Search results for: Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average

Authors: Hondozi Jahja

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There is an obvious need to learn Arabic language and teach it to other speakers through the new curricula. The idea is to bridge the gap between theory and practice. To that end, we have sought to offer some means of help to master the Arabic language, in addition to our efforts to apply these means, enriching the culture of the student and develop his vocabulary. There is no doubt that taking care of the practical aspect of the grammar was our constant goal, and this particular aspect is what builds the student’s positive values and refine his taste and develop his language. In addressing these issues, we have adopted a school-based approach based primarily on the active and positive participation of the student. The theoretical linguistic issues - in our opinion - are not a primary goal, but the goal is to be used them by students through speaking and applying them. Among the objectives of this research is to establish the basic language skills of the students using new means that help the student to acquire these skills and apply them in various subjects of interest in his progress and development. Unfortunately, some of our students consider the grammar as ‘difficult’, ‘complex’ and ‘heavy’ in itself. This is one of the obstacles that stand in the way of their desired results. As a consequence, they end up talking – mumbling - about the difficulties they face in applying those rules. Therefore, some of our students finish their university studies and are unable to express what they feel using language correctly. For this purpose, we have sought in this research to follow a new integrated approach, which is to study the grammar of the language through modern means of the consolidation of the principle of functional language, and that the rule implies to control tongues and linguistic expressions properly. This research is a result of a practical experience as a teacher of Arabic language for non-native speakers at the ‘Hassan Pristina’ University, located in Pristina, the capital of Kosovo and at the Qatar Training Center since its establishment in 2012.

Keywords: arabic, applied methods, acquire, learning

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Authors: Budhvin T. Withana, Sulochana Rupasinghe

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The educational system faces a significant concern with regards to Dyslexia and Dysgraphia, which are learning disabilities impacting reading and writing abilities. This is particularly challenging for children who speak the Sinhala language due to its complexity and uniqueness. Commonly used methods to detect the risk of Dyslexia and Dysgraphia rely on subjective assessments, leading to limited coverage and time-consuming processes. Consequently, delays in diagnoses and missed opportunities for early intervention can occur. To address this issue, the project developed a hybrid model that incorporates various deep learning techniques to detect the risk of Dyslexia and Dysgraphia. Specifically, Resnet50, VGG16, and YOLOv8 models were integrated to identify handwriting issues. The outputs of these models were then combined with other input data and fed into an MLP model. Hyperparameters of the MLP model were fine-tuned using Grid Search CV, enabling the identification of optimal values for the model. This approach proved to be highly effective in accurately predicting the risk of Dyslexia and Dysgraphia, providing a valuable tool for early detection and intervention. The Resnet50 model exhibited a training accuracy of 0.9804 and a validation accuracy of 0.9653. The VGG16 model achieved a training accuracy of 0.9991 and a validation accuracy of 0.9891. The MLP model demonstrated impressive results with a training accuracy of 0.99918, a testing accuracy of 0.99223, and a loss of 0.01371. These outcomes showcase the high accuracy achieved by the proposed hybrid model in predicting the risk of Dyslexia and Dysgraphia.

Keywords: neural networks, risk detection system, dyslexia, dysgraphia, deep learning, learning disabilities, data science

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Authors: Mohammad Javad Behzadnia, Hamidreza Javadzadeh

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Background: Pain management is essential to surmounting multi-injured people in an overcrowded emergency setting. Its role would be more apparent when the physician encounters a mass casualty in a war zone or even a military prehospital. Having sedative and analgesic properties, rapid onset and offset effects, and maintaining the cardiovascular and respiratory contain are the main reason for selecting Ketamine as a good choice in the war zone. Methods: In a prospective interventional study in a war zone, we have selected and followed two groups of casualties for pain management. All were men with an average age of 26.6±8 y/o and 27.5 ±7 y/o in A and B groups, respectively. Group A received only Ketamine and Group B received Ketamine and diazepam. Results: This study showed that all of the injured patients who received Ketamine had experienced some agitation, and they may finally need benzodiazepines for sedation, but in group B that received benzodiazepine before or simultaneous with Ketamine, the agitation was significantly reduced. (P Value ≤0.05) Conclusion: Various factors may affect pain score and perception; patients' culture, mental health, previous drug usage, and addiction could alter the pain score in similar situations. It seems that the significant agitation is due to catecholamine release in stressful Moments of the battlefield. Accordingly, this situation could be exacerbated due to ketamine properties. Nonetheless, as a good choice in the war zone, Ketamine is now recommended to combine with benzodiazepines for procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA).

Keywords: battlefield, ketamine, benzodiazepine, pain control

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Authors: Ramona Zharfpeykan, Paul Rouse

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Organizational sustainability is important to both organizations themselves and their stakeholders. Despite its increasing popularity and increasing numbers of organizations reporting sustainability, research on evaluating and comparing the sustainability performance of companies is limited. The aim of this study was to develop models to measure sustainability performance for both cross-sectional and longitudinal comparisons across companies in the same or different industries. A secondary aim was to see if sustainability reports can be used to evaluate sustainability performance. The study used both a content analysis of Australian sustainability reports in mining and metals and financial services for 2011-2014 and a survey of Australian and New Zealand organizations. Two methods ranging from a composite index using uniform weights to data envelopment analysis (DEA) were employed to analyze the data and develop the models. The results show strong statistically significant relationships between the developed models, which suggests that each model provides a consistent, systematic and reasonably robust analysis. The results of the models show that for both industries, companies that had sustainability scores above or below the industry average stayed almost the same during the study period. These indices and models can be used by companies to evaluate their sustainability performance and compare it with previous years, or with other companies in the same or different industries. These methods can also be used by various stakeholders and sustainability ranking companies such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI).

