Search results for: biometric characters

Authors: Luxy Grebers Swend Sinaga, Akhmaloka

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The global energy crisis, triggered by declining fossil The global energy crisis, triggered by declining fossil fuel reserves and exacerbated by population growth and increasing energy demand, was driven the development of renewable energy sources. One of the green energy alternatives being developed is biodiesel. Transesterification is at the core of biodiesel production, where fatty acids in oil are converted into methyl esters with the aid of a catalyst. Lipases exhibit high activity and stability during catalysis, especially under harsh conditions. Lipase (Lk1) isolated from organic waste compost at the Bandung Institute of Technology, Bandung, West Java, shows promising potential in this field. The thermostable lipase was purified using Ni-NTA affinity chromatography, followed by SDS-PAGE analysis for purity confirmation. Characterizing the transesterification activity of Lk1 is essential for assessing its effectiveness in converting oil into biodiesel, including methyl esters. The results of this study showed that Lk1 exhibited the highest activity on a methyl palmitate substrate, with an optimum temperature of 60°C, very stable activity in the non-polar solvent n-hexane, and was able to maintain its optimum activity for up to 1 hour. These characters make Lk1 highly suitable for biodiesel production, as it meets the main criteria for the transesterification process in producing renewable energy.

Keywords: biodiesel, lipase Lk1, transesterification, renewable energy, thermostability

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Farzami Pour

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Determination of genetic variation is useful for plant breeding and hence production of more efficient plant species under different conditions, like drought stress. In this study, a sample of 28 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of wheat developed from the cross of Norstar and Zagross varieties, together with their parents, were evaluated for two years (2010-2012) under normal and water stress conditions using split plot design with three replications. Main plots included two irrigation treatments of 70 and 140 mm evaporation from Class A pan and sub-plots consisted of 30 genotypes. The effect of genotypes and interaction of genotypes with years and water regimes were significant for all characters. Significant genotypic effect implies the existence of genetic variation among the lines under study. Heritability estimates were high for 1000 grain weight (0.87). Biomass and grain yield showed the lowest heritability values (0.42 and 0.50, respectively). Highest genotypic and phenotypic coefficients of variation (GCV and PCV) belonged to harvest index. Moderate genetic advance for most of the traits suggested the feasibility of selection among the RILs under investigation. Some RILs were higher yielding than either parent at both environments.

Keywords: wheat, genetic gain, heritability, recombinant inbred lines

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Authors: Bowen Ding, Yihao Kuang

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In recent years, large-scale pre-trained language models have achieved state-of-the-art performance on a variety of natural language processing tasks. The word vectors produced by these language models can be viewed as dense encoded presentations of natural language that in text form. However, it is unknown how much linguistic information is encoded and how. In this paper, we construct several corresponding probing tasks for multiple linguistic information to clarify the encoding capabilities of different language models and performed a visual display. We firstly obtain word presentations in vector form from different language models, including BERT, ELMo, RoBERTa and GPT. Classifiers with a small scale of parameters and unsupervised tasks are then applied on these word vectors to discriminate their capability to encode corresponding linguistic information. The constructed probe tasks contain both semantic and syntactic aspects. The semantic aspect includes the ability of the model to understand semantic entities such as numbers, time, and characters, and the grammatical aspect includes the ability of the language model to understand grammatical structures such as dependency relationships and reference relationships. We also compare encoding capabilities of different layers in the same language model to infer how linguistic information is encoded in the model.

Keywords: language models, probing task, text presentation, linguistic information

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Authors: Liberty Takudzwa Nyete

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This paper examines the feminine representation of women’s experiences in relation to womanhood as depicted by selected three South African female authors:. The study examines the challenges, difficulties and strategies used by various female characters’ to deal with situations in a typical apartheid and post-apartheid society. It also explores the way in which gender, race and class discourses are treated in the selected texts. The three authors, born and bred at the peak of the anti-apartheid movement and women’s protest against patriarchy, witnessed the effects of apartheid on both their families and societies at large which could perhaps have influenced their writing. The study is informed by both the feminist and womanist ideologies postulated by different theorists. In particular, the study of Not Woman Enough considers issues of motherhood, womanhood and racism; while that of Shameless focuses on the importance of women’s narration of their own stories, sexuality and racism; and the depiction of sexual violence, class, and women’s roles in the fight against oppression is explored with regard to This Book Betrays My Brother. Thus, the study concludes on the social makeovers that include women in all the spheres of life, such as education and the economy, which were largely dominated by men but are no longer defined by economic status, physical attributes, class nor sexuality.

Keywords: apartheid, feminism, prostitution, sexual violence, womanism, womanhood

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Authors: T. L. Granzyk, S. Scarborough, J. DeCosmo

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The use of health-related or medical narratives has gained increasing anecdotal and research-based support as a successful device for changing health behavior and outcomes. These narratives, in the form of oral storytelling, short films, and educational documentaries, for example, are most effective when including empathetic characters that transport viewers into the story and command both their attention and emotional response. This case study outlines how and why one large health system created a short narrative film for their internal Sepsis Awareness campaign, which told the dramatic story of a patient recovering from a missed sepsis diagnosis, leaving her a quad-amputee. Results include positive global anecdotal response to the film from healthcare professionals and patients, as well as use of the film to support legislation, ultimately passed in favor of the formation of Sepsis Awareness Workgroups in Maryland. Authors conclude that narrative films can be used successfully to initiate healthcare legislation and to increase internal and external awareness of health-related areas in need of greater improvement and support. As such, healthcare leaders and stakeholders would benefit from learning how to intentionally create, cultivate, and curate narratives from within their own health systems that elicit an empathetic response.

