Search results for: family care team

Authors: Anocha Kimkong

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This research paper, based on demographic variables, is aimed to study the behaviour of bookkeeping for household accounts of residents living in urban communities in Dusit District, Bangkok and to investigate factors that affected the behavior of bookkeeping. By use of non proportional stratified sampling technique of probability sampling, the research had a total of 247 samples. The systematic sampling technique was also utilized by selecting one household out of every 3 households. The demographic findings reported female respondents as the majority with an average age between 26-35 years old, having married status and having children. The respondents earn a living by selling, with an average income per month of between 5,001-15,000 Baht. Most of the families rent a house and each family have approximately 3-4 members. Furthermore, most of the household respondents used to be trained to do bookkeeping for household accounts. In addition, the factors in affecting the residents’ behaviour of doing household account bookkeeping included a dislike of numbers, inaccuracy of recording, availability of accounting counselors in the communities, people’s participation in trainings arranged by outside organizations.

Keywords: household account, bookkeeping, urban community, demographic variables

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Authors: Cristina Costa-Lobo, Ana Campina, José Menezes

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Creativity implies originality, but originality does not imply the existence of creativity. Today, one of the challenges of the educational context is the development of educated, autonomous, prudent and competent citizens with a critical attitude, a well-founded questioning and a creative search for innovative alternatives and solutions. These supposedly cognitive capacities impose emotional analysis and decision making, and emotion is also considered as a creative act. Authors emphasize the importance of family and school in the creative manifestation of children and young people, and these agents can stimulate or impede creative expression. Thus, children entering the school system are faced with a barrier that blocks the externalization of this competence. This work deals with the implementation of specific strategies and promoters of an educational environment suitable for the development of creativity. The construct of creativity is discussed in a transdisciplinary perspective, and the importance of the construct is enhanced in psychoeducational practices, in challenging and multifaceted environments. It is assumed that the stimulation and early experience of creative thinking in an educational context are conditions that promote the development of problem-solving skills and future challenges.

Keywords: creativity, education, psychology, pedagogy

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Authors: Eun Gyeong Lee, Ji Young Park, Hyun Ae Woo

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Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production is involved in ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in kidney of mice. Oxidative stress develops from an imbalance between ROS production and reduced antioxidant defenses. Many enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant systems including peroxiredoxins (Prxs) are present in kidney to maintain an appropriate level of ROS and prevent oxidative damage. Prxs are a family of peroxidases that reduce peroxides, with a conserved cysteine residue serving as the site of oxidation by peroxides. In this study, we examined the protective role of Prx V against I/R-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) using Prx V wild type (WT) and knockout (KO) mice. We compared the response of Prx V WT and KO mice in mice model of I/R injury. Renal structure, functions, oxidative stress markers, protein levels of oxidative damage marker were worse in Prx V KO mice. Ablation of Prx V enhanced susceptibility to I/R-induced oxidative stress. Prx V KO mice were seen to have more severe renal damage than Prx V WT mice in mice model of I/R injury. Our results demonstrate that Prx V is protective against I/R-induced AKI.

Keywords: peroxiredoxin, ischemia/reperfusion, kidney, oxidative stress

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Authors: Iqbal Ahmed Chowdhury

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Diarrhea is considered to be one of the influential factors of child death in Bangladesh. While it is known that diarrhea is a water-driven disease, due to the lack of studies, little is known about the extent to which various feeding patterns contribute to such an incidence. Our paper intends to fill this gap by looking into different feeding patterns and their influence on diarrhea incidence among children in Bangladesh. Using data collected for the Demographic and Health Survey, 2014, this paper reveals that feeding patterns can influence the diarrhea incidence among this group of children to a great extent. This paper finds that the incidence of diarrhea is likely to elevate if diarrhea-affected children are fed plain water from any source and any kind of juice. However, breastfeeding, feeding soup or clear broth, prescribed baby food, and clean water from a tube well tend to help fight diarrhea incidence among children in Bangladesh. The results are found to be consistent even after controlling for sociodemographic variables, including age and sex of children, age and education qualification of the parent, and the number of children in the family. The results of this study could contribute to treating diarrhea among children in Bangladesh as well as similar other countries in the world.

Keywords: feeding patterns, diarrhea, Bangladesh, children

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Authors: Mohsen Amiri

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This study aimed at investigating the relationship between familial functioning, child characteristics, demographic variables and parenting stress and mental health among parents of children with mental disabilities. 200 parents (130 mothers and 70 fathers) were studied and they completed the Parenting Stress Index, General Health Questionnaire, Family Assessment Device and demographic questionnaires for parents and children. Data were analyzed using correlation and regression analysis. Regression analysis showed that child characteristics, familial functioning and parents demographic factors could predict 8, 4 and 17 percent of variance in parental stress and 3.6, 16 and 10 percent of variance in mental health, respectively. Familial functioning, child characteristics and parental demographic variables correlated with mental health and parental stress and could predict them.

Keywords: parenting stress, mental health, mentally disabled children, familial functioning, demographic variables

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Authors: Shilan Rahmani Azr, Siavash Emtiyaz

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Recent development in computing and communicative technologies leads to much easier mobile accessibility to the information. Users can access to the information in different places using various deceives in which the care variety of abilities. Meanwhile, the format and details of electronic documents are changing each day. In these cases, a mismatch is created between content and client’s abilities. Recently the service-oriented content adaption has been developed which the adapting tasks are dedicated to some extended services. In this method, the main problem is to choose the best appropriate service among accessible and distributed services. In this paper, a method for determining the optimal path to the best services, based on the quality control parameters and user preferences, is proposed using max heap tree. The efficiency of this method in contrast to the other previous methods of the content adaptation is related to the determining the optimal path of the best services which are measured. The results show the advantages and progresses of this method in compare of the others.

