Search results for: cardiovascular risk factors in CKD

Authors: Valeriya Tyo, Serikbolat Yessengabulov

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Regions with extreme climate conditions such as Astana city require energy saving measures to increase the energy performance of buildings which are responsible for more than 40% of total energy consumption. Identification of optimal building geometry is one of the key factors to be considered. The architectural form of a building has the impact on space heating and cooling energy use, however, the interrelationship between the geometry and resultant energy use is not always readily apparent. This paper presents a comparative case study of two prototypical buildings with compact building shape to assess its impact on energy performance.

Keywords: building geometry, energy efficiency, heat gain, heat loss

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Authors: Robin Devillers, Chantal van Dijk

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Children face ambiguities in everyday language use. Particularly ambiguity in pronoun resolution can be challenging, whereas adults can rapidly identify the antecedent of the mentioned pronoun. Two main factors underlie this process, namely the accessibility of the referent and the syntactic cues of the pronoun. After 200ms, adults have converged the accessibility and the syntactic constraints, while relieving cognitive effort by considering contextual cues. As children are still developing their cognitive capacity, they are not able yet to simultaneously assess and integrate accessibility, contextual cues and syntactic information. As such, they fail to identify the correct referent and possibly fixate more on the competitor in comparison to adults. In this study, Dutch while-clauses were used to investigate the interpretation of pronouns by children. The aim is to a) examine the extent to which 7-10 year old children are able to utilise discourse and syntactic information during online and offline sentence processing and b) analyse the contribution of individual factors, including age, working memory, condition and vocabulary. Adult and child participants are presented with filler-items and while-clauses, and the latter follows a particular structure: ‘Anna and Sophie are sitting in the library. While Anna is reading a book, she is taking a sip of water.’ This sentence illustrates the ambiguous situation, as it is unclear whether ‘she’ refers to Anna or Sophie. In the unambiguous situation, either Anna or Sophie would be substituted by a boy, such as ‘Peter’. The pronoun in the second sentence will unambiguously refer to one of the characters due to the syntactic constraints of the pronoun. Children’s and adults’ responses were measured by means of a visual world paradigm. This paradigm consisted of two characters, of which one was the referent (the target) and the other was the competitor. A sentence was presented and followed by a question, which required the participant to choose which character was the referent. Subsequently, this paradigm yields an online (fixations) and offline (accuracy) score. These findings will be analysed using Generalised Additive Mixed Models, which allow for a thorough estimation of the individual variables. These findings will contribute to the scientific literature in several ways; firstly, the use of while-clauses has not been studied much and it’s processing has not yet been identified. Moreover, online pronoun resolution has not been investigated much in both children and adults, and therefore, this study will contribute to adults and child’s pronoun resolution literature. Lastly, pronoun resolution has not been studied yet in Dutch and as such, this study adds to the languages

Keywords: pronouns, online language processing, Dutch, eye-tracking, first language acquisition, language development

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Authors: Ismail Rahama Adam Hamid

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This paper presents the development of a thermal model for a flat, double-sided linear generator designed for use in free-piston engines. The study conducted in this paper examines the influence of temperature on the performance of the permeant magnet linear generator, an integral and pivotal component within the system. This research places particular emphasis on the Neodymium Iron Boron (NdFeB) permanent magnet, which serves as a source of magnetic field for the linear generator. In this study, an internal combustion engine that tends to produce heat is connected to a generator. Considering the temperatures rise from both the combustion process and the thermal contributions of current-carrying conductors and frictional forces. Utilizing Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) method, a thermal model of the (NdFeB) magnet within the linear generator is constructed and analyzed. Furthermore, the temperature field is examined to ensure that the linear generator operates under stable conditions without the risk of demagnetization.

Keywords: free piston engine, permanent magnet, linear generator, demagnetization, simulation

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Authors: Orkide Donma, Mustafa M. Donma, Muhammet Demirkol, Murat Aydin, Tuba Gokkus, Burcin Nalbantoglu, Aysin Nalbantoglu, Birol Topcu

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Obesity in childhood establishes a ground for adulthood obesity. Especially morbid obesity is an important problem for the children because of the associated diseases such as diabetes mellitus, cancer and cardiovascular diseases. In this study, body mass index (BMI), body fat ratios, anthropometric measurements and ratios were evaluated together with different laboratory indices upon evaluation of obesity in morbidly obese (MO) children. Children with nutritional problems participated in the study. Written informed consent was obtained from the parents. Study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee. Sixty-two MO girls aged 129.5±35.8 months and 75 MO boys aged 120.1±26.6 months were included into the scope of the study. WHO-BMI percentiles for age-and-sex were used to assess the children with those higher than 99^th as morbid obesity. Anthropometric measurements of the children were recorded after their physical examination. Bio-electrical impedance analysis was performed to measure fat distribution. Anthropometric ratios, body fat ratios, Index-I and Index-II as well as insulin sensitivity indices (ISIs) were calculated. Girls as well as boys were binary grouped according to homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index of <2.5 and >2.5, fasting glucose to insulin ratio (FGIR) of <6 and >6 and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI) of <0.33 and >0.33 as the frequently used cut-off points. They were evaluated based upon their BMIs, arms, legs, trunk, whole body fat percentages, body fat ratios such as fat mass index (FMI), trunk-to-appendicular fat ratio (TAFR), whole body fat ratio (WBFR), anthropometric measures and ratios [waist-to-hip, head-to-neck, thigh-to-arm, thigh-to-ankle, height/2-to-waist, height/2-to-hip circumference (C)]. SPSS/PASW 18 program was used for statistical analyses. p≤0.05 was accepted as statistically significance level. All of the fat percentages showed differences between below and above the specified cut-off points in girls when evaluated with HOMA-IR and QUICKI. Differences were observed only in arms fat percent for HOMA-IR and legs fat percent for QUICKI in boys (p≤ 0.05). FGIR was unable to detect any differences for the fat percentages of boys. Head-to-neck C was the only anthropometric ratio recommended to be used for all ISIs (p≤0.001 for both girls and boys in HOMA-IR, p≤0.001 for girls and p≤0.05 for boys in FGIR and QUICKI). Indices which are recommended for use in both genders were Index-I, Index-II, HOMA/BMI and log HOMA (p≤0.001). FMI was also a valuable index when evaluated with HOMA-IR and QUICKI (p≤0.001). The important point was the detection of the severe significance for HOMA/BMI and log HOMA while they were evaluated also with the other indices, FGIR and QUICKI (p≤0.001). These parameters along with Index-I were unique at this level of significance for all children. In conclusion, well-accepted ratios or indices may not be valid for the evaluation of both genders. This study has emphasized the limiting properties for boys. This is particularly important for the selection process of some ratios and/or indices during the clinical studies. Gender difference should be taken into consideration for the evaluation of the ratios or indices, which will be recommended to be used particularly within the scope of obesity studies.

