Search results for: stable beach plan form

Authors: Mokhtar Nikgoo

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Definition of Concrete and Concreting: Concrete (in French: Béton) in a broad sense is any substance or combination that consists of a sticky substance with the property of cementation. In general, concrete refers to concrete made by Portland cement, which is produced by mixing fine and coarse aggregates, Portland cement and water. After enough time, this mixture turns into a stone-like substance. During the hardening or processing of the concrete, cement is chemically combined with water to form strong crystals that bind the aggregates together, a process called hydration. During this process, significant heat is released called hydration heat. Additionally, concrete shrinks slightly, especially as excess water evaporates, a phenomenon known as drying shrinkage. The process of hardening and the gradual increase in concrete strength that occurs with it does not end suddenly unless it is artificially interrupted. Instead, it decreases more over long periods of time, although, in practical applications, concrete is usually set after 28 days and is considered at full design strength. Concrete may be made from different types of cement as well as pozzolans, furnace slag, additives, additives, polymers, fibers, etc. It may also be used in the way it is made, heating, water vapor, autoclave, vacuum, hydraulic pressures and various condensers.

Keywords: concrete, RCC, batching, cement, Pozzolan, mixing plan

Procedia PDF Downloads 78

Authors: Kourosh Ghaffari, Baghaei Azhang

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This study aims to address two main questions whether a camp designed for refugees will affect their quality of life and how to effectively incorporate ecotech architecture into the architectural design of a refugee camp. The current study planned to ensure that the final design reflects the principles of ecotech architecture in most refugee camps. The design process has taken into account various factors, including flexibility, diversity in the camp space according to the ecotech approach, expandability in the building, spatial hierarchy in the design of camp spaces, and the assignment of territories and space sanctuaries to refugees. It should be noted that this study is not a research-oriented type of study and is only limited to collecting information and making hypotheses and questions related to the plan. The researchers attempted to provide a general summary of similar domestic and foreign examples and examine them in similar conditions using the ecotech architecture. The research method utilized in this study was qualitative. Afterwards, the climate studies of the target area, citing and paying attention to the criteria and points extracted from the theoretical framework, reaching the desired conclusion and examining similar examples were followed. Additionally, placement on the site, compliance with relevant standards and regulations, attention to the content and physical program, and addressing the idea and its evolution in all the details of the plan were presented. The data collection procedure included observation and library studies, and the design method was to determine and recognize the subject and examine similar samples. In conclusion, the principles of theoretical foundations, the design protocols in ecotech architecture and the scope of the study are dealt. Furthermore, the site analysis, the design process and the final plan are presented.

Keywords: ecotech architecture, livable city, shelter, refugee camp

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Authors: Rahman Abdullayev

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Rituals took place during the rock art production or in the rock art sites can be found reflection in contemporary culture. But the form of rituals was conducted in association with rock art production still uncertain. The main purpose of this research is to define the form of ritual activities that took place in the rock art sites, by the example of Bronze Age rock art of Gobustan. For ritual activity location of the rocks which were selected for making petroglyphs has important significance. Thus, not all the rocks which were suitable for rock art were used for this purpose. If in Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic periods Gobustan inhabitants executed petroglyphs on the wall of rock shelters, but in Bronze Age they made it on rocks which are in front of the large, open spaces. A recent study of the location of Bronze Age rock art of Gobustan and involving ethnographic information to the interpretation of drawings allows defining the form of rituals which took place in Gobustan at Bronze Age.

Keywords: Bronze Age, Gobustan, ritual, rock art

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Authors: M. Umar Dahot, G. S. Mangrio

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In this study Agro-industrial waste was used as a carbon source, which is a low cost substrate. Along with this, various sugars and molasses of 2.5% and 5% were investigated as substrate/carbon source for the growth of A.niger and Pectinase production. Different nitrogen sources were also used. An overview of results obtained show that 5% sucrose, 5% molasses and 0.4% (NH4)2SO4 were found the best carbon and nitrogen sources for the production of pectinase by A. niger. The maximum production of pectinase (26.87units/ml) was observed at pH 6.0 after 72 hrs incubation. The optimum temperature for the maximum production of pectinase was achieved at 35ºC when maximum production of pectinase was obtained as 28.25Units/ml.Pectinase enzyme was purified with ammonium sulphate precipitation and dialyzed sample was finally applied on gel filtration chromatography (Sephadex G-100) and Ion Exchange DEAE A-50. The enzyme was purified 2.5 fold by gel chromatography on Sephadex G-100 and Four fractions were obtained, Fraction 1, 2, 4 showed single band while Fraction -3 showed multiple bands on SDS Page electrophoresis. Fraction -3 was pooled, dialyzed and separated on Sephdex A-50 and two fractions 3a and 3b showed single band. The molecular weights of the purified fractions were detected in the range of 33000 ± 2000 and 38000± 2000 Daltons. The purified enzyme was specifically most active with pure pectin, while pectin, Lemon pectin and orange peel given lower activity as compared to (control). The optimum pH and temperature for pectinase activity was found between pH 5.0 and 6.0 and 40°- 50°C, respectively. The enzyme was stable over the pH range 3.0-8.0. The thermostability of was determined and it was observed that the pectinase activity is heat stable and retains activity more than 40% when incubated at 90°C for 10 minutes. The pectinase activity of F3a and F3b was increased with different metal ions. The Pectinase activity was stimulated in the presence of CaCl2 up to 10-30%. ZnSO4, MnSO4 and Mg SO4 showed higher activity in fractions F3a and F3b, which indicates that the pectinase belongs to metalo-enzymes. It is concluded that A. niger is capable to produce pH stable and thermostable pectinase, which can be used for industrial purposes.

