Search results for: prospective areas

Authors: Mushtaq H. Khan, Antonio Andreoni, Pallavi Roy

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Developing countries are characterized by political settlements where formal rules are generally weakly enforced and widely violated. Conventional anti-corruption strategies that focus on improving the general enforcement of a rule of law and raising the costs of corruption facing individual public officials have typically delivered poor results in these contexts. Our alternative approach is to identify anti-corruption strategies that have a high impact and that are feasible to implement in these contexts. Our alternative approach identifies anti-corruption strategies from the bottom up. This involves identifying the characteristics of the corruption constraining particular development outcomes. By drawing on theories of rents and rent seeking, and theories of political settlements, we can assess the developmental impact of particular anti-corruption strategies and the feasibility of implementing these strategies. We argue that feasible anti-corruption in these contexts cannot be solely based on conventional anti-corruption strategies. In societies that have widespread rule violations, high-impact anti-corruption is only likely to be feasible if the overall strategy succeeds in aligning the interests and capabilities of powerful organizations at the sectoral level to support the enforcement of particular sets of rules. We examine four related strategies for changing these incentives and capabilities of critical stakeholders at the local or sectoral level, and we argue that this can provide a framework for organizing research on the impact and feasibility of anti-corruption activities in different priority areas in particular countries.

Keywords: anti-corruption, development, political settlements analysis, rule of law

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Authors: Roy Hanney

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This research study aims to develop an evidential basis to inform strategic development of the film industry in the Solent (south central) region of the UK. The density of the creative industries around the region is driving the growth of jobs. Yet, film production in particular, appears to struggle with field configuration, lacks ecological cohesion, and suffers from underdeveloped ecosystems when compared to other areas bordering the region. Though thriving, a lack of coordinated leadership results in the continued reproduction of an ill-configured, constricted and socio-economically filtered workforce. One that struggles to seize strategic opportunities arising as a consequence of the ongoing investment in UK film production around the west of London. Taking a participatory approach, the study seeks to avoid the universalism of place marketing and focus on the situatedness of the region and its specific cultural, social, and economic contexts. The staging of a series of high profile networking events provided a much needed field configuring activity and enabled the capture of voices of those currently working in the sector. It will also provided the opportunity for an exploratory network mapping of the regional creative industries as a value exchange ecosystem. It is understood that a focus on production is not in itself a solution to the challenges faced in the region. There is a need to address issues of access as a counterbalance to skewed representation among the creative workforces thus the study also aims to report on opportunities for embedding diversity and inclusion in any strategic solutions.

Keywords: creative, industries, ecosystem, ecology

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Authors: Marie-Therese Claes, Anett Hermann

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With the advent of the web and information technology since the end of the 20ᵗʰ century, digitalization has revolutionized our everyday life, from shopping and dating to education and transportation. The world of work is one of the areas that has been highly transformed by changing the time and spatial limits of the work. The expansion of the internet, wireless, and easily portable devices such as laptop computers and mobile phones has enabled us to work almost from any place at any time. As a result, telework, which started in the 1950s and elevated in the 1970s, steeply raised to a new level in 21ˢᵗ century. Telework consists of various forms of work done from outside the traditional workplace by using information technologies. The social distancing and lockdown measures that have been taken to reduce the spread of the virus in many countries worldwide resulted in an increasing number of teleworkers and made “working from home’’ synonymous with telework. Post-COVID-19, the number of teleworkers is still higher than before the pandemic period, and the interest in expanding teleworking has been growing too. Notwithstanding the advantages ushered by telework, it also has a number of drawbacks that negatively affect organizations and employees. The intention of this piece of work is not to indicate a causational relationship between telework and discrimination. Our aim is to indicate some unintended and/or unnoticed deleterious effects of telework in reinforcing discrimination and to instigate discussion on how to mitigate the effects. To do so, this insight indicates how telework reinforces traditional gender roles and how organizational culture towards telework and its access to employees at different levels of the organizational hierarchy opens the room for discrimination.

Keywords: mobile work, discrimination, gender roles, organizational culture

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Authors: Shofiq Ahmed, Rakibul Hassan, Raquib Ahsan

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Concrete is one of the basic elements of RCC structure and also the most crucial one. In recent years, a lot of researches have been conducted to develop special types of concrete for special purposes. Micro-concrete is one of them which has high compressive strength and is mainly used for retrofitting. Micro-concrete is a cementitious based composition formulated for use in repairs of areas where the concrete is damaged & the area is confined in movement making the placement of conventional concrete difficult. According to recent statistics, a large number of structures in the major cities of Bangladesh are vulnerable to collapse. Retrofitting may thus be required for a sustainable solution, and for this purpose, the utilization of micro-concrete can be considered as the most effective solution. For that reason, the aim of this study was to produce micro-concrete using indigenous materials in low cost. Following this aim, the experimental data were observed for five mix ratios with varied amount of cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate, water, and admixture. The investigation criteria were a compressive strength, tensile strength, slump and the cost of different mix ratios. Finally, for a mix ratio of 1:1:1.5, the compressive strength was achieved as 7820 psi indicating highest strength among all the samples with the reasonable tensile strength of 1215 psi. The slump of 6.9 inches was also found for this specimen indicating it’s high flowability and making it’s convenient to use as micro-concrete. Moreover, comparing with the cost of foreign products of micro-concrete, it was observed that foreign products were almost four to five times costlier than this local product.

