Search results for: national policy

Authors: Wera Supa, Panita Wannapiroon

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This paper is a report on the designing of the social collaborative learning model based on proactive involvement to Promote the global merit principle in cultivating youths’ morality. The research procedures into two phases, the first phase is to design the social collaborative learning model based on proactive involvement to promote the global merit principle in cultivating youths’ morality, and the second is to evaluate the social collaborative learning model based on proactive involvement. The sample group in this study consists of 15 experts who are dominant in proactive participation, moral merit principle and youths’ morality cultivation from executive level, lecturers and the professionals in information and communication technology expertise selected using the purposive sampling method. Data analyzed by arithmetic mean and standard deviation. This study has explored that there are four significant factors in promoting the hands-on collaboration of global merit scheme in order to implant virtues to adolescences which are: 1) information and communication Technology Usage; 2) proactive involvement; 3) morality cultivation policy, and 4) global merit principle. The experts agree that the social collaborative learning model based on proactive involvement is highly appropriate.

Keywords: social collaborative learning, proactive involvement, global merit principle, morality

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Authors: Mojtaba Heydarizad

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Khorasan Razavi is the second most important province in north-east of Iran, which faces a water shortage crisis due to recent droughts and huge water consummation. Kardeh and Torogh dam reservoirs in this province provide a notable part of Mashhad metropolitan (with more than 4.5 million inhabitants) potable water needs. Hydrochemical analyses on these dam reservoirs samples demonstrate that MgHCO₃ in Kardeh and CaHCO₃ and to lower extent MgHCO₃ water types in Torogh dam reservoir are dominant. On the other hand, Gibbs binary diagram demonstrates that rock weathering is the main factor controlling water quality in dam reservoirs. Plotting dam reservoir samples on Mg²⁺/Na⁺ and HCO₃^-/Na⁺ vs. Ca²⁺/ Na⁺ diagrams demonstrate evaporative and carbonate mineral dissolution is the dominant rock weathering ion sources in these dam reservoirs. Cluster Analyses (CA) also demonstrate intense role of rock weathering mainly (carbonate and evaporative minerals dissolution) in water quality of these dam reservoirs. Studying water quality by the U.S. National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) WQI index NSF-WQI, Oregon Water Quality Index (OWQI) and Canadian Water Quality Index DWQI index show moderate and good quality.

Keywords: hydrochemistry, water quality classification, water quality indexes, Torogh and Kardeh dam reservoir

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Authors: Abdus-Samii Imam Arikewuyo

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The human rights phenomenon increasingly gains universal prominence in the contemporary age. This embraces the clamour for a just treatment of individuals in society. The human rights agitation is a global pursuit which virtually gave birth to many national and international human rights organizations. In particular, Nigeria accedes to a number of human rights covenants. Invariably, there are some provisions which are recognized as inalienable rights of man in his society by which his intrinsic worth and dignity are protected by law. Nonetheless, the constituents of human rights differ in various societies. Conversely, Islam, as a complete code of life, guarantees the rights of a man vis-à-vis the rights of others in his environment regardless of place and time. Human rights pressure in Nigeria in recent times prompted proactive steps to address the issue through various legal instruments. Amazingly, the struggle appears to be a rhetorical noise because the human rights violation subsists. This provokes the present research on a comparative study of the Nigerian legal provisions and the Islamic law perspectives on human rights. It is discovered that the first is simply theoretical, while the other contains both the theoretical framework and the practical measures for its enforcement. The study adopts analytical and descriptive methods. It concludes with the assertion that the Islamic law provisions are all-embracing, universal and more efficacious. Hence, it recommends the adoption of the Islamic law approach to human rights issues.

Keywords: human rights, Nigerian legal provisions, shariah law, comparative study, charter

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Authors: G. Arockiasamy, B. Sujeevan Kumar, Surendheran

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Human progress and development are highly influenced by the power of information access and technology. A global and multi-national transformation all over the word is possible due to digitalization. In the process of exchanging information, experience, and resources, there is a radical shift in who controls them. Mass media has turned the world into a global village by strengthening communication network. As a result, a new digital culture has emerged as a social network commonly known as new media. Today the advancement of technology is at the doorstep of everyone linking to anywhere. The traditional social restrictions are broken down by the new type of virtual communication modality that transcends people beyond boundaries At the same time media empire has invaded every nook and corner of the world through great expansion. Media activism is growing stronger and stronger but the truth and true meaning lost in the process. This paper explores the peoples’ attitude to media activism and tracing its direction. The methodology employed is random sampling survey and content analysis method. Both qualitatively and quantitatively measured. The findings tend to show 60 percent indicate media activism as positive and others indicate as negative. As a conclusion, media activism has danger within but depends on nature of the development of human orientation.

