Search results for: economic pressure

Authors: Abhishek Sraw, Amit Sobti, Yamini Pandey, R. K. Wanchoo, Amrit Pal Toor

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Monocrotophos (MCP) is a widely used pesticide in India, which belong to an extremely toxic organophosphorus family, is persistent in nature and its toxicity is widely reported in all environmental segments in the country. Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) is a promising solution to the problem of water pollution. TiO₂ is being widely used as a photocatalyst because of its many advantages, but it has a large band gap, due to which it is modified using metal and nonmetal dopant to make it active under sunlight and visible light. The use of nanosized powdered catalysts makes the recovery process extremely complicated. Hence the aim is to use low cost, easily available, eco-friendly clay material in form of bead as the support for the immobilization of catalyst, to solve the problem of post-separation of suspended catalyst from treated water. A recirculation type photocatalytic reactor (RTPR), using ultraviolet light emitting source (blue black lamp) was designed which work effectively for both suspended catalysts and catalyst coated clay beads. The bare, TiO₂ and W-TiO₂ coated clay beads were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and N₂ adsorption–desorption measurements techniques (BET) for their structural, textural and electronic properties. The study involved variation of different parameters like light conditions, recirculation rate, light intensity and initial MCP concentration under UV and sunlight for the degradation of MCP. The degradation and mineralization studies of the insecticide solution were performed using UV-Visible spectrophotometer, and COD vario-photometer and GC-MS analysis respectively. The main focus of the work lies in checking the recyclability of the immobilized TiO₂ over clay beads in the developed RTPR up to 30 continuous cycles without reactivation of catalyst. The results demonstrated the economic feasibility of the utilization of developed RTPR for the efficient purification of pesticide polluted water. The prepared TiO₂ clay beads delivered 75.78% degradation of MCP under UV light with negligible catalyst loss. Application of W-TiO₂ coated clay beads filled RTPR for the degradation of MCP under sunlight, however, shows 32% higher degradation of MCP than the same system based on undoped TiO₂. The COD measurements of TiO₂ coated beads led to 73.75% COD reduction while W-TiO₂ resulted in 87.89% COD reduction. The GC-MS analysis confirms the efficient breakdown of complex MCP molecules into simpler hydrocarbons. This supports the promising application of clay beads as a support for the photocatalyst and proves its eco-friendly nature, excellent recyclability, catalyst holding capacity, and economic viability.

Keywords: immobilized clay beads, monocrotophos, recirculation type photocatalytic reactor, TiO₂

Procedia PDF Downloads 165

Authors: Jin Song Gui, Han Li, Rui Jin Zhang, Heng Jiang Cai

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There is a large deviation between the measured wave power at the vertical breast wall and the calculated one according to current specification in the case of overtopping. In order to investigate the reasons for the deviation, the wave forces of vertical breast wall under overtopping conditions have been measured through physical model experiment and compared with the calculated results. The effect of water depth, period and the wave height on the wave forces of the vertical breast wall have been also investigated. The distribution of wave pressure under different wave actions was tested based on the force sensor which is installed in the vertical breakwater. By comparing and analyzing the measured values and norms calculated values, the applicability of the existing norms recommended method were discussed and a reference for the design of vertical breakwater was provided. Experiment results show that with the decrease of the water depth, the gap is growing between the actual wave forces and the specification values, and there are no obvious regulations between these two values with the variation of period while wave force greatly reduces with the overtopping reducing. The amount of water depth and wave overtopping has a significant impact on the wave force of overtopping section while the period has no obvious influence on the wave force. Finally, some favorable recommendations for the overtopping wave force design of the vertical breakwater according to the model experiment results are provided.

Keywords: overtopping wave, physical model experiment, vertical breakwater, wave forces

Procedia PDF Downloads 291

Authors: H. Selcuk Halkacı, Mevlüt Türköz, Ekrem Öztürk, Murat Dilmec

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Various attempts concerning the low formability issue for lightweight materials like aluminium and magnesium alloys are being investigated in many studies. Advanced forming processes such as hydroforming is one of these attempts. In last decades sheet hydroforming process has an increasing interest, particularly in the automotive and aerospace industries. This process has many advantages such as enhanced formability, the capability to form complex parts, higher dimensional accuracy and surface quality, reduction of tool costs and reduced die wear compared to the conventional sheet metal forming processes. There are two types of sheet hydroforming. One of them is hydromechanical deep drawing (HDD) that is a special drawing process in which pressurized fluid medium is used instead of one of the die half compared to the conventional deep drawing (CDD) process. Another one is sheet hydroforming with die (SHF-D) in which blank is formed with the act of fluid pressure and it takes the shape of die half. In this study, transition of cup height according to cup diameter between the processes was determined by performing simulation of the processes in Finite Element Analysis. Firstly SHF-D process was simulated for 40 mm cup diameter at different cup heights chancing from 10 mm to 30 mm and the cup height to diameter ratio value in which it is not possible to obtain a successful forming was determined. Then the same ratio was checked for a different cup diameter of 60 mm. Then thickness distributions of the cups formed by SHF-D and HDD processes were compared for the cup heights. Consequently, it was found that the thickness distribution in HDD process in the analyses was more uniform.

