Search results for: direct and indirect tensile test

Authors: Omonov Jahongir Mahmatkulovic

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Purpose: To study the significance of D-dimer (DD), prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT), thrombin time (TT), and fibrinogen coagulation parameters (Fg) in predicting the course, severity and prognosis of COVID-19. Source and method of research: From September 15, 2021, to November 5, 2021, 93 patients aged 25 to 60 with suspected COVID-19, who are under inpatient treatment at the multidisciplinary clinic of the Tashkent Medical Academy, were retrospectively examined. DD, PT, APTT, and Fg were studied in dynamics and studied changes. Results: Coagulation disorders occurred in the early stages of COVID-19 infection with an increase in DD in 54 (58%) patients and an increase in Fg in 93 (100%) patients. DD and Fg levels are associated with the clinical classification. Of the 33 patients who died, 21 had an increase in DD in the first laboratory study, 27 had an increase in DD in the second and third laboratory studies, and 15 had an increase in PT in the third test. The results of the ROC analysis of mortality showed that the AUC DD was three times 0.721, 0.801, and 0.844, respectively; PT was 0.703, 0.845, and 0.972. (P<0:01). Conclusion”: Coagulation dysfunction is more common in patients with severe and critical conditions. DD and PT can be used as important predictors of mortality from COVID-19.

Keywords: Covid19, DD, PT, Coagulogram analysis, APTT

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Authors: M. Manjunath, R. Rakesh, Y. T. Krishne Gowda, G. Panduranga Murthy

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The availability of energy resources plays a vital role in the progress of a country. Over the last decades, there is an increase in the consumption of energy worldwide resulting in the depletion of fossil fuels. This necessitates dependency on other countries for energy resources. Therefore, a renewable eco-friendly alternate fuel is replaced in place of fossil fuel which can be vegetable oils as a substitute fuel for diesel. Since oils are more viscous it cannot be used directly in CI engines without any engine modification. Thus, a conversion of vegetable oils to biodiesel is done by a Transesterification process. The present paper is restricted to Biofuel substitute for diesel and which can be obtained from a number of edible and non-edible oil resources. The oil from these resources can be Transesterified by a suitable method depending on its FFA content for the production of biodiesel and that can be used to operate CI engine. In this work, an attempt is made to test the performance of CI engine using Transesterified peanut and sunflower oil methyl esters blends with diesel.

Keywords: SOME, POME, BMEP, BSFC, BTE

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Authors: Wanting Zeng, Hsunling Bai

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Silica was extracted from agriculture waste rice husk ash (RHA) and was used as the silica source for synthesis of RMCM-48 and RSBA-16. An alkali fusion process was utilized to separate silicate supernatant and the sediment effectively. The CTAB/Si and F127/Si molar ratio was employed to control the structure properties of the obtained RMCM-48 and RSBA-16 materials. The N2 adsorption-desorption results showed the micro-mesoporous RSBA-16 possessed high specific surface areas (662-1001 m2/g). All the obtained RSBA-16 materials were applied as the adsorbents for acetone adsorption. And the breakthrough tests clearly revealed that the RSBA-16(0.004) materials could achieve the highest acetone adsorption capacity of 186 mg/g under 1000 ppmv acetone vapor concentration at 25oC, which was also superior to ZSM-5 (71mg/g) and MCM-41 (157mg/g) under same test conditions. This can help to reduce the solid waste and the high adsorption performance of the obtained materials could consider as potential adsorbents for acetone adsorption.

Keywords: acetone, adsorption, micro-mesoporous material, rice husk ash (RHA), RSBA-16

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Authors: O. Ahmed Apampa, Yinusa, A. Jimoh

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The aim of this study was to develop an appropriate model for predicting the compaction behavior of lateritic soils and corn cob ash (CCA) stabilized lateritic soils. This was done by first adopting an equation earlier developed for fine-grained soils and subsequent adaptation by others and extending it to modified lateritic soil through the introduction of alpha and beta parameters which are polynomial functions of the CCA binder input. The polynomial equations were determined with MATLAB R2011 curve fitting tool, while the alpha and beta parameters were determined by standard linear programming techniques using the Solver function of Microsoft Excel 2010. The model so developed was a good fit with a correlation coefficient R2 value of 0.86. The paper concludes that it is possible to determine the optimum moisture content and the maximum dry density of CCA stabilized soils from the compaction test of the unmodified soil, and recommends that this procedure is extended to other binder stabilized lateritic soils to facilitate quick decision making in roadworks.

Keywords: compaction, corn cob ash, lateritic soil, stabilization

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Authors: Md Abdullah Al Faruque

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A very large percentage of bridge failures are attributed to scouring around bridge piers and this directly influences public safety. Experiments are carried out in a 12-m long rectangular open channel flume made of transparent tempered glass. A 300 mm thick bed made up of sand particles is leveled horizontally to create the test bed and a 50 mm hollow plastic cylinder is used as a model bridge pier. Tests are carried out with varying flow depths and velocities. Data points of various scour parameters such as scour depth, width, and length are collected based on different flow conditions and visual observations of changes in the stream bed downstream the bridge pier are also made as the scour progresses. Result shows that all three major flow characteristics (flow depth, Froude number and densimetric Froude number) have one way or other affect the scour profile.

