and communication technology

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Authors: Praveen Priyadarshi

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What is the nature of the 'political subjects' in the new urban spaces of the Indian cities? How do they become a 'public'? The paper explores these questions by studying the National Capital Region's gated communities in India. Even as the 'gated-ness' of these neighborhoods constantly underlines the definitive spatial boundary of the 'public' that it is constituted within the walls of a particular gated community, the making of this 'public' occurs as much in the digital spaces—in the digital space of online messaging apps and platforms—populated by unique digital identities. It is through constant exchanges of the digital identities that the 'public' is created. However, the institutional framework and the formal rules governing the making of the public are still analogue because they presume and privilege traditional modes of participation for people to constitute a 'public'. The institutions are designed as rules and norms governing people's behavior when they participate in traditional, physical mode, whereas rules and norms designed in the algorithms regulate people's social and political behavior in the digital domain. In exploring this disjuncture between the analogue institutions and the digital public, the paper analytically evaluates the nature of everyday politics in gates neighborhoods in India.

Keywords: gated communities, everyday politics, new urban spaces, digital publics

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Authors: Rebecca Heron, Steal Adcock, Karen Parsonson

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Non-offending pedophiles are an under- researched, hard to reach population. This group of individuals are often hesitant to come forward and fail to seek help ongoing stigma experienced in society.In order to better understand non-offending pedophiles experiences of their identity and the stigma they face, semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with 10 non-offending pedophiles, who were recruited through online support groups for individuals who have sexual attractions towards children. Participants were interviewed over skype, and the data was analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) approach, anda number of themes were generated from the rich data set produced. Four main themes emerged, providing insight into how non-offending pedophiles experience stigma. The themes included ‘stigma in relation to themselves’, ‘others’, ‘the media portrayal’and ‘impact of the stigma of MAP’s seeking treatment’. Findings are discussed in relation to existing literature, and practical recommendations are proposed to hopefully allow this population to feel more comfortable sharing their sexual interests, which will allow them to seek help resulting in them not offending and, ultimately, the prevention of sexual abuse. This study fills the void in terms of lack of research with this population, especially when it comes to qualitative in depth studies, including not just male minor attracted persons but female minor attracted persons as well.

Keywords: pedophillia, stigma, non-offending pedophiles, minor attracted persons, prevention

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Authors: Bauer Peter, Murillo Jenny

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This paper investigates the bounds of achievable fuel efficiency improvements in engines due to cycling between two operating points assuming a series hybrid configuration . It is shown that for linear bsfc dependencies (as a function of power), cycling is only beneficial if the average power needs are smaller than the power at the optimal bsfc value. Exact expressions for the fuel efficiency gains relative to the constant output power case are derived. This asymptotic analysis is then extended to the case where transient losses due to a change in the operating point are also considered. The case of the boundary bsfc trajectory where constant power application and cycling yield the same fuel consumption.is investigated. It is shown that the boundary bsfc locations of the second non-optimal operating points is hyperbolic. The analysis of the boundary case allows to evaluate whether for a particular engine, cycling can be beneficial. The introduced concepts are illustrated through a number of real world examples, i.e. large production Diesel engines in series hybrid configurations.

Keywords: cycling, efficiency, bsfc, series hybrid, diesel, operating point

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Authors: Antonia Tsaknaki

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There are many and divergent views on how the science of translation should be taught in academic institutions or colleges, meaning as an independent study area or as part of Linguistics, Literature or Foreign Languages Departments. A much more debated issue refers to the question of whether translation theory should be included in syllabuses and study programs or the focus should be solely on practicing the profession, that is translating texts. This dissertation examines prevailing views on the significance of translation theory in translation studies in order to design an open course on moodle. Taking into account that there is a remarkable percentage of translation professionals who are self-taught without having any specific studies, the course aims at helping either translation students or professional translators familiarize with concepts, methods and problem-solving strategies that are considered necessary during the process. It is organized in four modules where the learner is guided through a series of topics (register, equivalence, decision-making, level of naturalness, Skopos theory etc); after completing these topics, they are given assignments (further reading) and texts to work on in order to practice the skills obtained. The course does not focus on a specific language pair and therefore is suitable for every individual who needs a theoretical background to boost their performance or for institutions seeking to save classroom time but not at the expense of learners’ skills.

Keywords: MOOCs, moodle, online learning, open courses, translation, translation theory

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Authors: P. Arun Subhash, B. N. Suresh, M. C. Shivakumar, N. Suma

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An experiment was conducted to study the effect of dietary supplementation of ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) root powder on the egg production performance and egg quality in commercial layer birds. A practical type layer diet was prepared as per Bureau of Indian Standards (1992) to serve as the control, and the test diet was prepared by supplementing control diet with ashwagandha powder at 1kg/ton of feed. Each diet was assigned to twenty replicate groups of 5 laying hens each for duration of 84 days. The result revealed that cumulative egg production (%) was comparable between control and test group. The feed consumption and its conversion efficiency were similar among both the groups. The egg weight and egg characteristics viz., yolk index, yolk color, haugh unit score, albumen index, egg shape index and eggshell thickness were also remained similar between both the groups. It was concluded that supplementation of ashwagandha powder at 1kg/ton in layer diets has no beneficial effect on egg production and egg quality parameters.

