Search results for: tool comparison

Authors: Wassana Naiyapo, Atichat Sangtong

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The processes in software development by Object Oriented methodology have many stages those take time and high cost. The inconceivable error in system analysis process will affect to the design and the implementation process. The unexpected output causes the reason why we need to revise the previous process. The more rollback of each process takes more expense and delayed time. Therefore, the good test process from the early phase, the implemented software is efficient, reliable and also meet the user’s requirement. Unified Modelling Language (UML) is the tool which uses symbols to describe the work process in Object Oriented Analysis (OOA). This paper presents the approach for automatically generated UML use case diagram and test cases. UML use case diagram is generated from the event table and test cases are generated from use case specifications and Graphic User Interfaces (GUI). Test cases are derived from the Classification Tree Method (CTM) that classify data to a node present in the hierarchy structure. Moreover, this paper refers to the program that generates use case diagram and test cases. As the result, it can reduce work time and increase efficiency work.

Keywords: classification tree method, test case, UML use case diagram, use case specification

Procedia PDF Downloads 158

Authors: Khattab E. A., Gehan A. Amin

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The aim of the experiment was to investigate yield and yield components under effect of three different tillage systems and three faba bean varieties on clay-loamy soils. The experiment was conducted as split plot design having tillage systems in main plot and varieties in subplot. A field trial was conducted during the winter seasons of 2021-2022 and 2022-2-23, respectively in private of the agricultural lands of Shobra Beddin village, which belongs to Mansoura District of Dakahlia Province 31°, (04457)- N latitude and 31°4757- E longitude. The soil was prepared. The Seeds covered with a thin layer of soil, sown and watered. Three weeks later, the developed plants were thinned. Finally, the plants collected after 110 days of growth. Growth, yield and chemical contents determined. The results showed that the highest yield in the traditional tillage system corresponds to the superior to other tillage systems. In addition, In the variety comparison, the Sakha 1 variety was characterized by the highest yield as well as the highest values of plant growth properties among the three varieties. Conclusion: The traditional tillage system is increase grain yield of variety Sakha 1 compared with other varieties.

Keywords: yield, tillage system, varieties, faba bean

Procedia PDF Downloads 60

Authors: Omid Azimaraghi, Noushin Khazaei

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Background: Fluid therapy is an important aspect of the perioperative period and a major challenge for anesthesiologists. To authors best knowledge, there is a lack of strong guidance and evidence regarding the optimal approach to fluid therapy. Therefore a variety of medical devices have been introduced to help physicians. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of pleth variability index in guiding fluid therapy in different patient positions. Materials and Methods: Inclusion criteria consisted of patients aged 18-50 years old and classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status I and II, who were candidates for elective thyroidectomy surgery. In total, 36 patients meeting the inclusion criteria were enrolled in the study. After induction of anesthesia and start of mechanical ventilation Pleth variability index was measured in the supine position, then patients were placed in Trendelenburg and reverse Trendelenburg position (30 degrees, 5 minutes); Pleth Variability Index has measured again in the mentioned positions. Results: Mean PVI (Pleth Variability Index) in the supine position was 14.3 ± 3.7 in comparison to 21.5 ± 4.3 in the reverse Trendelenburg position. The mean PVI in Trendelenburg position was 9.1 ± 2.0 in Trendelenburg position (p < 0.05). Conclusion: In conclusion, we found that Pleth Variability Index varies with patient position and this should be taken into account when using this index during fluid therapy.

Keywords: fluid therapy, Pleth Variability Index, position, surgery

Procedia PDF Downloads 161

Authors: O. Vanijajiva, K. Oumaree, N. Ngampak

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This research aims to study the level of perception and participation of Phranakhon Rajabhat University staff and to study the relationship between the levels of perception and participation with the score of University evaluation of quality assurance in education. The respondents were composed of 479 staffs. The tool used in this research is perceived and participation questionnaire of quality assurance in education of Phranakhon Rajabhat University. The results found that the most staffs are female with undergraduate education. Most 2 respondents are revealing educational staffs without academic position. The fact of times to gain knowledge of quality assurance in education is 1-3 times. The perception of knowledge about quality assurance in education is moderate (3.74 ± 0.65) with most respondent are more focus on university activity than quality assurance in education activity. The participation of quality assurance in education activities involved in moderate (3.17 ± 0.88), with most respondents more involved in student affair than quality assurance in education motion. For assessment of the relationship of perception and participation of quality assurance in education are average score (4.31 ± 0.16) showed that the level of perception and participation was associated with university evaluation in very low level (r = -0.103 and -0.121, respectively), while perception and participation are correlated with the moderate level (r = 0.691).

