Search results for: functional activity

Authors: Kinga Zebrowska, Maria Falis, Katarzyna Kosinska-Kaczynska, Bartosz Godek, Olga Plaza, Katarzyna Kwiatkowska

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Introduction: According to the ministerial decree of 16 August 2018, each woman in Poland during childbirth has the right to the pharmacological and non-pharmacological labour pain management (LPM). Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the knowledge of Polish mothers about pharmacological and non-pharmacological LPM, to investigate which methods they chose and their satisfaction with chosen ones. Material And Methods: A prospective cross-sectional study was performed among women who gave birth between 2015 and 2018. The self-composed questionnaire was distributed via the Internet in October 2018. Results: 13.727 women participated in the study. 75% have learned about LPM from the Internet. 68% of them did not gain any information on LPM from doctors during their prenatal appointments Safety of the newborn (46%), midwife’s advice (40%) and the chance of the immediate pain relief (39%) were the most important issues while choosing LPM. Respondents used a wide range of non-pharmacological methods, such as the assistance of partner during labour (81%), physical activity (58%), immersion in water (37%), relaxation techniques (15%) and others. 11% of mothers did not use any of the LPM methods. 52% of women declared that they wanted to use the pharmacological anaesthesia, while 49% had it performed (28% epidural, 16% inhaled anaesthesia, 5% parenteral opioids). Pharmacological methods were unavailable due to lack of anaesthesiologist in the maternity ward (41%) or inaccessibility of the chosen methods in the hospital (31%) and too advanced labour (43%). 48% of respondents did not decide to use pharmacological methods, because the pain was bearable (29%), anxiety of child’s health (17%), or belief that the pain is natural and it should not be avoided (16%). 83% of respondents believed that epidural analgesia has no influence on the time needed to gain a full cervix dilatation and 81% of them claimed that serious spinal cord injury is a common side effect of epidural. 51% believed that epidural increases the risk of caesarean section. Conclusions: The knowledge about the methods of LPM is not satisfactory. We should focus on well- maintained education guided by doctors, midwives, and media.

Keywords: childbirth, labour pain management, maternity experiences, obstetrics

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Authors: SHWETA SRIKUMAR

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Winter stratospheric dynamics is a highly variable and spectacular field of research in middle atmosphere. It is well believed that the interaction of energetic planetary waves with mean flow causes the temperature to increase in the stratosphere and associated circulation reversal. This wave driven sudden disturbances in the polar stratosphere is defined as Sudden Stratospheric Warming. The main objective of the present work is to investigate the mid-winter major stratospheric warming events on equatorial dynamics over Peninsular India. To explore the effect of mid-winter stratospheric warming on Indian region (60oE -100oE), we have selected the winters 2003/04, 2005/06, 2008/09, 2012/13 and 2018/19. This study utilized the data from ERA-Interim Reanalysis, Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR) from NOAA and TRMM satellite data from NASA mission. It is observed that a sudden drop in OLR (averaged over Indian Region) occurs during the course of warming for the winters 2005/06, 2008/09 and 2018/19. But in winters 2003/04 and 2012/13, drop in OLR happens prior to the onset of major warming. Significant amplitude of planetary wave activity is observed in equatorial lower stratosphere which indicates the propagation of extra-tropical planetary waves from high latitude to equator. During the course of warming, a strong downward propagation of EP flux convergence is observed from polar to equator region. The polar westward wind reaches upto 20oN and the weak eastward wind dominates the equator during the winters 2003/04, 2005/06 and 2018/19. But in 2012/13 winter, polar westward wind reaches upto equator. The equatorial wind at 2008/09 is dominated by strong westward wind. Further detailed results will be presented in the conference.

Keywords: Equatorial dynamics, Outgoing Longwave Radiation, Sudden Stratospheric Warming, Planetary Waves

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Authors: Jinhui Bak, Bumjin Kim

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The purpose of this study is to analyze how the scientific and mathematical fields (STEM) and liberal arts (A) work together in the STEAM program. In the future STEAM programs that have been designed and developed, the humanities will act not just as a 'tool' for science technology and mathematics, but as a 'core' content to have an equivalent status. STEAM was first introduced to the Republic of Korea in 2011 when the Ministry of Education emphasized fostering creative convergence talent. Many programs have since been developed under the name STEAM, but with the majority of programs focusing on technology education, arts and humanities are considered secondary. As a result, arts is most likely to be accepted as an option that can be excluded from the teachers who run the STEAM program. If what we ultimately pursue through STEAM education is in fostering STEAM literacy, we should no longer turn arts into a tooling area for STEM. Based on this consciousness, this study analyzed over 160 STEAM programs in middle and high schools, which were produced and distributed by the Ministry of Education and the Korea Science and Technology Foundation from 2012 to 2017. The framework of analyses referenced two criteria presented in the related prior studies: normative convergence and technological convergence. In addition, we divide Arts into fine arts and liberal arts and focused on Korean Language Course which is in liberal arts and analyzed what kind of curriculum standards were selected, and what kind of process the Korean language department participated in teaching and learning. In this study, to ensure the reliability of the analysis results, we have chosen to cross-check the individual analysis results of the two researchers and only if they are consistent. We also conducted a reliability check on the analysis results of three middle and high school teachers involved in the STEAM education program. Analyzing 10 programs selected randomly from the analyzed programs, Cronbach's α .853 showed a reliable level. The results of this study are summarized as follows. First, the convergence ratio of the liberal arts was lowest in the department of moral at 14.58%. Second, the normative convergence is 28.19%, which is lower than that of the technological convergence. Third, the language and achievement criteria selected for the program were limited to functional areas such as listening, talking, reading and writing. This means that the convergence of Korean language departments is made only by the necessary tools to communicate opinions or promote scientific products. In this study, we intend to compare these results with the STEAM programs in the United States and abroad to explore what elements or key concepts are required for the achievement criteria for Korean language and curriculum. This is meaningful in that the humanities field (A), including Korean, provides basic data that can be fused into 'equivalent qualifications' with science (S), technical engineering (TE) and mathematics (M).

Keywords: Korean STEAM Programme, liberal arts, STEAM curriculum, STEAM Literacy, STEM

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Authors: Mahsa Tavakoli, Seyed Mohammad Hojjati, Yahya Kooch

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In this study, the effect of coal mining activities on lead and cadmium concentrations and distribution in soil was investigated in Hyrcanian forest, North Iran. 16 plots (20×20 m²) were established by systematic-randomly (60×60 m²) in an area of 4 ha (200×200 m²-mine entrance placed at center). An area adjacent to the mine was not affected by the mining activity; considered as the controlled area. In order to investigate soil lead and cadmium concentration, one sample was taken from the 0-10 cm in each plot. To study the spatial pattern of soil properties and lead and cadmium concentrations in the mining area, an area of 80×80m² (the mine as the center) was considered and 80 soil samples were systematic-randomly taken (10 m intervals). Geostatistical analysis was performed via Kriging method and GS⁺ software (version 5.1). In order to estimate the impact of coal mining activities on soil quality, pollution index was measured. Lead and cadmium concentrations were significantly higher in mine area (Pb: 10.97±0.30, Cd: 184.47±6.26 mg.kg^-1) in comparison to control area (Pb: 9.42±0.17, Cd: 131.71±15.77 mg.kg^-1). The mean values of the PI index indicate that Pb (1.16) and Cd (1.77) presented slightly polluted. Results of the NIPI index showed that Pb (1.44) and Cd (2.52) presented slight pollution and moderate pollution respectively. Results of variography and kriging method showed that it is possible to prepare interpolation maps of lead and cadmium around the mining areas in Hyrcanian forest. According to results of pollution and risk assessments, forest soil was contaminated by heavy metals (lead and cadmium); therefore, using reclamation and remediation techniques in these areas is necessary.