Keywords: indigenous, micro-concrete, retrofitting, vulnerable

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Authors: Parveen Kundu, Nitika Chawla, Ruchi Agarwal, Swaran Kaur

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Background: Mature cystic teratoma is a benign, most common tumor of the ovary occurring mostly in young and middle-aged females. This study consists of 19 cases of mature cystic teratomas which were received in the Department Of Pathology over a period of two years. There were malignant transformations observed in three cases, which makes it very important for pathologists to thoroughly examine the entire specimen of mature cystic teratomas. Material and Methods: Nineteen reported cases of mature cystic teratomas were received in Deptt. Of Pathology, BPS GMC Khanpur Kalan, Sonepat, over a two-year period from November 2020 to October 2022 and reviewed retrospectively. Data regarding age, size, laterality, gross, morphological features, and surgery performed were retrieved from pathological archives. Results: In our study, the most common age of presentation was the 20-40 year age group. The most common presenting complaint was fullness in the abdomen or abdominal distension. Four out of 19 cases studied cases presented with bilateral ovarian cysts. Tumor size ranged from 6 to 20 cm in diameter. In seven cases, cysts were greater than or equal to 10 cm in diameter. Three cases showed malignant transformation. Conclusion: It is very important to thoroughly examine the contralateral ovary to rule out bilateral presentation. A furthermost thorough examination is advised in tumors of size >10 cm and in tumors with solid areas to rule out any malignant transformation.

Keywords: teratoma, ovary, malignant, transformation

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Authors: M. Maleki Sadabad, A. Pointing, N. Marashi

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With respect to the role and increasing importance of technology for countries development, in recent decades technology development has paid attention in a systematic form. Nowadays the markets face with highly complicated and competitive conditions in foreign markets, therefore, evaluation and selection of technology effectiveness and also formulating technology strategy have changed into a vital subject for some organizations. The study introduces the standards of empowerment evaluation and technology attractiveness especially strategic technologies which explain the way of technology evaluation, selection and finally formulating suitable technology strategy in the field of drilling in South Azadegan oil field. The study firstly identifies the key challenges of oil fields in order to evaluate the technologies in field of drilling in South Azadegan oil field through an interview with the experts of industry and then they have been prioritised. In the following, the existing and new technologies were identified to solve the challenges of South Azadegan oil field. In order to explore the ability, availability, and attractiveness of every technology, a questionnaire based on Julie indices has been designed and distributed among the industry elites. After determining the score of ability, availability and attractiveness, every technology which has been obtained by the average of expert’s ideas, the technology package has been introduced by Morin’s model. The matrix includes four areas which will follow the especial strategy. Finally, by analysing the above matrix, the technology options have been suggested in order to select and invest.

Keywords: technology, technology identification, drilling technologies, technology capability

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Authors: Abdulsalam. I. Rafida, Marwa. F. Elalem, Hasna. E. Alemam

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This study aimed at testing the various types of water in some areas of the city of Tripoli, Libya for the presence of Heterotrophic Aerobic Bacteria (HAB), and anaerobic Sulphate Reducing Bacteria (SRB). The water samples under investigation included rainwater accumulating on the ground, sewage water (from the city sewage treatment station, sulphate water from natural therapy swimming sites), and sea water (i.e. sea water exposed to pollution by untreated sewage water, and unpolluted sea water from specific locations). A total of 20 samples have been collected distributed as follows: rain water (8 samples), sewage water (6 samples), and sea water (6 samples). An up-to-date method for estimation has been used featuring readymade solutions i.e. (BARTTM test for HAB and BARTTM test for SRB). However, with the exception of one rain water sample, the results have indicated that the target bacteria have been present in all samples. Regarding HAB bacteria the samples have shown a maximum average of 7.0 x 106 cfu/ml featuring sewage and rain water and a minimum average of 1.8 x 104 cuf/ml featuring unpolluted sea water collected from a specific location. As for SRB bacteria; a maximum average of 7.0 x 105 cfu/ml has been shown by sewage and rain water and a minimum average of 1.8 x 104 cfu/ml by sewage and sea water. The above results highlight the relationship between pollution and the presence of bacteria in water particularly water collected from specific locations, and also the presence of bacteria as the result of the use of water provided that a suitable environment exists for its growth.

