Search results for: emotion detection in the text

Authors: Z. Ezzouine, A. Nakheli

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This paper presents a high position electromagnetic sensor system (HPESS) that is applicable for moving object detection. The authors have developed a high-performance position sensor prototype dedicated to students’ laboratory. The challenge was to obtain a highly accurate and real-time sensor that is able to calculate position, length or displacement. An electromagnetic solution based on a two coil induction principal was adopted. The HPESS converts mechanical motion to electric energy with direct contact. The output signal can then be fed to an electronic circuit. The voltage output change from the sensor is captured by data acquisition system using LabVIEW software. The displacement of the moving object is determined. The measured data are transmitted to a PC in real-time via a DAQ (NI USB -6281). This paper also describes the data acquisition analysis and the conditioning card developed specially for sensor signal monitoring. The data is then recorded and viewed using a user interface written using National Instrument LabVIEW software. On-line displays of time and voltage of the sensor signal provide a user-friendly data acquisition interface. The sensor provides an uncomplicated, accurate, reliable, inexpensive transducer for highly sophisticated control systems.

Keywords: electromagnetic sensor, accurately, data acquisition, position measurement

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Authors: Yutong Wan, John N. Wood

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Introduction: SCN9A encoded Nav1.7 is an ideal therapeutic target with minimal side effects for the pharmaceutical industry because SCN9A variants can cause both human gains of function pain-related mutations and loss of function pain-free mutations. This study reviews the clinical effectiveness of existing Nav1.7 inhibitors, which theoretically should be powerful analgesics. Methods: A systematic review is conducted on the effectiveness of current Nav1.7 blockers undergoing clinical trials. Studies were mainly extracted from PubMed, U.S. National Library of Medicine Clinical Trials, World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry, ISRCTN registry platform, and Integrated Research Approval System by NHS. Only studies with full text available and those conducted using double-blinded, placebo controlled, and randomised designs and reporting at least one analgesic measurement were included. Results: Overall, 61 trials were screened, and eight studies covering PF 05089771 (Pfizer), TV 45070 (Teva & Xenon), and BIIB074 (Biogen) met the inclusion criteria. Most studies were excluded because results were not published. All three compounds demonstrated insignificant analgesic effects, and the comparison between PF 05089771 and pregabalin/ibuprofen showed that PF 05089771 was a much weaker analgesic. All three drug candidates only have mild side effects, indicating the potentials for further investigation of Nav1.7 antagonists. Discussion: The failure of current Nav1.7 small molecule inhibitors might attribute to ignorance of the key role of endogenous systems in Nav1.7 null mutants, the lack of selectivity and blocking potency, and central impermeability. The synergistic combination of analgesic drugs, a recent UCL patent, combining a small dose of Nav1.7 blockers and opioids or enkephalinase inhibitors dramatically enhanced the analgesic effects. Conclusion: The current clinical testing Nav1.7 blockers are generally disappointing. However, the newer generation of Nav1.7 targeting analgesics has overcome the major constraints of its predecessors.

Keywords: chronic pain, Nav1.7 blockers, SCN9A, systematic review

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Authors: Freddy Rodriguez Saza, Erika Sanabria, Jair Tibana

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Currently, the important role of neurosciences in the professional training of the physical educator is known, highlighting in the teaching-learning process aspects such as the nervous structures involved in the adjustment of posture and movement, the neurophysiology of locomotion, the process of nerve impulse transmission, and the relationship between physical activity, learning, and cognition. The teaching-learning process of neurosciences is complex, due to the breadth of the contents, the diversity of teaching contexts required, and the demanding ability to relate concepts from different disciplines, necessary for the correct understanding of the function of the nervous system. This text presents the results of the application of a didactic environment based on the Allosteric Learning Model in morphophysiology students of the Faculty of Military Physical Education, Military School of Cadets of the Colombian Army (Bogotá, Colombia). The research focused then, on analyzing the change in the cognitive structure of the students on neurosciences. Methodology. [1] The predominant learning styles were identified. [2] Students' cognitive structure, core concepts, and threshold concepts were analyzed through the construction of Pathfinder Associative Networks. [3] Didactic Units in Neuroscience were designed to favor metacognition, the development of Executive Functions (working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibitory control) that led students to recognize their errors and conceptual distortions and to overcome them. [4] The Teacher's Professional Knowledge and the role of the assessment strategies applied were taken into account, taking into account the perspective of the Dynamizer, Obstacle, and Questioning axes. In conclusion, the study found that physical education students achieved significant learning in neuroscience, favored by the development of executive functions and by didactic environments oriented with the predominant learning styles and focused on increasing cognitive networks and overcoming difficulties, neuromyths and neurophobia.

Keywords: allosteric learning model, military physical education, neurosciences, pathfinder associative networks, teacher professional knowledge

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Authors: Bushra Nabi, Saleha Rehman, Sanjula Baboota, Javed Ali

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Aim: The objective of research undertaken is analytical method validation (HPLC method) of an anti-HIV drug Elvitegravir (EVG). Additionally carrying out the forced degradation studies of the drug under different stress conditions to determine its stability. It is envisaged in order to determine the suitable technique for drug estimation, which would be employed in further research. Furthermore, comparative pharmacokinetic profile of the drug from lipid architectonics and drug suspension would be obtained post oral administration. Method: Lipid Architectonics (LA) of EVR was formulated using probe sonication technique and optimized using QbD (Box-Behnken design). For the estimation of drug during further analysis HPLC method has been validation on the parameters (Linearity, Precision, Accuracy, Robustness) and Limit of Detection (LOD) and Limit of Quantification (LOQ) has been determined. Furthermore, HPLC quantification of forced degradation studies was carried out under different stress conditions (acid induced, base induced, oxidative, photolytic and thermal). For pharmacokinetic (PK) study, Albino Wistar rats were used weighing between 200-250g. Different formulations were given per oral route, and blood was collected at designated time intervals. A plasma concentration profile over time was plotted from which the following parameters were determined:

Keywords: AIDS, Elvitegravir, HPLC, nanostructured lipid carriers, pharmacokinetics

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Authors: Fatima Muhammad Shitu

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In language learning, Second language learners like their native speaker counter parts, commit errors in their attempt to achieve competence in the target language. The realm of Collocation has to do with meaning relation between lexical items. In all human language, there is a kind of ‘natural order’ in which words are arranged or relate to one another in sentences so much so that when a word occurs in a given context, the related or naturally co -occurring word will automatically come to the mind. It becomes an error, therefore, if students inappropriately pair or arrange such ‘naturally’ co – occurring lexical items in a text. It has been observed that most of the second language learners in this research group commit collocational errors. A study of this kind is very significant as it gives insight into the kinds of errors committed by learners. This will help the language teacher to be able to identify the sources and causes of such errors as well as correct them thereby guiding, helping and leading the learners towards achieving some level of competence in the language. The aim of the study is to understand the nature of these errors as stumbling blocks to effective essay writing. The objective of the study is to identify the errors, analyse their structural compositions so as to determine whether there are similarities between students in this regard and to find out whether there are patterns to these kinds of errors which will enable the researcher to understand their sources and causes. As a descriptive research, the researcher samples some nine hundred essays collected from three hundred undergraduate learners of English as a second language in the Federal College of Education, Kano, North- West Nigeria, i.e. three essays per each student. The essays which were given on three different lecture times were of similar thematic preoccupations (i.e. same topics) and length (i.e. same number of words). The essays were written during the lecture hour at three different lecture occasions. The errors were identified in a systematic manner whereby errors so identified were recorded only once even if they occur severally in students’ essays. The data was collated using percentages in which the identified number of occurrences were converted accordingly in percentages. The findings from the study indicates that there are similarities as well as regular and repeated errors which provided a pattern. Based on the pattern identified, the conclusion is that students’ collocational errors are attributable to poor teaching and learning which resulted in wrong generalisation of rules.

Keywords: collocations, errors, second language learning, ESL students

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Authors: Sadia Munir

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Preeclampsia is the contributor to the worldwide maternal mortality of approximately 100,000 deaths a year. It complicates about 10% of all pregnancies and is the first cause of maternal admission to intensive care units. Predicting preeclampsia is a major challenge in obstetrics. More importantly, no major progress has been achieved in the treatment of preeclampsia. As placenta is the main cause of the disease, the only way to treat the disease is to extract placental and deliver the baby. In developed countries, the cost of an average case of preeclampsia is estimated at £9000. Interestingly, preeclampsia may have an impact on the health of mother or infant, beyond the pregnancy. We performed a systematic search of PubMed including the combination of terms such as preeclampsia, biomarkers, treatment, hypoxia, inflammation, oxidative stress, vascular endothelial growth factor A, activin A, inhibin A, placental growth factor, transforming growth factor β-1, Nodal, placenta, trophoblast cells, microRNAs. In this review, we have summarized current knowledge on the identification of potential biomarkers for the diagnosis of preeclampsia. Although these studies show promising data in early diagnosis of preeclampsia, the current value of these factors as biomarkers, for the precise prediction of preeclampsia, has its limitation. Therefore, future studies need to be done to support some of the very promising and interesting data to develop affordable and widely available tests for early detection and treatment of preeclampsia.

Keywords: activin, biomarkers, growth factors, miroRNA

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Authors: Atef Alaaeddine Sarraj, Brendan Jackman, Frank Walsh

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Tomorrow’s car will be more automated and increasingly connected. Innovative and intuitive interfaces are essential to accompany this functional enrichment. For that, today the automotive companies are competing to offer an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) which will be able to provide enhanced navigation, collision avoidance, intersection support and lane keeping. These vision-based functions require an accurately calibrated camera. To achieve such differentiation in ADAS requires sophisticated sensors and efficient algorithms. This paper explores the different calibration methods applicable to vehicle-mounted fish-eye cameras with arbitrary fields of view and defines the first steps towards a self-calibration method that adequately addresses ADAS requirements. In particular, we present a self-calibration method after comparing different camera calibration algorithms in the context of ADAS requirements. Our method gathers data from unknown scenes while the car is moving, estimates the camera intrinsic and extrinsic parameters and corrects the wide-angle distortion. Our solution enables continuous and real-time detection of objects, pedestrians, road markings and other cars. In contrast, other camera calibration algorithms for ADAS need pre-calibration, while the presented method calibrates the camera without prior knowledge of the scene and in real-time.

Keywords: advanced driver assistance system (ADAS), fish-eye, real-time, self-calibration

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Authors: Hanene Sahli, Aymen Mouelhi, Marwa Hajji, Amine Ben Slama, Mounir Sayadi, Farhat Fnaiech, Radhwane Rachdi

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Fetal abnormality is still a public health problem of interest to both mother and baby. Head defect is one of the most high-risk fetal deformities. Fetal head categorization is a sensitive task that needs a massive attention from neurological experts. In this sense, biometrical measurements can be extracted by gynecologist doctors and compared with ground truth charts to identify normal or abnormal growth. The fetal head biometric measurements such as Biparietal Diameter (BPD), Occipito-Frontal Diameter (OFD) and Head Circumference (HC) needs to be monitored, and expert should carry out its manual delineations. This work proposes a new approach to automatically compute BPD, OFD and HC based on morphological characteristics extracted from head shape. Hence, the studied data selected at the same Gestational Age (GA) from the fetal Ultrasound images (US) are classified into two categories: Normal and abnormal. The abnormal subjects include hydrocephalus, microcephaly and dolichocephaly anomalies. By the use of a support vector machines (SVM) method, this study achieved high classification for automated detection of anomalies. The proposed method is promising although it doesn't need expert interventions.