Keywords: traditional coal mining, heavy metals, pollution indicators, geostatistics, Caspian forest

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Authors: Reeta Devi, Hitender Kumar Tyagi, Dinesh Kumar

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In present scenario, cardiovascular problems are growing challenge for researchers and physiologists. As heart disease have no geographic, gender or socioeconomic specific reasons; detecting cardiac irregularities at early stage followed by quick and correct treatment is very important. Electrocardiogram is the finest tool for continuous monitoring of heart activity. Heart rate variability (HRV) is used to measure naturally occurring oscillations between consecutive cardiac cycles. Analysis of this variability is carried out using time domain, frequency domain and non-linear parameters. This paper presents HRV analysis of the online dataset for normal sinus rhythm (taken as healthy subject) and sudden cardiac death (SCD subject) using all three methods computing values for parameters like standard deviation of node to node intervals (SDNN), square root of mean of the sequences of difference between adjacent RR intervals (RMSSD), mean of R to R intervals (mean RR) in time domain, very low-frequency (VLF), low-frequency (LF), high frequency (HF) and ratio of low to high frequency (LF/HF ratio) in frequency domain and Poincare plot for non linear analysis. To differentiate HRV of healthy subject from subject died with SCD, k –nearest neighbor (k-NN) classifier has been used because of its high accuracy. Results show highly reduced values for all stated parameters for SCD subjects as compared to healthy ones. As the dataset used for SCD patients is recording of their ECG signal one hour prior to their death, it is therefore, verified with an accuracy of 95% that proposed algorithm can identify mortality risk of a patient one hour before its death. The identification of a patient’s mortality risk at such an early stage may prevent him/her meeting sudden death if in-time and right treatment is given by the doctor.

Keywords: early stage prediction, heart rate variability, linear and non-linear analysis, sudden cardiac death

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Authors: Vittorio Linfante

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Utopìa is a term that, since its first appearance in 1516, in Tommaso Moro’s work, has taken on different meanings and forms in various fields: social studies, politics, art, creativity, and design. The utopias, although of short duration and in their apparent impossibility, have been able to give a shape to the future, laying the foundations for our present and the future of the next generations. The Twentieth century was the historical period crossed by many changes, and it saw the most significant number of utopias not only social, political, and scientific but also artistic, architectural, in design, communication, and, last but not least, in fashion. Over the years, fashion has been able to interpret various utopistic impulses giving form to the most futuristic visions. From the Manifesto del Vestito by Giacomo Balla, through the functional experiments that led to the Tuta by Thayath and the Varst by Aleksandr Rodčenko and Varvara Stepanova, through the Space Age visions of Rudi Gernreich, Paco Rabanne and Pierre Cardin, and the Archizoom’s political actions and their fashion project Vestirsi è facile. Experiments that have continued to the present days through the (sometimes) excessive visions of Hussein Chalayan, Alexander McQueen, and Gareth Pugh or those that are more anchored to the market (but no fewer innovative and visionaries) by Prada, Chanel, and Raf Simmons. If, as Bauman states, it is true that we have entered in a phase of Retrotopia characterized by the inability to think about new forms of the future; it is necessary, more than ever, to redefine the role of history, of its narration and its mise en scène, within the contemporary creative process. A process that increasingly requires an in-depth knowledge of the past for the definition of a renewed discourse about design processes. A discourse in which words like archive, exhibition, curating, revival, vintage, and costume take on new meanings. The paper aims to investigate–through case studies, research, and professional projects–the renewed role of curating and preserving fashion artefacts. A renewed role that–in an era of Retrotopia–museums, exhibitions, and archives can (and must) assume, to contribute to the definition of new design paradigms, capable of overcoming the traditional categories of revival or costume in favour of a more contemporary “mash-up” approach. Mash-up in which past and present, craftsmanship and new technologies, revival and experimentation merge seamlessly. In this perspective, dresses (as well as fashion accessories) should be considered not only as finished products but as artefacts capable of talking about the past and of producing unpublished new stories at the same time. Archives, exhibitions (academic and not), and museums thus become powerful sources of inspiration for fashion: places and projects capable of generating innovation, becoming active protagonists of the contemporary fashion design processes.

Keywords: heritage, history, costume and fashion interface, performance, language, design research

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Authors: W. S. Thulasitha, N. Umasuthan, G. I. Godahewa, Jehee Lee

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In fish, innate immune defense is the first immune response against microbial pathogens which consists of several antimicrobial components. Galectins are one of the carbohydrate binding lectins that have the ability to identify pathogen by recognition of pathogen associated molecular patterns. Galectins play a vital role in the regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. Rock bream Oplegnathus fasciatus is one of the most important cultured species in Korea and Japan. Considering the losses due to microbial pathogens, present study was carried out to understand the molecular and functional characteristics of a galectin in normal and pathogenic conditions, which could help to establish an understanding about immunological components of rock bream. Complete cDNA of rock bream galectin like protein B (rbGal like B) was identified from the cDNA library, and the in silico analysis was carried out using bioinformatic tools. Genomic structure was derived from the BAC library by sequencing a specific clone and using Spidey. Full length of rbGal like B (contig14775) cDNA containing 517 nucleotides was identified from the cDNA library which comprised of 435 bp in the open reading frame encoding a deduced protein composed of 145 amino acids. The molecular mass of putative protein was predicted as 16.14 kDa with an isoelectric point of 8.55. A characteristic conserved galactose binding domain was located from 12 to 145 amino acids. Genomic structure of rbGal like B consisted of 4 exons and 3 introns. Moreover, pairwise alignment showed that rock bream rbGal like B shares highest similarity (95.9 %) and identity (91 %) with Takifugu rubripes galectin related protein B like and lowest similarity (55.5 %) and identity (32.4 %) with Homo sapiens. Multiple sequence alignment demonstrated that the galectin related protein B was conserved among vertebrates. A phylogenetic analysis revealed that rbGal like B protein clustered together with other fish homologs in fish clade. It showed closer evolutionary link with Takifugu rubripes. Tissue distribution and expression patterns of rbGal like B upon immune challenges were performed using qRT-PCR assays. Among all tested tissues, level of rbGal like B expression was significantly high in gill tissue followed by kidney, intestine, heart and spleen. Upon immune challenges, it showed an up-regulated pattern of expression with Edwardsiella tarda, rock bream irido virus and poly I:C up to 6 h post injection and up to 24 h with LPS. However, In the presence of Streptococcus iniae rbGal like B showed an up and down pattern of expression with the peak at 6 - 12 h. Results from the present study revealed the phylogenetic position and role of rbGal like B in response to microbial infection in rock bream.