Keywords: media activism, media industry, program, truth information, orientation and nature

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Authors: Mohammad Nazri Mustafa, Pedram Hatami Abdullah, M. Fakhrur Razi Ahmad Faizul

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With the issuance of Malaysian National Annex 2017 as a part of MS EN 1998-1:2015, the seismic mapping of Malaysian Peninsular including Sabah and Sarawak has undergone some changes in terms of the Peak Ground Acceleration (PGA) value. The revision to the PGA has raised a concern on the safety of oil and gas onshore structures as these structures were not designed to accommodate the new PGA values which are much higher than the previous values used in the original design. In view of the high numbers of structures and buildings to be re-assessed, a risk assessment methodology has been developed to prioritize and rank the assets in terms of their criticality against the new seismic loading. To-date such risk assessment method for oil and gas onshore structures is lacking, and it is the main intention of this technical paper to share the risk assessment methodology and risk elements scoring finalized via Delphi Method. The finalized methodology and the values used to rank the risk elements have been established based on years of relevant experience on the subject matter and based on a series of rigorous discussions with professionals in the industry. The risk scoring is mapped against the risk matrix (i.e., the LOF versus COF) and hence, the overall risk for the assets can be obtained. The overall risk can be used to prioritize and optimize integrity assessment, repair and strengthening work against the new seismic mapping of the country.

Keywords: methodology, PGA, risk, seismic

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Authors: Lokes Parvatha Kumaran S., Sakthi Jay Mahenthar C., Sathyaprakash P., Jayakumar V., Shobanadevi A.

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With the evolution of technology, the need to solve complex computational problems like machine learning and deep learning has shot up. But even the most powerful classical supercomputers find it difficult to execute these tasks. With the recent development of quantum computing, researchers and tech-giants strive for new quantum circuits for machine learning tasks, as present works on Quantum Machine Learning (QML) ensure less memory consumption and reduced model parameters. But it is strenuous to simulate classical deep learning models on existing quantum computing platforms due to the inflexibility of deep quantum circuits. As a consequence, it is essential to design viable quantum algorithms for QML for noisy intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) devices. The proposed work aims to explore Variational Quantum Circuits (VQC) for Deep Reinforcement Learning by remodeling the experience replay and target network into a representation of VQC. In addition, to reduce the number of model parameters, quantum information encoding schemes are used to achieve better results than the classical neural networks. VQCs are employed to approximate the deep Q-value function for decision-making and policy-selection reinforcement learning with experience replay and the target network.

Keywords: quantum computing, quantum machine learning, variational quantum circuit, deep reinforcement learning, quantum information encoding scheme

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Authors: Sarah Ekuwo Okende, Armand Lokolo

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Gradually, the recognition of wild bees in processes affecting ecosystems and as major components of biodiversity has led to their protection as well as their areas in Kinshasa. And despite their decisive role in the well-being of men, the general public and decision-makers know nothing of the consequences of the loss of these, which are nevertheless of considerable magnitude. On this, they provide the pollination of sexual plants, and they also provide us with a number of goods that have a direct economic value, such as food, medicines, etc. And yet today, more than half of these wild bee species are threatened in Kinshasa. The causes of this phenomenon are largely unknown to the general public in the Kinshasa region. The objective of this study is to find the causes leading to the disappearance of wild bee species in Kinshasa. Also, this research contributes to current knowledge of the biodiversity of wild bees in the Kinshasa region and helps the authorities to develop a good policy for the conservation or safeguarding of this biodiversity, which plays a key role in maintaining the integrity of our ecosystems. We carried out field surveys using interview sheets in the forest areas of Kinshasa where wild bees populated them. To achieve this, an interview sheet was made, and it included questions on the causes of the disappearance of wild bees and the destruction of forest areas. The interviews were carried out with the natives of these forest areas. The results of this study show us that the destruction of habitats or natural areas and the use of pesticides are the causes of the disappearance of these wild bees.

Keywords: wild bees, pollinisation, forest, biodiversity, habitats, ecosystem, destruction, pesticide

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Authors: Min-Kook Park, Deuck Hang Lee, Hyun Mo Yang, Jae Hyun Kim, Kang Su Kim

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Prestressed hollow-core slabs (HCS) are structurally optimized precast units with light-weight hollowed-sections and very economical due to the mass production by a unique production method. They have been thus widely used in the precast concrete constructions in many countries all around the world. It is, however, difficult to provide shear reinforcement in HCS units produced by the extrusion method, and thus all the shear forces should be resisted solely by concrete webs in the HCS units. This means that, for the HCS units, it is very important to estimate the contribution of web concrete to the shear resistance accurately. In design codes, however, the shear strengths for HCS units are estimated by the same equations that are used for typical prestressed concrete members, which were determined from the calibrations to experimental results of conventional prestressed concrete members other than HCS units. In this study, therefore, shear test results of HCS members with a wide range of influential variables were collected, and the shear strength equations in design codes were thoroughly examined by comparing to the experimental results in the shear database of HCS members. Acknowledgement: This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning(NRF-2016R1A2B2010277).