Keywords: biometric measurements, fetal head malformations, machine learning methods, US images

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Authors: Amal Hussain Alkhaiwani, Ghadah Abdullah Almalki

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Recently human errors have increasingly become a very high factor in security breaches that may affect confidential data, and most of the cyber data breaches are caused by human errors. With one individual mistake, the attacker will gain access to the entire network and bypass the implemented access controls without any immediate detection. Unaware employees will be vulnerable to any social engineering cyber-attacks. Providing security awareness to People is part of the company protection process; the cyber risks cannot be reduced by just implementing technology; the human awareness of security will significantly reduce the risks, which encourage changes in staff cyber-awareness. In this paper, we will focus on Human Awareness, human needs to continue the required security education level; we will review human errors and introduce a proposed solution to avoid the breach from occurring again. Recently Saudi Arabia faced many attacks with different methods of social engineering. As Saudi Arabia has become a target to many countries and individuals, we needed to initiate a defense mechanism that begins with awareness to keep our privacy and protect the confidential data against possible intended attacks.

Keywords: cybersecurity, human aspects, human errors, human mistakes, security awareness, Saudi Arabia, security program, security education, social engineering

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Authors: Bahor Bahriddinovna Turaeva

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The article provides a structural analysis of the titles of the famous Kyrgyz writer Chingiz Aitmatov’s creative works “The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years”, “Doomsday”. The author’s creative purpose in naming the work of art, the role of the elements of the plot, and the composition of the novels in revealing the essence of the title are explained. The criteria that are important in naming the author’s works in different genres are classified, and the titles that mean artistic time and artistic space are studied separately. Chronotope is being concerned as the literary-aesthetic category in world literary studies, expressing the scope of the universe interpretation, the author’s outlook and imagination regarding the world foundation, defining personages, and the composition means of expressing the sequence and duration of the events. A creative comprehension of the chronotope as a means of arranging the work composition, structure and constructing an epic field of the text demands a special approach to understanding the aesthetic character of the work. Since the chronotope includes all the elements of a fictional work, it is impossible to present the plot, composition, conflict, system of characters, feelings, and mood of the characters without the description of the chronotope. In the following development of the scientific-theoretical thought in the world, the chronotope is accepted to be one of the poetic means to demonstrate reality as well as to be a literary process that is basic for the expression of reality in the compositional construction and illustration of the plot relying on the writer’s intention and the ideological conception of the literary work. Literary time enables one to cognate the literary world picture created by the author in terms of the descriptive subject and object of the work. Therefore, one of the topical tasks of modern Uzbek literary studies is to describe historical evidence, event, the life of outstanding people, the chronology of the near past based on the literary time; on the example of the creative works of a certain period, creators or an individual writer are analyzed in separate or comparative-typological aspect.

Keywords: novel, title, chronotope, motive, epigraph, analepsis, structural analysis, plot line, composition

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Authors: Claudio Clemente, Valentina Gargiulo, Alessio Occhicone, Giovanni Piero Pepe, Giovanni Ausanio, Michela Alfè

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Volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions represent a serious risk to human health and the integrity of the ecosystems, especially at high concentrations. For this reason, it is very important to continuously monitor environmental quality and develop fast and reliable portable sensors to allow analysis on site. Chemiresistors have become promising candidates for VOC sensing as their ease of fabrication, variety of suitable sensitive materials, and simple sensing data. A chemoresistive gas sensor is a transducer that allows to measure the concentration of an analyte in the gas phase because the changes in resistance are proportional to the amount of the analyte present. The selection of the sensitive material, which interacts with the target analyte, is very important for the sensor performance. The most used VOC detection materials are metal oxides (MOx) for their rapid recovery, high sensitivity to various gas molecules, easy fabrication. Their sensing performance can be improved in terms of operating temperature, selectivity, and detection limit. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) have attracted a lot of attention also in the field of gas sensing due to their high porosity, high surface area, tunable morphologies, structural variety. MOFs are generated by the self-assembly of multidentate organic ligands connecting with adjacent multivalent metal nodes via strong coordination interactions, producing stable and highly ordered crystalline porous materials with well-designed structures. However, most MOFs intrinsically exhibit low electrical conductivity. To improve this property, MOFs can be combined with organic and inorganic materials in a hybrid fashion to produce composite materials or can be transformed into more stable structures. MOFs, indeed, can be employed as the precursors of metal oxides with well-designed architectures via the calcination method. The MOF-derived MOx partially preserved the original structure with high surface area and intrinsic open pores, which act as trapping centers for gas molecules, and showed a higher electrical conductivity. Core-shell heterostructures, in which the surface of a metal oxide core is completely coated by a MOF shell, forming a junction at the core-shell heterointerface, can also be synthesized. Also, nanocomposite in which MOF structures are intercalated with graphene related materials can also be produced, and the conductivity increases thanks to the high mobility of electrons of carbon materials. As MOF structures, zinc-based MOFs belonging to the ZIF family were selected in this work. Several Zn-based materials based and/or derived from MOFs were produced, structurally characterized, and arranged in a chemo resistive architecture, also exploring the potentiality of different approaches of sensing layer deposition based on PLD (pulsed laser deposition) and, in case of thermally labile materials, MAPLE (Matrix Assisted Pulsed Laser Evaporation) to enhance the adhesion to the support. The sensors were tested in a controlled humidity chamber, allowing for the possibility of varying the concentration of ethanol, a typical analyte chosen among the VOCs for a first survey. The effect of heating the chemiresistor to improve sensing performances was also explored. Future research will focus on exploring new manufacturing processes for MOF-based gas sensors with the aim to improve sensitivity, selectivity and reduce operating temperatures.