Keywords: ashwagandha, egg production, egg quality, layers

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Authors: Pratyush Agnihotri

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The space missions are very costly because the transportation to the space is highly expensive and therefore there is the need to achieve complete re-usability in our launch vehicles to make the missions highly economic by cost cutting of the material recovered. Launcher reusability is the most efficient approach to decreasing admittance to space access economy, however stays an incredible specialized hurdle for the aerospace industry. Major concern of the difficulties lies in guidance and control procedure and calculations, specifically for those of the controlled landing stage, which should empower an exact landing with low fuel edges. Although cutting edge ways for navigation and control are present viz hybrid navigation and robust control. But for powered descent and landing of first stage of launch vehicle the guidance control is need to enable on board optimization. At first the CAD model of the launch vehicle I.e. space x falcon 9 rocket is presented for better understanding of the architecture that needs to be identified for the guidance and control solution for the recovery of the launcher. The focus is on providing the landing phase guidance scheme for recovery and re usability of first stage using retro propulsion. After reviewing various GNC solutions, to achieve accuracy in pre requisite landing online convex and successive optimization are explored as the guidance schemes.

Keywords: guidance, navigation, control, retro propulsion, reusable rockets

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Authors: Said Lamghari, Abdelkader Outzourhit, Hassan Hamdi, Mohamed Krarouch, Fatima Ait Nouh, Mickael Benhaim, Mehdi Khaldoun

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Traditional Hammams are big consumers of water and wood-energy. Any approach to reduce this consumption will contribute to the preservation of these two resources that are more and more stressed in Morocco. In the InnoTherm/InnoBiomass 2014 project HYBRIDBATH, funded by the Research Institute for Solar Energy and New Energy (IRESEN), we will use a hybrid system consisting of a micro-CSP system and a biomass boiler for water and space heating of a Hammam. This will overcome the problem of intermittency of solar energy, and will ensure continuous supply of hot water and heat. We propose to use local agricultural residues (olive pomace, shells of walnuts, almonds, Argan ...). Underfloor heating using either copper or PEX tubing will perform the space heating. This work focuses on the description of the system and the activities carried out so far: The installation of the system, the principle operation of the system and some preliminary test results.

Keywords: biomass boiler, hot water, hybrid systems, micro-CSP, parabolic sensor, solar energy, solar fraction, traditional hammam, underfloor heating

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Authors: Maryam Khazaee-Pool, Tahereh Pashaei, Koen Ponnet

Abstract:

Background: The global prevalence and morbidity of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are high. Preventive behaviors are proven to reduce the damage caused by the disease. There is a paucity of information on determinants of preventive behaviors in response to COVID-19 in Mazandaran province, north of Iran. So, we aimed to evaluate the protection motivation theory (PMT) in promoting preventive behaviors of COVID-19 in Mazandaran province. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 1220 individuals participated. They were selected via social networks using convenience sampling in 2020. Data were collected online using a demographic questionnaire and a valid and reliable scale based on PMT. Data analysis was done using the Pearson correlation coefficient and linear regression in SPSS V24. Result: The mean age of the participants was 39.34±8.74 years. The regression model showed perceived threat (ß =0.033, P =0.007), perceived costs (ß=0.039, P=0.045), perceived self-efficacy (ß =0.116, P>0.001), and perceived fear (ß=0.131, P>0.001) as the significant predictors of COVID-19 preventive behaviors. This model accounted for 78% of the variance in these behaviors. Conclusion: According to constructs of the PMT associated with protection against COVID-19, educational programs and health promotion based on the theory and benefiting from social networks could be helpful in increasing the motivation of people towards protective behaviors against COVID-19.

Keywords: questionnaire development, validation, intention, prevention, covid-19

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Authors: Endang Jati Mat Sahid, Hussain Ali Bekhet

Abstract:

Robust economic growth, increasing population, and personal consumption are the main drivers for the rapid increase of energy demand in Malaysia. Increasing demand has compounded the issue of national energy security due to over-dependence on fossil fuel, depleting indigenous domestic conventional energy resources which in turns has increased the country’s energy import dependence. In order to improve its energy security, Malaysia has seriously embarked on a renewable energy journey. Many initiatives on renewable energy have been introduced in the past decade. These strategies have resulted in the exploding growth of renewable energy deployment in Malaysia. Therefore, this study investigated the impact of renewable energy deployment on energy security. Secondary data was used to calculate the energy security indicators. The study also compared the results of applying different energy security indicators namely availability, applicability, affordability and acceptability dimension of energy resources. The evaluation shows that Malaysia will experience slight improvement in availability and acceptability dimension of energy security. This study suggests that energy security level could be further enhanced by efficient utilization of energy, reducing carbon content of energy and facilitating low-carbon industries.