Keywords: heterotrophic aerobic bacteria (HAB), sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB), water, environmental sciences

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Authors: Chia-Feng Yen, Shyang-Woei Lin

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Background: In Taiwan, people with disability can obtain national social welfare services after evaluation. All subsidies and services in- kind are pronounced in People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act. The new disability eligibility determination system base on ICF has carried out five years in Taiwan. There were no systematic outcomes to discuss the relationships between the evaluation results of activity and participation functioning (AP functioning) and ratification of social services for people with disability. The decision-making of welfare resources allocation is in local government, so the ratification could be affected by resource variations in every area (local governments). The purposes of this study are to compare the ratification rate between different areas (the equity of allocation), and to understand the ratification of social services for people with disability after needs assessment stage that can help to predict the resources allocation for local governments in the further. Methods: A cross-sectional study was used, and the data came from Disability Eligibility Determination System in Taiwan between 2013/11/04-2015/01/12. All samples were evaluated by FUNDES-adult version 7th and they all above 18 years old. The samples were collected face to face by physicians and AP evaluators. Result: In the needs assessment stage, the welfare ratification rates are significant differences between these local governments for the samples with the similar impairment and AP functioning.

Keywords: allocation, activity and participation, people with disability, justice

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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

Procedia PDF Downloads 262

Authors: Gehan Moubarz, Atef M. F. Mohammed, Inas A. Saleh, Heba Mahdy-Abdallah, Amal Saad-Hussein

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This study estimates the association between respiratory outcomes among employees of a secondary aluminum plant and airborne pollutants. Additionally, it looks into the relationship between pulmonary dysfunction in workers and XRCC1 gene polymorphisms. 110 exposed workers and 58 non-exposed workers participated in the study. Measurements have been conducted on SO₂, NO₂, and particulate particles. Pulmonary function was tested. Eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), C-reactive protein (CRP), matrix metalloproteinase-1 (MMP-1), interleukin 6 (IL6), GM-CSF, X-Ray Repair Cross Complementing 1 (XRCC1) protein, and genotyping of XRCC1 gene polymorphisms were examined. Results: The annual average concentrations of (PM₂.₅, PM₁₀, TSP, SO₂, and NO₂) were lower than the permissible limit. The areas around ovens, evaporators, and cold rolling mills exhibited the highest amounts. The majority of employees in these departments had impaired lung function. With longer exposure times, the exposed group's FEV1% and FVC% considerably reduced. The exposed workers had considerably higher XRCC1 levels. The evaluated inflammatory biomarkers showed no statistically significant difference. Conclusion: Aluminum workers are at risk of developing respiratory disorders. The level of serum XRCC1 may act as a biomarker that might be very useful for detecting susceptible workers.

Keywords: aluminum industry, particulate matter, SO₂, NO₂, lung function, XRCC1 gene polymorphism, XRCC1 protein, inflammatory biomarkers

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Authors: Alexander Scott English, Yilin Ma, Xiaoying Liu

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The widespread use of artificial intelligence in everyday life has triggered a fervent discussion covering a wide range of areas. However, to date, research on the influence of gender in various segments and factors from a social science perspective is still limited. This study aims to explore whether there are gender differences in human trust in AI for its application in basic everyday life and correlates with human perceived similarity, perceived emotions (including competence and warmth), and attractiveness. We conducted a study involving 321 participants using a two-subject experimental design with a two-factor (masculinized vs. feminized voice of the AI) multiplied by a two-factor (pitch level of the AI's voice) between-subject experimental design. Four contexts were created for the study and randomly assigned. The results of the study showed significant gender differences in perceived similarity, trust, and perceived emotion of the AIs, with females rating them significantly higher than males. Trust was higher in relation to AIs presenting the same gender (e.g., human female to female AI, human male to male AI). Mediation modeling tests indicated that emotion perception and similarity played a sufficiently mediating role in trust. Notably, although trust in AIs was strongly correlated with human gender, there was no significant effect on the gender of the AI. In addition, the study discusses the effects of subjects' age, job search experience, and job type on the findings.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, gender differences, human-robot trust, mediation modeling

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Authors: Elizabeth Spink

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The United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 6 sets a target for safe and affordable drinking water for all. Developing country governments aiming to achieve this goal often face significant challenges when trying to service last mile customers, particularly those in peri-urban and rural areas. Expansion of water networks often requires high connection fees from households, and demand for connections may be low if there are cheaper substitute sources of water available. This research studies the effect of the availability of substitute sources of water on demand for individual water connections in Livingstone, Zambia, using an event study analysis of metering campaigns. Metering campaigns reduce the share of a household's neighbors that can provide free water to the household if their water connection becomes disconnected due to nonpayment. The results show that household payments in newly metered regions increase by 10 percentage points in the months following metering events, with a decrease in disconnections of 6 percentage points for low-income households. To isolate the effect of changes in a household's substitution possibilities, a similar analysis is conducted among households that neighbor the metered region. These results show mixed evidence of the impact of substitutes on payment behavior and disconnections. The results suggest that metering may be effective in increasing household demand for individual water connections primarily through a lower monthly cost burden for newly metered households.