Keywords: hollow-core, web-shear, precast concrete, prestress, capacity

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Authors: Doki Naomi Onyeje, Doki Gowon Ama

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The past 4 years have been traumatic for Nigerians, having to deal with a number of complex economic issues with dire consequences for the economy. Households have had to respond variously to some of these problems in peculiar ways, depending, of course, on the nature and character of a particular shock. The type, magnitude, intensity and duration of a particular shock might be the determinant of different household responses. While households’ responses to the Global Financial Crisis and Covid 19 Pandemic have been documented by researchers, other economic shocks have continued to emerge in Nigeria. The dramatic turn of events since coming on board of the new government on May 29th 2023, has introduced a new economic twist that households will have to adjust to. This study, therefore, sets out to examine household responses by disaggregating them by their livelihood sources. A survey of 420 households across North Central Nigeria will be done to generate information on the respective responses. A Multinomial logit regression analysis will be employed to test the hypothesis that livelihood source(s) influences household responses to economic shocks. Consequently, responses from public and private households will be examined. The expected results should be that household responses might have some similarities, but it is expected that some peculiar responses across groups will emerge and these differences will guide for group-specific interventions. The Theatre for Development (TfD) approach will be used to disseminate and propagate results from this study to and among stakeholders for effective policy frameworks.

Keywords: drama, dynamics, economic shocks, household responses, Nigeria

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Authors: Mohammad Saber Rohi, Saghar Heidari

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In this paper, we studied the pricing problem of American options under a regime-switching model with the possibility of a non-optimal exercise policy (early or late exercise time) which is called an irrational strategy. For this, we consider a Markovmodulated model for the dynamic of the underlying asset as an alternative model to the classical Balck-Scholes-Merton model (BSM) and an intensity-based model for the irrational strategy, to provide more realistic results for American option prices under the irrational behavior in real financial markets. Applying a partial differential equation (PDE) approach, the pricing problem of American options under regime-switching models can be formulated as coupled PDEs. To solve the resulting systems of PDEs in this model, we apply a finite element method as the numerical solving procedure to the resulting variational inequality. Under some appropriate assumptions, we establish the stability of the method and compare its accuracy to some recent works to illustrate the suitability of the proposed model and the accuracy of the applied numerical method for the pricing problem of American options under the regime-switching model with irrational behaviors.

Keywords: irrational exercise strategy, rationality parameter, regime-switching model, American option, finite element method, variational inequality

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Authors: Lisa J. Piergallini

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This project uses panel regression analyses to investigate the relationships between geography, institutions, and economic development, as guided by the theories of the 18^th century French philosopher Montesquieu. Contemporary scholars of political economy perpetually misinterpret Montesquieu’s theories on climate, and in doing so they miss what could be the key to resolving the geography vs. institutions debate. There is a conspicuous gap in this literature, in that it does not consider whether geography and institutors might have an interactive, dynamic effect on economic development. This project seeks to bridge that gap. Data are used for all available countries over the years 1980-2013. Two interaction terms between geographic and institutional variables are employed within the empirical analyses, and these offer a unique contribution to the ongoing geography vs. institutions debate within the political economy literature. This study finds that there is indeed an interactive effect between geography and institutions, and that this interaction has a statistically significant effect on economic development. Democracy (as measured by Polity score) and rule of law and property rights (as measured by the Fraser index) have positive effects on economic development (as measured by GDP per capita), yet the magnitude of these effects are stronger in contexts where a low percent of the national population lives in the geographical tropics. This has implications for promoting economic development, and it highlights the importance of understanding geographical context.

Keywords: Montesquieu, institutions, geography, economic development, political philosophy, political economy

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Authors: Sojung Kim

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This paper explores how the Partition of Korea is absorbed into everyday life through North Korean migrant women’s rituals for traditional holidays in Korea. In national holidays called myungjul, Koreans traditionally visit their paternal ancestor’s hometowns to hold jesa, the rites for the ancestors, at the graves and home. Due to the physical gaps in the kinship networks, marked by the kin left behind in North Korea, North Korean migrants gather among themselves in the neighborhood in South Korea as if they make the myungjul ritual of the family gatherings. This impossibility of the proper practice of the rites insinuates the violence of the Partition refracted into the family relations between those in the South and those in the North. Yet, the myungjul gathering creates a kind of collective hometown, beside one’s genealogical hometown, where they can express lamentation and guilt over not being able to visit their parents and ancestors in their hometowns, which they are traditionally required to do. In this as-if ritual, myungjul is re-created for and by the women and for others in the community. Yet, the texture of this ritual is marked by discontent and dissatisfaction. Attending to fostering discontents that seep into the collective events, this paper aims to seek ways to study the violence that permeated in everyday life in partitioned Korea.