Keywords: pectinase, a. niger, production, purification, characterization

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Authors: Vijay R. Patil, Sathiyanarayanan Lohidasan, K. R. Mahadik

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Gastrointestinal stability of andrographolide was evaluated in vitro in simulated gastric (SGF) and intestinal (SIF) fluids using a validated HPLC-PDA method. The method was validated using a 5μm ThermoHypersil GOLD C18column (250 mm × 4.0 mm) and mobile phase consisting of water: acetonitrile; 70: 30 (v/v) delivered isocratically at a flow rate of 1 mL/min with UV detection at 228 nm. Andrographolide in pure form and extract Andrographis paniculata was incubated at 37°C in an incubator shaker in USP simulated gastric and intestinal fluids with and without enzymes. Systematic protocol as per FDA Guidance System was followed for stability study and samples were assayed at 0, 15, 30 and 60 min intervals for gastric and at 0, 15, 30, 60 min, 1, 2 and 3 h for intestinal stability study. Also, the stability study was performed up to 24 h to see the degradation pattern in SGF and SIF (with enzyme and without enzyme). The developed method was found to be accurate, precise and robust. Andrographolide was found to be stable in SGF (pH ∼ 1.2) for 1h and SIF (pH 6.8) up to 3 h. The relative difference (RD) of amount of drug added and found at all time points was found to be < 3%. The present study suggests that drug loss in the gastrointestinal tract takes place may be by membrane permeation rather than a degradation process.

Keywords: andrographolide, Andrographis paniculata, in vitro, stability, gastric, Intestinal HPLC-PDA

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Authors: Takeo Shibata, Arihito Endo, Akemi Kunimatsu, Chika Hiraga, Yoko Shimizu

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Introduction: Yuzawa Town, located in the Niigata prefecture of Japan, is famous for its hot springs. A health promotion program, Yuzawa family health plan, was initiated in 2002. It has been held for fifteen years. We evaluated the profiles of brushing teeth in adults. Subjects: 368 questionnaires were corrected from people who live in Yuzawa town. The range of age was between nineteen and sixty-four years old. Methods: Mann-Whitney’s U test and Kruskal-Wallis test were used to evaluate significant differences in frequencies of brushing teeth per a day. Chi-square test and the adjusted residuals were used to evaluate when they brush their teeth. Results: Women showed greater frequencies of brushing teeth per a day than men. No difference was shown by age. Construction workers showed fewer frequencies of brushing teeth. Specialized technicians, clerical workers, and housewives showed greater frequencies. People who know Yuzawa family health plan, take a regular life, or take a breakfast every day showed greater frequencies. People who think not healthy, don’t care a balance of foods, don’t take yearly health check-up, or smoke showed fewer frequencies. After breakfast, women and specialized technicians showed greater frequencies, and construction workers and self-employed workers showed fewer frequencies. After lunch, clerical workers and specialized technicians showed greater frequencies. There was no significant difference at after waking up, after dinner, and before going to bed. Construction workers showed a lower rate of having a marital partner and having information of health. Conclusion: Gender and occupational differences were shown in frequencies of brushing teeth per a day. A promotion of teeth brushing for male, especially construction workers and self-employed workers, is needed.

Keywords: health promotion, Yuzawa family health plan, brushing teeth, occupational difference

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Authors: Wen-Bin Liau, Wan-Ting Wang, Chiang-Jen Hsiao, Sheng-Mao Tseng

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In this paper, an interesting and easy method to prepare one-dimensional nanostructured polyaniline/dendritic silver composites is reported. It is well known that the morphology of metal particle is a very important factor to influence the properties of polymer-metal composites. Usually, the dendritic silver is prepared by kinetic control in reduction reaction. It is not a thermodynamically stable structure. It is the goal to reduce silver ion to dendritic silver by polyaniline polymer via kinetic control and form one-dimensional nanostructured polyaniline/dendritic silver composites. The preparation is a two steps sequential reaction. First step, the polyaniline networks composed of nano fibrillar polyaniline are synthesized from aniline monomers aqueous with ammonium persulfate as the initiator at room temperature. In second step, the silver nitrate is added into polyaniline networks dispersed in deionized water. The dendritic silver is formed via reduction by polyaniline networks under the kinetic control. The formation of polyaniline is discussed via transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Nanosheets, nanotubes, nanospheres, nanosticks, and networks are observed via TEM. Then, the mechanism of formation of one-dimensional nanostructured polyaniline/dendritic silver composites is discussed. The formation of dendritic silver is observed by TEM and X-ray diffraction.

Keywords: 1D nanostructured polyaniline, dendritic silver, synthesis

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Authors: Mustopa, Nadya R. Susilo, Rhizal D. Nuva

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This study aims to determine the application of animal welfare in Garut sheep fighting contest at West Java. This study conducted by survey and discussion methods with 5 Garut sheep owners in the contest. The animal welfare is going to be proved by observing the condition of the cage, the cleanliness of it, the health of the sheep, feeding and water, also owner treatments for their sheep that will be served as a fighter. Observations made using stable conditions ACRES form with assessment scores ranged from 1 = very poor, 2 = poor, 3 = regular, 4 = good and 5 = very good, animal welfare conditions seen by conducting observations and interviews with garut sheep owners. The result shows that the Garut sheep fighting contest has fulfilled the criteria of animal welfare application. Application of animal welfare principle by the owner of Garut sheep terms of ACRES (Animal Concerns Research and Education Society) below standard, the average score obtained was 1.76 which is mean in a very bad ratings. Besides considering the animal welfare application, sheep owners also do special treatments for their Garut sheep with the purpose to produce fighters that are healthy and strong. So, if the sheep wins in Garut sheep fight contest, it will purchase a high-value prices.