Keywords: piped-water access, water demand, water utilities, water sharing

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Authors: Radek Richtr, Petr Paus

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The connection to the primal environment, living and growing nature is disappearing for most of the residents in urban core areas nowadays. Most of the residents perceive scattered green mass like more technical objects than sentient living organisms. The Arboretum is a type of application from the 'serious games' genre -it is a research experiment masked as a gaming environment. In used virtual and augmented reality environments, every city district is represented by central objects; Pillars created as a result of resident’s consensus. Every player can furthermore plant and grow virtual organic seeds everywhere he wants. Seeds sprout, and their form is determined by both players’ choice and nearest pillar. Every house, private rooms, and even workspace get their new living virtual avatar-connected 'residents' growing from player-planted seeds. Every room or workspace is transformed into (calming) nature scene, reflecting in some way both players and community spirit and together create a vicinity environment. The conceptual design phase of the project is crucial and allows for the identification of the fundamental problems through abstraction. The project that centers on wide community usage needs a clear and accessible interface. Simultaneously the conceptual design allows early sharing of project ideas and creating public concern. The paper discusses the current conceptual model of an Arboretum project (which is part of a whole widespread project) and its validation.

Keywords: augmented reality, conceptual design, mixed reality, social engineering

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Authors: Shanna Su, Kathleen Vincent

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Introduction: A non-hormonal prescription vaginal pH modulator (VPM) gel (Phexxi®), with active ingredients lactic acid, citric acid, and potassium bitartrate, has recently been approved for the prevention of pregnancy in the United States. The objective of this review is to compile the evidence available from published preclinical and clinical trials to support its use. Areas covered: PubMed was searched for published literature on VPM gel. Two Phase III trials were found on the clinicaltrials.gov database. The results demonstrated that VPM gel is safe, with minimal side effects, and effective (cumulative 6-7 cycle pregnancy rate of 4.1-13.65%, (Pearl Index 27.5) as a contraceptive. Microbicidal effects suggest the potential for the prevention of sexually transmitted infections (STIs); currently, a Phase III clinical trial is being conducted to evaluate the prevention of chlamydia and gonorrhea. Expert opinion: Non-hormonal reversible contraceptive options have been limited to the highly effective copper-releasing intrauterine device that requires insertion by a trained clinician and less effective coitally-associated barrier and spermicide options which are typically available over-the-counter. Spermicides, which improve the efficacy of barrier devices, may increase the risk of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/STIs. VPM gel provides a new safe, effective non-hormonal contraceptive option with the potential for prevention of STIs.

Keywords: citric acid, lactic acid, non-hormonal contraception, potassium bitartrate, topical vaginal contraceptive, vaginal pH modulator gel

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Authors: Nirmal Kumar Verma, Pallavi Jha

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Generation of the electromagnetic radiation oscillating at the frequencies in the terahertz range by propagation of two-color laser pulses in plasma is an active area of research due to its potential applications in various areas, including security screening, material characterization, and spectroscopic techniques. Due to nonionizing nature and the ability to penetrate several millimeters, THz radiation is suitable for diagnosis of cancerous cells. Traditional THz emitters like optically active crystals, when irradiated with high power laser radiation, are subject to material breakdown and hence low conversion efficiencies. This problem is not encountered in laser-plasma based THz radiation sources. The present paper is devoted to the study of the enhanced electromagnetic radiation generation by propagation of two-color, linearly polarized laser pulses through the magnetized plasma. The two lasers pulse orthogonally polarized are co-propagating along the same direction. The direction of the external magnetic field is such that one of the two laser pulses propagates in the ordinary mode, while the other pulse propagates in the extraordinary mode through the homogeneous plasma. A transverse electromagnetic wave with frequency in the THz range is generated due to the presence of the static magnetic field. It is observed that larger amplitude terahertz can be generated by mixing of ordinary and extraordinary modes of two-color laser pulses as compared with a single laser pulse propagating in the extraordinary mode.

Keywords: two-color laser pulses, electromagnetic radiation, magnetized plasma, ordinary and extraordinary modes

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Authors: Georgitta Joseph Valiyamattam

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Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are a growing phenomenon in India with over 10 million cases being recorded. Children with various levels and forms of ASD can be a major challenge both within the context of regular or special schooling. According to statistics by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in every 88 children today is born with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) against a ratio of one in 110 few years back. The growing number of children with autism spectrum disorders places greater demands on health services and necessitates the roping in of non-traditional modes of treatment to complement or even substitute traditional health care methods when possible. Research evidence, particularly from Western countries, as also some parts of Asia, suggests that animal-assisted therapy, or zootherapy, may be used as an effective individual or complementary therapeutic tool for increasing overall wellbeing and quality of life among children with Autism spectrum disorders. The paper through a case-study format seeks to evaluate the efficacy (initial stage) of animal assisted therapy (canine-therapy with visiting dog: breed-Golden retriever), as a non-conventional treatment modality for improving cognitive functioning and managing the behavioral and psychological symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorders. As a pilot study forming the basis for subsequent larger application of AAT, it analyses areas of efficacy as also the challenges faced, both with regard to the mode of therapy, as also particular to the Indian setting.