Keywords: healthcare policy, healthcare narratives, sepsis awareness, short films

Procedia PDF Downloads 102

Authors: Xiaowen Yang

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Violence has been gaining an increasing presence among contemporary Chinese writers, yet scholarship on the representation of violence in contemporary Chinese literature is disappointingly sparse. The violence which took place in the Cultural Revolution attracted the most attention in previous literary work and academic studies. Known as a writer of the quotidian, chi Zijian is one of China’s most prominent and prolific writers. It is noticeable that in her depiction of ordinary people, an overwhelming presence of violence features which embodies one of the on-going characteristics of contemporary Chinese literature. The violence present in her texts are not about graphic and minute depiction of violent acts, But rather about the character’s complex interrelation with violence. Is it an obsession with extreme figures and events to create powerful tensions within the texts? Or is it a necessary tool to achieve criticism about social realities? This paper argues that based on her grassroots writing philosophy which is characterized by her long-standing concern about ordinary and even marginal people, it is necessary for her texts to involve characters related to violence. This endows her texts with great potential for reading their social and political implications. This paper also contends that though a shocking effect could make the criticism of social realities more powerful, an over-reliance on the excessive exterior representation of violence inhibits the writer’s literary innovation.

Keywords: Chi Zijian, contemporary Chinese literature, Violence, grassroots writing philosophy

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Authors: May Ziade

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Postgraduate studies in English language and literature at the University of Sydney provided opportunity for research into one of the most significant singer/songwriters of our time, Bob Dylan, and his masterpiece from the mid-1960s, ‘Desolation Row’. With a title alluding to Jack Kerouac’s Desolation Angels as well as John Steinbeck’s Cannery Row, ‘Desolation Row’ is Bob Dylan’s magnum opus. Recorded on August 4 1965, it takes pride of place as the last track on the revolutionary 1965 album of rock poetics, Highway 61 Revisited. From its inception, its epic proportions (ten long verses) and rich and baffling imagery got our attention - it amused, fascinated and beguiled. The song’s surreal and dreamlike landscape and its cast of characters, drawn from history, fiction, mythology, theology, and popular culture, lured us in and begged interpretation. What were they doing there? Where is Desolation Row? Do they want to escape from or go to ‘Desolation Row’? What was Dylan writing about and what were his influences? Through literary analysis and historical research, this paper will examine the song’s lyrics, the mid-60s context and Dylan’s vast influences to make sense, offer explanations and make connections. In particular, research findings place the Beat poets and oeuvre as a significant literary influence but it is a rich, multilayered text that straddles traditions and emerges as a paradox – a paradox that has endured and endeared itself to many. As it turns 50 this year, what better way to acknowledge this momentous occasion than at an international English language conference.

Keywords: analysis, Bob Dylan, beat context, desolation row

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Authors: Mohammed Titaouine, Toufik Meziane, Kahramen Deghnouche, Hanane Mohamdi, Nabil Mohamdi

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In order to better understand the morphological characters and the zootechniques measures of sheeps races in the in South-East Algeria, a study that was conducted on 1344 heads, taken from 8 farms in different parts of the region, namely T’kout 1, T’kout 2, Tafrent, Barika, Sidi-Okba, Biskra, Ouled-Djellal and Msila. The results from the present study showed significant differences in the group of 14 morphological studied variables, the body length is the most important variable. Reproduction performance of 160 ewes and growth performances of 56 lambs were analysed. The analyses of the data showed that the ewes have a fertility level of 69%, a prolificacy level of 114% and a fecundity level of 79%. Lambs weigh 3.5kg at birth, 9.38kg at 30d, 13.45kg at 60d, 16.91kg at 90d and 21.51 kg at 120d. The speed of the growth level 0.20kg/d from birth to 30d, 0.14 kg/d between 30d and 60d, 0.12kg/d between 60d and 90d and 0.15kg/d between 90d and 120d. The simple born lambs were more heavy than the double born lambs. By contrast, sex was not significant for all the variables except the weight at 60d, the birth month has a significant effect on the weight at birth, at 30d, at 60d and it was no significant for the weight at 90d and at 120d.The flocks born on September, October, November, and December were more heavy than the flocks born on January, February, and March.