Keywords: data envelopment analysis, sustainability, sustainability performance measurement system, sustainability performance index, global reporting initiative

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Authors: Champika S. Kariyawasam

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The distribution of gorse (Ulex europaeus) plants in South Australia has been modelled using 126 presence-only location data as a function of seven climate parameters. The predicted range of U. europaeus is mainly along the Mount Lofty Ranges in the Adelaide Hills and on Kangaroo Island. Annual precipitation and yearly average aridity index appeared to be the highest contributing variables to the final model formulation. The Jackknife procedure was employed to identify the contribution of different variables to gorse model outputs and response curves were used to predict changes with changing environmental variables. Based on this analysis, it was revealed that the combined effect of one or more variables could make a completely different impact to the original variables on their own to the model prediction. This work also demonstrates the need for a careful approach when selecting environmental variables for projecting correlative models to climatically distinct area. Maxent acts as a robust model when projecting the fitted species distribution model to another area with changing climatic conditions, whereas the generalized linear model, bioclim, and domain models to be less robust in this regard. These findings are important not only for predicting and managing invasive alien gorse in South Australia and Sri Lanka but also in other countries of the invasive range.

Keywords: invasive species, Maxent, species distribution modelling, Ulex europaeus

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Authors: Igor Filikhin, Vladimir M. Suslov, Roman Ya. Kezerashvili, Branislav Vlahivic

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The mass-polarization term of the three-body kinetic energy operator is evaluated for different systems which include two identical particles: A+A+B. The term has to be taken into account for the analysis of AB- and AA-interactions based on experimental data for two- and three-body ground state energies. In this study, we present three-body calculations within the framework of a potential model for the kaonic clusters K−K−p and ppK−, nucleus 3H and hypernucleus 6 ΛΛHe. The systems are well clustering as A+ (A+B) with a ground state energy E2 for the pair A+B. The calculations are performed using the method of the Faddeev equations in configuration space. The phenomenological pair potentials were used. We show a correlation between the mass ratio mA/mB and the value δB of the mass-polarization term. For bosonic-like systems, this value is defined as δB = 2E2 − E3, where E3 is three-body energy when VAA = 0. For the systems including three particles with spin(isospin), the models with average AB-potentials are used. In this case, the Faddeev equations become a scalar one like for the bosonic-like system αΛΛ. We show that the additional energy conected with the mass-polarization term can be decomposite to a sum of the two parts: exchenge related and reduced mass related. The state of the system can be described as the following: the particle A1 is bound within the A + B pair with the energy E2, and the second particle A2 is bound with the pair with the energy E3 − E2. Due to the identity of A particles, the particles A1 and A2 are interchangeable in the pair A + B. We shown that the mass polarization δB correlates with a type of AB potential using the system αΛΛ as an example.

Keywords: three-body systems, mass polarization, Faddeev equations, nuclear interactions

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Authors: Akilah A. Jardine

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The integration and expansion of the global economy have indeed brought about a number of positive changes such as access to new goods and services and the opportunity for individuals and businesses to migrate, communicate, and work globally. Nevertheless, the interconnectedness of world economies is not without its negative and shameful side effects. The subsequent overabundance of goods and services has resulted in heightened competition among firms and their supply chains, fuelling the exploitation of impoverished and vulnerable individuals who are unable to equally salvage from the benefits of the integrated economy. To maintain their position in a highly competitive arena, the operations of many businesses have adopted unethical and unscrupulous practices to maximise profit, often targeting the most marginalised members of society. Simultaneously, in a consumerist obsessed society preoccupied with the consumption and accumulation of material wealth, the demand for goods and services greatly contributes to the pressure on firms, thus bolstering the exploitation of labour. This paper aims to examine the impact of business operations on the practice of labour exploitation. It explores corrupt business practices that firms adopt and key labour exploitative conditions outlined by the International Labour Organization, particularly, paying workers low wages, forcing individuals to work in abusive and unsafe conditions, and considers the issue regarding individuals’ consent to exploitative environments. Further, it considers the role of consumers in creating the high demand for goods and services, which in turn fosters the exploitation of labour. This paper illustrates that the practice of labour exploitation in the economy is a by-product of both global competitive business operations and heightened consumer consumption.

Keywords: globalisation, labour exploitation, modern slavery, sweatshops, unethical business practices

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Authors: Hector Jose Velazquez-Gonzalez, Norma Maldonado-Santiago, Laura Pietri-Gomez

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Cancer is one of the first cause of death in the world, most of them are women. In Puerto Rico, there is a permanent controversy on the conceptuation of what really involves a disability, also in when a chronic illness, like cancer, should be considered a disability. The aim of the research was to identify functional limitation in 50 women survivors of cancer. In turn, to know the meanings that 6 women attributed to cancer with a focus on functionality. We conducted a mix method research based on surveys and narratives. We administered the World Health Organization Disability Assessment, version 2.0, which obtained a Cronbach’s alpha of .949 on the general scale, and from .773 to .956 on the six domains. The domain that obtained the highest average was social participation (M= 33.89, SD= 20.434), but it was not significant in the disability percentage. Also, there was no significance in the disability percentage in the other five domains. In a matter of meanings, we conduct a semistructured interview to 6 participants. All of them do not refer to cancer as a disability, either they do not know that in Puerto Rico cancer is considered as a disability by the law. However, participants agree that cancer at the time of treatment and subsequent to it, has significant effects on functional limitations (fatigue, pain, cognitive limitations, and weakness, among others. Psychooncologic practice should encourage the constant assessment of the functionality to identify the needs that emerge from oncological diagnosis. So that psychosocial intervention could be considered as critical in cancer treatment to promote a better quality of life and well-being in a person with cancer.