Keywords: bridge pier scour, densimetric Froude number, flow depth, Froude number, sand

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Authors: Mohammad Anwar, Hamid Ullah Khan, Shah Waliullah

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Recently, environmental education is an essential element in avoiding environmental degradation around the globe that needs new articles and policymakers’ emphasis. Hence, the present article examines the impact of environmental education on environmental knowledge, environmental behavior, and environmental attitudes in Indonesia. The present research also investigated the moderating role of government support in environmental education, environmental knowledge, environmental behavior, and environmental attitude in Indonesia. A questionnaire was used as the primary data collection method. The smart PLS was utilized to test the association among variables and the hypotheses of the study. The results revealed that environmental education had a significant and positive linkage with environmental knowledge, environmental behavior, and environmental attitude in Indonesia. The findings also exposed that government support significantly moderated environmental education, environmental knowledge, and environmental behavior in Indonesia. The findings of this research would provide help to the policymakers in establishing the policies related to environmental education and reducing environmental degradation.

Keywords: environmental education, environmental knowledge, environmental behavior, environmental attitude, government support

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Authors: Khadidja Bellifa, Sidi Mohamed Mekelleche

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Phenols and especially halogenated phenols represent a substantial part of the chemicals produced worldwide and are known as aquatic pollutants. Quantitative structure–toxicity relationship (QSTR) models are useful for understanding how chemical structure relates to the toxicity of chemicals. In the present study, the acute toxicities of 45 halogenated phenols to Tetrahymena Pyriformis are estimated using no cost semi-empirical quantum chemistry methods. QSTR models were established using the multiple linear regression technique and the predictive ability of the models was evaluated by the internal cross-validation, the Y-randomization and the external validation. Their structural chemical domain has been defined by the leverage approach. The results show that the best model is obtained with the AM1 method (R²= 0.91, R²CV= 0.90, SD= 0.20 for the training set and R²= 0.96, SD= 0.11 for the test set). Moreover, all the Tropsha’ criteria for a predictive QSTR model are verified.

Keywords: halogenated phenols, toxicity mechanism, hydrophobicity, electrophilicity index, quantitative stucture-toxicity relationships

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Authors: Masyitah Abd Aziz, Mohd Sabere Sulaiman, Norsiah Hassan, Jamilah Halina Abdul Halim, Mohd Saipul Asrafi Haron

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A well-defined terminology of ‘Marseilles’ clay roof tiles in conservation works will easily characterize the communication delivery between expert and layperson, which will help people effectively understand to such specific knowledge areas. While it reduces ambiguity and increases clarity, the communication will translate very fast as it encourage an important factor in quality of the preservation of cultural heritage for future generations. The experts in conservation works faces many important terms, and indeed the very basic terminology in conservation areas were misunderstood. Thus, there were such terminology that being taken for granted and just follow seriously the tradition of the common practitioner without having any precise knowledge of what it entails. This study aims to investigate on the misconception of the terminology of ‘Marseilles’ clay roof tiles that being used in Malaysia’s conservation work. To avoid confusion of the terminology of ‘Marseilles’ clay roof tiles that will be followed through by the next generation, observation, interviews, and readings from the literature reviews on the terminology of the roof tiles has been done. It shows some evidence that ‘Marseilles’ were referring specific to French type roof tiles that developed by the Gilardoni Brothers in 1851. It was also found in Mangalore as the pioneered manufacturer in the 1860s by The Common Wealth Trust Ltd (Basel Mission tile factory). The interlocking clay roof types that has been used in Malaysia have the similarity and are influenced by both Europe and India. However, ‘Marseilles’ terminology was commonly used in Malaysia’s conservation works which led to the misconception of the real interpretation of all interlocking clay roof tiles type. The future generations will found that the well-defined terminology will gives a specific impact on conservation method and techniques. These range of applications to which roof tiles terminology will direct the future experts to make realistic suggestion for a future sustainable conservation approaches. Furthermore, it should contributes value added to conservation knowledge as well as holistic references for next generation.

Keywords: interlocking roof tiles, marseilles, misconception, terminology

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Authors: Nkeiruka Queendarline Nwaizugbu

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The use of social media and mobile devices has become acceptable in virtually all areas of today’s world. Hence, this study is a survey that was carried out to find out if students and lecturers in public universities in Rivers State use social networking for educational purposes. The sample of the study comprised of 240 students and 99 lecturers from the University of Port Harcourt and the Rivers State University of science and Technology. The study had five research questions, two hypotheses and the instrument for data collection was a 4-point Likert-type rating scale questionnaire. The data was analysed using mean, standard deviation and z-test. The findings gotten from the analysed data shows that students participate in social networking using different types of web applications but they hardly use them for educational purposes. Some recommendations were also made.

