Search results for: constructivist theoretical approach

Authors: Christian H. Sanabria-Montaña, Rodrigo Huerta-Quintanilla

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A lattice network is a special type of network in which all nodes have the same number of links, and its boundary conditions are periodic. The most basic lattice network is the ring, a one-dimensional network with periodic border conditions. In contrast, the Cartesian product of d rings forms a d-dimensional lattice network. An analytical expression currently exists for the clustering coefficient in this type of network, but the theoretical value is valid only up to certain connectivity value; in other words, the analytical expression is incomplete. Here we obtain analytically the clustering coefficient expression in d-dimensional lattice networks for any link density. Our analytical results show that the clustering coefficient for a lattice network with density of links that tend to 1, leads to the value of the clustering coefficient of a fully connected network. We developed a model on criminology in which the generalized clustering coefficient expression is applied. The model states that delinquents learn the know-how of crime business by sharing knowledge, directly or indirectly, with their friends of the gang. This generalization shed light on the network properties, which is important to develop new models in different fields where network structure plays an important role in the system dynamic, such as criminology, evolutionary game theory, econophysics, among others.

Keywords: clustering coefficient, criminology, generalized, regular network d-dimensional

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Authors: Ahmed T. Alahmar

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There is an increasing trend toward student-centred interactive e-learning methods and students’ feedback is a valuable tool for improving learning methods. The aim of this study was to explore the attitude of second year pharmacy students at the University of Babylon, Iraq, towards lectures, exams and e-learning. Materials and methods: Ninety pharmacy students were surveyed by paper questionnaire about their preference for lecture format, use of e-files, theoretical lectures versus practical experiments, lecture and lab time. Students were also asked about their predilection for Moodle-based online exams, different types of exam questions, exam time and other extra academic activities. Results: Students prefer to read lectures on paper (73.3%), use of PowerPoint file (76.7%), short lectures of less than 10 pages (94.5%), practical experiments (66.7%), lectures and lab time of less than two hours (89.9% and 96.6 respectively) and intra-lecture discussions (68.9%). Students also like to have paper-based exam (73.3%), short essay (40%) or MCQ (34.4%) questions and also prefer to do extra activities like reports (22.2%), seminars (18.6%) and posters (10.8%). Conclusion: Second year pharmacy students have different attitudes toward traditional and electronic leaning and assessment methods. Using multimedia, e-learning and Moodle are increasingly preferred methods among some students.

Keywords: pharmacy, students, lecture, exam, e-learning, Moodle

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Authors: Neda Azimi, Masoud Rahimi, Faezeh Mohammadi

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Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was performed to investigate the effect of ferrofluid stimulation on hydrodynamic and mass transfer characteristics of two immiscible liquid phases in a Y-micromixer. The main purpose of this work was to develop a numerical model that is able to simulate hydrodynamic of the ferrofluid flow under magnetic field and determine its effect on mass transfer characteristics. A uniform external magnetic field was applied perpendicular to the flow direction. The volume of fluid (VOF) approach was used for simulating the multiphase flow of ferrofluid and two-immiscible liquid flows. The geometric reconstruction scheme (Geo-Reconstruct) based on piecewise linear interpolation (PLIC) was used for reconstruction of the interface in the VOF approach. The mass transfer rate was defined via an equation as a function of mass concentration gradient of the transported species and added into the phase interaction panel using the user-defined function (UDF). The magnetic field was solved numerically by Fluent MHD module based on solving the magnetic induction equation method. CFD results were validated by experimental data and good agreements have been achieved, which maximum relative error for extraction efficiency was about 7.52 %. It was showed that ferrofluid actuation by a magnetic field can be considered as an efficient mixing agent for liquid-liquid two-phase mass transfer in microdevices.

Keywords: CFD modeling, hydrodynamic, micromixer, ferrofluid, mixing

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Authors: Ran Etgar, Yuval Cohen, Erel Avineri

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One of the major challenges of transportation in medium sized inner-cities (such as Tel-Aviv) is the last-mile solution. Personal rapid transit (PRT) seems like an applicable candidate for this, as it combines the benefits of personal (car) travel with the operational benefits of transit. However, the investment required for large area PRT grid is significant and there is a need to economically justify such investment by correctly evaluating the grid capacity. PRT main elements are small automated vehicles (sometimes referred to as podcars) operating on a network of specially built guideways. The research is looking at a specific concept of elevated PRT system. Literature review has revealed the drawbacks PRT modelling and simulation approaches, mainly due to the lack of consideration of technical and operational features of the system (such as headways, acceleration, safety issues); the detailed design of infrastructure (guideways, stations, and docks); the stochastic and sessional characteristics of demand; and safety regulations – all of them have a strong effect on the system performance. A highly detailed model of the system, developed in this research, is applying a discrete event simulation combined with an agent-based approach, to represent the system elements and the podecars movement logic. Applying a case study approach, the simulation model is used to study the capacity of the system, the expected throughput of the system, the utilization, and the level of service (journey time, waiting time, etc.).