Keywords: animal welfare, contest, garut sheep, sheep fighting

Procedia PDF Downloads 263

Authors: Gon Park

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Seoul in South Korea established the 2030 Seoul City Master Plan that contains green-link projects to connect critical green areas within the city. However, the plan does not have detailed analyses for green infrastructure to incorporate land-cover information to many structural classes. This study maps green infrastructure networks of Seoul for complementing their green plans with identifying and raking green areas. Hubs and links of main elements of green infrastructure have been identified from incorporating cadastral data of 967,502 parcels to 135 of land use maps using geographic information system. Network analyses were used to rank hubs and links of a green infrastructure map with applying a force-directed algorithm, weighted values, and binary relationships that has metrics of density, distance, and centrality. The results indicate that network analyses using cadastral parcel data can be used as the framework to identify and rank hubs, links, and networks for the green infrastructure planning under a variable scenarios of green areas in cities.

Keywords: cadastral data, green Infrastructure, network analysis, parcel data

Procedia PDF Downloads 183

Authors: Josef Drahorad, Milos Beran, Ondrej Vltavsky, Marian Urban, Martin Fronek, Jiri Sova

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Engineering efforts of researchers of the Food research institute Prague and the Czech Technical University in spray drying technologies led to the introduction of a demonstrator ATOMIZER and a new technology of Carbon Dioxide-Assisted Spray Nebulization Drying (CASND). The equipment combines the spray drying technology, when the liquid to be dried is atomized by a rotary atomizer, with Carbon Dioxide Assisted Nebulization - Bubble Dryer (CAN-BD) process in an original way. A solution, emulsion or suspension is saturated by carbon dioxide at pressure up to 80 bar before the drying process. The atomization process takes place in two steps. In the first step, primary droplets are produced at the outlet of the rotary atomizer of special construction. In the second step, the primary droplets are divided in secondary droplets by the CO2 expansion from the inside of primary droplets. The secondary droplets, usually in the form of microbubbles, are rapidly dried by warm air stream at temperatures up to 60ºC and solid particles are formed in a drying chamber. Powder particles are separated from the drying air stream in a high efficiency fine powder separator. The product is frequently in the form of submicron hollow spheres. The CASND technology has been used to produce microparticulated protein concentrates for human nutrition from alternative plant sources - hemp and canola seed filtration cakes. Alkali extraction was used to extract the proteins from the filtration cakes. The protein solutions after the alkali extractions were dried with the demonstrator ATOMIZER. Aerosol particle size distribution and concentration in the draying chamber were determined by two different on-line aerosol spectrometers SMPS (Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer) and APS (Aerodynamic Particle Sizer). The protein powders were in form of hollow spheres with average particle diameter about 600 nm. The particles were characterized by the SEM method. The functional properties of the microparticulated protein concentrates were compared with the same protein concentrates dried by the conventional spray drying process. Microparticulated protein has been proven to have improved foaming and emulsifying properties, water and oil absorption capacities and formed long-term stable water dispersions. This work was supported by the research grants TH03010019 of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic.

Keywords: carbon dioxide-assisted spray nebulization drying, canola seed, hemp seed, microparticulated proteins

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Authors: Murphy P. Mohammed, Rita E. Pulmano

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This study determined the cases of violence against women in selected barangays of Tarlac City. In this research, the following questions were answered: what is the description of the cases on violence against women?; what are the causes of violence against women?; what support/assistance is provided by the LGUs?; and what plan of action can be proposed to improve the VAW services of the barangays? The methodologies used in the present study are qualitative and descriptive researches. The researchers used documentary analysis and interview to gather data. The subjects of the study are violence against women survivors from the selected ten (10) populous barangays of Tarlac City. Physical abuse, mental abuse, threatening, abandonment of children, child support issues, child custody, psychological abuse, economic abuse, and rape are the other recorded cases among the evaluated barangays. Based on the information, the researchers found out that a VAW desk was established in every respondent barangay. This in compliance with Section 12 D, Rule IV of the Rules and Regulations Implementing the Magna Carta of Women, which provides for the establishment of a VAW desk in every barangay to ensure that violence against women cases are fully addressed in a gender-responsive manner.

Keywords: Barangay VAW desk, cases of violence against women, violence against women, women's studies

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Authors: Jyun-Hao Liao, Chien-Ju Chen, Chia-Jui Yu, Meng Chyi Wu, Chia-Ching Wu

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In this letter, we reported the fabrication of InGaAs micro-photodiode sensor array with the rapid thermal diffusion (RTD) technique. The spin-on dopant source Zn was used to form the p-type region in InP layer. Through the RTD technique, the InP/InGaAs heterostructure was formed. We improved our fabrication on the p-i-n photodiode to micro size which pixel is 7.8um, and the pitch is 12.8um. The proper SiNx was deposited to form the passivation layer. The leakage current of single pixel decrease to 3.3pA at -5V, and 35fA at -10mV. The leakage current densities of each voltage are 21uA/cm² at -5V and 0.223uA/cm² at -10mV. As we focus on the wavelength from 0.9um to 1.7um, the optimized Si/Al₂O₃ bilayers are deposited to form the AR-coating.