Keywords: galectin like protein B, immune response, Oplegnathus fasciatus, molecular characterization

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Authors: Nikolai A. Khlebnikov, Vladimir N. Krasilnikov, Evgenii V. Polyakov, Anastasia A. Maltceva

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Carbon materials with advanced surfaces are widely used both in modern industry and in environmental protection. The physical-chemical nature of these materials is determined by the morphology of primary atomic and molecular carbon structures, which are the basis for synthesizing the following materials: zero-dimensional (fullerenes), one-dimensional (fiber, tubes), two-dimensional (graphene) carbon nanostructures, three-dimensional (multi-layer graphene, graphite, foams) with unique physical-chemical and functional properties. Experience shows that the microscopic morphological level is the basis for the creation of the next mesoscopic morphological level. The dependence of the morphology on the chemical way and process prehistory (crystallization, colloids formation, liquid crystal state and other) is the peculiarity of the last called level. These factors determine the consumer properties of carbon materials, such as specific surface area, porosity, chemical resistance in corrosive environments, catalytic and adsorption activities. Based on the developed ideology of thin precursor synthesis, the authors discuss one of the approaches of the porosity control of carbon-containing materials with a given aggregates morphology. The low-temperature thermolysis of precursors in a gas environment of a given composition is the basis of the above-mentioned idea. The processes of carbothermic precursor synthesis of two different compounds: tungsten carbide WC:nC and zinc oxide ZnO:nC containing an impurity phase in the form of free carbon were selected as subjects of the research. In the first case, the transition metal (tungsten) forming carbides was the object of the synthesis. In the second case, there was selected zinc that does not form carbides. The synthesis of both kinds of transition metals compounds was conducted by the method of precursor carbothermic synthesis from the organic solution. ZnO:nC composites were obtained by thermolysis of succinate Zn(OO(CH2)2OO), formate glycolate Zn(HCOO)(OCH2CH2O)1/2, glycerolate Zn(OCH2CHOCH2OH), and tartrate Zn(OOCCH(OH)CH(OH)COO). WC:nC composite was synthesized from ammonium paratungstate and glycerol. In all cases, carbon structures that are specific for diamond- like carbon forms appeared on the surface of WC and ZnO particles after the heat treatment. Tungsten carbide and zinc oxide were removed from the composites by selective chemical dissolution preserving the amorphous carbon phase. This work presents the results of investigating WC:nC and ZnO:nC composites and carbon nanopowders with tubular, tape, plate and onion morphologies of aggregates that are separated by chemical dissolution of WC and ZnO from the composites by the following methods: SEM, TEM, XPA, Raman spectroscopy, and BET. The connection between the carbon morphology under the conditions of synthesis and chemical nature of the precursor and the possibility of regulation of the morphology with the specific surface area up to 1700-2000 m2/g of carbon-structured materials are discussed.

Keywords: carbon morphology, composite materials, precursor synthesis, tungsten carbide, zinc oxide

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Authors: H. Sebai, M. A. Jabria, D. Wannes, H. Tounsi, L. Marzouki

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We aimed in the present study to investigate the protective effects of Tunisian Rosa canina aqueous extract (RCAE) against ethanol-induced gastric ulceration and oxidative stress in a rat model. In this respect, adult male Wistar rats were used and divided into six groups of ten each: control, EtOH, EtOH plus various doses of RCAE, EtOH plus famotidine and EtOH + gallic acid. Phytochemical and biochemical analysis were performed using colorimetric methods. We found that RCAE is rich in total polyphenols, total flavonoids, and condensed tannins, and exhibited an importance in vitro antioxidant activity on 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. In vivo, the results showed that oral administration of EtOH caused macroscopic and histological changes in gastric mucosa. These injuries are accompanied by an oxidative stress status as assessed by an increase of lipid peroxidation as well as a decrease of antioxidant enzyme activities such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). Alcohol intoxication also induced intracellular mediators deregulation as assessed by an increase of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), calcium and free iron levels in gastric mucosa. More, importantly, RCAE pretreatment reversed all macroscopic, histological and biochemical changes induced by EtOH administration. In conclusion, we suggest that RCAE has potent protective effects on acute ethanol-induced gastric ulceration related in part in part its antioxidant properties and its opposite effect on intracellular mediators. Indeed, Rosa canina can be offered as a food additive to protect against alcohol consumption-induced gastric and oxidative damage.

Keywords: alcohol, antioxidant properties, food additive, gastric ulceration, rat model, Rosa canina

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Authors: Hui Tag, Jambey Tsering, Pallabi Kalita Hui, Baikuntha Jyoti Gogoi, Vijay Veer

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The food security issues and its relevance in High Mountain regions of the world have been often neglected. Wild edible plants have been playing a major role in livelihood security among the tribal Communities of East Himalayan Region of the world since time immemorial. The Eastern Himalayan Region of India is one of the mega diverse regions of world and rated as top 12th Global Biodiversity Hotspots by IUCN and recognized as one of the 200 significant eco-regions of the Globe. The region supports one of the world’s richest alpine floras and about one-third of them are endemic to the region. There are at least 7,500 flowering plants, 700 orchids, 58 bamboo species, 64 citrus species, 28 conifers, 500 mosses, 700 ferns and 728 lichens. The region is the home of more than three hundred different ethnic communities having diverse knowledge on traditional uses of flora and fauna as food, medicine and beverages. Monpa, Memba and Khamba are among the local communities residing in high altitude region of Eastern Himalaya with rich traditional knowledge related to utilization of wild edible plants. The Monpas, Memba and Khamba are the followers Mahayana sect of Himalayan Buddhism and they are mostly agrarian by primary occupation and also heavily relaying on wild edible plants for their livelihood security during famine since millennia. In the present study, we have reported traditional uses of 40 wild edible plant species and out of which 6 species were analysed at biochemical level for nutrients contents and free radical scavenging activities. The results have shown significant free radical scavenging (antioxidant) activity and nutritional potential of the selected 6 wild edible plants used by the local communities of Eastern Himalayan Region of India.