Keywords: chemiresistors, gas sensors, graphene related materials, laser deposition, MAPLE, metal-organic frameworks, metal oxides, nanocomposites, sensing performance, transduction mechanism, volatile organic compounds

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Authors: Giacomo Ciani

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This paper reviews the impact of quantum noise on modern gravitational wave interferometers and explains how squeezed vacuum states are used to push the noise below the standard quantum limit. With the first detection of gravitational waves from a pair of colliding black holes in September 2015 and subsequent detections including that of gravitational waves from a pair of colliding neutron stars, the ground-based interferometric gravitational wave observatories LIGO and VIRGO have opened the era of gravitational-wave and multi-messenger astronomy. Improving the sensitivity of the detectors is of paramount importance to increase the number and quality of the detections, fully exploiting this new information channel about the universe. Although still in the commissioning phase and not at nominal sensitivity, these interferometers are designed to be ultimately limited by a combination of shot noise and quantum radiation pressure noise, which define an envelope known as the standard quantum limit. Despite the name, this limit can be beaten with the use of advanced quantum measurement techniques, with the use of squeezed vacuum states being currently the most mature and promising. Different strategies for implementation of the technology in the large-scale detectors, in both their frequency-independent and frequency-dependent variations, are presented, together with an analysis of the main technological issues and expected sensitivity gain.

Keywords: gravitational waves, interferometers, squeezed vacuum, standard quantum limit

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Authors: Khaliun Nyambayar, Nomindari Azzaya, Batkhuyag Purevjav

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Pharmacovigilance was officially introduced in Mongolia in 2003, in accordance with the Health Minister Order 183 for the registry of adverse drug reactions (ADR), approved in 2006 and was reviewed in 2010. This study was designed to evaluate the incidence and common types of adverse drug reactions among hospitalized children, the frequency of adverse drug reaction reported by health care providers, and the follow-up processes resulting from adverse drug reactions. A retrospective study of paediatric patients who experienced an adverse drug reaction from 2015 to 2019, extracted from the “yellow” card at the State Research Center for Maternal and Child Health, (city). A total of 417 adverse drug reactions were reported with an overall incidence was 80 (21.5%). Adverse reactions resulting from the use of antibiotics (particularly gentamycin, cephalosporins, and vancomycin) were usually mild. ADR’s were reported by physicians and nurses (93.8%), pharmacists (6.25%). Although documentation of physician notification occurred for 93% of adverse drug reactions, only 29% of cases were documented in the patient's medical chart, 13% included follow-up education for individuals involved, and 10% were updated in the allergy profile of the hospital computer system. Measures to improve the detection and reporting of adverse drug reactions by all health care professionals should be improved, to enhance our understanding of the nature and impact of these reactions in children.

Keywords: adverse drug reaction, pediatric, yellow card, Mongolia

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Authors: Qinghua Xing, Noha M. Mesbah, Haisheng Wang, Jun Li, Baisuo Zhao

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Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) is being increasingly adopted for gene detection and quantification because of its higher sensitivity and specificity. According to previous observations and our lab data, it is essential to use endogenous reference genes (RGs) when investigating gene expression at the mRNA level under salt stress. This study aimed to select and validate suitable RGs for gene expression under salt stress using ddPCR. Six candidate RGs were selected based on the tandem mass tag (TMT)-labeled quantitative proteomics of Alkalicoccus halolimnae at four salinities. The expression stability of these candidate genes was evaluated using statistical algorithms (geNorm, NormFinder, BestKeeper and RefFinder). There was a small fluctuation in cycle threshold (Ct) value and copy number of the pdp gene. Its expression stability was ranked in the vanguard of all algorithms, and was the most suitable RG for quantification of expression by both qPCR and ddPCR of A. halolimnae under salt stress. Single RG pdp and RG combinations were used to normalize the expression of ectA, ectB, ectC, and ectD under four salinities. The present study constitutes the first systematic analysis of endogenous RG selection for halophiles responding to salt stress. This work provides a valuable theory and an approach reference of internal control identification for ddPCR-based stress response models.

Keywords: endogenous reference gene, salt stress, ddPCR, RT-qPCR, Alkalicoccus halolimnae

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Authors: Bo Hu, Shibo Wang, Haoyang Zhang, Jie Shi

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With the development of sonar detection technology, the acoustic stealth technology of underwater vehicles is facing severe challenges. The underwater acoustic coating is developing towards the direction of low-frequency absorption capability and broad absorption frequency bandwidth. In this paper, an acoustic model of underwater acoustic coating of composite material embedded with periodical steel structure is presented. The model has multiple high absorption peaks in the frequency range of 1kHz-8kHz, where achieves high sound absorption and broad bandwidth performance. It is found that the frequencies of the absorption peaks are related to the classic half-wavelength transmission principle. The sound absorption performance of the acoustic model is investigated by the finite element method using COMSOL software. The sound absorption mechanism of the proposed model is explained by the distributions of the displacement vector field. The influence of geometric parameters of periodical steel structure, including thickness and distance, on the sound absorption ability of the proposed model are further discussed. The acoustic model proposed in this study provides an idea for the design of underwater low-frequency broadband acoustic coating, and the results shows the possibility and feasibility for practical underwater application.

Keywords: acoustic coating, composite material, broad frequency bandwidth, sound absorption performance

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Authors: Zakieh Piri, Shahla Damanabi, Peyman Rezaii Hachesoo

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Introduction: Healthcare organizations like other organizations suffer from a number of disorders such as Business Sponsor Disorder, Business Acceptance Disorder, Cultural/Political Disorder, Data Disorder, etc. As quality in healthcare care mostly depends on the quality of data, we aimed to identify data disorders and its symptoms in two teaching hospitals. Methods: Using a self-constructed questionnaire, we asked 20 questions in related to quality and usability of patient data stored in patient records. Research population consisted of 150 managers, physicians, nurses, medical record staff who were working at the time of study. We also asked their views about the symptoms and treatments for any data disorders they mentioned in the questionnaire. Using qualitative methods we analyzed the answers. Results: After classifying the answers, we found six main data disorders: incomplete data, missed data, late data, blurred data, manipulated data, illegible data. The majority of participants believed in their important roles in treatment of data disorders while others believed in health system problems. Discussion: As clinicians have important roles in producing of data, they can easily identify symptoms and disorders of patient data. Health information managers can also play important roles in early detection of data disorders by proactively monitoring and periodic check-ups of data.