Keywords: quality assurance education, awareness, participation, higher education, Thailand

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Authors: Arunas Stirke, Neringa Bakute, Gatis Mozolevskis

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A technology of microfluidics is an emerging tool in the field of biology, medicine and chemistry. Microfluidic device is also known as ‘lab-on-a-chip’ technology [1]. In moving from macro- to microscale, there is unprecedented control over spatial and temporal gradients and patterns that cannot be captured in conventional Petri dishes and well plates [2]. However, there is not a single standard microfluidic chip designated for all purposes – every different field of studies needs a specific microchip with certain geometries, inlet/outlet, channel depth and other parameters to precisely regulate the required function. Since our group is studying an effect of pulsed electric field (PEF) to the cells, we have manufactured a microfluidic chip designated for high-throughput electroporation of cells. In our microchip, a cell culture chamber is divided into two parallel channels by a membrane, meanwhile electrodes for electroporation are attached to the wall of the channels. Both microchannels have their own inlet and outlet, enabling injection of transfection material separately. Our perspective is to perform electroporation of mammalian cells in two different ways: (1) plasmid and cells are injected in the same microchannel and (2) injected into separate microchannels. Moreover, oxygen and pH sensors are integrated on order to analyse cell viability parameters after PEF treatment.

Keywords: microfluidics, chip, fabrication, electroporation

Procedia PDF Downloads 78

Authors: C. Iraklis, G. Evmiridis, A. Iraklis

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Renewable energy sources and distributed power generation units already have an important role in electrical power generation. A mixture of different technologies penetrating the electrical grid, adds complexity in the management of distribution networks. High penetration of distributed power generation units creates node over-voltages, huge power losses, unreliable power management, reverse power flow and congestion. This paper presents an optimization algorithm capable of reducing congestion and power losses, both described as a function of weighted sum. Two factors that describe congestion are being proposed. An upgraded selective particle swarm optimization algorithm (SPSO) is used as a solution tool focusing on the technique of network reconfiguration. The upgraded SPSO algorithm is achieved with the addition of a heuristic algorithm specializing in reduction of power losses, with several scenarios being tested. Results show significant improvement in minimization of losses and congestion while achieving very small calculation times.

Keywords: congestion, distribution networks, loss reduction, particle swarm optimization, smart grid

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Authors: Ihtasham Hamza

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In the contemporary world, where the West is afflicted by the diseases of excess nutrition, much of the rest globe suffers at the hands of hunger. A troubling constituent of hunger is micronutrient deficiency, also called hidden hunger. Major dependence on calorie-rich diets and low diet diversification are responsible for high malnutrition rates, especially in African and Asian countries. But the dilemma isn’t immune to solutions. Highlighting the substantial cause to be sole dependence on staples for food, biofortification has emerged as a novel tool to confront the widely distributed jeopardize of hidden hunger. Biofortification potentials the better nutritional approachability to commonalities overcoming various difficulties and reaching the doorstep. The crops associated with biofortification offer a rural-based involvement that, proposal, primarily reaches these more remote populations, which comprise a majority of the malnourished in many countries, and then penetrates to urban populations as assembly overages are marketed. Initial investments in agricultural research at a central location can generate high recurrent benefits at low cost as adapted biofortified cultivars become widely available in countries across time at low recurrent costs as opposed to supplementation which is comparatively expensive and requires continued financing over time, which may be imperilled by fluctuating political curiosity.