Keywords: InGaAs, micro sensor array, p-i-n photodiode, rapid thermal diffusion, Zn diffusion

Procedia PDF Downloads 299

Authors: Ashenafi Ayele, Shewit Haftu, Tesfalem Araya

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Background: “Post-psychotic depression”, “post schizophrenic depression”, and “secondary depression” have been used to describe the occurrence of depressive symptoms during the chronic phase of schizophrenia. Post-psychotic depression is the most common cause of death due to suicide in schizophrenia patients. Overall lifetime risk for patients with schizophrenia is 50% for suicide attempts and 9-13% lifetime risk for completed suicide and also it is associated with poor prognosis and poor quality of life. Objective: To assess determinant of post psychotic depression in schizophrenia patients ACSH and Mekelle General Hospital, Tigray Ethiopia 2019. Methods: An institutional based unmatched case control study was conducted among 69 cases and 138 controls with the ratio of case to control 1 ratio 2. The sample is calculated using epi-info 3.1 to assess the determinant factors of post-psychotic depression in schizophrenia patients. The cases were schizophrenia patients who have been diagnosed at least for more than one-year stable for two months, and the controls are any patients who are diagnosed as schizophrenia patients. Study subjects were selected using a consecutive sampling technique. The Calgary depression scale for schizophrenia self-administered questionnaire was used. Before the interview, it was assessed the client’s capacity to give intended information using a scale called the University of California, San Diego Brief Assessment of Capacity to Consent (UBACC). Bivariant and multiple Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine between the independent and dependent variables. The significant independent predictor was declared at 95% confidence interval and P-value of less than 0.05. Result: Females were affected by post psychotic depression with the (AOR=2.01, 95%CI: 1.003- 4.012, P= 0.49).Patients who have mild form of positive symptom of schizophrenia affected by post psychotic depression with (AOR =4.05, 95%CI: 1.888- 8.7.8, P=0001).Patients who have minimal form of negative symptom of schizophrenia are affected by post psychotic depression with (AOR =4.23, 95%CI: 1.081-17.092, P=.038). Conclusion: In this study, sex (female) and presence of positive and negative symptoms of schizophrenia were significantly associated. It is recommended that the post psychotic depression should be assessed in every schizophrenia patient to decrease the severity of illness, and to improve patient’s quality of life.

Keywords: determinants, post-psychotic depression, Mekelle city

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Authors: S. Rashidi, L. C. Abdullah, R. Walvekar, K. Mohammad, F-R. Ahmadun, M. Y. Faizah

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In this research, stability and rheology behavior of Multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) nanofluids by using Xanthan Gum as a dispersant were measured. This paper addresses the effects of Xanthan Gum (XG) concentration and nanoparticle loading on stability and viscosity of nanofluids. The stability of nanofluids is measured by Zeta Sizer Nano-ZS (Malvern Instruments, ZEN 3600). The zeta potential of the stable samples was analyzed. The rheological behavior of carbon nanotube CNT nanofluids was analyzed using rheometer (Model AR G2, TA Instrument). Both stability and viscosity of the nanofluids increased with increasing CNT and XG concentration. The experimental results indicated that the zeta potential of nanofluid samples is stable. The results demonstrated that the zeta potential was affected by the CNT concentration and is augmented in parallel with increasing CNT concentration. The rheology results showed that the viscosity of CNT/XG nanofluid was increased. The escalated viscosity of CNT/XG nanofluid is owing to the higher van der Waals interaction between the CNT nanoparticles. On the other hand, the viscosity of the CNT/XG nanofluid decreases with increasing temperature. In summary, this research provides useful insight into the behavior of CNT nanofluids.

Keywords: nanofluid, carbon nanotube, stability, rheology

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Authors: Mclee Kerolle

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For more than 50 years, the state of Hawaii has had the beginnings of a burgeoning commercial aerospace presence statewide. While Hawaii provides the aerospace industry with unique assets concerning geographic location, lack of range safety issues and other factors critical to aerospace development, Hawaii’s strategy and commitment for aerospace have been unclear. For this reason, this paper presents a comparative analysis of Hawaii’s space sector with two of the world’s leading space sectors, Colorado and the Netherlands, in order to provide a strategic plan that establishes a firm position going forward to support Hawaii’s aerospace development statewide. This plan will include financial and other economic incentives legislatively supported by the State to help grow and diversify Hawaii’s aerospace sector. The first part of this paper will examine the business model adopted by the Colorado Space Coalition (CSC), a group of industry stakeholders working to make Colorado a center of excellence for aerospace, as blueprint for growth in Hawaii’s space sector. The second section of this paper will examine the business model adopted by the Netherlands Space Business Incubation Centre (NSBIC), a European Space Agency (ESA) affiliated program that offers business support for entrepreneurs to turn space-connected business ideas into commercial companies. This will serve as blueprint to incentivize space businesses to launch and develop in Hawaii. The third section of this paper will analyze the current policies both CSC, and NSBIC implores to promote industry expansion and legislative advocacy. The final section takes the findings from both space sectors and applies their most adaptable features to a Hawaii specific space business model that takes into consideration the unique advantage and disadvantages found in developing Hawaii’s space sector. The findings of this analysis will show that the development of a strategic plan based on a comparative analysis that creates high technology jobs and new pathways for a trained workforce in the space sector, as well as elicit state support and direction, will achieve the goal of establishing Hawaii as a center of space excellence. This analysis will also serve as a signal to the federal, private sector and international community that Hawaii is indeed serious about developing its’ aerospace industry. Ultimately this analysis and subsequent aerospace development plan will serve as a blueprint for the benefit of all space-faring nations seeking to develop their space sectors.