Keywords: anthropometry, childhood obesity, gender, insulin sensitivity index

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Authors: Janos Farkas, Maria Czeller, Ildiko Tar

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A remarkable feature of today’s language teaching is the learners’ language learning motivation. It is always considered as a very important factor and has been widely discussed and investigated. This paper aims to present a research study conducted in higher education institutions among students majoring in business and administration in Hungary. The aim of the research was to investigate the motivational factors of students learning languages for business purposes and set up a multivariate statistical model of language learning motivation, and examine the model's main components by different social background variables. The research question sought to answer the question of whether the motivation of students of business learning LSP could be characterized through some main components. The principal components of LSP have been created, and the correlations with social background variables have been explored. The main principal components of learning a language for business purposes were "professional future", "abroad", "performance", and "external". In the online voluntary questionnaire, 28 questions were asked about students’ motivational attitudes. 449 students have filled in the questionnaire. Descriptive statistical calculations were performed, then the difference between the highest and lowest mean was analyzed by one-sample t-test. The assessment of LSP learning was examined by one-way analysis of variance and Tukey post-hoc test among students of parents with different qualifications. The correlations between student motivation statements and various social background variables and other variables related to LSP learning motivation (gender, place of residence, mother’s education, father’s education, family financial situation, etc.) have also been examined. The attitudes related to motivation were seperated by principal component analysis, and then the different language learning motivation between socio-economic variables and other variables using principal component values were examined using an independent two-sample t-test. The descriptive statistical analysis of language learning motivation revealed that students learn LSP because this knowledge will come in handy in the future. It can be concluded that students consider learning the language for business purposes to be essential and see its future benefits. Therefore, LSP teaching has an important role and place in higher education. The results verify the second linguistic motivational self-system where the ideal linguistic self embraces the ideas and desires that the foreign language learner wants to achieve in the future. One such desire is to recognize that students will need technical language skills in the future, and it is a powerful motivation for them to learn a language.

Keywords: higher education, language learning motivation, LSP, statistical analysis

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Authors: Sean McGovern

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Discourses, in Foucault's sense of the term, exist as alternate knowledges about some aspect of reality. Discourses act as cognitive frameworks for how social matters are understood and legitimated. Alternate social discourses can stand competing and in conflict or be effectively interwoven. Discourses of public safety, for instance, can alternately be formulated in terms of physical risk; as a matter of social responsibility; or in terms of penalties and litigation. This research study investigates discourses of safety used in public transportation and consumer products in the Japanese cultural context. Employing a social semiotic analytic approach, it examines how posters, consumer manuals and other forms of visual (written and pictorial) warnings have been designed to influence behavioral compliance. The presentation identifies specific ways in which Japanese cultural sensibilities and social needs inform cultural design principles that operate in the visual domain. It makes the case that societies are not uniform in the way that objects and actions are represented and that visual forms of meaning are culturally shaped in ways consistent with social understandings and values.

Keywords: communication design, culture, discourse, public safety

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Authors: Allagui Mohamed

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The study of the concentrations of atmospheric pollutants is analyzed during two days of sea breeze (April 26, 2010, and January 11, 2008) on the Mediterranean coasts, just in front of Gabès (33 ° 53 'N, 10 ° 07' E), Tunisia. During these two cases, we found that Gabès was contaminated by a coastal sea breeze. On April 26, 2010, the terrestrial synoptic wind admitted a maximum speed of about 6 m / s and was approximately perpendicular to the coast and making the breeze easier. On January 11, 2008, the terrestrial wind was local. Under these conditions, O3 and, therefore, the concentrations were multiplied by the factors 0.1 and 2, respectively. The episodes of ozone concentrations faithfully follow the sea breeze circulation. These sea breeze events can be responsible for high concentrations of NO, NO2, and SO2 as air pollutants in this area.

Keywords: sea breeze, O3, cost town, air quality

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Authors: Kwok W. Mui, Ling T. Wong, Chin T. Cheung, Ho C. Yu

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Based on an indoor environmental quality (IEQ) index established by previous work that indicates the overall IEQ acceptance from the prospect of an occupant in residential buildings in terms of four IEQ factors - thermal comfort, indoor air quality, visual and aural comforts, this study develops a user-friendly IEQ calculator for iOS and Android users to calculate the occupant acceptance and compare the relative performance of IEQ in apartments. The calculator allows the prediction of the best IEQ scenario on a quantitative scale. Any indoor environments under the specific IEQ conditions can be benchmarked against the predicted IEQ acceptance range. This calculator can also suggest how to achieve the best IEQ acceptance among a group of residents.