Keywords: data disorders, quality, healthcare, treatment

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Authors: Elham Shahrjooi Haghighi

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This research explores how lexical bundles are utilized in writing in the field of linguistics by comparing professional Persian writers with native English writers using corpus-based studies and advanced computational techniques to examine the occurrence and characteristics of lexical bundles in academic writings. The review of literature emphasizes how important lexical bundles are, in organizing discussions and conveying opinions in both spoken and written language contexts across genres and proficiency levels in fields of study. Previous research has indicated that native English writers tend to employ an array and diversity of bundles than non-native writers do; these bundles are essential elements in academic writing. In this study’s methodology section, the research utilizes a corpus-based method to analyze a collection of writings such as research papers and advanced theses at the doctoral and masters’ levels. The examination uncovers variances in the utilization of groupings between writers who are native speakers of Persian and those who are native English speakers with the latter group displaying a greater occurrence and variety, in types of groupings. Furthermore, the research delves into how these groupings contribute to aspects classifying them into categories based on their relevance to research text structure and individuals as outlined in Hyland’s framework. The results show that Persian authors employ phrases and demonstrate distinct structural and functional tendencies in comparison to native English writers. This variation is linked to differing language skills, levels, disciplinary norms and cultural factors. The study also highlights the pedagogical implications of these findings, suggesting that targeted instruction on the use of lexical bundles could enhance the academic writing skills of non-native speakers. In conclusion, this research contributes to the understanding of lexical bundles in academic writing by providing a detailed comparative analysis of their use by Persian and native English writers. The insights from this study have important implications for language education and the development of effective writing strategies for non-native English speakers in academic contexts.

Keywords: lexical bundles, academic writing, comparative analysis, computational techniques

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Authors: M. Cuevas-González, O. Monserrat, A. Barra, C. Reyes-Carmona, R.M. Mateos, J. P. Galve, R. Sarro, M. Cantalejo, E. Peña, M. Martínez-Corbella, J. A. Luque, J. M. Azañón, A. Millares, M. Béjar, J. A. Navarro, L. Solari

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Geohazard prone areas require continuous monitoring to detect risks, understand the phenomena occurring in those regions and prevent disasters. Satellite interferometry (InSAR) has come to be a trustworthy technique for ground movement detection and monitoring in the last few years. InSAR based techniques allow to process large areas providing high number of displacement measurements at low cost. However, the results provided by such techniques are usually not easy to interpret by non-experienced users hampering its use for decision makers. This work presents a set of tools developed in the framework of different projects (Momit, Safety, U-Geohaz, Riskcoast) and an example of their use in the Granada Coastal area (Spain) is shown. The ADA (Active Displacement Areas) tool have been developed with the aim of easing the management, use and interpretation of InSAR based results. It provides a semi-automatic extraction of the most significant ADAs through the application ADAFinder tool. This tool aims to support the exploitation of the European Ground Motion Service (EU-GMS), which will provide consistent, regular and reliable information regarding natural and anthropogenic ground motion phenomena all over Europe.

Keywords: ground displacements, InSAR, natural hazards, satellite imagery

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Authors: Aliya Hisam, Zia Ul Haq, Sohail Aziz, Patrick Doherty, Jill Pell

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Objective: To determine the effectiveness of Mobile health augmented Cardiac rehabilitation (MCard) on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among post-acute coronary syndrome(post-ACS) patients. Methodology: In a randomized controlled trial, post-ACS patients were randomly allocated (1:1) to an intervention group (received MCard; counseling, empowering with self-monitoring devices, short text messages, in addition to standard post-ACS care) or control group (standard post-ACS care). HRQoL was assessed by generic Short Form-12 and MacNew quality of life myocardial infarction (QLMI) tools. Participants were followed for 24 weeks with data collection and analysis at three-time points (baseline, 12 weeks and 24 weeks). Result: At baseline, 160 patients (80 in each group; mean age 52.66+8.46 years; 126 males, 78.75%) were recruited, of which 121(75.62%) continued and were analyzed at 12-weeks and 119(74.37%) at 24-weeks. The mean SF-12 physical component score significantly improved in the MCard group at 12 weeks follow-up (48.93 vs. control 43.87, p<.001) and 24 weeks (53.52 vs. 46.82 p<.001). The mean SF-12 mental component scores also improved significantly in the MCard group at 12 weeks follow-up (44.84 vs. control 41.40, p<.001) and 24 weeks follow-up (48.95 vs 40.12, p<.001). At 12-and 24-week follow-up, all domains of MacNew QLMI (social, emotional, physical and global) were also statistically significant (p<.001) improved in the MCard group, unlike the control group. Conclusion: MCard is feasible and effective at improving all domains of HRQoL. There was an improvement in physical, mental, social, emotional and global domains among the MCard group in comparison to the control group. The addition of MCard programs to post-ACS standard care may improve patient outcomes and reduce the burden on the health care setting.

Keywords: acute coronary syndrome, mobile health augmented cardiac rehabilitation (MCard), cardiovascular diseases, cardiac rehabilitation, health-related quality of life, short form 12, MacNew QLMI

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Authors: Khalid Mahmud

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In this paper, an analytic approach is presented to evaluate the Bit Error Rate (BER) and round trip distance for a UWB chipless RFID system using diversity technique at the reader receiver using different modulation technique. The analysis is carried out with multiresonator based chipless RFID tags using frequency range from 3 GHz − 6 GHz and bandwidth of 500 M Hz in outdoor non-line-of-sight (NLOS) environment. SISO configuration is used to communicate from the reader to the tag and SIMO configuration is used do vice versa. Maximal Ratio Combining (MRC) technique is used in the reader. MPSK, DQPSK, DBPSK, BPSK, QPSK and DMPSK modulation techniques are considered with coherent demodulation to evaluate the BER performance. From the numerical analysis of the results, it is found that at a given BER maximum possible round trip distance can be achieved using DMPSK modulation technique. In addition, it has been proved that, while using DMPSK modulation technique, the application of diversity has very little effect on the overall improvement in reader receiver sensitivity and achievable distance. Finally the method not only proves to be a very good way for tag detection in case of a chipless RFID system but also gives a clear insight regarding the interrelationship between BER, read range, reader received power, number of receiving antenna in outdoor NLOS environment.