Keywords: Colorado, Hawaii, Netherlands, space policy

Procedia PDF Downloads 147

Authors: M. Bredice, M. B. Forleo, L. Quici

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Coastal tourism is currently facing huge challenges on how to balance environmental problems and tourist activities. Recent literature shows a growing interest in the issue of sustainable tourism from a so-called civilized tourists’ perspective by investigating opinions, perceptions, and behaviors. This study investigates the opinions of youth on what makes them responsible tourists and the ability of coastal marine areas to support tourism in future scenarios. A sample of 778 Italians attending the last year of high school was interviewed. Descriptive statistics, tests, and cluster analyses are applied to highlight the distribution of opinions among youth, detect significant differences based on demographic characteristics, and make segmentation of the different profiles based on students’ opinions and behaviors. Preliminary results show that students are largely convinced (62%) that by 2050 the quality of coastal environments could limit seaside tourism, while 10% of them believe that the problem can be solved simply by changing the tourist destination. Besides the cost of the holiday, the most relevant aspect respondents consider when choosing a marine destination is the presence of tourist attractions followed by the quality of the marine-coastal environment, the specificity of the local gastronomy and cultural traditions, and finally, the activities offered to guests such as sports and events. The reduction of waste and lower air emissions are considered the most important environmental areas in which marine-coastal tourism activities can contribute to preserving the quality of seas and coasts. Areas in which, as a tourist, they believe possible to give a personal contribution were (responses “very much” and “somewhat”); do not throw litter in the sea and on the beach (84%), do not buy single-use plastic products (66%), do not use soap or shampoo when showering in beaches (53%), do not have bonfires (47%), do not damage dunes (46%), and do not remove natural materials (e.g., sand, shells) from the beach (46%). About 6% of the sample stated that they were not interested in contributing to the aforementioned activities, while another 7% replied that they could not contribute at all. Finally, 80% of the sample has never participated in voluntary environmental initiatives or citizen science projects; moreover, about 64% of the students have never participated in events organized by environmental associations in marine or coastal areas. Regarding the test analysis -based on Kruskal-Wallis and Mann and Whitney tests - gender, region, and studying area of students reveals significance in terms of variables expressing knowledge and interest in sustainability topics and sustainable tourism behaviors. The classification of the education field is significant for a great number of variables, among which those related to several sustainable behaviors that respondents declare to be able to contribute as tourists. The ongoing cluster analysis will reveal different profiles in the sample and relevant variables. Based on preliminary results, implications are envisaged in the fields of education, policy, and business strategies for sustainable scenarios. Under these perspectives, the study has the potential to contribute to the conference debate about marine and coastal sustainable development and management.

Keywords: cluster analysis, education, knowledge, young people

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Authors: Karla Lebedoff, Susan Walsh, Michelle Bain

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Eczema is a chronic atopy condition requiring long-term daily management in children. Written action plans for other chronic atopic conditions, such as asthma and food allergies, are widely recommended and distributed to pediatric patients' parents and caregivers, seeking to improve clinical outcomes and become empowered to manage the patient's ever-changing symptoms. Written action plans for eczema, referred to as "asthma of the skin," are not routinely used in practice. Parents of children suffering from eczema rarely receive a written action plan to follow, and commendations supporting eczema action plans are inconsistent. Pediatric patients between birth and 18 years old who were followed for eczema at an urban Midwest community hospital were eligible to participate in this quality improvement project. At the initial visit, parents received instructions on individualized eczema action plans for their child and completed two validated surveys: Health Confidence Score (HCS) and Patient-Oriented Eczema Measure (POEM). Pre- and post-survey responses were collected, and clinical symptom presentation at follow-up were outcome determinants. Project implementation was guided by Institute for Healthcare Improvement's Step-up Framework and the Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle. This project measured clinical outcomes and parent confidence in self-management of their child's eczema symptoms with the responses from 26 participant surveys. Pre-survey responses were collected from 36 participants, though ten were lost to follow-up. Average POEM scores improved by 53%, while average HCS scores remained unchanged. Of seven completed in-person follow-up visits, six clinical progress notes documented improvement. Individualized eczema action plans can be seamlessly incorporated into primary and specialty care visits for pediatric patients suffering from eczema. Following a patient-specific eczema action plan may lessen the daily physical and mental burdens of uncontrolled eczema for children and parents, managing symptoms that chronically flare and recede. Furthermore, incorporating eczema action plans into practice potentially reduces the likely underestimated $5.3 billion economic disease burden of eczema on the U.S. healthcare system.

Keywords: atopic dermatitis, eczema action plan, eczema symptom management, pediatric eczema

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Esmaili

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After the occurrence of blackouts, the most important subject is how fast the electric service is restored. Power system restoration is an immensely complex issue and there should be a plan to be executed within the shortest time period. This plan has three main stages of black start, network reconfiguration and load restoration. In the black start stage, operators and experts may face several problems, for instance, the unsuccessful connection of the long high-voltage transmission line connected to the electrical source. In this situation, the generator may be tripped because of the unsuitable setting of its line charging mode or high absorbed reactive power. In order to solve this problem, the line charging process is defined as a nonlinear programming problem, and it is optimized by using GAMS software in this paper. The optimized process is performed on a grid that includes a 250 MW hydroelectric unit and a 400 KV transmission system. Simulations and field test results show the effectiveness of optimal planning.