Keywords: service-oriented content adaption, QoS, max heap tree, web services

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Authors: Fernando L. P. Santos, Luiz G. Lyra, Helenice O. Florentino, Daniela R. Cantane

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Dengue is a febrile infectious disease caused by a virus of the family Flaviridae. It is transmitted by the bite of mosquitoes, usually of the genus Aedes aegypti. It occurs in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. This disease has been a major public health problem worldwide, especially in tropical countries such as Brazil, and its incidence has increased in recent years. Dengue is a subject of intense research. Efficient forms of mosquito control must be considered. In this work, the mono-objective optimal control problem was solved for analysing the dengue disease problem. Chemical and biological controls were considered in the mathematical aspect. This model describes the dynamics of mosquitoes in water and winged phases. We applied the genetic algorithms (GA) to obtain optimal strategies for the control of dengue. Numerical simulations have been performed to verify the versatility and the applicability of this algorithm. On the basis of the present results we may recommend the GA to solve optimal control problem with a large region of feasibility.

Keywords: genetic algorithm, dengue, Aedes aegypti, biological control, chemical control

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Authors: Ankita Shukla

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The promotion and support of breastfeeding is a global priority with benefits for maternal and infant health, especially in low income and middle-income countries where the probability of child survival is still very low. In India too it has been well established that breastfeeding increases the survival of the child. However, the breastfeeding levels are quite low in the country. Examining the socio-economic inequality in breastfeeding pattern can help to the causal pathways responsible for early breastfeeding termination. This paper tries to understand the socio-economic differential in breastfeeding patterns among Indian women. Data is used from nationally representative National Family Health Survey-3. Using Cox regression modelling techniques, the analysis found that the likelihood of having small breastfeeding duration increased with increasing household wealth status similarly education also has negative effect on breastfeeding duration. The considerable gender difference is also visible in India, likelihood of stopping breastfeeding was significantly higher among female children compared with male children. To understand the cultural factors or norms responsible for the early termination of breastfeeding more in depth/qualitative studies are needed.

Keywords: breastfeeding, India, socio-economic inequality, women education

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Authors: Boxiang Zhuang

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This study analyzes the clinical manifestations, hearing rehabilitation methods and outcomes of a complex case of neurofibromatosis type II (NF2). Methods: The clinical manifestations, medical history, clinical data, surgical methods and postoperative hearing rehabilitation outcomes of an NF2 patient were analyzed to determine the hearing reconstruction method and postoperative effect for a special type of NF2 acoustic neuroma. Results: The patient had bilateral acoustic neuromas with profound sensorineural hearing loss in both ears. Peripheral blood genetic testing did not reveal pathogenic gene mutations, suggesting mosaicism. The patient had an intracochlear schwannoma in the right ear and severely impaired vision in both eyes. Cochlear implantation with tumor retention was performed in the right ear. After 2 months of family-based auditory and speech rehabilitation, the Categories of Auditory Performance (CAP) score improved from 0 to 5. Conclusion: NF2 has complex clinical manifestations and poor prognosis. For NF2 patients with intracochlear tumors, cochlear implantation with tumor retention can be used to reconstruct hearing.

Keywords: NF2, intracochlear schwannoma, hearing reconstruction, cochlear implantation

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Authors: Shih-Yu Wang, Shun-Wen Hsiao

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In the field of cybersecurity, there exists many vendors giving malware samples classified results, namely naming after the label that contains some important information which is also called AV label. Lots of researchers relay on AV labels for research. Unfortunately, AV labels are too cluttered. They do not have a fixed format and fixed naming rules because the naming results were based on each classifiers' viewpoints. A way to fix the problem is taking a majority vote. However, voting can sometimes create problems of bias. Thus, we create a novel ensemble approach which does not rely on the cacophonous naming result but depend on group identification to aggregate everyone's opinion. To achieve this purpose, we develop an scoring system called Pairwise Consensus Score (PCS) to calculate result similarity. The entire method architecture combine Genetic Algorithm and PCS to find maximum consensus in the group. Experimental results revealed that our method outperformed the majority voting by 10% in term of the score.

Keywords: genetic algorithm, ensemble learning, malware family, malware labeling, AV labels

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Authors: Mufti Nadimul Quamar Ahmed

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Universal and equitable access to safe and inexpensive water is one of the core goals of UN Sustainable Development (Goal-6). Rainwater harvesting and drinkable water scarcity are also prominent themes in the current literature. However, the lack of readily available drinking water sources is a serious roadblock in achieving this major goal in developing countries, especially in Bangladesh. In this study, we aimed to explore how water collecting activities in Bangladesh's coastal region are influenced by participants’ selected socio-demographic characteristics. We gathered information using a structured questionnaire from 154 people who were chosen at random from two of Bangladesh's most susceptible subdistricts situated in the country's southwest coast. Our results show that majority of the respondents think water fetching is a job for the woman as like their other day-day to household works and it’s not a man's duty. Interestingly, we found that person's age, family structure, monthly income and religion all play important roles in how they see and behave water-gathering techniques. Moreover, the local taboo on women and men's roles in water-gathering is also evident in the studied areas.