Keywords: calculator, indoor environmental quality (IEQ), residential buildings, 5-star benchmarks

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Authors: Mabruka S. Elashheb, Adullah Ali Bakush

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Schizophrenia is referred to as a disorder, not a disease, because there has not been any clear, reliable, and specific etiological factor. Even if schizophrenia is not a very frequent disease, it is among the most burdensome and costly illnesses worldwide. Prevention of relapse is a major goal of maintenance treatment in patients with psychotic disorders. We performed a comparison of a newer, atypical antipsychotic drug, Risperidone, and an older, conventional neuroleptic drug, Haloperidol, in terms of the effect on the usual kidney and liver functions and negative and positive symptoms in patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder after three and five weeks of their treatments. It is apparent from the comparative data of Haloperidol and Risperidone treatments in schizophrenic patients that Resperidone had superior improvement of negative and positive symptoms of patients, no harmful effect on liver and kidney functions and greater efficacy and faster recovery from schizophrenic symptoms in patients. On the basis of our findings of the present study, we concluded that treatment with Risperidone is superior to Haloperidol in reducing the risk of relapse among outpatients with schizophrenic disorders.

Keywords: schizophrenia, Haloperidol, Risperidone, positive and negative symptom

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Authors: Shugufta Mohammad Zubair

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This study explores the Effect of the new food System Inspection system also called the new inspection color card scheme on reduction of critical & major food safety violations in Dubai. Data was collected from all retail food service establishments located in two zones in the city. Each establishment was visited twice, once before the launch of the new system and one after the launch of the system. In each visit, the Inspection checklist was used as the evaluation tool for observation of the critical and major violations. The old format of the inspection checklist was concerned with scores based on the violations; but the new format of the checklist for the new inspection color card scheme is divided into administrative, general major and critical which gives a better classification for the inspectors to identify the critical and major violations of concerned. The study found that there has been a better and clear marking of violations after the launch of new inspection system wherein the inspectors are able to mark and categories the violations effectively. There had been a 10% decrease in the number of food establishment that was previously given A grade. The B & C grading were also considerably dropped by 5%.

Keywords: food inspection, risk assessment, color card scheme, violations

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Authors: Sadeq Al Yaari, Ayman Al Yaari, Adham Al Yaari, Montaha Al Yaari, Aayah Al Yaari, Sajedah Al Yaari

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Background: Validation of communication activities of daily living-second edition (CADL-2) and assessment of language-related functional activities (ALFA) tests is a critical investment decision, and activities related to language impairments often are underestimated. Literature indicates that age factors, and gender differences may affect the performance of the aphasics. Thus, understanding these influential factors is highly important to neuropsycholinguists and speech language pathologists (SLPs). Purpose: The goal of this study is twofold: (1) to in/validate CADL-2 and ALFA tests, and (2) to investigate whether or not the two assessment tests are reliable. Design: A comparative study is made between the results obtained from the analyses of the Arabic versions of CADL-2 and ALFA tests. Participants: The communication activities of daily-living and language-related functional activities were assessed from the obtained results of 100 adult aphasics (50 males, 50 females; ages 16 to 65). Procedures: Firstly, the two translated and standardized Arabic versions of CADL-2 and ALFA tests were introduced to the Arab aphasics under investigation. Armed with the new two versions of the tests, one of the researchers assessed the language-related functional communication and activities. Outcomes drawn from the obtained analysis of the comparative studies were then qualitatively and statistically analyzed. Main outcomes and Results: Regarding the validity of CADL-2 and ALFA, it is found that …. Is more valid in both pre-and posttests. Concerning the reliability of the two tests, it is found that ….is more reliable in both pre-and-posttests which undoubtedly means that …..is more trustable. Nor must we forget to indicate here that the relationship between age and gender was very weak due to that no remarkable gender differences between the two in both CADL-2 and ALFA pre-and-posttests. Conclusions & Implications: CADL-2 and ALFA tests were found to be valid and reliable tests. In contrast to previous studies, age and gender were not significantly associated with the results of validity and reliability of the two assessment tests. In clearer terms, age and gender patterns do not affect the validation of these two tests. Future studies might focus on complex questions including the use of CADL-2 and ALFA functionally; how gender and puberty influence the results in case the sample is large; the effects of each type of aphasia on the final outcomes, and measurements’ results of imaging techniques.

Keywords: CADL-2, ALFA, comparison, language test, arab aphasics, validity, reliability, neuropsycholinguistics, comparison

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Authors: Routsukol Sunalai

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The objectives of this paper were to study current problem of ethics of entrepreneurs in information and communication technology professional, and to build their awareness of ethics, which would be useful as guidance for strengthening professional ethics among them. The study employed quantitative research method in order to analyze relationships or differences found in each ethics factor and report in statistics. The sample of this paper was 300 information technology users of Rajabhat Universities in Bangkok. The findings revealed that the ethics factors which gained the highest and high level of opinion included possessing principles of righteousness, having trust in themselves and others, and respecting different opinions of others and accepting the fact that people of different opinions.