Keywords: power system restoration, black start, line charging mode, nonlinear programming

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Authors: Pei-Chen Wu

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Both preexisting cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of personality-depression relationship have suffered from one main limitation: they ignored the stability of the construct of interest (e.g., personality and depression) can be expected to influence the estimate of the association between personality and depression. To address this limitation, the Trait-State-Occasion (TSO) modeling was adopted to analyze the sources of variance of the focused constructs. A TSO modeling was operated by partitioning a state variance into time-invariant (trait) and time-variant (occasion) components. Within a TSO framework, it is possible to predict change on the part of construct that really changes (i.e., time-variant variance), when controlling the trait variances. 750 high school students were followed for 4 waves over six-month intervals. The baseline data (T1) were collected from the senior high schools (aged 14 to 15 years). Participants were given Beck Depression Inventory and Big Five Inventory at each assessment. TSO modeling revealed that 70~78% of the variance in personality (five constructs) was stable over follow-up period; however, 57~61% of the variance in depression was stable. For personality construct, there were 7.6% to 8.4% of the total variance from the autoregressive occasion factors; for depression construct there were 15.2% to 18.1% of the total variance from the autoregressive occasion factors. Additionally, results showed that when controlling initial symptom severity, the time-invariant components of all five dimensions of personality were predictive of change in depression (Extraversion: B= .32, Openness: B = -.21, Agreeableness: B = -.27, Conscientious: B = -.36, Neuroticism: B = .39). Because five dimensions of personality shared some variance, the models in which all five dimensions of personality were simultaneous to predict change in depression were investigated. The time-invariant components of five dimensions were still significant predictors for change in depression (Extraversion: B = .30, Openness: B = -.24, Agreeableness: B = -.28, Conscientious: B = -.35, Neuroticism: B = .42). In sum, the majority of the variability of personality was stable over 2 years. Individuals with the greater tendency of Extraversion and Neuroticism have higher degrees of depression; individuals with the greater tendency of Openness, Agreeableness and Conscientious have lower degrees of depression.

Keywords: assessment, depression, personality, trait-state-occasion model

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Authors: Grzegorz Dolzyk, Sungmoon Jung

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Thin-walled tubes are commonly used as energy absorption devices for their excellent mechanical properties and high manufacturability. Techniques such as grooving and pre-folded origami shapes were introduced to circular and polygonal tubes to improve its energy absorption efficiency. This paper examines the energy absorption characteristics of circular tubes with pre-embedded curved-crease pattern. Set of numerical analyzes were conducted with different grooving patterns for tubes with various diameter (D) to thickness (t) ratio. It has been found that even very shallow grooving can positively affect thin wall tubes, leading to increased energy absorption and higher crushing load efficiency. The phenomenon is associated with nonsymmetric deformation that is usually observed for tubes with a high D/t ratio ( > 90). Grooving can redirect a natural mode of post-buckling deformation to a one with a higher number of lobes such that its beneficial and more stable. Also, the opposite effect can be achieved, and highly disrupted deformation can be a cause of reduced energy absorption capabilities. Curved-crease engraved patterns can be used to stabilize and change a form of hazardous post-buckling deformation.

Keywords: axial crushing, energy absorption, grooving, thin-wall structures

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Authors: Sawsan Eissa, Omnia Kabbany

Abstract:

The coastline of Togo has been historically suffering from erosion for decades, which requires a solution to help control and reduce the erosion to allow for the development of the coastal area. A morpho-dynamic model using X-beach software was developed for the Western 14 Km of the Togolese coast. The model was coupled with the hydrodynamic module of DELFT 3D, flow, and the Wave module, SWAN. The data used as input included a recent bathymetric survey, a recent shoreline topographic survey, aerial photographs, ERA 5 water level and wave data, and recent test results of seabed samples. A number of scenarios were modeled: do nothing scenario, groynes, detached breakwaters system with different crest levels and alignments. The findings showed that groynes is not expected to be effective for protection against erosion, and that the best option is a system of detached breakwater, partially emerged-partially submerged couples with periodical maintenance.

Keywords: hydrodynamics, morphology, Togo, Delft3D, SWAN, XBeach, coastal erosion, detached breakwaters

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Authors: Olha Oleshchuk

Abstract:

Such companies as Apple, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Samsung are well-known, but most people do not know about their economic and political influence on society at national and international levels. This ignorance is beneficial for transnational corporations because it reduces the risk of possible resistance of the society and creates favourable conditions for the formation of a new governmental political form. The aim of the research to analyse the opportunity of creating of a new governmental political form. The aim of the research is realized by implementation of such objectives: 1) to consider the possibility of the formation of new political forms of government; 2) to determine the influence of TNCs on the state, which is necessary for a mature, aware citizen; 3) to learn the roles of TNCs, which provide the awareness in the spheres of the world politics, economics, and everyday life. The relevance of the research is confirmed by the fact that new political forms of government are poorly studied.