Keywords: cancer, Puerto Rico, disability, psychosocial approach

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Authors: Arvind Salem

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Voters across the country are transferring the power of redistricting from the state legislatures to commissions to secure “fairer” districts by curbing the influence of gerrymandering on redistricting. Gerrymandering, intentionally drawing distorted districts to achieve political advantage, has become extremely prevalent, generating widespread voter dissatisfaction and resulting in states adopting commissions for redistricting. However, the efficacy of these commissions is dubious, with some arguing that they constitute a panacea for gerrymandering, while others contend that commissions have relatively little effect on gerrymandering. A result showing that commissions are effective would allay these fears, supplying ammunition for activists across the country to advocate for commissions in their state and reducing the influence of gerrymandering across the nation. However, a result against commissions may reaffirm doubts about commissions and pressure lawmakers to make improvements to commissions or even abandon the commission system entirely. Additionally, these commissions are publicly funded: so voters have a financial interest and responsibility to know if these commissions are effective. Currently, nine states place commissions in charge of redistricting, Arizona, California, Colorado, Michigan, Idaho, Montana, Washington, and New Jersey (Hawaii also has a commission but will be excluded for reasons mentioned later). This study compares the degree of gerrymandering in the 2022 election (“after”) to the election in which voters decided to adopt commissions (“before”). The before-election provides a valuable benchmark for assessing the efficacy of commissions since voters in those elections clearly found the districts to be unfair; therefore, comparing the current election to that one is a good way to determine if commissions have improved the situation. At the time Hawaii adopted commissions, it was merely a single at-large district, so it is before metrics could not be calculated, and it was excluded. This study will use three methods to quantify the degree of gerrymandering: the efficiency gap, the percentage of seats and the percentage of votes difference, and the mean-median difference. Each of these metrics has unique advantages and disadvantages, but together, they form a balanced approach to quantifying gerrymandering. The study uses a Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test with a null hypothesis that the value of the metrics is greater than or equal to after the election than before and an alternative hypothesis that the value of these metrics is greater in the before the election than after using a 0.05 significance level and an expected difference of 0. Accepting the alternative hypothesis would constitute evidence that commissions reduce gerrymandering to a statistically significant degree. However, this study could not conclude that commissions are effective. The p values obtained for all three metrics (p=0.42 for the efficiency gap, p=0.94 for the percentage of seats and percentage of votes difference, and p=0.47 for the mean-median difference) were extremely high and far from the necessary value needed to conclude that commissions are effective. These results halt optimism about commissions and should spur serious discussion about the effectiveness of these commissions and ways to change them moving forward so that they can accomplish their goal of generating fairer districts.

Keywords: commissions, elections, gerrymandering, redistricting

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Authors: Noor Ashikin Omar

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The rapid growth and advancement in information and communication technology (ICT) at a global scene has greatly influenced and revolutionised interaction amongst society. The use of ICT has become second nature in managing everyday lives, particularly in the education environment. Traditional learning methods of using blackboards and chalks have been largely improved by the use of ICT devices such as interactive whiteboards and computers in school. This paper aims to explore the impacts of virtual learning environments (VLE) on teacher’s pedagogy and student’s learning in primary school settings. The research was conducted in two phases. Phase one of this study comprised a short interview with the school’s senior assistants to examine issues and challenges faced during planning and implementation of FrogVLE in their respective schools. Phase two involved a survey of a number of questionnaires directed to three major stakeholders; the teachers, students and parents. The survey intended to explore teacher’s and student’s perspective and attitude towards the use of VLE as a teaching and learning medium and as a learning experience as a whole. In addition, the survey from parents provided insights on how they feel towards the use of VLE for their child’s learning. Collectively, the two phases enable improved understanding and provided observations on factors that had affected the implementation of the VLE into primary schools. This study offers the voices of the students which were frequently omitted when addressing innovations as well as teachers who may not always be heard. It is also significant in addressing the importance of teacher’s pedagogy on students’ learning and its effects to enable more effective ICT integration with a student-centred approach. Finally, parental perceptions in the implementation of VLE in supporting their children’s learning have been implicated as having a bearing on educational achievement. The results indicate that the all three stakeholders were positive and highly supportive towards the use of VLE in schools. They were able to understand the benefits of moving towards the modern method of teaching using ICT and accept the change in the education system. However, factors such as condition of ICT facilities at schools and homes as well as inadequate professional development for the teachers in both ICT skills and management skills hindered exploitation of the VLE system in order to fully utilise its benefits. Social influences within different communities and cultures and costs of using the technology also has a significant impact. The findings of this study are important to the Malaysian Ministry of Education because it informs policy makers on the impact of the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) on teacher’s pedagogy and learning of Malaysian primary school children. The information provided to policy makers allows them to make a sound judgement and enables an informed decision making.

Keywords: attitudes towards virtual learning environment (VLE), parental perception, student's learning, teacher's pedagogy

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Authors: Bulcha Belay Etana, Benny Malengier, Janarthanan Krishnamoorthy, Timothy Kwa, Lieva Vanlangenhove

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Electromyography measures the electrical activity of muscles using surface electrodes or needle electrodes to monitor various disease conditions. Recent developments in the signal acquisition of electromyograms using textile electrodes facilitate wearable devices, enabling patients to monitor and control their health status outside of healthcare facilities. Here, we have developed and tested wearable textile electrodes to acquire electromyography signals from patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease and incorporated a feedback-control system to relieve muscle cramping through thermal stimulus. In brief, the textile electrodes made of stainless steel was knitted into a textile fabric as a sleeve, and their electrical characteristic, such as signal-to-noise ratio, was compared with traditional electrodes. To relieve muscle cramping, a heating element made of stainless-steel conductive yarn sewn onto a cotton fabric, coupled with a vibration system, was developed. The system integrated a microcontroller and a Myoware muscle sensor to activate the heating element as well as the vibration motor when cramping occurred. At the same time, the element gets deactivated when the muscle cramping subsides. An optimum therapeutic temperature of 35.5°C is regulated and maintained continuously by a heating device. The textile electrode exhibited a signal-to-noise ratio of 6.38dB, comparable to that of the traditional electrode’s value of 7.05 dB. For a given 9 V power supply, the rise time for the developed heating element was about 6 minutes to reach an optimum temperature.