Keywords: finite element analysis, HDD, hydroforming sheet metal forming, SHF-D

Procedia PDF Downloads 418

Authors: A. G. Kovalenko, Y. N. Amirgaliyev, A. U. Kalizhanova, L. S. Balgabayeva, A. H. Kozbakova, Z. S. Aitkulov

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It is known that statistical information on operation of the compound multisite system is often far from the description of actual state of the system and does not allow drawing any conclusions about the correctness of its operation. For example, from the world practice of operation of systems of water supply, water disposal, it is known that total measurements at consumers and at suppliers differ between 40-60%. It is connected with mathematical measure of inaccuracy as well as ineffective running of corresponding systems. Analysis of widely-distributed systems is more difficult, in which subjects, which are self-maintained in decision-making, carry out economic interaction in production, act of purchase and sale, resale and consumption. This work analyzed mathematical models of sellers, consumers, arbitragers and the models of their interaction in the provision of dispersed single-product market of perfect competition. On the basis of these models, the methods, allowing estimation of every subject’s operating options and systems as a whole are given.

Keywords: dispersed systems, models, hydraulic network, algorithms

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Authors: K. Domagala, D. Kata, T. Graule

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Diseases caused by contaminated drinking water are the worldwide problem, which leads to the death and severe illnesses for hundreds of millions million people each year. There is an urgent need for efficient water treatment techniques for virus pathogens removal. The aim of the research was to develop safe and economic solution, which help with the water treatment. In this study, the synthesis of copper-based multi-walled carbon nanotube composites is described. Proposed solution utilize combination of a low-cost material with a high active surface area and copper antiviral properties. Removal of viruses from water was possible by adsorption based on electrostatic interactions of negatively charged virus with a positively charged filter material.

Keywords: multi walled carbon nanotubes, water purification, virus removal, water treatment

Procedia PDF Downloads 119

Authors: Danika Pieters

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Due to changing societal and economic demands, organizational change has become increasingly prevalent in work life. While a long time change research has focused on the effects of single discrete change events on different employee outcomes such as job satisfaction and organizational commitment, a nascent research stream has begun to look into the potential cumulative effects of change in the context of continuous intense reforms. This case study of a large Belgian public organization aims to add to this growing literature by examining how the frequency and diversity of past changes impact employees’ appraisals of a newly introduced change. Twelve hundred survey results were analyzed using standard ordinary least squares regression. Results showed a correlation between high past change frequency and diversity and a negative appraisal of the new change. Implications for practitioners and future research are discussed.

Keywords: change frequency, change diversity, organizational changes, change appraisal, change evaluation

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Authors: Carlos A. Acosta, Amar Bhalla, Ruyan Guo

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Scraped surface heat exchangers (SSHE) use a rotor shaft assembly with scraping blades to homogenize viscous fluids during the heat transfer process. Obtaining in-situ measurements is difficult because the rotor and scraping blades spin continuously inside the mixing chamber, obstructing the instrumentation pathway. Computational fluid dynamics simulations provide useful insight into the flow behavior around the scraper blades for a variety of fluids and blade geometries. However, numerical solutions often focus on the fluid dynamics and heat transfer phenomena of rotating flow, ignoring the glass-transition temperature and freezing point depression. This research studies the multi-phase fluid dynamics and freezing point depression inside the SSHE with non-isothermal conditions in a time dependent process using an aqueous solution that contains 13.5 wt.% high fructose corn syrup and CO₂. The computational results were validated with in-situ pressure, temperature, and optical spectroscopy measurements. Results from the numerical model show good quantitatively agreement with experimental values.

