Search results for: class v restoration

Authors: T. Varazi, M. Pruidze, M. Kurashvili, N. Gagelidze, M. Sutton

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The complex phytoremediation approach given in the presented work implies joint application of natural sorbents, microorganisms, natural biosurfactants and plants. The approach is based on using the natural mineral composites, microorganism strains with high detoxification abilities, plants-phytoremediators and natural biosurfactants for enhancing the uptake of intermediates of pollutants by plant roots. In this complex strategy of phytoremediation technology, the sorbent serves to uptake and trap the pollutants and thus restrain their emission in the environment. The role of microorganisms is to accomplish the first stage biodegradation of organic contaminants. This is followed by application of a phytoremediation technology through purposeful planting of selected plants. Thus, using of different tools will provide restoration of polluted environment and prevention of toxic compounds’ dissemination from hotbeds of pollution for a considerable length of time. The main idea and novelty of the carried out work is the development of a new approach for the ecological safety. The wide spectrum of contaminants: Organochlorine pesticide – DDT, heavy metal –Cu, oil hydrocarbon (hexadecane) and wax have been used in this work. The presented complex biotechnology is important from the viewpoint of prevention, providing total rehabilitation of soil. It is unique to chemical pollutants, ecologically friendly and provides the control of erosion of soils.

Keywords: bioremediation, phytoremediation, pollutants, soil contamination

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Authors: Jodie Lee, Lorena Chan, Esther Tong

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Hong Kong students face a unique learning environment. Starting from the 2010/2011 school year, The Education Bureau (EDB) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region implemented the fine-tuned Medium of Instruction (MOI) arrangements for secondary schools. Since then, secondary schools in Hong Kong have been given the flexibility to decide the most appropriate MOI arrangements for their schools and under the new academic structure for senior secondary education, particularly on the compulsory part of the mathematics curriculum. In 2019, Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE), over 40% of school day candidates attempted the Mathematics Compulsory Part examination in the Chinese version while the rest took the English version. Moreover, only 14.38% of candidates sat for one of the extended Mathematics modules. This results in a serious of intricate issues to students’ learning in post-secondary education programmes. It is worth to note that when students further pursue to an higher education in Hong Kong or even oversea, they may facing substantial difficulties in transiting learning from learning mathematics in their mother tongue in Chinese-medium instruction (CMI) secondary schools to an English-medium learning environment. Some students understood the mathematics concepts were found to fail to fulfill the course requirements at college or university due to their learning experience in secondary study at CMI. They are particularly weak in comprehending the mathematics questions when they are doing their assessment or attempting the test/examination. A government funded project was conducted with the aims of providing integrated learning context and language support to students with a lower level of numeracy and/or with CMI learning experience. By introducing this “integrated concept + language mapping approach”, students can cope with the learning challenges in the compulsory English-medium mathematics and statistics subjects in their tertiary education. Ultimately, in the hope that students can enhance their mathematical ability, analytical skills, and numerical sense for their lifelong learning. The “Concept + Language Mapping “(CLM) approach was adopted and tried out in the bridging courses for students with a lower level of numeracy and/or with CMI learning experiences. At the beginning of each class, a pre-test was conducted, and class time was then devoted to introducing the concepts by CLM approach. For each concept, the key thematic items and their different semantic relations are presented using graphics and animations via the CLM approach. At the end of each class, a post-test was conducted. Quantitative data analysis was performed to study the effect on students’ learning via the CLM approach. Stakeholders' feedbacks were collected to estimate the effectiveness of the CLM approach in facilitating both content and language learning. The results based on both students’ and lecturers’ feedback indicated positive outcomes on adopting the CLM approach to enhance the mathematical ability and analytical skills of CMI students.

Keywords: mathematics, Concept+Language Mapping, level of numeracy, medium of instruction

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Authors: Heba Salem

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This paper aims to share the researcher’s experience of using e-Portfolios as an assessment tool to follow up on students’ learning experiences and performance throughout the semester. It also aims at highlighting the importance of students’ self-reflection in the process of language learning. The paper begins by introducing the advanced media course, with its focus on listening and speaking skills, and introduces the students’ profiles. Then it explains the students’ role in the e-portfolio process as they are given the option to choose a listening text they studied throughout the semester and to choose a recorded oral production of their collection of artifacts throughout the semester. Students showcase and reflect on their progress in both listening comprehension and speaking. According to the research, re-listening to work given to them and to their production is a means of reflecting on both their progress and achievement. And choosing the work students want to showcase is a means to promote independent learning as well as self-expression. Students are encouraged to go back to the class learning outcomes in the process of choosing the work. In their reflections, students express how they met the specific learning outcome. While giving their presentations, students expressed how useful the experience of returning and going over what they covered to select one and going over their production as well. They also expressed how beneficial it was to listen to themselves and literally see their progress in both listening comprehension and speaking. Students also reported that they grasped more details from the texts than they did when first having it as an assignment, which coincided with one of the class learning outcomes. They also expressed the fact that they had more confidence speaking as well as they were able to use a variety of vocabulary and idiomatic expressions that students have accumulated. For illustration, this paper includes practical samples of students’ tasks and instructions as well as samples of their reflections. The results of students’ reflections coincide with what the research confirms about the effectiveness of the e-portfolios as a means of assessment. The employment of e-Portfolios has two-folded benefits; students are able to measure the achievement of the targeted learning outcomes, and teachers receive constructive feedback on their teaching methods.