Keywords: as-if ritual, everyday life, kinship, migration

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Authors: Grygorii Kostromin, Vladyslav Povoroznyuk

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Chronic venous diseases (CVD) are one of the common, though controversial problems in medicine. It is generally accepted that this pathology predominantly occurs in women. The issue of excessive weight as a risk factor for CVD is still considered debatable. To the author's best knowledge, today in Ukraine, there are barely any studies that describe the relationship between CVD and obesity. Our study aims to determine the association between age, body composition, obesity and CVD in postmenopausal women. The study was conducted in D. F. Chebotarev Institute of Gerontology, National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine. We have examined 96 postmenopausal women aged 46-85 years (mean age – 66.19 ± 0.96 years), who were divided into two groups depending on the presence of CVD. The women were examined by vascular surgeons. For the diagnosis of CVD, we used clinical, anatomic and pathophysiologic classifications. We also performed clinical, ultrasound and densitometry examinations. We found that the CVD frequency in postmenopausal women increased with age (from 72% in those aged 45-59 years to 84% in those aged 75-89 years). A significant correlation between the total fat mass and age was determined in postmenopausal women with CVD. We also observed a significant correlation between the lower extremities’ fat mass and age in both examined groups. A significant correlation between body mass index and age was determined only in postmenopausal women without CVD.

Keywords: chronic venous disease, risk factors, age, obesity, postmenopausal women

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Authors: Prejily Thomas John

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Flooding of urban areas often has an adverse impact on the dense population residing in cities. The vulnerable areas are the most affected due to flooding, which even results in loss of life. The increasing trend of urban floods is a universal phenomenon and leads to a vital loss in the physical, economic, social, and environmental dimensions. The shift from floods being natural disasters to man-made disasters due to unplanned urban growth is evident from national and international reports. Thiruvalla, bordered by the Manimala River in the Pathanamthitta district, is an important urban node and a drainage point of various estuaries. The city is often faced with flash floods and overflow from rivers since it is a low-lying land. The need for urban flood resilience for planned urban development is a necessity for livability in consideration of the topography. The paper focuses on developing an urban design framework in everyday urban spaces through the principles of resilient urbanism. The principles guide the creation of flood-resilient spaces and productive urban landscapes for the city to enable better and safer living conditions. A flood-resilient city not only prepares the city for disasters but also improves the ecological and economic conditions.

Keywords: everyday urban spaces, flood resilience, resilient urbanism, productive urban landscapes

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Authors: Benjamin J. Kuo, Silvia D. Vaca, Joao Ricardo Nickenig Vissoci, Catherine A. Staton, Linda Xu, Michael Muhumuza, Hussein Ssenyonjo, John Mukasa, Joel Kiryabwire, Lydia Nanjula, Christine Muhumuza, Henry E. Rice, Gerald A. Grant, Michael M. Haglund

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Background: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is disproportionally concentrated in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), with the odds of dying from TBI in Uganda more than 4 times higher than in high income countries (HICs). The disparities in the injury incidence and outcome between LMICs and resource-rich settings have led to increased health outcomes research for TBIs and their associated risk factors in LMICs. While there have been increasing TBI studies in LMICs over the last decade, there is still a need for more robust prospective registries. In Uganda, a trauma registry implemented in 2004 at the Mulago National Referral Hospital (MNRH) showed that RTI is the major contributor (60%) of overall mortality in the casualty department. While the prior registry provides information on injury incidence and burden, it’s limited in scope and doesn’t follow patients longitudinally throughout their hospital stay nor does it focus specifically on TBIs. And although these retrospective analyses are helpful for benchmarking TBI outcomes, they make it hard to identify specific quality improvement initiatives. The relationship among epidemiology, patient risk factors, clinical care, and TBI outcomes are still relatively unknown at MNRH. Objective: The objectives of this study are to describe the processes of care and determine risk factors predictive of poor outcomes for TBI patients presenting to a single tertiary hospital in Uganda. Methods: Prospective data were collected for 563 TBI patients presenting to a tertiary hospital in Kampala from 1 June – 30 November 2016. Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap) was used to systematically collect variables spanning 8 categories. Univariate and multivariate analysis were conducted to determine significant predictors of mortality. Results: 563 TBI patients were enrolled from 1 June – 30 November 2016. 102 patients (18%) received surgery, 29 patients (5.1%) intended for surgery failed to receive it, and 251 patients (45%) received non-operative management. Overall mortality was 9.6%, which ranged from 4.7% for mild and moderate TBI to 55% for severe TBI patients with GCS 3-5. Within each TBI severity category, mortality differed by management pathway. Variables predictive of mortality were TBI severity, more than one intracranial bleed, failure to receive surgery, high dependency unit admission, ventilator support outside of surgery, and hospital arrival delayed by more than 4 hours. Conclusions: The overall mortality rate of 9.6% in Uganda for TBI is high, and likely underestimates the true TBI mortality. Furthermore, the wide-ranging mortality (3-82%), high ICU fatality, and negative impact of care delays suggest shortcomings with the current triaging practices. Lack of surgical intervention when needed was highly predictive of mortality in TBI patients. Further research into the determinants of surgical interventions, quality of step-up care, and prolonged care delays are needed to better understand the complex interplay of variables that affect patient outcome. These insights guide the development of future interventions and resource allocation to improve patient outcomes.

