Search results for: local employees and intermediate managers
3341 Alvaro Siza’s Design Strategy: An Insight into Critical Regionalism
Authors: Rahmatollah Amirjani
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By the emergence of the debate over the failure of Regionalism in the late 1970s, Critical Regionalism was introduced as a different way to respond to the state of architecture in the post-war era. Critical Regionalism is most often understood as a discourse that not only mediates the language of modern architecture with the local cultures but also revives the relation between architecture and spectator as indexed by capitalism. Since the inception of Critical Regionalism, a large number of architectural practices have emerged around the globe; however, the work of the well-known Portuguese architect, Álvaro Siza, is considered as a unique case amongst works associated with the discourse of Critical Regionalism. This paper intends to respond to a number of questions, including; what are the origins of Critical Regionalism? How does Siza’s design strategy correspond to the thematic of Critical Regionalism? How does Siza recover the relation between object and subject in most of his projects? Using Siza’s housing project for the Malagueira district in Évora, Portugal, this article will attempt to answer these questions, and highlight Alvaro Siza’s design procedure which goes beyond the existing discourse of Critical Regionalism and contributes to our understanding of this practice.Keywords: Alvaro Siza, critical regionalism, Malagueira housing, placelessness
Procedia PDF Downloads 1803340 Hydrogeological Appraisal of Karacahisar Coal Field (Western Turkey): Impacts of Mining on Groundwater Resources Utilized for Water Supply
Authors: Sukran Acikel, Mehmet Ekmekci, Otgonbayar Namkhai
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Lignite coal fields in western Turkey generally occurs in tensional Neogene basins bordered by major faults. Karacahisar coal field in Mugla province of western Turkey is a large Neogene basin filled with alternation of silisic and calcerous layers. The basement of the basin is composed of mainly karstified carbonate rocks of Mesozoic and schists of Paleozoic age. The basement rocks are exposed at highlands surrounding the basin. The basin fill deposits forms shallow, low yield and local aquifers whereas karstic carbonate rock masses forms the major aquifer in the region. The karstic aquifer discharges through a spring zone issuing at intersection of two major faults. Municipal water demand in Bodrum city, a touristic attraction area is almost totally supplied by boreholes tapping the karstic aquifer. A well field has been constructed on the eastern edge of the coal basin, which forms a ridge separating two Neogene basins. A major concern was raised about the plausible impact of mining activities on groundwater system in general and on water supply well field in particular. The hydrogeological studies carried out in the area revealed that the coal seam is located below the groundwater level. Mining operations will be affected by groundwater inflow to the pits, which will require dewatering measures. Dewatering activities in mine sites have two-sided effects: a) lowers the groundwater level at and around the pit for a safe and effective mining operation, b) continuous dewatering causes expansion of cone of depression to reach a spring, stream and/or well being utilized by local people, capturing their water. Plausible effect of mining operations on the flow of the spring zone was another issue of concern. Therefore, a detailed representative hydrogeological conceptual model of the site was developed on the basis of available data and field work. According to the hydrogeological conceptual model, dewatering of Neogene layers will not hydraulically affect the water supply wells, however, the ultimate perimeter of the open pit will expand to intersect the well field. According to the conceptual model, the coal seam is separated from the bottom by a thick impervious clay layer sitting on the carbonate basement. Therefore, the hydrostratigraphy does not allow a hydraulic interaction between the mine pit and the karstic carbonate rock aquifer. However, the structural setting in the basin suggests that deep faults intersecting the basement and the Neogene sequence will most probably carry the deep groundwater up to a level above the bottom of the pit. This will require taking necessary measure to lower the piezometric level of the carbonate rock aquifer along the faults. Dewatering the carbonate rock aquifer will reduce the flow to the spring zone. All findings were put together to recommend a strategy for safe and effective mining operation.Keywords: conceptual model, dewatering, groundwater, mining operation
Procedia PDF Downloads 4003339 Experimental Technique to Study Colloid Deposition in Porous Media
Authors: Abdelkader Djehiche, Mostefa Gafsi, Henri Bertin, Aziz Omari
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The flows of colloidal suspensions in porous media find many applications in fields such as Petroleum, Hydraulic engineering, deep-bed filtration. For each application, the scientific problems can be summarized the flow in porous medium of a colloidal suspension whose particles having characteristic dimension is considerable in comparison with the pores dimension. In certain cases, one can observe a deposit of particles on the surface of the pores which results in a significant modification in the physical properties of the porous medium. The objective of our study is to use a non-destructive experimental method, the attenuation of g-rays, to study the influence of the number of Peclet on the deposit of latex particles in a consolidated porous medium. The first results obtained show a good agreement between local and global measurements of the deposit of the particles in porous medium. The deposit takes place in a progressive way along the porous medium and leads to a monolayer deposit of which the average thickness is of about the size diameter of the colloidal particles.Keywords: colloid, gamma ray, Peclet number, permeability, porous medium
Procedia PDF Downloads 1863338 Allocating Channels and Flow Estimation at Flood Prone Area in Desert, Example from AlKharj City, Saudi Arabia
Authors: Farhan Aljuaidi
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The rapid expansion of Alkarj city, Saudi Arabia, towards the outlet of Wadi AlAin is critical for the planners and decision makers. Nowadays, two major projects such as Salman bin Abdulaziz University compound and new industrial area are developed in this flood prone area where no channels are clear and identified. The main contribution of this study is to divert the flow away from these vital projects by reconstructing new channels. To do so, Lidar data were used to generate contour lines for the actual elevation of the highways and local roads. These data were analyzed and compared to the contour lines derived from the topographical maps 1:50.000. The magnitude of the expected flow was estimated using Snyder's Model based on the morphometric data acquired by DEM of the catchment area. The results indicate that maximum discharge peak reaches 2694,3 m3/sec, the mean is 303,7 m3/sec and the minimum is 74,3 m3/sec. The runoff was estimated at 252,2. 610 m3/s, the mean is 41,5. 610 m3/s and the minimum is 12,4. 610 m3/s.Keywords: Desert flood, Saudi Arabia, Snyder's Model, flow estimation
Procedia PDF Downloads 3093337 Pragmatics of Illness: A View from Jordanian Arabic
Authors: Marwan Jarrah, Nadia Nugrush, Sukainah Ali, Areej Allawzi
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This research article investigates how illnesses (different types and severity) are expressed in Arabic discourse with a particular focus on input coming from Colloquial Jordanian Arabic (CJA). Drawing on a corpus of naturally occurring conversations, this article offers evidence that illnesses are predominantly expressed through two different sets of expressive strategies, namely direct expressive strategies (DES) and indirect expressive strategies (IES). The latter are exclusively used when cancer and mental health disorders are targeted. IES include the substitution of the name of the illness with some religious expressions (e.g., ʔallah ʔijdʒi:rna ‘May Allah keeps us safe’) or certain terms especially when cancer is meant (e.g., haðˤa:k ʔil-maraðˤ ‘that disease’). On the other hand, DES are used in conjunction with other illnesses (e.g., heart, kidneys, diabetes, etc.), regardless of their severity. DES include specific formulas that remarkably mention the name of the inflicted organ (e.g., [with-SOMEONE the ORGAN] as in ʕinduh ʔil-qalb ‘lit. with-him the heart’ meaning ‘He has a heart disease). We discuss the effects of religious beliefs and local norms and values in determining the use of these strategies.Keywords: Illnesses, pragmatics, expressive strategies, religion
Procedia PDF Downloads 823336 The Challenges of Public Relations Practice in Developing Nations and the Way Forward: Ethiopian Perspective
