Search results for: option selection

Authors: Thulile Ndou

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The purpose of this study was to examine the challenges encountered in the mediation of attracting and recruiting academic expatriates who in turn encounter their own obstacles in adjusting into and settling in their host country, host academic institutions and host communities. The none-existence of literature on attraction, placement and management of academic expatriates in the South African context has been acknowledged. Moreover, Higher Education Institutions in South Africa have voiced concerns relating to delayed and prolonged recruitment and selection processes experienced in the employment process of academic expatriates. Once employed, academic expatriates should be supported and acquainted with the surroundings, the local communities as well as be assisted to establish working relations with colleagues in order to facilitate their adjustment and integration process. Hence, an employer should play a critical role in facilitating the adjustment of academic expatriates. This mixed methods study was located in four Higher Education Institutions based in the KwaZulu-Natal province, in South Africa. The explanatory sequential design approach was deployed in the study. The merits of this approach were chiefly that it employed both the quantitative and qualitative techniques of inquiry. Therefore, the study examined and interrogated its subject from a multiplicity of quantitative and qualitative vantage points, yielding a much more enriched and enriching illumination. Mixing the strengths of both the quantitative and the qualitative techniques delivered much more durable articulation and understanding of the subject. A 5-point Likert scale questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data relating to interaction adjustment, general adjustment and work adjustment from academic expatriates. One hundred and forty two (142) academic expatriates participated in the quantitative study. Qualitative data relating to employment process and support offered to academic expatriates was collected through a structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. A total of 48 respondents; including, line managers, human resources practitioners, and academic expatriates participated in the qualitative study. The Independent T-test, ANOVA and Descriptive Statistics were performed to analyse, interpret and make meaning of quantitative data and thematic analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. The qualitative results revealed that academic talent is sourced from outside the borders of the country because of the academic skills shortage in almost all academic disciplines especially in the disciplines associated with Science, Engineering and Accounting. However, delays in work permit application process made it difficult to finalise the recruitment and selection process on time. Furthermore, the quantitative results revealed that academic expatriates experience general and interaction adjustment challenges associated with the use of local language and understanding of local culture. However, female academic expatriates were found to be better adjusted in the two areas as compared to male academic expatriates. Moreover, significant mean differences were found between institutions suggesting that academic expatriates based in rural areas experienced adjustment challenges differently from the academic expatriates based in urban areas. The study gestured to the need for policy revisions in the area of immigration, human resources and academic administration.

Keywords: academic expatriates, recruitment and selection, interaction and general adjustment, work adjustment

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Authors: Natalie Hoyer

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Bridges in both roadway and railway systems depend on bearings to ensure extended service life and functionality. These bearings enable proper load distribution from the superstructure to the substructure while permitting controlled movement of the superstructure. The design of bridge bearings, according to Eurocode DIN EN 1337 and the relevant sections of DIN EN 1993, increasingly requires the use of thick plates, especially for long-span bridges. However, these plate thicknesses exceed the limits specified in the national appendix of DIN EN 1993-2. Furthermore, compliance with DIN EN 1993-1-10 regulations regarding material toughness and through-thickness properties necessitates further modifications. Consequently, these standards cannot be directly applied to the selection of bearing materials without supplementary guidance and design rules. In this context, a recommendation was developed in 2011 to regulate the selection of appropriate steel grades for bearing components. Prior to the initiation of the research project underlying this contribution, this recommendation had only been available as a technical bulletin. Since July 2023, it has been integrated into guideline 804 of the German railway. However, recent findings indicate that certain bridge-bearing components are exposed to high fatigue loads, which necessitate consideration in structural design, material selection, and calculations. Therefore, the German Centre for Rail Traffic Research called a research project with the objective of defining a proposal to expand the current standards in order to implement a sufficient choice of steel material for bridge bearings to avoid brittle fracture, even for thick plates and components subjected to specific fatigue loads. The results obtained from theoretical considerations, such as finite element simulations and analytical calculations, are validated through large-scale component tests. Additionally, experimental observations are used to calibrate the calculation models and modify the input parameters of the design concept. Within the large-scale component tests, a brittle failure is artificially induced in a bearing component. For this purpose, an artificially generated initial defect is introduced at the previously defined hotspot into the specimen using spark erosion. Then, a dynamic load is applied until the crack initiation process occurs to achieve realistic conditions in the form of a sharp notch similar to a fatigue crack. This initiation process continues until the crack length reaches a predetermined size. Afterward, the actual test begins, which requires cooling the specimen with liquid nitrogen until a temperature is reached where brittle fracture failure is expected. In the next step, the component is subjected to a quasi-static tensile test until failure occurs in the form of a brittle failure. The proposed paper will present the latest research findings, including the results of the conducted component tests and the derived definition of the initial crack size in bridge bearings.