Keywords: East Himalaya, local community, wild edible plants, nutrition, food security

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Authors: Soumava Boral, Sanjay K. Chaturvedi, Ian Howard, Kristoffer McKee, V. N. A. Naikan

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Due to strict regulations from government to enhance the possibilities of sustainability practices in industries, and noting the advances in sustainable manufacturing practices, it is necessary that the associated processes are also sustainable. Maintenance of large scale and complex machines is a pivotal task to maintain the uninterrupted flow of manufacturing processes. Appropriate maintenance practices can prolong the lifetime of machines, and prevent associated breakdowns, which subsequently reduces different cost heads. Selection of the best maintenance strategies for such machines are considered as a burdensome task, as they require the consideration of multiple technical criteria, complex mathematical calculations, previous fault data, maintenance records, etc. In the era of the fourth industrial revolution, organizations are rapidly changing their way of business, and they are giving their utmost importance to sensor technologies, artificial intelligence, data analytics, automations, etc. In this work, the effectiveness of several maintenance strategies (e.g., preventive, failure-based, reliability centered, condition based, total productive maintenance, etc.) related to a large scale and complex gearbox, operating in a steel processing plant is evaluated in terms of economic, social, environmental and technical criteria. As it is not possible to obtain/describe some criteria by exact numerical values, these criteria are evaluated linguistically by cross-functional experts. Fuzzy sets are potential soft-computing technique, which has been useful to deal with linguistic data and to provide inferences in many complex situations. To prioritize different maintenance practices based on the identified sustainable criteria, multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) approaches can be considered as potential tools. Multi-Attributive Ideal Real Comparative Analysis (MAIRCA) is a recent addition in the MCDM family and has proven its superiority over some well-known MCDM approaches, like TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) and ELECTRE (ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la REalité). It has a simple but robust mathematical approach, which is easy to comprehend. On the other side, due to some inherent drawbacks of Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets (IFS) and Pythagorean Fuzzy Sets (PFS), recently, the use of Fermatean Fuzzy Sets (FFSs) has been proposed. In this work, we propose the novel concept of FF-MAIRCA. We obtain the weights of the criteria by experts’ evaluation and use them to prioritize the different maintenance practices according to their suitability by FF-MAIRCA approach. Finally, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to highlight the robustness of the approach.

Keywords: Fermatean fuzzy sets, Fermatean fuzzy MAIRCA, maintenance strategy selection, sustainable manufacturing, MCDM

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Authors: Hacer Sule Gonul, Vedat Uyak

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Intensive use of pesticides in agricultural activity causes mixing of these compounds into water sources with surface flow. Especially after the 1970s, a number of limitations imposed on the use of chlorinated pesticides that have a carcinogenic risk potential and regulatory limit have been established. These chlorinated pesticides discharge to water resources, transport in the water and land environment and accumulation in the human body through the food chain raises serious health concerns. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have attracted considerable attention from on all because of their excellent mechanical, electrical, and environmental characteristics. Due to CNT particles' high degree of hydrophobic surfaces, these nanoparticles play critical role in the removal of water contaminants of natural organic matters, pesticides and phenolic compounds in water sources. Health concerns associated with chlorinated pesticides requires the removal of such contaminants from aquatic environment. Although the use of aldrin and atrazine was restricted in our country, repatriation of illegal entry and widespread use of such chemicals in agricultural areas cause increases for the concentration of these chemicals in the water supply. In this study, the compounds of chlorinated pesticides such as aldrin and atrazine compounds would be tried to eliminate from drinking water with carbon nanotube adsorption method. Within this study, 2 different types of CNT would be used including single-wall (SWCNT) and multi-wall (MWCNT) carbon nanotubes. Adsorption isotherms within the scope of work, the parameters affecting the adsorption of chlorinated pesticides in water are considered as pH, contact time, CNT type, CNT dose and initial concentration of pesticides. As a result, under conditions of neutral pH conditions with MWCNT respectively for atrazine and aldrin obtained adsorption capacity of determined as 2.24 µg/mg ve 3.84 µg/mg. On the other hand, the determined adsorption capacity rates for SWCNT for aldrin and atrazine has identified as 3.91 µg/mg ve 3.92 µg/mg. After all, each type of pesticide that provides superior performance in relieving SWCNT particles has emerged.

Keywords: pesticide, drinking water, carbon nanotube, adsorption

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Authors: Jill Villarreal, Kristalyn Cooksey, Kai Lloyd, Daniel Ha

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Little research has been conducted to examine college students' reading attitudes, including students' perceptions of reading behaviors and reading abilities. This is problematic, as reading assigned course material is a critical component to an undergraduate student's academic success. For this study, flyers were electronically disseminated to instructors at 24 public and 10 private U.S. institutions in “Reading-Intensive Departments” including Psychology, Sociology, Education, Business, and Communications. We requested the online survey be completed as an in-class activity during the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters. All participants voluntarily completed the questionnaire anonymously. Of the participants, 280 self-identified their race as Black and 280 self-identified their race as White. Of the participants, 177 self-identified their gender as Male and 383 self-identified their Gender as Female. Participants ranged in age from 18-24. Factor analysis found four dimensions resulting from the questions regarding reading. The first we interpret as “Reading Proficiency”, accounted for 19% of the variability. The second dimension was “Reading Anxiety” (15%), the third was “Textbook Reading Ability” (9%), and the fourth was “Reading Enjoyment” (8%). Linear models on each of these dimensions revealed no effect of Age, Gender, Race, or Income on “Reading proficiency”. The linear model of “Reading Anxiety” showed a significant effect of race (p = 0.02), with higher anxiety in white students, as well as higher reading anxiety in female students (p < 0.001). The model of “Textbook Reading Ability” found a significant effect of race (p < 0.001), with higher textbook problems in white students. The model of “Reading Enjoyment” showed significant effects of race (p = 0.013) with more enjoyment for white students, gender (p = 0.001) with higher enjoyment for female students, and age (p = 0.033) with older students showing higher enjoyment. These findings suggest that gender, age, and race are important factors in many aspects of college students' reading attitudes. Further research will investigate possible causes for these differences. In addition, the effectiveness of college-level programs to reduce reading anxiety, promote the reading of textbooks, and foster a love of reading will be assessed.

Keywords: age, college, gender, race, reading

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Authors: Yu-Wen Huang, Yi-Cheng Chiang

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With urban development, lots of buildings are built around the city. The buildings always affect the urban wind environment. The accelerative situation of wind caused of buildings often makes pedestrians uncomfortable, even causes the accidents and dangers. Factors influencing pedestrian level wind including atmospheric boundary layer, wind direction, wind velocity, planting, building volume, geometric shape of the buildings and adjacent interference effects, etc. Planting has many functions including scraping and slowing urban heat island effect, creating a good visual landscape, increasing urban green area and improve pedestrian level wind. On the other hand, urban square is an important space element supporting the entrance to buildings, city landmarks, and activity collections, etc. The appropriateness of urban square environment usually dominates its success. This research focuses on the effect of tree-planting on the wind environment of urban square. This research studied the square belt of Taichung City Hall. Taichung City Hall is a cuboid building with a large mass opening. The square belt connects the front square, the central opening and the back square. There is often wind draft on the square belt. This phenomenon decreases the activities on the squares. This research applies tree-planting to improve the wind environment and evaluate the effects of two types of planting configuration. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulation analysis and extensive field measurements are applied to explore the improve efficiency of planting configuration on wind environment. This research compares efficiencies of different kinds of planting configuration, including the clustering array configuration and the dispersion, and evaluates the efficiencies by the SET*.