Keywords: computational fluid dynamics, freezing point depression, phase-transition temperature, multi-phase flow

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Authors: A. Aravind, M. Vetrivel, P. Abhimanyu, C. A. Akaash Emmanuel Raj, K. Sundararaj, V. R. S. Kumar

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The choice of high-speed, low budget hatchback car with diversified options is increasing for meeting the new generation buyers trend. This paper is aimed to augment the current speed of the hatchback cars through the aerodynamic drag reduction technique. The inverted airfoils are facilitated at the bottom of the car for generating the downward force for negating the lift while increasing the current speed range for achieving a better road performance. The numerical simulations have been carried out using a 2D steady pressure-based    k-ɛ realizable model with enhanced wall treatment. In our numerical studies, Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes model and its code of solution are used. The code is calibrated and validated using the exact solution of the 2D boundary layer displacement thickness at the Sanal flow choking condition for adiabatic flows. We observed through the parametric analytical studies that the inverted airfoil integrated with the bottom surface at various predesigned locations of Hatchback cars can improve its overall aerodynamic efficiency through drag reduction, which obviously decreases the fuel consumption significantly and ensure an optimum road performance lucratively with maximum permissible speed within the framework of the manufactures constraints.

Keywords: aerodynamics of commercial cars, downward force, hatchback car, inverted airfoil

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Authors: Jannika Dombrowski, Sabine Ambros, Ulrich Kulozik

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Due to the increasing popularity of healthy products, probiotics are still of rising importance in food manufacturing. With the aim to amplify the field of probiotic application to non-chilled products, the cultures have to be preserved by drying. Microwave drying has proved to be a suitable technique to achieve relatively high survival rates, resulting from drying at gentle temperatures, among others. However, diffusion limitation due to compaction of cell suspension during drying can prolong drying times as well as deteriorate product properties (grindability, rehydration performance). Therefore, we aimed to embed probiotics in an aerated matrix of whey proteins (surfactants) and di-/polysaccharides (foam stabilization, probiotic protection) during drying. As a result of the manifold increased inner surface of the cell suspension, drying performance was enhanced significantly as compared to non-foamed suspensions. This work comprises investigations on suitable foam matrices, being stable under vacuum (variation of protein concentration, type and concentration of di-/polysaccharide) as well as development of an applicable microwave drying process in terms of microwave power, chamber pressure and maximum product temperatures. Performed analyses included foam characteristics (overrun, drainage, firmness, bubble sizes), and properties of the dried cultures (survival, activity). In addition, efficiency of the drying process was evaluated.

Keywords: foam structure, microwave drying, polysaccharides, probiotics

Procedia PDF Downloads 249

Authors: Daniel Ter Goon, Aanuoluwa O. Adedokun, Eyitayo Omolara Owolabi, Oladele Vincent Adeniyi, Anthony Idowu Ajayi

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Background: The unhealthy food choices and sedentary lifestyle of commercial drivers predisposes them to obesity and obesity related diseases. Yet, no attention has been paid to obesity burden among this high risk group in South Africa. This study examines the prevalence of obesity and its risk factors among commercial drivers in East London, South Africa. Methods: This cross-sectional study utilized the WHO STEP wise approach to screen for obesity among 403 drivers in Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality (BCMM), South Africa. Anthropometric, blood pressure and blood glucose measurements were taken following a standard procedure. Overweight and obesity was defined as a body mass index (BMI) of 25.0 kgm⁻²–29.9 kg/m² and≥ 30 kg/ m², respectively. Bivariate and multivariate analysis were used to determine the prevalence and determinants of obesity. Result: The mean age of the participants was 43.3 (SD12.5) years, mean height (cm) and weight (kg) were 170.1(6.2cm) and 83(SD18.7), respectively. The prevalence of overweight and obesity was 34.0% and 38.0%, respectively. After adjusting for confounding factors, only age (OR 1.6, CI 1.0-2.7), hypertension (OR 3.6, CI 2.3-5.7) and non-smoking (OR 2.0, CI 1.3-3.1) were independent predictors of obesity. Conclusion: The prevalence of overweight and obesity is high among commercial drivers. Age, hypertension, and non-smoking were independent predictors of obesity among the sample. Measures aimed at promoting health and reducing obesity should be prioritized among this group.

Keywords: obesity and overweight, commercial taxi drivers, risk factors, South Africa

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Authors: Kholil Kholil, Aniwidayati

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MDS (Multi-Dimensional Scaling) is one method that has been widely used to evaluate the use of natural resources. By using Raffish software tool, we will able to analyze sustainability level of the natural resources use. This paper will discuss the level of sustainability of the reservoir using MDS (Multi-Dimensional Scaling) based on five dimensions: (1) Ecology & Layout, (2) Economics, (3) Social & Culture, (4) Regulations & Institutional, and (5) Infrastructure and Technology. MDS analysis results show that the dimension of ecological and layout, institutional and the regulation are lack of sustainability due to the low index score of 45.76 and 42.24. While for the economic, social and culture, and infrastructure and technology dimension reach each score of 63.12, 64.42, and 68.64 (only the sufficient sustainability category). It means that the sustainability performance of Cirata Reservoir seriously threatened.