Keywords: internet access, mobile learning, participation, social media, social networking, technology

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Authors: Kiran Nawaz, Waheed Anwar, Sehrish Iftikhar, Muhammad Nasir Subhani, Ahmad Ali Shahid

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Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) have been extensively studied and applied for the biocontrol of many soilborne diseases. These rhizobacteria are very efficient against root rot and many other foliar diseases associated with solanaceous plants. These bacteria may inhibit the growth of various pathogens through direct inhibition of target pathogens or indirectly by the initiation of systemic resistance (ISR) which is active all over the complete plant. In the present study, 20 different rhizobacterial isolates were recovered from the root zone of healthy chili plants. All soil samples were collected from various chili-growing areas in Punjab. All isolated rhizobacteria species were evaluated in vitro and in vivo against Phytophthora capsici. Different species of Bacillus and Pseudomonas were tested for the antifungal activity against P. capsici the causal organism of Root rot disease in different crops together with chili. Dual culture and distance culture bioassay were carried out to study the antifungal potential of volatile and diffusible metabolites secreted from rhizobacteria. After seven days of incubation at 22°C, growth inhibition rate was recorded. Growth inhibition rate depended greatly on the tested bacteria and screening methods used. For diffusible metabolites, inhibition rate was 35-62% and 20-45% for volatile metabolites. The screening assay for plant growth promoting and disease inhibition potential of chili associated PGPR indicated 42-100% reduction in disease severity and considerable enhancement in roots fresh weight by 55-87%, aerial parts fresh weight by 35-65% and plant height by 65-76% as compared to untreated control and pathogen-inoculated plants. Pseudomonas flourescene, B. thuringiensis, and B. subtilis were found to be the most efficient isolates in inhibiting P. capsici radial growth, increase plant growth and suppress disease severity.

Keywords: rhizobacteria, chili, phytophthora, root rot

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Authors: Inas Hussein

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Alice Munro is a Canadian short-story writer who has been regarded as one of the greatest writers of fiction. Owing to her great contribution to fiction, she was the first Canadian woman and the only short-story writer ever to be rewarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2013. Her literary works include collections of short stories and one book published as a novel. Her stories concentrate on the human condition and the human relationships as seen through the lens of daily life. The setting in most of her stories is her native Canada- small towns much similar to the one where she grew up. Her writing style is not only realistic but is also characterized by autobiographical, historical and regional features. The aim of this research is to analyze one of the key stylistic devices often adopted by Munro in her fictions: the juxtaposition of the past and the present, with reference to the title story in Munro's short story collection Too Much Happiness. The story under exploration is a brief biography of the Russian Mathematician and novelist Sophia Kovalevsky (1850 – 1891), the first woman to be appointed as a professor of Mathematics at a European University in Stockholm. Thus, the story has a historical protagonist and is set on the European continent. Munro dramatizes the severe historical and cultural constraints that hindered the career of the protagonist. A pragmatic stylistic framework is being adopted and the qualitative analysis is supported by textual reference. The stylistic analysis reveals that the juxtaposition of the past and the present is one of the distinctive features that characterize the author; in a typical Munrovian manner, the protagonist often moves between the units of time: the past, the present and, sometimes, the future. Munro's style is simple and direct but cleverly constructed and densely complicated by the presence of deeper layers and stories within the story. Findings of the research reveal that the story under investigation merits reading and analyzing. It is recommended that this story and other stories by Munro are analyzed to further explore the features of her art and style.

Keywords: Alice Munro, Too Much Happiness, style, stylistic analysis

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Authors: Swarnalata Sahoo, Smita Mohanty, S. K. Nayak

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Environmentally friendly Polyurethane(PU) synthesis from Castor oil(CO) has been studied extensively. Probably due to high proportion of fatty hydroxy acids and unsaturated bond, CO showed better performance than other oil, can be easily utilized as commercial applications. In this work, cured PU polymers having different –NCO/OH ratio with and without catalyst were synthesized by using partially biobased Isocyanate with castor oil (CO). Curing time has been studied by observing at the time of reaction, which can be confirmed by AT-FTIR. DSC has been studied to monitor the reaction between CO & Isocyanates using non Isothermal process. Curing kinetics have also been studied to investigate the catalytic effect of the NCO / OH ratio of Polyurethane. Adhesion properties were evaluated from Lapshear test. Tg of the PU polymer was evaluated by DSC which can be compared by DMA. Surface Properties were studied by contact angle measurement. Improvement of the interfacial adhesion between the nonpolar surface of Aluminum substrate and the polar adhesive has been studied by modifying surface.