Keywords: morphological characterization, reproduction performance, growth performances, algeria

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Authors: M. Nakkuntod, S. Srinarang, K.W. Hilu

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Water lily (Nymphaea L.) is the largest genus of Nymphaeaceae. This family is composed of six genera (Nuphar, Ondinea, Euryale, Victoria, Barclaya, Nymphaea). Its members are nearly worldwide in tropical and temperate regions. The classification of some species in Nymphaea is ambiguous due to high variation in leaf and flower parts such as leaf margin, stamen appendage. Therefore, the phylogenetic relationships based on 18S rDNA were constructed to delimit this genus. DNAs of 52 specimens belonging to water lily family were extracted using modified conventional method containing cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB). The results showed that the amplified fragment is about 1600 base pairs in size. After analysis, the aligned sequences presented 9.36% for variable characters comprising 2.66% of parsimonious informative sites and 6.70% of singleton sites. Moreover, there are 6 regions of 1-2 base(s) for insertion/deletion. The phylogenetic trees based on maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood with high bootstrap support indicated that genus Nymphaea was a paraphyletic group because of Ondinea, Victoria and Euryale disruption. Within genus Nymphaea, subgenus Nymphaea is a basal lineage group which cooperated with Euryale and Victoria. The other four subgenera, namely Lotos, Hydrocallis, Brachyceras and Anecphya were included the same large clade which Ondinea was placed within Anecphya clade due to geographical sharing.

Keywords: nrDNA, phylogeny, taxonomy, waterlily

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Authors: Mary S. Ruppert-Stroescu, Minh Pham, Bruce Benjamin

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Sleep apnea is a condition where a person stops breathing and can lead to cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and stroke. In the United States, approximately forty percent of overnight sleep apnea detection tests are cancelled. The purpose of this study was to develop a textile-based sensing system that acquires biometric signals relevant to cardiovascular health, to transmit them wirelessly to a computer, and to quantitatively assess the signals for sleep apnea detection. Patient interviews, literature review and market analysis defined a need for a device that ubiquitously integrated into the patient’s lifestyle. A multi-disciplinary research team of biomedical scientists, apparel designers, and computer engineers collaborated to design a textile-based sensing system that gathers EKG, Sp02, and respiration, then wirelessly transmits the signals to a computer in real time. The electronic components were assembled from existing hardware, the Health Kit which came pre-set with EKG and Sp02 sensors. The respiration belt was purchased separately and its electronics were built and integrated into the Health Kit mother board. Analog ECG signals were amplified and transmitted to the Arduino™ board where the signal was converted from analog into digital. By using textile electrodes, ECG lead-II was collected, and it reflected the electrical activity of the heart. Signals were collected when the subject was in sitting position and at sampling rate of 250 Hz. Because sleep apnea most often occurs in people with obese body types, prototypes were developed for a man’s size medium, XL, and XXL. To test user acceptance and comfort, wear tests were performed on 12 subjects. Results of the wear tests indicate that the knit fabric and t-shirt-like design were acceptable from both lifestyle and comfort perspectives. The airflow signal and respiration signal sensors return good signals regardless of movement intensity. Future study includes reconfiguring the hardware to a smaller size, developing the same type of garment for the female body, and further enhancing the signal quality.

Keywords: sleep apnea, sensors, electronic textiles, wearables

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Authors: R. G. Shemi, M. A. Abo Horish, Kh. M. A. Mekled

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The utilization of silicon (Si) sources is a crucial agricultural tool that requires optimization to promote sustainable practices. The application of Si provides the implementation of biological mechanisms of plant nutrition, growth promotion, and protection. The aims of this experiment were to investigate the relative efficacy of Si sources and levels on the growth, yield, and mineral content of wheat. The study examined the effects of silicon sulphate and silicic acid levels on growth, spike characteristics, yield parameters, and macro- and micronutrient concentrations of wheat during the 2-season. The entire above-indicated parameters were significantly (p < 0.05) increased with increasing levels of silicon sulphate and silicic acid compared to the control. Foliar application of silicon sulphate 150 ppm and silicic acid 60 ppm statistically (p < 0.05) enhanced grain N concentration and the grain yield by 136.14 and 77.85%, 43.49 and 34.52% in the 1st season, and by 78.62 and 54.40%, 43.53 and 33.18% in the 2nd season, respectively, as compared with control. Overall, foliar applications of silicon sulphate at 150 ppm and silicic acid at 60 ppm were greatly efficient amongst all Si levels and sources in improving growth and spike characters, increasing yield parameters, and elevating grain nutrients. Finally, the treatment of silicon sulfate at 150 ppm was more effective than the treatment of silicic acid at 60 ppm in increasing growth, grain nutrients, and productivity of wheat and attaining agricultural sustainability under experiment conditions.