Keywords: care continuum, global neurosurgery, Kampala Uganda, LMIC, Mulago, prospective registry, traumatic brain injury

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Authors: Tetsuji Tanaka, Jin Guo

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The extant literature has not succeeded in uncovering the common determinants of price volatility transmissions of agricultural commodities from international to local markets, and further, has rarely investigated the role of self-sufficiency measures in the context of national food security. We analyzed various factors to determine the degree of price volatility transmissions of wheat, rice, and maize between world and domestic markets using GARCH models with dynamic conditional correlation (DCC) specifications and panel-feasible generalized least square models. We found that the grain autarky system has the potential to diminish volatility pass-throughs for three grain commodities. Furthermore, it was discovered that the substitutive commodity consumption behavior between maize and wheat buffers the volatility transmissions of both, but rice does not function as a transmission-relieving element, either for the volatilities of wheat or maize. The effectiveness of grain consumption substitution to insulate the pass-throughs from global markets is greater than that of cereal self-sufficiency. These implications are extremely beneficial for developing governments to protect their domestic food markets from uncertainty in foreign countries and as such, improves food security.

Keywords: food security, GARCH, grain self-sufficiency, volatility transmission

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Authors: Saurav Kumar

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Rural-urban migration is the most commonly adopted strategy in rural areas to overcome the risk associated with the subsistence economy and diversify income. The Garhwal Himalaya has the highest rate of rural-urban migration in India, which has serious repercussions. Despite this, there is a dearth of literature on the implications of rural-urban migration in the Garhwal Himalaya. This paper attempts to fill this void. The objectives of the paper are to look into various types, patterns, determinants, and implications of rural-urban migration in the Garhwal Himalaya. In order to meet the objectives, 15 villages were selected from five districts of the Garhwal Himalaya. In every district, three villages were chosen from different altitudes, including five from river valleys, five from mid-altitudes, and five from highlands. The villages range in altitude from 550m to 2660m. A total of 658 households were surveyed from the villages, covering 100% samples from each village. Using a structured questionnaire, the author asked the heads of each household about the types of rural-urban migration they practiced, the year of first migration, destinations of migration, and reasons for migration. Further, migrants’ age, sex, caste, marital status, educational background, income, occupation, and remittances sent by migrants were also inquired about. The study reveals that rural-urban migration is a serious problem in Garhwal Himalayas, posing various socio-economic issues. Without immediate action, it will have serious consequences. Finally, this study suggests some policy measures to minimize the current rate of rural-urban migration in the Garhwal Himalaya.

Keywords: rural-urban migration, Garhwal Himalaya, patterns, determinants, implications

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Authors: B. K. Umesh Kumar, Waleed Al Shukaili

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Air travel is one of the safest modes of travel. Inflight injuries occur due to various factors such as air turbulence, spillage of hot liquids, and fall of improperly stowed overhead baggage. Injuries occur not only to passengers but also to the flight attendants who are handling the passengers throughout the flight. A retrospective study of all records of crew safety report by the captain of the aircraft for all the flights from 01 Mar 2015 to 31 Mar 2019 in a National Carrier of Middle Eastern country, were analyzed. There was one injury to Flight attendant every 1200 flights. Commonest aircraft involved was Boeing. Inflight phase had 82% of all injuries. 63% of accidents involved female Attendants. Commonest age group involved was from 25-30 years. Cart and container injuries were the commonest and accounted for nearly 62% of the total injuries followed by turbulence. Back injuries were the commonest injuries followed by ankle, shoulder, and burns. Mean days of absence from work seen in shoulder injuries 40 days followed by injuries to back, which accounted for 38 Days. Reduction in injuries to flight attendants can be brought about by proper selection of crew, reduction in cart load. Proper maintenance of cart and container plays a major role in prevention of occupational accidents.