Keywords: capacity, productivity measurement, PRT, simulation, transportation

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Authors: Stelios A. Mitilineos, Nicolas-Alexander Tatlas, Georgia Korompili, Lampros Kokkalas, Stelios M. Potirakis

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Obstructive Sleep Apnea Hypopnea Syndrome (OSAHS) is a widespread chronic disease that mostly remains undetected, mainly due to the fact that it is diagnosed via polysomnography which is a time and resource-intensive procedure. Screening the disease’s symptoms at home could be used as an alternative approach in order to alert individuals that potentially suffer from OSAHS without compromising their everyday routine. Since snoring is usually linked to OSAHS, developing a snore detector is appealing as an enabling technology for screening OSAHS at home using ubiquitous equipment like commodity microphones (included in, e.g., smartphones). In this context, this study developed a snore detection tool and herein present the approach and selection of specific sound features that discriminate snoring vs. environmental sounds, as well as the performance of the proposed tool. Furthermore, a Real-Time Snore Detector (RTSD) is built upon the snore detection tool and employed in whole-night sleep sound recordings resulting to a large dataset of snoring sound excerpts that are made freely available to the public. The RTSD may be used either as a stand-alone tool that offers insight to an individual’s sleep quality or as an independent component of OSAHS screening applications in future developments.

Keywords: obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome, apnea screening, snoring detection, machine learning, neural networks

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Authors: Bin Li

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In the era of the digital economy, digital transformation has gradually become a strategic choice for enterprise development, but there is a relative lack of systematic research from the perspective of enterprise growth. Based on the sample of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2021, this paper constructs A digital transformation index system and an enterprise growth composite index to empirically test the impact of enterprise digital transformation on enterprise growth and its mechanism. The results show that digital transformation can significantly promote corporate growth. The mechanism analysis finds that reducing operating costs, optimizing human capital structure, promoting R&D output and improving digital innovation capability play an important intermediary role in the process of digital transformation promoting corporate growth. At the same time, the level of external digital infrastructure and the strength of organizational resilience play a positive moderating role in the process of corporate digital transformation promoting corporate growth. In addition, while further analyzing the heterogeneity of enterprises, this paper further deepens the analysis of the driving factors and digital technology support of digital transformation, as well as the three dimensions of enterprise growth, thus deepening the research depth of enterprise digital transformation.

Keywords: digital transformation, enterprise growth, digital technology, digital infrastructure, organization resilience, digital innovation

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Authors: Okupe Temitope Oluwaseun

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Purpose: The paper determines the existing position of attitudes to disability in a Nigerian organisation. It further assessed the progress that has been made in relation to employment matters as an indication of the Nigerian employment market. Design/methodology/approach: The paper discusses an investigative study which adopted survey research-based approach involving a Nigerian Management Agency. Findings: The paper finds that, although there have been some steps forward, not much has been done with regard to disability equality in the Nigerian employment market. Lack of education, lack of implementing and enforcing the law, inadequate awareness process and international culture have contributed to the current situation. International culture, in particular, is one of the major attributes to lack of disability equality. For example, in the rural areas, the majority of people believe that disability is a form of witchcraft. This paper argues that these traditions, attitudes, and beliefs make it difficult for an organisation to recruit people with disability. Practical Implications: This paper provides a deeper understanding of how organisations can address attitudes to disability within the workplace in Nigeria. The research findings give a fresher perspective on some of the issues associated with disability in this country. This increased understanding has potential to improve the education and training of staff in this area. Originality/value: A paper which human resources managers in Nigerian organisation and the rest of the world can reflect upon in order to assess their own organisation attitudes to the employment of staff with a disability.

Keywords: disability, international culture, Nigeria, attitudes

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Authors: Jaseel C. K., Surya M.