Keywords: wheat, silicon sulphate, silicic acid, grain nutrients

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Authors: Sadeg Abdurahman, Claudio Stockle, James Harsh, Marc Beutel, Usama Zaher

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Pollution of the environment is a phenomenon which has taken a big part of importance of the world governments since the second half of the last century, this takes dangerous environmental, economic and social ranges dimensions especially after industrial advancement in industrialized country and good industrial expansion supported with modern technology and as chromium is known to be used in tannery factories. Chromium is considered a harm element to the environment due to its danger and transference through food, air, and water to the plants, animals and people. In this study the capacity of Arundo donax against chromium pollution was conducted. A. donax plants were grown-up under greenhouse conditions in pots contain nursery soil and feeding by Cr synthetic wastewater (0, 0.1, 1.0 and 2.0 mg L-1 ) for four weeks. Leaves, roots and stems dry matter production, color degree values, chlorophyll, growth parameters, and morphological characters were measured. The high Cr concentration was in roots was 1.15 mg kg-1 . Similarly, Cr concentration in stem was 0.469 mg kg-1 at 2.0 mg L-1 supplied Cr. In case of leaves, the maximum Cr concentration was 0.345 mg kg-1 at 2.0 g L-1 supplied Cr. The bioaccumulation and translocation factors was calculated. The macrophyte A. donax L. may be considered to be the most promising plant species in remediation of Cr-contaminated soil and wastewater due to its deeper root system as well as has higher efficiency to absorb chromium and other heavy metals as well.

Keywords: Arundo donax, Chromium pollution, heavy metals, phytoremediation, wastewater

Procedia PDF Downloads 681

Authors: Joon-Yeop Na, Sang-Keun Baik, Kyu-Soo Chong

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Road sign sizes are related to their support and foundation, and the large-scale support that is generally installed at roadsides can cause inconvenience to pedestrians and damage the urban landscape. The most influential factor in determining the support and foundation of road signs is the wind load. In this study, we introduce a hole-type road sign to analyze its effects on reducing wind load. A hole-type road sign reduces the drag coefficient that is applied when considering the air and fluid resistance of a plate when the wind pressure is calculated, thus serving as an effective option for lightening the weights of road sign structures. A hole-type road sign is punctured with a perforator. Furthermore, the size of the holes and their distance is determined considering the damage to characters, the poor performance of reflective sheets, and legibility. For the calculation of the optimal specification of a hole-type road sign, we undertook a theoretical examination for reducing the wind loads on hole-type road signs, and analyzed the bending and reflectivity of sample road sign plates. The analytic results confirmed that a hole-type road sign sample that contains holes of 6 mm in diameter with a distance of 18 mm between the holes shows reflectivity closest to that of existing road signs; moreover, the average bending moment resulted in a reduction of 4.24%, and the support’s diameter is reduced by 40.2%.

Keywords: hole type, road sign, weight lightening, wind load

Procedia PDF Downloads 546

Authors: M. Najib Osman, Hanafizan Hussain, Sri Kusuma Wati Mohd Daud

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Avatar was used as user’s symbol of identity in online communications such as Facebook, Twitter, online game, and portal community between unknown people. The development of this symbol is the use of animated character or avatar, which can engage learners in a way that draws them into the e-Learning experience. Immersive learning is one of the most effective learning techniques, and animated characters can help create an immersive environment. E-learning is an ideal learning environment using modern means of information technology, through the effective integration of information technology and the curriculum to achieve, a new learning style which can fully reflect the main role of the students to reform the traditional teaching structure thoroughly. Essential in any e-learning is the degree of interactivity for the learner, and whether the learner is able to study at any time, or whether there is a need for the learner to be online or in a classroom with other learners at the same time (synchronous learning). Ideally, e-learning should engage the learners, allowing them to interact with the course materials, obtaining feedback on their progress and assistance whenever it is required. However, the degree of interactivity in e-learning depends on how the course has been developed and is dependent on the software used for its development, and the way the material is delivered to the learner. Therefore, users’ accessibility that allows access to information at any time and places and their positive attitude towards e-learning such as having interacting with a good teacher and the creation of a more natural and friendly environment for e-learning should be enhanced. This is to motivate their learning enthusiasm and it has been the responsibility of educators to incorporate new technology into their ways of teaching.

Keywords: avatar, e-learning, higher education, students' perception

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Authors: Diba Arjmandi

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The notion of power and gender domination is one of the inseparable aspects of themes in postmodern literature. The reason of its importance has been discussed frequently since the rise of Michel Foucault and his vantage point toward the circulation of power and the transgression of forces. The language and society act as the basic grounds for the study, as all human beings are bound to the set of rules and norms which shape them in the acceptable way in the macrocosm. How different genders in different positions behave and show reactions to the provocation of social forces and superiority of one another, is of great interest to writers and literary critics. Mamet’s works are noticeable for their controversial but timely themes which illustrate the human conflict with the community and greed for power. Many critics like Christopher Bigsby and Harold Bloom have been discussing Mamet and his ideas during recent years. This paper is the study of Oleanna, Mamet’s masterpiece about teacher-student relationship and the circulation of power between a man and woman. He shows the very breakable boundaries in domination of a gender and the downfall of speech as the consequence of transgression and freedom. The failure of the language the teacher uses and the abuses of his own words by a student who seeks superiority and knowledge are the main subjects of discussion. Supported by the ideas of Foucault, the language Mamet uses to represent his characters becomes the fundamental element of this survey. As a result, language becomes both the means of achievement and also downfall.