Keywords: micro-climate, wind environment, planting configuration, comfortableness, computational fluid dynamics (CFD)

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Authors: D. A. S. Gamage, B. F. A. Basnayake, W. A. J. M. De Costa

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Agriculture plays an important and strategic role in the performance of Sri Lankan national economy. Rice is the staple food of Sri Lankans thus; rice cultivation is the major agricultural activity of the country. In Sri Lanka, out of the total rice production, a considerable amount of rice straw and rice husk goes wasted. Hence, there is a great potential of production of quality compost and rice husk charcoal. The concept of making rice straw compost and rice husk charcoal is practicable in Sri Lanka, where more than 40% of the farmers are engaged in rice cultivation. The application of inorganic nitrogen fertilizer has become a burden to the country. Rice husk charcoal as a coating material to retain N fertilizer is a suitable solution to gradually release nitrogenous compounds. Objective of this study was to produce rice husk charcoal coated urea as a slow releasing fertilizer with rice straw compost and to compare the leaching losses of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium using leaching columns. Leaching column studies were prepared using 1.2 m tall PVC pipes with a diameter of 15 cm and a sampling port was attached to the bottom end of the column-cap. Leachates (100 ml/leaching column) were obtained from two sets of (each set has four leaching columns) leaching columns. The sampling was done once a week for 3 month period. Rice husk charcoal coated urea can potentially be used as a slow releasing nitrogen fertilizer which reduces leaching losses of urea. It also helps reduce the phosphate and potassium leaching. The cyclic effect of phosphate release is an important finding which could be the central issue in defining microbial behavior in soils. The fluctuations of phosphate may have cyclic effects of 28 days. In addition, rice straw compost and rice husk charcoal coating is less costly and contribute to mitigate pollution of water bodies by inorganic fertilizers.

Keywords: leaching, mitigate, rice husk charcoal, slow releasing fertilizer

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Authors: C. Catalina Zapata, Z. Claudia Montoya

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Transplant from hematopoietic parents (THP) or medulla (MT) is a procedure used to replace the medulla that does not work as part of a disease or when it is destroyed either by a treatment of high medication doses against cancer or by radiation. The transplant process has three stages, a stage prior to transplant, during and after the transplant. It is held with the help of an interdisciplinary team, including nursing, carrying out mainly educative procedures to warrant the adhesion and the changes in lifestyles needed to whom will undergo this procedure. The aim of the study was to assess the results of an educative procedure by nursing, on adult patients subjected to a transplant from hematopoietic parents at a high complexity institution of Medellin city, Colombia. This study had an observational longitudinal design. According to the rules of protocol, the educative activity must be held on all patients joining the procedure. Four instruments were designed in order to collect all the information. One of them to measure the sociodemographic variables, another one to measure self-care practices, another one to measure transplant knowledge and its cares and the other one to measure the 30-day post-transplant complications. The last three instruments were applied before and after the educative procedure. A univaried analysis was carried out but the bivaried analysis was not carried out since there were not statistically meaningful differences before and after. Within the results, ten patients were evaluated. The average age was 38.2 (13.38 SD – standard deviation), 8/10 were men. Some self-care practices such us having pets and plants and consuming some specific food as well as little use of UV protection are all present in this type of patients and are not modified after the procedure. In measuring the knowledge, something stands out among the answers. It is the fact that some patients do not know what the medulla is, the nature of separating wastes at home and the need to consult about vomit and nausea. The most frequent complications during the first thirty days were: nausea, vomit, fever, and rash. They are considered to be expected within this period. Patients do not exhibit differences in their level of knowledge before and after the educative procedure by nursing. The patients’ self-care practices do not involve all the necessary ones to avoid complications. During the first 30 days, most of the complications are typical of the transplant process from hematopoietic parents.

Keywords: bone marrow transplant, education, family, nursing, patients, Transplantation of hematopoietic progenitors

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Authors: L. Shafiq, A. Rigby

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All polyethylene processes are highly exothermic, and the safe removal of the heat of reaction is a fundamental issue in the process design. In slurry and gas processes, the velocity of the polymer particles in the reactor and external coolers can be very high, and under certain conditions, this can lead to static charging of these particles. Such static charged polymer particles may start building up on the reactor wall, limiting heat transfer, and ultimately leading to severe reactor fouling and forced reactor shut down. Statsafe™ is an FDA approved anti-fouling additive currently used around the world for polyolefin production as an anti-fouling additive. The unique polymer chemistry aids static discharge, which prevents the build-up of charged polyolefin particles, which could lead to fouling. Statsafe™ is being used and trailed in gas, slurry, and a combination of these technologies around the world. We will share data to demonstrate how the use of Statsafe™ allows more stable operation at higher solids level by eliminating static, which would otherwise prevent closer packing of particles in the hydrocarbon slurry. Because static charge generation depends also on the concentration of polymer particles in the slurry, the maximum slurry concentration can be higher when using Statsafe™, leading to higher production rates. The elimination of fouling also leads to less downtime. Special focus will be made on the impact anti-static additives have on catalyst performance within the polymerization process and how this has been measured. Lab-scale studies have investigated the effect on the activity of Ziegler Natta catalysts when anti-static additives are used at various concentrations in gas and slurry, polyethylene and polypropylene processes. An in-depth gas phase study investigated the effect of additives on the final polyethylene properties such as particle size, morphology, fines, bulk density, melt flow index, gradient density, and melting point.

Keywords: anti-static additives, catalyst performance, FDA approved anti-fouling additive, polymerisation

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Authors: Vaishali Joshi

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In the past, companies and buyers operated as if there was infinite availability of natural resources for usage, which has resulted in the loss of our globe's natural ecosystem. People's consciousness of ecological concerns had increased, which showed the way for the evolution of the green revolution with the objective of discontinuing the use of products that are harmful to the ecosystem of the earth. This green revolution has made the consumers head toward those companies which are providing eco-friendly products s/service s through less eco-harmful ways. Studies show that companies started gaining a reputation in the market through their eco-friendly activities in their business. Hence companies should be alert to understand the consumer's environmentally friendly consumption behavior to survive and be in the game of the competition. Green marketing efforts guarantee beneficial exchanges without harmful consequences for current and /or upcoming generations. This hits the green policies of those companies which are claiming environmental concern. This means that these companies not only focus on the impact of their production and products on the ecosystem but also on every small activity in their value chain. One of the most ignored parts of the value chain is the medium through which the marketing of products/services is done. These companies should also take into account to what degree their selection of advertising media affects the ecosystem of the earth. In this study, a hypothetical fashion apparel brand known as "Dolphin" will be studied. In particular, the following objectives are framed: i) to study the brand attitude of the given fashion brand due to its selection of eco-friendly advertising medium ii) to study the advertisement attitude of the given fashion brand due to its selection of eco-friendly advertising medium and iii) to study the purchase intention of the given fashion brand due to its selection of eco-friendly advertising medium. An online experiment will be conducted. Respondents between the ages of 20-and 64 years will be selected randomly from the online consumer panel database. The findings of this study will have a great impact on the companies that are claiming environmental concerns by understanding how the advertising media is affecting the company’s brand image in the long run.

