Search results for: image quality metrics

Authors: Tahir Mehmood, Mumtaz Akhter

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The global need for conflict management is greater now in the early 21st century than ever before. According to UNESCO, half of the world’s 195 countries will have to expand their stock of educationist significantly, some by tens of thousands, if the goal development targets are desired to achieve. Socioeconomic inequities, political instability, demographic changes and crises such as the HIV/AIDs epidemic have engendered huge shortfalls in teacher supply and low teacher quality in many developing countries. Education serves as back bone in development process. Open learning and distance education programs are serving as pivotal part of development process. It is now clear that ‘bricks and mortar’ approaches to expanding teacher education may not be adequate if the current and projected shortfalls in teacher supply and low teacher quality are to be properly addressed. The study is designed to measure the perceptions of teaching learning community about conflict management with special reference to open and distance learning. It was descriptive study which targeted teachers, students, community members and experts. Data analysis was carried out by using statistical techniques served by SPSS. Findings reflected that audience perceives open and distance learning as change agent and as development tool. It is noticed that target audience has driven prominent performance by using facility of open and distance learning.

Keywords: conflict management, open and distance learning, teachers, students

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Authors: Zayre I. Gonzalez-Acevedo, Marco A. Garcia-Zarate

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Environmental pollution by heavy metals is due to several processes, whether natural as weathering, or anthropogenic, related to human activities. Geysers may content dissolved heavy metals, related with their geothermal origin, and they are widely used by local people and tourists for treatment of dermal diseases and other therapeutic applications. In this study, 20 geysers with temperatures between 32 to 94 °C, located in the vicinity of Queretaro and Guanajuato in Central Mexico, were studied. These geysers were sampled in dry and rainy seasons in order to investigate seasonal changes of trace elements. The samples were analyzed in SWAMP Lab, University of Alberta, Canada for 34 elements. Most of the analyzed trace elements sowed concentrations below guidelines for natural waters. The elements showed seasonal variability with higher concentrations during rainy season. Arsenic varied from 49.29 to 2.16 µg L⁻¹. Arsenic was highly correlated with Fe, Sr, Th and Tl. Barium varied from 93.52 to 1.79 µg L⁻¹. Barium was highly correlated with Co, Cr, Mo, Ni, U, V, and Y. Copper and Zinc were correlated as well. According to the comparison of sites and the correlations between trace elements, their source was identified as natural regional, geothermal or anthropogenic origin. Because of application of geyser's water to balneology and health treatments, and also, because they are located in an urban zone in development, advise on their direct uses, according to their environmental quality is appointed in this research.

Keywords: balneology, direct uses, environmental quality and trace elements

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Authors: Vassiliki Drosou, Theoni Oikonomou

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EU-SOLARIS will form a new legal entity to explore and implement improved rules and procedures for Research Infrastructures (RI) for Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) and solar chemistry technologies, in order to optimize RI development and R&D coordination. It is expected to be the first of its kind, where industrial needs and private funding will play a significant role. The success of EU-SOLARIS initiative will be the establishment of a new governance body, aided by sustainable financial models. EU-SOLARIS is expected to be an important tool, which will provide the most complete, high quality scientific infrastructure portfolio at international level and to facilitate researchers' access to highly specialised research infrastructure through a single access point. This will be accomplished by linking scientific communities, industry and universities involved in the CST sector. The access to be offered by EU-SOLARIS will guarantee the direct contact of experienced scientists with newcomers and interested students. The set of RIs participating in EU-SOLARIS will offer access to state of the art infrastructures, high-quality services, and will enable users to conduct high quality research. Access to these facilities will contribute to the enhancement of the European research area by: -Opening installations to European and non-European scientists, coming from both academia and industry, thus improving co-operation. -Improving scientific critical mass in domains where knowledge is now widely dispersed. -Generating strong Europe-wide R&D project consortia, increasing the competitiveness of each member alone. EU-SOLARIS will be created in the framework of a European project, co-funded by the 7th Framework Programme of the European Union –whose initiative is to foster, contribute and promote the scientific and technological development of the CST and solar chemistry technologies. Primary objective of EU-SOLARIS is to contribute to the improvement of the state of the art of these technologies with the aim of preserving and reinforcing the European leadership in this field, in which EU-SOLARIS is expected to be a valuable instrument. EU-SOLARIS scope, activities, objectives, current status and vision will be given in the article. Moreover, the rules, processes and criteria regulating the access to the research infrastructures included in EU-SOLARIS will be presented.

Keywords: concentrated solar thermal (CST) technology, renewable energy sources, research infrastructures, solar chemistry

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Authors: Supriyo Das, Elbir Jove, Ajay Singh, Sophie Corbet, Noel Carr, Martin Deetz