Keywords: EGC, MRC, BER, read range, diversity

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Authors: Omojokun Gabriel Aju

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Communication network is a process of exchanging data between two or more devices via some forms of transmission medium using communication protocols. The data could be in form of text, images, audio, video or numbers which can be grouped into FTP, Email, HTTP, VOIP or Video applications. The effectiveness of such data exchange will be proved if they are accurately delivered within specified time. While some senders will not really mind when the data is actually received by the receiving device, inasmuch as it is acknowledged to have been received by the receiver. The time a data takes to get to a receiver could be very important to another sender, as any delay could cause serious problem or even in some cases rendered the data useless. The validity or invalidity of a data after delay will therefore definitely depend on the type of data (information). It is therefore imperative for the network device (such as router) to be able to differentiate among the packets which are time sensitive and those that are not, when they are passing through the same network. So, here is where the queuing disciplines comes to play, to handle network resources when such network is designed to service widely varying types of traffics and manage the available resources according to the configured policies. Therefore, as part of the resources allocation mechanisms, a router within the network must implement some queuing discipline that governs how packets (data) are buffered while waiting to be transmitted. The implementation of the queuing discipline will regulate how the packets are buffered while waiting to be transmitted. In achieving this, various queuing disciplines are being used to control the transmission of these packets, by determining which of the packets get the highest priority, less priority and which packets are dropped. The queuing discipline will therefore control the packets latency by determining how long a packet can wait to be transmitted or dropped. The common queuing disciplines are first-in-first-out queuing, Priority queuing and Weighted-fair queuing (FIFO, PQ and WFQ). This paper critically evaluates and analyse through the use of Optimized Network Evaluation Tool (OPNET) Modeller, Version 14.5 the effects of three queuing disciplines (FIFO, PQ and WFQ) on the performance of 5 different applications (FTP, HTTP, E-Mail, Voice and Video) within specified parameters using packets sent, packets received and transmission delay as performance metrics. The paper finally suggests some ways in which networks can be designed to provide better transmission performance while using these queuing disciplines.

Keywords: applications, first-in-first-out queuing (FIFO), optimised network evaluation tool (OPNET), packets, priority queuing (PQ), queuing discipline, weighted-fair queuing (WFQ)

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Authors: E. T. Svahn

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Knowledge about the factors that influence the exchange between research and society is of the utmost importance for developing collaboration between different actors, especially in future science policy development and the creation of support structures for researchers. Among other things, how researchers look at the surrounding open science policy environment and what conditions and attitudes they have for interacting with it. This paper examines the Finnish researchers' attitudes towards open science policies in 2020. Open science is an integrated part of researchers' daily lives and supports not only the effectiveness of research outputs but also the quality of research. Open science policy in ideal situation is seen as a supporting structure that enables the exchange between research and society, but in other situation, it can end up being red tape generating obstacles and hindering possibilities of making science in an efficient way. Results of this study were carried out through focus group interviews. This qualitative research method was selected because it aims to understand the phenomenon under study. In addition, focus group interviews produce diverse and rich material that would not be available with other research methods. Focus group interviews have well-established applications in social science, especially in understanding the perspectives and experiences of research subjects. In this study, focus groups were used in studying the mindset and actions of researchers. Each group's size was between 4-10 people, and the aim was to bring out different perspectives on the subject. The interviewer enabled the presentation of different perceptions and opinions, and the focus group interviews were recorded and written as text. The material was analysed using grounded theory method. The results are presented as thematic areas, theoretical model, and as direct quotations. Attitudes towards open science policy can vary greatly depending on the research area. This study shows that the open science policy demands in medicine, technology, and natural sciences compared to social sciences, educational sciences, and the humanities, varies somewhat. The variation in attitudes between different research areas can thus be largely explained by the fact that the research output and ethical code vary significantly between certain subjects. This study aims to increase understanding of the nuances to what extent open science policies should be tailored for different disciplines and research areas.

Keywords: focus group interview, grounded theory, open science policy, science policy

Procedia PDF Downloads 151

Authors: Malik Abdul Jabbar Zen, Wiwik Misaco Yuniarti, Azisya Amalia Karimasari, Novita Priandini

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Zoonos is as an infectiontransmitted froma nimals to human sand vice versa currently having increased in the last 20 years. The experts/scientists predict that zoonosis will be a threat to the community in the future since it leads on 70% emerging infectious diseases (EID) and the high mortality of 50%-90%. The zoonosis’ spread from animal to human is caused by contaminated food known as foodborne disease. One World One Health, as the conceptual prevention toward zoonosis, requires the crossed disciplines cooperation to accelerate and streamlinethe handling ofanimal-based disease. E-Vet Smart Rapid System is an integrated innovation in the veterinary expertise application is able to facilitate the prevention, treatment, and educationagainst pandemic diseases and zoonosis. This system is constructed by Decision Support System (DSS) method provides a database of knowledge that is expected to facilitate the identification of disease rapidly, precisely, and accurately as well as to identify the deduction. The testingis conducted through a black box test case and questionnaire (N=30) by validity and reliability approach. Based on the black box test case reveals that E-Vet Rapid System is able to deliver the results in accordance with system design, and questionnaire shows that this system is valid (r > 0.361) and has a reliability (α > 0.3610).