Keywords: MDS, cirata reservoir, carrying capacity, water quality, sustainable development, sedimentation, sustainability index

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Authors: Mahmood Al Ramahi, G. Keszthelyi-Szabo, S. Beszedes

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Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) is a thermochemical reaction that utilizes saturated water and vapor pressure to convert waste biomass to C-rich products This work evaluated the effect of HTC as a pre- and post-treatment technique to anaerobic digestion (AD) of dairy sludge, as information in this field is still in its infancy, with many research and methodological gaps. HTC effect was evaluated based on energy recovery, nutrients transformation, and sludge biodegradability. The first treatment approach was executed by applying hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) under a range of temperatures, prior to mesophilic anaerobic digestion (AD) of dairy sludge. Results suggested an optimal pretreatment temperature at 210 °C for 30 min. HTC pretreatment increased methane yield and chemical oxygen demand removal. The theoretical model based on Boyle’s equation had a very close match with the experimental results. On the other hand, applying HTC subsequent to AD increased total energy production, as additional energy yield was obtained by the solid fuel (hydrochar) beside the produced biogas. Furthermore, hydrothermal carbonization of AD digestate generated liquid products (HTC digestate) with improved chemical characteristics suggesting their use as liquid fertilizers.

Keywords: hydrothermal carbonization, anaerobic digestion, energy balance, sludge biodegradability, biogas

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Authors: David Wuepper, Marc Patry

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UNESCO’s World Heritage program requests the inscribed locations to promote the World Heritage brand by clearly presenting information about it on-site. Based on feedback from over 319,000 visitors at 791 locations, we create an index that shows how much the World Heritage sites actually brand themselves as such. We find great heterogeneity throughout the list and explain this econometrically mostly with the economic benefit for the sites but also with cultural brand preferences, which are highest in Asia, followed by Europe and North America. We also find a positive relationship between World Heritage branding and conservation status and a U-shaped relationship between visitor numbers and WH branding. Based on our findings, we recommend to make clear World Heritage branding mandatory for all sites.

Keywords: UNESCO World Heritage, collective brand, cultural tourism, heritage conservation, brand equity, spatial econometrics

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Authors: Abeer Ahmed Abdelhameed

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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of aerobic exercises on LV parameters, lipid profile, and anthropometric measurements in hypertensive middle aged male subjects. Thirty obese patients were recruited for the study from the outpatient clinic of National Heart Institute, Egypt. Their ages ranges from 40 to 60 years. All participants underwent an aerobic training program including regular aerobic sub-maximal exercises in the form of treadmill walking and abdominal exercises 3/week for four months, the exercise were individually tailored for each participant depending on the result of cardiopulmonary exercise test. The result showed no significant difference observed in both LVPWT and LVSWT data from pre-test values to post-test values in all subjects after 4 months, with a significant reduction in WHR, systolic blood pressure, TAG and LDL records. Result also revealed a significant increase in HDL, Eƒ, LVEDD and FS records for all participants. The significant improvement in ventricular functions in form of ejection fraction of electrical group more than exercise group after 4 months at the end of the study may be due to the beneficial effect of faradic stimulation in lipolysis of storage adipose tissues, stimulation of lean body mass and muscles and/or thermal effect that improves vascularization.

Keywords: left ventricular parameters, aerobic training, electrical stimulation, lipid profile

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Abderrahmane Diaf, Kamel Benabdellaziz

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Remote arid areas of the vast expanses of the African deserts hold huge subterranean reserves of brackish water resources waiting for economic development. This work presents design guidelines as well as initial performance data of new autonomous solar desalination equipment which could help local communities produce their own fresh water using solar energy only and, why not, contribute to transforming desert lands into lush gardens. The output of solar distillation equipment is typically low and in the range of 3 l/m2/day on the average. This new design with an integrated, water-based, environmentally-friendly solar heat storage system produced 5 l/m2/day in early spring weather. Equipment output during summer exceeded 9 liters per m2 per day.