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Water is a critical commodity in the healthcare and medical field. The utility of medical-grade water spans from washing surgical equipment, drug preparation to the key element of life-saving therapy such as hydrotherapy and hemodialysis for patients. A properly treated medical water reduces the bioburden load and mitigates the risk of infection, ensuring patient safety. However, any compromised condition during the production of medical-grade water can create a favorable environment for microbial growth putting patient safety at high risk. Therefore, proper upstream treatment of the medical water is essential before its application in healthcare, pharma and medical space. Reverse Osmosis (RO) is one of the most preferred treatments within healthcare industries and is recommended by all International Pharmacopeias to achieve the quality level demanded by global regulatory bodies. The RO process can remove up to 99.5% of constituents from feed water sources, eliminating bacteria, proteins and particles sizes of 100 Dalton and above. The combination of RO with other downstream water treatment technologies such as Electrodeionization and Ultrafiltration meet the quality requirements of various pharmacopeia monographs to produce highly purified water or water for injection for medical use. In the reverse osmosis process, the water from a liquid with a high concentration of dissolved solids is forced to flow through an especially engineered semi-permeable membrane to the low concentration side, resulting in high-quality grade water. However, these specially engineered RO membranes need to be sanitized either chemically or at high temperatures at regular intervals to keep the bio-burden at the minimum required level. In this paper, we talk about Dupont´s FilmTec Heat Sanitizable Reverse Osmosis membrane (HSRO) for the production of medical-grade water. An HSRO element must be pre-conditioned prior to initial use by exposure to hot water (80°C-85°C) for its stable performance and to meet the manufacturer’s specifications. Without pre-conditioning, the membrane will show variations in feed pressure operations and salt rejection. The paper will discuss the critical variables of pre-conditioning steps that can affect the overall performance of the HSRO membrane and demonstrate the data to support the need for pre-conditioning of HSRO elements. Our preliminary data suggests that there can be up to 35 % reduction in flow due to initial heat treatment, which also positively affects the increase in salt rejection. The paper will go into detail about the fundamental understanding of the performance change of HSRO after the pre-conditioning step and its effect on the quality of medical water produced. The paper will also discuss another critical point, “regular hot water sanitization” of these HSRO membranes. Regular hot water sanitization (at 80°C-85°C) is necessary to keep the membrane bioburden free; however, it can negatively impact the performance of the membrane over time. We will demonstrate several data points on hot water sanitization using FilmTec HSRO elements and challenge its robustness to produce quality medical water. The last part of this paper will discuss the construction details of the FilmTec HSRO membrane and features that make it suitable to pre-condition and sanitize at high temperatures.

Keywords: heat sanitizable reverse osmosis, HSRO, medical water, hemodialysis water, water for Injection, pre-conditioning, heat sanitization

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Authors: Ermias A. Tegegn, Million Meshesha

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Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a major cause of death for most African countries. Ethiopia is one of the seriously affected countries in sub Saharan Africa. Previously in Ethiopia, having HIV/AIDS was almost equivalent to a death sentence. With the introduction of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART), HIV/AIDS has become chronic, but manageable disease. The study focused on a data mining technique to predict future living status of HIV/AIDS patients at the time of drug regimen change when the patients become toxic to the currently taking ART drug combination. The data is taken from University of Gondar Hospital ART program database. Hybrid methodology is followed to explore the application of data mining on ART program dataset. Data cleaning, handling missing values and data transformation were used for preprocessing the data. WEKA 3.7.9 data mining tools, classification algorithms, and expertise are utilized as means to address the research problem. By using four different classification algorithms, (i.e., J48 Classifier, PART rule induction, Naïve Bayes and Neural network) and by adjusting their parameters thirty-two models were built on the pre-processed University of Gondar ART program dataset. The performances of the models were evaluated using the standard metrics of accuracy, precision, recall, and F-measure. The most effective model to predict the status of HIV patients with drug regimen substitution is pruned J48 decision tree with a classification accuracy of 98.01%. This study extracts interesting attributes such as Ever taking Cotrim, Ever taking TbRx, CD4 count, Age, Weight, and Gender so as to predict the status of drug regimen substitution. The outcome of this study can be used as an assistant tool for the clinician to help them make more appropriate drug regimen substitution. Future research directions are forwarded to come up with an applicable system in the area of the study.

Keywords: HIV drug regimen, data mining, hybrid methodology, predictive model

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Authors: André Augusto Ceballos Melo

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Design to facilitate the recognition of congruent prosthetic movements, context-to-motion translations guided by image, verbal prompt, users nonverbal communication such as facial expressions, gestures, paralinguistics, scene context, and object recognition contributes to this process though it can also be applied to other tasks, such as walking, Prosthetic limbs as assistive technology through gestures, sound codes, signs, facial, body expressions, and scene context The context-to-motion model is a machine learning approach that is designed to improve the control and dexterity of prosthetic limbs. It works by using sensory input from the prosthetic limb to learn about the dynamics of the environment and then using this information to generate smooth, stable movements. This can help to improve the performance of the prosthetic limb and make it easier for the user to perform a wide range of tasks. There are several key benefits to using the context-to-motion model for prosthetic limb control. First, it can help to improve the naturalness and smoothness of prosthetic limb movements, which can make them more comfortable and easier to use for the user. Second, it can help to improve the accuracy and precision of prosthetic limb movements, which can be particularly useful for tasks that require fine motor control. Finally, the context-to-motion model can be trained using a variety of different sensory inputs, which makes it adaptable to a wide range of prosthetic limb designs and environments. Stable diffusion is a machine learning method that can be used to improve the control and stability of movements in robotic and prosthetic systems. It works by using sensory feedback to learn about the dynamics of the environment and then using this information to generate smooth, stable movements. One key aspect of stable diffusion is that it is designed to be robust to noise and uncertainty in the sensory feedback. This means that it can continue to produce stable, smooth movements even when the sensory data is noisy or unreliable. To implement stable diffusion in a robotic or prosthetic system, it is typically necessary to first collect a dataset of examples of the desired movements. This dataset can then be used to train a machine learning model to predict the appropriate control inputs for a given set of sensory observations. Once the model has been trained, it can be used to control the robotic or prosthetic system in real-time. The model receives sensory input from the system and uses it to generate control signals that drive the motors or actuators responsible for moving the system. Overall, the use of the context-to-motion model has the potential to significantly improve the dexterity and performance of prosthetic limbs, making them more useful and effective for a wide range of users Hand Gesture Body Language Influence Communication to social interaction, offering a possibility for users to maximize their quality of life, social interaction, and gesture communication.