Keywords: flight attendants, in-flight injuries, types of injuries, work related injury prevention

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Authors: Oluyomi A. Abioye

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The 21st century has been witnessing a lot of technological advancements and innovations, and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) happens to be one of them. Education is the cornerstone of any nation and the language in which it is delivered is the bedrock of any development. The French language is our choice in this study. French is a language of reference on the national and international scenes; however its teaching is clouded with myriads of problems. The output of students’ academic performance depends on to a large extent on the teaching and learning the process. The methodology employed goes a long way in contributing to the effectiveness of the teaching and learning the process. Therefore, with the integration of ICT, French teaching has to align with and adapt to this new digital era. An attempt is made to define the concept of ICT. Some of the challenges encountered in the teaching of French language are highlighted. Then it discusses the existing methods of French teaching and the integration of ICT in the teaching and learning of the same language. Then some prospects and challenges of ICT in the teaching and learning of French are discussed. Data collected from questionnaires administered among some students of some selected schools are analysed. Our findings revealed that only very few schools in Nigeria have the electronic and computer-mediated facilities to teach the French language. The paper concludes by encouraging 'savoir-faire' of ICT by the French teachers, an openness of students to this digital technology and adequate provision of electronic and computer-mediated gadgets by the Nigerian government to its educational institutions.

Keywords: French language in Nigeria, integration of ICT, prospects and challenges, teaching and learning

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Authors: Ratu Khabiba, Qisha Quarina

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This study aims to analyse the effect of married couples’ assortative educational attainments on the division of economic activities among themselves in the household. This study contributes to the literature on women’s participation in employment, especially among married women, to see whether the traditional values about gender roles in the household still continue to shape the employment participation among married women in Indonesia, despite increasing women’s human capital through education. This study utilizes the Indonesian National Socioeconomic Survey (SUSENAS) 2016 and estimates the results using the multinomial logit model. Our results show that compared to high-educated educational homogamy couples, educational heterogamy couples, especially hypergamy, have a higher probability of being a single-worker type. Moreover, the high-educated educational homogamy couples have the highest probability of being a dual-worker type. Thus, we found evidence that the traditional values of gender role segregation seem to still play a significant role in married women’s employment decision in Indonesia, particularly for couples’ with educational heterogamy and low-educated educational homogamy couples.

Keywords: assortative education, dual-worker, hypergamy, homogamy, traditional values, women labor participation

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Authors: Mei-Chun Chang

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Due to digital transformation and social media development in recent years, various real-time interactive digital tools have been developed to meet the design demands for virtual reality avatars, which also promote digital content learners' active participation in the creation process. As a result, new social media design tools have the characteristics of intuitive operation with a simplified interface for fast production, from which works can be simply created. This study carried out observations, records, questionnaire surveys, and interviews on the creation and learning of visual avatars made by students of the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST) with the VRoid Studio 3D modeling tool so as to explore their learning effectiveness on the design of visual avatars. According to the results of this study, the VRoid Studio 3D character modeling tool has a positive impact on the learners and helps to improve their learning effectiveness. Students with low academic achievements said that they could complete the conceived modeling with their own thinking by using the design tool, which increased their sense of accomplishment. Conclusions are drawn according to the results, and relevant future suggestions are put forward.

Keywords: virtual avatar, character design, social media, vroid studio, creation, digital learning

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Authors: Ali Babaei

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There is a worldwide growing tendency toward construction of infrastructures with the possibility of private sector participation instead of free exploitation of public infrastructures. The construction and development of roads through private sector participation is performed by different countries because of appropriate results and benefits such as compensation of public budget deficit in road construction and maintenance and responding to traffic growth (demand). Toll is the most definite form of budget provision in road development. There are two issues in the toll rate assignment: A. costing of transport, B. Cost allocation and distribution of cost between different types of vehicles as each vehicle pay its own share. There can be different goals in toll collection and its extent is variable according to the strategy of toll collection. Costing principles in different countries are based on inclusion of the whole transport and not peculiar to the toll roads. For example, fuel tax policy functions where the road network users pay transportation cost (not just users of toll road). Whereas transportation infrastructures in Iran are free, these methods are not applicable. In Iran, different toll freeways have built by public investment and government provides participation in the road construction through encouragement of financial institutions. In this paper, the existing policies about the toll roads are studied and then the appropriate method of costing and cost allocation to different vehicles is introduced.