Keywords: eco-friendly advertising media, fashion, attitude, purchase intention

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Authors: Abd El-Aziz Khairy Abd El-Aal, Yuji Yagi, Heba Kamal

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In this study, an integrated multi-channel analysis of Surface Waves (MASW) technique is applied to explore the geotechnical parameters of subsurface layers at the Zafarana wind farm. Moreover, a seismic hazard procedure based on the extended deterministic technique is used to estimate the seismic hazard load for the investigated area. The study area includes many active fault systems along the Gulf of Suez that cause many moderate and large earthquakes. Overall, the seismic activity of the area has recently become better understood following the use of new waveform inversion methods and software to develop accurate focal mechanism solutions for recent recorded earthquakes around the studied area. These earthquakes resulted in major stress-drops in the Eastern desert and the Gulf of Suez area. These findings have helped to reshape the understanding of the seismotectonic environment of the Gulf of Suez area, which is a perplexing tectonic domain. Based on the collected new information and data, this study uses an extended deterministic approach to re-examine the seismic hazard for the Gulf of Suez region, particularly the wind turbine towers at Zafarana Wind Farm and its vicinity. Alternate seismic source and magnitude-frequency relationships were combined with various indigenous attenuation relationships, adapted within a logic tree formulation, to quantify and project the regional exposure on a set of hazard maps. We select two desired exceedance probabilities (10 and 20%) that any of the applied scenarios may exceed the largest median ground acceleration. The ground motion was calculated at 50th, 84th percentile levels.

Keywords: MASW, seismic hazard, wind turbine towers, Zafarana wind farm

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Authors: Mary Deyo, Zmara Harrison

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This study reports the outcomes of an 8-week experiential learning program for 6 adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) at a day habilitation program. The intervention foci for this program include executive function, language learning in the domains of expressive, receptive, and pragmatic language, and quality of life. The interprofessional collaboration aimed at supporting adults with IDD to reach person-centered, functional goals across skill domains is critical. This study is a significant addition to the speech-language pathology literature in that it examines a therapy method that potentially meets this need while targeting domains within the speech-language pathology scope of practice. Communication therapy was provided during highly valued and meaningful hands-on learning experiences, referred to as the Garden Club, which incorporated all aspects of planting and caring for a garden as well as related journaling, sensory, cooking, art, and technology-based activities. Direct care staff and an undergraduate research assistant were trained by SLP to be impactful language guides during their interactions with participants in the Garden Club. SLP also provided direct therapy and modeling during Garden Club. Research methods used in this study included a mixed methods analysis of a literature review, a quasi-experimental implementation of communication therapy in the context of experiential learning activities, Quality of Life participant surveys, quantitative pre- post- data collection and linear mixed model analysis, qualitative data collection with qualitative content analysis and coding for themes. Outcomes indicated overall positive changes in expressive vocabulary, following multi-step directions, sequencing, problem-solving, planning, skills for building and maintaining meaningful social relationships, and participant perception of the Garden Project’s impact on their own quality of life. Implementation of this project also highlighted supports and barriers that must be taken into consideration when planning similar projects. Overall findings support the use of experiential learning projects in day habilitation programs for adults with IDD, as well as additional research to deepen understanding of best practices, supports, and barriers for implementation of experiential learning with this population. This research provides an important contribution to research in the fields of speech-language pathology and other professions serving adults with IDD by describing an interprofessional experiential learning program with positive outcomes for executive function, language learning, and quality of life.

Keywords: experiential learning, adults, intellectual and developmental disabilities, expressive language, receptive language, pragmatic language, executive function, communication therapy, day habilitation, interprofessionalism, quality of life

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Authors: Jihoon Yang, Jeong II Choi

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Mincle is expressed in macrophages and is members of immunoreceptors induced after exposure to various stimuli and stresses. Mincle receptor activation promotes the production of these substances by increasing the transcription of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines. Cytokines, which play an important role in the initiation and maintenance of such inflammatory pain diseases, have a significant effect on sensory neurons in addition to their enhancement and inhibitory effects on immune and inflammatory cells as mediators of cell interaction. Glial cells in the central nervous system play a critical role in development and maintenance of chronic pain states. Microglia are tissue-resident macrophages in the central nervous system, and belong to a group of mononuclear phagocytes. In the central nervous system, mincle receptor is present in neurons and glial cells of the brain.This study was performed to identify the Mincle receptor in the spinal cord and to investigate the effect of Mincle receptor activation on nociception and the changes of microglia. Materials and Methods: C-type lectins(Mincle) was identified in spinal cord of Male Sprague–Dawley rats. Then, mincle receptor ligand (TDB), via an intrathecal catheter. Mechanical allodynia was measured using von Frey test to evaluate the effect of intrathecal injection of TDB. Result: The present investigation shows that the intrathecal administration of TDB in the rat produces a reliable and quantifiable mechanical hyperalgesia. In addition, The mechanical hyperalgesia after TDB injection gradually developed over time and remained until 10 days. Mincle receptor is identified in the spinal cord, mainly expressed in neuronal cells, but not in microglia or astrocyte. These results suggest that activation of mincle receptor pathway in neurons plays an important role in inducing activation of microglia and inducing mechanical allodynia.

Keywords: mincle, spinal cord, pain, microglia

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Authors: El Harraj Abdeslam, Raissouni Naoufal

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The detection of moving objects from a video image sequences is very important for object tracking, activity recognition, and behavior understanding in video surveillance. The most used approach for moving objects detection / tracking is background subtraction algorithms. Many approaches have been suggested for background subtraction. But, these are illumination change sensitive and the solutions proposed to bypass this problem are time consuming. In this paper, we propose a robust yet computationally efficient background subtraction approach and, mainly, focus on the ability to detect moving objects on dynamic scenes, for possible applications in complex and restricted access areas monitoring, where moving and motionless persons must be reliably detected. It consists of three main phases, establishing illumination changes in variance, background/foreground modeling and morphological analysis for noise removing. We handle illumination changes using Contrast Limited Histogram Equalization (CLAHE), which limits the intensity of each pixel to user determined maximum. Thus, it mitigates the degradation due to scene illumination changes and improves the visibility of the video signal. Initially, the background and foreground images are extracted from the video sequence. Then, the background and foreground images are separately enhanced by applying CLAHE. In order to form multi-modal backgrounds we model each channel of a pixel as a mixture of K Gaussians (K=5) using Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM). Finally, we post process the resulting binary foreground mask using morphological erosion and dilation transformations to remove possible noise. For experimental test, we used a standard dataset to challenge the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method on a diverse set of dynamic scenes.

Keywords: video surveillance, background subtraction, contrast limited histogram equalization, illumination invariance, object tracking, object detection, behavior understanding, dynamic scenes

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Authors: Kanika Saxena, Sunita Balani

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Purpose - The aim of the study is to compare the reported sustainability activities in areas of emission, water management and gender equality, currently undertaken by the seven major pharmaceutical companies. Methodology: The published corporate sustainability activity reports for the year 2017 for seven pharmaceutical companies have been studied. The two main criteria for the inclusion of pharmaceutical companies in this study are that they are globally recognized and active in the field of sustainability reporting. Company’s actions and initiatives have been grouped under three categories: (i) Emissions (ii) Water management (iii) Gender Equality in terms of employee workforce. Findings: Based on the sustainability reports, quantification and grading of the companies showed interesting results. Johnson & Johnson and Bayer are leading their activities under emissions and water management categories. The number of activities under emission and water management in case of Eli Lily, Roche, Sanofi, Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline were 19, 16, 16, 11 and 6 respectively. Johnson & Johnson and Eli Lily are leading in taking the initiatives to curb the problem of emissions as compared with other 5 companies. Under the category of gender equality in terms of employee workforce, Eli Lily is leading the group of sampled companies with 47% of women employee workforce globally followed by Sanofi with 46.2% (42.2% of managers) female employees. It has also been observed that in some of the reports, gender diversification in the workforce has not been mentioned though the total number of employees were mentioned. Conclusion: This study could serve as the informative material for future in-depth industry-specific studies in order to find out the participation of the pharmaceutical companies in the reporting of the sustainability activities especially in reference to emission, water management and gender equality in the workforce. In addition to it, this can be helpful as a reference point for other companies in the pharmaceutical sector who are yet to explore the field of sustainability initiatives and reporting. Due to the limited scope of this study, only seven major players of the pharmaceutical sector who are active in the field of sustainability have been considered.