Keywords: multiple trough distillation, solar desalination, solar distillation with heat storage, water based heat storage system

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Authors: Nader Zirak, Mohammadali Shirinbayan, Abbas Tcharkhtchi

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Additive manufacturing is referred to as a method for fabrication of parts with a mechanism of layer by layer. Suitable economic efficiency and the ability to fabrication complex parts have made this method the focus of studies and industry. In recent years many studies focused on the fabrication of impellers, which is referred to as a key component of turbomachinery, through this technique. This study considers the important effect of the final surface quality of the impeller on the performance of the system, investigates the fabricated printed rotors through the fused deposition modeling with different process parameters. In this regard, the surface of each impeller was analyzed through the 3D scanner. The results show the vital role of surface quality on the final performance of the centrifugal compressor.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, impeller, centrifugal compressor, performance

Procedia PDF Downloads 133

Authors: Paritosh Goel

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The conservation of historic buildings and historic Centre’s over recent years has become fully encompassed in the planning of built-up areas and their management following climate changes. The approach of the world of restoration, in the Indian context on integrated urban regeneration and its strategic potential for a smarter, more sustainable and socially inclusive urban development introduces, for urban transformations in general (historical centers and otherwise), the theme of sustainability. From this viewpoint, it envisages, as a primary objective, a real “green, ecological or environmental” requalification of the city through interventions within the main categories of sustainability: mobility, energy efficiency, use of sources of renewable energy, urban metabolism (waste, water, territory, etc.) and natural environment. With this the concept of a “resilient city” is also introduced, which can adapt through progressive transformations to situations of change which may not be predictable, behavior that the historical city has always been able to express. Urban planning on the other hand, has increasingly focused on analyses oriented towards the taxonomic description of social/economic and perceptive parameters. It is connected with human behavior, mobility and the characterization of the consumption of resources, in terms of quantity even before quality to inform the city design process, which for ancient fabrics, and mainly affects the public space also in its social dimension. An exact definition of the term “smart city” is still essentially elusive, since we can attribute three dimensions to the term: a) That of a virtual city, evolved based on digital networks and web networks b) That of a physical construction determined by urban planning based on infrastructural innovation, which in the case of historic Centre’s implies regeneration that stimulates and sometimes changes the existing fabric; c) That of a political and social/economic project guided by a dynamic process that provides new behavior and requirements of the city communities that orients the future planning of cities also through participation in their management. This paper is a preliminary research into the connections between these three dimensions applied to the specific case of the fabric of ancient cities with the aim of obtaining a scientific theory and methodology to apply to the regeneration of Indian historical Centre’s. The Smart city scheme if contextualize with heritage of the city it can be an initiative which intends to provide a transdisciplinary approach between various research networks (natural sciences, socio-economics sciences and humanities, technological disciplines, digital infrastructures) which are united in order to improve the design, livability and understanding of urban environment and high historical/cultural performance levels.

Keywords: historical cities regeneration, sustainable restoration, urban planning, smart cities, cultural heritage development strategies

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Authors: J. Milton, C. Uzoigwe, O. Ayeko, B. Offorha, K. Anderson, R. G. Middleton

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Background: We used the UK National Hip Fracture database to determine the effect of institution hip fracture case volume on hip fracture healthcare outcomes in 2019. Using logistic regression for each healthcare outcome, we compared the best performing 50 units with the poorest performing 50 units in order to determine if the unit volume was associated with performance for each particular outcome. Method: We analysed 175 institutions treating a total of 67,673 patients over the course of a year. Results: The number of hip fractures seen per unit ranged between 86 and 952. Larger units tendered to perform health assessments more consistently and mobilise patients more expeditiously post-operatively. Patients treated at large institutions had shorter lengths of stay. With regard to most other outcomes, there was no association between unit case volume and performance, notably compliance with the Best Practice Tariff, time to surgery, proportion of eligible patients undergoing total hip arthroplasty, length of stay, delirium risk, and pressure sore risk assessments. Conclusion: There is no relationship between unit volume and the majority of health care outcomes. It would seem that larger institutions tend to perform better at parameters that are dependent upon personnel numbers. However, where the outcome is contingent, even partially, on physical infrastructure capacity, there was no difference between larger and smaller units.

Keywords: institution volume, mortality, neck of femur fractures, osteoporosis

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Authors: Neha Gupta, Sonika Verma, Seema Puri, Nikhil Tandon, Narendra K. Arora