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The study explored the post-traumatic growth experiences among divorcees. Although research studies on post-traumatic growth (PTG) are not few in number, the ones conducted in the population are quite rare and lack depth as most of them were solely dependent on the post-traumatic growth inventory scale and its statistical analyses. A total of 10 participants were interviewed (telephonic) using a semi-structured interview schedule prepared based on the research questions and the theoretical framework of post traumatic growth. The interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis, which generated five major themes and 17 subthemes. From the analysis, it was found that enhanced interpersonal relationships, changed perceptions about love and marriage, better management of emotions, prioritization of self, increased pro-social behavior, better character strengths, etc., are the most prominent positive shifts in the lives of divorcees. It was also found that factors like good relationships, professional support, work engagement, response to social stigma, and time facilitated post-traumatic growth in the population. Another interesting finding that came out of the study was that socio-economic status, educational background, and occupational status all have a positive impact on the PTG experiences among the divorced. The results of the study can hopefully help professionals working with divorcees to impart positivity to them and facilitate post-traumatic growth.

Keywords: divorcees, meaning making, positive changes, post traumatic growth, trauma

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Authors: Mehdi Radmehr, Amir Hamed Mashhadzadeh, Mehdi Jafari

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Traditional HVDC systems are tough to DC short circuits as they are current regulated with a large reactance connected in series with cables. Multi-terminal DC wind farm topologies are attracting increasing research attempt. With AC/DC converters on the generator side, this topology can be developed into a multi-terminal DC network for wind power collection, which is especially suitable for large-scale offshore wind farms. For wind farms, the topology uses high-voltage direct-current transmission based on voltage-source converters (VSC-HVDC). Therefore, they do not suffer from over currents due to DC cable faults and there is no over current to react to. In this study, the multi-terminal DC wind farm topology is introduced. Then, possible internal DC faults are analyzed according to type and characteristic. Fault over current expressions are given in detail. Under this characteristic analysis, fault detection and detailed protection methods are proposed. Theoretical analysis and PSCAD/EMTDC simulations are provided.

Keywords: DC short circuits, multi-terminal DC wind farm topologies, HVDC transmission based on VSC, fault analysis

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Authors: Sung Duk Kim, Kwan U. Kim, Jin Sim, Ryong Jin Jang

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The phenomenon of seasonal variations in the Earth’s rotation velocity was discovered in the 1930s when a crystal clock was developed and analyzed in a quantitative way for the first time between 1955 and 1968 when observation data of the seasonal variations was analyzed by an atomic clock. According to the previous investigation, atmospheric circulation is supposed to be a factor affecting the seasonal variations in the Earth’s rotation velocity in many cases, but the problem has not been solved yet. In order to solve the problem, it is necessary to apply dynamics to consider the Earth’s spatial motion, rotation, and change of shape of the Earth (movement of materials in and out of the Earth and change of the Earth’s figure) at the same time and in interrelation to the accuracy of post-Newtonian approximation regarding the Earth body as a system of mass points because the stability of the Earth’s rotation angular velocity is in the range of 10⁻⁸~10⁻⁹. For it, the equation was derived, which can consider the 3 kinds of motion above mentioned at the same time by taking the effect of the resultant external force on the Earth’s rotation into account in a relativistic way to the accuracy of post-Newtonian approximation. Therefore, the equation has been solved to obtain the theoretical values of periodic change in the Earth’s rotation velocity, and they have been compared with the astronomical observation data so to reveal the cause for the periodic change in the Earth’s rotation velocity.

Keywords: Earth rotation, moment function, periodic change, seasonal variation, relativistic change

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Authors: Mahmoud Enayati, Sirous Mohammadi

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In this paper, a novel procedure to find the firing angles of the multilevel inverters of supply voltage and, consequently, to decline the total harmonic distortion (THD), has been presented. In order to eliminate more harmonics in the multilevel inverters, its number of levels can be lessened or pulse width modulation waveform, in which more than one switching occur in each level, be used. Both cases complicate the non-algebraic equations and their solution cannot be performed by the conventional methods for the numerical solution of nonlinear equations such as Newton-Raphson method. In this paper, Cuckoo algorithm is used to compute the optimal firing angle of the pulse width modulation voltage waveform in the multilevel inverter. These angles should be calculated in such a way that the voltage amplitude of the fundamental frequency be generated while the total harmonic distortion of the output voltage be small. The simulation and theoretical results for the 9-levels inverter offer the high applicability of the proposed algorithm to identify the suitable firing angles for declining the low order harmonics and generate a waveform whose total harmonic distortion is very small and it is almost a sinusoidal waveform.