Keywords: energy policy, energy security, Malaysia, renewable energy

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Authors: Yvonne Dedzo

Abstract:

Social media has become a powerful tool in bridging the distance between individuals regardless of their location. It has become a convenient platform for public discussion and, consequently, generated the phenomenon of citizen journalists who have become both proactive and reactive participants in the dissemination of news, information and other epochal and historical events. This phenomenon has fueled the growth of niche authorities who deliver exceptional democratically consequential information online. This study, therefore, investigates how some selected niche authorities maintain their status on social media. Using the selective processes theory, the study further interrogates the information shared by niche authorities and further analyses the extent to which a public interest-altruistic motive or personal interest-self-serving motive drives their agenda of new sharing and usage. Through cyber-ethnography and, qualitative content analysis and semi-structured interviews, data was gathered and analysed from the posts of two purposely selected niche authorities on Facebook and Twitter. The findings indicate that niche authorities maintain their status by being consistent, prompt, informative, resourceful and interactive in their postings on the social media platform. The study also discovered that even though niche authorities are motivated by both public interest-altruism and interest-self-serving, the latter had a higher of motivation than the former.

Keywords: social medida, citizen journalist, niche authorities, selective processes theory

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Authors: Julien Romieux, Fabio Verdicchio

Abstract:

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs), which sense environmental data with battery-powered nodes, require multi-hop communication. This power-demanding task adds an extra workload that is unfairly distributed across the network. As a result, nodes run out of battery at different times: this requires an impractical individual node maintenance scheme. Therefore we investigate a new Cooperative Sensing approach that extends the WSN operational life and allows a more practical network maintenance scheme (where all nodes deplete their batteries almost at the same time). We propose a novel cooperative algorithm that derives a piecewise representation of the sensed signal while controlling approximation accuracy. Simulations show that our algorithm increases WSN operational life and spreads communication workload evenly. Results convey a counterintuitive conclusion: distributing workload fairly amongst nodes may not decrease the network power consumption and yet extend the WSN operational life. This is achieved as our cooperative approach decreases the workload of the most burdened cluster in the network.

Keywords: cooperative signal processing, signal representation and approximation, power management, wireless sensor networks

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Authors: Fazilet Alachaher (Benzerdjeb)

Abstract:

From the chalkboard to the abacus and beyond, technology has always played an important role in education. Educational technology refers to any teaching tool that helps supports learning, and given the rapid advancements in Information Technology and multimedia applications, the potential to support the teaching of foreign languages in our universities is ever greater. In language teaching and learning, we have a lot of to choose from the world of technology: TV, CDs, DVDs, Computers, the Internet, Email, and Blogs. The use of modern technologies can enrich the experience of learning a foreign language because they provide features that are not present in traditional technology. They can offer a wide range of multimedia resources, opportunities for intensive one-to-one learning in language labs and resources for authentic materials, which can be motivating to both students and teachers. The advent of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and online interaction can also open up new range of self-access and distance learning opportunities The two last decades have witnessed a revolution due to the onset of technology, and has changed the dynamics of various industries, and has also influenced the way people live and work in society. That is why using the multimedia to create a certain context to teach English has its unique advantages. This paper tries then to analyse the necessity of multimedia technology to language teaching and brings out the problems faced by using these technologies. It also aims at making English teachers aware of the strategies to use it in an effective manner.

Keywords: strategies English teaching, multimedia technology, advantages, disadvantages, English learning

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Authors: Abdu Umar Adamu, Saidu Akun Abdullahi, Al-Hassan Muhammed, Hamisu Abdu

Abstract:

Leguminous plants such as beans have been considered as a source of protein in this present work. The proximate analysis on beans (Vigna unguiculata) were determined in order to identify the nutritional content as well as presence of some heavy metals accumulation in washed and unwashed beans (white Beans) sold in Kazaure market Jigawa State Nigeria. On the average comparative analysis, the result has indicated that, the Vigna unguiculata had protein content of 61.1%, fibre 4.5%, ash 10.4%, moisture 5%, carbohydrate 15.8% and total lipid 4.9%, therefore it could be suggested that beans has enough nutritional content that helps the people health. The heavy metal analysis of unwashed white beans showed that Fe (17.37 ± 6.71)mg/kg had the highest concentration followed by Zn (6.41 ± 3.09), Cu (5.69 ± 2.42), Cd (0.46 ± 0.65) and Pb (0.57 ± 0.94)mg/kg , while the washed beans shows that Zn (0.11 ± 0.17), Fe (0.01 ± 0.006), Cd (0.02 ± 0.01), Cu (0.03 ± 0.021), Pb (0.01 ± 0.006)mg/kg. The washed white beans are safe for consumption and also the concentration of heavy metal are negligible and of nontoxic effect to human health.

Keywords: white beans, protein, proximate composition, heavy metal

Procedia PDF Downloads 422