Keywords: polyurethane, partially bio-based isocyanate, castor oil, catalyst

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Authors: Ashkan Asgari, Korous Khoshbakht, Saeid Soufizadeh

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Various factors including land lots can affect biodiversity indices in Agricultural systems. Field study conducted to evaluate factors affecting crop diversity in Sarpolzahab in 2012. Required data were collected through direct observation of farms and filling questionnaires. Total numbers of 140 questionnaires were filled, SAS Software was used to analyse data and Ecological Methodology Program was applied to calculate Shannon-Winner index, subsequently. Results of study indicated that average number of land lots for each farmer was 2.78 and various from 2.2 in Rikhak Olia Village to 4.31 in Golam Kaboud Olia Village which shows small size of land lots due to separating larger lots by children of deceased farmers. The correlation between number of land lots and species biodiversity (0.308**) was significant and Shannon-Winner index was (0.262**). Therefore, according to the mentioned results one can assume that increase in number of land lots results in improving of the target index. Multiple land lots allow farmers to cultivate various crops which results in increasing biodiversity of crops in agro ecosystem. Subsequently, this increase will facilitate economic sustainability of the farmers and distribution of work force in the region throughout the year. The correlation of seasonal workers with biodiversity of crop species (0.256**) and Shannon-Winner (0.286**) was statistically significant and increasing number of seasonal work forces had resulted in improving crop biodiversity and decreasing dominant species or single crop farming systems. Vegetable farms which have a significant diversity, require a significant number of work forces which describes correlation between number of workers and diversity of species.

Keywords: agricultural systems, biodiversity indices, Shannon-Winner index, sustainability, rural

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Authors: Elias Bensalem

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This study investigates the effect of two types of captioning (full and keyword captioning) on listening comprehension. Thirty-six university-level EFL students participated in the study. They were randomly assigned to watch three video clips under three conditions. The first group watched the video clips with full captions. The second group watched the same video clips with keyword captions. The control group watched the video clips without captions. After watching each clip, participants took a listening comprehension test. At the end of the experiment, participants completed a questionnaire to measure their perceptions about the use of captions and the video clips they watched. Results indicated that the full captioning group significantly outperformed both the keyword captioning and the no captioning group on the listening comprehension tests. However, this study did not find any significant difference between the keyword captioning group and the no captioning group. Results of the survey suggest that keyword captioning were a source of distraction for participants.

Keywords: captions, EFL, listening comprehension, video

Procedia PDF Downloads 253

Authors: Chengalappa Seenappa, Narayanappa Devkumar, Narayanappa Nagaraja

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Mulberry leaf is the major economic component in sericulture and quality of leaf produced per unit area has a direct effect on quality of cocoon. Among all the agronomical inputs, irrigation water has highest impact on mulberry leaf quantity and quality. The water productivity in sericulture in the country is inadequate and inefficient though India has the largest irrigated area. There is a need of proper irrigation methods and conservation practices to ensure efficiency and economy in water use. Hence, this field experiment was conducted at College of Sericulture, Chintamani, Chickaballapur district, Karnataka, India during 2013 and 2014 to know the quantity, quality and water productivity of mulberry influenced by different methods, levels of irrigation and mulching in Eastern Dry Zone (EDZ) of Karnataka, India. The results revealed that the mulberry leaf quantity, quality and water productivity were significantly influenced by different methods, levels of irrigation and mulching. Subsurface drip irrigation at 0.8 CPE (Cumulative Pan Evaporation) recorded higher leaf yield, chlorophyll, relative water, protein content and water productivity (42857 kg ha-1 yr-1, 8.54, 65.80%, 22.27% and 364.41 kg hacm-1, respectively) than surface drip at 1.0 CPE (38809 kg ha-1 yr-1, 7.34, 62.76%, 17.75% and 264 10 kg hacm-1, respectively) and micro spray jet at 1.0 CPE (39931 kg ha-1 yr-1, 7.96, 63.50%, 19.00%, 35617 kg ha-1 yr-1 and 271.83 kg hacm-1, respectively). Mulching treatment recorded maximum leaf yield, chlorophyll, relative water, protein content and water productivity (38035 kg ha-1 yr-1, 7.12, 62.11%, 16.14% and 330 kg hacm-1, respectively) compared to without mulching. These results clearly indicated that subsurface drip irrigation at lower level of irrigation (0.8 CPE) and mulching increased the quantity, quality and water productivity of mulberry leaf than surface drip and micro spray jet irrigation at higher level of irrigation (1.0 CPE) by saving 20 per cent of water. Therefore, in the coming days subsurface drip irrigation in mulberry cultivation may be more appropriate to realise higher yield, quality and water productivity in EDZ of Karnataka, India.

