Search results for: public employment service

Authors: Ayantika Biswas

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Hypertension still remains one of the most important preventable contributors to adult mortality and morbidity and a major public health challenge worldwide. Studying regional and rural-urban differences in prevalence and assessment of the contributions of different indicators is essential in determining the drivers of this condition. The 2015-16 National Family Health Survey data has been used for the study. Bivariate analysis, multinomial regression analysis, concentration indices and decomposition of concentration indices assessing contribution of factors has been undertaken in the present study. An overall concentration index of 0.003 has been found for hypertensive population, which shows its concentration among the richer wealth quintiles. The contribution of factors like age 45 to 49 years, years of schooling between 5 to 9 years are factors that are important contributors to inequality in hypertension occurrence. Studies should be conducted to find approaches to prevent or delay the onset of the condition.

Keywords: hypertension, decomposition, inequalities, India

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Authors: Zhai Yujia

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None of the scholars and researchers has ever stepped into this field, though there are quite a few papers worked on various topics relevant to cultural and economic globalization separately. Economic globalization is earlier than cultural globalization. Since the invention of currency, people have had the sense of making money for the purpose of living, supporting their families, or other personal reasons. Their strong desire for earning a living is one of the incentives to propel the trade, tourism and other related economic activities that provide the service within the homeland at first and expand into the whole world later, as the global markets grow and mature. The need for operation impels international communication or interaction. To achieve this, it is vital to realize or recognize other cultures to some degree, concluding language, customs, social etiquette and history of different nations. All this drives the cultural globalization process. In contrast, it is clear that the development of cultural globalization does accelerate the process of economic globalization in return. Under the guidance of Skopos theory (first proposed by Hans Vermeer, and its core principle is that the translation process is determined by the purpose), this paper aims to demonstrate that cultural globalization is not a process in isolation by analyzing its driving forces and retroaction thoroughly with an approach of overview. It intertwines with economic globalization. The two push each other to proper gradually during their development, serving as the indispensable parts of the globalization process.

Keywords: cultural globalization, driving forces, retroaction, Skopos theory

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Authors: Luiza Toschi

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This work presents part of an empirical and theoretical master's degree meta-research that is interested in the relationship between the disciplinary area of Social Communication, to be investigated with the characteristics of the Bourdieusian scientific field, and the emergence of public interest in Nonviolent Communication (NVC) in Brazil and the world. To this end, the state of the art of this conceptual and practical relationship is investigated based on scientific productions available in spaces of academic credibility, such as conferences and scientific journals renowned in the field. From there, agents and the sociological aspects that make them contribute or not to scientific production in Brazil and the world are mapped. In this work, a brief dive into the international context is presented to understand if and how nonviolent communication permeates scientific production in communication in a systematic way. Using three accessible articles published between 2013 and 2022 in the 117 magazines classified as Quartiles Q1 in the Journal Ranking of Communication, the international production on the subject is compared with the Brazilian one from its context. The social conditions of the international circulation of ideas are thus discussed. Science is a product of its social environment, arising from relations of interest and power that compete in the political dimension at the same time as in the epistemological dimension. In this way, scientific choices are linked to the resources mobilized from or through the prestige and recognition of peers. In this sense, an object of interest stands out to a scientist for its academic value, but also and inseparably that which has a social interest within the collective, their social stratification, and the context of legitimacy created in their surroundings, influenced by cultural universalism. In Brazil, three published articles were found in congresses and journals that mention NVC in their abstract or keywords. All were written by Public Relations undergraduate students. Between the most experienced researchers who guided or validated the publications, it is possible to find two professionals who are interested in the Culture of Peace and Dialogy. Likewise, internationally, only three of the articles found mention the term in their abstract or title. Two analyze journalistic coverage based on the principles of NVC and Journalism for Peace. The third is from one of the Brazilian researchers identified as interested in dialogic practices, who analyses audiovisual material and promotes epistemological reflections. If, on the one hand, some characteristics inside and outside Brazil are similar: small samples, relationship with peace studies, and female researchers, two of whom are Brazilian, on the other hand, differences are obvious. If within the country, the subject is mostly Organizational Communication, outside this intersection, it is not presented explicitly. Furthermore, internationally, there is an interest in analyzing from the perspective of NVC, which has not been found so far in publications in Brazil. Up to the present moment, it is possible to presume that, universally, the legitimacy of the topic is sought by its association with conflict conciliation research and communication for peace.

Keywords: academic field sociology, international circulation of ideas, meta research in communication, nonviolent communication

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Authors: Aliya Moreira, Blake Duffy, Sam Kosinski, Kate Heckman, Erika Steensma