Keywords: biofortified crops, hunger, malnutrition, agricultural practices

Procedia PDF Downloads 282

Authors: Sara Patricia Ibarra-Zavaleta, Rabindranarth Romero-Lopez, Rosario Langrave, Annie Poulin, Gerald Corzo, Mathias Glaus, Ricardo Vega-Azamar, Norma Angelica Oropeza

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The progressive change in climatic conditions worldwide has increased frequency and severity of extreme hydrometeorological events (EHE). Mexico is an example; this has been affected by the presence of EHE leaving economic, social and environmental losses. The objective of this research was to apply a Canadian distributed hydrological model (DHM) to tropical conditions and to evaluate its capacity to predict flows in a basin in the central Gulf of Mexico. In addition, the DHM (once calibrated and validated) was used to calculate the theoretical hydraulic power and the performance to predict streamflow before the presence of an EHE. The results of the DHM show that the goodness of fit indicators between the observed and simulated flows in the calibration process (NSE=0.83, RSR=0.021 and BIAS=-4.3) and validation: temporal was assessed at two points: point one (NSE=0.78, RSR=0.113 and BIAS=0.054) and point two (NSE=0.825, RSR=0.103 and BIAS=0.063) are satisfactory. The DHM showed its applicability in tropical environments and its ability to characterize the rainfall-runoff relationship in the study area. This work can serve as a tool for identifying vulnerabilities before floods and for the rational and sustainable management of water resources.

Keywords: HYDROTEL, hydraulic power, extreme hydrometeorological events, streamflow

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Authors: Marieta Safta

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The separation and balance of state powers constitute the basis of the rule of law. Observance of this principle requires framing of public authorities within the limits of competence established by the Constitution and the law, as well as loyal cooperation between them. From this perspective, the attribution of the constitutional courts for settling legal conflicts of a constitutional nature is an important tool for correcting the tendencies of violation of these limits, as well as for identifying solutions for situations that do not find an explicit regulation in the constitutional texts. The present study analyzes the jurisprudence of the Constitutional Court of Romania in the field of legal conflicts of a constitutional nature, revealing, together with the presentation of conflict situations, the vulnerabilities of the constitutional reference texts. It is also highlighted the role of the constitutional courts in the evolution of constitutional law institutions, even in terms of defining and redefining the regime of the forms of government. The conclusion of the study, beyond the subject of legal conflicts of a constitutional nature, bears on the necessity, even more so in this matter, of the certainty of jurisdictional interpretation. This certainty cannot be achieved as long as the interpretation is not authoritative; consequently, the assurance of the effectiveness of constitutional justice constitute a key issue of the rule of law.

Keywords: legal conflicts of constitutional nature, the Constitutional Court of Romania, the separation and balance of powers in the state, the effectiveness of constitutional justice

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Authors: Surbhi Mathur, J. M. Vyas

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Although the rapid development of forensic speaker recognition technology has been conducted, there are still many problems to be solved. The biggest problem arises when the cases involving disguised voice samples come across for the purpose of examination and identification. Such type of voice samples of anonymous callers is frequently encountered in crimes involving kidnapping, blackmailing, hoax extortion and many more, where the speaker makes a deliberate effort to manipulate their natural voice in order to conceal their identity due to the fear of being caught. Voice disguise causes serious damage to the natural vocal parameters of the speakers and thus complicates the process of identification. The sole objective of this doctoral project is to find out the possibility of rendering definite opinions in cases involving disguised speech by experimentally determining the effects of different disguise forms on personal identification and percentage rate of speaker recognition for various voice disguise techniques such as raised pitch, lower pitch, increased nasality, covering the mouth, constricting tract, obstacle in mouth etc by analyzing and comparing the amount of phonetic and acoustic variation in of artificial (disguised) and natural sample of an individual, by auditory as well as spectrographic analysis.

Keywords: forensic, speaker recognition, voice, speech, disguise, identification

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Authors: S. Alfalah, J. Falah, T. Alfalah, M. Elfalah, O. Falah

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The field of education is an ever-evolving area constantly enriched by newly discovered techniques provided by active research in all areas of technologies. The recent years have witnessed the introduction of a number of promising technologies and applications to enhance the teaching and learning experience. Virtual Reality (VR) applications are considered one of the evolving methods that have contributed to enhancing education in many fields. VR creates an artificial environment, using computer hardware and software, which is similar to the real world. This simulation provides a solution to improve the delivery of materials, which facilitates the teaching process by providing a useful aid to instructors, and enhances the learning experience by providing a beneficial learning aid. In order to assure future utilization of such systems, students’ perceptions were examined toward utilizing VR as an educational tool in the Faculty of Information Technology (IT) in The University of Jordan. A questionnaire was administered to IT undergraduates investigating students’ opinions about the potential opportunities that VR technology could offer and its implications as learning and teaching aid. The results confirmed the end users’ willingness to adopt VR systems as a learning aid. The result of this research forms a solid base for investing in a VR system for IT education.