Keywords: e-portfolios, assessment, self assessment, listening and speaking progress, foreign language, reflection, learning out comes, sharing experience

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Authors: Mahalingam Palaniandi

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Higher education plays vital role in the nation building process for a country and the rest of world. The higher education sector develops the change-agents for the various fields which will help the human-kind wheel to run further. Conventional and traditional class-room based learning and teaching was followed in many decades which is one-to-one and one-to-many. In a way, these are simplest form of learners to be assembled in a class room wherein the teacher used the blackboard to demonstrate the theory and laboratories used for practical. As the technology evolved tremendously for the last 40 years, the teaching and learning environment changed slowly, wherein, the learning community will be anywhere in the world and teacher deliver the content through internet based tools such as video conferencing, web based conferencing tools or E-learning platforms such as Blackboard or noodle. Present day, the mobile technologies plays an important tool to deliver the teaching content on-the-go. Both PC based and mobile based learning technology brought the learning and teaching community together in various aspects. However, as the learning technology also brought various hurdles for learning processes such as plagiarism and not using the reference books entirely as most of the students wants the information instantaneously using internet without actually going to the library to take the notes from the millions of the books which are not available online as e-books which result lack of fundamental knowledge of the concepts complex theories. However, technology is inseparable in human life, now-a-days and every part of it contains piece of information technology right from computers to home appliances. To make use of the IT based learning and teaching at most efficiency, we should have a proper framework and recommendations laid to the learning community in order to derive the maximum efficiency from the IT based teaching and leaning. This paper discusses various IT based tools available for the learning community, efficiency from its usage and recommendations for the suitable framework that needs to be implemented at higher education institutions which makes the learners stronger in both theory as well as real-time knowledge of their studies that is going to be used in their future for the better world.

Keywords: higher education, e-learning, teaching learning, eLearning tools

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Authors: Syed Ibrahim, Syed Muneer Ahmed

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It is a global phenomenon that fitness is a pre-requisite to the desired end of optimum efficiency in elite class basketballers achieved through appropriate conditioning program. This study was undertaken to find out the effect of gymnastic oriented training program on the physical fitness and the level of technical performance of basketball players. Method: 27 basketballers were divided into 12 experimental and 15 control groups aged between 19 to 25 years. Physical fitness tests comprising of vertical jump, push-ups, chin ups, sit ups, back strength, 30 m sprint, boomerangs test, 600 m run, sit and reach, bridge up and shoulder rotation and technical skill tests like dribbling, layup shots and rebound collection were used for the study. A pre- and post-test was conducted before and after the training program of 6 weeks. Results: The results indicated no significant difference in the anthropometric measurements of age, height and weight between the experimental and control group as the ‘t’ values observed were 0.28, 1.63 and 1.60 respectively . There were significant improvements in vertical jump, push-ups, sit-ups, modified boomerang test, bridge test and shoulder rotation index with the ‘t’ values being 2.60, 3.41, 3.91, 4.02, 3.55 and 2.33 respectively. However, no significant differences existed in chin-ups, back strength, 30 m sprint and 6000 m run with the ‘t’ values being 2.08, 1.77, 1.28 and 0.80 respectively. There was significant improvement in the post-test for the technical skills tests in the experimental group with ‘t’ values being 3.65, 2.57, and 3.62 for the dribble, layup shots and rebound collection respectively. There was no significant difference in the values of the control group except in the rebound collection which showed significant difference. Conclusion: It was found that both the physical fitness and skill proficiency of the basketballers increased through the participation in the gymnastics oriented program.

Keywords: gymnastic, technical, pre-requisite, elite class

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Authors: Imed Mezghani, Yousra Ben Salah, Mohamed Chaieb

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Tricholaena teneriffae L. is a xerophytic perennial herb that belongs to the Poaceae family likely to be used for ecological restoration programs. It's a dominant and economically important species widely distributed in the Bou-Hedma National Park, Tunisia. Reintroduction and expansion of T. teneriffae depend solely on sexual reproduction. This makes the understanding of its germination requirements vital for conservation and management. To provide basic information for its conservation and reintroduction, we studied the influence of environmental factors on seed germination patterns. The germination responses of seeds were determined over a wide range of constant temperatures (15–35°C), polyethylene glycol solutions of different osmotic potentials (0 to −2 MPa) and salt solution (0 to 150 mM of NaCl). Results indicated that the optimum temperature germination was attained at 25°C which corresponds to temperatures prevailing during mid spring season in the Mediterranean area. Seeds germinated in Polyethylene Glycol solutions exhibited significantly lower germination than control especially when water potential fell below -0.6 MPa. Germination percentage and rate decreased with an increase NaCl concentration. Seeds germination was substantially delayed and reduced with an increase in NaCl to levels above 50 mM. T. teneriffae is moderately salt tolerant at germination stage.

Keywords: germination, temperature, Tricholaena teneriffae L., salt stress, water stress, rehabilitation

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Authors: Young Ik Suh, Sanghak Lee, Tae Wook Chung

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In recent year, cultural diversity has acquired increasing attentions in our society due to the cultural pluralism and globalization. With the emphasis of diversity in our society, higher education has played a significant role in preparing people to be successful in a diverse world. A number of colleges and universities provide various diversity-related courses that enhance students to recognize the importance of diversity and multiculturalism. However, little research has been conducted with diversity environments in physical activity and sports-related courses to appreciate students’ attitudes toward multiculturalism. Physical activity courses can be regarded as an essential and complementary part of general education. As well, playing and watching certain sports plays a critical role to foster mutual understanding between different races and to help social integration for minority communities. Therefore, it is expected that the appropriate diverse environments in physical activity courses may have a positive impact to the understandings of different cultures and races. The primary purpose of this study is to examine attitudes toward cultural diversity in a physical activity course among undergraduate students. In building on the scholarly foundation in this area, this study applies the established survey scale (e.g., Pluralism and Diversity Attitude Assessment [PADAA]) developed by Stanley (1996) and previous literature related to cultural diversity. The PADAA includes 19 questions. The following two research hypotheses were proposed. H1: Students who take a diversity-related physical course (i.e., Taekwondo) will provide positive attitude changes toward their cultural diversity. H2: Students who take a general physical activity course (i.e., Weight Training) will provide no significant attitude changes toward their cultural diversity. To test the research hypotheses, subjects will be selected from the both Taekwondo and Weight Training class at University of West Georgia. In the Taekwondo class, students will learn the history, meaning, basic terminology, and physical skills, which is a Korean martial art and the national sport of Korea. In the Weight Training class, students will not be exposed to any cultural diversity topics. Regarding data analysis, Doubly Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (Doubly MANCOVA), 2 (time period: pre and after) X 2 (diversity-related content exposure: Taekwondo and Weight Training), will be conducted on attitudes toward the cultural diversity with control variables such as gender and age. The findings of this study will add to the body of literature in cultural diversity because this will be the first known attempt to explain the college students’ attitudes toward cultural diversity in a physical activity courses. The expected results will state that the physical activity course focusing on diversity issues will have a positive impact on college students’ attitude toward cultural diversity. This finding will indicate that Universities need to create diverse programs (e.g., study abroad, exchange program, second language courses) and environments so that students can have positive interactions with other groups of races and different cultures. It is also expected that the positive perceptions and attitudes toward cultural diversity will break down cultural barriers and make students be ready for meeting several challenges in a multicultural and global society.