Keywords: diagnosis, disease, expert systems, livestock, zoonosis

Procedia PDF Downloads 447

Authors: Ivana Prochazkova

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Cognitive linguistics offers biblical scholarship a specific methodological tool for analysis and interpretation of metaphorical expressions. Its methodology makes it possible to study processes involved in constructing the meaning of individual metaphorical expressions and whole conceptual metaphors; to analyze their function in the text; to follow the semantic development of concepts and conceptual domains, and to trace semantic changes and their motivation. The legal language in the Hebrew canon is extremely specific and formalized. Especially in the preambles to the collections of laws in the Pentateuch, more general considerations of the motif of keeping and breaking the law are encountered. This is also true in the psalms and wisdom literature. Legal theory and the philosophy of law deal with these motifs today. Metaphors play an important role in texts that reflect on more general issues. The purpose of this conference contribution is to write all over the central metaphorical concept, conceptual metaphor ךרד תורה (TORAH/LAW IS A JOURNEY), its function in the Torah and principal trends of the further development in the Prophets and the Writings. The conceptual metaphor תורה ךרד (TORAH/LAW IS A JOURNEY) constitutes a coherent system in conjunction with other metaphors that include e.g., conceptual metaphors נחה תורה (TORAH/LAW LEADS); its variant רעה תורה (TORAH IS A SHEPHERD/GUIDE); מקור תורה (TORAH/LAW IS A FOUNTAIN/A SOURCE OF LIFE). Some conceptual metaphors are well known, and their using are conventional (עשׁר תורה TORAH/LAW IS RICHES, שׂשׂון תורה TORAH/LAW IS DELIGHT, דבשׁ תורה TORAH/LAW IS HONEY, שׁמשׁ תורה TORAH/LAW IS SUN ). But some conceptual metaphors are by its occurrence innovative and unique (e.g., שׁריון תורה TORAH /LAW IS BODY ARMOR, כובע תורה TORAH /LAW IS A HELMET, בגד תורה TORAH/LAW IS A GARMENT, etc.). There will be given examples. Conceptual metaphors will be described by means of some 'metaphorical vehicles,' which are Hebrew expressions in the source domain that are repeatedly used in metaphorical conceptualizations of the target domain(s). Conceptual metaphors will be further described by means of 'generic narrative structures,' which are the particular aspects of a conceptual metaphor that emerge during the metaphorical structuring of concepts. They are the units of the metaphorical vehicles – the Hebrew expressions in the source domain – that structure concepts in much the same way that the conceptual metaphor in the target domain does. And finally, they will be described by means of the network of correspondences that exist between metaphorical vehicles – or generic metaphorical structures – and the Hebrew expressions in the target domain.

Keywords: cognitive theology, conceptual metaphor in the Old Testament, conceptual metaphors of the Torah, conceptual domain of law, righteousness, and justice

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Authors: Abdullah Mohammad, Abdullah Alshemali, Esmaeil Alsaleh

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The chemical composition of desalinated water is modified to make it more acceptable to the end-user. Sometimes, this modification is approached by mixing with brackish water that is known to contain a variety of minerals. Expectedly, besides minerals, brackish water indigenous bacterial communities access the final mixture hence reaching the end consumer. The current project examined the safety of using brackish water as an ingredient in potable water. Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains were detected in potable and brackish water samples collected from storage facilities in residential areas as well as from main water distribution and storage tanks. The application of molecular and biochemical fingerprinting methods, including phylogeny, RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism), MLST (multilocus sequence typing) and substrate specificity testing, suggested that the potable water P. aeruginosa strains were most probably originated from brackish water. Additionally, all the sixty-four isolates showed multi-drug resistance (MDR) phenotype and harboured the three genes responsible for biofilm formation. These virulence factors represent serious health hazards compelling the scientific community to revise the WHO (World Health Organization) and USEP (US Environmental Protection Agency) A potable water quality guidelines, particularly those related to the types of bacterial genera that evade the current water quality guidelines.

Keywords: potable water, brackish water, pseudomonas aeroginosa, multidrug resistance

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Authors: Naila Sher, Mushtaq Ahmed, Nadia Mushtaq, Rahmat Ali Khan

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In cancer therapy, nanoparticles (NPs) shall be applied possibly by inoculation in the veins of humans. This action will connect them with white (WBCs) and red blood cells (RBCs) in the bloodstream before they reach their main targeted cancer cells. However, possible effects of silver, gold, and silver/gold bimetallic NPs (Ag, Au, and Ag/Au BNPs) on baby hamster kidney-21 (BHK-21) cells were studied by MTT assay. Here, Ag, Au, and their Ag/Au BNPs (bimetallic nanoparticles) were synthesized by using Hippeastrum hybridum (HH) extract. These NPs were characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, FT-IR, XRD, and EDX, and SEM analysis. XRD analysis conferring the crystal structure with an average size of 13.3, 10.72, and 8.34nm of Ag, Au, and Ag/Au BNPs, respectively. SEM showed that Ag, Au, and Ag/Au BNPs had irregular morphologies, with nano measures calculated sizes of 40, 30, and 20 nm respectively. EDX spectrometers confirmed the presence of elemental Ag signal of the AgNPs with 22.75%, Au signal of the AuNPs with 48.08%, Ag signal with 12%, and Au signal with 38.26% of the Ag/Au BNPs. The BHK-21cells were incubated in the existence of doxorubicin, plant extract, Ag, Au, and Ag/Au BNPs. The cytotoxic effects could be observed in a dose-dependent mode; doxorubicin and Ag/Au BNPs were more toxic than plant extract, Ag, and Au NPs. It is demonstrated that NPs interact with BHK-21cells and significantly reduce cell viability in a concentration-dependent manner. However, to reduce the potential threats of NPs further studies are recommended.