Keywords: evolutionary algorithms, multilevel inverters, total harmonic content, Cuckoo Algorithm

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Authors: Joshua Osondu

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This research explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be utilized as a policy response to address teaching and learning (TL) issues in education in Ghana. The dual (AI and human) instructor model is used as a theoretical framework to examine how AI can be employed to improve teaching and learning processes and to equip learners with the necessary skills in the emerging AI society. A qualitative research design was employed to assess the impact of AI on various TL issues, such as teacher workloads, a lack of qualified educators, low academic performance, unequal access to education and educational resources, a lack of participation in learning, and poor access and participation based on gender, place of origin, and disability. The study concludes that AI can be an effective policy response to TL issues in Ghana, as it has the potential to increase students’ participation in learning, increase access to quality education, reduce teacher workloads, and provide more personalized instruction. The findings of this study are significant for filling in the gaps in AI research in Ghana and other developing countries and for motivating the government and educational institutions to implement AI in TL, as this would ensure quality, access, and participation in education and help Ghana industrialize.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, teacher, learner, students, policy response

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Authors: Muhammad Habib, Xuefan Zhou, Lin Tang, Guoliang Xue, Fazli Akram, Dou Zhang

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Defect engineering approach is a well-established approach for the customization of functional properties of perovskite ceramics. In modern technology, the high multiferroic properties for elevated temperature applications are greatly demanding. In this work, the Bi-nonstoichiometric lead-free 0.67Biy-xSmxFeO3-0.33BaTiO3 ceramics (Sm-doped BF-BT for Bi-excess; y = 1.03 and Bi-deficient; y = 0.975 with x = 0.00, 0.04 and 0.08) were design for the high-temperature multiferroic property. Enhanced piezoelectric (d33  250 pC/N and d33* 350 pm/V) and magnetic properties (Mr  0.25 emu/g) with a high Curie temperature (TC  465 ℃) were obtained in the Bi-deficient pure BF-BT ceramics. With Sm-doping (x = 0.04), the TC decrease to 350 ℃ a significant improvement occurred in the d33* to 504 pm/V and 450 pm/V for Bi-excess and Bi-deficient compositions, respectively. The structural origin of the enhanced piezoelectric strain performance is related to the soft ferroelectric effect by Sm-doping and reversible phase transition from the short-range relaxor ferroelectric state to the long-range order under the applied electric field. However, a slight change occurs in the Mr 0.28 emu/g value with Sm-doping for Bi-deficient ceramics, whereas the Bi-excess ceramics shows completely paramagnetic behavior. Hence, the origin of high magnetic properties in the Bi-deficient BF-BT ceramics is mainly attributed to the proposed double exchange mechanism. We believe that this strategy will provide a new perspective for the development of lead-free multiferroic ceramics for high-temperature applications.

Keywords: BiFeO3-BaTiO3, lead-free piezoceramics, magnetic properties, defect engineering

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Authors: SanXi Wu

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A priori argument is a kind of reductio ad absurdum provided by Colin McGinn on the premise of accepting the basic rules of Dummett. The core part of the theory is to analyze the three joint positions besides realism and make them invalid, thus proving the rationality of the stance of realism. However, this argument strategy is vulnerable to skepticism because it delays the skeptical problem. In addition to McGinn, John Searle offers a linguistic transcendental argument strategy, which regards realism as the comprehensible condition that all normal activities of understanding must assume, while skepticism does not enjoy the same status. However, Searle's transcendental argument does not solve the problem of the relationship between realist presupposition and representational presupposition. Strawson, Hume, Reid, Wittgenstein, and others provide a naturalistic argument for realism. In this argument, realism is either a priori commitment from nature, or our second nature, or even a background belief that is fundamentally immovable. The key to this argument is to provide a quietistic treatment that ultimately invalidates our anti-realist myths. In comparison, the naturalistic argument is a more promising one. In this paper, methods of theoretical analysis and comparative research are used in order to demonstrate that in the face of skepticism, McGinn's a priori strategy and Searle's transcendental strategy are untenable, while Strawson and others' naturalistic strategy may resist the pressure of skepticism and make realism possible.

Keywords: a priori argument, transcendental argument, naturalism, realism, skepticism

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Authors: Falek Kamel

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Various approaches are usually used in the dynamic analysis of beams vibrating transversally. For this, numerical methods allowing the solving of the general eigenvalue problem are utilized. The equilibrium equations describe the movement resulting from the solution of a fourth-order differential equation. Our investigation is based on the finite element method. The findings of these investigations are the vibration frequencies obtained by the Jacobi method. Two types of the elementary mass matrix are considered, representing a uniform distribution of the mass along with the element and concentrated ones located at fixed points whose number is increased progressively separated by equal distances at each evaluation stage. The studied beams have different boundary constraints representing several classical situations. Comparisons are made for beams where the distributed mass is replaced by n concentrated masses. As expected, the first calculus stage is to obtain the lowest number of beam parts that gives a frequency comparable to that issued from the Rayleigh formula. The obtained values are then compared to theoretical results based on the assumptions of the Bernoulli-Euler theory. These steps are used for the second type of mass representation in the same manner.