Keywords: cultural diversity, physical activity course, attitude, Taekwondo

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Authors: Reihaneh Mahdavishahri, Dumayi Gutierrez

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Emotionally focused couple therapy (EFCT) is one of the most effective and evidence-based approaches to couple therapy. Yet, literature is scarce of its effective application with trans and non-binary couples. It is estimated that 1.4 million trans adults live in the United Stated, with about 40% of these individuals experiencing serious psychological distress within the past month. Trans and nonbinary adults are significantly likely to experience discrimination, harassment, family rejection, and relationship challenges throughout the course of their lives. As systemic therapists, applying an informed lens when working with trans and nonbinary couples can contribute to providing effective mental health care to these individuals. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive, intersectional, and culturally informed application of EFCT with trans and nonbinary couples. We will address the current literature on applications of EFCT with diverse couples, EFCT’s strengths and limitations on cultural humility, and the gaps within current systems of care for trans and nonbinary couples. We will then provide an adaptive application of EFCT to help trans, and nonbinary couples recover from potential attachment injuries in their relationships, intersecting gender minority stressors, and achieve healing and restoration in their interpersonal dynamics.

Keywords: attachment, culturally informed care, emotionally focused couple therapy, trans and nonbinary couples

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Authors: Bouhouf Atef, Beloulou Mohamed Lamine

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Introduction: Outpatient surgery is continually developing compared to conventional inpatient surgery; its rate is constantly increasing every year due to global socio-economic pressure. Most hospitals continue to perform proctologic surgery in conventional hospitalization. Purpose: As part of a monocentric prospective descriptive study, we examined the feasibility of proctologic surgery under saddle block on an outpatient basis with the same safety conditions as in traditional hospitalization. Material and methods: This is a monocentric prospective descriptive study spread over a period of 24 months, from December 2018 to December 2020 including 150 patients meeting the medico-surgical and socio-environmental criteria of eligibility for outpatient surgery, operated for proctological pathologies under saddle block in outpatient mode, in the surgery department of the regional military hospital of Constantine Algeria. The data were collected and analyzed by the biomedical statistics software Epi-info and Microsoft Excel, then compared with other related studies. Results: This study involved over a period of two years, 150 male patients with an average age of 32 years (20-64). Most patients (95,33%) were ASA I class, and 4,67% ASA II class. All patients received saddle blocks. The average length of stay of patients was six hours. The quality indicators in outpatient surgery in our study were: zero (0)% of deprogrammings, three (3)% of conversions to full hospitalization, 0,7% of readmissions, an average waiting time before access to the operating room of 83 minutes without delay of discharge, a satisfaction rate of 90,8% and a reduction in the cost compared to conventional inpatient surgery in proportions ranging from – 32,6% and – 48,75%. Conclusions: The outpatient management of proctological surgery under saddle block is very beneficial in terms of safety, efficiency, simplicity, and economy. Our results are in line with those of the literature and our work deserves to be continued to include many patients.

Keywords: outpatient surgery, proctological surgery, saddle block, satisfaction, cost

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Authors: Swapnil A. Padvi, Dipak S. Dalal

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The chemistry of tetrazoles has been grown tremendously in the past few years because tetrazoles are important and useful class of heterocyclic compounds which have a widespread application such as anticancer, antimicrobial, analgesics, antibacterial, antifungal, antihypertensive, and anti-allergic drugs in medicinal chemistry. Furthermore, tetrazoles have application in material sciences as explosives, rocket propellants, and in information recording systems. In addition to this, they have a wide range of application in coordination chemistry as a ligand. Deep eutectic solvents (DES) have emerged over the current decade as a novel class of green reaction media and applied in various fields of sciences because of their unique physical and chemical properties similar to the ionic liquids such as low vapor pressure, non-volatility, high thermal stability and recyclability. In addition, the reactants of DES are cheaply available, low-toxic, and biodegradable, which makes them predominantly required for large-scale applications effectively in industrial production. Herein we report the [2+3] cycloaddition reaction of organic nitriles with sodium azide affords the corresponding 5-substituted 1H-tetrazoles in six different types of choline chloride based deep eutectic solvents under mild reaction condition. Choline chloride: ZnCl2 (1:2) showed the best results for the synthesis of 5-substituted 1 H-tetrazoles. This method reduces the disadvantages such as: the use of toxic metals and expensive reagents, drastic reaction conditions and the presence of dangerous hydrazoic acid. The approach provides environment-friendly, short reaction times, good to excellent yields; safe process and simple workup make this method an attractive and useful contribution to present green organic synthesis of 5-substituted-1H-tetrazoles. All synthesized compounds were characterized by IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and Mass spectroscopy. DES can be recovered and reused three times with very little loss in activity.