Keywords: communication, ethics, information, entrepreneurs

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Authors: S. Rezaei, Z. Mirzaei, M. Khalighi, J. Bahrami

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Bridges, as an essential part of road infrastructures, are affected by various deterioration mechanisms over time due to the changes in their performance. As changes in performance can have many negative impacts on society, it is essential to be able to evaluate and measure the performance of bridges throughout their life. This evaluation includes the development or the choice of the appropriate performance indicators, which, in turn, are measured based on the selection of appropriate models for the existing deterioration mechanism. The purpose of this article is a statistical study of indicators and deterioration mechanisms of bridges in order to discover further research capacities in bridges performance assessment. For this purpose, some of the most common indicators of bridge performance, including reliability, risk, vulnerability, robustness, and resilience, were selected. The researches performed on each index based on the desired deterioration mechanisms and hazards were comprehensively reviewed. In addition, the formulation of the indicators and their relationship with each other were studied. The research conducted on the mentioned indicators were classified from the point of view of deterministic or probabilistic method, the level of study (element level, object level, etc.), and the type of hazard and the deterioration mechanism of interest. For each of the indicators, a number of challenges and recommendations were presented according to the review of previous studies.

Keywords: bridge, deterioration mechanism, lifecycle, performance indicator

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Authors: Jong Yeop Kim, Sung Young Park, Dae Hee Kim, Han Bum Joe, Ji Young Yoo, Jong Bum Choi, Sook Young Lee

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Emergence agitation (EA) is commonly reported adverse events after sevoflurane anesthesia in pediatric patients. The efficacy of prophylactic remifentanil, one of mu opioid agonist, in preventing EA is controversial. This meta-analysis assessed the effectiveness of remifentanil to decrease the incidence of EA from sevoflurane anesthesia in children. We searched for randomized controlled trials comparing sevoflurane alone anesthesia with sevoflurane and remifentanil anesthesia to prevent EA in the Cochrane Library, Embase, Pubmed, and KoreaMed, and included 6 studies with 361 patients. The number of patients of reporting EA was summarized using risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence interval (CI), with point estimates and 95CIs derived from a random effects Mantel-Haenszel method. Overall incidence of EA was about 41%. Compared with sevoflurane alone anesthesia, intravenous infusion of remifentanil with sevoflurane significantly reduced the incidence of EA (RR 0.53, 95% CI 0.39-0.73, P < 0.0001), (heterogeneity, I2 = 0, P = 0.42). This meta-analysis suggested that continuous infusion of remifentanil could be effective in decreasing the EA of about 47% after sevoflurane anesthesia. However, considering limitations of the included studies, more randomized controlled studies are required to verify our results.

Keywords: emergence agitation, meta-analysis, remifentanil, pediatrics

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Authors: Nicholas S. Norbert Jr., John E. Bischoff, Christopher J. Willy

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Knowledge Management (KM) is globally recognized as a crucial element in securing competitive advantage through building and maintaining organizational memory, codifying and protecting intellectual capital and business intelligence, and providing mechanisms for collaboration and innovation. KM frameworks and approaches have been developed and defined identifying critical success factors for conducting KM within numerous industries ranging from scientific to business, and for ranges of organization scales from small groups to large enterprises. However, engineering and technical teams operating within restricted environments are subject to unique barriers and KM challenges which cannot be directly treated using the approaches and tools prescribed for other industries. This research identifies barriers in conducting KM within Hardware Development Engineering (HDE) teams and statistically compares significance to barriers upholding the four KM pillars of organization, technology, leadership, and learning for HDE teams. HDE teams suffer from restrictions in knowledge sharing (KS) due to classification of information (national security risks), customer proprietary restrictions (non-disclosure agreement execution for designs), types of knowledge, complexity of knowledge to be shared, and knowledge seeker expertise. As KM evolved leveraging information technology (IT) and web-based tools and approaches from Web 1.0 to Enterprise 2.0, KM may also seek to leverage emergent tools and analytics including expert locators and hybrid recommender systems to enable KS across barriers of the technical teams. The research will test hypothesis statistically evaluating if KM barriers for HDE teams affect the general set of expected benefits of a KM System identified through previous research. If correlations may be identified, then generalizations of success factors and approaches may also be garnered for HDE teams. Expert elicitation will be conducted using a questionnaire hosted on the internet and delivered to a panel of experts including engineering managers, principal and lead engineers, senior systems engineers, and knowledge management experts. The feedback to the questionnaire will be processed using analysis of variance (ANOVA) to identify and rank statistically significant barriers of HDE teams within the four KM pillars. Subsequently, KM approaches will be recommended for upholding the KM pillars within restricted environments of HDE teams.

Keywords: engineering management, knowledge barriers, knowledge management, knowledge sharing

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Authors: Daniel Y. Fiaveh, Chimaraoke O. Izugbara

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Based on the narratives of 20 women and 16 men, the paper explores how knowing more about the factors that trigger sex positions decisions advance knowledge of male and female sexuality, and how these translate into higher levels of female sexual negotiations in Ghana. Findings demonstrated that the willingness to perform sex positions or not were gendered and derive, at least in part, from differences in demographic profiles (such as age, gender, and marriage), beliefs associated with sexual practices (such as anal sex), the desire to maximize sexual pleasure, and sexual myths and misconceptions e.g. fear of infecundity. The women were not passive to sex positions decisions and engaged in a dialogical sexual encounter with men including threats of sexual refusal in negotiating sex.