Authors: Yared Pawlos Woldeyes
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Public Relations often referred to as ‘PR’, is the practice of managing the spread of information between an individual or organization, such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization, and the public. Public Relations are important because they help organizations or entities cultivate and maintain meaningful connections with society at large through platforms like print media and social media. Individuals that identify as public relation specialists establish and maintain relationships with an organization’s target audiences, relevant media sources, and opinion leaders. With regard to the challenges, when trying to practice public relations for government institutions, the priority for specialists is often to help members of society exercise a positive attitude and impression of a country’s political systems and practices. If you consider the case of public relations for government entities in Ethiopia there are several factors to consider. First, public relations in Ethiopia are very much driven by a desire to create a good image of the country and prevent the spread of any information that creates a bad image of Ethiopia. Also, the current ruling party dominates public relations in Ethiopia. Unfortunately, this means that more often than not, public relations specialists are forced by the government to spread and mass communicate false information to the public instead of the truth. Any opposition to government’s agenda will result in seriously negative repercussions for public relations specialists. Although public relations is supposed to create a positive and honest relationship between an organization or the government with the public, in Ethiopia, that is not the case. As a result, very few people express an interest in practicing public relations here. Despite this, there is an opportunity for the development of an accountable public relation affairs in developing nations, taking Ethiopian’s case. For instance, the fact that Public relations are provided as a field of study in college or university to produce competent and trained specialists, the enormous contribution of good communication to the public developmental efforts linking the government to the people, and the better payment to employees of public relation officers are some of them. Therefore, there is a need by the respective stakeholders to work in coalition in raising awareness of the youth regarding the importance of a responsible public relations officer to the country’s developmental efforts, encouragement of Civil Society Organizations working in promoting free press and expression of ideas, improving the governmental structure to be transparent and that allows independent officers, and hosting international conferences on public relations practice so that the specialists can exchange knowledge and skills.Keywords: developing nations, Ethiopia, public relations, public relations specialist
Procedia PDF Downloads 2303335 Element Distribution and REE Dispersal in Sandstone-Hosted Copper Mineralization within Oligo-Miocene Strata, NE Iran: Insights from Lithostratigraphy and Mineralogy
Authors: Mostafa Feiz, Mohammad Safari, Hossein Hadizadeh
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The Chalpo copper area is located in northeastern Iran, which is part of the structural zone of central Iran and the back-arc basin of Sabzevar. This sedimentary basin accumulated in destructive-oligomiocene sediments is named the Nasr-Chalpo-Sangerd (NCS) basin. The sedimentary layers in this basin originated mainly from Upper Cretaceous ophiolitic rocks and intermediate to mafic-post ophiolitic volcanic rocks, deposited as a nonconformity. The mineralized sandstone layers in the Chalpo area include leached zones (with a thickness of 5 to 8 meters) and mineralized lenses with a thickness of 0.5 to 0.7 meters. Ore minerals include primary sulfide minerals, such as chalcocite, chalcopyrite, and pyrite, as well as secondary minerals, such as covellite, digenite, malachite, and azurite, formed in three stages that comprise primary, simultaneously, and supergene stage. The best agents that control the mineralization in this area include the permeability of host rocks, the presence of fault zones as the conduits for copper oxide solutions, and significant amounts of plant fossils, which create a reducing environment for the deposition of mineralized layers. The calculations of mass changes on copper-bearing layers and primary sandstone layers indicate that Pb, As, Cd, Te, and Mo are enriched in the mineralized zones, whereas SiO₂, TiO₂, Fe₂O₃, V, Sr, and Ba are depleted. The combination of geological, stratigraphic, and geochemical studies suggests that the origin of copper may have been the underlying red strata that contained hornblende, plagioclase, biotite, alkaline feldspar, and labile minerals. Dehydration and hydrolysis of these minerals during the diagenetic process caused the leaching of copper and associated elements by circling fluids, which formed an oxidant-hydrothermal solution. Copper and silver in this oxidant solution might have moved upwards through the basin-fault zones and deposited in the reducing environments in the sandstone layers that have had abundant organic matter. Copper in these solutions was probably carried by chloride complexes. The collision of oxidant and reduced solutions caused the deposition of Cu and Ag, whereas some s elements in oxidant environments (e.g., Fe₂O₃, TiO₂, SiO₂, REEs) become uns in the reduced condition. Therefore, the copper-bearing sandstones in the study area are depleted from these elements resulting from the leaching process. The results indicate that during the mineralization stage, LREEs and MREEs were depleted, but Cu, Ag, and S were enriched. Based on field evidence, it seems that the circulation of connate fluids in the reb-bed strata, produced by diagenetic processes, encountered to reduced facies, which formed earlier by abundant fossil-plant debris in the sandstones, is the best model for precipitating sulfide-copper minerals.Keywords: Chalpo, Oligo-Miocene red beds, sandstone-hosted copper mineralization, mass change, LREEs and MREEs
Procedia PDF Downloads 253334 1D Velocity Model for the Gobi-Altai Region from Local Earthquakes
Authors: Dolgormaa Munkhbaatar, Munkhsaikhan Adiya, Tseedulam Khuut
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We performed an inversion method to determine the 1D-velocity model with station corrections of the Gobi-Altai area in the southern part of Mongolia using earthquake data collected in the National Data Center during the last 10 years. In this study, the concept of the new 1D model has been employed to minimize the average RMS of a set of well-located earthquakes, recorded at permanent (between 2006 and 2016) and temporary seismic stations (between 2014 and 2016), compute solutions for the coupled hypocenter and 1D velocity model. We selected 4800 events with RMS less than 0.5 seconds and with a maximum GAP of 170 degrees and determined velocity structures. Also, we relocated all possible events located in the Gobi-Altai area using the new 1D velocity model and achieved constrained hypocentral determinations for events within this area. We concluded that the estimated new 1D velocity model is a relatively low range compared to the previous velocity model in a significant improvement intend to, and the quality of the information basis for future research center locations to determine the earthquake epicenter area with this new transmission model.Keywords: 1D velocity model, earthquake, relocation, Velest
Procedia PDF Downloads 1673333 Characterization of Retinal Pigmented Cell Epithelium Cell Sheet Cultivated on Synthetic Scaffold
Authors: Tan Yong Sheng Edgar, Yeong Wai Yee
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Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is one of the leading cause of blindness. It can cause severe visual loss due to damaged retinal pigment epithelium (RPE). RPE is an important component of the retinal tissue. It functions as a transducing boundary for visual perception making it an essential factor for sight. The RPE also functions as a metabolically complex and functional cell layer that is responsible for the local homeostasis and maintenance of the extra photoreceptor environment. Thus one of the suggested method of treating such diseases would be regenerating these RPE cells. As such, we intend to grow these cells using a synthetic scaffold to provide a stable environment that reduces the batch effects found in natural scaffolds. Stiffness of the scaffold will also be investigated to determine the optimal Young’s modulus for cultivating these cells. The cells will be generated into a monolayer cell sheet and their functions such as formation of tight junctions and gene expression patterns will be assessed to evaluate the cell sheet quality compared to a native RPE tissue.Keywords: RPE, scaffold, characterization, biomaterials, colloids and nanomedicine