Keywords: click chemistry, choline chloride, green chemistry, deep eutectic solvent, tetrazoles

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Authors: Jonas Chikelue Ogbuefi

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Science and Technology have a major impact on societal peace, it offers support to teaching and learning, cuts costs, and offers solutions to the current agitations and militancy in Nigeria today. Christianity, for instance, did not only change and form the western world in the past 2022 but still has a substantial role to play in society through liquid ecclesiology. This paper interrogated the impact of the theology of Science and Technology as a tool for peace sustainability through peace education in Nigeria. The method adopted is a historical and descriptive method of analysis. It was discovered that a larger number of Nigerian citizens lack almost all the basic things needed for the standard of living, such as Shelter, meaningful employment, and clothing, which is the root course of all agitations in Nigeria. Based on the above findings, the paper contends that the government alone cannot restore Peace in Nigeria. Hence the inability of the government to restore peace calls for all religious actors to be involved. The main thrust and recommendation of this paper are to challenge the religious actors to implement the Theology of Science and Technology as a tool for peace restoration and should network with both the government and the private sectors to make funds available to budding and existing entrepreneurs using Science and Technology as a tool for Peace and economic sustainability. This paper viewed the theology of Science and Technology as a tool for Peace and economic sustainability in Nigeria.

Keywords: theology, science, technology, peace education

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Authors: Tsuiping Chen

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It has always been an international consensus that food forms a big part of any culture since the old times. However, this idea has not been globally concretized until the announcement of including food or cuisine as intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2010. This announcement strengthens the value of food culture, which is getting more and more notice by every country. Although Taiwan is not one of the members of the United Nations, we cannot detach ourselves from this important global trend, especially when we have a lot of culinary students expected to join the world culinary job market. These students should have been well educated with the knowledge of world food culture to make them have the sensibility and perspectives for the occurring global food issues before joining the culinary jobs. Under the premise of the above concern, the researcher and also the instructor took on action research with one class of students in the 'Food Culture' course watching, discussing, and analyzing 12 culinary documentary films selected from one decade’s (2007-2016) of Berlin Culinary Cinema in one semester of class hours. In addition, after class, the students separated themselves into six groups and joined 12 times of one-hour-long focus group discussion on the 12 films conducted by the researcher. Furthermore, during the semester, the students submitted their reflection reports on each film to the university e-portfolio system. All the focus discussions and reflection reports were recorded and collected for further analysis by the researcher and one invited film researcher. Glaser and Strauss’ Grounded Theory (1967) constant comparison method was employed to analyze the collected data. Finally, the findings' results were audited by all participants of the research. All the participants and the researchers created 200 items of food culture products, 74 items of food culture practices, and 50 items of food culture perspectives from the action research journey through watching culinary documentaries. The journey did broaden students’ points of view on world food culture and enhance their capability on perspective construction for food culture. Four aspects of significant findings were demonstrated. First, learning food culture through watching Berlin culinary films helps students link themselves to the happening global food issues such as food security, food poverty, and food sovereignty, which direct them to rethink how people should grow, share and consume food. Second, watching different categories of documentary food films enhances students’ strong sense of responsibility for ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all people in every corner of the world. Third, watching these documentary films encourages students to think if the culinary education they have accepted in this island is inclusive and the importance of quality education, which can promote lifelong learning. Last but not least, the journey of the culinary documentary film watching in the 'Food Culture' course inspires students to take pride in their profession. It is hoped the model of teaching food culture with culinary documentary films will inspire more food culture educators, researchers, and the culinary curriculum designers.

Keywords: food culture, action research, culinary documentary films, food culture products, practices, perspectives

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Authors: Nur Aziza Luxfiati

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Clustering is partitioning data sets into sub-sets or groups in such a way that elements certain properties have shared property settings with a high level of similarity within one group and a low level of similarity between groups. . The K-Means algorithm is one of thealgorithmsclustering as a grouping tool that is most widely used in scientific and industrial applications because the basic idea of the kalgorithm is-means very simple. In this research, applying the technique of clustering using the k-means algorithm as a method of solving the problem of national development imbalances between regions in Central Java Province based on macroeconomic indicators. The data sample used is secondary data obtained from the Central Java Provincial Statistics Agency regarding macroeconomic indicator data which is part of the publication of the 2019 National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas) data. score and determine the number of clusters (k) using the elbow method. After the clustering process is carried out, the validation is tested using themethodsBetween-Class Variation (BCV) and Within-Class Variation (WCV). The results showed that detection outlier using z-score normalization showed no outliers. In addition, the results of the clustering test obtained a ratio value that was not high, namely 0.011%. There are two district/city clusters in Central Java Province which have economic similarities based on the variables used, namely the first cluster with a high economic level consisting of 13 districts/cities and theclustersecondwith a low economic level consisting of 22 districts/cities. And in the cluster second, namely, between low economies, the authors grouped districts/cities based on similarities to macroeconomic indicators such as 20 districts of Gross Regional Domestic Product, with a Poverty Depth Index of 19 districts, with 5 districts in Human Development, and as many as Open Unemployment Rate. 10 districts.

Keywords: clustering, K-Means algorithm, macroeconomic indicators, inequality, national development

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Authors: Nadia Pourabbas Tahvildari

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National identity is formed in the process of time and in the community while influenced by the historical events. The country which has a more coherent national and historical identity would be successful as well as strengthening solidarity and social cohesion. Among the international community where the various likes challenge the subject of identity, taking into consideration the components which using identity seems to be very critical. Handicrafts as reflecting the historical and cultural characteristics of the product location can be used as an important component in order to introduce the culture and identity to be evaluated. As one of the most durable crafts for man, handicrafts have played a continuous role in sustaining human culture. Today without the presence of handicrafts, restoration of culture and national identity and religious beliefs of the past clans and people, is not only difficult but is even impossible also. Due to its brilliant historical experience and having rich culture and civilization, Iran has accomplished to the high competence in the field of traditional arts and handicrafts. This article is a scientific approach which by using descriptive – analytic method based on library studies tried to address the issue of handicrafts looking to examine the position of the industry to consolidate the national identity. Studies indicate that Iran as one of the original human habitats in the field of handicrafts has adequate enrichment and in case there will be an appropriate planning and investment away from oil-based industry, it would be beneficent. Furthermore, the quality and variety of handicrafts can be used as an essential yardstick for the consolidation of Iran national identity in the age of globalization.