Keywords: toll allocation, road pricing, transportation, financial and industrial systems

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Authors: Tatenda Manomano

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The chronic challenges presented by HIV/AIDS globally have come with extreme negative effects on individuals, families and communities as well as governments. Sub-Saharan Africa remains strongly challenged with South Africa bearing a huge brunt of these. The paper examines the extent to which the effects of HIV/AIDS are addressed in low cost housing projects in South Africa with a case of the RDP Golf Course Housing Project in Alice Town. The study used a triangulation of both qualitative and quantitative methods with the qualitative as the dominant method while the quantitative was less dominant. Findings revealed that infection rate was high; prostitution was high; alcohol abuse was also high; and rape and sexual abuse was also high and there was also lack of hospitals and social workers around the location. These findings prompted this researcher to recommend for proactive policy making that can bolster the challenges faced by these low cost housing projects in accessing health and social services as well as massive campaigns that can promote behavior modification among other things. It is hoped that this paper will be a platform to ring a bell to both government and non-government to augment the campaign against HIV/AIDS in South Africa.

Keywords: HIV/AIDS, RDP houses, low cost housing projects, campaigns

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Authors: Elizabeta Krstić Vukelja

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Digitization of personal data is a consequence of the development of information and communication technologies that create a new work environment with many advantages and challenges, but also potential threats to privacy and personal data protection. Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council is becoming a law and obligation that should address the issues of personal data protection and information security. The existence of the Regulation leads to the conclusion that national legislation in the field of virtual environment, protection of the rights of EU citizens and processing of their personal data is insufficiently effective. In the health system, special emphasis is placed on the processing of special categories of personal data, such as health data. The healthcare industry is recognized as a particularly sensitive area in which a large amount of medical data is processed, the digitization of which enables quick access and quick identification of the health insured. The protection of the individual requires quality IT solutions that guarantee the technical protection of personal categories. However, the real problems are the technical and human nature and the spatial limitations of the application of the Regulation. Some conclusions will be drawn by analyzing the implementation of the basic principles of the Regulation on the example of the Croatian health care system and comparing it with similar activities in other EU member states.

Keywords: regulation, healthcare system, personal dana protection, quality data assurance

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Authors: Aime Philombe Zapji Ymele

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Servicing public debt is a significant budgetary burden. In the sense that the payment of interest charges is a liability on the balance sheet of the public budget and affects fiscal policy. Interest charges can sometimes become a burden if they crowd out private activities. In order to analyse and understand the determinants of the debt burden and its impact on the sustainability of public finances, the present work focuses on OECD countries. It is noted from the literature that the factors that determine interest charges are macroeconomic (inflation, GDP growth, and interest rates) and public finances (primary balance and public debt). After analysing a panel of 33 OECD countries and using ordinary least squares (OLS), we find that public debt, inflation, and long-term interest rates are positively correlated with interest charges. An increase in any of these variables leads to an increase in debt charges. On the other hand, a growth in GDP is negatively associated with interest charges. Indeed, an increase in GDP generates enough revenue to meet the repayment of debt charges. According to the empirical analysis, we can say that, despite the large and growing debt-to-GDP ratio of major OECD countries, interest charges are not a threat to the sustainability of public finances. However, it is important for these countries to reduce the ratio of public debt to GDP because, in the face of the many challenges (health, aging population, etc.) that are looming on the horizon, an increase in interest rates could bring with it considerable burdens that would threaten the budgetary balance of these states.

Keywords: interest charges, sustainability, public debt, interest rates

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Authors: Christo Nicholls

Abstract:

The National Electricity Grid (NEG) in South Africa has been under strain for the last five years. This overburden of the NEG led Eskom (the State-Owned Entity responsible for the NEG) to implement a blunt methodology to assist them in reducing the maximum demand (MD) on the NEG, when required, called Loadshedding. The challenge of this methodology is that not only does it lead to immense technical issues with the distribution network equipment, e.g., transformers, due to the frequent abrupt off and on switching, it also has a broader negative fiscal impact on the distributors, as their key consumers (commercial & industrial) are now grid defecting due to the lack of Electricity Security Provision (ESP). This paper provides a pragmatic alternative methodology utilizing specific functionalities embedded within direct-connect single and three-phase Advanced Meter Infrastructure (AMI) Solutions deployed within the distribution network, in conjunction with a Multi-Agent Systems Based AI implementation focused on Automated Negotiation Peer-2-Peer trading. The results of this research clearly illustrate, not only does methodology provide a factual percentage contribution towards the NEG MD at the point of consideration, it also allows the distributor to leverage the real-time MD data from key consumers to activate complex, yet impact-measurable Demand Response (DR) programs.