Keywords: emission, gender equality workforce, pharmaceutical, sustainability, water management

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Authors: Mamta Jat

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Background: The increased longevity has resulted in the increase in the percentage of the global population aged 60 years or over. With this “demographic transition” towards ageing, “epidemiologic transition” is also taking place characterised by growing share of non-communicable diseases in the overall disease burden. So, many of the older adults are ageing with chronic disease and high levels of frailty which often results in lower levels of quality of life. Although frailty may be increasingly common in older adults, prevention or, at least, delay the onset of late-life adverse health outcomes and disability is necessary to maintain the health and functional status of the ageing population. This is an effort using SAGE data to assess levels of frailty and its socio-demographic correlates and its relation with quality of life in LMICs of India, China, Ghana, Mexico, Russia and South Africa in a comparative perspective. Methods: The data comes from multi-country Study on Global AGEing and Adult Health (SAGE), consists of nationally representative samples of older adults in six low and middle-income countries (LMICs): China, Ghana, India, Mexico, the Russian Federation and South Africa. For our study purpose, we will consider only 50+ year’s respondents. The logistic regression model has been used to assess the correlates of frailty. Multinomial logistic regression has been used to study the effect of frailty on QOL (quality of life), controlling for the effect of socio-economic and demographic correlates. Results: Among all the countries India is having highest mean frailty in males (0.22) and females (0.26) and China with the lowest mean frailty in males (0.12) and females (0.14). The odds of being frail are more likely with the increase in age across all the countries. In India, China and Russia the chances of frailty are more among rural older adults; whereas, in Ghana, South Africa and Mexico rural residence is protecting against frailty. Among all countries china has high percentage (71.46) of frail people in low QOL; whereas Mexico has lowest percentage (36.13) of frail people in low QOL.s The risk of having low and middle QOL is significantly (p<0.001) higher among frail elderly as compared to non–frail elderly across all countries with controlling socio-demographic correlates. Conclusion: Women and older age groups are having higher frailty levels than men and younger aged adults in LMICs. The mean frailty scores demonstrated a strong inverse relationship with education and income gradients, while lower levels of education and wealth are showing higher levels of frailty. These patterns are consistent across all LMICs. These data support a significant role of frailty with all other influences controlled, in having low QOL as measured by WHOQOL index. Future research needs to be built on this evolving concept of frailty in an effort to improve quality of life for frail elderly population, in LMICs setting.

Keywords: Keywords: Ageing, elderly, frailty, quality of life

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Authors: Annika Kjallman Alm, Ove Hellzen, Malin Rising-Holmstrom

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Worldwide, the number of people who are living with dementia is increasing because of an aging population, which leads to increased financial and social costs, including reduced quality of life for people with dementia and their care partners. Most people who have dementia reside in the community. Aging in place could be described as having the health and social supports and services you need to live safely and independently in your home or your society for as long as you wish and are able. People with dementia are not different than people without dementia where they want to remain at home, if possible, with a sense of familiarity and engagement in typical everyday activities. So how do persons with dementia or cognitive decline see their possibilities to be socially involved and experience support? The aim of this study was to explore persons with cognitive decline's sense of involvement and support living in the ordinary dwelling. The study was approved by the Ethical Review Authority in Sweden prior to the interviews. Interviews were conducted with 20 persons living at home, either alone or in a relationship. The persons had perceived cognitive decline; some were under investigation or already had a diagnose of early dementia. Thematic analysis was used to identify, analyze, and report patterns within the data. Researchers extracted three main themes through participants’ interviews: a) Importance of social involvement with family and friends. b) Hindrances for social involvement. c) Struggling mentally with a new life situation. Results found that going to activity centers, staying involved, and meeting friends and family enhanced the sense of involvement and support. There were also hindrances to a sense of involvement and support as they struggled with the diagnose and the changes in daily life, such as physical problems, mental problems, or economic issues. The mental struggle of accepting the cognitive decline and the changes in daily life it brought was also an issue for some of the participants. A multidimensional support should be provided by the community to enable persons with cognitive decline to stay involved in family and community in the comfort of their own homes.

Keywords: aging in place, cognitive decline, dementia, sense of involvement

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Authors: Selim Kara, Ertan Arda, Fahrettin Dolastir, Önder Pekcan

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Biomaterials and thin film coatings play a fundamental role in medical, food and pharmaceutical industries. Carrageenan is a linear sulfated polysaccharide extracted from algae and seaweeds. To date, such biomaterials have been used in many smart drug delivery systems due to their biocompatibility and antimicrobial activity properties. Poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAm) gels and copolymers have also been used in medical applications. PNIPAm shows lower critical solution temperature (LCST) property at about 32-34 °C which is very close to the human body temperature. Below and above the LCST point, PNIPAm gels exhibit distinct phase transitions between swollen and collapsed states. A special class of gels are microgels which can react to environmental changes significantly faster than microgels due to their small sizes. Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurement technique is one of the attractive techniques which has been used for monitoring the thin-film formation process. A sensitive QCM system was designed as to detect 0.1 Hz difference in resonance frequency and 10-7 change in energy dissipation values, which are the measures of the deposited mass and the film rigidity, respectively. PNIPAm microgels with the diameter around few hundred nanometers in water were produced via precipitation polymerization process. 5 MHz quartz crystals with functionalized gold surfaces were used for the deposition of the carrageenan molecules and microgels in the solutions which were slowly pumped through a flow cell. Interactions between charged carrageenan and microgel particles were monitored during the formation of the film layers, and the Sauerbrey masses of the deposited films were calculated. The critical phase transition temperatures around the LCST were detected during the heating and cooling cycles. It was shown that it is possible to monitor the interactions between PNIPAm microgels and biopolymer molecules, and it is also possible to specify the critical phase transition temperatures by using a QCM system.