Keywords: hippeastrum hybridum, nanoparticle, BHK-21cells

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Authors: Nasser A. Al-Shabib

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Food allergens are most common non-native form when exposed to the immune system. Most food proteins undergo various treatments (e.g. thermal or proteolytic processing) during food manufacturing. Such treatments have the potential to impact the chemical structure of food allergens so as to convert them to more denatured or unfolded forms. The conformational changes in the proteins may affect the allergenicity of treated-allergens. However, most allergenic proteins possess high resistance against thermal modification or digestive enzymes. In the present study, ovomucoid (a major allergenic protein of egg white) was heated in phosphate-buffered saline (pH 7.4) at different temperatures, aqueous solutions and on different surfaces for various times. The results indicated that different antibody-based methods had different sensitivities in detecting the heated ovomucoid. When using one particular immunoassay‚ the immunoreactivity of ovomucoid increased rapidly after heating in water whereas immunoreactivity declined after heating in alkaline buffer (pH 10). Ovomucoid appeared more immunoreactive when dissolved in PBS (pH 7.4) and heated on a stainless steel surface. To the best of our knowledge‚ this is the first time that antibody-based methods have been applied for the detection of ovomucoid adsorbed onto different surfaces under various conditions. The results obtained suggest that use of antibodies to detect ovomucoid after food processing may be problematic. False assurance will be given with the use of inappropriate‚ non-validated immunoassays such as those available commercially as ‘Swab’ tests. A greater understanding of antibody-protein interaction after processing of a protein is required.

Keywords: ovomucoid, thermal treatment, solutions, surfaces

Procedia PDF Downloads 445

Authors: Nina Tsvetkova, Rumen Harizanov, Aleksandra Ivanova, Iskra Rainova, Nina Yancheva-Petrova, Dimitar Strashimirov, Raina Enikova, Mihaela Videnova, Eleonora Kaneva, Iskren Kaftandjiev, Viktoria Levterova, Ivan Simeonovski, Nikolay Yanev, Georgi Hinkov

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The Pneumocystis jirovecii (P. jirovecii) and protozoan of the genera Acanthamoeba, Cryptosporidium, and Toxoplasma gondii are opportunistic pathogens that can cause life-threatening infections in immunocompromised patients. Aim of the study was to evaluate the coinfection rate with opportunistic protozoal agents among Bulgarian patients diagnosed with P. jirovecii pneumonia. Thirty-eight pulmonary samples were collected from 38 patients (28 HIV-infected) with P. jirovecii infection. P. jirovecii DNA was detected by real-time PCR targeting the large mitochondrial subunit ribosomal RNA gene. Acanthamoeba was determined by genus-specific conventional PCR assay. Real-time PCR for the detection of a Toxoplasma gondii and Cryptosporidium DNA fragment was used. Pneumocystis DNA was detected in all 38 specimens; 28 (73.7%) were from HIV-infected patients. Three (10,7%) of them were co-infected with T. gondii and 1 (3.6%) with Cryptosporidium. In the group of non-HIV-infected (n=10), Cryptosporidium DNA was detected in an infant (10%). Acanthamoeba DNA was not found in the tested samples. The current study showed a relatively low rate of coinfections of Cryptosporidium spp./T. gondii and P. jirovecii in the Bulgarian patients studied.

Keywords: coinfection, opportunistic protozoal agents, Pneumocystis jirovecii, pulmonary infections

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Authors: Mona Marzouk, Nesrine Hegazi, Aliaa Ragheb, Mona El Shabrawy, Salwa Kawashty

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The whole plant of Matthiola longipetala (Brassicaceae) was extracted by 70% methanol to give the total aqueous methanol extract (AME), which was defatted by hexane yielded hexane extract (HE) and defatted AME (DAME). HE was analyzed through GC/MS assay and revealed the detection of 28 non-polar compounds. In addition, the chemical investigation of DAME led to the isolation and purification of twelve flavonoids and three chlorogenic acids. Their structures were interpreted through chemical (complete and partial acid hydrolysis) and spectroscopic analysis (MS, UV, 1D and 2D NMR). Among them, nine compounds have been isolated for the first time from M. longipetala. Moreover, LC-ESI-MS analysis of DAME was achieved to detect additional 46 metabolites, including phospholipids, organic acids, phenolic acids and flavonoids. The biological activity of AME, HE and DAME against alloxan inducing oxidative stress and diabetes in male rats was investigated. Diabetes was induced using a single dose of Alloxan (150 mg/kg b.wt.). HE and DAME significantly increased serum GSH content in rats (37.3±0.7 and 35.9±0.6 mmol/l) compared to diabetic rats (21.8±0.3) and vitamin E (36.2±1.1) at P<0.01. Also, HE, DAME and AME revealed a significant acute anti-hyperglycemic effect potentiated after four weeks of treatment with blood glucose levels of 96.2±5.4, 98.7±6.1 and 98.9±8.6 mg/dl, respectively, compared to diabetic rats (263.4±7.8) and metaformin group (81.9±2.4) at P<0.01.

Keywords: Brassicaceae, Flavonoid, LCMS/MS, Matthiola

Procedia PDF Downloads 174

Authors: Aqeela Ashraf, Muhammad Imran, Tahir Yaqub, Muhammad Tayyab, Yung Fu Chang

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For the identification of bovine mastitic pathogen, an economical, rapid and sensitive molecular diagnostic assay is developed by PCR multiplexing of gene and pathogenic species specific DNA sequences. The multiplex PCR assay is developed for detecting nine important bacterial pathogens causing mastitis Worldwide. The bacterial species selected for this study are Streptococcus agalactiae, Streptococcus dysagalactiae, Streptococcus uberis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, Staphylococcus chromogenes Mycoplasma bovis and Staphylococcus epidermidis. A single reaction assay was developed and validated by 27 reference strains and further tested on 276 bacterial strains obtained from culturing mastitic milk. The multiplex PCR assay developed here is further evaluated by applying directly on genomic DNA isolated from 200 mastitic milk samples. It is compared with bacterial culturing method and proved to be more sensitive, rapid, economical and can specifically identify 9 bacterial pathogens in a single reaction. It has detected the pathogens in few culture negative mastitic samples. Recognition of disease is the foundation of disease control and prevention. This assay can be very helpful for maintaining the udder health and milk monitoring.

Keywords: multiplex PCR, bacteria, mastitis, milk

Procedia PDF Downloads 325