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Introduction: The One Health initiative promotes recognition of the interrelatedness between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment. The field of comparative medicine studies the similarities and differences between humans and animals for the purpose of advancing medical sciences. Currently, medical school education is narrowly focused on human anatomy and physiology, but as the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated, a holistic understanding of health requires comprehension of the interconnection between health and the lived environment. To prepare future physicians for unique challenges from emerging zoonoses to climate change, medical students can benefit from exposure to and experience with One Health and Comparative Medicine content. Methods: In January 2020, an elective course for medical students on One Health and Comparative Medicine was created to provide medical students with the background knowledge necessary to understand the applicability of animal and environmental health in medical research and practice. The 2-week course was continued in January 2021, with didactic and experiential activities taking place virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In response to student feedback, lectures were added to expand instructional content on zoonotic and wildlife diseases for the second iteration of the course. Other didactic sessions included interprofessional lectures from 20 physicians, veterinarians, public health professionals, and basic science researchers. The first two cohorts of students were surveyed regarding One Health and Comparative Medicine concepts at the beginning and conclusion of the course. Results: 16 medical students have completed the comparative medicine course thus far, with 87.5% (n=14) completing pre-and post-course evaluations. 100% of student respondents indicated little to no exposure to comparative medicine or One Health concepts during medical school. Following the course, 100% of students felt familiar or very familiar with comparative medicine and One Health concepts. To assess course efficacy, questions were evaluated on a five-point Likert scale. 100% agreed or strongly agreed that learning Comparative Medicine and One Health topics augmented their medical education. 100% agreed or strongly agreed that a course covering this content should be regularly offered to medical students. Conclusions: Data from the student evaluation surveys demonstrate that the Comparative Medicine course was successful in increasing medical student knowledge of Comparative Medicine and One Health. Results also suggest that interprofessional training in One Health and Comparative Medicine is applicable and useful for medical trainees. Future iterations of this course could capitalize on the inherently interdisciplinary nature of these topics by enrolling students from veterinary and public health schools into a longitudinal course. Such recruitment may increase the course’s value by offering multidisciplinary student teams the opportunity to conduct research projects, thereby strengthening both the individual learning experience as well as sparking future interprofessional research ventures. Overall, these efforts to educate medical students in One Health topics should be reproducible at other institutions, preparing more future physicians for the diverse challenges they will encounter in practice.

Keywords: medical education, interprofessional instruction, one health, comparative medicine

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Authors: Muhammad A. Ishaq, S. U. R. Aliyu

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This paper on an exposition of Islamic fiscal policy attempts to discuss the basic principles of Islamic fiscal policy in an Islamic economy. The paper presents a number of definitions of the subject matter, its nature and its tools of application. Government spending, taxation and public borrowings were identified as the tools of the policy. The paper identifies zakat both as a veritable source of revenue and a major instrument of economic stabilization. Furthermore, the paper presents an algebraic 2-sector and 3-sector models from the basic Keynesian model. The paper posits that in view of uniqueness of its instruments, absence of interest rate in the economy and the policy’s derive towards socioeconomic justice and redistribution, Islamic fiscal policy is capable of stabilizing Islamic economy and ushering it into the path of long term economic growth and prosperity.

Keywords: automatic built-in-stabilizers, government spending, Islamic fiscal policy, taxation, zakat

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Authors: Hiroshi Nakayama, Yuji Ito

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Synthetic cannabinoids have attracted much public attention recently in Japan. 1-pentyl-3-(1-naphthoyl)-indole (JWH-018), 1-pentyl-2-methyl-3-(1-naphthoyl) indole (JWH-015), 1-(5-fluoropentyl)-3- (1-(2,2,3,3- tetramethylcyclopropyl)) indole (XLR-11) and 1-methyl-3- (1-admantyl) indole (JWH-018 adamantyl analog) are known as synthetic cannabinoids and are also considered dangerous illegal drugs in Japan. It has become necessary to develop sensitive and useful methods for detection of synthetic cannabinoids. We produced two monoclonal antibodies (MAb) against synthetic cannabinoids, named NT1 (IgG1) and NT2 (IgG1), using Hybridoma technology. The cross-reactivity of these produced MAbs was evaluated using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In the results, we found both of these antibodies recognize many kinds of synthetic cannabinoids analog. However, neither of these antibodies recognizes naphtoic acid, 1-methyl-indole and indole known as a raw material of synthetic cannabinoid. Thus, the MAbs produced in this study could be a useful tool for the detection of synthetic cannabinoids.

Keywords: ELISA, monoclonal antibody, sensor, synthetic cannabinoid

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Authors: Prapoj Na Bangchang

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The research aimed to study the satisfaction of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University students towards the university radio station which broadcasts in both analog on FM 97.25 MHz and online via the university website. The sample used in this study consists of undergraduate students year 1 to year 4 from 6 faculties i.e. Faculty of Education, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Faculty of Management Science and Faculty of Industrial Technology, and Faculty of Fine and Applied Arts totaling 200 students. The tools used for data collection is survey. Data analysis applied statistics that are percentage, mean and standard deviation. The results showed that Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University students were satisfied to the place of listening service, followed by channels of broadcasting that cover both analog signals on 97.25 MHz FM and online via the Internet. However, the satisfaction level of the content offered was very low. Most of the students want the station to improve the content. Entertainment content was requested the most, followed by sports content. The lowest satisfaction level is with the broadcasting quality through analog signal. Most students asked the station to improve on the issue. However, overall, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University students were satisfied with the university radio station broadcasted online via the university website.