Keywords: water fetching, socio-demographic characteristic, coastal region, Bangladesh, SDG

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Authors: Taufik Mulyadin

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The tuition reform for public colleges that the Indonesian government initiated and has implemented since 2013 resulted in the growing number of college students from low-income families, many of whose parents did not attend college. This study sought to examine the experiences of persistence for Indonesian first-generation college students in public universities utilizing social capital as a framework. It is a qualitative study with a phenomenological approach primarily to capture the essence of how Indonesian first-generation college students interpret, process, and experience their persistence during college years. Fifteen Indonesian young college graduates were involved as well as questionnaire and interview were employed for data collection in this study. It revealed certain themes from the experiences that first-generation college students attributed to their persistence: (a) family encouragement, (b) support from friends, (c) guidance from faculty and staff, (d) fund of knowledge they bring with them, (e) financial aid availability, and (f) self-motivation. By examining first-generation college students’ voices, Indonesian public universities can better support, engage, and retain this group of students who were historically struggled to persist in college and complete their degree.

Keywords: first-generation student, Indonesian higher education, persistence, public universities

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Authors: Wenbo Du, Xiaomei Ma

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With the empowerment of Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment (CDA), various domains of language testing and assessment have been investigated to dig out more diagnostic information. What is noticeable is that most of the extant empirical CDA-based research puts much emphasis on individual-level diagnostic purpose with very few concerned about learners’ group-level performance. Even though the personalized diagnostic feedback is the unique feature that differentiates CDA from other assessment tools, group-level diagnostic information cannot be overlooked in that it might be more practical in classroom setting. Additionally, the group-level diagnostic information obtained via current CDA always results in a “flat pattern”, that is, the mastery/non-mastery of all tested skills accounts for the two highest proportion. In that case, the outcome does not bring too much benefits than the original total score. To address these issues, the present study attempts to apply cluster analysis for group classification and quantile regression analysis to pinpoint learners’ performance at different proficiency levels (beginner, intermediate and advanced) thus to enhance the interpretation of the CDA results extracted from a group of EFL learners’ reading performance on a diagnostic reading test designed by PELDiaG research team from a key university in China. The results show that EM method in cluster analysis yield more appropriate classification results than that of CDA, and quantile regression analysis does picture more insightful characteristics of learners with different reading proficiencies. The findings are helpful and practical for instructors to refine EFL reading curriculum and instructional plan tailored based on the group classification results and quantile regression analysis. Meanwhile, these innovative statistical methods could also make up the deficiencies of CDA and push forward the development of language testing and assessment in the future.

Keywords: cognitive diagnostic assessment, diagnostic feedback, EFL reading, quantile regression

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Authors: M. Salvador, J. C. Martinez-Garcia, A. Moyano, M. C. Blanco-Lopez, M. Rivas

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Biosensors play a crucial role in the detection of molecules nowadays due to their advantages of user-friendliness, high selectivity, the analysis in real time and in-situ applications. Among them, Lateral Flow Immunoassays (LFIAs) are presented among technologies for point-of-care bioassays with outstanding characteristics such as affordability, portability and low-cost. They have been widely used for the detection of a vast range of biomarkers, which do not only include proteins but also nucleic acids and even whole cells. Although the LFIA has traditionally been a positive/negative test, tremendous efforts are being done to add to the method the quantifying capability based on the combination of suitable labels and a proper sensor. One of the most successful approaches involves the use of magnetic sensors for detection of magnetic labels. Bringing together the required characteristics mentioned before, our research group has developed a biosensor to detect biomolecules. Superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SPNPs) together with LFIAs play the fundamental roles. SPMNPs are detected by their interaction with a high-frequency current flowing on a printed micro track. By means of the instant and proportional variation of the impedance of this track provoked by the presence of the SPNPs, quantitative and rapid measurement of the number of particles can be obtained. This way of detection requires no external magnetic field application, which reduces the device complexity. On the other hand, the major limitations of LFIAs are that they are only qualitative or semiquantitative when traditional gold or latex nanoparticles are used as color labels. Moreover, the necessity of always-constant ambient conditions to get reproducible results, the exclusive detection of the nanoparticles on the surface of the membrane, and the short durability of the signal are drawbacks that can be advantageously overcome with the design of magnetically labeled LFIAs. The approach followed was to coat the SPIONs with a specific monoclonal antibody which targets the protein under consideration by chemical bonds. Then, a sandwich-type immunoassay was prepared by printing onto the nitrocellulose membrane strip a second antibody against a different epitope of the protein (test line) and an IgG antibody (control line). When the sample flows along the strip, the SPION-labeled proteins are immobilized at the test line, which provides magnetic signal as described before. Preliminary results using this practical combination for the detection and quantification of the Prostatic-Specific Antigen (PSA) shows the validity and consistency of the technique in the clinical range, where a PSA level of 4.0 ng/mL is the established upper normal limit. Moreover, a LOD of 0.25 ng/mL was calculated with a confident level of 3 according to the IUPAC Gold Book definition. Its versatility has also been proved with the detection of other biomolecules such as troponin I (cardiac injury biomarker) or histamine.