Keywords: subsurface drip irrigation, mulching, water productivity, mulberry

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Authors: Yuichi Morita, Yoshiteru Nakamori

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In car dealer business of Japan, a sale professional is a key factor of company’s success. We hypothesize that, if a corporation knows what is the sales professionals’ trait of its corporation’s business field, it will be easier for a corporation to secure and nurture sales persons effectively. The lean human resources management will ensure business success and good performance of corporations, especially small and medium ones. The goal of the paper is to determine the traits of sales professionals for small-and medium-size car dealers, using chi-square test and the variable rough set model. As a result, the results illustrate that experience of job change, learning ability and product knowledge are important, and an academic background, building a career with internal transfer, experience of the leader and self-development are not important to be a sale professional. Also, we illustrate sales professionals’ traits are persistence, humility, improvisation and passion at business.

Keywords: traits of sales professionals, variable precision rough sets theory, sales professional, sales professionals

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Authors: B. Razmi, F. Rafiee, M. Baziar, A. Saeedi Azizkandi

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In the present research, a series of 3-D finite element numerical modeling was performed to study the effect of system frequency and excitation specifications on the internal forces of the piled raft (PR) system in a dry sand layer. The results of numerical simulations were first compared with those associated with centrifuge tests. The natural frequency of superstructure, modeled on the piled raft foundation, was smaller than the natural frequency of the fixed-base super-structure. This difference was greater for super-structures with higher frequencies. In PR systems, the excitation with a frequency close to the system frequency produced the largest responses. Furthermore, based on the results of presented numerical analyses, ignoring the interactions and characteristics of all components of a pile-raft-structure, may lead to highly uneconomical design.

Keywords: centrifuge test, excitation frequency, natural frequency of super-structure, piled raft foundation, 3-D finite element model

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Authors: Abdolamir Allameh, Seyyed Mortaza Haghgoo, Adnan Khosravi, Esmaeil Mortaz, Mihan Pourabdollah-Toutkaboni, Sharareh Seifi

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Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma (NSCLC) is associated with a number of gene mutations in epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). The prognostic significance of mutations in exons 19 and 21, together with serum levels of EGFR, amphiregulin (AR), and Transforming Growth Factor-alpha (TGF-α) are implicated in diagnosis and treatment. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship of EGFR mutations in selected exons with the expression of relevant ligands in sera samples of NSCLC patients. For this, a group of NSCLC patients (n=98) referred to the hospital for lung surgery with a mean age of 59±10.5 were enrolled (M/F: 75/23). Blood specimen was collected from each patient. Besides, formalin fixed paraffin embedded tissues were processed for DNA extraction. Gene mutations in exons 19 and 21 were detected by direct sequencing, following DNA amplification which was done by PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). Also, serum levels of EGFR, AR, and TGF-α were measured by ELISA. The results of our study show that EGFR mutations were present in 37% of Iranian NSCLC patients. The most frequently identified mutations were deletions in exon 19 (72.2%) and substitutions in exon 21 (27.8%). The most frequently identified alteration, which is considered as a rare mutation, was the E872K mutation in exon 21, which was found in 90% (9 out of 10) cases. EGFR mutation detected in exon 21 was significantly (P<0.05) correlated with the levels of its ligands, EGFR and TGF-α in serum samples. Furthermore, it was found that increased serum AR (>3pg/ml) and TGF-α (>10.5 pg/ml) were associated with shorter overall survival (P<0.05). The results clearly showed a close relationship between EGFR mutations and serum EGFR and serum TGF-α. Increased serum EGFR was associated with TGF-α and AR and linked to poor prognosis of NSCLC. These findings are implicated in clinical decision-making related to EGFR-Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs).

Keywords: lung cancer, Iranian patients, epidermal growth factor, mutation, prognosis

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Authors: Mousa Bani Baker, Raed Abendeh, Zaidoon Abu Salem, Hesham Ahmad

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This research paper was commissioned to discuss the Jordanian marble, which is a non-foliated metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however, stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphised limestone. Marble is commonly used for sculpture and as a building material. The marble has many uses; one of them is using the white marble that has been prized for its use in sculptures since classical times. This preference has to do with its softness, relative isotropy and homogeneity, and a relative resistance to shattering. Another use of it is the construction marble which is “a stone which is composed of calcite, dolomite or serpentine which is capable of taking a polish” Marble Institute of America. This report focuses most about the marble in Jordan and its properties: rock definition, physical properties, the marble occurrences in Jordan, types of Jordanian marble and their prices and test done on this marble.