Keywords: satisfaction, students, radio station, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University

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Authors: Lee Cahaner, Nissim Leon

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The segregation of populations is one of the main axes in the research of urban geography, which refers to the spatial and functional relationships between settlements. In Israel, this phenomenon has its unique expression in the spatial processes concerning the ultra-orthodox population. This population holds a set of interactions within itself as well as with the non-orthodox surrounding population because of historical and contemporary motivations on its which strength depends on its homogeneousness and separation. Its demographic growth rate and the internal social processes that the ultra-orthodox society undergoes create a new image of the ultra-orthodox concentration and its location in the Israeli space. The goals of the present study have also been defined with the express intention of filling the scholarly vacuum noted above: firstly, to discuss the development of the Israeli ultra-Orthodox sector’s hierarchical and spatial structure as of 2015, in light of the principles and mechanisms that guide it and vis-à-vis the general population’s hierarchical locality system; secondly, to map Israel’s ultra-Orthodox population, with attention to its physical boundaries, its subdivisions (Hassidic, Lithuanian, Sephardic) and the geographical and demographic processes that have characterized it in recent years; and thirdly, to shed light on the interactions between ultra-Orthodox localities via several different parameters, e.g. migration, education, transportation, employment, consumerism and community services. In order to understand the changes in ultra-Orthodox geographic distribution and the social processes that these changes have generated, a number of research activities were conducted during the course of this study− notably, gathering and assembling material from earlier academic studies, newspaper advertisements, state and private archives; in-depth interviews with major figures in the ultra-Orthodox community and others who come into contact with it; tours of the core areas of ultra-Orthodox settlement; and gathering quantitative and qualitative data from the statistical reports of governmental and other bodies. In addition, a multi-participant (2400-respondent) quantitative survey was conducted among residents of the new ultra-Orthodox cities, designed to elucidate the attributes and spatial attitudes of the residents− as a means of tracing and understanding this new settlement pattern within ultra-Orthodox space. A major portion of the quantitative and qualitative material was processed to form a system of maps that visually describe the distribution of Israel’s ultra-Orthodox population.

Keywords: migration, new cities, segregation, ultra-orthodox

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Authors: Ester B. Onag, Manuel Morga, Belen Tangco

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Evidence-based research attested that Climate Change is a global phenomenon that has a massive impact on the economy, the government and the people. To minimize its impact, the national government must undertake social orders to ensure the needs of the people by implementing developmental policies that provide adequate social service to improve the quality of life for all. This research attempts to evaluate the political accountability of the Sangguniang Barangay of Malabon on its readiness for climate change. Which, the theory of decentralization takes an active participation, where the the national policies for climate change are adopted by local ordinances and it is enforced, monitored, and reported through the Barangay ordinance enacted by the Sangguniang Barangay. This paper also analyzes certain factors anchored on the political accountability of the Sangguniang Barangay which determines the state of their readiness in climate change, such as the gravity of their accountability which extends beyond the lines of their responsibility as stated in the local government code. It also evaluated the degree of their capabilities in actual legislation, the nature of their prioritization through their enacted ordinances and the extent of participation from different stakeholders of barangay such as the sectoral representatives and the citizens in which their participation is a means that leads to community awareness.

Keywords: climate change, local government, Sangguniang Barangay, government

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Authors: Jeni Stolow, Lina Moses, Carl Kendall

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Zika virus (ZIKV) reemerged as a global threat in 2015 with Brazil at its epicenter. Brazilians have a long history of combatting Aedes aegypti mosquitos as it is a common vector for dengue, chikungunya, and yellow fever. As a response to the epidemic, public health authorities promoted ZIKV prevention behaviors such as mosquito bite prevention, reproductive counseling for women who are pregnant or contemplating pregnancy, pregnancy avoidance, and condom use. Most prevention efforts from Brazil focused on the mosquito vector- utilizing recycled dengue approaches without acknowledging the context in which women were able to adhere to these prevention messages. This study used qualitative methods to explore how women in Fortaleza, Brazil perceive ZIKV, the Brazilian authorities’ ZIKV prevention recommendations, and the feasibility of adhering to these recommendations. A core study aim was to look at how women perceive their physical, social, and natural environment as it impacts women’s ability to adhere to ZIKV prevention behaviors. A Rapid Anthropological Assessment (RAA) containing observations, informational interviews, and semi-structured in-depth interviews were utilized for data collection. The study utilized Grounded Theory as the systematic inductive method of analyzing the data collected. Interviews were conducted with 35 women of reproductive age (15-39 years old), who primarily utilize the public health system. It was found that women’s self-identified economic class was associated with how strongly women felt they could prevent ZIKV. All women interviewed technically belong to the C-class, the middle economic class. Although all members of the same economic class, there was a divide amongst participants as to who perceived themselves as higher C-class versus lower C-class. How women saw their economic status was dictated by how they perceived their physical, social, and natural environment. Women further associated their environment and their economic class to their likelihood of contracting ZIKV, their options for preventing ZIKV, their ability to prevent ZIKV, and their willingness to attempt to prevent ZIKV. Women’s perceived economic status was found to relate to their structural environment (housing quality, sewage, and locations to supplies), social environment (family and peer norms), and natural environment (wetland areas, natural mosquito breeding sites, and cyclical nature of vectors). Findings from this study suggest that women’s perceived environment and economic status impact their perceived feasibility and desire to attempt behaviors to prevent ZIKV. Although ZIKV has depleted from epidemic to endemic status, it is suggested that the virus will return as cyclical outbreaks like that seen with similar arboviruses such as dengue and chikungunya. As the next ZIKV epidemic approaches it is essential to understand how women perceive themselves, their abilities, and their environments to best aid the prevention of ZIKV.