Keywords: biosensor, lateral flow immunoassays, point-of-care devices, superparamagnetic nanoparticles

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Authors: Nantawan Soonklang, Linda Chularojanamontri, Urarat Nanna

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Ethnopharmacological relevance: Thunbergia laurifolia Lindl. belongs to the family Acanthaceae commonly known as Rang jeud in Thailand. This plant is traditionally used in Thailand for centuries as an antidote for several poisons and drug overdose. Aim of the study: This research aimed to study the analgesic and antipyretic activities of T. laurifolia water extract by using animal models. Materials and Methods: The analgesic activity was studied using 2 methods of pain induction including acetic acid and heat induced pain. And the antipyretic activity study was performed by yeast-induced hyperthermia. Results: The results showed that the administration of T. laurifolia extract possessed analgesic activity by reducing acetic acid-induced writhing response and heat-induced pain as well as showed antipyretic activity by decreasing body temperature of hyperthermic rats induced by brewer’s yeast. Conclusion: The study indicates that the T. laurifolia extract possesses analgesic and antipyretic activities in animals.

Keywords: Thunbergia laurifolia extract, analgesic activity, antipyretic activity, hyperthermia

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Authors: Alhage Drammeh

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The research is on the occurrence of certain diseases among children in rural and far-flung parts of the Gambia and the extent to which they are caused by lack of access to clean water. A baseline survey was used to discover, describe, and explain the actual processes. The paper explains the purpose of the research, which is majorly to improve the health condition of children, especially those living in rural communities. The paper also gives a brief overview of the socio-economic situation of The Gambia, emphasizing its status as a Least Developed Country (LDC) and the majority of its population living below the poverty line, with women and children hardest hit. The research used as case studies of two rural communities in the Gambia -Basse Dampha Kunda Village and Foni Besse. Data was collected through oral interviews and medical tests conducted among people in both villages, with an emphasis on children. The demographic detail of those tested is tabulated for a clearer understanding. The results were compared, revealing that skin rashes, hepatitis, and certain other diseases are more prevalent in communities lacking access to safe drinking water. These results were also presented in a tabular form. The study established how some policy failures and neglect on the part of the Government of The Gambia are imperiling the health of many rural dwellers in the country, the most glaring being that the research team was unable to test water samples collected from the two communities, as there are no laboratory reagents for testing water anywhere in The Gambia. Many rural communities lack basic amenities, especially clean and potable water, as well as health facilities. The study findings also highlighted the need for healthcare providers and medical NGOs to voice the plight of rural dwellers and collaborate with the government to set up health facilities in rural areas of The Gambia.

Keywords: jaundice, skin rashes, children, rural communities, the Gambia, causes

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Authors: Sonia Butalia, Huong Luu, Alexis Guigue, Karen J. B. Martins, Khanh Vu, Scott W. Klarenbach

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Obesity-related health conditions impose a substantial economic burden on payers due to increased healthcare use. Estimates of healthcare resource use and costs associated with obesity-related comorbidities are needed to inform policies and interventions targeting these conditions. Methods: Adults living with obesity were identified (a procedure-related body mass index code for class 2/3 obesity between 2012 and 2019 in Alberta, Canada; excluding those with bariatric surgery), and outcomes were compared over 1-year (2019/2020) between those who had and did not have specific obesity-related comorbidities. The probability of using a healthcare service (based on the odds ratio of a zero [OR-zero] cost) was compared; 95% confidence intervals (CI) were reported. Logistic regression and a generalized linear model with log link and gamma distribution were used for total healthcare cost comparisons ($CDN); cost ratios and estimated cost differences (95% CI) were reported. Potential socio-demographic and clinical confounders were adjusted for, and incremental cost differences were representative of a referent case. Results: A total of 220,190 adults living with obesity were included; 44% had hypertension, 25% had osteoarthritis, 24% had type-2 diabetes, 17% had cardiovascular disease, 12% had insulin resistance, 9% had chronic back pain, and 4% of females had polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). The probability of hospitalization, ED visit, and ambulatory care was higher in those with a following obesity-related comorbidity versus those without: chronic back pain (hospitalization: 1.8-times [OR-zero: 0.57 [0.55/0.59]] / ED visit: 1.9-times [OR-zero: 0.54 [0.53/0.56]] / ambulatory care visit: 2.4-times [OR-zero: 0.41 [0.40/0.43]]), cardiovascular disease (2.7-times [OR-zero: 0.37 [0.36/0.38]] / 1.9-times [OR-zero: 0.52 [0.51/0.53]] / 2.8-times [OR-zero: 0.36 [0.35/0.36]]), osteoarthritis (2.0-times [OR-zero: 0.51 [0.50/0.53]] / 1.4-times [OR-zero: 0.74 [0.73/0.76]] / 2.5-times [OR-zero: 0.40 [0.40/0.41]]), type-2 diabetes (1.9-times [OR-zero: 0.54 [0.52/0.55]] / 1.4-times [OR-zero: 0.72 [0.70/0.73]] / 2.1-times [OR-zero: 0.47 [0.46/0.47]]), hypertension (1.8-times [OR-zero: 0.56 [0.54/0.57]] / 1.3-times [OR-zero: 0.79 [0.77/0.80]] / 2.2-times [OR-zero: 0.46 [0.45/0.47]]), PCOS (not significant / 1.2-times [OR-zero: 0.83 [0.79/0.88]] / not significant), and insulin resistance (1.1-times [OR-zero: 0.88 [0.84/0.91]] / 1.1-times [OR-zero: 0.92 [0.89/0.94]] / 1.8-times [OR-zero: 0.56 [0.54/0.57]]). After fully adjusting for potential confounders, the total healthcare cost ratio was higher in those with a following obesity-related comorbidity versus those without: chronic back pain (1.54-times [1.51/1.56]), cardiovascular disease (1.45-times [1.43/1.47]), osteoarthritis (1.36-times [1.35/1.38]), type-2 diabetes (1.30-times [1.28/1.31]), hypertension (1.27-times [1.26/1.28]), PCOS (1.08-times [1.05/1.11]), and insulin resistance (1.03-times [1.01/1.04]). Conclusions: Adults with obesity who have specific disease-related health conditions have a higher probability of healthcare use and incur greater costs than those without specific comorbidities; incremental costs are larger when other obesity-related health conditions are not adjusted for. In a specific referent case, hypertension was costliest (44% had this condition with an additional annual cost of $715 [$678/$753]). If these findings hold for the Canadian population, hypertension in persons with obesity represents an estimated additional annual healthcare cost of $2.5 billion among adults living with obesity (based on an adult obesity rate of 26%). Results of this study can inform decision making on investment in interventions that are effective in treating obesity and its complications.