Keywords: AI, AMI, demand response, multi-agent

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Authors: Susan Catapano, Meredith Jones, Carol McNulty

Abstract:

Analysis of one state’s collaborative effort to support teachers, in both public and private schools, as they moved from face-to-face teaching to remote teaching during the Covid pandemic to identify lessons learned and materials put into place to support teachers and families. Surveys were created, distributed, and analyzed throughout the three months of remote teaching, documents and lesson plans were developed, and training materials were created. All data collected and materials developed were analyzed to identify supports teachers used and needed for successful remote teaching. Researchers found most teachers easily moved to online teaching; however, many families did not have access to technology, so teachers needed to develop non-technology-based access and support for remote teaching. Teachers also reported the need to prepare to teach remotely as part of their teaching training, so they were prepared in the future. Finally, data indicated teachers were able to establish stronger relationships with families than usual as a result of remote teaching. The lessons learned and support developed are part of the state’s ongoing policy for online teaching in the event of disasters and pandemics in the future.

Keywords: remote learning, teacher education, pandemic, families

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Authors: Nicolás Rudas

Abstract:

Sociologists have brought to light the fascination of contemporary societies with numbers but fall short of explaining it. In their accounts, people generally misunderstand the technical intricacies of statistical knowledge and therefore accept numbers as unassailable “facts”. It is due to such pervasive fascination, furthermore, that both old and new forms of social control find fertile ground. By focusing on the process whereby the fetishization of numbers reaches its zenith, i.e., when specific statistics become emblematic of an entire society, it is asserted that numbers primarily function as moral symbols with immense potential for galvanizing collective action. Their “facticity” is not solely a cognitive problem but one that is deeply rooted in myth and connected with social experiences of epiphany and ritual. Evidence from Colombia is used to illustrate how certain quantifications become canonical. In 2021, Colombia’s Peace Court revealed that the national army had executed 6,402 innocent civilians to later report them as members of illegal armed groups. Rapidly, “6,402” transformed into a prominent item in the country’s political landscape. This article reconstructs such a process by following the first six months of the figure’s circulation, both in traditional and social media. In doing so, it is developed a new cultural-sociological conceptualization of numbers as “fact-icons” that departs from traditional understandings of statistics as “technical” objects. Numbers are icons whose appropriation is less rational than aesthetic.

Keywords: culture, statistics, collective memory, social movements

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Authors: Mahmud Hafsat Hussaini, Eldah Ephraim Eldah, Bata Zoakah Amina

Abstract:

This research work was aimed at examining the challenges faced by passengers using Arik air for domestic and international travels. Passengers do complain of delay flights, theft and rude behavior by Arik staff while on transit or in the process of travelling using the aircraft. Being the national carrier in Nigeria these behaviors have tarnished the image of the airline and makes travel experience to be challenging. Hundred survey questionnaires were administered to travellers who have used the airline for domestic and international flights. Findings show that the staff of the airline do lack customer care skills and are sometimes rude to customers. The airline does have different agents that book for international flights who delays confirming bookings even after payment. The website of the airline is mostly down and makes bookings difficult. Other findings related to the study are a delay of domestic flights within Nigeria. Passengers are sometimes kept for 8 hours in the airport due to delay of flights. The study, therefore, recommends that flight schedule should be adhered to and staff should be trained to meet of with passengers demand. The security of guest luggage at the airport should be put in place to avoid theft. An effective booking platform should be accessible to passengers for easy booking.

Keywords: examining, challenges, domestic, international, travels

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Authors: Seah Siok Peh, Hashimah Mohd Yunus, Nor Hashimah Hashim, Mariam Mohamad

Abstract:

A country needs a workforce that encompasses knowledge, skilled labourers to generate innovation, productivity and being able to solve problems creatively via technology. Science education experts believe that the mastery of science skills help preschoolers to generate such knowledge on scientific concepts by providing constructive experiences. Science process skills are skills used by scientists to study or investigate a problem, issue, problem or phenomenon of science. In line with the skills used by scientists. The purpose of this study is to investigate the basic science process skill and interest in learning early science through mobile application. This study aimed to explore six spesific basic science process skills by the use of a mobile application as a learning support tool. The descriptive design also discusses on the extent of the use of mobile application in improving basic science process skill in young children. This study consists of six preschoolers and two preschool teachers from two different classes located in Perak, Malaysia. Techniques of data collection are inclusive of observations, interviews and document analysis. This study will be useful to provide information and give real phenomena to policy makers especially Ministry of education in Malaysia.

Keywords: science education, basic science process skill, interest, early science, mobile application

Procedia PDF Downloads 231