Keywords: handicrafts, Iran national identity, globalization, cultural heritage

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Authors: Aftab Khan, Ashfaq Khan

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The research paper focuses on an interesting challenge faced in Blind Image Deblurring (BID). It relates to the estimation of arbitrarily shaped or non-parametric Point Spread Functions (PSFs) of motion blur caused by camera handshake. These PSFs exhibit much more complex shapes than their parametric counterparts and deblurring in this case requires intricate ways to estimate the blur and effectively remove it. This research work introduces a novel blind deblurring scheme visualized for deblurring images corrupted by arbitrarily shaped PSFs. It is based on Genetic Algorithm (GA) and utilises the Blind/Reference-less Image Spatial QUality Evaluator (BRISQUE) measure as the fitness function for arbitrarily shaped PSF estimation. The proposed BID scheme has been compared with other single image motion deblurring schemes as benchmark. Validation has been carried out on various blurred images. Results of both benchmark and real images are presented. Non-reference image quality measures were used to quantify the deblurring results. For benchmark images, the proposed BID scheme using BRISQUE converges in close vicinity of the original blurring functions.

Keywords: blind deconvolution, blind image deblurring, genetic algorithm, image restoration, image quality measures

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Authors: Robert Prohaska, Arnaud Konan, Kenneth Kelly, Adam Ragatz, Adam Duran

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In an effort to evaluate the in-use performance of electrified Power Take-off (PTO) usage on bucket utility trucks operating under real-world conditions, data from 20 medium- and heavy-duty vehicles operating in California, USA were collected, compiled, and analyzed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) Fleet Test and Evaluation team. In this paper, duty-cycle statistical analyses of class 5, medium-duty quick response trucks and class 8, heavy-duty material handler trucks are performed to examine and characterize vehicle dynamics trends and relationships based on collected in-use field data. With more than 100,000 kilometers of driving data collected over 880+ operating days, researchers have developed a robust methodology for identifying PTO operation from in-field vehicle data. Researchers apply this unique methodology to evaluate the performance and utilization of the conventional and electric PTO systems. Researchers also created custom representative drive-cycles for each vehicle configuration and performed modeling and simulation activities to evaluate the potential fuel and emissions savings for hybridization of the tractive driveline on these vehicles. The results of these analyses statistically and objectively define the vehicle dynamic and kinematic requirements for each vehicle configuration as well as show the potential for further system optimization through driveline hybridization. Results are presented in both graphical and tabular formats illustrating a number of key relationships between parameters observed within the data set that relates specifically to medium- and heavy-duty utility vehicles operating under real-world conditions.

Keywords: drive cycle, heavy-duty (HD), hybrid, medium-duty (MD), PTO, utility

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Authors: Sastry Y. Kandukuri, Isak Andersen

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Despite recent advances in the manufacturing sector, quality issues remain a frequent occurrence, and can result in fatal accidents, equipment downtime, and loss of life. Adequate quality is of high importance in high-risk industries such as sea-going vessels and offshore installations in which third party quality assurance and product control play an important essential role in ensuring manufacturing quality of critical components. Classification societies play a vital role in mitigating risk in these industries by making sure that all the stakeholders i.e. manufacturers, builders, and end users are provided with adequate rules and standards that effectively ensures components produced at a high level of quality based on the area of application and risk of its failure. Quality issues have also been linked to the lack of competence or negligence of stakeholders in supply value chain. However, continued actions and regulatory reforms through modernization of rules and requirements has provided additional tools for purchasers and manufacturers to confront these issues. Included among these tools are updated ‘approval of manufacturer class programs’ aimed at developing and implementing a set of standardized manufacturing quality metrics for use by the manufacturer and verified by the classification society. The establishment and collection of manufacturing and testing requirements described in these programs could provide various stakeholders – from industry to vessel owners – with greater insight into the state of quality at a given manufacturing facility, and allow stakeholders to anticipate better and address quality issues while simultaneously reducing unnecessary failures that are costly to the industry. The publication introduces, explains and discusses critical manufacturing and testing requirements set in a leading class society’s approval of manufacturer regime and its rationale and some case studies.

Keywords: classification society, manufacturing, materials processing, materials testing, quality control

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Authors: Renata Silva-Mann, Sheila Valéria Álvares Carvalho, Robério Anastácio Ferreira, Laura Jane Gomes

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There is growing interest in defining indicators of sustainability, which are important for monitoring the conservation of native forests, particularly in areas of permanent protection. These indicators are references for assessing the state of the forest and the status of the depredated area and its ability to maintain species populations. The aim of the present study was to select genetic parameters as indicators of sustainability for Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi. Fragments located in riparian areas between the Sergipe and Alagoas States in Brazil. This species has been exploited for traditional communities, which represent 20% of the incoming. This study was carried out using the indicators suggested by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which were identified as Driving-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) factors. The genetic parameters were obtained in five populations located on the shores and islands of the São Francisco River, one of the most important rivers in Brazil. The framework for Schinus conservation suggests seventeen indicators of sustainability. In accordance with genetic parameters, the populations are isolated, and these genetic parameters can be used to monitor the sustainability of those populations in riparian area with the aim of defining strategies for forest restoration.

Keywords: alleles, molecular markers, genetic diversity, biodiversity

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Authors: Ion Robu, Claudiu Mazilu, Radu Deju