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The concurrent increasing prevalence of underweight and overweight/obesity among children with changing lifestyle and the rapid transitioning society has necessitated the need for a unifying/multi-level approach to understand the determinants of the problem. The present community-based cross-sectional research study was conducted to assess the associations between lifestyle behavior and food environment of the child at household, neighborhood, and school with the BMI of children (6-12 year old) (n=612) residing in three rural clusters of Palwal district, Haryana. The study used innovative and robust methods for assessing the lifestyle and various components of food environment in the study. The three rural clusters selected for the study were located at three different locations according to their access to highways in the SOMAARTH surveillance site. These clusters were significantly different from each other in terms of their socio-demographic and socio-economic profile, living conditions, environmental hygiene, health seeking behavior and retail density. Despite of being different, the quality of living conditions and environmental hygiene was poor across three clusters. The children had higher intakes of dietary energy and sugars; one-fifth share of the energy being derived from unhealthy foods, engagement in high levels of physical activity and significantly different food environment at home, neighborhood and school level. However, despite having a high energy intake, 22.5% of the recruited children were thin/severe thin, and 3% were overweight/obese as per their BMI-for-age categories. The analysis was done using multi-variate logistic regression at three-tier hierarchy including individual, household and community level. The factors significantly explained the variability in governing the risk of getting thin/severe thin among children in rural area (p-value: 0.0001; Adjusted R2: 0.156) included age (>10years) (OR: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.0-4.4), the interaction between minority category and poor SES of the household (OR: 4.4; 95% CI: 1.6-12.1), availability of sweets (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.8-0.99) and cereals (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.8-1.0) in the household and poor street condition (proxy indicator of the hygiene and cleanliness in the neighborhood) (OR: 0.3; 95% CI: 0.1-1.1). The homogeneity of other factors at neighborhood and school level food environment diluted the heterogeneity in the lifestyles and home environment of the recruited children and their households. However, it is evident that when various individual factors interplay at multiple levels amplifies the risk of undernutrition in a rural community. Conclusion: These rural areas in Haryana are undergoing developmental, economic and societal transition. In correspondence, no improvements in the nutritional status of children have happened. Easy access to the unhealthy foods has become a paradox.

Keywords: transition, food environment, lifestyle, undernutrition, overnutrition

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Authors: Luai Z. Hasoun, Steven W. Bailey, Kitti K. Outlaw, June E. Ayling

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Human skin color is thought to have evolved to balance sufficient photochemical synthesis of vitamin D versus the need to protect not only DNA but also folate from degradation by ultraviolet light (UV). Although the risk of DNA damage and subsequent skin cancer is related to light skin color, the effect of UV on skin folate of any species is unknown. Here we show that UVA irradiation at 13 mW/cm2 for a total exposure of 187 J/cm2 (similar to a maximal daily equatorial dose) induced a significant loss of total folate in epidermis of ex vivo white skin. No loss was observed in black skin samples, or in the dermis of either color. Interestingly, while the concentration of 5 methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF) fell in white epidermis, a concomitant increase of tetrahydrofolic acid was found, though not enough to maintain the total pool. These results demonstrate that UVA indeed not only decreases folate in skin, but also rearranges the pool components. This could be due in part to the reported increase of NADPH oxidase activity upon UV irradiation, which in turn depletes the NADPH needed for 5-MTHF biosynthesis by 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase. The increased tetrahydrofolic acid might further support production of the nucleotide bases needed for DNA repair. However, total folate was lost at a rate that could, with strong or continuous enough exposure to ultraviolet radiation, substantially deplete light colored skin locally, and also put pressure on total body stores for individuals with low intake of folate.

Keywords: depletion, folate, human skin, ultraviolet

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Authors: Firdaus Khairi Abdul Kadir, Nazihah Rusli, Noor Aisyah Abdul Aziz

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Islam is a comprehensive religion encompassing all aspects of society’s life such as social, economic, political, cultural and environmental. The environment is part of the manifestation of God’s greatness which has pearls of wisdom, bestowed upon human beings to make them realize that everything is in the hands of God (Allah SWT). However, the equilibrium of nature could be disturbed from the excessive exploitation by humans’ hands. As a caliph on this earth, it is the responsibility of human beings to look after the environment proactively. Besides, Islam calls for the execution of accountable development and respecting the principles of sustainability. Therefore, this study focuses on the role of human beings as caliphs on this earth who are responsible for nature and their acts in conserving and preserving the environment based on the approach of religious education. This study also used the research method of the survey library.

Keywords: environment, human beings, caliph, tauhid, Allah SWT

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Authors: Oliver Takawira, Thembi Hope

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This study will analyse the relationship between Bitcoin price movements and the Johannesburg stock exchange (JSE). The aim is to determine whether Bitcoin price movements affect the stock market performance. As crypto currencies continue to gain prominence as a safe asset during periods of economic distress, this raises the question of whether Bitcoin’s prosperity could affect investment in the stock market. To identify the existence of a short run and long run linear relationship, the study will apply the Autoregressive Distributed Lag Model (ARDL) bounds test and a Vector Error Correction Model (VECM) after testing the data for unit roots and cointegration using the Augmented Dicker Fuller (ADF) and Phillips-Perron (PP). The Non-Linear Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (NARDL) will then be used to check if there is a non-linear relationship between bitcoin prices and stock market prices.