Keywords: marble, metamorphic, non-foliated, compressive strength, recrystallized, Moh’s hardness, abrasion, absorption, modulus of rupture, porosity

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Authors: Riddhi Chopra

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While China’s friendship with a number of countries has waxed and waned over the decades, Sino-Pak relationship is said to have withstood the vicissitudes of larger international politics as well as changes in regional and domestic currents. Pakistan, one of the first countries to recognize the People’s Republic of China, thus providing China with a corridor into the energy rich Muslim states which was reciprocated with a continual stream of no-strings-attached military hardware and defense-related assistance from Beijing. The joint enmity towards India also provided the initial thrust to a burgeoning Sino-Pak friendship. This paper intends to provide a profound analysis of the strategic relation between China-Pakistan and examine India as a determining factor. The Pakistan-China strategic relationship has been conventionally viewed by India as a zero sum game, wherein any gains accrued by Pakistan or China through their partnership is seen as a direct detriment to the evolution of India-Pakistan or India-China relation. The paper evaluates various factors which were crucial for the synthesis of such a strong relation and presents a comprehensive study of the various policies and programs that have been undertaken by the two countries to tie India to South Asia and reduce its sphere of influence. The geographic dynamics is said to breed a natural coalition, dominating the strategic ambitions of both Beijing and Islamabad hence directing their relationship. In addition to the obvious geopolitical factors, there are several dense collaborations between the two nations knitting a relatively close partnership. Moreover, an attempt has been made to assess the irritants in China-Pak relations and the initiatives taken by the two to further strengthen it. Current trends in diplomatic, economic and defense cooperation – along with the staunch affinity rooted in history and consistent geo-strategic interests – points to a strong and strengthening relationship, significant in directing India’s foreign and security policies. This paper seeks to analyze the changing power dynamics of the China-Pak nexus with external actors such as US and India with an ulterior motive of their own and predict the change in power dynamics between the four countries.

Keywords: China, Pakistan, India, strategy

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Authors: Dmitriy Babenko, Sergey Yegorov, Ilya Korshukov, Aidana Sultanbekova, Valentina Barkhanskaya, Tatiana Bashirova, Yerzhan Zhunusov, Yevgeniya Li, Viktoriya Parakhina, Svetlana Kolesnichenko, Yeldar Baiken, Aruzhan Pralieva, Zhibek Zhumadilova, Matthew S. Miller, Gonzalo H. Hortelano, Anar Turmuhambetova, Antonella E. Chesca, Irina Kadyrova

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Introduction: The rapidly evolving COVID-19 pandemic, along with the re-emergence of pathogens causing acute respiratory infections (ARI), has necessitated the development of novel diagnostic tools to differentiate various causes of ARI. MALDI-MS, due to its wide usage and affordability, has been proposed as a potential instrument for diagnosing SARS-CoV-2 versus non-SARS-CoV-2 ARI. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of MALDI-MS in conjunction with a machine learning model to accurately distinguish between symptomatic infections caused by SARS-CoV-2 and non-SARS-CoV-2 during both the early and later phases of the pandemic. Furthermore, this study aimed to analyze mass spectrometry (MS) data obtained from nasal swabs of healthy individuals. Methods: We gathered mass spectra from 252 samples, comprising 108 SARS-CoV-2-positive samples obtained in 2020 (Covid 2020), 7 SARS-CoV- 2-positive samples obtained in 2023 (Covid 2023), 71 samples from symptomatic individuals without SARS-CoV-2 (Control non-Covid ARVI), and 66 samples from healthy individuals (Control healthy). All the samples were subjected to RT-PCR testing. For data analysis, we employed the caret R package to train and test seven machine-learning algorithms: C5.0, KNN, NB, RF, SVM-L, SVM-R, and XGBoost. We conducted a training process using a five-fold (outer) nested repeated (five times) ten-fold (inner) cross-validation with a randomized stratified splitting approach. Results: In this study, we utilized the Covid 2020 dataset as a case group and the non-Covid ARVI dataset as a control group to train and test various machine learning (ML) models. Among these models, XGBoost and SVM-R demonstrated the highest performance, with accuracy values of 0.97 [0.93, 0.97] and 0.95 [0.95; 0.97], specificity values of 0.86 [0.71; 0.93] and 0.86 [0.79; 0.87], and sensitivity values of 0.984 [0.984; 1.000] and 1.000 [0.968; 1.000], respectively. When examining the Covid 2023 dataset, the Naive Bayes model achieved the highest classification accuracy of 43%, while XGBoost and SVM-R achieved accuracies of 14%. For the healthy control dataset, the accuracy of the models ranged from 0.27 [0.24; 0.32] for k-nearest neighbors to 0.44 [0.41; 0.45] for the Support Vector Machine with a radial basis function kernel. Conclusion: Therefore, ML models trained on MALDI MS of nasopharyngeal swabs obtained from patients with Covid during the initial phase of the pandemic, as well as symptomatic non-Covid individuals, showed excellent classification performance, which aligns with the results of previous studies. However, when applied to swabs from healthy individuals and a limited sample of patients with Covid in the late phase of the pandemic, ML models exhibited lower classification accuracy.