Keywords: stable diffusion, neural interface, smart prosthetic, augmenting

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Authors: Constantinos S. Mammas, Andreas Lazaris, Adamantia S. Mamma-Graham, Georgia Kostopanagiotou, Chryssa Lemonidou, John Mantas, Eustratios Patsouris

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The process to build a better safety culture, methods of error analysis, and preventive measures, starts with an understanding of the effects when human factors engineering refer to remote microscopic diagnosis in surgery and specially in organ transplantation for the evaluation of the grafts. Α high percentage of solid organs arrive at the recipient hospitals and are considered as injured or improper for transplantation in the UK. Digital microscopy adds information on a microscopic level about the grafts (G) in Organ Transplant (OT), and may lead to a change in their management. Such a method will reduce the possibility that a diseased G will arrive at the recipient hospital for implantation. Aim: The aim of this study is to analyze the ergonomics of digital microscopy (DM) based on virtual slides, on telemedicine systems (TS) for tele-pathological evaluation (TPE) of the grafts (G) in organ transplantation (OT). Material and Methods: By experimental simulation, the ergonomics of DM for microscopic TPE of renal graft (RG), liver graft (LG) and pancreatic graft (PG) tissues is analyzed. In fact, this corresponded to the ergonomics of digital microscopy for TPE in OT by applying virtual slide (VS) system for graft tissue image capture, for remote diagnoses of possible microscopic inflammatory and/or neoplastic lesions. Experimentation included the development of an OTE-TS similar experimental telemedicine system (Exp.-TS) for simulating the integrated VS based microscopic TPE of RG, LG and PG Simulation of DM on TS based TPE performed by 2 specialists on a total of 238 human renal graft (RG), 172 liver graft (LG) and 108 pancreatic graft (PG) tissues digital microscopic images for inflammatory and neoplastic lesions on four electronic spaces of the four used TS. Results: Statistical analysis of specialist‘s answers about the ability to accurately diagnose the diseased RG, LG and PG tissues on the electronic space among four TS (A,B,C,D) showed that DM on TS for TPE in OT is elaborated perfectly on the ES of a desktop, followed by the ES of the applied Exp.-TS. Tablet and mobile-phone ES seem significantly risky for the application of DM in OT (p<.001). Conclusion: To make the largest reduction in errors and adverse events referring to the quality of the grafts, it will take application of human factors engineering to procurement, design, audit, and awareness-raising activities. Consequently, it will take an investment in new training, people, and other changes to management activities for DM in OT. The simulating VS based TPE with DM of RG, LG and PG tissues after retrieval, seem feasible and reliable and dependable on the size of the electronic space of the applied TS, for remote prevention of diseased grafts from being retrieved and/or sent to the recipient hospital and for post-grafting and pre-transplant planning.

Keywords: digital microscopy, organ transplantation, tele-pathology, virtual slides

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Authors: B. F. Olanipekun, O. J. Oyelade, C. O. Osemobor

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Pigeon pea is a very good source of protein and micronutrient, but it is being underutilized in Nigeria because of several constraints. This research considered the effect of different processing methods on the quality attributes of pigeon pea used in bread production towards enhancing its utility. Pigeon pea was obtained at a local market and processed into the flour using three processing methods: soaking, sprouting and roasting and were used to bake bread in different proportions. Chemical composition and sensory attributes of the breads were thereafter determined. The highest values of protein and ash contents were obtained from 20 % substitution of sprouted pigeon pea in wheat flour and may be attributable to complex biochemical changes occurring during hydration, to invariably lead to protein constituent being broken down. Hydrolytic activities of the enzymes from the sprouted sample resulted in improvement in the constituent of total protein probably due to reduction in the carbohydrate content. Sensory qualities analyses showed that bread produced with soaked and roasted pigeon pea flours at 5 and 10% inclusion, respectively were mostly accepted than other blends, and products with sprouted pigeon pea flour were least accepted. The findings of this research suggest that supplementing wheat flour with sprouted pigeon peas have more nutritional potentials. However, with sensory analysis indices, the soaked and roasted pigeon peas up to 10% are majorly accepted, and also can improve the nutritional status. Overall, this will be very beneficial to population dependent on plant protein in order to combat malnutrition problems.

Keywords: pigeon pea, processing, protein, malnutrition

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Authors: J. Hajnys, M. Pagac, J. Petru, P. Stefek, J. Mesicek, J. Kratochvil

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The new progressive method of 3D metal printing SLM (Selective Laser Melting) is increasingly expanded into the normal operation. As a result, greater demands are placed on the surface quality of the parts produced in this way. The article deals with research of selected finishing methods (tumbling, face milling, sandblasting, shot peening and brushing) and their impact on the final surface roughness. The 20 x 20 x 7 mm produced specimens using SLM additive technology on the Renishaw AM400 were subjected to testing of these finishing methods by adjusting various parameters. Surface parameters of roughness Sa, Sz were chosen as the evaluation criteria and profile parameters Ra, Rz were used as additional measurements. Optical measurement of surface roughness was performed on Alicona Infinite Focus 5. An experiment conducted to optimize the surface roughness revealed, as expected, that the best roughness parameters were achieved through a face milling operation. Tumbling is particularly suitable for 3D printing components, as tumbling media are able to reach even complex shapes and, after changing to polishing bodies, achieve a high surface gloss. Surface quality after tumbling depends on the process time. Other methods with satisfactory results are shot peening and tumbling, which should be the focus of further research.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, selective laser melting, SLM, surface roughness, stainless steel

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Authors: Jaehong Kim, Sunhee Park, HongSeop Shin, Kyongho Lim, Suhyun Kwon, Don-Gyou Lee, Pureum Kim, Moojong Lim, JongSang Baek

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Transparent displays with OLEDs are the most commonly produced forms of see-through displays on the market or in development. In order to block the visual interruption caused by the light coming from the background, the special panel is combined with transparent displays with OLEDs. There is, however, few studies performance of optical shutter panel for transparent displays until now. This paper, therefore, describes the performance of optical shutter panels. The novel evaluation method was developed by measuring the amount of light which can form a transmitted background image. The new proposed method could tell how recognizable transmitted background images cannot be seen, and is consistent with viewer’s perception.