Keywords: information, technology, virtual reality, education

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Authors: Rancy Chepchirchir Kosgey, John Olukuru

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This study examines the impact of introduction of futures trading on the spot price volatility in the commodity market. The paper considers the United States of America, South Africa and Ethiopian economies. Three commodities i.e. coffee, maize and wheat from New York Merchantile Exchange, South African Futures Exchange and Ethiopian Commodity Exchange are analyzed. ARCH LM test is used to check for heteroskedasticity and GARCH and EGARCH are used to check for the behavior of volatility between the pre- and post-futures periods. For all the three economies, the results indicate presence of the ARCH effect in the log returns. For conditional and unconditional variances; spot price volatility for coffee has decreased after futures trading in all the economies and the EGARCH has also shown reduction in persistence of volatility in the post-futures period in the three economies; while that of maize has reduced for the Ethiopian economy while there has been an increase in both the US and South African economies. For wheat, the conditional variance has been found to rise in the post-futures period in all the three economies.

Keywords: derivatives, futures exchange, agricultural commodities, spot price volatility

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Authors: Qi Lu, Jian Deng, Daishun Huang, Chao Guo

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The lead cooled fast reactor is considered as one of the most potential Generation IV nuclear systems due to the low working pressure, the appreciable neutron economy, and the considerable passive characteristics. Meanwhile, the lead bismuth eutectic (LBE) has the related advantages of lead with the weaker corrosiveness, which has been paid much attention by recent decades. Moreover, the sub-channel code is a necessary analysis tool for the reactor thermal-hydraulic design and safety analysis, which has been developed combined with the accumulation of LBE experimental data and the understanding of physical phenomena. In this study, a sub-channel code available for LBE was developed, and the corresponding geometric characterization method of typical sub-channels was described in detail, especially for for the fuel assembly with wire spacer. As for this sub-channel code, the transversal thermal conduction through gap was taken into account. In addition, the physical properties, the heat transfer model, the flow resistance model and the turbulent mixing model were analyzed. Finally, the thermal-hydraulic experiments of LBE conducted on THEADES (THErmal-hydraulics and Ads DESign) were selected as the evaluation data of this sub-channel code, including 19 rods with wire spacer, and the calculated results were in good agreement with the experimental results.

Keywords: lead bismuth eutectic, sub-channel code, wire spacer, transversal thermal conduction

Procedia PDF Downloads 129

Authors: Krittiya Pornmai, Sumaeth Chavadej

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The increasing in global energy demand has affected the climate change caused by the generation of greenhouse gases. Therefore, the objective of this work was to investigate a direct production of synthesis gas from a CO₂-containing natural gas by using gliding arc discharge plasma technology. In this research, the effects of steam reforming, combined steam reforming and partial oxidation, and using multistage gliding arc discharge system on the process performance have been discussed. The simulated natural gas used in this study contains 70% methane, 5% ethane, 5% propane, and 20% carbon dioxide. In comparison with different plasma reforming processes (under their optimum conditions), the steam reforming provides the highest H₂ selectivity resulting from the cracking reaction of steam. In addition, the combined steam reforming and partial oxidation process gives a very high CO production implying that the addition of both oxygen and steam can offer the acceptably highest synthesis gas production. The stage number of plasma reactor plays an important role in the improvement of CO₂ conversion. Moreover, 3 stage number of plasma reactor is considered as an optimum stage number for the reforming of CO₂-containing natural gas with steam and partial oxidation in term of providing low energy consumption as compared with other plasma reforming processes.

Keywords: natural gas, reforming process, gliding arc discharge, plasma technology

Procedia PDF Downloads 167

Authors: Larissa Negris de Souza, Ana Regina Mizrahy Cuperschmid, Daniel de Carvalho Moreira

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Augmented Reality (AR) alters the elaboration of the architectural project, which relates to project cognition: representation, visualization, and perception of information. Understanding these features from the earliest stages of the design can facilitate the study of relationships, zoning, and overall dimensions of the forms. This paper’s goal was to explore a new approach for information visualization during the early stages of architectural design using Augmented Reality (AR). A three-dimensional marker inspired by the Rubik’s Cube was developed, and its performance, evaluated. This investigation interwovens the acquired knowledge of traditional briefing methods and contemporary technology. We considered the concept of patterns (Alexander et al. 1977) to outline geometric forms and associations using visual programming. The Design Science Research was applied to develop the study. An SDK was used in a game engine to generate the AR app. The tool's functionality was assessed by verifying the readability and precision of the reconfigurable 3D marker. The results indicated an inconsistent response. To use AR in the early stages of architectural design the system must provide consistent information and appropriate feedback. Nevertheless, we conclude that our framework sets the ground for looking deep into AR tools for briefing design.