Keywords: smart textile system, wearable electronic textile, electromyography, heating textile, vibration therapy, Parkinson’s disease

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Authors: Hatice Karakoyun, Mustafa Akdag

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This study has been made to examine the attitudes of pre-school teachers towards values education. The study has been made as a general scanning model. The study’s working group contains 108 pre-school teachers who worked in Diyarbakır, Turkey. In this study Values Education Attitude Scale (VEAS), which developed by Yaşaroğlu (2014), was used. In order to analyze the data for sociodemographic structure, percentage and frequency values were examined. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov method was used in determination of the normal distribution of data. During analyzing the data, KolmogorovSimirnov test and the normal curved histograms were examined to determine which statistical analyzes would be applied on the scale and it was found that the distribution was not normal. Thus, the Mann Whitney U analysis technique which is one of the nonparametric statistical analysis techniques were used to test the difference of the scores obtained from the scale in terms of independent variables. According to the analyses, it seems that pre-school teachers’ attitudes toward values education are positive. According to the scale with the highest average, it points out that pre-school teachers think that values education is very important for students’ and children’s future. The variables included in the scale (gender, seniority, age group, education, school type, school place) seem to have no effect on the pre-school teachers’ attitude grades which joined to the study.

Keywords: attitude scale, pedagogy, pre-school teacher, values education

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Authors: C. Minguez, J. Bueso-Rodenas, C. Ibanez, A. Calvo

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Mannan oligosaccharides (MOS) is one of the prebiotic most used in livestock nutrition. In this research, the effect of MOS dietary supplementation on growth performance and mortality in meat guinea pigs were studied. Three different experimental groups were compared: Control group (no additives); MOS 1 (1.5 g kg−1); MOS 2 (2 g kg−1). Guinea pigs were housed in 15 collective cages (n = 50 animals in each trial; 10 animals per cage). The young guinea pigs were weaning at day 28 and individually identified by a little ear tag. The fattening period was 49 days. Guinea pigs in both groups were fed ad libitum, with a standard commercial pellet diet (10 MJ of digestible energy/kg, 17% crude protein, 11% crude fiber, and 4.5% crude fat) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa) as forage. Growth traits, including body weight (BW), average daily gain (ADG), feed intake (FI), and feed conversion ratio (FCR), were measured weekly. On day 74, the animals were slaughtered. Contrasts between groups were obtained by calculated generalized least squares values. Mortality were evaluated by Fisher's exact test. Between MOS groups no significant differences were observed for growth traits and mortality. However, significant differences against the control group were observed for traits studied (pvalue < 0.05). In conclusion, the use of MOS could be a good prebiotic supplement to raise guinea pigs because it MOS has shown positive effects in growth traits and immune response in animals.

Keywords: guinea pig, growth, mannan oligosaccharides, mortality

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Authors: Brianne Nichols, John A. Parkinson

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Positive Psychology has provided a rich understanding of the beneficial effects of positive emotions in relation to optimal functioning, and research has been devoted to promote states of positive feeling and thinking. While this is a worthwhile pursuit, positive emotions are not useful in all contexts - some situations may require the individual to make use of their negative emotions to reach a desired end state. To account for the potential value of a wider range of emotional experiences that are common to the human condition, Positive Psychology needs to expand its horizons and investigate how individuals achieve positive outcomes using varied means. The current research seeks to understand the positive psychology of fear of failure (FF), which is a commonly experienced negative emotion relevant to most life domains. On the one hand, this emotion has been linked with avoidance motivation and self-handicap behaviours, on the other; FF has been shown to act as a drive to move the individual forward. To fully capture the depth of this highly subjective emotional experience and understand the circumstances under which FF may be adaptive, this study adopted a mixed methods design using SenseMaker; a web-based tool that combines the richness of narratives with the objectivity of numerical data. Two hundred participants consisting mostly of undergraduate university students shared a story of a time in the recent past when they feared failure of achieving a valued goal. To avoid researcher bias in the interpretation of narratives, participants self-signified their stories in a tagging system that was based on researchers’ aim to explore the role of past failures, the cognitive, emotional and behavioural profile of individuals high and low in FF, and the relationship between these factors. In addition, the role of perceived personal control and self-esteem were investigated in relation to FF using self-report questionnaires. Results from quantitative analyses indicated that individuals with high levels of FF, compared to low, were strongly influenced by past failures and preoccupied with their thoughts and emotions relating to the fear. This group also reported an unwillingness to accept their internal experiences, which in turn was associated with withdrawal from goal pursuit. Furthermore, self-esteem was found to mediate the relationship between perceived control and FF, suggesting that self-esteem, with or without control beliefs, may have the potential to buffer against high FF. It is hoped that the insights provided by the current study will inspire future research to explore the ways in which ‘acceptance’ may help individuals keep moving towards a goal despite the presence of FF, and whether cultivating a non-contingent self-esteem is the key to resilience in the face of failures.