Keywords: optical shutter panel, optical performance, transparent display, visual interruption

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Authors: M. Linek

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This article presents the comparison of selected evaluation methods regarding microstructure modification of hardened cement concrete intended for airfield pavements. Basic test results were presented for two pavement quality concrete lots. Analysis included standard concrete used for airfield pavements and modern material solutions based on concrete composite modification. In case of basic grain size distribution of concrete cement CEM I 42,5HSR NA, fine aggregate and coarse aggregate fractions in the form of granite chippings, water and admixtures were considered. In case of grain size distribution of modified concrete, the use of modern modifier as substitute of fine aggregate was suggested. Modification influence on internal concrete structure parameters using scanning electron microscope was defined. Obtained images were compared to the results obtained using computed tomography. Opportunity to use this type of equipment for internal concrete structure diagnostics and an attempt of its parameters evaluation was presented. Obtained test results enabled to reach a conclusion that both methods can be applied for pavement quality concrete diagnostics, with particular purpose of airfield pavements.

Keywords: scanning electron microscope, computed tomography, cement concrete, airfield pavements

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Authors: Atheer Al-Maqbali, Mohammed Al-Rizeiqi, Pankaj Pathare

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There is an ever-increased demand for the consumption of banana products in Oman and elsewhere in the region due to the nutritional value and the decent taste of the product. There are approximately 3,751 acres of land designated for banana cultivation in the Sultanate of Oman, which produces approximately 18,447 tons of banana product. The fresh banana product is extremely perishable, resulting in a significant post-harvest economic loss. Since the product has high sensory acceptability, the drying method is a common method for processing fresh banana products. This study aims to use the drying technology in the production of dried bananas to preserve the largest amount of natural color and delicious taste for the consumer. The study also aimed to assess the shelf stability of both water activity (aw) and color (L*, a*, b*) for fresh and finished dried bananas by using a Conventional Air Drying System. Water activity aw, color characteristic L a b, and product’s hardness were analyzed for 3mm, 5mm, and7 mm thickness at different temperaturesoC. All data were analyzed statistically using STATA 13.0, and α ≤ 0.05 was considered for the significance level. The study is useful to banana farmers to improve cultivation, food processors to optimize producer’s output and policy makers in the optimization of banana processing and post-harvest management of the products.

Keywords: banana, drying, oman, quality, thickness, hardness, color

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Authors: G. T. Mudashiru, Mayowa P. Ibitola

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Investigation was carried out at Ikorodu North local council development area of Lagos state using physiochemical parameters to study the quality drinking water. It was ascertained that the human functions and activities were dependent on the continuous and availability of good drinking water. Six water samples were collected at six different boreholes from various outlets and homes in Ikorodu North local council development area. Lagos state Nigeria. Analysis was carried out to determine the purity of water for domestic use. Physicochemical properties evaluation was adapted using standard chemical methods. A number of parameters such as PH, turbidity, conductivity, total dissolved solids, color, chloride, sulphate, nitrate, hardness were determined. Heavy metals such as Zn, Mg, Fe, Pb, Hg, and Mn as well as total coliform counts were observed. The resulted values of each parameter were justified with World Health Organization (WHO) and Lagos state water regulatory commission LSWRC standard values for quantitative comparison. The result reveals that all the water had pH value well below the WHO maximum permissible level for potable water. Other physicochemical parameters were within the safe limit of WHO standard showing the portability nature of the water. It can be concluded that though the water is potable, there should be a kind of treatment of the water before consumption to prevent outbreak of diseases.

Keywords: drinking water, physiology, boreholes, heavy metals, domestic

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Authors: Chin-Chia Jane

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In a transportation network, travel time refers to the transmission time from source node to destination node, whereas reliability refers to the probability of a successful connection from source node to destination node. With an increasing emphasis on quality of service (QoS), both performance indexes are significant in the design and analysis of transportation systems. In this work, we extend the well-known flow network model for transportation networks so that travel time and reliability are integrated into the QoS measurement simultaneously. In the extended model, in addition to the general arc capacities, each intermediate node has a time weight which is the travel time for per unit of commodity going through the node. Meanwhile, arcs and nodes are treated as binary random variables that switch between operation and failure with associated probabilities. For pre-specified travel time limitation and demand requirement, the QoS of a transportation network is the probability that source can successfully transport the demand requirement to destination while the total transmission time is under the travel time limitation. This work is pioneering, since existing literatures that evaluate travel time reliability via a single optimization path, the proposed QoS focuses the performance of the whole network system. To compute the QoS of transportation networks, we first transfer the extended network model into an equivalent min-cost max-flow network model. In the transferred network, each arc has a new travel time weight which takes value 0. Each intermediate node is replaced by two nodes u and v, and an arc directed from u to v. The newly generated nodes u and v are perfect nodes. The new direct arc has three weights: travel time, capacity, and operation probability. Then the universal set of state vectors is recursively decomposed into disjoint subsets of reliable, unreliable, and stochastic vectors until no stochastic vector is left. The decomposition is made possible by applying existing efficient min-cost max-flow algorithm. Because the reliable subsets are disjoint, QoS can be obtained directly by summing the probabilities of these reliable subsets. Computational experiments are conducted on a benchmark network which has 11 nodes and 21 arcs. Five travel time limitations and five demand requirements are set to compute the QoS value. To make a comparison, we test the exhaustive complete enumeration method. Computational results reveal the proposed algorithm is much more efficient than the complete enumeration method. In this work, a transportation network is analyzed by an extended flow network model where each arc has a fixed capacity, each intermediate node has a time weight, and both arcs and nodes are independent binary random variables. The quality of service of the transportation network is an integration of customer demands, travel time, and the probability of connection. We present a decomposition algorithm to compute the QoS efficiently. Computational experiments conducted on a prototype network show that the proposed algorithm is superior to existing complete enumeration methods.