Keywords: administrative data, healthcare cost, obesity-related comorbidities, real world evidence

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Authors: Marie Oslène Honorat

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Porto Belo is a neighborhood in the city of Foz do Iguaçu / PR, located in the Vila C region of Brazil. It is a project that addresses the question of the dirt generated by the neighborhood community about how they dispose and recycle domestic waste. This project aimed at raising awareness among residents, on how important it is to preserve the environment and take care, especially of the space in which we are located. Living this way manages to minimize the exploitation of natural resources, soil and water pollution. After collecting information about what one saw, we questioned some people in the neighborhood to find out about selective collection, recycling, and the separation and final destination of garbage. From the study, it was possible to verify the importance of placing more trash cans on neighborhood streets, where garbage is discarded, and the importance of promoting environmental education to improve the environment and quality of life. The methodology used in this research was a qualitative methodology that seeks the principle of transforming reality through investigation.

Keywords: awareness, recycling, selective collection, waste disposal

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Authors: N. Cihan KayaçEtin, Stijn Verdoodt, Alexis Versele

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The construction industry is accounted for one-third of all waste generated in the European Union (EU) countries. The Circular Economy Action Plan of the EU aims to tackle this issue and aspires to enhance the sustainability of the construction industry by adopting more circular principles and bio-based material use. The Interreg Circular Bio-Based Construction Industry (CBCI) project was conceived to research how this adoption can be facilitated. For this purpose, an approach is developed that integrates technical, legal and social aspects and provides business models for circular designing and building with bio-based materials. In the scope of the project, the research outputs are to be displayed in a real-life setting by constructing a demo terraced single-family house, the living lab (LL) located in Ghent (Belgium). The realization of the LL is conducted in a step-wise approach that includes iterative processes for design, description, criteria definition and multi-criteria assessment of building components. The essence of the research lies within the exploratory approach to the state-of-art building envelope and technical systems options for achieving an optimum combination for a circular and bio-based construction. For this purpose, nine preliminary designs (PD) for building envelope are generated, which consist of three basic construction methods: masonry, lightweight steel construction and wood framing construction supplemented with bio-based construction methods like cross-laminated timber (CLT) and massive wood framing. A comparative analysis on the PDs was conducted by utilizing several complementary tools to assess the circularity. This paper focuses on the life cycle assessment (LCA) approach for evaluating the environmental impact of the LL Ghent. The adoption of an LCA methodology was considered critical for providing a comprehensive set of environmental indicators. The PDs were developed at the component level, in particular for the (i) inclined roof, (ii-iii) front and side façade, (iv) internal walls and (v-vi) floors. The assessment was conducted on two levels; component and building level. The options for each component were compared at the first iteration and then, the PDs as an assembly of components were further analyzed. The LCA was based on a functional unit of one square meter of each component and CEN indicators were utilized for impact assessment for a reference study period of 60 years. A total of 54 building components that are composed of 31 distinct materials were evaluated in the study. The results indicate that wood framing construction supplemented with bio-based construction methods performs environmentally better than the masonry or steel-construction options. An analysis on the correlation between the total weight of components and environmental impact was also conducted. It was seen that masonry structures display a high environmental impact and weight, steel structures display low weight but relatively high environmental impact and wooden framing construction display low weight and environmental impact. The study provided valuable outputs in two levels: (i) several improvement options at component level with substitution of materials with critical weight and/or impact per unit, (ii) feedback on environmental performance for the decision-making process during the design phase of a circular single family house.

Keywords: circular and bio-based materials, comparative analysis, life cycle assessment (LCA), living lab

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Authors: Yassets Egaña, Patricio Núñez, Juan C. Rios, Ivan Balic, Alex Manquez, Yarela Flores, Maria C. Gatica, Sergio Diez De Medina, Rocio Tijaro-Rojas

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Globally, humans produce millions of tons of waste per year. An important percentage of this waste is plastic, which frequently ends up in landfills and oceans. During the last decades, the greatest plastics production in history have been made, a few amount of this plastic is recycled, the rest ending up as plastic pollution in soils and seas. Plastic pollution is disastrous for the environment, affecting essential species, quality of consumption water, and some economic activities such as tourism, in different parts of the world. Due to its durability and decomposition on micro-plastics, animals and humans are accumulating a variety of plastic components without having clear their effects on human health, economy, and wildlife. In dry regions as the Atacama Desert, up to 95% of the water consumption comes from underground reservoirs, therefore preventing the soil pollution is an urgent need. This contribution focused on isolating, genotyping and optimizing microorganisms that use plastic waste as the only source of food to construct a batch-type bioreactor able to degrade in a faster way the plastic waste before it gets the desert soils and groundwater consumed by people living in this areas. Preliminary results, under laboratory conditions, has shown an improved degradation of polyethylene when three species of bacteria and three of fungi act on a selected plastic material. These microorganisms have been inoculated in dry soils, initially lacking organic matter, under environmental conditions in the laboratory. Our team designed and constructed a prototype using the natural conditions of the region and the best experimental results.