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Natural aggregates (gravel and crushed) are essential non-renewable resources which are used for infrastructure works and civil engineering. In European Union member states from Southeast Europe, it is estimated that the construction industry will grow by 4.2% thereafter complicating aggregate supply management. In addition, a significant additional problem that can be associated to the aggregates industry is wasting potential resources through waste dumping of inert waste, especially waste from construction and demolition activities. In 2012, in Romania, less than 10% of construction and demolition waste (including concrete) are valorized, while the European Union requires that by 2020 this proportion should be at least 70% (Directive 2008/98/EC on waste, transposed into Romanian legislation by Law 211/2011). Depending on the efficiency of waste processing and the quality of recycled aggregate concrete (RCA) obtained, poor quality aggregate can be used as foundation material for roads and at the high quality for new concrete on construction. To obtain good quality concrete using recycled aggregate is necessary to meet the minimum requirements defined by the rules for the manufacture of concrete with natural aggregate. Properties of recycled aggregate (density, granulosity, granule shape, water absorption, weight loss to Los Angeles test, attached mortar content etc.) are the basis for concrete quality; also establishing appropriate proportions between components and the concrete production methods are extremely important for its quality. This paper presents a study on the use of recycled aggregates, from a concrete of specified class, to acquire new cement concrete with different percentages of recycled aggregates. To achieve recycled aggregates several batches of concrete class C16/20, C25/30 and C35/45 were made, the compositions calculation being made according NE012/2007 CP012/2007. Tests for producing recycled aggregate was carried out using concrete samples of the established three classes after 28 days of storage under the above conditions. Cubes with 150mm side were crushed in a first stage with a jaw crusher Liebherr type set at 50 mm nominally. The resulting material was separated by sieving on granulometric sorts and 10-50 sort was used for preliminary tests of crushing in the second stage with a jaw crusher BB 200 Retsch model, respectively a hammer crusher Buffalo Shuttle WA-12-H model. It was highlighted the influence of the type of crusher used to obtain recycled aggregates on granulometry and granule shape and the influence of the attached mortar on the density, water absorption, behavior to the Los Angeles test etc. The proportion of attached mortar was determined and correlated with provenance concrete class of the recycled aggregates and their granulometric sort. The aim to characterize the recycled aggregates is their valorification in new concrete used in construction. In this regard have been made a series of concrete in which the recycled aggregate content was varied from 0 to 100%. The new concrete were characterized by point of view of the change in the density and compressive strength with the proportion of recycled aggregates. It has been shown that an increase in recycled aggregate content not necessarily mean a reduction in compressive strength, quality of the aggregate having a decisive role.

Keywords: recycled concrete aggregate, characteristics, recycled aggregate concrete, properties

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Authors: Mona Almanasef, Angel Chater, Jane Portlock

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Introduction: A 'flipped classroom' uses technology to shift the traditional lecture outside the scheduled class time and uses the face-to-face time to engage students in interactive activities. Aim of the Study: Assess the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of using the 'flipped classroom' teaching format with MPharm students in two pharmacy schools in the UK: UCL School of Pharmacy and the School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences at University of Portsmouth. Methods: An experimental mixed methods design was employed, with final year MPharm students in two phases; 1) a qualitative study using focus groups, 2) a quasi-experiment measuring knowledge acquisition and satisfaction by delivering a session on rheumatoid arthritis, in two teaching formats: the flipped classroom and the traditional lecture. Results: The flipped classroom approach was preferred over the traditional lecture for delivering a pharmacy practice topic, and it was comparable or better than the traditional lecture with respect to knowledge acquisition. In addition, this teaching approach was found to overcome the perceived challenges of the traditional lecture method such as fast pace instructions, student disengagement and boredom due to lack of activities and/or social anxiety. However, high workload and difficult or new concepts could be barriers to pre-class preparation, and therefore successful flipped classroom. The flipped classroom encouraged learning scaffolding where students could benefit from application of knowledge, and interaction with peers and the lecturer, which might, in turn, facilitate learning consolidation and deep understanding. This research indicated that the flipped classroom was beneficial for all learning styles. Conclusion: Implementing the flipped classroom at both pharmacy institutions was successful and well received by final year MPharm students. Given the attention now being put on the Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF), understanding effective methods of teaching to enhance student achievement and satisfaction is now more valuable than ever.

Keywords: blended learning, flipped classroom, inverted classroom, pharmacy education

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Authors: Veljko Jeremic, Milica Kostic Stankovic, Aleksandar Markovic, Milan Martic

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Evaluating the efficiency of decision making units has been frequently elaborated on in numerous publications. In this paper, the theoretical framework for a novel method of Distance Based Analysis (DBA) is presented. In addition, the method is performed on a sample of the ARWU’s top 54 Universities of the United States, the findings of which clearly demonstrate that the best ranked Universities are far from also being the most efficient.

Keywords: evaluating efficiency, distance based analysis, ranking of universities, ARWU

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Authors: Gyozo Molnar, Nancy Spencer-Cavaliere

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Research in the area of physical activity and sport, while becoming multidisciplinary, is still dominated by post-positivist approaches that have the tendency to position the researcher as an expert and the participant as subordinate thereby perpetuating an unequal balance of power. Despite physical activity’s and sport’s universal appeal, their historic practices have excluded particular groups of people who assumed lesser forms of human capital. Adapted physical activity (APA) is a field that has responded to those segregations with specific application and relevance to people with impairments. Nevertheless, to date, similar to physical activity and sport, research in APA is still dominated by post-positivist epistemology. Stemming from this, there is gradually growing criticism within the field related to the abundance of research ‘on’ people with impairments and lack of research ‘with’ and ‘by’ people with impairments. Furthermore, research questions in the field are most often pursued from a single axis of analysis and constructed by non-disabled researchers. Concurrently, while calls for interdisciplinary approaches to understanding disability are growing in popularity, there is also a clear need to take an intersectionality-informed research methodology to understanding physical activity and sport and power (im)balances therein. In other words, impairment needs to be considered in conjunction with other socially and politically constructed and historically embedded differences such as gender, race, class, etc. when analyzing physical activity and sport experiences for people with impairments. Moreover, it is reasonable to argue that non-disabled researchers must recognize and theorize ableism in its complicated intersectional manifestation to show the structural constraints that disabled scholars face in the field. Consequently, this presentation will offer an alternative approach that acknowledges and prioritizes the perspectives and experiences of people with impairments to expand the field of APA. As such, the importance of broadening epistemologies in APA and prioritizing an appreciation for multiple bits of knowledge of people with impairments through intersections of social locations (e.g., gender, race, class) will be considered.