Keywords: objective factors of losing leading position by state, transnational corporations, TNCs' economic influence, TNCs' political influence

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Authors: A. Brach

Abstract:

The architecture of modern museums in the historical center should refer to a place in a cultural, historical, urban and architectural sense, using adequate and contemporary forms of architecture. The research and architectural analysis of selected museums in Cracow were conducted to illustrate which elements were decisive for the choice of architectural form. The evaluation of selected objects took into the consideration the following aspects: continuation of the historical form, contemporary form referring to the place, the individual-author form omitting the cultural aspect of the place. The presented projects showed the compromise as positive solutions rejecting both the direct imitation or 'historical continuation' as well as an individual form focused on an abstract form. In order to carry out research and confirm the thesis, three designs of Assoc. Prof. Eng. Arch. Krzysztof Ingarden in the historic city of Cracow were selected. Despite being constructed in one city, the neighborhood and cultural contexts of the locations are completely different. The neighborhood of the historical Royal Road and gothic church with unique decorations from the Polish Art Nouveau, artist Stanislaw Wyspianski (Wyspianski Pavilion), the bend of the Vistula hosting the Japanese culture (Museum of Japanese Art and Technology Manggha) and finally the old area of a horse riding school from the Austrian Empire times (Malopolska Garden of Art). All three buildings are dedicated to the culture of Japan, Polish artist Stanislaw Wyspianski, contemporary achievements and the promotion of art at its widest sense. Important fact for this research is that there is one author of all presented projects.

Keywords: adaptation of existing buildings, architecture in cracow, modern architecture, museums located in historic center

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Authors: Mohamed Saad, Huda Ismail

Abstract:

The purpose of this research is to examine the impact of cryptocurrency classification on money laundering crimes and to analyze how the preferences of criminals differ according to the type of digital currency used. Specifically, we aim to explore the roles of stablecoins, utility coins, and privacy tokens in facilitating or hindering money laundering activities and to identify the key factors that influence the choices of criminals in using these cryptocurrencies. To achieve our research objectives, we used a dataset for the most highly traded cryptocurrencies (32 currencies) that were published on the coin market cap for 2022. In addition to conducting a comprehensive review of the existing literature on cryptocurrency and money laundering, with a focus on stablecoins, utility coins, and privacy tokens, Furthermore, we conducted several Multivariate analyses. Our study reveals that the classification of cryptocurrency plays a significant role in money laundering activities, as criminals tend to prefer certain types of digital currencies over others, depending on their specific needs and goals. Specifically, we found that stablecoins are more commonly used in money laundering due to their relatively stable value and low volatility, which makes them less risky to hold and transfer. Utility coins, on the other hand, are less frequently used in money laundering due to their lack of anonymity and limited liquidity. Finally, privacy tokens, such as Monero and Zcash, are increasingly becoming a preferred choice among criminals due to their high degree of privacy and untraceability. In summary, our study highlights the importance of understanding the nuances of cryptocurrency classification in the context of money laundering and provides insights into the preferences of criminals in using digital currencies for illegal activities. Based on our findings, our recommendation to the policymakers is to address the potential misuse of cryptocurrencies for money laundering. By implementing measures to regulate stable coins, strengthening cross-border cooperation, fostering public-private partnerships, and increasing cooperation, policymakers can help prevent and detect money laundering activities involving digital currencies.

Keywords: crime, cryptocurrency, money laundering, tokens.

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Authors: E. Yazıcı, H. Sundu, E. Veli Veliev

Abstract:

In order to understand the nature of strong interactions and QCD vacuum, investigation of the meson coupling constants have an important role. The knowledge on the temperature dependence of the form factors is very important for the interpretation of heavy-ion collision experiments. Also, more accurate determination of these coupling constants plays a crucial role in understanding of the hadronic decays. With the increasing of CM energies of the experiments, researches on meson interactions have become one of the more interesting problems of hadronic physics. In this study, we analyze the temperature dependence of the strong form factor of the BcBcJ/ψ vertex using the three point QCD sum rules method. Here, we assume that with replacing the vacuum condensates and also the continuum threshold by their thermal version, the sum rules for the observables remain valid. In calculations, we take into account the additional operators, which appear in the Wilson expansion at finite temperature. We also investigated the momentum dependence of the form factor at T = 0, fit it into an analytic function, and extrapolate into the deep time-like region in order to obtain a strong coupling constant of the vertex. Our results are consistent with the results existing in the literature.

Keywords: QCD sum rules, thermal QCD, heavy mesons, strong coupling constants

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Authors: Adji Achmad Rinaldo Fernandes

Abstract:

SEM analysis is a complex multivariate analysis because it involves a number of exogenous and endogenous variables that are interconnected to form a model. The measurement model is divided into two, namely, the reflective model (reflecting) and the formative model (forming). Before carrying out further tests on SEM, there are assumptions that must be met, namely the linearity assumption, to determine the form of the relationship. There are three modeling approaches to path analysis, including parametric, nonparametric and semiparametric approaches. The aim of this research is to develop semiparametric SEM and obtain the best model. The data used in the research is secondary data as the basis for the process of obtaining simulation data. Simulation data was generated with various sample sizes of 100, 300, and 500. In the semiparametric SEM analysis, the form of the relationship studied was determined, namely linear and quadratic and determined one and two knot points with various levels of error variance (EV=0.5; 1; 5). There are three levels of closeness of relationship for the analysis process in the measurement model consisting of low (0.1-0.3), medium (0.4-0.6) and high (0.7-0.9) levels of closeness. The best model lies in the form of the relationship X1Y1 linear, and. In the measurement model, a characteristic of the reflective model is obtained, namely that the higher the closeness of the relationship, the better the model obtained. The originality of this research is the development of semiparametric SEM, which has not been widely studied by researchers.