Procedia PDF Downloads 4353332 Rainwater Harvesting is an Effective Tool for City’s Storm Water Management and People’s Willingness to Install Rainwater Harvesting System in Buildings: A Case Study in Kazipara, Dhaka, Bangladesh
Authors: M. Abu Hanif, Anika Tabassum, Fuad Hasan Ovi, Ishrat Islam
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Water is essential for life. Enormous quantities of water are cycled each year through hydrologic cycle but only a fraction of circulated water is available each year for human use. Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh is the 19th mega city in the world with a population of over 14 million (World City Information, 2011). As a result the growth of urban population is increasing rapidly; the city is not able to manage with altering situations due to resource limitations and management capacity. Water crisis has become an acute problem faced by the inhabitants of Dhaka city. It is found that total water demand in Dhaka city is 2,240 million liter per day (MLD) whereas supply is 2,150 (MLD). According to Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority about 87 percent of this supply comes from groundwater resources and rest 13 percent from surface water. According to Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority it has been found that the current groundwater depletion rate is 3.52 meter per year. Such a fast depletion of the water table will result in intrusion of southern saline water into the groundwater reservoir, depriving this mega city of pure drinking water. This study mainly focus on the potential of Rainwater Harvesting System(RWHS) in Kazipara area of Dhaka city, determine the perception level of local people in installation of rainwater harvesting system in their building and identify the factors regarding willingness of owner in installing rainwater harvesting system. As most of the residential area of Dhaka city is unplanned with small plots, Kazipara area has been chosen as study area which depicts similar characteristics. In this study only roof top area is considered as catchment area and potential of rainwater harvesting has been calculated. From the calculation it is found that harvested rainwater can serve the 66% of demand of water for toilet flushing and cleaning purposes for the people of Kazipara. It is also observed that if only rooftop rainwater harvesting applied to all the structures of the study area then two third of surface runoff would be reduced than present surface runoff. In determining the perception of local people only owners of the buildings were. surveyed. From the questionnaire survey it is found that around 75% people have no idea about the rainwater harvesting system. About 83% people are not willing to install rainwater harvesting system in their dwelling. The reasons behind the unwillingness are high cost of installation, inadequate space, ignorance about the system, etc. Among 16% of the willing respondents who are interested in installing RWHS system, it was found that higher income, bigger size of buildings are important factors in willingness of installing rainwater harvesting system. Majority of the respondents demanded for both technical and economical support to install the system in their buildings. Government of Bangladesh has taken some initiatives to promote rainwater harvesting in urban areas. It is very much necessary to incorporate rainwater harvesting device and artificial recharge system in every building of Dhaka city to make Dhaka city self sufficient in water supply management and to solve water crisis problem of megacity like as Dhaka city.Keywords: rainwater harvesting, water table, willingness, storm water
Procedia PDF Downloads 2443331 Hybrid Robust Estimation via Median Filter and Wavelet Thresholding with Automatic Boundary Correction
Authors: Alsaidi M. Altaher, Mohd Tahir Ismail
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Wavelet thresholding has been a power tool in curve estimation and data analysis. In the presence of outliers this non parametric estimator can not suppress the outliers involved. This study proposes a new two-stage combined method based on the use of the median filter as primary step before applying wavelet thresholding. After suppressing the outliers in a signal through the median filter, the classical wavelet thresholding is then applied for removing the remaining noise. We use automatic boundary corrections; using a low order polynomial model or local polynomial model as a more realistic rule to correct the bias at the boundary region; instead of using the classical assumptions such periodic or symmetric. A simulation experiment has been conducted to evaluate the numerical performance of the proposed method. Results show strong evidences that the proposed method is extremely effective in terms of correcting the boundary bias and eliminating outlier’s sensitivity.Keywords: boundary correction, median filter, simulation, wavelet thresholding
Procedia PDF Downloads 4283330 Importance of Hospitality In Tourism Industry
Authors: S M Abdus Sattar
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Introduction: The tourism industry is a vital component of economies, providing opportunities for economic growth and cultural exchange. At the heart of this industry lies the concept of hospitality. Tourism refers to the activity of traveling for leisure or business and hospitality refers to the welcoming, amenities and providing of services to guests in the travel and accommodation industries. Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in the world today. Objectives: The most important objective of Tourism and Hospitality study are: To assess different aspects, To identify the reasons, To analyze the contribution in GDP of Bangladesh, To identify importances of hospitality, To identify challenges, To Development of leadership characteristics, communication, teamwork skill, customer service and problem-solving, To provide welcoming treatment to guests, offering accommodation, food, transportation and entertainment services to ensure guests feel safe and comfortable away from home, To explore future prospects in Bangladesh and To suggests some recommendations for development of these sector. Methodology: Statistical method has been adopted in this study. Common characteristics of the people of particular area are found out. Tourism data is collected through various methods, such as surveys, interviews, visitor registration, travel agency records, hotel bookings, transport ticketing systems, online platforms, social media, Bangladesh Tourism Corporation, World Travel and Tourism Council, Quantitative and qualitative research methods are used while collecting and analyzing data. Findings: Tourism and Hospitality focuses on marketing, management, attractions, recreation events, travel related services, lodging, operations of restaurants and food services. Tourism offers great opportunities for emerging economies and developing countries. It creates jobs, strengthens the local economy, contributes to local infrastructure development, can help to conserve the natural environment, cultural assets, traditions, reduce poverty and inequality. The hospitality industry contributes to the economy of a country by employing its human resources. It generates new employment, contributing to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a country. Around 330 million people were employed in the Tourism and Hospitality sector in globally. Tourism and Hospitality industry is creating high tax revenues. Tourism is a rising industry in Bangladesh. Studying hospitality can also help develop a range of essential skills that are valuable in any industry. Conclusion: As the conclusion, tourism industry is focused on providing quality attractions and events in order to entice tourists to come. The hospitality industry provides the good service for client. Hospitality and Tourism are closely related. Hospitality built up the relationship between host and guest. The importance of hospitality in tourism industry is immense. The Tourism and Hospitality industry is an important contributor to Bangladesh's economy. It is necessary to develop the Tourism infrastructure, maintain tourist destinations, railway stations, airports, rest house, hotels and improve the quality of services.Keywords: tourism, hospitality, GDP, employment, economy
Procedia PDF Downloads 273329 A Study on the Effect of the Work-Family Conflict on Work Engagement: A Mediated Moderation Model of Emotional Exhaustion and Positive Psychology Capital
Authors: Sungeun Hyun, Sooin Lee, Gyewan Moon