Keywords: sexual positions, sexual pleasure, masculinity, femininity, Ghana

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Authors: Cathryn Robinson, Bernard McKenna, David Rooney

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This paper argues that the application of values-based leadership increasingly challenges leaders in rules-based organisations, particularly in bureaucratic organisations such as the military, public service, police, and emergency services. Leaders are grappling to reconcile how to enact values-based leadership and decision-making when they are bound by rules, policies, and procedures. This interpretive study used a multi-faceted vignette (critical incident) as the basis of an interview with air force officers at three levels: executive, senior, and junior. In this way, practice is forced to intersect with discourse. The findings revealed a shared set of discourse themes (legal; rules; safety and risk; operational practice/theatre discourses), but also clear dialectical tensions. These tensions were evident in executive officers and senior leaders emphasizing rules and information themes, whereas junior officers emphasized decision making, collateral, and situation. These findings reveal discourse and practice incommensurability that could have grave implications in the conduct of war.

Keywords: critical incident, discourse analysis, rules-based, values-based

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Authors: Ciolomic Ioana Andreea, Farcas Teodora, Tiron-Tudor Adriana

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Investments in research and innovation are widely acknowledged as being crucial drivers for economic growth, for job-creation and to secure social and economic welfare. The aim of this article is to disseminate the results of a Leonardo da Vinci Innovation Transfer project, AdapTykes Adaptation of trainings based up on the Finnish Workplace Development Programme. This project aims to analyses the adaptability of the Finnish model to the economic and political environment of the two emergent countries Romania and Hungary, in order to develop workplace innovation. The focus of this paper is to present the adaptability of the Finnish model to the Romanian context.

Keywords: innovation, human resources, education, tools

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Authors: Bidisha Chatterjee, Sonal Grover, Rekha Gurung

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Postpartum dissection of the internal carotid artery is a relatively rare condition and is considered as an underlying aetiology in 5% to 25% of strokes under the age of 30 to 45 years. However, 86% of these cases recover completely and 14% have mild focal neurological symptoms. Prognosis is generally good with early intervention. The risk quoted for a repeat carotid artery dissection in subsequent pregnancies is less than 2%. 36-year Caucasian primipara presented on postnatal day one of forceps delivery with tachycardia. In the intrapartum period she had a history of prolonged rupture of membranes and developed intrapartum sepsis and was treated with antibiotics. Postpartum ECG showed septal inferior T wave inversion and a troponin level of 19. Subsequently Echocardiogram ruled out post-partum cardiomyopathy. Repeat ECG showed improvement of the previous changes and in the absence of symptoms no intervention was warranted. On day 4 post-delivery, she had developed symptoms of droopy right eyelid, pain around the right eye and itching in the right ear. On examination, she had developed right sided ptosis, unequal pupils (Rt miotic pupil). Cranial nerve examination, reflexes, sensory examination and muscle power was normal. Apart from migraine, there was no medical or family history of note. In view of Horner’s on the right, she had a CT Angiogram and subsequently MR/MRA and was diagnosed with dissection of the cervical portion of the right internal carotid artery. She was discharged on a course of Aspirin 75mg. By 6 week post-natal follow up patient had recovered significantly with occasional episodes of unequal pupils and tingling of right toes which resolved spontaneously. Cervical artery dissection, including VAD and carotid artery dissection, are rare complications of pregnancy with an estimated annual incidence of 2.6–3 per 100,000 pregnancy hospitalizations. Aetiology remains unclear though trauma during straining at labour, underlying arterial disease and preeclampsia have been implicated. Hypercoagulable state during pregnancy and puerperium could also be an important factor. 60-90% cases present with severe headache and neck pain and generally precede neurological symptoms like ipsilateral Horner’s syndrome, retroorbital pain, tinnitus and cranial nerve palsy. Although rare, the consequences of delayed diagnosis and management can lead to severe and permanent neurological deficits. Patients with a strong index of suspicion should undergo an MRI or MRA of head and neck. Antithrombotic and antiplatelet therapy forms the mainstay of therapy with selected cases needing endovascular stenting. Long term prognosis is favourable with either complete resolution or minimal deficit if treatment is prompt. Patients should be counselled about the recurrence risk and possibility of stroke in future pregnancy. Coronary artery dissection is rare and treatable but needs early diagnosis and treatment. Post-partum headache and neck pain with neurological symptoms should prompt urgent imaging followed by antithrombotic and /or antiplatelet therapy. Most cases resolve completely or with minimal sequelae.

Keywords: postpartum, dissection of internal carotid artery, magnetic resonance angiogram, magnetic resonance imaging, antiplatelet, antithrombotic

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Authors: Costrie Ganes Widayanti

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Learning Disabilities (LDs) are less understood by the Indonesia’s educational practitioners. As a result, students with LDs are at risk of being outcast from the learning process that requires participation, which potentially disconnects them academically and socially. Its objective is to raise the voice of students with LDs regarding their engagement in the classroom. This research is conducted in two urban regular public primary schools in Indonesia. The study uses an ethnographic case study research design, which explores the views and experiences of four (4) students with LDs. The data were collected using participant observations and interviews. The preliminary findings highlighted two areas: 1) the stigmatization about LDs; and 2) perceived membership. Having LDs was a barrier to fully engage in the academic and social life. Interestingly, they were more likely dependent on each other for support as limited assistance was offered by teachers and peers. Their peers did not take a keen interest in helping them when they found difficulties with the assignments. Furthermore, due to their low academic performance, they were not in favor of being nominated as a group member. In a situation that required them to do a group assignment, they were not expected to give a contribution, positioning themselves as incompatible. These findings indicated that such practices legitimate the hegemony of the superior over those who are powerless and left behind.