Keywords: augmented reality, cuboid marker, early design stages, graphic representation, patterns

Procedia PDF Downloads 93

Authors: Michael Fundator

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Groundbreaking application of biomathematical and biochemical research in neural networks processes to formation of non-canonical bases, islands, and analog bases in DNA and mRNA at or near the transcription that contradicts the long anticipated statistical assumptions for the distribution of bases and analog bases compounds is implemented through statistical and stochastic methods apparatus with addition of quantum principles, where the usual transience of Poisson spike train becomes very instrumental tool for finding even almost periodical type of solutions to Fokker-Plank stochastic differential equation. Present article develops new multidimensional methods of finding solutions to stochastic differential equations based on more rigorous approach to mathematical apparatus through Kolmogorov-Chentsov continuity theorem that allows the stochastic processes with jumps under certain conditions to have γ-Holder continuous modification that is used as basis for finding analogous parallels in dynamics of neutral networks and formation of analog bases and transcription in DNA.

Keywords: Fokker-Plank stochastic differential equation, Kolmogorov-Chentsov continuity theorem, neural networks, translation and transcription

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Authors: Hassen M. Ouakad

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In this paper, the influence of van der Waals, as well as electrostatic forces on the structural behavior of MEMS and NEMS actuators, has been investigated using of a Euler-Bernoulli beam continuous model. In the proposed nonlinear model, the electrostatic fringing-fields and the mid-plane stretching (geometric nonlinearity) effects have been considered. The nonlinear integro-differential equation governing the static structural behavior of the actuator has been derived. An original Galerkin-based reduced-order model has been developed to avoid problems arising from the nonlinearities in the differential equation. The obtained reduced-order model equations have been solved numerically using the Newton-Raphson method. The basic design parameters such as the pull-in parameters (voltage and deflection at pull-in), as well as the detachment length due to the van der Waals force of some investigated micro- and nano-actuators have been calculated. The obtained numerical results have been compared with some other existing methods (finite-elements method and finite-difference method) and the comparison showed good agreement among all assumed numerical techniques.

Keywords: MEMS, NEMS, fringing-fields, mid-plane stretching, Galerkin

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Authors: Hossein Lotfizadeh, André McDonald, Amit Kumar

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Renewable energy resources, which can supplement space and water heating for residential buildings, can have a noticeable impact on natural gas consumption and air pollution. This study considers a technical analysis of a combined solar water heating system with evacuated tube solar collectors for different solar coverage, ranging from 20% to 100% of the total roof area of a typical residential building located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The alternative heating systems were conventional (non-condensing) and condensing tankless water heaters and condensing boilers that were coupled to solar water heating systems. The performance of the alternative heating systems was compared to a traditional heating system, consisting of a conventional boiler, applied to houses of various gross floor areas. A comparison among the annual natural gas consumption, carbon dioxide (CO₂) mitigation, and emissions for the various house sizes indicated that the combined solar heating system can reduce the natural gas consumption and CO₂ emissions, and increase CO₂ mitigation for all the systems that were studied. The results suggest that solar water heating systems are potentially beneficial for residential heating system applications in terms of energy savings and CO₂ mitigation.

Keywords: CO2 emissions, CO2 mitigation, natural gas consumption, solar water heating system

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Authors: Osama Safwat Mohamed

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Pits and fissures dental caries can be prevented using sealant material. This study aimed to compare the microleakage and interfacial morphology of flowable nanocomposites and conventional pit and fissure sealants. 60 extracted intact and caries-free permanent mandibular third molars. The teeth were randomly divided into three groups (n = 20) according to the material used for pit and fissure sealant. Group I: Unfilled resin-based pits and fissure sealant, Group II: Unfilled resin-based pits and fissure sealant with bond and Group III: Nano flowable composite resin with bond. The results showed that nano-flowable composite was significantly better than the conventional sealants groups p = 0.000. As well there was better as well, there were gaps between sealants and the tooth surfaces in groups I and II, but for group III, there was close contact between the nano-flowable composite and tooth surfaces. It was concluded that nano-flowable composite showed better microleakage and interfacial morphology results than conventional pits and fissure sealant and offered promising results at the fissure sealing.