Keywords: quality of service, reliability, transportation network, travel time

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Authors: Twarakavi Venkata Suresh Kumar, Sailaja Kumar, B. Eswara Reddy

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In a world of tremendous technical developments, effective and efficient higher education has always been a major challenge. The rising number of educational institutions have made it mandatory for healthy competitions among the institutions. To evaluate the qualitative competence of these educations institutions in engineering and technology and related disciplines, an efficient assessment technique in internal and external quality has to be followed. To achieve this, the curriculum is to be developed into courses, and each course has to be presented in the form teaching lesson plan consisting of topics and session outcome known as Course Outcomes (COs), that easily map into different Programme Outcomes (POs). The major objective of these methodologies is to provide quality technical education to its students. Detailed clear weightage in CO-PO mapping helps in proper measurable COs and to devise the POs attainment is an important issue. This ensures in assisting the achievement of the POs with proper weightage to POs, and also improves the successive curriculum development. In this paper, we presented a methodology for mapping CO and PO considering the key elements supported by each PO. This approach is useful in evaluating the attainment of POs which is based on the attainment of COs using the existing data from students' marks taken from various test items. Such direct assessment tools are used to measure the degree to which each student has achieved each course learning outcome by the completion of the course. Hence, these results are also useful in measuring the PO attainment for improving the programme vision and mission.

Keywords: attainment, course outcomes, programme outcomes, educational institutions

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Authors: Sufrin Hannan, Budi Suharjo, Rita Nurmalina, Kirbrandoko

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The challenge for independent surveyor service companies now is growing with increasing uncertainty in business. Protection from the government for domestic independent surveyor industry from competitor attack, such as entering the global surveyors to Indonesia also no longer exists. Therefore, building customer loyalty becomes very important to create a long-term relationship between an independent surveyor with its customers. This study aims to develop a model that can be used to build customer loyalty by looking at various factors that determine customer loyalty, especially on independent surveyors for coal inspection in Indonesia. The development of this model uses the relationship marketing approach. Testing of the hypothesis is done by testing the variables that determine customer loyalty, either directly or indirectly, which amounted to 10 variables. The data were collected from 200 questionnaires filled by independent surveyor company decision makers from 51 exporting companies and coal trading companies in Indonesia and analyzed using Structural Equation Model (SEM). The results show that customer loyalty of independent surveyors is influenced by customer satisfaction, trust, switching-barrier, and relationship-bond. Research on customer satisfaction shows that customer satisfaction is influenced by the perceived quality and perceived value, while perceived quality is influenced by reliability, assurance, responsiveness, and empathy.

Keywords: relationship marketing, customer loyalty, customer satisfaction, switching barriers, relationship bonds

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Authors: Ricardo Hugo Gonzalez, Amanda Figueiredo Vasconcelos, Francisco Loureiro Neto Monteiro, Yara Luiza Freitas Silva, Ana Cristina Lindsay, Márcia Maria Tavares Machado

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The use of sport as an integration mean is a very important tool regarding the social involvement of children and teenagers in a vulnerability situation. This study aims to report the experiences of a multidisciplinary program that intends to improve the quality of life of children and teenagers in Fortaleza, in the Northeast of Brazil. More than 400 children and teenagers aging 11 and 16 years participated in this study. Poor communities experience many particular difficulties in the urban centers such as violence, poor housing conditions, unemployment, lack in health care and deficient physical education in school. Physical education, physiotherapy, odontology, medicine and pharmacy students are responsible for the activities in the project supervised by a general coordinator and a counselor teacher of each academic unit. There are classes about team sports like basketball and soccer. Lectures about sexual behavior and sexually transmitted diseases are ministered beside the ones about oral health education, basic life support education, first aids, use and care with pharmaceuticals and orientations about healthy nutrition. In order to get the children’s family closer, monthly informative lectures are ministered. There is also the concern about reflecting the actions and producing academic paperwork such as graduation final projects and books. The number of participants has oscillated lately, and one of the causes is the lack of practicing physical activities and sports regularly. However, 250 teenagers have participated regularly for at least two years. These teenagers have shown a healthier lifestyle and a better physical fitness profile. The resources for maintaining the project come from the Pro-Reitoria of Extension, Federal University of Ceara, as well as from the PROEXT/MEC, Federal Government. Actions of this nature need to be done thinking for long periods so the effects results can become effective. Public and private investments are needed due to low socioeconomic families who are most vulnerable and have fewer opportunities to enhance to health prevention services.

Keywords: children and teenagers, health, multidisciplinary program, quality of life

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Authors: Wang Zhenzhen, Wang Xu, Hong Liangping

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The construction of thematic commercial streets has been on the hotspot with the rapid development of cities. In order to improve the image and competitiveness of cities, many cities are building or rebuilding thematic commercial streets. However, many contradictions and problems have emerged during this process. Therefore, it is significant, for both the practice and the research, to analyse the development of thematic commercial streets and provide some useful suggestions. Through the deep research and comparative study of the eight typical thematic commercial streets in Harbin, this paper summarize the current situations, laws and influencing factors of the development of these streets, and then put forward some suggestions about the plan, constructions and developments of the thematic commercial streets.