Keywords: fear of failure, goal-pursuit, negative emotions, optimal functioning, resilience

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Authors: P. Lestinsky, D. Jecha, V. Brummer, P. Stehlik

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Scrubbing by a liquid spraying is one of the most effective processes used for removal of fine particles and soluble gas pollutants (such as SO2, HCl, HF) from the flue gas. There are many configurations of scrubbers designed to provide contact between the liquid and gas stream for effectively capturing particles or soluble gas pollutants, such as spray plates, packed bed towers, jet scrubbers, cyclones, vortex and venturi scrubbers. The primary function of venturi scrubber is the capture of fine particles as well as HCl, HF or SO2 removal with effect of the flue gas temperature decrease before input to the absorption column. In this paper, sulfur dioxide (SO2) from flue gas was captured using new design replacing venturi scrubber (1st degree of wet scrubbing). The flue gas was prepared by the combustion of the carbon disulfide solution in toluene (1:1 vol.) in the flame in the reactor. Such prepared flue gas with temperature around 150 °C was processed in designed laboratory O-element scrubber. Water was used as absorbent liquid. The efficiency of SO2 removal, pressure drop and temperature drop were measured on our experimental device. The dependence of these variables on liquid-gas ratio was observed. The average temperature drop was in the range from 150 °C to 40 °C. The pressure drop was increased with increasing of a liquid-gas ratio, but not as much as for the common venturi scrubber designs. The efficiency of SO2 removal was up to 70 %. The pressure drop of our new designed wet scrubber is similar to commonly used venturi scrubbers; nevertheless the influence of amount of the liquid on pressure drop is not so significant.

Keywords: desulphurization, absorption, flue gas, modeling

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Authors: Hanqing Yang, Xiang Meng, Qi Li, Weirong Chen

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The SOC (state of charge) based droop control has limitations on the load power sharing among different energy storage units, due to the line impedance. In this paper, a distributed control strategy for dispersed energy storage units in the DC microgrid based on discrete consensus is proposed. Firstly, a sparse information communication network is built. Thus, local controllers can communicate with its neighbors using voltage, current and SOC information. An average voltage of grid can be evaluated to compensate voltage offset by droop control, and an objective virtual resistance fulfilling above requirement can be dynamically calculated to distribute load power according to the SOC of the energy storage units. Then, the stability of the whole system and influence of communication delay are analyzed. It can be concluded that this control strategy can improve the robustness and flexibility, because of having no center controller. Finally, a model of DC microgrid with dispersed energy storage units and loads is built, the discrete distributed algorithm is established and communication protocol is developed. The co-simulation between Matlab/Simulink and JADE (Java agent development framework) has verified the effectiveness of proposed control strategy.

Keywords: dispersed energy storage units, discrete consensus algorithm, state of charge, communication delay

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Authors: Mercy Chepkirui, Reuben Omondi, Paul Orina, Albert Getabu, Lewis Sitoki, Jonathan Munguti

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Globally, the decline in capture fisheries as a result of the growing population and increasing awareness of the nutritional benefits of white meat has led to the development of aquaculture. This is anticipated to meet the increasing call for more food for the human population, which is likely to increase further by 2050. Statistics showed that more than 50% of the global future fish diet will come from aquaculture. Aquaculture began commercializing some decades ago; this is accredited to technological advancement from traditional to modern cultural systems, including cage farming. Cage farming technology has been rapidly growing since its inception in Lake Victoria, Kenya. Currently, over 6,000 cages have been set up in Kenyan waters, and this offers an excellent opportunity for recognition of Kenya’s government tactic to eliminate food insecurity and malnutrition, create employment and promote a Blue Economy. However, being an open farming enterprise is likely to emit large bulk of waste hence altering the ecosystem integrity of the lake. This is through increased chlorophyll-a pigments, alteration of the plankton community, macroinvertebrates, fish genetic pollution, transmission of fish diseases and pathogens. Cage farming further increases the nutrient loads leading to the production of harmful algal blooms, thus negatively affecting aquatic and human life. Despite the ecological transformation, cage farming provides a platform for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of 2030, especially the achievement of food security and nutrition. Therefore, there is a need for Integrated Multitrophic Aquaculture as part of Blue Transformation for ecosystem monitoring.

Keywords: aquaculture, ecosystem, blue economy, food security

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Authors: N. M. Tawil, A. R. Musa, A. I Che-Ani, H. Basri

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It is known that rising of house prices recently has affected the home ownership, especially for the future. Hence to overcome the rose of housing prices, the self-build home or DIY concept is perceived as one of the solution. This concept is proposed to be implemented for the future housing design as a strategy in helping the government to provide affordable housing, especially for middle income group to own a landed housing property. This concept is expected to offer a lower housing price for middle-income buyers and provide an opportunity for buyers to design their dream’s home with the self-build home or 'Do It Yourself' (DIY) concept. In order to implement this concept as affordable housing for MIG, the public perceptions and acceptances on the self-build home/ DIY concept itself should be identified. To achieve this aim this study was conducted by using 2 method namely literature review and questionnaire survey. The questionnaire survey was distributed to 200 respondents randomly in Lembah Klang and were analysed through the SPSS program. The results show that respondents are very interested in buying a home that they can have with the appropriate size of the home. Average of them known about Do It Yourself (DIY) concept but none of respondent have implement this concept. Most of respondents were agreed that this DIY method suitable to be implemented in the housing industry in Malaysia and they were agreed that this concept can offer a cheaper housing price because the construction costs were reduced. Moreover by providing a basic home the owner can renovate their home according to their need and financial capability.

Keywords: affordable housing, Do It Yourself, self-Built home, perception, middle income group

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Authors: Nooshin Salari, Viliam Makis, Jane Doe

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This paper presents a maintenance policy for a system consisting of two units. Unit 1 is gradually deteriorating and is subject to soft failure. Unit 2 has a general lifetime distribution and is subject to hard failure. Condition of unit 1 of the system is monitored periodically and it is considered as failed when its deterioration level reaches or exceeds a critical level N. At the failure time of unit 2 system is considered as failed, and unit 2 will be correctively replaced by the next inspection epoch. Unit 1 or 2 are preventively replaced when deterioration level of unit 1 or age of unit 2 exceeds the related preventive maintenance (PM) levels. At the time of corrective or preventive replacement of unit 2, there is an opportunity to replace unit 1 if its deterioration level reaches the opportunistic maintenance (OM) level. If unit 2 fails in an inspection interval, system stops operating although unit 1 has not failed. A mathematical model is derived to find the preventive and opportunistic replacement levels for unit 1 and preventive replacement age for unit 2, that minimize the long run expected average cost per unit time. The problem is formulated and solved in the semi-Markov decision process (SMDP) framework. Numerical example is provided to illustrate the performance of the proposed model and the comparison of the proposed model with an optimal policy without opportunistic maintenance level for unit 1 is carried out.