Keywords: pits and fissures, Sealant, nanocomposite, dental caries

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Authors: Apinya Mungaomklang, Natakamol Lookkham

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The purpose of this research is to study the characteristics of the graduates based on Thailand Qualification Framework (TQF) of the Faculty of Industrial Technology, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The population of the research was employers/entrepreneurs/supervisors of students who were doing Professional Experiences course in their respective organizations during semester 1/2012. Data were collected during the month of September 2012 from the total number of 100 people. The tool used in this research was a questionnaire developed by the research team. Data were analyzed using percentage, mean and standard deviation using a computer program. The results showed that most of the surveyed organizations were private companies. The program with most students doing Professional Experiences course was Safety Technology and Occupational Health. The nature of work that most students did was associated with the document. Employers/ entrepreneurs/employers’ opinions on the characteristics of the graduates based on TQF received high scores. Cognitive skills received the highest score, followed by interpersonal relationships and responsibilities, ethics and moral, numerical analysis skills, communication and information technology skills, and knowledge, respectively.

Keywords: graduates characteristics, Thailand Qualification Framework, employers, entrepreneurs

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Authors: Bih-O Lee, Hsiu-Wan Hsieh, Hsiu-Chen Liu, Mer Yu Pan

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Background: Illness perceptions are developed when people face health-threatening situations. Previous research suggests that understanding discrepancies between illness perceptions of patients and caregivers may need to improve quality of health care. Objective: This study examined the differences between illness perceptions of injured patients and those of their caregivers. Methods: Comparative study design was used. The study setting was the surgical wards of a teaching hospital in Taiwan. Participants were 127 pairs of injured patients and their caregivers. The participants completed socio-demographic data and completed the Chinese Illness Perception Questionnaire Revised-Trauma, which comprises eight subscales. Clinical data of the injured patients was obtained from medical records. Results: This study found that injured patients were more pessimistic than their caregivers about the injury. There were significant differences between patients and caregivers insofar as patients perceived more physical symptoms, scored higher in terms of reasons for their injury, had more negative emotions and experienced more consequences than caregivers. Elderly caregivers and caregivers for patients who were over 65, severely injured and admitted to an ICU perceived more negative perceptions about the injury. Conclusions: This study indicated that patients and caregivers had negative illness representations several months after injury although the intensity of their perceptions was different. The interventions should highlight the need to assist patients and caregivers after injury.

Keywords: illness representations, injury, caregivers, comparative study

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Authors: Ritesh Watharkar, Sourabh Chakraborty, Brijesh Srivastava

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Reduction of water from the fruits and vegetables using different drying techniques is widely employed to prolong the shelf life of these food commodities. Heat transfer occurs inside the sample by conduction and mass transfer takes place by diffusion in accordance with temperature and moisture concentration gradient respectively during drying. This study was undertaken to study and model the thin layer drying behavior of Bhimkol pulp. The drying was conducted in a tray drier at 500c temperature with 5, 10 and 15 % concentrations of added maltodextrin. The drying experiments were performed at 5mm thickness of the thin layer and the constant air velocity of 0.5 m/s.Drying data were fitted to different thin layer drying models found in the literature. Comparison of fitted models was based on highest R2(0.9917), lowest RMSE (0.03201), and lowest SSE (0.01537) revealed Middle equation as the best-fitted model for thin layer drying with 10% concentration of maltodextrin. The effective diffusivity was estimated based on the solution of Fick’s law of diffusion which is found in the range of 3.0396 x10-09 to 5.0661 x 10-09. There was a reduction in drying time with the addition of maltodextrin as compare to the raw pulp.

Keywords: Bhimkol, diffusivity, maltodextrine, Midilli model

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Authors: Rayeheh Khatami, Toktam Hanaei, Mohammad Reza Mansouri Daneshvar

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Today, many local and national governments are developing urban agriculture as an effective tool in responding to challenges such as food security, poverty and environmental problems. In fact, urban agriculture plays an important role in food system, which can provide citizens' income and become one of the components of economic, social and environmental systems. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the urban agriculture and urban food systems in order to understand the impact of urban foods production on environmental planning in non-western city region context. To achieve such objective, we carry out a case study in Mashhad city of Iran by using qualitative approaches. A survey on documentary studies and planning tools integrate with face to face interview with experts which explain the role of food system in environmental planning process. The paper extends the use of food in the environmental planning, specifically to examine this role to create agricultural garden as a mean to improve agricultural system in non-western country. The paper is concluded with a set of recommendations for researchers and policymakers who seek to create spaces in order to implement urban agriculture in cities for food justice.