Keywords: structural elements, beams vibrating, dynamic analysis, finite element method, Jacobi method

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Authors: Nora Mohammed Rehan Hussien

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Cities all over the world face daunting urban challenges that have increased in scope in recent years. The biggest challenge includes issues of urban planning, housing, safety aspects, scarcity of land for development and traffic congestion. So every city in the world aspires to adopt the strategy of ‘Livable City’ which guarantees the cities urbanization manner that preserves the environment, and achieve the greatest benefit from the resources and achieve a good standard of living. Essentially, a livable city should possess basic yet unique attributes to welcome people from all strata of society without marginalizing any particular group. Most of these cities began to move towards sustainability and livability to enhance quality and performance of urban services, to reduce costs and resources consumption, to engage more affectivity and actively with its citizens, and to describe the quality of life and the characteristics of cities that make them livable. From here came the idea of the research which is creating ‘A framework of livable and sustainable city’ as a sustainable approach that must follow to achieve the principle of sustainable livability. From this point of view the research deals with one of the most successful case studies all over the world in’ livable cities system’ (Vienna) to know how to explore and understand the issues and challenges in becoming a full- livable and creative city through analyzing the criteria, principles and strategy of livable city then deducing the framework towards this concept. Finally, it suggests a set of recommendations help for applying the concept of livable city.

Keywords: quality of life, livability & livable city, sustainability, sustainable city

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Authors: Eduardo Ruiz-Corzo, Luis Rodrigo Valencia Perez, Jorge Francisco Barragan Lopez

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The article shows the pressing conditions of marginalization prevailing in the Sierra Gorda, in the northern state of Queretaro, so it is essential to identify business options that generate a complementary source of income in a sustainable manner, in accordance with the fact that the area is a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. In this sense, the study identifies the enormous scenic richness of the area, the growing demand for leisure activities of the urban centers and the multifunctionality that adds, in a complementary way, the traditional activities that up to now have achieved the quality of life levels. From the application of the 43 interviews and 183 surveys, confirms the fact that the post-visit perception exceeds the expectations of the visitors emerges and affirms that the image that has been projected is attractive and timely. In order to understand how the current model of tourism promoted in the region is working, there is a need to evaluate it in a theoretical-methodological framework considering sustainable development assumptions. In order to determine the degree of contribution to business development, strengthening of social capital, and enjoyment and appreciation of cultural and natural heritage in the region.

Keywords: marginalization, rural tourism, multifunctionality, sustainability, revenue

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Authors: Yin Zhang, Kai Qiao, Xiyang Zhi, Jinnan Gong, Jianming Hu

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In order to achieve effective detection of aerial targets over long distances from space-based platforms, the mechanism of interaction between the radiation characteristics of the aerial targets and the complex scene environment including the sunlight conditions, underlying surfaces and the atmosphere are analyzed. A large simulated database of space-based radiance images is constructed considering several typical aerial targets, target working modes (flight velocity and altitude), illumination and observation angles, background types (cloud, ocean, and urban areas) and sensor spectrums ranging from visible to thermal infrared. The target detectability is characterized by the signal-to-clutter ratio (SCR) extracted from the images. The influence laws of the target detectability are discussed under different detection bands and instantaneous fields of view (IFOV). Furthermore, the optimal center wavelengths and widths of the detection bands are suggested, and the minimum IFOV requirements are proposed. The research can provide theoretical support and scientific guidance for the design of space-based detection systems and on-board information processing algorithms.

Keywords: space-based detection, aerial targets, detectability analysis, scene environment

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Authors: Mufutau Ayinla Abdul-Yakeen

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An analysis of the five most used numerals and a proposal for the adoption of a Universally Acceptable Numerals (UAN), came up as a result of the researchers inquisitiveses of the need for a set of numerals that is universally accepted. The researcher sought for the meaning of the first letter, “Nun”, “ن”, of the first verse of Suratul-Kalam (Chapter of the Pen), the Sixty-Eighth Chapter of the Holy Qur'an. It was observed that there was no universally accepted, economical, explainable, linkable and consistent set of numerals used by all scientists up till the moment of making this enquiry. As a theoretical paper, explanatory method is used to review five of the most used numerals (Tally Marks, Roman Figure, Hindu-Arabic, Arabic, and Chinese) and the urgent need for a universally accepted, economical, explainable, linkable and consistent set of numerals arises. The study discovers: ^., I, \, _, L, U, =, C, O, 9, and 1.; to be used as numeral 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 respectively; as a set of universally acceptable, economical, explainable, linkable, sustainable, convertible and consistent set of numerals that originates from Islam. They can be called Islameconumerals or UAN. With UAN, everything dropped, written, drawn and/or scribbled has meaning(s) as postulated by the first verse of Qur'an 68 and everyone can easily document all figures within the shortest period. It is suggested that there should be a discipline called Numeralnomics (Study of optimum utilization of Numerals) and everybody should start using the UAN, now, in order in know their strengths and weaknesses so as to suggest a better and acceptable set of numerals for the interested readers. Similarly study can be conducted for the alphabets.