Keywords: domination, foucault, language, mamet, oleanna, power, transgression

Procedia PDF Downloads 485

Authors: Nurul Imansari

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The study object in this research is 'pregnancy and women’s subjectivity represented in Ali’s Brick Lane, Cusk’s Arlington Park, and McGregor’s If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things'. Pregnancy is invested with both figurative and literal significance in the novels. Being a symbol of domesticity of the woman in the novels, pregnancy conveys the relationship of the women due to their role as a mother and wife in a family and their subjectivity as a woman. The aim of this study is to examine to what extent pregnancy affects the subjectivity of woman in Ali’s 'Brick Lane', Cusk’s 'Arlington Park', and McGregor’s 'If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things'. It also discusses on how pregnancy can be seen as a symbolic sense and the things that symbolise it. The study uses theoretical ideas of female subjectivity proposed by Julia Kristeva. She stated that in patriarchal culture, the meaning of a woman is always being reduced to the function of reproduction. She has emphasized a new discourse about pregnancy that recognizes the importance of maternal function in the development of subjectivity and in culture. The result shows that the three novels represent pregnancy as something which can affect women’s subjectivity but the way in representing the pregnancy are different from each other. Kristeva’s idea about pregnancy and women’s subjectivity can be applied in both Cusk’s Arlington Park, and McGregor’s If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things as the characters in the texts come from the same background as her. However, it can hardly be applied to Ali’s Brick Lane because this idea can justify the women to choose their own way and South Asian culture still bound to the strong patriarchal system.

Keywords: culture, pregnancy, subjectivity, women

Procedia PDF Downloads 338

Authors: Cara DiGirolamo

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In his 2017 Ph.D. thesis, script doctor David Baboulene presented a theory of fiction in which differences in the knowledge states between participants in a literary experience, including reader, author, and characters, create many story elements, among them suspense, expectations, subtext, theme, metaphor, and allegory. This theory can be adjusted and modeled by incorporating a formal pragmatic approach that understands narrative as a speech act with a conversational function. This approach requires both the Speaker and the Listener to be understood as participants in the discourse. It also uses theories of cooperativity and the QUD to identify the existence of implicit questions. This approach predicts that what an effective literary narrative must do: provide a conversational context early in the story so the reader can engage with the text as a conversational participant. In addition, this model incorporates schema theory. Schema theory is a cognitive model for learning and processing information about the world and transforming it into functional knowledge. Using this approach can extend the QUD model. Instead of describing conversation as a form of information gathering restricted to question-answer sets, the QUD can include knowledge modeling and understanding as a possible outcome of a conversation. With this model, Baboulene’s “Knowledge Gaps” can provide real insight into storytelling as a conversational move, and extend the QUD to be able to simply and effectively apply to a more diverse set of conversational interactions and also to narrative texts.

Keywords: literature, speech acts, QUD, literary theory

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Authors: Courtney Laurey Davids

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Mary Shelley’s two 19th century novels, the seminal Frankenstein (1818) and the less popular The Last Man (1826) draw on Gothic elements that invite a futuristic questioning and critique of man’s fallibility and propensity to be the author of his own demise be it by transgressing natural law through a scientific endeavour or ‘birthing’ a plague. Recent scholarship about ‘prophetic’ voices in fiction considers The Last Man an influential but overlooked novel deserving of renewed scholarly interest. Through close textual analysis and comparative reading, this paper seeks to explore the continuities (and discontinuities) in thematic concern of creator and creation in Frankenstein and The Last Man, emblematic in the oppositional characters of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature and Adrian, Earl of Windsor and Lionel Verney, his ‘creation’ in The Last Man. It argues that the creator/creation dynamic between Frankenstein and the Creature is to an extent revisited and inverted in Adrian and Verney but presented as no less problematic in The Last Man’s critique of man’s inevitable folly despite nurturing and acceptance of the marginalised figure. Drawing on Romanticism ideals of nature, its foregrounding of a scourging pandemic as punishment for man’s self-dislocation and with nature is a mirroring of Frankenstein and the Creature’s own plague-like deterioration and alienation from self and nature. In a sense, both Verney and the Creature as solitary figures at the novels' denouement are ‘last men’, having learned much about man and society and upon whom the moral injunction rests. In Verney, however, the moral warning coupled with the hope that man can yet be saved offers a different reading perhaps from Frankenstein regarding the creator/creation dichotomy.

Keywords: creator/creation, Frankenstein, Mary Shelley, The Gothic, The Last Man

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Authors: Pragya Paneru, Prativa Paneru

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This paper explores the attitude of high school Nepalese students toward scientists using a famous method named as Draw-A-Scientist-Test (DAST). A total of 145 students from Grade 11 and Grade 12 took part in this research and drew images of scientists. The findings indicated gender imbalance with male dominance in the images of scientists. The result also showed some usual stereotypes relating to hair, equipment, objects, use of eyeglasses, and lab coat in the drawings of scientists. Moreover, the influence of some mainstream western male scientists was widely seen in the drawings implying the exposure of limited male scientists to the students. In contrast to this, no real-life female scientists were mentioned by the participants demonstrating limited exposure of female scientists contributing to the gendered attitude toward the scientists. However, some of the findings also challenged the previous findings and depicted scientists with local features, positive expression, and working outdoors. Moreover, participants’ awareness that scientists could be anyone with an inquisitive mind was indicated by the variations in the characters in their drawings. The drawings indicated that scientists could be someone like a mother, themselves, a fashion icon, Buddha, or a crazy-looking person. This study recommends the inclusion of participants’ interviews, and exploration of their textbooks’ depiction of scientists to uncover additional details regarding their understanding of scientists. Also, a critical discussion of the stereotypical attitudes about scientists in class could help challenge the stereotypical assumptions of scientists.