Keywords: urban agriculture , agricultural park, city region food system, Mashhad

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Authors: Sara Canas Pedrosa, Esther Moraleda SepuLveda

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Angelman Syndrome (AS) and Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) are considered rare genetic disorders that share the same chromosomal region: 15q11.2-q13. This is why both share some common characteristics, such as, delay in language development. However, there is still little research that specifically focuses on the linguistic profile in these populations. Therefore, the objective of this study was to know the characteristics of oral and written language that Angelman Syndrome and Prader-Willi Syndrome present from the point of view of parents. The sample consisted of 36 families (with children between 6 and 17 years old), of which 23 had children with AS and 13 had children with PWS. All of them answered the Language Assessment Scale of the standardized test CELF-4, Spanish Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-4 (Wiig, Secord & Semel, 2006). The scale is made up of 40 items that assesses the perception of parents in areas such as: difficulty of listening, speaking, reading and writing. The results indicate that the majority of parents manifest problems in almost all the sub-areas related to oral language and written language, taking into account that many do not achieve a literacy level, with similar results in comparison with both syndromes. These data support the importance of working on oral language delay and its relationship with the subsequent learning of literacy throughout its development.

Keywords: Angelman Syndrome , development, language, Prader-Willi Syndrome

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Authors: Nadezda Kobzeva

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Under the current trend of globalization, economic and technological dynamics information and the means by which it is delivered and renewed becomes out-of-date rapidly. Thus, educational systems as well as higher education are being seriously tested. New strategies’ developing that is supported by Information and Communication Technology is urgently required. The essential educators’ mission is to meet the demands of the future by preparing our young learners with proper knowledge, skills and innovation capabilities necessary to advance our competitiveness globally. In response to the modern society and future demands, the oldest Siberian Tomsk Polytechnic University has wisely proposed several initiatives to promote the integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in education, and increase the competitiveness of graduates by emphasizing inquiry-based learning, higher order thinking and problem solving. This paper gives a brief overview of how Web Quest as ICT device is being used for language teaching and describes its use advantages for teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL), in particular business writing skills. This study proposes to use Web Quest to promote higher order thinking and ICT integration in the process of engineers training in Tomsk Polytechnic University, Russia.

Keywords: web quest, web quest in pedagogy, resume (CVs) and cover letter writing skills, ICT integration

Procedia PDF Downloads 375

Authors: Diane Prorak, Perri Moreno

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University students may have been born in the digital age, but they need to be taught the critical thinking skills to detect misinformation and social media manipulation online. In recent years, librarians have been active in designing instructional methods to help students learn information evaluation skills. At the University of Idaho Library (USA), librarians have developed new teaching methods for these skills. Last academic year, when classes were taught via Zoom, librarians taught these skills to an online session of each first-year rhetoric and composition course. In the Zoom sessions, students were placed in breakout groups where they practiced using an evaluation method known as lateral reading. Online collaborative software was used to give each group an evaluative task and break the task into steps. Groups reported back to the full class. Students learned to look at an information source, then search outside the source to find information about the organization, publisher or author, before evaluating the source itself. Class level pre-and post-test comparison results showed students learned better techniques for evaluation than they knew before instruction.

Keywords: critical thinking, information evaluation, information literacy instruction, lateral reading.

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Authors: Ekrem Canli, Thomas Glade

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The precise prediction of rainfall in space and time is a key element to most landslide early warning systems. Unfortunately, the spatial variability of rainfall in many early warning applications is often disregarded. A common simplification is to use uniformly distributed rainfall to characterize aerial rainfall intensity. With spatially differentiated rainfall information, real-time comparison with rainfall thresholds or the implementation in process-based approaches might form the basis for improved landslide warnings. This study suggests an automated workflow from the hourly, web-based collection of rain gauge data to the generation of spatially differentiated rainfall predictions based on kriging. Because the application of kriging is usually a labor intensive task, a simplified and consequently automated variogram modeling procedure was applied to up-to-date rainfall data. The entire workflow was carried out purely with open source technology. Validation results, albeit promising, pointed out the challenges that are involved in pure distance based, automated geostatistical interpolation techniques for ever-changing environmental phenomena over short temporal and spatial extent.