Keywords: animal assisted therapy, autism, canine therapy, analyzing initial efficacy

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Authors: Turkan Sultan Yasar Ismail, Mehmet Cetin, M. Danial Ismail, Hakan Sevik

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Nowadays, there is a need for the real world to be translated to the virtual environment by three-dimensional visualisation for restoration and promotional modelling of historic sites in protected areas. Visualisation models have also become the very important basis for the creation of three-dimensional Geographic Information System. The protection of historical and cultural heritage and documenting in Turkey as well as all over the world is an important issue. This heritage is a bridge between the past and the future of humanity. Many historical and cultural heritages suffer neglect and for reasons arising from natural causes. This is to determine the current status of the work and documenting information from the selected buildings. This process is important for their conservation and renovation work that might be done in the future. Kastamonu city is one of the historical cities in Turkey with a number of heritage buildings. However, Tufekciler Village is not visited and famous even though it includes several historical buildings and peaceful landscape. Digital terrestrial photogrammetry is one of the most important methods used in the documentation of cultural and historical heritage. Firstly, measurements were made primarily around creating polygon mesh and 3D model drawings of the structures to be modelled on images with the move to digital media such as picture size and by subsequent visualisation process. Secondly, a restoration project is offered to the village with the concept of eco-tourism with all scales such as, interior space to landscape design.

Keywords: eco-tourism, restoration, sustainability, cultural village

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Authors: Medya Fathi

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Moving toward sustainable development is among today’s critical issues worldwide that make all industries, particularly construction, pay increasing attention to a healthy environment and a society with a prosperous economy. One of the solutions is to improve buildings’ energy performance by cutting energy consumption and related carbon emissions, eventually improving the quality of life. Unfortunately, the energy demand for buildings is rising. For instance, in Europe, the building sector accounts for 19% of the global energy-related greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions, the main contributor to global warming in the last 50 years, and 36% of the total CO2 emissions, according to European Commission 2019. The crisis of energy use demands expanding knowledge and understanding of the potential benefits of energy-efficient buildings. In this regard, the present paper aims to critically review the existing body of knowledge on improving energy efficiency in buildings and detail the significant research contributions. Peer-reviewed journal articles published in the last decade in reputed journals were reviewed using the database Scopus and keywords of Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Energy Performance, Energy Consumption, Energy Efficiency, and Buildings. All contributions will be classified by journal type, publication time, country/region, building occupancy type, applied strategies, and findings. This study will provide an essential basis for researchers working on missing areas and filling the existing gaps in the body of knowledge.

Keywords: sustainability, energy performance, energy efficiency, buildings, review

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Authors: Vinay Agrawal, Suyash Garg, Ravindra Nagar, Vinay Chandwani

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Open ground storey with floating columns is a typical feature in the modern multistory constructions in urban India. Such features are very much undesirable in buildings built in seismically active areas. The present study proposes a feasible solution to mitigate the effects caused due to non-uniformity of stiffness and discontinuity in load path and to simultaneously hold the functional use of the open storey particularly under the floating column, through a combination of various lateral strengthening systems. An investigation is performed on an example building with nine different analytical models to bring out the importance of recognising the presence of open ground storey and floating columns. Two separate analyses on various models of the building namely, the equivalent static analysis and the response spectrum analysis as per IS: 1893-2002 were performed. Various measures such as incorporation of Chevron bracings and shear walls, strengthening the columns in the open ground storey, and their different combinations were examined. The analysis shows that, in comparison to two short ones separated by interconnecting beams, the structural walls are most effective when placed at the periphery of the buildings and used as one long structural wall. Further, it can be shown that the force transfer from floating columns becomes less horizontal when the Chevron Bracings are placed just below them, thereby reducing the shear forces in the beams on which the floating column rests.