Keywords: biological breakdown, plastic bags, prototype, desert regions

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Authors: Bernadette F. De La Cruz, Susan Marie R. Dela Cruz, Georgia D. Demavibas

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The Expanded Student Grant-in-Aid Program for Poverty Alleviation (ESGP-PA) is a government program that aims to contribute to the National Government’s thrusts in effectively addressing poverty alleviation by increasing the number of graduates in higher education among indigent households and to get these graduates employed in in-demand occupations in order to lift their families out of poverty. Higher education continues to see an influx of these students from poor families that have never previously sent anyone to college. There are many challenges that face college students at all levels, but these are special challenges for first-generation students. Challenges that face these students can include lack of interest in attending school, low aptitude, being not single anymore, factors such as unfamiliarity with college expectations, lack of preparations while in secondary school, and limited support from family members. This research looks at some of the challenges first-generation college students face and examines the impact of these challenges on student’s aspirations for the attainment of a college degree and ultimately a high-paying career.

Keywords: ESGP-PA, first-generation college students, low aptitude, poverty alleviation

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Authors: Sylvain Caillol, Maxence Fache, Bernard Boutevin

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Recent years have witnessed an increasing demand on renewable resource-derived polymers owing to increasing environmental concern and restricted availability of petrochemical resources. Thus, a great deal of attention was paid to renewable resources-derived polymers and to thermosetting materials especially, since they are crosslinked polymers and thus cannot be recycled. Also, most of thermosetting materials contain aromatic monomers, able to confer high mechanical and thermal properties to the network. Therefore, the access to biobased, non-harmful, and available aromatic monomers is one of the main challenges of the years to come. Starting from phenols available in large volumes from renewable resources, our team designed platforms of chemicals usable for the synthesis of various polymers. One of these phenols, vanillin, which is readily available from lignin, was more specifically studied. Various aromatic building blocks bearing polymerizable functions were synthesized: epoxy, amine, acid, carbonate, alcohol etc. These vanillin-based monomers can potentially lead to numerous polymers. The example of epoxy thermosets was taken, as there is also the problematic of bisphenol A substitution for these polymers. Materials were prepared from the biobased epoxy monomers obtained from vanillin. Their thermo-mechanical properties were investigated and the effect of the monomer structure was discussed. The properties of the materials prepared were found to be comparable to the current industrial reference, indicating a potential replacement of petrosourced, bisphenol A-based epoxy thermosets by biosourced, vanillin-based ones. The tunability of the final properties was achieved through the choice of monomer and through a well-controlled oligomerization reaction of these monomers. This follows the same strategy than the one currently used in industry, which supports the potential of these vanillin-derived epoxy thermosets as substitutes of their petro-based counterparts.

Keywords: lignin, vanillin, epoxy, amine, carbonate

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Authors: Sireen Irsheid, Stephanie Keeney Parks, Michael A. Lindsey

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The medical and mental health field have been organized as reactive systems to respond to symptoms of mental health problems and disability. This becomes problematic particularly for those harmed by structural violence and racism, typically pushing us in the direction of alleviating symptoms and personalizing structural problems. The current paper examines how we assess, diagnose, and treat mental health and disability challenges in clinical spaces. We provide the readers with some context to think about the problem of racism and mental health/disability, ways to deconstruct the problem through the lens of structural violence, and recommendations to critically engage in clinical assessments, diagnosis, and treatment for young people impacted by structural violence and racism.

Keywords: mental health, disability, race and ethnicity, structural violence, structural racism, young people

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Authors: A. A. Betah

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This research was performed to evaluate the attitudes of rural women towards education, health and work outside the home. The study was based on a random sample of 147 rural women, Kafr-Rahmaniyah village was chosen for the study because its life expectancy at birth for females, education and percentage of females in the labor force, were the highest in the district. The study data were collected from rural female respondents, using a face-to-face questionnaire. In addition, the study estimated several factors like age, main occupation, family size, monthly household income, geographic cosmopolites, and degree of social participation for rural women respondents. Using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), data were analyzed by non-parametric statistical methods. The main finding in this study was a significant relationship between each of the previous variables and each of rural women’s attitudes toward education, health, and work outside home. The study concluded with some recommendations. The most important element is ensuring attention to rural women’s needs, requirements and rights via raising their health awareness, education and their contributions in their society.