Keywords: thematic commercial streets, laws of the development, influence factors, the constructions and developments, degrees of aggregation

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Authors: Sajadian Akram, Tavasoli F.

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Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in the world and certainly the most frequent cancer mostly among women. This study was aimed to compare the effectiveness of individual counseling and group narrative therapy on female patients' life expectancy afflicted by breast cancer. The present study is a pre-test-post-test clinical trial. Fifty-five patients with breast cancer were randomly selected in the follow-up period and after their active medical treatment completion. Then, they were randomly divided into two groups: individual counseling and group counseling. Herth hope index (HHI) was used to measure the patients' hope level. Data were analyzed using t-test and SPSS software. hope rate was statistically significant in both groups receiving individual and group narrative therapy in the post-test compared to the pre-test (P <00000). Moreover, the comparative evaluation of hope in both groups (individual & group counseling) in the post-test showed that group narrative counseling is more effective than individual narrative counseling (P <00000). Conclusion: Narrative therapy promotes hope in breast cancer patients effectively. Due to the nature of breast cancer and its psychological effects in the post-treatment period, providing narrative group therapy can improve life quality. Patients' life quality changes in tandem with changes in hope.

Keywords: hope, narrative therapy, counseling, breast cancer

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Authors: Juan Francisco Reinoso Gordo, Francisco Javier Ariza-López, José Rodríguez Avi, Domingo Barrera Rosillo

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The evaluation of the quality of a data product is based on the comparison of the product with a reference of greater accuracy. In the case of MDE data products, quality assessment usually focuses on positional accuracy and few studies consider other terrain characteristics, such as slope and orientation. The proposal that is made consists of evaluating the similarity of two DEMs (a product and a reference), through the joint analysis of the distribution functions of the variables of interest, for example, elevations, slopes and orientations. This is a multivariable approach that focuses on distribution functions, not on single parameters such as mean values or dispersions (e.g. root mean squared error or variance). This is considered to be a more holistic approach. The use of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test is proposed due to its non-parametric nature, since the distributions of the variables of interest cannot always be adequately modeled by parametric models (e.g. the Normal distribution model). In addition, its application to the multivariate case is carried out jointly by means of a single test on the convolution of the distribution functions of the variables considered, which avoids the use of corrections such as Bonferroni when several statistics hypothesis tests are carried out together. In this work, two DEM products have been considered, DEM02 with a resolution of 2x2 meters and DEM05 with a resolution of 5x5 meters, both generated by the National Geographic Institute of Spain. DEM02 is considered as the reference and DEM05 as the product to be evaluated. In addition, the slope and aspect derived models have been calculated by GIS operations on the two DEM datasets. Through sample simulation processes, the adequate behavior of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov statistical test has been verified when the null hypothesis is true, which allows calibrating the value of the statistic for the desired significance value (e.g. 5%). Once the process has been calibrated, the same process can be applied to compare the similarity of different DEM data sets (e.g. the DEM05 versus the DEM02). In summary, an innovative alternative for the comparison of DEM data sets based on a multinomial non-parametric perspective has been proposed by means of a single Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. This new approach could be extended to other DEM features of interest (e.g. curvature, etc.) and to more than three variables

Keywords: data quality, DEM, kolmogorov-smirnov test, multivariate DEM comparison

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Authors: Asiya Rezzouq, Mehdi El Bouchti, Omar Cherkaoui, Sanaa Majid, Souad Zyade

Abstract:

In recent years, there has been a steady increase in the exploration of new renewable and non-conventional sources for the production of biodegradable nanomaterials. Nature harbours valuable cellulose-rich materials that have so far been under-exploited and can be used to create cellulose derivatives such as cellulose microfibres (CMFs) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). These unconventional sources have considerable potential as alternatives to conventional sources such as wood and cotton. By using agricultural waste to produce these cellulose derivatives, we are responding to the global call for sustainable solutions to environmental and economic challenges. Responsible management of agricultural waste is increasingly crucial to reducing the environmental consequences of its disposal, including soil and water pollution, while making efficient use of these untapped resources. In this study, the main objective was to extract cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from melon plant residues using methods that are both efficient and sustainable. To achieve this high-quality extraction, we followed a well-defined protocol involving several key steps: pre-treatment of the residues by grinding, filtration and chemical purification to obtain high-quality (CMF) with a yield of 52% relative to the initial mass of the melon plant residue. Acid hydrolysis was then carried out using phosphoric acid and sulphuric acid to convert (CMF) into cellulose nanocrystals. The extracted cellulose nanocrystals were subjected to in-depth characterization using advanced techniques such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction. The resulting cellulose nanocrystals have exceptional properties, including a large specific surface area, high thermal stability and high mechanical strength, making them suitable for a variety of applications, including as reinforcements for composite materials. In summary, the study highlights the potential for recovering agricultural melon waste to produce high-quality cellulose nanocrystals with promising applications in industry, nanotechnology, and biotechnology, thereby contributing to environmental and economic sustainability.

Keywords: cellulose, melon plant residues, cellulose nanocrystals, properties, applications, composite materials

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Authors: Uzoamaka Nwugo Akwiwu

Abstract:

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) among rural dwellers depletes quality of agricultural labour, and reduces quality of life. Use of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) has not significantly reduced consequences of infection, as the effort is being compromised by inadequate dietary intake. This study analysed the dietary intake of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in rural communities of Imo State, Nigeria. Data was collected from 114 PLWHA randomly selected from members of two rural support groups with high prevalence of HIV in Imo State using interview schedule. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson product moment correlation, and t-test at α0.05. Level of involvement in agriculture was (mean 12.7) and reduced to 7.0 after infection. Extent of involvement in agriculture significantly reduced after infection in Imo (t=8.1). Health status of 42.1% of PLWHA was perceived as poor. Diet diversity score (4.3±1.6) was low among majority (62.3%) of the PLWHA, with diet of 76.3% being inadequate. However, perceived health status had no significant correlation with dietary intake (r=0.09). The study concluded that diet of PLWHA in Imo State was inadequate, thus there is need for agricultural extension agents to collaborate with the health sector to develop nutritional guideline for PLWHA in rural communities.