Keywords: adapted physical activity, disability, intersectionality, post-positivist, power imbalances

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Authors: James G. Matthew, Seonmin Huh, Frank X. Bennett

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English for Specific Purposes, ESP, aims to equip learners with necessary English language skills. Many ESP programs address language skills for job performance, including reading job related documents and oral proficiency. Within ESP is English for occupational purposes, EOP, which centers around developing communicative competence for the globalized workplace. Many ESP and EOP courses lack the content needed to assist students to progress at work, resulting in the need to create lexical compilation for different professions. It is important to teach communicative competence and soft skills for real job-related problem situations and address the complexities of the real world to help students to be successful in their professions. ESP and EOP research is therefore trying to balance both profession-specific educational contents as well as international multi-disciplinary language skills for the globalized workforce. The current study will build upon the existing discussion by developing pedagogy to assist students in their career through developing a strong practical command of relevant English vocabulary. Our research question focuses on the pedagogy two professors incorporated in their English for employment courses. The current study is a qualitative case study on the modes of teaching delivery for EOP in South Korea. Two foreign professors teaching at two different universities in South Korea volunteered for the study to explore their teaching practices. Both professors’ curriculums included the components of employment-related concept vocabulary, business presentations, CV/resume and cover letter preparation, and job interview preparation. All the pre-made recorded video lectures, live online class sessions with students, teachers’ lesson plans, teachers’ class materials, students’ assignments, and midterm and finals video conferences were collected for data analysis. The study then focused on unpacking representative patterns in their teaching methods. The professors used their strengths as native speakers to extend the class discussion from narrow and restricted conversations to giving students broader opportunities to practice authentic English conversation. The methods of teaching utilized three main steps to extend the conversation. Firstly, students were taught concept vocabulary. Secondly, the vocabulary was then combined in speaking activities where students had to solve scenarios, and the students were required to expand on the given forms of words and language expressions. Lastly, the students had conversations in English, using the language learnt. The conversations observed in both classes were those of authentic, expanded English communication and this way of expanding concept vocabulary lessons into extended conversation is one representative pedagogical approach that both professors took. Extended English conversation, therefore, is crucial for EOP education.

Keywords: concept vocabulary, english as a foreign language, english for employment, extended conversation

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Authors: Kevin R. Wilson, Roger Mantie

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Community arts-based learning and participatory education are pedagogical techniques that serve to be advantageous for students, curriculum development, and local communities. Using an interpretive approach to examine the significance of this arts-informed research in relation to the eight ‘design imperatives’ proposed as the new model for measuring quality in scholarship for Arizona State University as ‘A New American University’, the purpose of this study was to investigate personal, social, and cultural benefits resulting from student engagement in interdisciplinary community-based projects. Students from a graduate level music education class at the ASU Tempe campus (n=7) teamed with students from an undergraduate level community development class at the ASU Downtown Phoenix campus (n=14) to plan, facilitate, and evaluate seven community-based projects in several locations around the Phoenix-metro area. Data was collected using photo evidence, student reports, and evaluative measures designed by the students. The effectiveness of each project was measured in terms of their ability to meet the eight design imperatives to: 1) leverage place; 2) transform society; 3) value entrepreneurship; 4) conduct use-inspired research; 5) enable student success; 6) fuse intellectual disciplines; 7) be socially embedded; and 8) engage globally. Results indicated that this community arts-based project sufficiently captured the essence of each of these eight imperatives. Implications for how the nature of this interdisciplinary initiative allowed for the eight imperatives to manifest are provided, and project success is expounded upon in relation to utility of each imperative. Discussion is also given for how this type of service learning project formatted within the ‘New American University’ model for measuring quality in academia can be a beneficial pedagogical tool in higher education.

Keywords: community arts-based learning, participatory education, pedagogy, service learning

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Authors: Betsy Hannam

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Background: Staff nurses felt overwhelmed to learn new skills or complete competencies during their shift. Med/Surg units need to provide dedicated, uninterrupted time to complete training and mandatory competencies and practice skills. Purpose: To improve nurse satisfaction and competence by creating a Skills Day with uninterrupted time to complete competencies, brush up on skills, and evaluate skills learned through pre- and post-tests. Methods: The USL and CNL interviewed nurses to obtain input regarding skills needing reinforcement and included mandatory competencies relevant to Med/Surg to create the Skills Day agenda. Content experts from multiple disciplines were invited to educate staff to help address knowledge gaps. To increase attendance, multiple class days were offered. Results: 2018 Skills Day was held for an inpatient unit with 95% participation (n=35 out of 37RNs). The average pretest score, comprised of content questions from topics discussed, was 57%, and post test scoresaveraged 80%. 94% of test scores improved or remained the same. RNs were given an evaluation at the end of the day, where100% of staff noted Skills Day as beneficial, and 97% requested to repeat next year. Another Med/Surg unit asked to join Skills Day in 2019. In 2019, with 89% participation (n=57 out 64 RNs), the average pretest score was 68%, and the average post test score was 85%. 97% of scores improved or remained the same. 98% reported the class as beneficial, and 96% requested to repeat next year. Skills Day 2020-2022 on hold due to COVID. Looking forward to Skills Day 2023. Conclusion: Skills Day allows nurses to maintain competencies and improve knowledge in areas of interest without the stress of a patient assignment. Having unit leaders organize Skills Day, with the involvement of content experts from multiple disciplines, showed to be a successful and innovative team approach to support professional development.

Keywords: education, competency, skills day, medical/surgical

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Authors: Jaskarn Singh Bhullar, Divya Taneja, Manish Gupta, Rajesh Kumar Narula

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The existence conditions of dual containing constacyclic codes have opened a new path for finding quantum maximum distance separable (MDS) codes. Using these conditions parameters of length n=(q²+1)/2 quantum MDS codes were improved. A class of quantum MDS codes of length n=(q²+q+1)/h, where h>1 is an odd prime, have also been constructed having large minimum distance and these codes are new in the sense as these are not available in the literature.