Keywords: attitudes, education, health, rural women, work outside home

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Authors: Oghenerume V. Edah, Damilola T. Aladejana

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Entrepreneurship Education is the process of developing and acquiring entrepreneur skills on how to identify a new business and launching the business with the realization of yielding profit optimally. It’s the process of knowing how to take risk and handle challenges that accompanies a new business without the mindset of closing it when it fails. It includes steps to take when a business is recognized, combined with acquiring resources (e.g. finances, labor, land) in the face of risk and launching the new business. Additionally, Entrepreneurship is defined as the ability and willingness to set a business in the event of making profit. It is the act of starting up a business to solve big problems or present a new life-changing solution in the society to generate profit. It’s a process where a business opportunity is identified; planned, acquired and needful steps are taken to launch a business. This involves taking up financial risk, acquiring natural resources, combined with land, capital and building up a team of people who would individually contribute or add value in order to make the new business a success. Moreover, Education is the learning of new skills or value. It’s the acquiring of knowledge and capability of doing new things. It is been able to differentiate what you know and what you don’t know yet. In this modern world, the emergence of entrepreneurship education has been magnificent. An average of 60 percent humans wants to start a business or become an entrepreneur without knowing the steps on how to startup. Moreover, many of them are good starters and they end up failing when the business is not managed well. The introduction of Entrepreneur Education in our world today would change the face of business phenomenally. It would involve the acquisition of entrepreneur skills, knowledge and attitude towards initiating a business venture. The impact of Entrepreneurship Education in our world today would increase the chances of business success because it would generate better entrepreneurs. The skills, values, concept and processes acquired through learning have changed the face of business to a positive direction globally and the impact can be felt. Entrepreneurship can be taught and also can be learnt. Like any skills it can be known.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, education, business, entrepreneur, skills

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Authors: Neha Tiwari

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Rights are prerequisite for individuals to pursue their aims and enrich themselves. Laski has said rights are, ‘conditions of social life without which no man can seek himself at his best.’ However with superior technology, rights of many individuals are at stake as well. One such sufferer is the babies born out of the practice of commercial surrogacy. Commercial surrogacy has emerged as the most viable option for the childless couples. The practice has garnered lot of debate in both academia and media. Some argue for a complete ban and some for strict rules and regulation. Most of the time the debate is regarding the rights of the surrogate, something which we cannot ignore. Equally important are the rights of the children born out of such arrangements. However, not much attention is being paid to them. Recently, a controversy emerged when a surrogate gave birth to twins. One of the babies, Gammy born with down syndrome was left behind by the couple. Gammy could die because his poor Thai surrogate mother may not be able to pay for his treatment. Even if he survives, he will never know his twin sister as her identity would never be disclosed. This is just one of many such cases where the future of such babies is being played with. If the rights of these children are not taken care of many of them will have to bear the brunt of society's ignorance and perhaps live with a scar which won't heal in their lifetime.

Keywords: babies, commercial surrogacy, rights, technology

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Authors: Irem Ozten, Neri̇man Caglayan Keles

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Aim: Breastfeeding is a special process for a mother and her baby, and it is the first feeding option for a baby. However, not every society approves of breastfeeding in public to the same degree. The purpose of this study is to determine the attitudes and behaviors of women living in Türkiye toward breastfeeding in public. Materials and methods: This descriptive study was carried out in December 2023 with 515 women (N=515) who had babies aged 0-5 years and breastfed their babies. Based on the review of the literature, an online (Google Forms) data collection form consisting of 40 questions was created. While 13 of these questions were about sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics, 27 were about breastfeeding in public. It took each participant 5-7 minutes to respond to the data collection form by marking their choices on the form. The responses of the participants were analyzed using the R Core Team statistics program. Results: The mean age of the participants (N=515) was 30.6±4.07 (range: 20-44). According to their statements, 76.1% of the participants had undergraduate university degrees, and 77.1% of them had given vaginal birth in their last delivery. While 68.3% of the participants stated that they had heard about the concept of breastfeeding in public, 47.4% said they comfortably breastfed their babies in public, but 33.6% said they breastfed their babies for a shorter period than usual. It was determined that 40% of the participants were embarrassed about being seen by someone while breastfeeding their babies in public, 38.6% were afraid of men while breastfeeding, and 89.7% looked for a suitable place to breastfeed their babies. Among the participants, 93.6% stated that they covered their breasts with a cloth while breastfeeding, 49.5% thought a mother should breastfeed her baby in a place where she can be alone with her baby, and 29.1% thought a mother should breastfeed her baby in private. Conclusion: According to the results of the study, although most women had heard of the concept of breastfeeding in public, and some were comfortable breastfeeding in public, some breastfed their baby in public for a shorter period than usual, they covered their breasts with a cloth while breastfeeding their babies, they were embarrassed about being seen by someone while breastfeeding, and they were afraid of men while breastfeeding. Therefore, awareness should be raised about breastfeeding in public, and environments where mothers can conveniently breastfeed their babies should be created.

Keywords: breastfeeding in public, breastfeeding, breastfeeding attitudes, breastfeeding bahaviors

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Authors: Areej Al-Khabbaz, Swapna Goerge, Majedah Abdul-Rasoul