Keywords: kriging, landslide early warning system, spatial rainfall prediction, variogram modelling, web scraping

Procedia PDF Downloads 277

Authors: Scott Ashby, Emily Granger, Mark Connellan

Abstract:

Objectives: 1) To identify if emergency coronary angiography improves outcomes in studies examining OHCA from assumed cardiac aetiology? 2) If so, is it indicated in all patients resuscitated following OHCA, and if not, who is it indicated for? 3) How effective are investigations for screening for the appropriate patients? Background: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest is one of the leading mechanisms of death, and the most common causative pathology is coronary artery disease. In-hospital treatment following resuscitation greatly affects outcomes, yet there is debate over the most effective protocol. Methods: A literature search was conducted over multiple databases to identify all relevant articles published from 2005. An inclusion criterion was applied to all publications retrieved, which were then sorted by type. Results: A total of 3 existing reviews and 29 clinical studies were analysed in this review. There were conflicting conclusions, however increased use of angiography has shown to improve outcomes in the majority of studies, which cover a variety of settings and cohorts. Recommendations: Currently, emergency coronary angiography appears to improve outcomes in all/most cases of OHCA of assumed cardiac aetiology, regardless of ECG findings. Until a better tool for screening is available to reduce unnecessary procedures, the benefits appear to outweigh the costs/risks.

Keywords: out of hospital cardiac arrest, coronary angiography, resuscitation, emergency medicine

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Authors: Khairy Mohamed Abdalla Zoheir

Abstract:

One of the most severe complications of Rheumatoid arthritis is delayed recovery. lipoic acid possesses antioxidant, hypoglycemic, and anti-inflammatory activity. In the present study, the effects of lipoic acid were investigated on the key mediators of Rheumatoid arthritis, namely, CD4+CD25+ T cell subsets, GITR expressing cells, CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T (Treg) cells, T-helper-17 (Th17) cells and pro-inflammatory cytokines Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor- α (TNF-α)] through flow-cytometry and qPCR analyses. Lipoic acid-treated mice showed a significant decrease in Rheumatoid arthritis, the frequency of GITR-expressing cells, and Th1 cytokines (IL-17A, TNF-αand Interferon- γ (IFN-γ) compared with positive and negative controlled mice. Lipoic acid treatment also downregulated the mRNA expression of the inflammatory mediators compared with the Rheumatoid arthritis mouse model and untreated mice. The number of Tregs was also found to be significantly upregulated in lipoic acid-treated mice. Our results were confirmed by the histopathological examination. This study showed the beneficial role of lipoic acid in promoting a well-balanced tool for the therapy of Rheumatoid arthritis.

Keywords: lipoic acid, inflammatory markers, rheumatoid arthritis, qPCR

Procedia PDF Downloads 96

Authors: Bifeng Zhu, Zhekai Wang, Chaoyang Sun, Bart Dewancker

Abstract:

Under the tide of promoting sustainable development in the world, American universities that have been committed to sustainable practice and innovation, not only have its sustainable campus construction been in the forefront of the world, but also have developed STARS (The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System), which is widely used in the world and highly recognized. At the same time, in the process of global sustainable campus construction, energy problem is often regarded as one of the most important sustainable aspects, even equivalent to the sustainability of campus. Therefore, the relationship between campus energy and sustainability is worth discussing. In this study, four American universities with the highest level evaluated by STARS are selected as examples to compare and analyze the campus energy consumption and the use of new energy, GHG emissions and the overall sustainability of the campus, in order to explore the relationship between campus energy and sustainable construction. It is found that the advantages of sustainable campus construction in the United States are mainly focused on the "software" of management, education, activities, etc. Although different energy-saving measures have been taken in campus energy, the construction results are quite different. Moreover, as an important aspect of sustainable campus, energy can not fully represent the sustainability of campus, but because of the various measures it takes, it can greatly promote the sustainable construction of the whole campus. These measures and construction experiences are worthy of summary and promotion, and have positive reference significance for other universities even communities around the world.

Keywords: sustainable campus, energy consumption, STARS assessment, GHG emissions

Procedia PDF Downloads 270