Keywords: engagement, experiences, learning disability, qualitative design

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Authors: Ipenyi Peter

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Discipline is an issue that tends to undermine the provision of quality education in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. This is because the overall goals of tertiary institutions, as enunciated in the National Policy of Education, can hardly be achieved by all the stakeholders without strict conformity and adherence to the rules and regulations and the ideals of the entire society. The adherence is essential for the general welfare of the society. This paper critically X-rayed the causes of indiscipline in tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Such courses include laxity in home control and parental supervision, school, teacher and societal factors as well as government influence. The paper recommended among others such strategies as enculturation, acculturation as well as the acquisition of a certain number of generic skills for dealing with discipline and ethical issues in tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

Keywords: discipline, education, tertiary institutions, society

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Authors: Sandoval H. Leyla Angélica, Casani Fernando

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The objective of this study is to analyse how enterprises in developed countries use cooperation agreements to expand into developing countries. Starting from the literature review, seven theoretical prepositions were derived. The qualitative methodology used includes case study, through interviews conducted with eight enterprises from Spain and Colombia. Results show that the cooperation agreements have provided a quick and solid connection that facilitates internationalization, bearing in mind aspects such as: strategic factors, partners, network, technology, experience, communication methods, social benefit and the connection between these aspects and allied enterprises.

Keywords: internationalisation, firms, cooperation agreement, case study, Spain, Colombia

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Authors: Hoo Cheol Lee, Dae Seung Kim, Sang Myung Jung, Gwang Heum Yoon, Hwa Sung Shin

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Loss of bone tissue can occur due to a bone tissue disease and aging or fracture. Renewable formation of bone is mainly made by its differentiation and metabolism. For this reason, osteoblasts have been studied for regeneration of bone tissue. So, tissue engineering has attracted attention as a recovery means. In tissue engineering, a particularly important factor is a scaffold that supports cell growth. For osteoblast scaffold, we used the cellulose nanowhisker (CNW) extracted from marine organism. CNW is one of an abundant material obtained from a number of plants and animals. CNW is polymer consisting of monomer cellulose and this composition offers biodegradability and biocompatibility to CNW. Mechanical strength of CNW is superior to the existing natural polymers. In addition, substances of marine origin have a low risk of secondary infection by bacteria and pathogen in contrast with those of land-derived. For evaluating its suitability as an osteoblast scaffold, we fabricate CNW film for osteoblast culture and performed the MTT assay and ALP assay to confirm its cytotoxicity and effect on differentiation. Taking together these results, we assessed CNW is a potential candidate of a material for bone tissue regeneration.

Keywords: bone regeneration, cellulose nanowhisker, marine derived material, osteoblast

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Authors: Martha Lilia Del Rio Duque, Michelle Bonatti, Katharina Loehr, Marcos Lana, Tatiana Rodriguez, Stefan Sieber

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Nowadays, most agricultural practices can reduce the ability of ecosystems to provide goods and services. To enhance environmentally friendly food production and to maximize social and economic benefits, sustainable land use systems (SLUS) are one of the most critical strategies increasingly/strongly promoted by donors organizations, international agencies, and policymakers. This process involves the question of how SLUS can be scaled out also large-scale landscapes and not merely isolated experiments. As SLUS are context-specific strategies, diffusion and replication of successful SLUS in Colombia required the identification of main factors that facilitate this scaling out process. We applied a case study approach to investigate the scaling out process of SLUS in cocoa and livestock sector within peacebuilding territories in Colombia, specifically, in Cesar and Caqueta region. These two regions are contrasting, but both have a current trend of increasing land degradation. Presently in Colombia, Caqueta is one of the most deforested departments, and Cesar has some most degraded soils. Following a qualitative research approach, 19 semi-structured interviews and 2 focus groups were conducted with agroforestry experts in both regions to analyze (1) what does it mean a sustainable land use system in Cocoa/Livestock, specifically in Caqueta or Cesar and (2) to identify the key elements at the level of the following dimensions: biophysical, economic and profitability, market, social, policy and institutions that can explain how and why SLUS are replicated and spread among more producers. The Interviews were coded and analyzed using MAXQDA to identify, analyze and report patterns (themes) within data. As the results show, key themes, among which: premium market, solid regional markets and price stability, water availability and management, generational renewal, land use knowledge and diversification, producer organization and certifications are crucial to understand how the SLUS can have an impact across large-scale landscapes and how the scaling out process can be set up best in order to be successful across different contexts. The analysis further reveals which key factors might affect SLUS efficiency.

Keywords: agroforestry, cocoa sector, Colombia, livestock sector, sustainable land use system

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Authors: Selin Kara-Bahçekapılı, Bengisu Nehir Aydın

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Objective: In this study, it is aimed to examine the relationship between childhood traumas (overprotection-control, emotional/physical/sexual abuse, emotional/physical neglect), age, emotional regulation difficulties, and the tendency of violence in adults. In the study, the direct and indirect effects of 6 sub-factors of childhood traumas, emotion regulation difficulties, and age on tendency to violence are evaluated on a model that theoretically reveals. Method: The population of this cross-sectional study consists of individuals between the ages of 18-65 living in Turkey. The data from 527 participants were obtained by online surveys and convenience sampling method within the scope of the study. As a result of exclusion criteria and then outlier data analysis, the data of 443 participants were included in the analysis. Data were collected by demographic information form, childhood trauma scale, emotion regulation difficulty scale, and violence tendency scale. Research data were analyzed by SPSS and AMOS using correlation, path analysis, direct and indirect effects. Results: According to the research findings, the variables in the model explained 28.2% of the variance of the mean scores of the individuals' tendency to violence. Emotion regulation difficulties have the most direct effect on the tendency to violence (d=.387; p<.01). The effects of excessive protection and control, emotional neglect, and physical neglect variables on the tendency to violence are not significant. When the significant and indirect effects of the variables on tendency to violence over emotion regulation difficulties are examined, age has a negative effect, emotional neglect has a positive effect, emotional abuse has a positive effect, and overprotection-control has a positive effect. The indirect effects of sexual abuse, physical neglect, and physical abuse on tendency to violence are not significant. Childhood traumas and age variables in the model explained 24.1% of the variance of the mean scores of the individuals’ emotion regulation difficulties. The variable that most affects emotion regulation difficulties is age (d=-.268; p<.001). The direct effects of sexual abuse, physical neglect, and physical abuse on emotion regulation difficulties are not significant. Conclusion: The results of the research emphasize the critical role of difficulty in emotion regulation on the tendency to violence. Difficulty in emotion regulation affects the tendency to violence both directly and by mediating different variables. In addition, it is seen that some sub-factors of childhood traumas have direct and/or indirect effects on the tendency to violence. Emotional abuse and age have both direct and indirect effects on the tendency to violence over emotion regulation difficulties.