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Work-Family Conflict has been an active research area for the past decades. Work-Family Conflict harms individuals and organizations, it is ultimately expected to bring the cost of losses to the company in the long run. WFC has mainly focused on effects of organizational effectiveness and job attitude such as Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, and Turnover Intention variables. This study is different from consequence variable with previous research. For this purpose, we selected the positive job attitude 'Work Engagement' as a consequence of WFC. This research has its primary research purpose in identifying the negative effects of the Work-Family Conflict, and started out from the recognition of the problem that the research on the direct relationship on the influence of the WFC on Work Engagement is lacking. Based on the COR(Conservation of resource theory) and JD-R(Job Demand- Resource model), the empirical study model to examine the negative effects of WFC with Emotional Exhaustion as the link between WFC and Work Engagement was suggested and validated. Also, it was analyzed how much Positive Psychological Capital may buffer the negative effects arising from WFC within this relationship, and the Mediated Moderation model controlling the indirect effect influencing the Work Engagement by the Positive Psychological Capital mediated by the WFC and Emotional Exhaustion was verified. Data was collected by using questionnaires distributed to 500 employees engaged manufacturing, services, finance, IT industry, education services, and other sectors, of which 389 were used in the statistical analysis. The data are analyzed by statistical package, SPSS 21.0, SPSS macro and AMOS 21.0. The hierarchical regression analysis, SPSS PROCESS macro and Bootstrapping method for hypothesis testing were conducted. Results showed that all hypotheses are supported. First, WFC showed a negative effect on Work Engagement. Specifically, WIF appeared to be on more negative effects than FIW. Second, Emotional exhaustion found to mediate the relationship between WFC and Work Engagement. Third, Positive Psychological Capital showed to moderate the relationship between WFC and Emotional Exhaustion. Fourth, the effect of mediated moderation through the integration verification, Positive Psychological Capital demonstrated to buffer the relationship among WFC, Emotional Exhastion, and Work Engagement. Also, WIF showed a more negative effects than FIW through verification of all hypotheses. Finally, we discussed the theoretical and practical implications on research and management of the WFC, and proposed limitations and future research directions of research.Keywords: emotional exhaustion, positive psychological capital, work engagement, work-family conflict
Procedia PDF Downloads 2223328 Incentive-Based Motivation to Network with Coworkers: Strengthening Professional Networks via Online Social Networks
Authors: Jung Lee
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The last decade has witnessed more people than ever before using social media and broadening their social circles. Social media users connect not only with their friends but also with professional acquaintances, primarily coworkers, and clients; personal and professional social circles are mixed within the same social media platform. Considering the positive aspect of social media in facilitating communication and mutual understanding between individuals, we infer that social media interactions with co-workers could indeed benefit one’s professional life. However, given privacy issues, sharing all personal details with one’s co-workers is not necessarily the best practice. Should one connect with coworkers via social media? Will social media connections with coworkers eventually benefit one’s long-term career? Will the benefit differ across cultures? To answer, this study examines how social media can contribute to organizational communication by tracing the foundation of user motivation based on social capital theory, leader-member exchange (LMX) theory and expectancy theory of motivation. Although social media was originally designed for personal communication, users have shown intentions to extend social media use for professional communication, especially when the proper incentive is expected. To articulate the user motivation and the mechanism of the incentive expectation scheme, this study applies those three theories and identify six antecedents and three moderators of social media use motivation including social network flaunt, shared interest, perceived social inclusion. It also hypothesizes that the moderating effects of those constructs would significantly differ based on the relationship hierarchy among the workers. To validate, this study conducted a survey of 329 active social media users with acceptable levels of job experiences. The analysis result confirms the specific roles of the three moderators in social media adoption for organizational communication. The present study contributes to the literature by developing a theoretical modeling of ambivalent employee perceptions about establishing social media connections with co-workers. This framework shows not only how both positive and negative expectations of social media connections with co-workers are formed based on expectancy theory of motivation, but also how such expectations lead to behavioral intentions using career success model. It also enhances understanding of how various relationships among employees can be influenced through social media use and such usage can potentially affect both performance and careers. Finally, it shows how cultural factors induced by social media use can influence relations among the coworkers.Keywords: the social network, workplace, social capital, motivation
Procedia PDF Downloads 1233327 Effects of Crushed Waste Aggregate from the Manufacture of Clay Bricks on Rendering Cement Mortar Performance
Authors: Benmalek M. Larbi, R. Harbi, S. Boukor
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This paper reports an experimental work that aimed to investigate the effects of clay brick waste, as part of fine aggregate, on rendering mortar performance. The brick, in crushed form, was from a local brick manufacturer that was rejected due to being of-standard. It was used to replace 33.33 %, 50 %, 66.66 % and 100 % by weight of the quarry sand in mortar. Effects of the brick replacement on the mortar key properties intended for wall plastering were investigated; these are workability, compressive strength, flexural strength, linear shrinkage, water absorption by total immersion and by capillary suction. The results showed that as the brick replacement level increased, the mortar workability reduced. The linear shrinkage increases over time and decreases with the introduction of brick waste. The compressive and flexural strengths decrease with the increase of brick waste because of their great water absorption.Keywords: clay brick waste, mortar, properties, quarry sand
Procedia PDF Downloads 2623326 Innovation Mechanism in Developing Cultural and Creative Industries
Authors: Liou Shyhnan, Chia Han Yang
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The study aims to investigate the promotion of innovation in the development of cultural and creative industries (CCI) and apply research on culture and creativity to this promotion. Using the research perspectives of culture and creativity as the starting points, this study has examined the challenges, trends, and opportunities that have emerged from the development of the CCI until the present. It is found that a definite context of cause and effect exist between them, and that a homologous theoretical basis can be used to understand and interpret them. Based on the characteristics of the aforementioned challenges and trends, this study has compiled two main theoretical systems for conducting research on culture and creativity: (i) reciprocal process between creativity and culture, and (ii) a mechanism for innovation involving multicultural convergence. Both theoretical systems were then used as the foundation to arrive at possible research propositions relating to the two developmental systems. This was respectively done through identification of the theoretical context through a literature review, and interviews and observations of actual case studies within Taiwan’s CCI. In so doing, the critical factors that can address the aforementioned challenges and trends were discovered. Our results indicated that, for reciprocal process between creativity and culture, we recognize that culture serves as creative resources in cultural and creative industries. According to shared consensus, culture provides symbolic meanings and emotional attachment for products and experiences offered by CCI. Besides, different cultures vary in their effects on creativity processes and standards, thus engendering distinctive preferences for and evaluations of the creative expressions and experiences of CCIs. In addition, we identify that creativity serves as the engine for driving the continuation and rebirth of cultures. Accounting for the core of culture, the employment of technology, design, and business facilitates the transformation and innovation mechanism for promoting culture continuity. In addition, with cultural centered, the digital technology, design thinking, and business model are critical constitutes of the innovation mechanism to promote the cultural continuity. Regarding cultural preservation and regeneration of local spaces and folk customs, we argue that the preservation and regeneration of local spaces and cultural cultures must embody the interactive experiences of present-day life. And cultural space and folk custom would regenerate with interact and experience in modern life. Regarding innovation mechanism for multicultural convergence, we propose that innovative stakeholders from different disciplines (e.g., creators, designers, engineers, and marketers) in CCIs rely on the establishment of a cocreation mechanism to promote interdisciplinary interaction. Furthermore, CCI development needs to develop a cocreation mechanism for enhancing the interdisciplinary collaboration among CCI innovation stakeholders. We further argue multicultural mixing would enhance innovation in developing CCI, and assuming an open and mutually enlightening attitude to enrich one another’s cultures in the multicultural exchanges under globalization will create diversity in homogenous CCIs. Finally, for promoting innovation in developing cultural and creative industries, we further propose a model for joint knowledge creation that can be established for enhancing the mutual reinforcement of theoretical and practical research on culture and creativity.Keywords: culture and creativity, innovation, cultural and creative industries, cultural mixing