Keywords: scientists, drawings, stereotypes, gender, high school students

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Authors: Zair Firdaous, Fourka Mohamed, Elfelsoufi Zoubir

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The arrival of e-commerce has changed the supply chain management on the operational level as well as on the organization and strategic and even tactical decisions of the companies. The optimization of resources is an issue that is needed on the tactical and operational strategic plan. This work considers the allocation of resources in the case of pure players that have launched online sales. The aim is to improve the level of customer satisfaction and maintaining the benefits of e-retailer and of its cooperators and reducing costs and risks. We first modeled the B2C chain with all operations that integrates and possible scenarios since online retailers offer a wide selection of personalized service. The personalized services that online shopping companies offer to the clients can be embodied in many aspects, such as the customizations of payment, the distribution methods, and after-sales service choices. Every aspect of customized service has several modes. At that time, we analyzed the optimization problems of supply chain resource in customized online shopping service mode. Then, we realized an optimization model and algorithm for the development based on the analysis of the of the B2C supply chain resources. It is a multi-objective optimization that considers the collaboration of resources in operations, time and costs but also the risks and the quality of services as well as dynamic and uncertain characters related to the request.

Keywords: supply chain resource, e-commerce, pure-players, optimization

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Authors: Satyananda Patra, Venugopal Rayasam

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The quality of pellets produced is affected by quality and type of green pellets, amount of addition of binders and fluxing agents along with the provided firing conditions. The green pellet quality depends upon chemistry, mineralogy and granulometry of fines used for pellet making, the feed size, its moisture content and porosity. During firing of green pellets, ingredients present within reacts to form different phases and microstructure. So in turn, physical and metallurgical properties of pellets are influenced by amount and type of binder and flux addition, induration time and temperature. During iron making process, the metallurgical properties of fired pellets are decided by the type and amount of these phases and their chemistry. Green pelletizing and induration studies have been already carried out with magnetite and hematite ore fines but for Indian iron ores of high alumina content showing different pelletizing characters, these studies cannot be directly interpreted. The main objective of proposed research work is to understand the green pelletizing process and determine the water bentonite interaction at different levels. Swelling behavior of bentonite and microstructure of the green pellet are investigated. Conversion of iron ore fines into pellets, the key raw material and process variables that influence the pellet quality needs to be identified and a correlation should be established between them.

Keywords: iron ore, pelletization, binders, green pellets, microstructure

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Authors: Juhanita Jiman

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Malaysia is a unique country with multifaceted society; rich with its beautiful cultural values. It has been a long assimilation process for Malaysia to emerge its national identity. Malaysian government has been working hard for centuries to keep its people together in harmony. Cultural identity is identified to be ‘container’ that brings Malaysians together. The uniqueness of Malaysian cultures can actually be exploited for the benefit of the nation. However, this unique culture is somehow being threatened by those imported foreign values. If not closely monitored, these foreign influences can bring more damages than good. This paper aims to study elements in Upin and Ipin animation series and investigate how this series could help to educate local children with good moral and behaviour without being too serious and sententious. Upin and Ipin is chosen as a study to investigate the effectiveness of animation as a media of communication to promote positive values amongst pre-school children. Purposive sampling method was employed to determine the sample of studies hence pre-school children from Putrajaya Presint 9(2) school were chosen to take part in this study. The findings of this study demonstrate positive suggestions on how animation programmes being shown on TV can play significant roles in children social development and inculcate good moral behaviour as well as social skills among children and people around them.

Keywords: animation characters, children informal education, foreign influences, moral values

Procedia PDF Downloads 183

Authors: Firdaous Zair, Zoubir Elfelsoufi, Mohammed Fourka

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The allocation of resources is an issue that is needed on the tactical and operational strategic plan. This work considers the allocation of resources in the case of pure players, manufacturers and Click & Mortars that have launched online sales. The aim is to improve the level of customer satisfaction and maintaining the benefits of e-retailer and of its cooperators and reducing costs and risks. Our contribution is a decision support system and tool for improving the allocation of resources in logistics chains e-commerce B2C context. We first modeled the B2C chain with all operations that integrates and possible scenarios since online retailers offer a wide selection of personalized service. The personalized services that online shopping companies offer to the clients can be embodied in many aspects, such as the customizations of payment, the distribution methods, and after-sales service choices. In addition, every aspect of customized service has several modes. At that time, we analyzed the optimization problems of supply chain resource allocation in customized online shopping service mode, which is different from the supply chain resource allocation under traditional manufacturing or service circumstances. Then we realized an optimization model and algorithm for the development based on the analysis of the allocation of the B2C supply chain resources. It is a multi-objective optimization that considers the collaboration of resources in operations, time and costs but also the risks and the quality of services as well as dynamic and uncertain characters related to the request.