Keywords: acceptable, economical, explainable, Islameconumerals, numeralnomics

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Authors: Ali Jahanfar, Brajesh Dubey, Bahram Gharabaghi, Saber Bayat Movahed

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Ever increasing population growth of major urban centers and environmental challenges in siting new landfills have resulted in a growing trend in design of mega-landfills some with extraordinary heights and dangerously steep slopes. Landfill failure mobility risk analysis is one of the most uncertain types of dynamic rheology models due to very large inherent variabilities in the heterogeneous solid waste material shear strength properties. The waste flow of three historic dumpsite and two landfill failures were back-analyzed using run-out modeling with DAN-W model. The travel distances of the waste flow during landfill failures were calculated approach by taking into account variability in material shear strength properties. The probability distribution function for shear strength properties of the waste material were grouped into four major classed based on waste material compaction (landfills versus dumpsites) and composition (high versus low quantity) of high shear strength waste materials such as wood, metal, plastic, paper and cardboard in the waste. This paper presents a probabilistic method for estimation of the spatial extent of waste avalanches, after a potential landfill failure, to create maps of vulnerability scores to inform property owners and residents of the level of the risk.

Keywords: landfill failure, waste flow, Voellmy rheology, friction coefficient, waste compaction and type

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Authors: Nnaemeka Enemchukwu

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In modern-day Nigeria, the spirit of Biafra, the defunct secessionist state of former Eastern Nigeria, endures. While some attempt to downplay the historical factors that led to its creation, this paper aims to demonstrate that the 1966 pogroms in Nigeria, which claimed the lives of over 30,000 Igbo people, shattered their faith in the nation's ability to provide security and acceptance. This loss of faith led to a mass exodus from various regions of the country back to their homeland in Eastern Nigeria. Utilizing primary sources such as interviews and archival reports, and secondary sources like books, journals, and websites, this paper will argue that the trauma and terror of the 1966 massacres were the primary drivers of secessionist sentiment and self-determination among the Igbo people, ultimately leading to the declaration of Biafra. By drawing parallels with other historical incidents across the globe, this paper will establish the theoretical connection between shocking events, identity questioning among traumatized groups, and the subsequent rise of nationalistic sentiments seeking to ensure group preservation. To achieve its objective, this paper will employ descriptive, narrative, and chronological methods of analysis to present and discuss its findings.

Keywords: Igbo, pogrom, shock, trauma, nationalism, Biafra

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Authors: Kristina Thorell

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Food security has been one of the most important policy issues on the global arena after the Second World War. The overall aim of this presentation is to describe preconditions for a sustainable food supply from a spatial perspective. Special attention is paid to the differences between advanced and less advanced economies around the world. The theoretical framework is based upon models which are explaining complex systems of factors that affect the preconditions for agricultural productions. In additions to this, theories about how population and environmental pollution change through different stages of societal development are explained. The results are based upon data of agricultural practices, population growth, hunger and nutrition levels from different countries around the world. The analysis shows that factors which affect preconditions for agricultural production are dynamic. Factors which support the food security in the near future are a decreasing population growth, technological development and innovation but the environmental crisis is associated to high risks. It is, therefore, important to develop environmental policies and improved methods for organic farming. A final conclusion is that the spatial pattern is clear; the food supply is sufficient within advanced economies but rather complicated in development countries.

Keywords: food security, agricultural geography, demography, advanced economies, population growth, agricultural practices

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Authors: Agnieszka Leszczynska

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Flexibility and agility constitute the most dominant features of modern human resource management systems. The former pertains to procedures, practices and competences of human resources, and the latter to the procedures and practices’ effectiveness in dealing with changing conditions in the surrounding environment. The purpose of the paper is to present the relations between the flexibility and agility of human resources and achieving sustainable competitiveness. Based upon hitherto research, we develop a conceptual model that links the constructs together. The conducted study is of theoretical and conceptual nature. Critical literature analysis and the synthesis method were applied. A premise was made that the three dimensions of HR (Human Resources) flexibility (employee skill flexibility, employee behaviour flexibility, and HR practice flexibility) and HR agility affect competitiveness, by increasing the flexibility, creativity of human resources, and improving quality performance, and exert an impact upon the quality of life of employees and social relations. In particular, the agility and flexibility of human resources contribute to the growth of adaptability and strategic orientation, which directly affects the organization's competitiveness. The research results will help to better understand the impact of flexibility and agility related to the HRM (Human Resources Management) system upon the implementation of the concept of sustainable development in the organization.