Procedia PDF Downloads 3253325 Knowledge Creation and Diffusion Dynamics under Stable and Turbulent Environment for Organizational Performance Optimization
Authors: Jessica Gu, Yu Chen
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Knowledge Management (KM) is undoubtable crucial to organizational value creation, learning, and adaptation. Although the rapidly growing KM domain has been fueled with full-fledged methodologies and technologies, studies on KM evolution that bridge the organizational performance and adaptation to the organizational environment are still rarely attempted. In particular, creation (or generation) and diffusion (or share/exchange) of knowledge are of the organizational primary concerns on the problem-solving perspective, however, the optimized distribution of knowledge creation and diffusion endeavors are still unknown to knowledge workers. This research proposed an agent-based model of knowledge creation and diffusion in an organization, aiming at elucidating how the intertwining knowledge flows at microscopic level lead to optimized organizational performance at macroscopic level through evolution, and exploring what exogenous interventions by the policy maker and endogenous adjustments of the knowledge workers can better cope with different environmental conditions. With the developed model, a series of simulation experiments are conducted. Both long-term steady-state and time-dependent developmental results on organizational performance, network and structure, social interaction and learning among individuals, knowledge audit and stocktaking, and the likelihood of choosing knowledge creation and diffusion by the knowledge workers are obtained. One of the interesting findings reveals a non-monotonic phenomenon on organizational performance under turbulent environment while a monotonic phenomenon on organizational performance under a stable environment. Hence, whether the environmental condition is turbulence or stable, the most suitable exogenous KM policy and endogenous knowledge creation and diffusion choice adjustments can be identified for achieving the optimized organizational performance. Additional influential variables are further discussed and future work directions are finally elaborated. The proposed agent-based model generates evidence on how knowledge worker strategically allocates efforts on knowledge creation and diffusion, how the bottom-up interactions among individuals lead to emerged structure and optimized performance, and how environmental conditions bring in challenges to the organization system. Meanwhile, it serves as a roadmap and offers great macro and long-term insights to policy makers without interrupting the real organizational operation, sacrificing huge overhead cost, or introducing undesired panic to employees.Keywords: knowledge creation, knowledge diffusion, agent-based modeling, organizational performance, decision making evolution
Procedia PDF Downloads 2413324 Study of Secondary Metabolites of Sargassum Algae: Anticorrosive and Antibacterial Activities
Authors: Prescilla Lambert, Christophe Roos, Mounim Lebrini
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For several years, the Caribbean islands and West Africa have had to deal with the massive arrival of the brown seaweed Sargassum. Overall, this macroalgae, which constitutes a habitat for a great diversity of marine organisms, is also an additional stress factor for the marine environment (e.g., coral reefs). In addition, the accumulation followed by the significant decomposition of the Sargassum spp. biomass on the coast leads to the release of toxic gases (H₂S and NH₃), which calls into question the functioning of the economic, health and tourist life of the island and the other interested territories. Originally, these algae are formed by the eutrophication of the oceans accentuated by global warming. Unfortunately, scientists predict a significant recurrence of these Sargassum strandings for years to come. It is therefore more than necessary to find solutions by putting in place a sustainable management plan for this phenomenon. Martinique, a small island in the Caribbean arc, is one of the many areas impacted by Sargassum seaweed strandings. Since 2011, there has been a constant increase in the degradation of the materials present in this region, largely due to toxic/corrosive gases released by the algae decomposition. In order to protect the structures and the vulnerable building materials while limiting the use of synthetic/petroleum based molecules as much as possible, research is being conducted on molecules of natural origin. Thus, thanks to the chemical composition, which comprise molecules with interesting properties, algae such as Sargassum could potentially help to solve many issues. Therefore, this study focuses on the green extraction and characterization of molecules from the species Sargassum fluitans and Sargassum natans present in Martinique. The secondary metabolites found in these extracts showed variability in yield rates due to local climatic conditions. The tests carried out shed light on the anticorrosive and antibacterial potential of the algae. These extracts can thus be described as natural inhibitors. The effect of variation in inhibitor concentrations was tested in electrochemistry using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and polarization curves. The analysis of electrochemical results obtained by direct immersion in the extracts and self-assembled molecular layers (SAMs) for Sargassum fluitans III, Sargassum natans I and VIII species was conclusive in acid and alkaline environments. The excellent results obtained reveal an inhibitory efficacy of 88% at 50mg/L for the crude extract of Sargassum fluitans III and efficacies greater than 97% for the chemical families of Sargassum fluitans III. Similarly, microbiological tests also suggest a bactericidal character. Results for Sargassum fluitans III crude extract show a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.005 mg/mL on Gram-negative bacteria and a MIC greater than 0.6 mg/mL on Gram-positive bacteria. These results make it possible to consider the management of local and international issues while valuing a biomass rich in biodegradable molecules. The next step in this study will therefore be the evaluation of the toxicity of Sargassum spp..Keywords: Sargassum, secondary metabolites, anticorrosive, antibacterial, natural inhibitors
Procedia PDF Downloads 723323 Theoretical Investigation of the Structural, Electronic, Optical and Elastic Properties of the Perovskite ScRhO₃
Authors: L. Foudia, K. Haddadi, M. Reffas
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First principles study of structural, elastic, electronic and optical properties of the monoclinic perovskite type ScRhO₃ has been reported using the pseudo-potential plane wave method within the local density approximation. The calculated lattice parameters, including the lattice constants and angle β are in excellent agreement with the available experimental data, which proving the reliability of the chosen theoretical approach. Pressure dependence up to 20 GPa of the single crystal and polycrystalline elastic constants has been investigated in details using the strain-stress approach. The mechanical stability, ductility, average elastic wave velocity, Debye temperature and elastic anisotropy were also assessed. Electronic band structure and density of states (DOS) demonstrated its semiconducting nature showing a direct band gap of 1.38 eV. Furthermore, several optical properties, such as absorption coefficient, reflectivity, refractive index, dielectric function, optical conductivity and electron energy loss function have been calculated for radiation up to 40 eV.Keywords: ab-initio, perovskite, DFT, band gap.