Keywords: hermitian construction, constacyclic codes, cyclotomic cosets, quantum MDS codes, singleton bound

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Authors: Mona Kamel Hassan

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Teaching a class of diverse learners poses a great challenge not only for foreign and second language teachers, but also for teachers in different disciplines as well as for curriculum designers. Thus, to contribute to previous research tackling language diversity, the current paper shares the experience of teaching a reading, writing and vocabulary building course to diverse Arabic as a Foreign Language learners in their advanced language proficiency level. Diversity is represented in students’ motivation, their prior knowledge, their various needs and interests, their level of anxiety, and their different learning styles and skills. While teaching this course the researcher adopted the universal design for learning (UDL) framework, which is a means to meet the various needs of diverse learners. UDL stresses the importance of enabling the entire diverse students to gain skills, knowledge, and enthusiasm to learn through the employment of teaching methods that respond to students' individual differences. Accordingly, the educational curriculum developed for this course and the teaching methods employed is modified. First, the researcher made the language curriculum vivid and attractive to inspire students' learning and to keep them engaged in their learning process. The researcher encouraged the entire students, from the first day, to suggest topics of their interest; political, social, cultural, etc. The authentic Arabic texts chosen are those that best meet students’ needs, interests, lives, and sociolinguistic issues, together with the linguistic and cultural components. In class and under the researcher’s guidance, students dig into these topics to find solutions for the tackled issues while working with their peers. Second, to gain equal opportunities to demonstrate learning, role-playing was encouraged to give students the opportunity to perform different linguistic tasks, to reflect and share their diverse interests and cultural backgrounds with their peers. Third, to bring the UDL into the classroom, students were encouraged to work on interactive, collaborative activities through technology to improve their reading and writing skills and reinforce their mastery of the accumulated vocabulary, idiomatic expressions, and collocations. These interactive, collaborative activities help to facilitate student-student communication and student-teacher communication and to increase comfort in this class of diverse learners. Detailed samples of the educational curriculum and interactive, collaborative activities developed, accompanied by methods of teaching employed to teach these diverse learners, are presented for illustration. Results revealed that students are responsive to the educational materials which are developed for this course. Therefore, they engaged in the learning process and classroom activities and discussions effectively. They also appreciated their instructor’s willingness to differentiate the teaching methods to suit students of diverse background knowledge, learning styles, level of anxiety, etc. Finally, the researcher believes that sharing this experience in teaching diverse learners will help both language teachers and teachers in other disciplines to develop a better understanding to meet their students' diverse needs. Results will also pave the way for curriculum designers to develop educational material that meets the needs of diverse learners.

Keywords: teaching, language, diverse, learners

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Authors: Aniela Pop, Ianina Birsan, Corina Orha, Rodica Pode, Florica Manea

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Carbon nanofiber-epoxy composite electrode has been investigated through voltammetric and amperometric techniques in order to detect parabens from aqueous solutions. The occurrence into environment as emerging pollutants of these preservative compounds has been extensively studied in the last decades, and consequently, a rapid and reliable method for their quantitative quantification is required. In this study, methylparaben (MP) and propylparaben (PP) were chosen as representatives for paraben class. The individual electrochemical detection of each paraben has been successfully performed. Their electrochemical oxidation occurred at the same potential value. Their simultaneous quantification should be assessed electrochemically only as general index of paraben class as a cumulative signal corresponding to both MP and PP from solution. The influence of pH on the electrochemical signal was studied. pH ranged between 1.3 and 9.0 allowed shifting the detection potential value to smaller value, which is very desired for the electroanalysis. Also, the signal is better-defined and higher sensitivity is achieved. Differential-pulsed voltammetry and square-wave voltammetry were exploited under the optimum pH conditions to improve the electroanalytical performance for the paraben detection. Also, the operation conditions were selected, i.e., the step potential, modulation amplitude and the frequency. Chronomaprometry application as the easiest electrochemical detection method led to worse sensitivity, probably due to a possible fouling effect of the electrode surface. The best electroanalytical performance was achieved by pulsed voltammetric technique but the selection of the electrochemical technique is related to the concrete practical application. A good reproducibility of the voltammetric-based method using carbon nanofiber-epoxy composite electrode was determined and no interference effect was found for the cation and anion species that are common in the water matrix. Besides these characteristics, the long life-time of the electrode give to carbon nanofiber-epoxy composite electrode a great potential for practical applications.

Keywords: carbon nanofiber-epoxy composite electrode, electroanalysis, methylparaben, propylparaben

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Authors: Samaneh serraj

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Listening anxiety has a detrimental effect on language learners. Through a qualitative study on Iranian EFL learners several factors were identified as having influence on their listening anxiety. These factors were divided into three categories, i.e. individual factors (nerves and emotionality, using inappropriate strategies and lack of practice), input factors (lack of time to process, lack of visual support, nature of speech and level of difficulty) and environmental factors (instructors, peers and class environment).

Keywords: listening Comprehension, Listening Anxiety, Foreign language learners

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Authors: Anuja Singh, Avik K. Pati, Ashok K. Mishra

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Organic fluorophores with π-conjugated scaffolds are important because of their interesting optoelectronic properties. In recent years, our lab has been engaged in understanding the photophysics of small diacetylene bridged fluorophores and found the diynes as a promising class of π-conjugated fluorophores. Building on this understanding, recently we have focused on the photophysics of a less explored class of cross-conjugated Y-shaped enediynes (one double and two triple bonds). Here we present the photophysical properties of such enediynes which show interesting photophysical properties that include dual emissions from locally excited (LE) and intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) states and ring size dependent aggregate fluorescence in non-aqueous media. The dyes also show prominent aggregate fluorescence in mixed-aqueous solvents and solid powder form. We further show that the solid state fluorescence can be reversibly switched multiple of cycles by external stimuli, highlighting their potential applications in solid states. The enediynes with push-pull electronic substituents/moieties exhibit high contrast fluorescence color switching upon continuous photon illumination. The intriguing photophysical outcomes of the enediynyl fluorophores are judiciously exploited to generate single-component white light emission in binary solvent mixtures and sense polar aprotic vapor in polymer film matrices. The photophysical behavior of the dyes is further successfully utilized to monitor the microenvironment changes of biologically relevant anisotropic media such as bile salts. In summary, the newly introduced cross-conjugated enediynes enrich the toolbox of organic fluorophores and vouch to display versatile applications.

Keywords: aggregation in solution and solid state, enediynes, physical photochemistry and photophysics, vapor sensing and white light emission

Procedia PDF Downloads 478