Keywords: childhood trauma, emotion regulation difficulties, tendency to violence, path analysis

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Authors: Diego Caballero Vélez

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In 1997 the Schengen Convention was incorporated in the mainstream of EU law by the Amsterdam Treaty. It came into effect in 1999 with the abolition of internal border controls in the EU, a milestone in the European integration project. In the meantime, due to the Yugoslav wars, nearly 700,000 asylum applications were filed in the European countries provoking a major refugee crisis. During this period, the opening of Eastern Europe fostered more cooperation and policy-making at the EU level in migration issues. Currently, a similar migratory crisis is taking place in Europe. The Syrian war has caused the most massive influx of immigrants in Europe since World War II. Nevertheless, the EU is adopting different migration policies from those implemented during the Yugoslav migration crisis. The current crisis has not led to a common European position but national responses have been offered on migration policies and responsibility for border security and asylum-seekers. A lot of factors can explain this change from a cooperation scenario to a no cooperation one, such as the economic crisis, but this research is focused on the premise that 'threat perception' lies at the core of some states grand strategies towards migration and it also influences in multilateral or unilateral responses. Migration rests at the nexus of three dimensions of security, including geopolitical interests, material production, and internal security. According to some scholars, migration policy is an 'integral instrument' of state grand strategy in that context. Political integration at the EU might be altered with the emergence of existential threats. In other words, some areas of the European cooperation can be transformed when a 'critical juncture' occurs, for instance a migration crisis. In that instance, Member states could see migration as a matter of threat that modifies their national interests and willingness to embrace international cooperation. This research will focus on EU Member states´ perceptions of the 90´s migration crisis and the current one. The goal is to evaluate to what extent the perceptions of threat are one of the main factors for explaining the transition from a cooperation scenario to a no-cooperation one in European asylum and security policies. To analyze threat perception in both migration crisis, some relevant Member states are treated as cases of study and a comparative analysis is carried out based on public opinion polls, public and policy discourse in migration, voting practices and deconstruction of the migration policies themselves both at EU level and a national one.

Keywords: cooperation, migration crisis, national responses, threat perception

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Authors: M. R. Zaman, M. S. Bari, M. Kajal

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A field experiment was conducted at the Agroforestry and Environment Research Field, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur during 2013 to investigate the potentiality of three napier fodder varieties under Litchi orchard. The experiment was consisted of 2 factors RCBD with 3 replications. Among the two factors, factor A was two production systems; S1= Litchi + fodder and S2 = Fodder (sole crop); another factor B was three napier varieties: V1= BARI Napier -1 (Bazra), V2= BARI Napier - 2 (Arusha) and V3= BARI Napier -3 (Hybrid). The experimental results revealed that there were significant variation among the varieties in terms of leaf growth and yield. The maximum number of leaf plant -1 was recorded in variety Bazra (V1) whereas the minimum number was recorded in hybrid variety (V3).Significantly the highest (13.75, 14.53 and14.84 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd and 3rd harvest respectively) yield was also recorded in variety Bazra whereas the lowest (5.89, 6.36 and 9.11 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd v and 3rd harvest respectively) yield was in hybrid variety. Again, in case of production systems, there were also significant differences between the two production systems were founded. The maximum number of leaf plant -1 was recorded under Litchi based AGF system (T1) whereas the minimum was recorded in open condition (T2). Similarly, significantly the highest (12.00, 12.35 and 13.31 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd and 3rd harvest respectively) yield of napier was recorded under Litchi based AGF system where as the lowest (9.73, 10.47 and 11.66 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd and 3rd harvest respectively) yield was recorded in open condition i.e. napier in sole cropping. Furthermore, the interaction effect of napier variety and production systems were also gave significant deviation result in terms of growth and yield. The maximum number of leaf plant -1 was recorded under Litchi based AGF systems with Bazra variety whereas the minimum was recorded in open condition with hybrid variety. The highest yield (14.42, 16.14 and 16.15 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd and 3rd harvest respectively) of napier was found under Litchi based AGF systems with Bazra variety. Significantly the lowest (5.33, 5.79 and 8.48 tha-1 at 1st, 2nd and 3rd harvest respectively) yield was found in open condition i.e. sole cropping with hybrid variety. In case of the quality perspective, the highest nutritive value (DM, ASH, CP, CF, EE, and NFE) was found in Bazra (V1) and the lowest value was found in hybrid variety (V3). Therefore, the suitability of napier production under Litchi based AGF system may be ranked as Bazra > Arusha > Hybrid variety. Finally, the economic analysis showed that maximum BCR (5.20) was found in the Litchi based AGF systems over sole cropping (BCR=4.38). From the findings of the taken investigation, it may be concluded that the cultivation of Bazra napier varieties in the floor of Litchi orchard ensures higher revenue to the farmers compared to its sole cropping.