Keywords: Aedes aegypti, environment, prevention, qualitative, zika

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Authors: Rahil Saeedi

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The imbalance in truck parking supply and demand can create important safety issues for truck drivers and the public. Research has shown that breaks at specific intervals can increase drivers’ alertness by reducing the monotony of the task. However, if fatigued truck drivers are unable to find a safe parking spot for rest, they may continue to drive or choose to park at remote and insecure areas or undesignated locations. All of these situations pose serious safety and security risks to truck drivers and other roadway users. This study uses 5-year truck crash data in Ohio to develop and test a framework for identifying crashes that happen as a result of imbalances in truck parking supply and demand. The societal impacts of these crashes are then interpreted as monetary values, calculated using the costs associated with various crash severity levels.

Keywords: truck parking, road safety, crash data, geofencing, driver fatigue, undesignated parking

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Authors: S. Surapa Raju

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In Andhra Pradesh, the symptoms of climate variations in coastal villages can be observed from various studies. The Andhra Pradesh coast is known its frequent tropical cyclones and associated floods and tidal surges causing loss of life and property in the region. In the last decade alone, the state experienced 18 devastating storms causing huge loss to coastal people. The year 2007 was the fourth warmest year on record since 1901 and 2009 witnessed the heat wave conditions prevailing over the coastal Andhra Pradesh. With regarding to sea level rise (SLR), 43 percent of the coastal areas considered to be at high risk. The main objectives of the study are: to know the perceptions of fisher people on climate variations and to find out the awareness of the fisher people on climate variations and its effects at village and on fishing households. Altogether 150 households were chosen purposively for this study and collected information from the households based on semi-structured schedule. The present field-based study observed that most of the fisher people are experienced about the changes in climate variations in their villages. The first generation fisher people expressed that the at least 1/2km of sea erosion taken place from the last 20 years and most of them displaced. With regard to fishing activities, first generation fisher people revealed that 20 years back they were fishing in near-shore areas, but now availability of near shore is decreased at a large extent. The present study observed the lot of variations in growth of species in marine districts of Andhra Pradesh from the year 2005-2010. Some species like Silver pomfret, Sole (flat fish), Chriocentrus, Thrisocies, Stakes, Rays etc. are in decaling. The results of the study indicate that huge variation observed in growth rates of fish species. Small and traditional fishers have drastically effected in El NiNo years than the normal years as they have not own suitable equipment such as crafts and nets. The study discovered that many changes taken place in the fishing activities and they are: go for long distance for fishing which increases the cost of fishing operations; decrease in fish catches. Need to take up in-depth studies in the marine villages and tackle the situation by creating more awareness about the negative effects of climate variations among fishing households. Suitable fish craft technology is to be supplied and create more employment opportunities for the fishers in other than fishery.

Keywords: climate, Andhra Pradesh, El nino years, India

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Authors: Niyiragira Sixte, Jules Verne Nakimana

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Introduction: Alcoholism is gradually becoming a public health issue due to its frequency, which continues to increase, especially in schools and at young ages. The general objective of the study was to contribute to the determination of the factors associated with alcohol consumption among young people. Methodology: This descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study entitled “Study of factors associated with alcohol consumption among young people aged 15 to 24. The study was conducted using a non-probability method, and the sampling technique was for convenience. The data collection technique used was the survey by questionnaire and the exploitation of the documentary. Microsoft Word 2013, Microsoft Excel 2.13 and EPI INFO7 software were used for this purpose. Results: The results of in study showed that 43.36% of the students surveyed took alcohol, and the factors associated with alcohol consumption are: religion, smoking and influence from friends. Conclusion: The prevalence of alcohol consumption among young people is very high, and awareness is more than necessary to prevent alcohol-related harm among young people.

Keywords: consumption, alcohol, young people, factors

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Authors: Wang Ye, Wei Wei

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Residential block construction of big cities in China began in the 1950s, and four models had far-reaching influence on modern residential block in its development process, including unit compound and residential district in 1950s to 1980s, and gated community and open community in 1990s to now. Based on analysis of the four models’ fabric, the article takes residential blocks in Hangzhou west area as an example and carries on the studies from urban structure level and block special level, mainly including urban road network, land use, community function, road organization, public space and building fabric. At last, the article puts forward semi-open sub-community strategy to improve the current fabric.

Keywords: Hangzhou west area, residential block model, residential block fabric, semi-open sub-community strategy

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Authors: Krithika Kumaragurubaran, Mannu Thareja

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Saving our planet Earth is the responsibility of every human being. Global warming and carbon emissions are killing our planet. We must adopt sustainable practices to give our future generations an equal opportunity to enjoy this planet Earth, our home. One of the most used unsustainable materials is plastic. Plastics are used everywhere. They are cheap, durable, strong, waterproof, non-corrosive with a long life. So longthat it makes plastic unsustainable. With this paper, we want to bring awareness on the usage of plastic in the organizations and how to reduce it by adopting sustainable practices powered by technology. We have taken a case study on the usage of photo ID cards, which are commonly used for authentication and authorization. These ID cards are used by employees or visitors to get access to the restricted areas inside the office buildings. The scale of these plastic cards can be in thousands for a bigger organization. This paper proposes smart alternatives to Identity and Access Management (IAM) which could replace the traditional method of using plastic ID cards. Further, the proposed solution is secure with multi-factor authentication (MFA), cost effective as there is no need to manage the supply chain of ID cards, provides instant IAM with self-service, and has the convenience of smart phone. Smart IAM is not only user friendly however also environment friendly.