Keywords: dietary intake, diet diversity, people living With HIV/AIDS, perceived health status

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Authors: Chang Yu Chuan

Abstract:

Background and Aim: Pressure sore is not only the consequence of any gradual damage of the skin leading to tissue defects but also an important indicator of clinical care. If hospitalized patients develop pressure sores without proper care, it would result in delayed healing, wound infection, increase patient physical pain, prolonged hospital stay and even death, which would have a negative impact on the quality of care and also increase nursing manpower and medical costs. This project is aimed at decreasing the incidence of pressure sore in one ward of internal medicine. Our data showed 53 cases (0.61%) of pressure sore in 2015, which exceeded the average (0.5%) of Taiwan Clinical Performance Indicator (TCPI) for medical centers. The purpose of this project is to reduce the incidence rate of pressure sore in the ward. After data collection and analysis from January to December 2016, the reasons of developing pressure sore were found: 1. Lack of knowledge to prevent pressure among nursing staffs; 2. No relevant courses about preventing pressure ulcers and pressure wound care being held in this unit; 3. Low complete rate of pressure sore care education that family members should receive from nursing staffs; 4. Decompression equipment is not enough; 5. Lack of standard procedures for body-turning and positioning care. After team members brainstorming, several strategies were proposed, including holding in-service education, pressure sore care seed training, purchasing decompression mattress and memory pillows, designing more elements of health education tools, such as health education pamphlet, posters and multimedia films of body-turning and positioning demonstration, formulation and promotion of standard operating procedures. In this way, nursing staffs can understand the body-turning and positioning guidelines for pressure sore prevention and enhance the quality of care. After the implementation of this project, the pressure sore density significantly decreased from 0.61%(53 cases) to 0.45%(28 cases) in this ward. The project shows good results and good example for nurses working at the ward and helps to enhance quality of care.

Keywords: body-turning and positioning, incidence density, nursing, pressure sore

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Authors: Moung Young Lee, Chul Gyu Song

Abstract:

Photoacoustic imaging is the imaging technology that combines the optical imaging and ultrasound. This provides the high contrast and resolution due to optical imaging and ultrasound imaging, respectively. We developed the real-time photoacoustic tomography (PAT) system using linear-ultrasound transducer and digital acquisition (DAQ) board. There are two types of algorithm for reconstructing the photoacoustic signal. One is back-projection algorithm, the other is FFT algorithm. Especially, we used the non-uniform FFT algorithm. To evaluate the performance of our system and algorithms, we monitored two wires that stands at interval of 2.89 mm and 0.87 mm. Then, we compared the images reconstructed by algorithms. Finally, we monitored the two hairs crossed and compared between these algorithms.

Keywords: back-projection, image comparison, non-uniform FFT, photoacoustic tomography

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Authors: Tilouche Rahma, Sayeb Soumaya, Ben Hassen Mohamed

Abstract:

The wettability of materials is a very important aspect of surface science, it presents a key factor providing the best characteristic of product, especially in hygienic field. Hydrophobic polypropylene is used as nonwoven topsheet in disposable diaper, for its interesting properties (toughness, lightness...) by comparing with traditional product previously used. SURFACTANTs are widely used to reduce contact angle (water contact angles larger than 90° on smooth surfaces) and to change wetting properties. In the present work, we study ways to obtain hydrophilic polypropylene surface, by the deposition of a variety of surfactant on surfaces of varying morphology. We used two different methods for surface wetting: Spraying method and the coating method. The concentration of the wetting agent, the type of non-woven fabric and the parameters in the method for controlling, hugely affect the quality of treatment. Therefore need that the treatment is effective in terms of contact angle without affecting the mechanical properties of the nonwoven. For the assessment of the quality of treatment, two methods are used: The measurement of the contact angle and the strike trough time. Also, with subjective evaluation by Hedonic test (which involves the consumer preference (naive panel: group of moms). Finally, we selected the better treated topsheet referring to the assessment results.

Keywords: SURFACTANT, topsheet polypropylene, hydrophilic, hydrophobic

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Authors: Wang Zhiwei, Wang Weiwu

Abstract:

The process of urbanization in China has entered a critical period of transformation from urban expansion and construction to delicate urban design, thus forming a new direction in the field of urban design. So far, catalyst theory has become a prominent guiding strategy in urban planning and design. In this paper, under the background of urban renewal, catalyst theory is taken as the guiding ideology to explore the method of urban design in shouxian county. Firstly, this study briefly introduces and analyzes the catalyst theory. Through field investigation, it is found that the city has a large number of idle Spaces, such as abandoned factories and schools. In the design, the idle Spaces in the county town are utilized and interlinked in space, and functional interaction is carried out from the pattern of the county town. On the one hand, the results showed that the catalyst theory can enhance the vitality of the linear street space with a small amount of monomer construction. On the other hand, the city can also increase the cultural and economic sites of the city without damaging the historical relics and the sense of alterations of the ancient city, to improve the quality of life and quality of life of citizens. The city micro-transformation represented by catalyst theory can help ancient cities like shouxian to realize the activation of the old city and realize the gradual development.