Keywords: e-commerce, supply chain, B2C, optimisation, resource allocation

Procedia PDF Downloads 272

Authors: Rajeswar Pal

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Toni Morrison’s novels belong to present day relations of Africans with the White peoples and tangible man-woman relations. Her literary criticism can be seen as a contribution to the debate over the revision of the canon that dominated much of the scholarship of the 1980s and 1990s. New Criticism began to give way to theories of cultural studies, feminist scholarship, postcolonial revisions and investigations of race and ethnicity. Morrison is concerned with the definition of the American literature whether it reflects an eternal, universal or transcending paradigm – a paradigm that separates it clearly and unequivocally Chicano or African-American or Asian-American or Native American literature. She sees evidence on an incursion of third world or so-called minority literature into a Eurocentric stronghold, which threatens power structures and leads to an upheaval of existing norms. We see women more aligned, cross-culturally, with nature; however, the very critical distinction is that within a white world, the alignment seems to lead towards individuation for women yet separation from white male culture, and within a black world the alignment leads towards individuation and connection to a ownership of a racial consciousness. Whether externally or internally, the characters of Morrison are marked with a sense of incompleteness and mutual conflict, which drives them towards some force of wholeness. Present study fucusses to elucidate and enunciate the man-woman relations and an individual cataclysmic conflict in their minds.

Keywords: tangible, postcolonial, ethnicity, paradigm, upheaval, alignment, elucidate, cataclysmic

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Authors: Monika Balach, Iwona Frydrych, Agnieszka Cichocka

Abstract:

The objective of this research is to develop an algorithm, taking into account material type and body type that will describe the fabric properties and quality of fit of a garment to the body. One of the objectives of this research is to develop a new algorithm to simulate cloth draping within CAD/CAM software. Existing virtual fitting does not accurately simulate fabric draping behaviour. Part of the research into virtual fitting will focus on the mechanical properties of fabrics. Material behaviour depends on many factors including fibre, yarn, manufacturing process, fabric weight, textile finish, etc. For this study, several different fabric types with very different mechanical properties will be selected and evaluated for all of the above fabric characteristics. These fabrics include woven thick cotton fabric which is stiff and non-bending, woven with elastic content, which is elastic and bends on the body. Within the virtual simulation, the following mechanical properties can be specified: shear, bending, weight, thickness, and friction. To help calculate these properties, the KES system (Kawabata) can be used. This system was originally developed to calculate the mechanical properties of fabric. In this research, the author will focus on three properties: bending, shear, and roughness. This study will consider current research using the KES system to understand and simulate fabric folding on the virtual body. Testing will help to determine which material properties have the largest impact on the fit of the garment. By developing an algorithm which factors in body type, material type, and clothing function, it will be possible to determine how a specific type of clothing made from a particular type of material will fit on a specific body shape and size. A fit indicator will display areas of stress on the garment such as shoulders, chest waist, hips. From this data, CAD/CAM software can be used to develop garments that fit with a very high degree of accuracy. This research, therefore, aims to provide an innovative solution for garment fitting which will aid in the manufacture of clothing. This research will help the clothing industry by cutting the cost of the clothing manufacturing process and also reduce the cost spent on fitting. The manufacturing process can be made more efficient by virtual fitting of the garment before the real clothing sample is made. Fitting software could be integrated into clothing retailer websites allowing customers to enter their biometric data and determine how the particular garment and material type would fit their body.

Keywords: 3D scanning, fabric mechanical properties, quality of fit, virtual fitting

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Authors: Tuğçe Arslan

Abstract:

In the dark and gloomy times of the Middle Ages, high, majestic, and frightening structures were revealed in the architectural field. Thus, gothic architecture began to find a place for itself in different areas and spread its influence. Gothic has found its place in almost every literary genre and manages to show itself as the dominant genre in the works it enters. It has exploited many concepts, such as a chest full of bad feelings, and creates a gloomy, scary, frightening, and pessimistic mood in the story with these concepts. One of the essential concepts it uses while creating these feelings is the concept of “Doppelganger.” With this concept, the authors make sense of the uncanny; at this point, they allow the spaces to act like characters, just like the uncanny feeling Edgar Allan Poe creates in his story “The Fall of the House of the Usher.” In this story by Edgar Allan Poe, attention should be paid to the symbolic link between the two, as “House of Usher” refers to the family and the building. And indeed, it is possible to see this minor rift as representative of a breakdown in family unity, specifically between Madeline and Roderick. Because although the home is not alive, it has some supernatural features that make it look like a living, breathing being. Therefore, the remainder of this paper will argue that apart from the apparent twins, the house should also qualify as a Doppelganger in the story. This study will first explore the physical and mental disorders of the twins and their journey to complement each other; next, in an attempt to demonstrate how the house as a non-living needs to be considered as a Doppelganger of the twins, a close reading on the house depictions will be scrutinized.