Keywords: SARS-CoV-2, MALDI-TOF MS, ML models, nasopharyngeal swabs, classification

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Authors: Khue Do Phan

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Nike has been confronted by the press with their harsh working conditions, underpayment and highly-labor intensive requirement to their manufacturing workers and hiring of underage workers in Vietnam, Nike's largest production center. To analyze this topic critically through an international relations perspective, theory of dependency will be used to criticize the notion of exploitation of resources from developed countries towards developing countries. Theory of economic liberalism will be used to support the notion private property, the free market and generally capitalism as beneficial to both developing and developed countries. Workers are mentally, physically and sexually abused in the factories. In addition to this, their working conditions consist of improper training, lack of safety equipment, exposure of chemicals (glues and pants), their average wage is below the minimum wage in their country; the workers have to work around 60 hours or more a week. Even Nike says that the conditions are regulated often to make sure the workers get a voice to have their work rights and safe working environment. The monitors come to analyze the factories but in the end talk to the employers, whom are the direct abusers to the employees. Health benefits are rarely granted to the employees; they are forced to pay their bills first then the company will reimburse them later. They would also get in trouble for using the bathroom, taking a lunch break or sick days off because this would mean it would decrease their hours of work, leading to an even lower wage and a really angry employer. Of course with the press criticizing Nike’s lack of respect for human rights and working rights, Nike has been working on policy making and implementation to deal with the abuses. Due to its large chains and a great number of outsourcing host countries, the changes that Nike wish or attempt to make have not be in effect as quickly nor spreading to all countries it holds accountable for in its outsourcing factories.

Keywords: dependency theory, economic liberalism, human rights, outsource

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Authors: Buno Henriques, Rafaela Santos, Júlio Matias de Souza, Filipe Silva, Rubens Nascimento, Márcio Fredel

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Dental porcelain composites reinforced and toughened by 20 wt.% tetragonal zirconia (3Y-TZP) were processed by hot pressing at 1000°C. Two types of particles were tested: yttria-stabilized zirconia (ZrO2–3%Y2O3) agglomerates and pre-sintered yttria-stabilized zirconia (ZrO2–3%Y2O3) particles. The composites as well as the reinforcing particles were analyzed by the means of optical and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersion Spectroscopy (EDS) and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). The mechanical properties were obtained by the transverse rupture strength test, Vickers indentations and fracture toughness. Wear tests were also performed on the composites and monolithic porcelain. The best mechanical and wear results were displayed by the porcelain reinforced with the pre-sintered ZrO2–3%Y2O3 particles.

Keywords: dental restoration, zirconia, porcelain, composites, strengthening, toughening, wear

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Authors: Maria Komal, Zaineb Khalil, Mehreen Sirshar

Abstract:

Due to the recent technological advancements, Games have become one of the most demanding applications. Gaming industry is rapidly growing and the key to success in this industry is the development of good quality games, which is a highly competitive issue. The ultimate goal of game developers is to provide player’s satisfaction by developing high-quality games. This research is the comprehensive survey of techniques followed by game industries to ensure games quality. After analysis of various techniques, it has been found that quality simulation according to ISO standards and play test methods are used to ensure games quality. Because game development requires cross-disciplined team, an increasing trend towards distributed game development has been observed. This paper evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of current methodologies used in game industry and draws a conclusion. We have also proposed quality parameters which can be used as a heuristic framework to identify those attributes which have high testing priorities.

Keywords: game development, computer games, video games, gaming industry, quality assurance, playability, user experience

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Authors: Shashank Kumar, Mansi Chandra, Ujjawal Singh, Parth Gupta, Rishi Ram, Arnab Sarkar

Abstract:

Milk is one of the basic and primary sources of food and energy as we start consuming milk from birth. Hence, milk quality and purity and checking the concentration of its constituents become necessary steps. Considering the importance of the purity of milk for human health, the following study has been carried out to simultaneously detect and quantify the different adulterants like urea and starch in milk with the help of a paper-based microfluidic device integrated with a smartphone. The detection of the concentration of urea and starch is based on the principle of colorimetry. In contrast, the fluid flow in the device is based on the capillary action of porous media. The microfluidic channel proposed in the study is equipped with a specialized detection zone, and it employs a colorimetric indicator undergoing a visible color change when the milk gets in touch or reacts with a set of reagents which confirms the presence of different adulterants in the milk. In our proposed work, we have used iodine to detect the percentage of starch in the milk, whereas, in the case of urea, we have used the p-DMAB. A direct correlation has been found between the color change intensity and the concentration of adulterants. A calibration curve was constructed to find color intensity and subsequent starch and urea concentration. The device has low-cost production and easy disposability, which make it highly suitable for widespread adoption, especially in resource-constrained settings. Moreover, a smartphone application has been developed to detect, capture, and analyze the change in color intensity due to the presence of adulterants in the milk. The low-cost nature of the smartphone-integrated paper-based sensor, coupled with its integration with smartphones, makes it an attractive solution for widespread use. They are affordable, simple to use, and do not require specialized training, making them ideal tools for regulatory bodies and concerned consumers.