Keywords: carrageenan, phase transitions, PNIPAm microgels, quartz crystal microbalance (QCM)

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Authors: D. O. Ramadan, R. S. Dwyer-Joyce

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The measurement of the interface conditions in a cutting tool contact is essential information for performance monitoring and control. This interface provides the path for the heat flux to the cutting tool. This elevate in the cutting tool temperature leads to motivate the mechanism of tool wear, thus affect the life of the cutting tool and the productivity. This zone is representative by the tool-chip interface. Therefore, understanding and monitoring this interface is considered an important issue in machining. In this paper, an acoustic emission (AE) technique was used to find the correlation between AE parameters and the tool-chip interface. For this reason, a response surface design (RSD) has been used to analyse and optimize the machining parameters. The experiment design was based on the face centered, central composite design (CCD) in the Minitab environment. According to this design, a series of orthogonal cutting experiments for different cutting conditions were conducted on a Triumph 2500 lathe machine to study the sensitivity of the acoustic emission (AE) signal to change in tool-chip contact length. The cutting parameters investigated were the cutting speed, depth of cut, and feed and the experiments were performed for 6082-T6 aluminium tube. All the orthogonal cutting experiments were conducted unlubricated. The tool-chip contact area was investigated using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results obtained in this paper indicate that there is a strong dependence of the root mean square (RMS) on the cutting speed, where the RMS increases with increasing the cutting speed. A dependence on the tool-chip contact length has been also observed. However there was no effect observed of changing the cutting depth and feed on the RMS. These dependencies have been clarified in terms of the strain and temperature in the primary and secondary shear zones, also the tool-chip sticking and sliding phenomenon and the effect of these mechanical variables on dislocation activity at high strain rates. In conclusion, the acoustic emission technique has the potential to monitor in situ the tool-chip interface in turning and consequently could indicate the approaching end of life of a cutting tool.

Keywords: Acoustic emission, tool-chip interface, orthogonal cutting, monitoring

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Authors: Dona Pamoda W. Jayatunga, Veer Bala Gupta, Eugene Hone, Ralph N. Martins

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Being a neurodegenerative disorder, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) affects a majority of the elderly demented worldwide. The key risk factors for AD are age, metabolic syndrome, allele status of APOE gene, head injuries and lifestyle. The progressive nature of AD is characterized by symptoms of multiple cognitive deficits exacerbated over time, leading to death within a decade from clinical diagnosis. However, it is revealed that AD originates via a prodromal phase that spans from one to few decades before symptoms first manifest. The key pathological hallmarks of AD brains are deposition of amyloid beta (Aβ) plaques and neurofibrillary tangles (NFT). However, the yet unknown etiology of the disease fails to distinguish mitochondrial dysfunction between a cause or an outcome. The absence of early diagnosis tools and definite therapies for AD have permitted recruits of nutraceutical-based approaches aimed at reducing the risk of AD by modulating lifestyle or be used as preventive tools during AD prodromal state before widespread neurodegeneration begins. The objective of the present study was to investigate beneficial effects of luteolin, a plant-based flavone compound, against AD. The neuroprotective effects of luteolin on amyloid beta (Aβ) (1-42)-induced neurotoxicity was measured using cultured human neuroblastoma BE(2)-M17 cells. After exposure to 20μM Aβ (1-42) for 48 h, the neuroblastoma cells exhibited marked apoptotic death. Co-treatment of 20μM Aβ (1-42) with luteolin (0.5-5μM) significantly protected the cells against Aβ (1-42)-induced toxicity, as assessed by the MTS [3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2(4sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt; MTS] reduction assay and the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) cell death assay. The results suggest that luteolin prevents Aβ (1-42)-induced apoptotic neuronal death. However, further studies are underway to determine its protective mechanisms in AD including the activity against tau hyperphosphorylation and mitochondrial dysfunction.

Keywords: Aβ (1-42)-induced toxicity, Alzheimer’s disease, luteolin, neuroblastoma cells

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Authors: Mersha Tewodros Getnet, Mengistu Ketema, Bamlaku Alemu, Girma Demilew

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The availability of forest products determines the possibilities for forest-based livelihood options. Plantation forest is a widespread economic activity in highland areas of the Amhara regional state, owing primarily to degradation and limited access to natural forests. As a result, tree plantation has become one of the rural livelihood options in the area. Therefore, given the increasing importance of smallholder plantations in highland areas of Amhara Regional States, the aim of this research was to evaluate the extent of smallholder plantations and their socio-economic impact. To address the abovementioned research, a sequential embedded mixed research design was employed. This qualitative and quantitative information was gathered from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data were collected from 385 sample households, which were chosen using a three-stage, multi-stage sampling method based on the Cochran sample size formula. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Smallholder eucalyptus plantations in the study area were discovered to be common, and they are now part of the livelihood portfolio for meeting both household wood consumption and generating cash income. According to the PSM model's ATT results, income from selling farm forest products certainly contributes more to total household income, farm expenditure per cultivated land, and education spending than non-planter households. As a result, the government must strengthen plantation practices by prioritizing specific intervention areas while implementing measures to counteract the plantation's inequality-increasing effect through a variety of means, including progressive taxation.

Keywords: smallholder plantation, Eucalyptus, propensity score matching, average treatment effect and income

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Authors: R. Christopher, C. Brandt, N. Damons

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Background: The sequence of prevention model states that by constant assessment of injury, injury mechanisms and risk factors are identified, highlighting that collecting and recording of data is a core approach for preventing injuries. Several screening tools are available for use in the clinical setting. These screening techniques only recently received research attention, hence there is a dearth of inconsistent and controversial data regarding their applicability, validity, and reliability. Several systematic reviews related to common soccer injuries have been conducted; however, none of them addressed the screening tools for common soccer injuries. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to conduct a review of screening tools and their accuracy for common injuries in soccer. Methods: A systematic scoping review was performed based on the Joanna Briggs Institute procedure for conducting systematic reviews. Databases such as SPORT Discus, Cinahl, Medline, Science Direct, PubMed, and grey literature were used to access suitable studies. Some of the key search terms included: injury screening, screening, screening tool accuracy, injury prevalence, injury prediction, accuracy, validity, specificity, reliability, sensitivity. All types of English studies dating back to the year 2000 were included. Two blind independent reviewers selected and appraised articles on a 9-point scale for inclusion as well as for the risk of bias with the ACROBAT-NRSI tool. Data were extracted and summarized in tables. Plot data analysis was done, and sensitivity and specificity were analyzed with their respective 95% confidence intervals. I² statistic was used to determine the proportion of variation across studies. Results: The initial search yielded 95 studies, of which 21 were duplicates, and 54 excluded. A total of 10 observational studies were included for the analysis: 3 studies were analysed quantitatively while the remaining 7 were analysed qualitatively. Seven studies were graded low and three studies high risk of bias. Only high methodological studies (score > 9) were included for analysis. The pooled studies investigated tools such as the Functional Movement Screening (FMS™), the Landing Error Scoring System (LESS), the Tuck Jump Assessment, the Soccer Injury Movement Screening (SIMS), and the conventional hamstrings to quadriceps ratio. The accuracy of screening tools was of high reliability, sensitivity and specificity (calculated as ICC 0.68, 95% CI: 52-0.84; and 0.64, 95% CI: 0.61-0.66 respectively; I² = 13.2%, P=0.316). Conclusion: Based on the pooled results from the included studies, the FMS™ has a good inter-rater and intra-rater reliability. FMS™ is a screening tool capable of screening for common soccer injuries, and individual FMS™ scores are a better determinant of performance in comparison with the overall FMS™ score. Although meta-analysis could not be done for all the included screening tools, qualitative analysis also indicated good sensitivity and specificity of the individual tools. Higher levels of evidence are, however, needed for implication in evidence-based practice.

Keywords: accuracy, screening tools, sensitivity, soccer injuries, specificity

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