Procedia PDF Downloads 743322 The Influence of Activity Selection and Travel Distance on Forest Recreation Policies
Authors: Mark Morgan, Christine Li, Shuangyu Xu, Jenny McCarty
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The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the U.S. Congress in 1968 (Public Law 90-542; 16 U.S.C. 1271 et seq.) to preserve outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values of some U.S. rivers in a free-flowing condition for the enjoyment of present and future generations. This Act is notable for safeguarding the special character of these rivers while supporting management action that encourages public participation for co-creating river protection goals and strategies. This is not an easy task. To meet the challenges of modern ecosystem management, federal resource agencies must address many legal, environmental, economic, political, and social issues. The U.S. Forest Service manages a 44-mile section of the Eleven Point National Scenic River (EPR) in southern Missouri, mainly for outdoor recreation purposes. About half of the acreage is in private lands, while the remainder flows through the Mark Twain National Forest. Private land along the river is managed by scenic easements to ensure protection of scenic values and natural resources, without public access. A portion of the EPR lies adjacent to a 16,500-acre tract known as the Irish Wilderness. The spring-fed river has steep bluffs, deep pools, clear water, and a slow current, making it an ideal setting for outdoor enthusiasts. A 10-month visitor study was conducted at five access points along the EPR during 2019 so the US Forest Service could update their river management plan. A mail-back survey was administered to 560 on-site visitors, yielding a response rate of 53%. Although different types of visitors use the EPR, boating and fishing were the predominant forms of outdoor recreation. Some river use was from locals, but other visitors came from farther away. Formulating unbiased policies for outdoor recreation is difficult because managers must assign relative values to recreational activities and travel distance. Because policymaking is a subjective process, management decisions can affect user groups in different ways (i.e., boaters vs. fishers; proximate vs. distal visitors), as seen through a GIS analysis.Keywords: activity selection, forest recreation, policy, travel distance
Procedia PDF Downloads 1403321 The Use of Telecare in the Re-design of Overnight Supports for People with Learning Disabilities: Implementing a Cluster-based Approach in North Ayrshire
Authors: Carly Nesvat, Dominic Jarrett, Colin Thomson, Wilma Coltart, Thelma Bowers, Jan Thomson
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Introduction: Within Scotland, the Same As You strategy committed to moving people with learning disabilities out of long-stay hospital accommodation into homes in the community. Much of the focus of this movement was on the placement of people within individual homes. In order to achieve this, potentially excessive supports were put in place which created dependence, and carried significant ongoing cost primarily for local authorities. The greater focus on empowerment and community participation which has been evident in more recent learning disability strategy, along with the financial pressures being experienced across the public sector, created an imperative to re-examine that provision, particularly in relation to the use of expensive sleepover supports to individuals, and the potential for this to be appropriately scaled back through the use of telecare. Method: As part of a broader programme of redesigning overnight supports within North Ayrshire, a cluster of individuals living in close proximity were identified, who were in receipt of overnight supports, but who were identified as having the capacity to potentially benefit from their removal. In their place, a responder service was established (an individual staying overnight in a nearby service user’s home), and a variety of telecare solutions were placed within individual’s homes. Active and passive technology was connected to an Alarm Receiving Centre, which would alert the local responder service when necessary. Individuals and their families were prepared for the change, and continued to be informed about progress with the pilot. Results: 4 individuals, 2 of whom shared a tenancy, had their sleepover supports removed as part of the pilot. Extensive data collection in relation to alarm activation was combined with feedback from the 4 individuals, their families, and staff involved in their support. Varying perspectives emerged within the feedback. 3 of the individuals were clearly described as benefitting from the change, and the greater sense of independence it brought, while more concerns were evident in relation to the fourth. Some family members expressed a need for greater preparation in relation to the change and ongoing information provision. Some support staff also expressed a need for more information, to help them understand the new support arrangements for an individual, as well as noting concerns in relation to the outcomes for one participant. Conclusion: Developing a telecare response in relation to a cluster of individuals was facilitated by them all being supported by the same care provider. The number of similar clusters of individuals being identified within North Ayrshire is limited. Developing other solutions such as a response service for redesign will potentially require greater collaboration between different providers of home support, as well as continuing to explore the full range of telecare, including digital options. The pilot has highlighted the need for effective preparatory and ongoing engagement with staff and families, as well as the challenges which can accompany making changes to long-standing packages of support.Keywords: challenges, change, engagement, telecare
Procedia PDF Downloads 1773320 The Mental Workload of Intensive Care Unit Nurses in Performing Human-Machine Tasks: A Cross-Sectional Survey
Authors: Yan Yan, Erhong Sun, Lin Peng, Xuchun Ye
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Aims: The present study aimed to explore Intensive Care Unit (ICU) nurses’ mental workload (MWL) and associated factors with it in performing human-machine tasks. Background: A wide range of emerging technologies have penetrated widely in the field of health care, and ICU nurses are facing a dramatic increase in nursing human-machine tasks. However, there is still a paucity of literature reporting on the general MWL of ICU nurses performing human-machine tasks and the associated influencing factors. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was employed. The data was collected from January to February 2021 from 9 tertiary hospitals in 6 provinces (Shanghai, Gansu, Guangdong, Liaoning, Shandong, and Hubei). Two-stage sampling was used to recruit eligible ICU nurses (n=427). The data were collected with an electronic questionnaire comprising sociodemographic characteristics and the measures of MWL, self-efficacy, system usability, and task difficulty. The univariate analysis, two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and a linear mixed model were used for data analysis. Results: Overall, the mental workload of ICU nurses in performing human-machine tasks was medium (score 52.04 on a 0-100 scale). Among the typical nursing human-machine tasks selected, the MWL of ICU nurses in completing first aid and life support tasks (‘Using a defibrillator to defibrillate’ and ‘Use of ventilator’) was significantly higher than others (p < .001). And ICU nurses’ MWL in performing human-machine tasks was also associated with age (p = .001), professional title (p = .002), years of working in ICU (p < .001), willingness to study emerging technology actively (p = .006), task difficulty (p < .001), and system usability (p < .001). Conclusion: The MWL of ICU nurses is at a moderate level in the context of a rapid increase in nursing human-machine tasks. However, there are significant differences in MWL when performing different types of human-machine tasks, and MWL can be influenced by a combination of factors. Nursing managers need to develop intervention strategies in multiple ways. Implications for practice: Multidimensional approaches are required to perform human-machine tasks better, including enhancing nurses' willingness to learn emerging technologies actively, developing training strategies that vary with tasks, and identifying obstacles in the process of human-machine system interaction.Keywords: mental workload, nurse, ICU, human-machine, tasks, cross-sectional study, linear mixed model, China
Procedia PDF Downloads 693319 Production and Evaluation of Enriched Aadun (a Local Maize Snack)
Authors: E. Oluwasola, E. Bamidele, E. Ogunbusola