Keywords: paper based microfluidic device, milk adulteration, urea detection, starch detection, smartphone application

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Authors: Isa Usman Balan, Umar Aliyu, Ahmad Tijjani Muhammed

Abstract:

The laboratory scale experiment was conducted to determine the phytochemical constituents and antibacterial activities of epiphytic neem leaves (Tapinanthusdodoneifolius) extracts on some selected clinical isolates. The samples were collected using polythene bags to avoid unnecessary contamination of the plants, and they were collected from the old site garden of the BUK. The phytochemical screening and antibacterial test were carried out in the Chemistry and Biology laboratory, respectively at Bayero University Kano (BUK). The result obtained showed that carbohydrates, glycosides, steroids, alkaloids, phenol, saponins and flavonoids are present in the ethanolic extract. However, chloroform extract showed only glycosides, phenols, and carbohydrates. Furthermore, there was no significant difference between the ethanolic extracts and bacterial isolates (p<0.05).

Keywords: phytochemical screening, antibacterial, clinical isolates, epiphytic neem leaves, Tapinanthus dodoneifolius

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Authors: Serge Lacroix

Abstract:

The proposed study looks at the psychoeducational assessment of bilingual students, in English and French in this case. It will be the opportunity to look at language of assessment and specifically how certain tests can be administered in one language and others in another language. It is also a look into the questioning of the validity of the test scores that are obtained as well as the quality and generalizability of the conclusions that can be drawn. Bilingualism and multiculturalism, although in constant expansion, is not considered in norms development and remains a poorly understood factor when it is at play in the context of a psychoeducational assessment. Student placement, diagnoses, accurate measures of intelligence and achievement are all impacted by the quality of the assessment procedure. The same is true for questionnaires administered to parents and self-reports completed by bilingual students who, more often than not, are assessed in a language that is not their primary one or are compared to monolinguals not dealing with the same challenges or the same skills. Results show that students, when offered to work in a bilingual fashion, chooses to do so in a significant proportion. Recommendations will be offered to support educators aiming at expanding their skills when confronted with multilingual students in an assessment context.

Keywords: psychoeducational assessment, bilingualism, multiculturalism, intelligence, achievement

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Authors: Sarah Jorjani, Afshin Ghelichi, Mazyar Kamali

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to estimate the effect of addition of ginger and red pepper and their mixture in diet on growth performance, survival rate and body composition of Astronotus ocellatus (Oscar fish). This study had been carried out for 8 weeks. For this reason 132 oscar fishes with intial weight of 2.44±0.26 (gr) were divided into 4 treatments with three replicate as compeletly randomize design test and fed by 100% Biomar diet (T1), Biomar + red pepper (55 mg/kg) (T2), Biomar + ginger (1%) (T3) and Biomar + mixture of red pepper and ginger (T4).The fish were fed in 5% of their body weight. The results showed T2 have significant differences in most of growth parameters in compare with other treatments, such as PBWI, SGR, PER and SR (P < 0.05), but there were no significant differences between treatments in FCR and FE (P > 0.05).

Keywords: red pepper, ginger, oscar fish, growth performance, body composition

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Authors: Jason Digalakis, John Cotronis

Abstract:

Memetic algorithms (MAs) are useful for solving optimization problems. It is quite difficult to search the search space of the optimization problem with large dimensions. There is a challenge to use all the cores of the system. In this study, a sequential implementation of the memetic algorithm is converted into a concurrent version, which is executed on the cores of both CPU and GPU. For this reason, CUDA and OpenMP libraries are operated on the parallel algorithm to make a concurrent execution on CPU and GPU, respectively. The aim of this study is to compare CPU and GPU implementation of the memetic algorithm. For this purpose, fourteen benchmark functions are selected as test problems. The obtained results indicate that our approach leads to speedups up to five thousand times higher compared to one CPU thread while maintaining a reasonable results quality. This clearly shows that GPUs have the potential to acceleration of MAs and allow them to solve much more complex tasks.

Keywords: memetic algorithm, CUDA, GPU-based memetic algorithm, open multi processing, multimodal functions, unimodal functions, non-linear optimization problems

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Authors: Marut Phichetvit

Abstract:

The research objective aims to search information about storytelling and fable associated with fireflies in Amphawa community, in order to design and create a story book which is appropriate for the interests of children in early childhood. This book should help building the development of learning about the natural environment, imagination, and creativity among children, which then, brings about the promotion of the development, conservation and dissemination of cultural values and uniqueness of the Amphawa community. The population used in this study were 30 students in early childhood aged between 6-8 years-old, grade 1-3 from the Demonstration School of Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University. The method used for this study was purposive sampling and the research conducted by the query and analysis of data from both the document and the narrative field tales and fable associated with the fireflies of Amphawa community. Then, using the results to synthesize and create a conceptual design in a form of 8 visual images which were later applied to 1 illustrated children’s book and presented to the experts to evaluate and test this media.

Keywords: children’s illustrated book, fireflies, Amphawa

Procedia PDF Downloads 190