Keywords: condition-based maintenance, opportunistic maintenance, preventive maintenance, two-unit system

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Authors: Meredith M. Pratt

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The Atlantic sailfish (Istiophorus albicans) ranges from 40°N to 40°S in the Western Atlantic Ocean and has great economic and recreational value for sport fishers. Off the eastern coast of Florida, charter boats often target this species. Stuart, Florida, bills itself as the sailfish capital of the world. Sailfish tag data from The Billfish Foundation and NOAA was used to determine the relationship between sea surface temperature (SST) and the distribution of Atlantic sailfish caught and released over a fifteen-year period (2003 to 2018). Tagging information was collected from local sports fishermen in Florida. Using the time and location of each landed sailfish, a satellite-derived SST value was obtained for each point. The purpose of this study was to determine if sea surface warming was associated with changes in sailfish distribution. On average, sailfish were caught at 26.16 ± 1.70°C (x̄ ± s.d.) over the fifteen-year period. The most sailfish catches occurred at temperatures ranging from 25.2°C to 25.5°C. Over the fifteen-year period, sailfish catches decreased at lower temperatures (~23°C and ~24°C) and at 31°C. At ~25°C and ~30°C there was no change in catch numbers of sailfish. From 26°C to 29°C, there was an increase in the number of sailfish. Based on these results, increasing ocean temperatures will have an impact on the distribution and habitat utilization of sailfish. Warming sea surface temperatures create a need for more policy and regulation to protect the Atlantic sailfish and related highly migratory billfish species.

Keywords: atlantic sailfish, Billfish, istiophorus albicans, sea surface temperature

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Authors: Adrian Ionita, Ana-Maria Ghimes

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The lack of features, design and the lack of promoting an integrated booking application are some of the reasons why most online travel platforms only offer automation of old booking processes, being limited to the integration of a smaller number of services without addressing the user experience. This paper represents a practical study on how to improve travel applications creating user-profiles through data-mining based on neural networks and genetic algorithms. Choices made by users and their ‘friends’ in the ‘social’ network context can be considered input data for a recommendation engine. The purpose of using these algorithms and this design is to improve user experience and to deliver more features to the users. The paper aims to highlight a broader range of improvements that could be applied to travel applications in terms of design and service integration, while the main scientific approach remains the technical implementation of the neural network solution. The motivation of the technologies used is also related to the initiative of some online booking providers that have made the fact that they use some ‘neural network’ related designs public. These companies use similar Big-Data technologies to provide recommendations for hotels, restaurants, and cinemas with a neural network based recommendation engine for building a user ‘DNA profile’. This implementation of the ‘profile’ a collection of neural networks trained from previous user choices, can improve the usability and design of any type of application.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, DNA profile, genetic algorithms, machine learning, neural networks, optimization, recommendation system, user profiling

Procedia PDF Downloads 158

Authors: Jorge Duarte de Sá

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The project presented in this investigation is part of the multidisciplinary field of Architecture and explores an experience in media architecture, integrated in Arts, Science and Technology. The objective of this work is to create a visual experience comprehending Architecture, Media and Art. It is intended to specifically explore the sacred spaces that are losing social, cultural or religious dynamics and insert new Media technologies to create a new generate momentum, testing tools, techniques and methods of implementation. Given an architectural project methodology, it seems essential that 'the location' should be the starting point for the development of this technological apparatus: the church of Santa Clara in Santarém, Portugal emerged as an experimental space for apparatus, presenting itself as both temple and museum. We also aim to address the concept of rehabilitation through media technologies, directed at interventions that may have an impact on energizing spaces. The idea is emphasized on the rehabilitation of spaces that, one way or another, may gain new dynamics after a media intervention. Thus, we intend to affect the play with a sensitive and spiritual character which endemically, sacred spaces have, by exploring a sensitive aspect of the subject and drawing up new ideas for meditation and spiritual reflection. The work is designed primarily as a visual experience that encompasses the space, the object and the subject. It is a media project supported by a dual structure with two transparent screens operating in a holographic screen which will be projecting two images that complement the translucent overlay film, thus making the merger of two projections. The digitally created content reacts to the presence of observers through infrared cameras, placed strategically. The object revives the memory of the altarpiece as an architectural surface, promoting the expansion of messages through the media technologies.

Keywords: architecture, media, sacred, technology

Procedia PDF Downloads 274

Authors: Igbozuruike Chigozie Jude, Agwu Agwu Ejem

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This study investigated that advertisement has an impact on audience retention on YouTube Comedy skits, which is the most watched content on YouTube in Lagos, Nigeria. The main objective was to determine if the advertisements affect the average number of times they spend watching YouTube comedy skits. The study was anchored on Festinger's (1952) cognitive dissonance theory. The research method for this exercise was a survey to get responses from people in Lagos state on how they react to the advertisements they face when watching YouTube comedy skits in Lagos state. The sample size derived from the Krejcie and Morgan (1970) Table was 384 YouTube users. The instrument that was used to gather data was a questionnaire. The findings showed that the adverts have far-reaching exposure by the target audience, but most of the audience perceived them to be intrusive. It was also found that there is not enough evidence to infer that advertisement is indeed impacting audience retention on YouTube comedy skits in Lagos, Nigeria. The reason is that, for a majority of the audience, adverts do not essentially affect their retention on those skits, but for a considerable percentage (34%), these adverts do break their concentration and affect how much time they end up spending on the YouTube comedy skits. It was recommended that, among others, there should be regular monitoring and adaptation of YouTube advertisements to the audience preferences and behaviors of the audience. Insights on changes or trends in audience preferences can be gained through surveys.