Keywords: equivalent static analysis, floating column, open ground storey, response spectrum analysis, shear wall, stiffness irregularity

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Authors: Erhan Zor, Funda Copur, Asli I. Dogan, Haluk Bingol

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Current trends in the wide-scale sensing technologies rely on the development of miniaturized, rapid and easy-to-use sensing platforms. Quantum dots (QDs) with strong and easily tunable luminescence and high emission quantum yields have become a well-established photoluminescent nanomaterials for sensor applications. Although the majority of the reports focused on the cadmium-based QDs which have toxic effect on biological systems and eventually would cause serious environmental problems, carbon-based quantum dots (CQDs) that do not contain any toxic class elements have attracted substantial research interest in recent years. CQDs are small carbon nanostructures (less than 10 nm in size) with various unique properties and are widely-used in different fields during the last few years. In this respect, chiral nanostructures have become a promising class of materials in various areas such as pharmacology, catalysis, bioanalysis and (bio)sensor technology due to the vital importance of chirality in living systems. We herein report the synthesis of chiral CQDs with D- or L-tartaric acid as precursor materials. The optimum experimental conditions were examined and the purification procedure was performed using ethanol/water by column chromatography. The purified chiral CQDs were characterized by UV-Vis, FT-IR, XPS, PL and TEM techniques. The resultants display different photoluminescent characteristics due to the size and conformational difference. Considering the results, it can be concluded that chiral CQDs is expected to be used as optical chiral sensor in different platforms.

Keywords: carbon quantum dots, chirality, sensor, tartaric acid

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Authors: Karnsunaphat Balthip, Bunrome Suwanphahu

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Purpose in life is one attribute of the concept of spirituality which is used in health promotion to promote holistic wellbeing. Purpose is a significant foundation of motivation and achievement that guides adolescents down positive life paths. Adolescents who have life purpose are more likely to achieve greater success and wellbeing in their lives. The current study used qualitative research methodology to describe the experiences that enhanced the purpose in life of 27 Thai adolescents from different backgrounds, living in urban areas in southern Thailand. Data were gathered through in-depth interviews and observation. Thematic analysis methods guided data analysis. The results showed that love and connectedness are important in enhancing purpose in life. They illustrate four attributes of love and connection reflecting the four attributes of gratitude that enhance purpose in life: (1) self-love, or gratitude to oneself, whereby participants endeavor to live life in a positive way by taking care of themselves based on moral and ethical values; (2) connectedness or gratitude to parents or significant others, whereby participants are committed to taking holistic care (physical, psychological, and spiritual) of their significant others; (3) connectedness or gratitude to peers, whereby participants support their peers to help them live their own lives in a positive way; and (4) connectedness or gratitude to the wider world (environment, society, nation and beyond), through a sense of altruism towards others. The findings provide helpful insights for parents, nurses, and other health professionals supporting adolescents to obtain a purpose in life.

Keywords: adolescent, gratitude, purpose in life, spirituality

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Authors: Jelena Slugan, Ivica Ružić

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We are witnessing the rapid development of technologies that change the world around us. However, curriculums and teaching processes are often slow to adapt to the change; it takes time, money and expertise to implement technology in the classroom. Therefore, the University of Split, Croatia, partnered with local school Marko Marulić High School and created the project "Modern competence in modern high schools" as part of which five different curriculums for STEM areas were developed. One of the curriculums involves combining information technology with physics. The main idea was to teach students how to use different circuits and microcomputers to explore nature and physical phenomena. As a result, using electrical circuits, students are able to recreate in the classroom the phenomena that they observe every day in their environment. So far, high school students had very little opportunity to perform experiments independently, and especially, those physics experiment did not involve ICT. Therefore, this project has a great importance, because the students will finally get a chance to develop themselves in accordance to modern technologies. This paper presents some new methods of teaching physics that will help students to develop experimental skills through the study of deterministic nature of physical laws. Students will learn how to formulate hypotheses, model physical problems using the electronic circuits and evaluate their results. While doing that, they will also acquire useful problem solving skills.

Keywords: ICT in physics, curriculum, laboratory activities, STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics)

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Authors: Jutamas Wisansing, Thanakarn Vongvisitsin, Udom Hongchatikul

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Food could be used to open up a dialogue about local heritage. Contributing to the world sustainable consumption mission, this research aims to explore the linkages between agriculture, senses of place and performing arts. Thailand and its destination marketing ‘Discover Thainess’ was selected as a working principle, enabling a case example of how the three elements could be conceptualized. The model offered an integrated institutional arrangement where diverse entities could be formed to design how Thainess (local heritage) could be interpreted and embedded into an art of food. Using case study research approach, three areas (Chiangmai, Samutsongkram and Ban Rai Gong King) representing 3 different scales of tourism development were selected. Based on a theoretical analysis, a working model was formulated. An action research was then designed to experiment how the model could be materialized. Brainstorming elicitation and in-depth interview were employed to reflect on how each element could be integrated. The result of this study offered an innovation on how food tourism could be profoundly interpreted and how tourism development could enhance value creation for agricultural based community. The outcomes of the research present co-creative multi-stakeholder model and the value creation method through the whole supply chain of Thai gastronomy. The findings have been eventually incorporated into ‘gastro-diplomacy’ strategy for Thai tourism.