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Enriched “aadun” was produced from maize with, supplemented with cray fish and beans. Sodium chloride (Nacl) was also added to the product which acts as preservatives. The produced enriched “aadun” was compared with commercial “aadun” organoleptically the result of the sensory evaluation carried out on the product showed that there is a statistical significant difference between the mouth feel of enriched and commercial “aadun” at 0.05 level of significance (t=5.499, P<0.05) Similarly, the mean difference between enriched and commercial “aadun” in terms of aroma (t=4.403, P<0.05), taste (t=4.592, P<0.05) colour (t=2.788, P<0.05) and general acceptability (t=3.894, P<0.05) is statistically significant at 95% confidence level in each case, therefore, it is clearly revealed that product 321 (Enriched “aadun”) is more acceptable and significant better than product 432 (commercial “aadun”) in all the attributes evaluated. The proximate analysis using standard methods of analysis was carried out which include the moisture content, ash and protein content for both the enriched aadun and commercial aadun the result showed moisture content 9%, ash 6.2%, protein 19.6% and 12.9% moisture content, 4%ash content, 8.75% protein for the commercial and improved aadun respectively.Keywords: aadun, enriched, maize, supplemented
Procedia PDF Downloads 5563318 We Have Never Seen a Dermatologist. Prisons Telederma Project Reaching the Unreachable Through Teledermatology
Authors: Innocent Atuhe, Babra Nalwadda, Grace Mulyowa, Annabella Habinka Ejiri
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Background: Atopic Dermatitis (AD) is one of the most prevalent and growing chronic inflammatory skin diseases in African prisons. AD care is limited in African due to a lack of information about the disease amongst primary care workers, limited access to dermatologists, lack of proper training of healthcare workers, and shortage of appropriate treatments. We designed and implemented the Prisons Telederma project based on the recommendations of the International Society of Atopic Dermatitis. We aimed at; i) increase awareness and understanding of teledermatology among prison health workers and ii) improve treatment outcomes of prisoners with atopic dermatitis through increased access to and utilization of consultant dermatologists through teledermatology in Uganda prisons. Approach: We used Store-and-forward Teledermatology (SAF-TD) to increase access to dermatologist-led care for prisoners and prison staff with AD. We conducted five days of training for prison health workers using an adapted WHO training guide on recognizing neglected tropical diseases through changes on the skin together with an adapted American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) Childhood AD Basic Dermatology Curriculum designed to help trainees develop a clinical approach to the evaluation and initial management of patients with AD. This training was followed by blended e-learning, webinars facilitated by consultant Dermatologists with local knowledge of medication and local practices, apps adjusted for pigmented skin, WhatsApp group discussions, and sharing pigmented skin AD pictures and treatment via zoom meetings. We hired a team of Ugandan Senior Consultant dermatologists to draft an iconographic atlas of the main dermatoses in pigmented African skin and shared this atlas with prison health staff for use as a job aid. We had planned to use MySkinSelfie mobile phone application to take and share skin pictures of prisoners with AD with Consultant Dermatologists, who would review the pictures and prescribe appropriate treatment. Unfortunately, the National Health Service withdrew the app from the market due to technical issues. We monitored and evaluated treatment outcomes using the Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM) tool. We held four advocacy meetings to persuade relevant stakeholders to increase supplies and availability of first-line AD treatments such as emollients in prison health facilities. Results: We have the very first iconographic atlas of the main dermatoses in pigmented African skin. We increased; i) the proportion of prison health staff with adequate knowledge of AD and teledermatology from 20% to 80%; ii) the proportion of prisoners with AD reporting improvement in disease severity (POEM scores) from 25% to 35% in one year; iii) increased proportion of prisoners with AD seen by consultant dermatologist through teledermatology from 0% to 20% in one year and iv)Increased the availability of AD recommended treatments in prisons health facilities from 5% to 10% in one year. Our study contributes to the use, evaluation, and verification of the use of teledermatology to increase access to specialist dermatology services to the most hard to reach areas and vulnerable populations such as that of prisoners.Keywords: teledermatology, prisoners, reaching, un-reachable
Procedia PDF Downloads 1013317 Biodiversity and Biotechnology: Some Considerations about the International Regulation of Agriculture and the International Legal System on Access to Genetic Resources
Authors: Leandro Moura da Silva
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The international community has strived to create legal mechanisms to protect their biodiversity, but this can represent, sometimes, particularly in the case of regulatory regime on access to genetic resources, an excessive nationalism which transforms itself into a significant obstacle to scientific progress causing damages to the country and to local farmers. Although it has been poorly publicized in the media, the international legal system was marked, in 2014, by the entry into force of the Nagoya Protocol, which regulates the access and benefit sharing of genetic resources of the States Party to that legal instrument. However, it’s not reasonable to think of regulating access to genetic resources without reflecting on the links of this important subject with other related issues, such as family farming and agribusiness, food safety, food security, intellectual property rights (on seeds, genetic material, new plant varieties, etc.), environmental sustainability, biodiversity, and biosafety.Keywords: international law, regulation on agriculture, agronomy techniques, sustainability, genetic resources and new crop varieties, CBD, Nagoya Protocol, ITPGRFA
Procedia PDF Downloads 5023316 The Effect of Photochemical Smog on Respiratory Health Patients in Abuja Nigeria
Authors: Christabel Ihedike, John Mooney, Monica Price
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Summary: This study aims to critically evaluate effect of photochemical smog on respiratory health in Nigeria. Cohort of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients was recruited from two large hospitals in Abuja Nigeria. Respiratory health questionnaires, daily diaries, dyspnoea scale and lung function measurement were used to obtain health data and investigate the relationship with air quality data (principally ozone, NOx and particulate pollution). Concentrations of air pollutants were higher than WHO and Nigerian air quality standard. The result suggests a correlation between measured air quality and exacerbation of respiratory illness. Introduction: Photochemical smog is a significant health challenge in most cities and its effect on respiratory health is well acknowledged. This type of pollution is most harmful to the elderly, children and those with underlying respiratory disease. This study aims to investigate impact of increasing temperature and photo-chemically generated secondary air pollutants on respiratory health in Abuja Nigeria. Method and Result: Health data was collected using spirometry to measure lung function on routine attendance at the clinic, daily diaries kept by patients and information obtained using respiratory questionnaire. Questionnaire responses (obtained using an adapted and internally validated version of St George’s Hospital Respiratory Questionnaire), shows that ‘time of wheeze’ showed an association with participants activities: 30% had worse wheeze in the morning: 10% cannot shop, 15% take long-time to get washed, 25% walk slower, 15% if hurry have to stop and 5% cannot take-bath. There was also a decrease in Forced expiratory volume in the first second and Forced Vital Capacity, and daily change in the afternoon–morning may be associated with the concentration level of pollutants. Also, dyspnoea symptoms recorded that 60% of patients were on grade 3, 25% grade 2 and 15% grade 1. Daily frequency of the number of patients in the cohort that cough /brought sputum is 78%. Air pollution in the city is higher than Nigerian and WHO standards with NOx and PM10 concentrations of 693.59ug/m-3 and 748ugm-3 being measured respectively. The result shows that air pollution may increase occurrence and exacerbation of respiratory disease. Conclusion: High temperature and local climatic conditions in urban Nigeria encourages formation of Ozone, the major constituent of photochemical smog, resulting also in the formation of secondary air pollutants associated with health challenges. In this study we confirm the likely potency of the pattern of secondary air pollution in exacerbating COPD symptoms in vulnerable patient group in urban Nigeria. There is need for better regulation and measures to reduce ozone, particularly when local climatic conditions favour development of photochemical smog in such settings. Climate change and likely increasing temperatures add impetus and urgency for better air quality standards and measures (traffic-restrictions and emissions standards) in developing world settings such as Nigeria.Keywords: Abuja-Nigeria, effect, photochemical smog, respiratory health