Keywords: bitcoin, stock market, interest rates, ARDL

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: Jade Bitomsky

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We all consume films on a daily basis. Yet, we frequently fail to recognize that these narratives shape our social, political, cultural, and economic values and attitudes. Narratives influence our perception; specifically, for this research, our perception of women within the genre of film noir. This creative research project examines to what extent film noir has perpetuated the male gaze and how noir’s representation of women has scripted female gender identity through perpetuated performative acts of femininity. Evolving from this research will be a deconstruction and (re)presentation of the femininity in noir. It will go beyond reiterated examinations, which developed awareness of Hollywood’s oppressive cinematic structures, to subvert the usual phallic diegesis and construct a female gaze in neo-noir screenplay, The Lonely Drive.

Keywords: femme fatale, film noir (classic), male gaze, neo-noir (contemporary), scopophilia

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Authors: Yu-Chieh Chen, Kuei-Feng Shen, Chia-Ling Chao

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The purpose of this report was to present the nursing experience and case of an unexpected cerebellar hemorrhagic stroke with acute hydrocephalus patient after lumbar spine surgery. The patient had been suffering from an emergent external ventricular drainage and stayed in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit from July 8, 2016, to July 22, 2016. During the period of the case, the data were collected for attendance, evaluation, observation, interview, searching medical record, etc. An integral evaluation of the patient's physiological 'psychological' social and spiritual states was also noted. The author noticed the following major nursing problems including ineffective cerebral perfusion 'physical activity dysfunction' family resource preparation for disability. The author provided nursing care to maintain normal intracranial pressure, along with a well-therapeutic relationship and applied interdisciplinary medical/nursing team to draft an individualized and appropriate nursing plan for them to face the psychosocial impact of the patient disabilities. We also actively participated in the rehabilitation treatments to improve daily activity and confidence. This was deemed necessary to empower them to a more positive attitude in the future.

Keywords: family resourace preparation inability, hemorrhagic sroke, ineffective tissue cerebral perfusion, lumbar spine surgery

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Authors: Nazanin Naderi, Milton Smith

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Since worldwide demand for renewable energy is increasing rapidly because of the climate problem and the limitation of fossil fuels, technologies of alternative energy sources have been developed and the electric power network now includes renewable energy resources such as wind energy. Because of the huge advantages that wind energy has, like reduction in natural gas use, price pressure, emissions of greenhouse gases and other atmospheric pollutants, electric sector water consumption and many other contributions to the nation’s economy like job creation it has got too much attention these days from different parts of the world especially in the United States which is trying to provide 20% of the nation’s energy from wind by 2030. This study is trying to evaluate the effect of splitting wind farms on power output. We are trying to find if we can get more output by installing wind turbines in different sites rather than installing all wind turbines in one site. Five potential sites in Texas have been selected as a case study and two years wind data has been gathered for these sites. Wind data are analyzed and effect of correlation between sites on power output has been evaluated. Standard deviation and autocorrelation effect has also been considered for this study. The paper has been organized as follows: After the introduction the second section gives a brief overview of wind analysis. The third section addresses the case study and evaluates correlation between sites, auto correlation of sites and standard deviation of power output. In section four we describe the results.

Keywords: auto correlation, correlation between sites, splitting wind farms, power output, standard deviation

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Authors: Endrick Barnacin, Jean-Luc Henry, Jimmy Nagau, Jack Molinie

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Palynology is a field of interest in many disciplines due to its multiple applications: chronological dating, climatology, allergy treatment, and honey characterization. Unfortunately, the analysis of a pollen slide is a complicated and time consuming task that requires the intervention of experts in the field, which are becoming increasingly rare due to economic and social conditions. That is why the need for automation of this task is urgent. A lot of studies have investigated the subject using different standard image processing descriptors and sometimes hand-crafted ones.In this work, we make a comparative study between classical feature extraction methods (Shape, GLCM, LBP, and others) and Deep Learning (CNN, Autoencoders, Transfer Learning) to perform a recognition task over 80 regional pollen species. It has been found that the use of Transfer Learning seems to be more precise than the other approaches

Keywords: pollens identification, features extraction, pollens classification, automated palynology

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Authors: Mohammad Samarah, Benjamin Stark, Jennifer Kindle, Langley Payton

Abstract:

Innovation is a key driver for companies, society, and economic growth. However, assessing and measuring innovation for individuals as well as organizations remains difficult. Our i5-Score presented in this study will help to overcome this difficulty and facilitate measuring the innovation potential. The score is based on a framework we call the 5Gs of innovation which defines specific innovation attributes. Those are 1) the drive for long-term goals 2) the audacity to generate new ideas, 3) the openness to share ideas with others, 4) the ability to grow, and 5) the ability to maintain high levels of optimism. To validate the i5-Score, we conducted a study at Florida Polytechnic University. The results show that the i5-Score is a good measure reflecting the innovative mindset of an individual or a group. Thus, the score can be utilized for evaluating, refining and enhancing innovation capabilities.