Keywords: community-based tourism, gastro-diplomacy, gastronomy tourism, sustainable tourism development

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Authors: Catarina Maria Neto Da Cruz, Ana Maria Reis D’Azevedo Breda

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The world is changing and, consequently, the young people need more sophisticated tools and skills to lead with the world’s complexity. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Learning Framework 2030 suggests an interdisciplinary knowledge as a principle for the future of education systems. In the curricular document Portuguese about the profile of students leaving compulsory education, the critical thinking and creative thinking are pointed out as skills to be developed, which imply the interconnection of different knowledge, applying it in different contexts and learning areas. Unlike primary school teachers, teachers specialized in a specific area lead to more difficulties in the implementation of interdisciplinary approaches in the classrooms and, despite the effort, the interdisciplinarity is not a common practice in schools. Statement like "Mathematics is everywhere" is unquestionable, however, many math teachers show difficulties in presenting such evidence in their classes. Mathematical modelling and problems in real contexts are promising in the development of interdisciplinary pedagogical practices and in Portugal there is a continuous training offer to contribute to the development of teachers in terms of their pedagogical approaches. But when teachers find themselves in the classroom, without a support, do they feel able to implement interdisciplinary practices? In this communication we will try to approach this issue through a case study involving a group of Mathematics teachers, who attended a training aimed at stimulating interdisciplinary practices in real contexts, namely related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: education, mathematics, teacher training, interdisciplinarity

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Authors: Zegrar Ahmed, Ghabi Mohamed

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The degradation of arid and semi-arid ecosystems in Algeria has become a palpable fact that only hinders progress and rural development. In these exceptionally fragile environments, the decline of vegetation is done according to an alarming increase and wind erosion dominates. The ecosystem is subjected to a long hot dry season and low annual average rainfall. The urgency of the fight against desertification is imposed by the very nature of the process that tends to self-accelerate, resulting when human intervention is not forthcoming the irreversibility situations, preventing any possibility of restoration state of these zones. These phenomena have led to different degradation processes, such as the destruction of vegetation, soil erosion, and deterioration of the physical environment. In this study, the work is mainly based on the criteria for classification and identification of physical parameters for spatial analysis and multi-sources to determine the vulnerability of major steppe formations and their impact on desertification. we used Landsat data with two different dates March 2010 and November 2014 in order to determine the changes in land cover, sand moving and land degradation for the diagnosis of the desertification Phenomenon. The application, through specific processes, including the supervised classification was used to characterize the main steppe formations. An analysis of the vulnerability of plant communities was conducted to assign weights and identify areas most susceptible to desertification. Vegetation indices are used to characterize the steppe formations to determine changes in land use.

Keywords: remote sensing, SIG, ecosystem, degradation, desertification

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Authors: Kholik

Abstract:

Nowadays, the demand of renewable energy in general is increasing due to the crisis of fossil fuels. Biohydrogen is an alternative fuel with zero emission derived from renewable resources such as banana pseudo stem of agricultural residues. Banana plant can be easily found in tropical and subtropical areas, so the resource is abundant and readily available as a biohydrogen substrate. Banana pseudo stem has not been utilised as a resource or substrate of biohydrogen production and it mainly contains 45-65% cellulose (α-cellulose), 5-15% hemicellulose and 20-30% Lignin, which indicates that banana pseudo stem will be renewable, sustainable and promising resource as lignocellulosic biomass. In this research, biohydrogen is derived from banana pseudo stem by dark fermentation. Dark fermentation is the most suitable approach for practical biohydrogen production from organic solid wastes. The process has several advantages including a fast reaction rate, no need of light, and a smaller footprint. 321 million metric tonnes banana pseudo stem of 428 million metric tonnes banana plantation residues in worldwide for 2013 and 22.5 million metric tonnes banana pseudo stem of 30 million metric tonnes banana plantation residues in Indonesia for 2015 will be able to generate 810.60 million tonne mol H2 and 56.819 million tonne mol H2, respectively. In this paper, we will show that the banana pseudo stem is the renewable, sustainable and promising resource to be utilised and to produce biohydrogen as energy generation with high yield and high contain of cellulose in comparison with the other substrates.

Keywords: banana pseudo stem, biohydrogen, dark fermentation, lignocellulosic

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Authors: Husham Mahmood Ahmed

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For so many reasons, fresh water scarcity is one of major problems facing the world and in particularly in the third world in the Northern Africa, the Middle East, the Southwest of Asia, and many other desert areas. Solar distillation offers one of the most promising solutions of renewable energy to this aggravated situation. The main obstacle hindering the spread of the use of solar technology for fresh water production is its low efficiency. Therefore, enhancing the solar stills performances by studying the parameters affecting their productivity and implementing new ideas and a different design are the main goals of the investigators in recent years. The present research is experimental work that tests a new design of solar still with a hemispherical top cover for water desalination with and without external reflectors under the climate of the Kingdom of Bahrain during the autumn season. The hemispherical cover has a base diameter of 1m and a depth of 0.4m, die cast from a 6 mm thick Lexan plastic sheet. The net effective area was 0.785 m2. It has been found that the average daily production rate obtained from the hemispherical top cover solar still is 3.610 liter/day. This yield is 11.1% higher than the yield of a conventional simple type single slope solar still having 20ᴼ slope glass cover and a larger effective area of 1 m2 obtained in previous research under similar climatic conditions. It has also been found that adding 1.2m long by 0.15 curved reflectors increased the yield of the hemispherical solar still by 5.5 %, while the 1.2 long by 0.3m curved reflector increased the yield by about 8%.