Keywords: agility, human resource, sustainable competitiveness, sustainable development

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Authors: Mohamed Amine Bouraoui

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The aim of this paper is to realize the importance of a CRM approach, to detect the degree of awareness of Tunisian managers of this importance and analyse the degree of integration of CRM in the Tunisian companies. Initially, we focus on the definition and components of CRM, then we focus on the level of integration of CRM within Tunisian enterprises.

Keywords: CRM, operational tools, analytical tools, Tunisian company

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Authors: Ricky Finzi-Dottan

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The actor–partner interdependence model (APIM) was employed in this study to investigate the mediating effect self-differentiation and spousal caregiving have on the relationship between recollection of parental care and acceptance and couple satisfaction. One hundred and forty-four non-clinical couples (N=288) in enduring relationships were recruited. Results for actor effects revealed two mediating paths whereby, among both partners, recollection of maternal (but not paternal) acceptance was associated with their self-differentiation and responsive spousal caregiving, which, in turn, were linked to their spousal relationship satisfaction. Partner effects revealed three mediating paths: for both partners, recollection of childhood maternal acceptance was associated with responsive caregiving, which, in turn, was linked with their partner’s relationship satisfaction. Interestingly, the husbands’ recollection of maternal acceptance was associated with their partners' responsive spousal caregiving, which was linked to both spouses’ relationship satisfaction. Our results may support the theoretical assumptions regarding intergenerational continuity from perceptions of childhood via self-differentiation effecting couple caregiving to couple relationship, but only on the mother's part.

Keywords: couple relationship satisfaction, childhood parental acceptance, self-differentiation, couple caregiving, dyadic perspective

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Authors: Haowen Xu, Xiaobing Liu, Jin Dong, Jianming Lian

Abstract:

Emerging smart buildings often employ cyberinfrastructure, cyber-physical systems, and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies to increase the automation and responsiveness of building operations for better energy efficiency and lower carbon emission. These operations include the control of Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and lighting systems, which are often considered a major source of energy consumption in both commercial and residential buildings. Developing energy-saving control models for optimizing HVAC operations usually requires the collection of high-quality instrumental data from iterations of in-situ building experiments, which can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. This abstract describes a digital twin approach to automate building energy experiments for optimizing HVAC operations through the design and development of an adaptive web-based platform. The platform is created to enable (a) automated data acquisition from a variety of IoT-connected HVAC instruments, (b) real-time situational awareness through domain-based visualizations, (c) adaption of HVAC optimization algorithms based on experimental data, (d) sharing of experimental data and model predictive controls through web services, and (e) cyber-physical control of individual instruments in the HVAC system using outputs from different optimization algorithms. Through the digital twin approach, we aim to replicate a real-world building and its HVAC systems in an online computing environment to automate the development of building-specific model predictive controls and collaborative experiments in buildings located in different climate zones in the United States. We present two case studies to demonstrate our platform’s capability for real-time situational awareness and cyber-physical control of the HVAC in the flexible research platforms within the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) main campus. Our platform is developed using adaptive and flexible architecture design, rendering the platform generalizable and extendable to support HVAC optimization experiments in different types of buildings across the nation.

Keywords: energy-saving buildings, digital twins, HVAC, cyber-physical system, BIM

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Authors: Dolly Gadhiya, Jayvadan Patel, Mihir Raval

Abstract:

Lercanidipine hydrochloride is a calcium channel blockers used for treating angina pectoris and hypertension. Lercanidipine is a BCS Class II drug having poor aqueous solubility. Absolute bioavailability of Lercanidipine is very low and the main reason ascribed for this is poor aqueous solubility of the drug. Design and formulatation of nanocrystals by media milling method was main focus of this study. In this present study preliminary optimization was carried out with one factor at a time (OFAT) approach. For this different parameters like size of milling beads, amount of zirconium beads, types of stabilizer, concentrations of stabilizer, concentrations of drug, stirring speeds and milling time were optimized on the basis of particle size, polydispersity index and zeta potential. From the OFAT model different levels for above parameters selected for Plackett - Burman Design (PBD). Plackett-Burman design having 13 runs involving 6 independent variables was carried out at higher and lower level. Based on statistical analysis of PBD it was found that concentration of stabilizer, concentration of drug and stirring speed have significant impact on particle size, PDI, zeta potential value and saturation solubility. These experimental designs for preparation of nanocrystals were applied successfully which shows increase in aqueous solubility and dissolution rate of Lercanidipine hydrochloride.