Keywords: semiparametric SEM, measurement model, structural model, reflective model, formative model

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Authors: M. C. A. Leite, B. Chen-Charpentier, F. Agusto

Abstract:

A long-term goal of sustainable forest management is a relatively stable source of wood and a stable forest age-class structure has become the goal of many forest management practices. In the absence of disturbances, this forest management goal could easily be achieved. However, in the face of recurring insect outbreaks and other disruptive processes forest planning becomes more difficult, requiring knowledge of the effects on the forest of a wide variety of environmental factors (e.g., habitat heterogeneity, fire size and frequency, harvesting, insect outbreaks, and age distributions). The association between distinct forest disturbances and the potential effect on forest dynamics is a complex matter, particularly when evaluated over time and at large scale, and is not well understood. However, gaining knowledge in this area is crucial for a sustainable forest management. Mathematical modeling is a tool that can be used to broader the understanding in this area. In this talk we will introduce mathematical models formulation incorporating the effect of insect outbreaks either as a single disturbance in the forest population dynamics or coupled with other disturbances: either wildfire or harvesting. The results and ecological insights will be discussed.

Keywords: age-structured forest population, disturbances interaction, harvesting insects outbreak dynamics, mathematical modeling

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Authors: Mehdi Fuladipanah

Abstract:

Sensitivity analysis as a technique is applied to determine influential input factors on model output. Variance-based sensitivity analysis method has more application compared to other methods because of including linear and non-linear models. In this paper, van Rijn’s movable bed roughness formula was selected to evaluate because of its reasonable results in sandy rivers. This equation contains four variables as: flow depth, sediment size,bBed form height and bed form length. These variable’s importance was determined using the first order of Fourier Amplitude Sensitivity Test. Sensitivity index was applied to evaluate importance of factors. The first order FAST based sensitivity indices test, explain 90% of the total variance that is indicating acceptance criteria of FAST application. More value of this index is indicating more important variable. Results show that bed form height, bed form length, sediment size and flow depth are more influential factors with sensitivity index: 32%, 24%, 19% and 15% respectively.

Keywords: sdensitivity analysis, variance, movable bed roughness formula, Sandy River

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Authors: Muheddin Hamza, Entisar Etter

Abstract:

This study is a part of investigating the possibility of blending two crude oils obtained from Libyan oil fields, namely crude oil (A) and crude oil (B) with different ratios, prior to blending the crude oils have to be compatible in order to avoid phase out and precipitation of asphaltene from the bulk of crude. The physical properties of both crudes such as density, viscosity, pour point and sulphur content were measured according to (ASTM) method. To examine the stability of both crudes and their blends, the oil compatibility model using microscopic, colloidal instability index (CII) using SARA analysis and asphaltene stabilization test using Turbiscan tests were conducted in the Libyan Petroleum Institute laboratories. Compatibility tests were carried out with both crude oils, the insolubility number (IN), and the solubility blending number (SBN), for both crude oils and their blends were calculated. The criteria for compatibility of any blend is that the volume average solubility blending number (SBN) is greater than the insolubility number (IN) of any component in the blend, the results indicated that both crudes were compatible. To support the results of compatibility tests the SARA analysis was done for the fractional determination of (saturates, aromatics, resins and asphaltenes) content. From this result, the colloidal Instability index (CII) and resin to asphaltenes ratio (R/A) were calculated for crudes and their blends. The results show that crude oil (B) which has higher (R/A) and lower (CII) is more stable than crude oil (A) and as the ratio of crude (B) increases in the blend the (CII) and (R/A) were improved, and the blends becomes more stable. Asphaltene stabilization test was also conducted for the crudes and their blends using Turbiscan MA200 according to the standard test method ASTM D7061-04, the Turbiscan shows that the crude (B) is more stable than crude (A) which shows a fair tendency. The (CII) and (R/A) were compared with the solubility number (SBN) for each crude and the blends along with Turbiscan results. The solubility blending number (SBN) of the crudes and their blends show that the crudes are compatible, also by comparing (R/A) and (SBN) values of the blends, it can be seen that they are complements of each other. All the experimental results show that the blends of both crudes are more stability.

Keywords: asphaltene, crude oil, compatibility, oil blends, resin, SARA

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Authors: Jennifer Chen, Pei Y. Hsu, Yu W. Chen

Abstract:

Groundwater resources play a vital role in regional water supply because over 1/3 of total demand is satisfied by groundwater resources. Because over-pumpage might cause environmental impact such as land subsidence, a sustainable management of groundwater resource is required. In this study, a blueprint of smart management for groundwater resource is proposed and planned. The framework of the smart management can be divided into two major parts, hardware and software parts. First, an internet of groundwater (IoG) which is inspired by the internet of thing (IoT) is proposed to observe the migration of groundwater usage and the associated response, groundwater levels. Second, algorithms based on data mining and signal analysis are proposed to achieve the goal of providing highly efficient management of groundwater. The entire blueprint is a 4-year plan and this year is the first year. We have finished the installation of 50 flow meters and 17 observation wells. An underground hydrological model is proposed to determine the associated drawdown caused by the measured pumpages. Besides, an alternative to the flow meter is also proposed to decrease the installation cost of IoG. An accelerometer and 3G remote transmission are proposed to detect the on and off of groundwater pumpage.

Keywords: groundwater management, internet of groundwater, underground hydrological model, alternative of flow meter

Procedia PDF Downloads 354