Keywords: hemispherical solar still, solar desalination, solar energy, the Northern Africa

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Authors: M. Elder, L. Beech, A. Mackie

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Heterotopic pregnancy is an uncommon and potentially life-threatening condition in which there is simultaneous occurrence of intrauterine and ectopic pregnancies. It has an incidence of approximately 1:3900 pregnancies, occurring in only 1:30000 spontaneous pregnancies. This study presents a rare case of spontaneous heterotopic pregnancy in a 34-year-old primiparous woman who was brought in by ambulance to the emergency department following collapse at 20+1 weeks gestation after normal first trimester screening and morphology scan. She was hemodynamically unstable and fetal heart rate was 60bpm. Initial resuscitation included transfusion of 2 units packed red blood cells and 1g intravenous tranexamic acid. Bedside ultrasound revealed evidence of approximately 1000ml clot in the right upper quadrant. She underwent a diagnostic laparoscopy and washout, which proceeded to a midline exploratory laparotomy. This revealed a 2.6L hemoperitoneum and query right ectopic pregnancy with calcified areas and clot, with no other cause of bleeding identified. Right salpingectomy was performed, and pathology later confirmed ectopic pregnancy. The intrauterine pregnancy had no complications, and she delivered a healthy full-term baby. This case demonstrates that ultrasound confirmation of intrauterine pregnancy does not exclude coexisting ectopic pregnancy. Heterotopic pregnancy should be considered in any pregnant woman presenting with abdominal pain or signs of hemorrhagic shock, as prompt diagnosis and treatment is essential to minimize foetal and maternal morbidity and mortality.

Keywords: ectopic pregnancy, hemorrhagic shock, salpingectomy, spontaneous heterotopic pregnancy

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Authors: Excellent Hansda

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Over the past years, a lot of research has been on the ethnic enclaves from historical, sociological and economic point of view. However there exist a research gap in the built environment and spatial layout of these areas. When immigrants (People) assimilate in a different place, they struggle to preserve their original identity to maintain their heritage. Then there is the Place, which is the physical manifestation of the heritage, shown through streetscape and architecture. Together 'People and Place' form a relationship with the authenticity of the enclave. As immigrants come in the host country, they try to bring their culture into the place, but at the same time, the culture of the host country also affects the immigrants. This creates conflicts not only in the lifestyle and culture of the immigrants, but also the built characteristics of the place. In the midst of such conflicts, one may easily question the authenticity of an ethnic enclave. In Malaysia, a number of ethnic enclaves emerged due to trade during the medieval times. Little India is one among the other ethnic enclaves present in Chulia Street in Malaysia. The study investigates the factors of 'Place and People', affecting the authenticity of a little India, in the context of an evolving state of Penang in Malaysia. The study is carried through extensive literature review of existing data, followed by observations drawn by visual analysis, discussions and interviews with the stakeholders of the study area. The findings of this research suggest the contribution of 'people and places' in the process of place making in an ethnic enclave. The findings are essential for conservation and further development of ethnic enclaves.

Keywords: conservation, ethnic enclaves, heritage, identity

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Authors: Nükhet Konuk, N. Gamze Turan, Yüksel Ardalı

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Solid waste management is the most environmental problem in Turkey as a result of the rapid increase in solid waste generation caused by the rapid population growth, urbanization, rapid industrialization and economic development. The large quantity of waste generated necessitates system of collection, transportation and disposal. The landfill method for the ultimate disposal of solid waste continues to be widely accepted and used due to its economic advantages. In Turkey, most of the disposal sites open dump areas. Open dump sites may result in serious urban, sanitary and environmental problems such as an unpleasant odor and the risk of explosion as well as groundwater contamination because of leachate percolation. Unsuitable management practices also result in the loss of resources and energy, which could be recycled and produced from a large part of the solid waste. Therefore, over the past few decades, particular attention has been drawn to the sustainable solid waste management as a response to the increase in environmental problems related to the disposal of waste. The objective of this paper is to assess the situation of landfilling practices in Turkey as a developing country and to identify any gaps in the system as currently applied. The results show that approximately 25 million tons of MSW are generated annually in Turkey. The percentage of MSW disposed to sanitary landfill is only 45% whereas more than 50% of MSW is disposed without any control.

Keywords: developing countries, open dumping, solid waste management, sustainable landfilling, sustainable solid waste management

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