Keywords: Lercanidipine hydrochloride, nanocrystals, OFAT, Plackett Burman

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Authors: Yasaman Sanayei, Alireza Bahiraie

Abstract:

This paper presents a systematic methodology based on the application of artificial neural networks for sequencing batch reactor (SBR). The SBR is a fill-and-draw biological wastewater technology, which is specially suited for nutrient removal. Employing reactive dye by Sphingomonas paucimobilis bacteria at sequence batch reactor is a novel approach of dye removal. The influent COD, MLVSS, and reaction time were selected as the process inputs and the effluent COD and BOD as the process outputs. The best possible result for the discrete pole parameter was a= 0.44. In orderto adjust the parameters of ANN, the Levenberg-Marquardt (LM) algorithm was employed. The results predicted by the model were compared to the experimental data and showed a high correlation with R2> 0.99 and a low mean absolute error (MAE). The results from this study reveal that the developed model is accurate and efficacious in predicting COD and BOD parameters of the dye-containing wastewater treated by SBR. The proposed modeling approach can be applied to other industrial wastewater treatment systems to predict effluent characteristics. Note that SBR are normally operated with constant predefined duration of the stages, thus, resulting in low efficient operation. Data obtained from the on-line electronic sensors installed in the SBR and from the control quality laboratory analysis have been used to develop the optimal architecture of two different ANN. The results have shown that the developed models can be used as efficient and cost-effective predictive tools for the system analysed.

Keywords: artificial neural network, COD removal, SBR, Sphingomonas paucimobilis

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Authors: Reza Moslemi, Sebastien Perrier

Abstract:

Water infrastructure deterioration can result in increased operational costs owing to increased repair needs and non-revenue water and consequently cause a reduced level of service and customer service satisfaction. Various water main condition assessment technologies have been introduced to the market in order to evaluate the level of pipe deterioration and to develop appropriate asset management and pipe renewal plans. One of the challenges for any condition assessment and inspection program is to determine the percentage of the water network and the combination of pipe segments to be inspected in order to obtain a meaningful representation of the status of the entire water network with a desirable level of accuracy. Traditionally, condition assessment has been conducted by selecting pipes based on age or location. However, this may not necessarily offer the best approach, and it is believed that by using a smart sampling methodology, a better and more reliable estimate of the condition of a water network can be achieved. This research investigates three different sampling methodologies, including random, stratified, and systematic. It is demonstrated that selecting pipes based on the proposed clustering and sampling scheme can considerably improve the ability of the inspected subset to represent the condition of a wider network. With a smart sampling methodology, a smaller data sample can provide the same insight as a larger sample. This methodology offers increased efficiency and cost savings for condition assessment processes and projects.

Keywords: condition assessment, pipe degradation, sampling, water main

Procedia PDF Downloads 139

Authors: Yin-Tsuo Huang

Abstract:

Most leadership theories focus on leader's development. However, in reality, the led is also very important in the leadership process. Development relates to ensure the individual to grow in the skills, knowledge, and abilities to perform at leaders’ highest possible level now and for the future. The topic area of the relationships among leadership styles, subordinate maturity, and information distinction was identified because it is a practical problem and personal experiences occurring in multinational enterprises. Some questions to be answered through this critical analysis of the literature are: (1) What are the effective leadership styles in the leader-member and member-member relationships? (2) How do the subordinates react to leaders’ managerial style? (3) What are the relationships among leadership styles, subordinate maturity, and resulting information distinction? (4) What kinds of information distinction effects the relationships between leadership styles and subordinate maturity? (5) Where do leaders and subordinates can get information, and how? (6) In what areas are leaders’ or subordinates’ knowledge weakest, and how can they get others to prove the information they need? (7) How important is that information to the subordinates? (8) Do the leaders keep too much information for their subordinates because it is inconvenient? The main purpose of this review is to explore the theoretical and empirical literature about the relationships among leadership style, subordinates maturity, and information distinction implications in multinational Taiwanese organizations to identify areas of future scholarly inquiry.

Keywords: leadership style, subordinate maturity, information distinction, multinational organization

Procedia PDF Downloads 490