Procedia PDF Downloads 2243315 Effect of Human Resources Accounting on Financial Performance of Banks in Nigeria
Authors: Oti Ibiam, Alexanda O. Kalu
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Human Resource Accounting is the process of identifying and measuring data about human resources and communicating this information to interested parties in order to meaningful investment decisions. In recent time, firms focus has shifted to human resource accounting so as to ensure efficiency and effectiveness in their operations. This study focused on the effect of human resource accounting on the financial performance of Banks in Nigerian. The problem that led to the study revolves around the current trend whereby Nigeria banks do not efficiently account for the input of human resource in their annual statement, thereby instead of capitalizing human resources in their statement of financial position; they expend it in their income statement thereby reducing their profit after tax. The broad objective of this study is to determine the extent to which human resource accounting affects the financial performance and value of Nigerian Banks. This study is therefore considered significant because, there are still universally, grey areas to be sorted out on the subject matter of human resources accounting. In the bid to achieve the study objectives, the researcher gathered data from sixteen commercial banks. Data were collected from both primary and secondary sources using an ex-post facto research design. The data collected were then tabulated and analyzed using the multiple regression analysis. The result of hypothesis one revealed that there is a significant relationship between Capitalized Human Resource Cost and post capitalization Profit before tax of banks in Nigeria. The finding of hypothesis two revealed that the association between Capitalized Human Resource Cost and post capitalization Net worth of banks in Nigeria is significant. The finding in Hypothesis three reveals that there is a significant difference between pre and post capitalization profit before tax of banks in Nigeria. The study concludes that human resources accounting positively influenced financial performance of banks in Nigeria within the period under study. It is recommended that standards should be set for human resources identification and measurement in the banking sector and also the management of commercial banks in Nigeria should have a proper appreciation of human resource accounting. This will enable managers to take right decision regarding investment in human resource. Also, the study recommends that policies on enhancing the post capitalization profit before tax of banks in Nigeria should pay great attention to capitalized human resources cost, net worth and total asset as the variables significantly influenced post capitalization profit before tax of the studied banks in Nigeria. The limitation of the study centers on the limited number of years and companies that was adopted for the study.Keywords: capitalization, human resources cost, profit before tax, net worth
Procedia PDF Downloads 1503314 Agricultural Waste Recovery For Industrial Effluent Treatment And Environmental Protection
Authors: Salim Ahmed
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In many countries, water pollution from industrial effluents is a real problem. It may have a negative impact on the environment. To minimize the adverse effects of these contaminants, various methods are used to improve effluent purification, including physico-chemical processes such as adsorption.The present study focuses on applying a naturally biodegradable adsorbent based on argan (southern Morocco) in a physico-chemical adsorption process to reduce the harmful effects of pollutants on the environment. Tests were carried out with the cationic dye methylene blue (MB) and revealed that removal is significantly higher within the first 15 minutes. The parameters studied in this study are adsorbent mass and concentration. The Freundlich model provides an excellent example of the adsorption phenomenon of BMs over argan powder. The results of this study show that argan kernels are a highly beneficial alternative for local communities, as they help to achieve a triple objective: pollution reduction, waste recovery and water recycling.Keywords: environmental protection, activated carbon, water treatment, adsorption
Procedia PDF Downloads 623313 Parametric Study on Water-Cooling Plates to Improve Cooling Performance on 18650 Li-Ion Battery
Authors: Raksit Nanthatanti, Jarruwat Charoensuk, S. Hirai, Manop Masomtop
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In this study, the effect of channel geometry and operating circumstances on a liquid cooling plate for Lithium-ion Battery modules has been investigated Inlet temperature, water velocity, and channel count were the main factors. According to the passage, enhancing the number of cooling channels[2,3,4,6channelperbases] will affect water flow distribution caused by varying the velocity inlet inside the cooling block[0.5,1.0,1.5,2.0 m/sec] and intake temperatures[25,30,35,40oC], The findings indicate that the battery’s temperature drops as the number of channels increases. The maximum battery's operating temperature [45 oC] rises, but ∆t is needed to be less than 5 oC [v≤1m/sec]. Maximum temperature and local temperature difference of the battery change significantly with the change of the velocity inlet in the cooling channel and its thermal conductivity. The results of the simulation will help to increase cooling efficiency on the cooling system for Li-ion Battery based on a Mini channel in a liquid-cooling configurationKeywords: cooling efficiency, channel count, lithium-ion battery, operating
Procedia PDF Downloads 1023312 Inhabitants’ Adaptation to the Climate's Evolutions in Cities: a Survey of City Dwellers’ Climatic Experiences’ Construction
Authors: Geraldine Molina, Malou Allagnat
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Entry through meteorological and climatic phenomena, technical knowledge and engineering sciences has long been favored by the research and local public action to analyze the urban climate, develop strategies to reduce its changes and adapt their spaces. However, in their daily practices and sensitive experiences, city dwellers are confronted with the climate and constantly deal with its fluctuations. In this way, these actors develop knowledge, skills and tactics to regulate their comfort and adapt to climatic variations. Therefore, the empirical observation and analysis of these living experiences represent major scientific and social challenges. This contribution proposes to question these relationships of the inhabitants to urban climate. It tackles the construction of inhabitants’ climatic experiences to answer a central question: how do city dwellers’ deal with the urban climate and adapt to its different variations? Indeed, the city raises the question of how populations adapt to different spatial and temporal climatic variations. Local impacts of global climate change are combined with the urban heat island phenomenon and other microclimatic effects, as well as seasonal, daytime and night-time fluctuations. To provide answers, the presentation will be focused on the results of a CNRS research project (Géraldine Molina), part of which is linked to the European project Nature For Cities (H2020, Marjorie Musy, Scientific Director). From a theoretical point of view, the contribution is based on a renewed definition of adaptation centered on the capacity of individuals and social groups, a recently opened entry from a theoretical point of view by social scientists. The research adopts a "radical interdisciplinary" approach to shed light on the links between social dynamics of climate (inhabitants’ perceptions, representations and practices) and physical processes that characterize urban climate. To do so, it relied on a methodological combination of different survey techniques borrowed from the social sciences (geography, anthropology, sociology) and linked to the work, methodologies and results of the engineering sciences. From 2016 to 2019, a survey was carried out in two districts of Lyon whose morphological, micro-climatic and social characteristics differ greatly, namely the 6th arrondissement and the Guillotière district. To explore the construction of climate experiences over the long term by putting it into perspective with the life trajectories of individuals, 70 semi-directive interviews were conducted with inhabitants. In order to also punctually survey the climate experiments as they unfold in a given time and moment, observation and measurement campaigns of physical phenomena and questionnaires have been conducted in public spaces by an interdisciplinary research team1. The contribution at the ICUC 2020 will mainly focus on the presentation of the presentation of the qualitative survey conducted thanks to the inhabitants’ interviews.Keywords: sensitive experiences, ways of life, thermal comfort, radical interdisciplinarity
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