Keywords: advertisement, audience, YouTube, comedy skits, Lagos Nigeria

Procedia PDF Downloads 77

Authors: Gheimati Salar

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The objective of conducting this research was to study the influence of plyometric exercises on the biomechanical selected factor of elite teen swimmers and compare the influence of plyometric exercises on the speed of front crawl and back crawl in empirical and control groups of teens. In order to conduct these study 30 swimmers with minimum of 3 years' experience who were 11 or 12 were randomly chosen and divided into 2 groups of 15. The first group was empirical and the second was control group. The speed of the swimmer was analyzed after 25 meters of swimming and their speed were recorded in the last. The researcher was standing stable at the beginning and then started the chronometer and stopped it at the end of the swimming. He repeated the record taking two times and then the average was taken. Before conducting plyometric exercises, a speed test was taken from both groups in both types of swimming. The duration of plyometric exercises was 8 weeks, every week 3 sessions and 24 sessions in total. The exercises in this study were focused on 3 parts of the body. Upper limb part, the lower part of the body and trunk area. Upper limb exercises consisted of four parts. The lower limb exercises consisted of 5 parts, and the trunk exercises consisted of four sections. A Medicine ball, cone and different weights were used in these exercises.

Keywords: plyometric, exercises, front crawl and back crawl, speed

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: J. Miranda, D. Chavarría-Barrientos, M. Ramírez-Cadena, M. E. Macías, P. Ponce, J. Noguez, R. Pérez-Rodríguez, P. K. Wright, A. Molina

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Higher education methods need to evolve because the new generations of students are learning in different ways. One way is by adopting emergent technologies, new learning methods and promoting the maker movement. As a result, Tecnologico de Monterrey is developing Open Innovation Laboratories as an immediate response to educational challenges of the world. This paper presents an Open Innovation Laboratory for Rapid Realization of Sensing, Smart and Sustainable Products (S³ Products). The Open Innovation Laboratory is composed of a set of specific resources where students and teachers use them to provide solutions to current problems of priority sectors through the development of a new generation of products. This new generation of products considers the concepts Sensing, Smart, and Sustainable. The Open Innovation Laboratory has been implemented in different courses in the context of New Product Development (NPD) and Integrated Manufacturing Systems (IMS) at Tecnologico de Monterrey. The implementation consists of adapting this Open Innovation Laboratory within the course’s syllabus in combination with the implementation of specific methodologies for product development, learning methods (Active Learning and Blended Learning using Massive Open Online Courses MOOCs) and rapid product realization platforms. Using the concepts proposed it is possible to demonstrate that students can propose innovative and sustainable products, and demonstrate how the learning process could be improved using technological resources applied in the higher educational sector. Finally, examples of innovative S³ products developed at Tecnologico de Monterrey are presented.

Keywords: active learning, blended learning, maker movement, new product development, open innovation laboratory

Procedia PDF Downloads 393

Authors: Sheam-Chyun Lin, Wei-Kai Chen, Hung-Cheng Yen, Yung-Jen Cheng, Yu-Cheng Chen

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Result from the constant dwindle in natural resources, the alternative way to reduce the costs in our daily life would be urgent to be found in the near future. As the ancient technique based on the theory of solar chimney since roman times, the double-skin façade are simply composed of two large glass panels in purpose of daylighting and also natural ventilation in the daytime. Double-skin façade is generally installed on the exterior side of buildings as function as the window, so there’s always a huge amount of passive solar energy the façade would receive to induce the airflow every sunny day. Therefore this article imposes a domestic double-skin window for residential usage and attempts to improve the volume flow rate inside the cavity between the panels by the frame geometry design, the installation of outlet guide plate and the solar energy collection system. Note that the numerical analyses are applied to investigate the characteristics of flow field, and the boundary conditions in the simulation are totally based on the practical experiment of the original prototype. Then we redesign the prototype from the knowledge of the numerical results and fluid dynamic theory, and later the experiments of modified prototype will be conducted to verify the simulation results. The velocities at the inlet of each case are increase by 5%, 45% and 15% from the experimental data, and also the numerical simulation results reported 20% improvement in volume flow rate both for the frame geometry design and installation of outlet guide plate.

Keywords: solar energy, double-skin façades, thermal buoyancy, fluid machinery

Procedia PDF Downloads 490

Authors: Ya-Hsing Yeh, I-Chun Tai, Ming-Chieh Lin, Li-Ting Lee, Ping-Ting Hsieh, Yi-Chen Ling, Jhia-Ying Du, Li-Ping Chang, Guan-Long Yu