Keywords: sustainability, reduce plastic, IAM (Identity and Access Management), multi-factor authentication

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Authors: Chiung-Hui Chen

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The Internet of Things (IoT) was designed for widespread convenience. With the smart tag and the sensing network, a large quantity of dynamic information is immediately presented in the IoT. Through the internal communication and interaction, meaningful objects provide real-time services for users. Therefore, the service with appropriate decision-making has become an essential issue. Based on the science of human behavior, this study employed the environment model to record the time sequences and locations of different behaviors and adopted the probability module of the hierarchical Hidden Markov Model for the inference. The statistical analysis was conducted to achieve the following objectives: First, define user behaviors and predict the user behavior routes with the environment model to analyze user purposes. Second, construct the hierarchical Hidden Markov Model according to the logic framework, and establish the sequential intensity among behaviors to get acquainted with the use and activity fabric of the intelligent environment. Third, establish the intensity of the relation between the probability of objects’ being used and the objects. The indicator can describe the possible limitations of the mechanism. As the process is recorded in the information of the system created in this study, these data can be reused to adjust the procedure of intelligent design services.

Keywords: behavior, big data, hierarchical hidden Markov model, intelligent object

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Authors: Siddharth Krishnaswamy

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Problem Statement: Currently, when analyzing household food security, the most commonly studied food access indicators are household income and expenditure. Larger studies do take into account other indices such as credit and employment. But these are baselines studies and by definition are conducted infrequently. Food security analysis for access is usually dedicated to analyzing income and expenditure indicators. And both these indicators are notoriously inconsistent. Yet this data can very often end up being the basis on which household food access is calculated; and by extension, be used for decision making. Objectives: This paper argues that along with income and expenditure, credit and debit information should be collected so that an accurate analysis of household food security (and in particular) food access can be determined. The lack of collection and analysis of this information routinely means that there is often a “masking” of the actual situation; a household’s food access and food availability patterns may be adequate mainly as a result of borrowing and may even be due to a long- term dependency (a debt cycle). In other words, such a household is, in reality, worse off than it appears a factor masked by its performance on basic access indicators. Procedures/methodologies/approaches: Existing food security data sets collected in 2005 in Azerbaijan, 2010 across Myanmar and 2014-15 across Uganda were used to support the theory that analyzing income and expenditure of a HHs and analyzing the same in addition to data on credit & borrowing patterns will result in an entirely different scenario of food access of the household. Furthermore, the data analyzed depicts food consumption patterns across groups of households and then relates this to the extent of dependency on credit, i.e. households borrowing money in order to meet food needs. Finally, response options that were based on analyzing only income and expenditure; and response options based on income, expenditure, credit, and borrowing – from the same geographical area of operation are studied and discussed. Results: The purpose of this work was to see if existing methods of household food security analysis could be improved. It is hoped that food security analysts will collect household level information on credit and debit and analyze them against income, expenditure and consumption patterns. This will help determine if a household’s food access and availability are dependent on unsustainable strategies such as borrowing money for food or undertaking sustained debts. Conclusions: The results clearly show the amount of relevant information that is missing in Food Access analysis if debit and borrowing of the household is not analyzed along with the typical Food Access indicators that are usually analyzed. And the serious repercussions this has on Programmatic response and interventions.

Keywords: analysis, food security indicators, response, resilience analysis

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Authors: Amel Hannech, Mehdi Adda, Hamid Mcheick

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In computer science, the purpose of finding useful information is still one of the most active and important research topics. The most popular application of information retrieval (IR) are Search Engines, they meet users' specific needs and aim to locate the effective information in the web. However, these search engines have some limitations related to the relevancy of the results and the ease to explore those results. In this context, we proposed in previous works a Multi-Space Search Engine model that is based on a multidimensional interpretation universe. In the present paper, we integrate an additional dimension that allows to offer users new research experiences. The added component is based on creating user profiles and calculating the similarity between them that then allow the use of collaborative filtering in retrieving search results. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed model, a prototype is developed. The experiments showed that the additional dimension has improved the relevancy of results by predicting the interesting items of users based on their experiences and the experiences of other similar users. The offered personalization service allows users to approve the pertinent items, which allows to enrich their profiles and further improve research.

Keywords: information retrieval, v-facets, user behavior analysis, user profiles, topical ontology, association rules, data personalization

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Authors: Alia El Akhrass, Raheed Al Jifri, Sara Babalghoum, Jana Bushnag

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This project delves into exploring the functionalities of Mailchimp, an artificial intelligence application. The objective is to comprehend its operations through the AI tools it offers. To achieve this, a survey was conducted among peers, seeking insights into Mailchimp's functionality, accessibility, efficiency, and overall benefits. The survey aimed to gather valuable feedback for analysis. Subsequently, a thorough analysis of the collected data was performed to identify trends, patterns, and areas of improvement. Visual representations were then crafted to effectively summarize the findings, aiding in conveying the research outcomes clearly. Founded in 2001, Mailchimp initially provided email marketing services but has since expanded into a comprehensive marketing platform. Its focus on simplicity and accessibility has contributed to its success among businesses of all sizes. Alternative platforms such as Constant Contact, AWeber, and GetResponse offer similar services with their own unique strengths. Mailchimp's journey exemplifies the importance of vision and adaptability in the ever-evolving digital marketing landscape. By prioritizing innovation, user-centricity, and customer service, Mailchimp has established itself as a trusted partner in the field of digital marketing, enabling businesses to effectively connect with their customers and achieve their marketing goals.