Keywords: catalytic theory, urban design, China's ancient city, Renaissance

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Authors: Mayandi Ramanathan

Abstract:

Gas turbine blades see the most aggressive thermal stress conditions within the engine, due to high Turbine Entry Temperatures in the range of 1500 to 1600°C. The blades rotate at very high rotation rates and remove a significant amount of thermal power from the gas stream. At high temperatures, the major component failure mechanism is a creep. During its service over time under high thermal loads, the blade will deform, lengthen and rupture. High strength and stiffness in the longitudinal direction up to elevated service temperatures are certainly the most needed properties of turbine blades and gas turbine components. The proposed advanced Ti alloy material needs a process that provides a strategic orientation of metallic ordering, uniformity in composition and high metallic strength. The chemical composition of the proposed Ti alloy material (25% Ta/(Al+Ta) ratio), unlike Ti-47Al-2Cr-2Nb, has less excess Al that could limit the service life of turbine blades. Properties and performance of Ti-47Al-2Cr-2Nb and Ti-6Al-4V materials will be compared with that of the proposed Ti alloy material to generalize the performance metrics of various gas turbine components. This paper will involve the summary of the effects of additive manufacturing and heat treatment process conditions on the changes in the phase composition, grain structure, lattice structure of the material, tensile strength, creep strain rate, thermal expansion coefficient and fracture toughness at different temperatures. Based on these results, additive manufacturing and heat treatment process conditions will be optimized to fabricate turbine blade with Ti-43Al matrix alloyed with an optimized amount of refractory Ta metal. Improvement in service temperature of the turbine blades and corrosion resistance dependence on the coercivity of the alloy material will be reported. A correlation of phase composition and creep strain rate will also be discussed.

Keywords: high temperature materials, aerospace, specific strength, creep strain, phase composition

Procedia PDF Downloads 104

Authors: R. Tariq, R. Lee

Abstract:

Background: Heywood, Middleton & Rochdale Urgent Community Care Team (UCCT)1 is a great example of using a multidisciplinary team to cope with demand. The service reduces unnecessary admissions to hospitals and ensures that patients can leave the hospital quicker by making care more readily available within the community and patient’s homes. The team comprises nurses, community practitioners, and allied health professions, including physiotherapy, occupational therapy, pharmacy, and GPs. The main challenge for a team with a range of experiences and skill sets is to maintain consistency of care, which technology can help address. Allied healthcare professionals (HCPs) are often used in expanded roles with duties mainly involving patient consultations and decision making to ease pressure on doctors. The Clinical Reasoning Platform (CRP) Dem Dx is used to support new as well as experienced professionals in the decision making process. By guiding HCPs through diagnosing patients from an expansive directory of differential diagnoses, patients can receive quality care in the community. Actions on the platform are determined using NICE guidelines along with local guidance influencing the assessment and management of a patient. Objective: To compare the clinical assessment, decisions, and actions taken by the UCCT multidisciplinary team in the community and Dem Dx, using retrospective clinical cases. Methodology: Dem Dx was used to analyse 192 anonymised cases provided by the HMR UCCT. The team’s performance was compared with Dem Dx regarding the quality of the documentation of the clinical assessment and the next steps on the patient’s journey, including the initial management, actions, and any onward referrals made. The cases were audited by two medical doctors. Results: The study found that the actions outlined by the Dem Dx platform were appropriate in almost 87% of cases. When in a direct comparison between DemDX and the actions taken by the clinical team, it was found that the platform was suitable 83% (p<0.001) of the time and could lead to a potential improvement of 66% in the assessment and management of cases. Dem Dx also served to highlight the importance of comprehensive and high quality clinical documentation. The quality of documentation of cases by UCCT can be improved to provide a detailed account of the assessment and management process. By providing step-by-step guidance and documentation at every stage, Dem Dx may ensure that legal accountability has been fulfilled. Conclusion: With the ever expanding workforce in the NHS, technology has become a key component in driving healthcare outcomes. To improve healthcare provision and clinical reasoning, a decision support platform can be integrated into HCPs’ clinical practice. Potential assistance with clinical assessments, the most appropriate next step and actions in a patient’s care, and improvements in the documentation was highlighted by this retrospective study. A further study has been planned to ascertain the effectiveness of improving outcomes using the clinical reasoning platform within the clinical setting by clinicians.

Keywords: allied health professional, assessment, clinical reasoning, clinical records, clinical decision-making, ocumentation

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Authors: Refilwe Moeletsi

Abstract:

Dimension stone quarrying around Brits and Belfast areas started in the early 1930s and has been growing rapidly since then. Environmental impacts associated with these quarries have not been documented, and hence this study aims at detecting any change in the environment that might have been caused by these activities. Landsat images that were used to assess land use/land cover changes in Brits quarries from 1998 - 2015. A supervised classification using maximum likelihood classifier was applied to classify each image into different land use/land cover types. Classification accuracy was assessed using Google Earth™ as a source of reference data. Post-classification change detection method was used to determine changes. The results revealed significant increase in granite quarries and corresponding decrease in vegetation cover within the study region.

Keywords: remote sensing, GIS, change detection, granite quarries

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Authors: M. Kowalski, M. Kastek, M. Szustakowski

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Multispectral screening systems are becoming more popular because of their very interesting properties and applications. One of the most significant applications of multispectral screening systems is prevention of terrorist attacks. There are many kinds of threats and many methods of detection. Visual detection of objects hidden under clothing of a person is one of the most challenging problems of threats detection. There are various solutions of the problem; however, the most effective utilize multispectral surveillance imagers. The development of imaging devices and exploration of new spectral bands is a chance to introduce new equipment for assuring public safety. We investigate the possibility of long lasting detection of potentially dangerous objects covered with various types of clothing. In the article we present the results of comparative studies of passive imaging in three spectrums – visible, infrared and terahertz

Keywords: terahertz, infrared, object detection, screening camera, image processing

Procedia PDF Downloads 342