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Introduction: The most prevalent periodontal disease among children is gingivitis, and it usually becomes more severe in adolescence. A number of intervention studies suggested that resolution of periodontal inflammation can improve metabolic control in patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus. Aim: to assess the effect of non-surgical periodontal therapy on glycemic control of children diagnosed with diabetes mellitus. Method: Twenty-eight children diagnosed with diabetes mellitus were recruited with established diagnosis diabetes for at least 1 year. Informed consent and child assent form were obtained from children and parents prior to enrolment. The dental examination for the participants was performed on the same week directly following their annual medical assessment. All patients had their glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c%) test one week prior to their annual medical and dental visit and 3 months following non-surgical periodontal therapy. All patients received a comprehensive periodontal examination The periodontal assessment included clinical attachment loss, bleeding on probing, plaque score, plaque index and gingival index. All patients were referred for non-surgical periodontal therapy, which included oral hygiene instruction and motivation followed by supra-gingival and subg-ingival scaling using ultrasonic and hand instruments. Statistical Analysis: Data were entered and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science software (SPSS, Chicago, USA), version 18. Statistical analysis of clinical findings was performed to detect differences between the two groups in term of periodontal findings and HbA1c%. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed in order to examine which factors were significant in multivariate analysis after adjusting for confounding between effects. The regression model used the dependent variable ‘Improved glycemic control’, and the independent variables entered in the model were plaque index, gingival index, bleeding %, plaque Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Result: A total of 28 children. The mean age of the participants was 13.3±1.92 years. The study participants were divided into two groups; Compliant group (received dental scaling) and non-complaints group (received oral hygiene instructions only). No statistical difference was found between compliant and non-compliant group in age, gender distribution, oral hygiene practice and the level of diabetes control. There was a significant difference between compliant and non-compliant group in term of improvement of HBa1c before and after periodontal therapy. Mean gingival index was the only significant variable associated with improved glycemic control level. In conclusion, this study has demonstrated that non-surgical mechanical periodontal therapy can improve HbA1c% control. The result of this study confirmed that children with diabetes mellitus who are compliant to dental care and have routine professional scaling may have better metabolic control compared to diabetic children who are erratic with dental care.

Keywords: children, diabetes, metabolic control, periodontal therapy

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Authors: Chi-Wen Huang, Hung-Chi Chen

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Total laryngectomy affects swallowing, speech functions and life quality in the head and neck cancer. Voice restoration plays an important role in social activities and communication. Several techniques have been developed for voice restoration and reported to improve the life quality. However, the rehabilitation program for voice reconstruction by using the ileocolon flap still unclear. A retrospective study was done, and the patients' data were drawn from the medical records between 2010 and 2016 who underwent voice reconstruction by ileocolon flap after laryngectomy. All of them were trained to swallow first; then, the voice rehabilitation was started. The outcome of voice was evaluated after 6 months using the 4-point scoring scale. In our result, 9.8% patients could give very clear voice so everyone could understand their speech, 61% patients could be understood well by families and friends, 20.2% patients could only talk with family, and 9% patients had difficulty to be understood. Moreover, the 57% patients did not need a second surgery, but in 43% patients voice was made clear by a second surgery. In this study, we demonstrated that the rehabilitation program after voice reconstruction with ileocolon flap for post-laryngectomy patients is important because the anatomical structure is different from the normal larynx.

Keywords: post-laryngectomy, ileocolon flap, rehabilitation, voice reconstruction

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Authors: Laurie Dempsey

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Relationships are considered to be beneficial for emotional wellbeing, happiness and physical health. However, they are also complicated: individuals engage in a multitude of complex and volatile relationships during their lifetime, where the change to or ending of these dynamics can be deeply disruptive. As the internet is further integrated into everyday life and relationships are increasingly mediated, Media Studies’ and Sociology’s research interests intersect and converge. This study longitudinally explores how relationship change over time corresponds with the developing UK technological landscape between 2005-2018. Since the early 2000s, the use of computer-mediated communication (CMC) in the UK has dramatically reshaped interaction. Its use has compelled individuals to renegotiate how they consider their relationships: some argue it has allowed for vast networks to be accumulated and strengthened; others contend that it has eradicated the core values and norms associated with communication, damaging relationships. This research collaborated with UK media regulator Ofcom, utilising the longitudinal dataset from their Adult Media Lives study to explore how relationships and CMC use developed over time. This is a unique qualitative dataset covering 2005-2018, where the same 18 participants partook in annual in-home filmed depth interviews. The interviews’ raw video footage was examined year-on-year to consider how the same people changed their reported behaviour and outlooks towards their relationships, and how this coincided with CMC featuring more prominently in their everyday lives. Each interview was transcribed, thematically analysed and coded using NVivo 11 software. This study allowed for a comprehensive exploration into these individuals’ changing relationships over time, as participants grew older, experienced marriages or divorces, conceived and raised children, or lost loved ones. It found that as technology developed between 2005-2018, everyday CMC use was increasingly normalised and incorporated into relationship maintenance. It played a crucial role in altering relationship dynamics, even factoring in the breakdown of several ties. Three key relationships were identified as being shaped by CMC use: parent-child; extended family; and friendships. Over the years there were substantial instances of relationship conflict: for parents renegotiating their dynamic with their child as they tried to both restrict and encourage their child’s technology use; for estranged family members ‘forced’ together in the online sphere; and for friendships compelled to publicly display their relationship on social media, for fear of social exclusion. However, it was also evident that CMC acted as a crucial lifeline for these participants, providing opportunities to strengthen and maintain their bonds via previously unachievable means, both over time and distance. A longitudinal study of this length and nature utilising the same participants does not currently exist, thus provides crucial insight into how and why relationship dynamics alter over time. This unique and topical piece of research draws together Sociology and Media Studies, illustrating how the UK’s changing technological landscape can reshape one of the most basic human compulsions. This collaboration with Ofcom allows for insight that can be utilised in both academia and policymaking alike, making this research relevant and impactful across a range of academic fields and industries.

Keywords: computer mediated communication, longitudinal research, personal relationships, qualitative data

Procedia PDF Downloads 125