Keywords: email marketing, ai tool, connect, communicate, generate

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Authors: Angela Yicely Castro Garces

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Aware of the relevance that intercultural education has gained in foreign language learning and teaching, and acknowledging the need to make it part of our classroom practices, this literature review explores studies that have been published in the Colombian context from the years 2012 to 2019. The inquiry was done in six national peer-reviewed journals, in order to examine the population benefited, types of studies and most recurrent topics of concern for educators. The findings present a promising panorama as teacher educators from public universities are leading the way in conducting research projects aimed at fostering intercultural awareness and building a critical intercultural discourse. Nonetheless, more studies that involve the different stakeholders and contexts need to be developed, in order to make intercultural education more visible in Colombian elementary and high school classrooms.

Keywords: Colombian scholarship, foreign language learning, foreign language teaching, intercultural awareness

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Authors: Erin M. Durke, Monica L. McEntee, Meilu He, Suresh Dhaniyala

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Aerosols are one of the most important and significant surfaces in the atmosphere. They can influence weather, absorption, and reflection of light, and reactivity of atmospheric constituents. A notable feature of aerosol particles is the presence of a surface charge, a characteristic imparted via the aerosolization process. The existence of charge can complicate the interrogation of aerosol particles, so many researchers remove or neutralize aerosol particles before characterization. However, the charge is present in real-world samples, and likely has an effect on the physical and chemical properties of an aerosolized material. In our studies, we aerosolized different materials in an attempt to characterize the charge imparted via the aerosolization process and determine what impact it has on the aerosolized materials’ properties. The metal oxides, TiO₂ and SiO₂, were aerosolized expulsively and then characterized, using several different techniques, in an effort to determine the surface charge imparted upon the particles via the aerosolization process. Particle charge distribution measurements were conducted via the employment of a custom scanning mobility particle sizer. The results of the charge distribution measurements indicated that expulsive generation of 0.2 µm SiO₂ particles produced aerosols with upwards of 30+ charges on the surface of the particle. Determination of the degree of surface charging led to the use of non-traditional techniques to explore the impact of additional surface charge on the overall reactivity of the metal oxides, specifically TiO₂. TiO₂ was aerosolized, again expulsively, onto a gold-coated tungsten mesh, which was then evaluated with transmission infrared spectroscopy in an ultra-high vacuum environment. The TiO₂ aerosols were exposed to O₂, H₂, and CO, respectively. Exposure to O₂ resulted in a decrease in the overall baseline of the aerosol spectrum, suggesting O₂ removed some of the surface charge imparted during aerosolization. Upon exposure to H₂, there was no observable rise in the baseline of the IR spectrum, as is typically seen for TiO₂, due to the population of electrons into the shallow trapped states and subsequent promotion of the electrons into the conduction band. This result suggests that the additional charge imparted via aerosolization fills the trapped states, therefore no rise is seen upon exposure to H₂. Dosing the TiO₂ aerosols with CO showed no adsorption of CO on the surface, even at lower temperatures (~100 K), indicating the additional charge on the aerosol surface prevents the CO molecules from adsorbing to the TiO₂ surface. The results observed during exposure suggest that the additional charge imparted via aerosolization impacts the interaction with each probe gas.

Keywords: aerosols, charge, reactivity, infrared

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Authors: Ilona Krone

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Maternal smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of perinatal/postnatal negative health outcomes; however, only 1 in 5 pregnant smokers quit smoking. That is a clinical and public health problem. Pregnant smokers have negative paternal support, and higher levels of perceived stress than non-smokers and quitters return to smoking in a stressful situation. A crisis like the COVID-19 outbreak causes significant uncertainty and stress. For pregnant women, additional stress may increase due to concerns for their fetus. Strategies targeting maternal stress and isolation may be particularly useful to prevent negative outcomes for women and their fetuses. Within the post-doctoral study, cooperating with leading specialists, an innovative program for pregnant smokers will be developed. Feasibility for reducing craving, distress intolerance, Covid 19 related stress, and fear in pregnant women in Latvia will be assessed.

Keywords: COVID 19, mindfulness, motivation, pregnancy, smoking cessation

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Authors: Srinivasa Rao Idapalapati, Manssour Habbash

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As mobile connectedness continues to sweep across the landscape, the value of deploying mobile technology to the service of learning and teaching appears to be both self-evident and unavoidable. To this end, this study explores the reasons for the reluctance of teachers in Saudi Arabia to use mobiles in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classes for teaching and learning purposes. The main objective of this study is a qualitative analysis of the responses of the views of the teachers at a university in Saudi Arabia about the use of mobile phones in classrooms for educational purposes. Driven by the hypothesis that the teachers in Saudi Arabian universities aren’t prepared well enough to use mobile phones in classrooms for educational purposes, this study examines the data obtained through a questionnaire provided to about hundred teachers working at a university in Saudi Arabia through convenient sampling method. The responses are analyzed by qualitative interpretive method and found that teachers and the students are in confusion whether to use mobiles, and need some training sessions on the use of mobile phones in classrooms for educational purposes. The outcome of the analysis is discussed in light of the concerns bases adoption model and the inferences are provided in a descriptive mode.