Keywords: Change Management, Innovation Attributes, Organizational Development, STEM and Venture Creation

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Authors: Julius Agaka Yusufu

Abstract:

This study undertakes the development of an optimal PV-diesel hybrid power system tailored to the specific energy landscape of Vimtim Mubi, Nigeria, utilizing real-world wind speed, solar radiation, and diesel cost data. Employing HOMER simulation, the research meticulously assesses the technical and financial viability of this hybrid configuration. Additionally, a rigorous performance comparison is conducted between the PV-diesel system and the conventional grid-connected alternative, offering crucial insights into the potential advantages and economic feasibility of adopting hybrid renewable energy solutions in regions grappling with energy access and reliability challenges, with implications for sustainable electrification efforts in similar communities worldwide.

Keywords: Vimtim-Nigeria, homer, renewable energy, PV-diesel hybrid system.

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Authors: M. Verde, G. Falzarano

Abstract:

The paper examines the connection between corporate social responsibility (CSR), capability approach and poverty reduction; in particular, the local employment development (LED) by way of CSR initiatives. The joint action of LED/CSR results in a win-win situation, not only for the enterprises but also for all the stakeholders involved; in this regard, subsidiarity and coordination between national and regional/local authorities are central to a socially-oriented market economy. In the first section, the CSR is analysed on the basis of its social function in the fight against poverty, as a 'capabilities deprivation'. In the central part, the attention is focused on the relationship between CSR and LED; ergo, on the role of the enterprises in fostering capabilities development (the employment). Besides, all the potential solutions are presented, stressing the possible combinations, in the last part. The benchmark is the enterprise as an economic and a social institution: the business should not be combined with profit merely, paying more attention to its sustainable impact and social contribution. In which way could it be possible? The answer is the CSR. The impact of CSR on poverty reduction is still little explored. The companies help to reduce poverty through economic contribution, human rights and social inclusion; hence, the business becomes an 'agent of development' in order to fight against 'inequality'. The starting point is the pyramid of social responsibility, where ethic and philanthropic responsibilities involve programmes and actions aimed at personal development of the individuals, improving human standard of living in all forms, including poverty, when people do not have a choice between different 'life options', ranging from level of education to employment. At this point, CSR comes into play and works on two dimensions: poverty reduction and poverty prevention, by means of a series of initiatives: first of all, job creation and precarious work reduction. Empowerment of the local actors, financial support and combination of top down and bottom up initiatives are some of CSR areas of activity. Several positive effects occur on individual levels of educations, access to capital, individual health status, empowerment of youth and woman, access to social networks and it was observed that these effects depend on the type of CSR strategy. Indeed, CSR programmes should take into account fundamental criteria, such as the transparency, the information about benefits, a coordination unit among institutions and more clear guidelines. In this way, the advantages to the corporate reputation and to the community translate into a better job matching on the labour market, inter alia. It is important to underline that the success depends on the specific measures of the areas in question, by adapting them to the local needs, in light of general principles and index; therefore, the concrete commitment of the all stakeholders involved is decisive in order to achieve the goals. The enterprise would represent a concrete contribution for the pursuit of sustainable development and for the dissemination of a social and well being awareness.

Keywords: capability approach, local employment development, poverty, social inclusion

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Authors: Aadya Kaktikar

Abstract:

The role of a traditional dance teacher in India revolves around teaching movements and postures that have been a part of the movement vocabulary of dancers from before the 2nd century BC. These movements inscribe on the mind and body of the dancer a complex web of philosophy, culture history, and religion. However, this repository of tradition sits in a fast globalizing India creating a cultural space which is in a constant flux, where identities and meanings are being constantly challenged. The guru-shishya parampara, the traditional way of learning dance, sits uneasily with a modern education space in India. The traditional dance teacher is caught in the cross-currents of tradition and modernity, of preservation and exploration. This paper explores conflicting views on what dance ought to mean and how it should be taught. The paper explores the tensions of the social, economic and cultural spaces that the traditional dance teacher navigates.

Keywords: pedagogy, dance education, dance curriculum, teacher training

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