Keywords: Edgar Allan Poe, doppelganger, uncanny, gothic, space, home

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Authors: Azita Behbahaninia

Abstract:

This research has been carried out to determine the water quality and physico-chemical properties Polour River, one of the most branch of Haraz River. Polour River was studied for a period of one year Samples were taken from different stations along the main branch of River polour. In water samples determined pH, DO, SO4, Cl, PO4, NO3, EC, BOD, COD, Temprature, color and number of Caliform per liter. ArcGIS was used for the zoning of phosphate concentration in the polour River basin. The results indicated that the river is polluted in polour village station, because of discharge domestic wastewater and also river is polluted in Ziar village station, because of agricultural wastewater and water is contaminated in aquaculture station, because of fish ponds wastewater. Statistical analysis shows that between independent traits and coliform regression relationship is significant at the 1% level. Coefficient explanation index indicated independent traits control 80% coliform and 20 % is for unknown parameters. The causality analysis showed Temperature (0.6) has the most positive and direct effect on coliform and sulfate has direct and negative effect on coliform. The results of causality analysis and the results of the regression analysis are matched and other forms direct and indirect effects were negligible and ignorable. Kruskal-Wallis test showed, there is different between sampling stations and studied characters. Between stations for temperature, DO, COD, EC, sulfate and coliform is at 1 % and for phosphate 5 % level of significance.

Keywords: coliform, GIS, pollution, phosphate, river

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Authors: Shabnum Shaheen, Nida Haroon, Farah Khan, Sumera Javad, Mehreen Jalal, Samina Sarwar

Abstract:

Coffee Senna is pharmaceutically very important and used for multiple health disorders such as gastric pains, indigestion, snakebites, asthma and fever, tuberculosis and menstrual problems. However, its immense medicinal value and great demand lead to adulteration issue which could be injurious for users. Some times its adulterant Seena weed (Senna occidentalis L.) is used as its substitute which definitely not as effective as Coffee Senna. Hence, the present study was undertaken to provide some tools for systematic and pharmaceutical authentication of a shrubby plant Coffee Senna (Cassia occidentalis Linn.). These parameters included macro and micro morphological characters, anatomical and palynomorph characterization, solubility, fluorescence and phytochemical analysis. By the application of these parameters acquired results revealed that, these two plants are distinct from each other. The Coffee Seena was found to be an annual shrub with trilobed pollen, diacytic, paracytic and anisocytic stomata whereas the Seena weed stands out as an annual or perennial herb with spheroidal and circular pollen and paracytic type of stomata. The powdered drug of Coffee seena is dark grayish green whereas the powdered drug of Seena weed is light green in color. These findings are constructive in authentic identification of these plants.

Keywords: coffee senna, Senna weed, taxonomic evaluation, pharmaceutical markers

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Authors: Kalluru Maheswaramma, Putta Padma

Abstract:

This study makes an attempt to demonstrate the wondrous world of the upwardly middle black community in Gloria Naylor’s Linden Hills. Gloria Naylor’s first novel The Women of Brewster Place is about the working class and Linden Hills about middle-class Black America. Naylor believes their serenity that is lost in the middle or working class black people as they move into the upper patriarchal society. Naylor challenges the different forms of superiority, homophobia, and chauvinism, interracial bias, and the like, which plague a community so significantly trying to be acceptable in the larger white community. In an ironic twist, Naylor creates characters that recognize their desire for a solid black community but who in reality ignore blackness and negate any emergent sign of its development. Linden Hills is an expose of the wealthy and spiritually dissolute upper class. Linden Hills is an examination of an upper-middle-class African American community in which women are largely exploited or invisible and in which men have, in the course of upward mobility, sacrificed their racial identity and their essence. Linden Hills is a social world, which includes firm stratification, false values, and an immobilizing impact on its residents. Touching a brief note upon the origin and development of African American Literature as well a note on the chosen writer and her works, the paper proceeds to depict the middle-class black community of Linden Hills.

Keywords: gloria naylor, linden hills, African American community, the middle black community

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Authors: Suchismita Dattagupta

Abstract:

Social rules and guidelines specify how a body should be clothed and how it should look. The social rules have made the body a space for expression, oppression and sexual 'commodification'. Being a malleable aspect of the human body, hair has always been worn in a number of ways and this characteristic of hair has made it an essential vehicle for conveying symbolic meaning. Hair, particularly women’s hair has always been considered to be associated with richness and beauty, apart from being associated with sexual power. Society has always had a preoccupation with hair bordering on obsession and has projected its moral and political supremacy by controlling and influencing how an individual wears their hair. Irrespective of the gender of the individual, society has tried to control an individual’s hair to express its control. However, with time, there has been a marked change in the way hair has been used by the individual. Hair has always been the focus of scholarly studies; not just aesthetically, but also in the cultural and social context. The fascination with hair rises from the fact that it is the only part of the human body that is always on display. Fetishization of hair is common in literature and goes ahead to reveal the character’s social and moral status. Modern authors for children and young adults have turned this concept on its head to point out how characters are breaking away from the mould and establishing their personal, moral and social boundaries. This paper will trace the change in hair symbolism in literature for children and young adults to understand how it has changed over the course of the time and what light it throws on the changing pattern of women’s position in society.

Keywords: gender, hair, social symbols, society, women's role

Procedia PDF Downloads 233