Keywords: mobile assisted language learning, technology adoption, classroom instruction, concerns based adoption model

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Authors: Mohd Mudasir Shafi, Zafrul Hasan, Talat Saleem

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Information and communication Technology (ICT) services have been defined as a route to good governance. Introduction of ICT into Governance has given rise to the idea of e-governance which helps in enhancing transparency, generating accountability and responsiveness in the system in order to provide faster and quality service to the citizen. Advancement in ICT has provided governments all over the world to speed up the delivery of information and services to citizens and businesses and increase their participation in governance. There has been varying degree of success over the past decade into providing services to the citizens using internet and different web services. These e-government initiatives have been extensively researched. Our research is aimed at the transition from electronic government to mobile government (m-government) initiatives implementing the mobile services and concerned to understand the major factors which will aid to adoption and distribution of these services. There must be some amount of research done in the integration process between e-government and m-government. There must also be enough amount of investigation done all the factors that could affect the transition process. Such factors differ between different places and the advancement in information and technology available there. In this paper, we have discussed why mobile communication system can be used for effective e-governance and the areas where m-governance can be implemented. The paper will examine some of the reasons as well as the main opportunities for improving effective governance through mobile phones.

Keywords: e-governance, mobile phones, information technology, m-government

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Authors: Chunfang Zhou

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The growing issues of sustainability have increased the discussions on how to foster “green engineers” from diverse perspectives in both contexts of education and organizations. As creativity has been considered as the first stage of innovation process that can also be regarded as a path to sustainability, this paper will particularly propose creativity as a scientific literacy meaning a collection of awareness, ability, and skills about sustainability. From this sense, creativity should be an element in IT engineering education and organizational learning programmes, since IT engineers are one group of key actors in designing, researching and developing social media products that are most important channels of improving public awareness of sustainability. This further leads this paper to discuss by which pedagogical strategies and by which training methods in organizations, creativity and sustainability can be integrated into IT engineering education and IT enterprise innovation process in order to meeting the needs of ‘creative engineers’ in the society changes towards sustainability. Accordingly, this paper contributes to future work on the links between creativity, innovation, sustainability, and IT engineering development both theoretically and practically.

Keywords: creativity, innovation, IT engineers, sustainability

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Authors: R. B. B. Samantha Ramachandra, L. D. J. Upul Senarath, S. H. Padmal De Silva

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Dietary pattern largely differs over countries and even within a country, it shows cultural differences. The dietary pattern changes the energy consumption and micronutrient intake, directly affects the pregnancy outcome. The dietary diversity was used as an indirect measure to assess micronutrient adequacy for pregnant mothers in this study. The study was conducted as a baseline survey with the objective of designing an intervention to improve the dietary diversity of pregnant mothers in Sri Lanka. The survey was conducted in Kalutara district of Sri Lanka in 2015 among 769 pregnant mothers at different gestational ages. Dietary diversity questionnaire developed by Food and Agricultural Organization’s (FAO) Food and Nutrition technical Assistance (FANTA) II project, recommended for cross-country use with adaptations was used for data collection. Trained data collectors met pregnant mothers at field ante-natal clinic and questioned on last 24hr dietary recall with portion size and coded food items to identify the diversity. Pregnant mothers were identified from randomly selected 21 clusters of public health midwife areas. 81.5% mothers (n=627) in the sample had been registered at Public Health Midwife (PHM) before 8 weeks of gestation. 24.4% of mothers were with low starting BMI and 22.7% mothers were with high starting BMI. 47.6% (n=388) mothers had abstained from at least one food item during the pregnancy. The food group with the highest consumption was rice (98.4%) followed by sugar (89.9%). 76.1% mothers had consumed milk, 73% consumed fish and sea foods. Consumption of green leaves was 52% and Vit A rich foods consumed only by 49% mothers. Animal organs, flesh meat and egg all showed low prevalence as 4.7%, 21.6% and 20% respectively. Consumption of locally grown roots, nut, legumes all showed very low prevalence. Consumption of 6 or more food groups was considered as good dietary diversity (DD), 4 to 5 food groups as moderate diversity and 3 or less food groups as poor diversity by FAO FANTA II project. 42.1% mothers demonstrated good DD while another 42.1% recorded moderate diversity. Working mothers showed better DD (51.6%, n=82/159) compared to housewives in the sample (chi = 10.656a,. df=2, p=0.005). The good DD showed gradual improvement from 43.1% to 55.5% along the poorest to richest wealth index (Chi=48.045, df=8 and p=0.000). DD showed significant association with the ethnicity and Moors showed the lowest DD. DD showed no association with the home gardening even though where better diversity expected among those who have home gardening (p=0.548). Sri Lanka is a country where many food items can be grown in the garden and semi-urban setting have adequate space for gardening. Many Sri Lankan mothers do not add homegrown items in their meal. At the same time, their consumption of animal food shows low prevalence. The DD of most of the mothers being either moderate or low (58%) may result from inadequate micro nutrient intake during pregnancy. It is recommended that adding green leaves, locally grown vegetables, roots, nuts and legumes can help increasing the DD of Sri Lankan mothers at low cost.