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Objective: To understand the connection between children/adolescents and those who they miss, as well as the correlation between connection and their emotions. Method: Based on the objective, a close-ended questionnaire was made into a formal questionnaire after experts evaluated its validity. In February 2017, the paper-based questionnaire was adopted. Twenty-one elementary schools and junior high schools in Taiwan were sampled by purposive sampling approach and the fifth to ninth graders were our participants. A total of 2,502 valid questionnaires were retrieved. Results: Forty-four-point three percent of children/adolescents missed a person in mind, or they thought a person as a significant other in mind, but they had no connection with them. The highest proportion of those they wanted to contact with was ‘Friends and classmates’, and the others were ‘immediate family’, such as parents and grandparents, and ‘academic or vocational instructors, such as home-room teachers, coaches, cram school teachers and so on, respectively. Only 14% of children/adolescents would actively contact those they missed. The proportion of what children/adolescents ‘often’ actively keeping in touch with those they missed felt happy or cheerful was higher compared with those who ‘seldom’ actively keeping in touch with people they missed whenever they recalled who they missed, or the person actively contacted with them. Sixty-one-point seven percent of participants haven’t connected with those they missed for more than one year. The main reason was ‘environmental factors’, such as school/class transfer or moving, and then ‘academic or personal factors’, ‘communication tools’, and ‘personalities’, respectively. In addition to ‘greetings during festivals and holidays’, ‘hearing from those they missed’, and ‘knowing the latest information about those they missed on their Internet communities’, children/adolescents would like to actively contact with them when they felt ‘happy’ and ‘depressed or frustrated. The first three opinions of what children/adolescents regarded truly connection were ‘listening to people they missed attentively’, ‘sharing their secrets’, and ‘contacting with people they regularly missed with real actions’. In terms of gender, girls’ proportion on ‘showing with actions, including contacting with people they missed regularly or expressing their feelings openly’, and ‘sharing secrets’ was higher than boys’, while boy’s proportion on ‘the attitudes when contacting people they missed, including listening attentively or without being distracted’ was higher than girls’. Conclusions: I. The more ‘active’ connection they have, the more happiness they feel. II. Teachers can teach children how to manage their emotions and express their feelings appropriately. III. It is very important to turn connection into ‘action.’ Teachers can set a good example and share their moods with others whatever they are in the mood. This is a kind of connection.

Keywords: children, connection, emotion, mental health

Procedia PDF Downloads 150

Authors: Mengwei Li

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Since the 1990s, biennials, and large-scale transnational art exhibitions, have proliferated exponentially across the globe, particularly in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. It has spurred debates regarding the inclusion of "new art cultures" and the deconstruction of the mechanism of exclusion embedded in the Western monopoly on art. Hans Belting introduced the concept of "global art" in 2013 to denounce the West's privileged canons in art by emphasising the inclusion of art practices from alleged non-Western regions. Arguably, the rise of new biennial networks developed by these locations has contributed to the asserted "inclusion of new art worlds." However, phrases such as "non-Western" and "beyond Euro-American" attached to these discussions raise the question of non- or beyond- in relation to whom. In this narrative, to become "integrated" and "equal" implies entry into the "core," a universal system in which preexisting authoritative voices define "newcomers" by what they are not. Possibly, if there is a global biennial system that symbolises a "universal language" of the contemporary art world, it is centered on the inherently dynamic yet asymmetrical interaction and negotiation between the "core" and the rest of the world's "periphery." Engaging with theories of "minor literature" developed by Deleuze and Guattari, this research proposes an epistemological framework to comprehend the global biennial discourse since the 1990s. Using this framework, this research looks at two biennial models in China: the 13th Shanghai Biennale, which was organised in the country's metropolitan art centre, and the 2nd Yinchuan Biennale, which was inaugurated in a geographically and economically marginalised city compared to domestic centres. By analysing how these two biennials from different locations in China positioned themselves and conveyed their local profiles through the universal language of the biennial, this research identifies a potential "minor" positionality within the global biennial discourse from China's perspective.

Keywords: biennials, China, contemporary, global art, minor literature

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Authors: Noor Khan, Hira Waris

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This study was conducted on genetically male tilapia (GMT) fry reared in glass aquarium for three months to examine the synergetic effect of essential amino acids (EAA) supplementation on growth, body composition, and enzyme activities. Fish having average body weight of 16.56 ± 0.42g were fed twice a day on artificial feed (20% crude protein) procured from Oryza Organics (commercial feed) supplemented with EAA; methionine (M) and lysine (L) designated as T1 (0.3%M and 2%L), T2 (0.6%M and 4%L), T3 (0.9%M and 6%L) and control without EAA. Significantly higher growth performance was observed in T1, followed by T2, T3, and control. The results revealed that whole-body dry matter and crude protein were significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) in T3 (0.9% and 6%) feeding fish, while the crude fat was lower (p ≤ 0.05) in a similar group of fish. Additionally, protease, amylase, and lipase activities were also observed maximum (p ≤ 0.05) in response to T3 than other treatments and control. However, the EAA, especially lysine and methionine, were found significantly higher (p ≤ 0.05) in T1 compared to other treatments. Conclusively, the addition of EAA, methionine, and lysine in the feed not only enhanced the growth performance of GMT fry but also improved body proximate composition and essential amino acid profile.

Keywords: genetically male tilapia, body composition, digestive enzyme activities, amino acid profile

Procedia PDF Downloads 144

Authors: Zohreh Rostami, Arezoo Khosravi, Mohammad Nikpoor Aghdam, Mahmood Salesi

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Background: Cardiovascular mortality in chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end stage renal disease (ESRD) patients have a strong relationship with baseline or progressive left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) meanwhile in hemodialysis patients 10% decrement in left ventricular mass was associated with 28% reduction in cardiovascular mortality risk. In consonance with these arguments, we designed a study to measure morphological and functional echocardiographic variations early after transplantation. Method: The patients with normal renal function underwent two advanced echocardiographic studies to examine the structural and functional changes in left ventricular mass before and 3-month after transplantation. Results: From a total of 23 participants 21(91.3%) presented with left ventricular hypertrophy, 60.9% in eccentric and 30.4% in concentric group. Diastolic dysfunction improved in concentric group after transplantation. Both in pre and post transplantation global longitudinal strain (GLS)- average in eccentric group was more than concentric (-17.45 ± 2.75 vs -14.3 ± 3.38 p=0.03) and (-18.08 ± 2.6 vs -16.1 ± 2.7 p= 0.04) respectively. Conclusion: Improvement and recovery of left ventricular function in concentric group was better and sooner than eccentric after kidney transplantation. Although fractional shortening and diastolic function and GLS-4C in pre-transplantation in concentric group was worse than eccentric, but therapeutic response to kidney transplantation in concentric was more and earlier than eccentric group.

Keywords: chronic kidney disease, end stage renal disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, global longitudinal strain

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