Keywords: potentiality, Litchi, fodder, agroforestry

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Authors: Sajee A. Gamage, Champa J. Wijesinghe, Patricia Burtner, Ananda R. Wickremasinghe

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Background: Teachers working in the context of special education have an enormous responsibility of enhancing performance skills of children in their classroom settings. Fine Motor Skills (FMS) are essential functional skills for children to gain independence in Activities of Daily Living. Children with Down Syndrome (DS) are predisposed to specific challenges due to deficits in FMS. This study is aimed to determine the teachers’ experience on improving FMS of children with DS in the context of special education of Southern Province, Sri Lanka. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted among all consenting eligible teachers (n=147) working in the context of special education in government schools of Southern Province of Sri Lanka. A self-administered questionnaire was developed based on literature and expert opinion to assess teachers’ experience regarding deficits of FMS, limitations of classroom activity performance and barriers to improve FMS of children with DS. Results: Approximately 93% of the teachers were females with a mean age ( ± SD) of 43.1 ( ± 10.1) years. Thirty percent of the teachers had training in special educationand 83% had children with DS in their classrooms. Major deficits of FMS reported were deficits in grasping (n=116; 79%), in-hand manipulation (n=103; 70%) and bilateral hand use (n=99; 67.3%). Paperwork (n=70; 47.6%), painting (n=58; 39.5%), scissor work (n=50; 34.0%), pencil use for writing (n=45; 30.6%) and use of tools in the classroom (n=41; 27.9%) were identified as major classroom performance limitations of children with DS. Parental factors (n=67; 45.6%), disease specific characteristics (n=58; 39.5%) and classroom factors (n=36; 24.5%), were identified as major barriers to improve FMS in the classroom setting. Lack of resources and standard tools, social stigma and late school admission were also identified as barriers to FMS training. Eighty nine percent of the teachers informed that training fine motor activities in a special education classroom was more successful than work with normal classroom setting. Conclusion: Major areas of FMS deficits were grasping, in-hand manipulation and bilateral hand use; classroom performance limitations included paperwork, painting and scissor work of children with DS. Teachers recommended regular practice of fine motor activities according to individual need. Further research is required to design a culturally specific FMS assessment tool and intervention methods to improve FMS of children with DS in Sri Lanka.

Keywords: classroom activities, Down syndrome, experience, fine motor skills, special education, teachers

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Authors: Oğuz Taşbozan, Celal Erbaş, Şefik Surhan Tabakoğlu, Mahmut Ali Gökçe

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Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and particularly the levels and ratios of ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids are important for biological functions in humans and recognized as essential components of human diet. According to the terms of many different points of view, the nutritional composition of fish in culture conditions and caught from wild are wondered by the consumers. Therefore the aim of this study was to investigate the chemical composition of cage-cultured and wild sharpsnout seabream which has been preferred by the consumers as an economical important fish species in Turkey. The fish were caught from wild and obtained from cage-cultured commercial companies. Eight fish were obtained for each group, and their average weights of the samples were 245.8±13.5 g for cultured, 149.4±13.3 g for wild samples. All samples were stored in freezer (-18 °C) and analyses were carried out in triplicates, using homogenized boneless fish fillets. Proximate compositions (protein, ash, moisture and lipid) were determined. The fatty acid composition was analyzed by a GC Clarous 500 with auto sampler (Perkin–Elmer, USA). Proximate compositions of cage-cultured and wild samples of sharpsnout seabream were found statistical differences in terms of proximate composition between the groups. The saturated fatty acid (SFA), monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA) and PUFA amounts of cultured and wild sharpsnout seabream were significantly different. ω3/ω6 ratio was higher in the cultured group. Especially in protein level and lipid level of cultured samples was significantly higher than wild counterparts. One of the reasons for this, cultured species exposed to continuous feeding. This situation had a direct effect on their body lipid content. The fatty acid composition of fish differs depending on a variety of factors including species, diet, environmental factors and whether they are farmed or wild. The higher levels of MUFA in the cultured fish may be explained with the high content of monoenoic fatty acids in the feed of cultured fish as in some other species. The ω3/ω6 ratio is a good index for comparing the relative nutritional value of fish oils. In our study, the cultured sharpsnout seabream appears to be better nutritious in terms of ω3/ω6. Acknowledgement: This work was supported by the Scientific Research Project Unit of the University of Cukurova, Turkey under grant no FBA-2016-5780.

Keywords: Diplodus puntazo, cage cultured, PUFA, fatty acid

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Authors: Zixuan Yang

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This paper presents an analysis of the necessary consideration culture in distributed design through a thorough literature review and case study. The literature review has identified that the need for understanding cultural differences in product design and user evaluations is highlighted by analyzing cross-cultural influences; culture plays a significant role in distributed work, particularly in establishing team cohesion, trust, and credibility early in the project. By applying approaches of Geert Hofstede's dimensions and Fukuyama's trust analysis, a case study of a global design project, i.e., multicultural distributed teamwork solving the problem in terms of reducing the risk of deep vein thrombosis, showcases cultural dynamics, emphasizing trust-building and decision-making. The lessons learned emphasized the importance of cultural awareness, adaptability, and the utilization of scientific theories to enable effective cross-cultural collaborations in global design, providing valuable insights into navigating cultural diversity within design practices.

Keywords: culture, distributed design, global design, Geert Hofstede's dimensions, Fukuyama's trust analysis

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