Keywords: dietary diversity, pregnant mothers, micro-nutrient, food groups

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Authors: Tien Wei Daniel Hwang

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The computer program inventors, particularly in Fintech, are unwilling to apply for patents in Taiwan after 2014. Passing the ‘statutory subject matter eligibility’ test and becoming the system patent are not the only cause to the reduction in the number of application. Taiwanese court needs to resolve whether the defendants had ‘used’ that software patent in patent direct infringement suit. Both 35 U.S.C. § 271(a) and article 58 paragraph 2 of Taiwan Patent Law don’t define the meaning of ‘use’ in the statutes. Centillion Data Sys., LLC v. Qwest Commc’ns Int’l, Inc. reconsidered the meaning of ‘use’ in system patent infringement, and held that ‘a party must put the invention into service, i.e., control the system as a whole and obtain benefit from it.’ In Taiwan, Intellectual Property Office, Ministry of Economic Affairs, has explained that ‘using’ the patent is ‘achieving the technical effect of the patent.’ Nonetheless, this definition is too broad to apply to not only the software patent but also the traditional patent. To supply the friendly environment for Fintech corporations, this article aims to let Taiwanese court realize why and how United States District Court, S.D. Indiana, Indianapolis Division and United States Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit defined the meaning of ‘use’ in 35 U.S.C. § 271(a). However, this definition is so lax and confuses many defendants in United States. Accordingly, this article indicates the elements in Taiwan Patent Law are different with 35 U.S.C. § 271(a), so Taiwanese court can follow the interpretation of ‘use’ in Centillion Data case without the same obstacle.

Keywords: direct infringement, FinTech, software patent, use

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Authors: Gebrehiwot H., Giorgis Bahita

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Firms in Africa experience less financial market in comparison to other emerging and developed countries, thus lagging behind the rest of the world in terms of innovation and growth. Though there are different factors to be considered, underdeveloped financial systems take the lion's share in hindering firm innovation and growth in Africa. Insufficient capacity to innovate is one of the problems facing African businesses. Moreover, a critical challenge faced by firms in Africa is access to finance and the inability of financially constrained firms to grow. Only little is known about how different sources of finance affect firm innovation and growth in Africa, specifically the formal and informal finance effect on firm innovation and growth. This study's aim is to address this gap by using formal and informal finance for working capital and fixed capital and its role in firm innovation and firm growth using firm-level data from the World Bank enterprise survey 2006-2019 with a total of 5661 sample firms from 14 countries based on available data on the selected variables. Additionally, this study examines factors for accessing credit from a formal financial institution. The logit model is used to examine the effect of finance on a firm’s innovation and factors to access formal finance, while the Ordinary List Square (OLS) regression mode is used to investigate the effect of finance on firm growth. 2SLS instrumental variables are used to address the possible endogeneity problem in firm growth and finance-innovation relationships. A result from the logistic regression indicates that both formal and informal finance used for working capital and investment in fixed capital was found to have a significant positive association with product and process innovation. In the case of finance and growth, finding show that positive association of both formal and informal financing to working capital and new investment in fixed capital though the informal has positive relations to firm growth as measured by sale growth but no significant association as measured by employment growth. Formal finance shows more magnitude of effect on innovation and growth when firms use formal finance to finance investment in fixed capital, while informal finance show less compared to formal finance and this confirms previous studies as informal is mainly used for working capital in underdeveloped economies like Africa. The factors that determine credit access: Age, firm size, managerial experience, exporting, gender, and foreign ownership are found to have significant determinant factors in accessing credit from formal and informal sources among the selected sample countries.

Keywords: formal finance, informal finance, innovation, growth

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Authors: Magdalena Kuleta

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Ponta de Piedade (37º05 ' N, 08º40 ' W) is an area located in the southern part of the Lagos municipality, which include an abrasive and accumulative type of coastline. It is the one of the main touristic destinations of the city. The dynamic development of the attractiveness of the coast, is related with the expansion of the new tourism infrastructure and urban tourism products. These products are: transportation, sightseeing and entertainment in the form of the boat trips. Each type of excursion refers to the different product. This progress brings also many risks associated primarily with landslides cliffs. Natural conditions affecting the coast, create a huge impact on the evolution of urban tourism management. Based on observation, statistical analysis and survey method, author compare the period of six years from 2012 to 2016 in terms of the number of tourists, number and diversity of attractions, most frequently dialled products and infrastructure changes in the city. Carried methodology is based on data belonging to Turismo Portugal and the tourist company Days of Adventure. Main result, is to indicate the essence of the income from coastal tourism into the city development and how does it influence on the marketing and promoting of urban tourism in Lagos.

Keywords: geomorphology of the coast in Lagos, market and promotion, quality of tourism service, urban tourism products

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Authors: Omar Abdillah, Mirna Adriani

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In this work, we perform new approach for analyzing public sentiment towards the presidential candidate in the 2014 Indonesian election that expressed in Twitter. In this study we propose such procedure for analyzing sentiment over Indonesian political message by understanding the behavior of Indonesian society in sending message on Twitter. We took different approach from previous works by utilizing punctuation mark and Indonesian sentiment lexicon that completed with the new procedure in determining sentiment towards the candidates. Our experiment shows the performance that yields up to 83.31% of average precision. In brief, this work makes two contributions: first, this work is the preliminary study of sentiment analysis in the domain of political message that has not been addressed yet before. Second, we propose such method to conduct sentiment analysis by creating decision making procedure in which it is in line with the characteristic of Indonesian message on Twitter.

Keywords: unsupervised sentiment analysis, political message, lexicon based, user behavior understanding

Procedia PDF Downloads 470