Keywords: bridge bearings, brittle fracture, fatigue, initial crack size, large-scale tests

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Authors: Sanjoy Mukherjee

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Discussions on concepts of Single Axis Tracker (SAT) are becoming more and more apt for developing countries like India not just as an advancement in racking technology but due to the utmost necessity of reaching at the lowest Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) targets. With this increasing competition and significant fall in feed-in tariffs of solar PV projects, developers are under constant pressure to secure investment for their projects and eventually earn profits from them. Moreover, being the second largest populated country, India suffers from scarcity of land because of higher average population density. So, to mitigate the risk of this dual edged sword with reducing trend of unit (kWh) cost at one side and utilization of land on the other, tracking evolved as the call of the hour. Therefore, the prime objectives of this paper are not only to showcase how STT proves to be an effective mechanism to get more gain in Global Incidence in collector plane (G_inc) with respect to traditional mounting systems but also to introduce Seasonally Tilted Tracker (STT) technology as a possible option for high latitude locations.

Keywords: tracking system, grid connected solar PV plant, CAPEX reduction, levelized cost of energy

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Authors: Raffaele A. Calogero

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RNAseq represents an attractive methodology for the detection of functional genomic variants. RNAseq results obtained from polyA+ RNA selection protocol (POLYA) and from exonic regions capturing protocol (ACCESS) indicate that ACCESS detects 10% more coding SNV/INDELs with respect to POLYA. ACCESS requires less reads for coding SNV detection with respect to POLYA. However, if the analysis aims at identifying SNV/INDELs also in the 5’ and 3’ UTRs, POLYA is definitively the preferred method. No particular advantage comes from ACCESS or POLYA in the detection of fusion transcripts.

Keywords: fusion transcripts, INDEL, RNA-seq, WES, SNV

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Authors: Priscila Ribeiro dos Santos, Luiz Antonio Daniel

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Inadequate access to clean water and sanitation has become one of the most widespread problems affecting people throughout the developing world, leading to an unceasing need for low-cost and sustainable wastewater treatment systems. The UASB technology has been widely employed as a suitable and economical option for the treatment of sewage in developing countries, which involves low initial investment, low energy requirements, low operation and maintenance costs, high loading capacity, short hydraulic retention times, long solids retention times and low sludge production. Whereas dissolved air flotation process is a good option for the post-treatment of anaerobic effluents, being capable of producing high quality effluents in terms of total suspended solids, chemical oxygen demand, phosphorus, and even pathogens. This work presents an evaluation and monitoring, over a period of 6 months, of one compact full-scale system with this configuration, UASB reactors followed by dissolved air flotation units (DAF), operating in Brazil. It was verified as a successful treatment system, and an issue of relevance since dissolved air flotation process treating UASB reactor effluents is not widely encompassed in the literature. The study covered the removal and behavior of several variables, such as turbidity, total suspend solids (TSS), chemical oxygen demand (COD), Escherichia coli, total coliforms and Clostridium perfringens. The physicochemical variables were analyzed according to the protocols established by the Standard Methods for Examination of Water and Wastewater. For microbiological variables, such as Escherichia coli and total coliforms, it was used the “pour plate” technique with Chromocult Coliform Agar (Merk Cat. No.1.10426) serving as the culture medium, while the microorganism Clostridium perfringens was analyzed through the filtering membrane technique, with the Ágar m-CP (Oxoid Ltda, England) serving as the culture medium. Approximately 74% of total COD was removed in the UASB reactor, and the complementary removal done during the flotation process resulted in 88% of COD removal from the raw sewage, thus the initial concentration of COD of 729 mg.L-1 decreased to 87 mg.L-1. Whereas, in terms of particulate COD, the overall removal efficiency for the whole system was about 94%, decreasing from 375 mg.L-1 in raw sewage to 29 mg.L-1 in final effluent. The UASB reactor removed on average 77% of the TSS from raw sewage. While the dissolved air flotation process did not work as expected, removing only 30% of TSS from the anaerobic effluent. The final effluent presented an average concentration of 38 mg.L-1 of TSS. The turbidity was significantly reduced, leading to an overall efficiency removal of 80% and a final turbidity of 28 NTU.The treated effluent still presented a high concentration of fecal pollution indicators (E. coli, total coliforms, and Clostridium perfringens), showing that the system did not present a good performance in removing pathogens. Clostridium perfringens was the organism which suffered the higher removal by the treatment system. The results can be considered satisfactory for the physicochemical variables, taking into account the simplicity of the system, besides that, it is necessary a post-treatment to improve the microbiological quality of the final effluent.

Keywords: dissolved air flotation, municipal sewage, UASB reactor, treatment

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Authors: Mohammad Ebrahim Arbabian

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This paper investigates the impact of 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, on a multi-item supply chain comprising a manufacturer and retailer. Operating under a wholesale-price contract and catering to stochastic customer demand, this study delves into the largely unexplored realm of how 3D printing technology reshapes supply chain dynamics. A distinguishing aspect of 3D printing is its versatility in producing various product types, yet its slower production pace compared to traditional methods poses a challenge. We analyze the trade-off between 3D printing's limited capacity and its enhancement of production flexibility. By delineating the economic circumstances favoring 3D printing adoption by the manufacturer, we establish the Stackelberg equilibrium in the retailer-manufacturer game. Additionally, we determine optimal order quantities for the retailer considering 3D printing as an option for the manufacturer, ascertain optimal wholesale prices in the presence of 3D printing, and compute optimal profits for both parties involved in the supply chain.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, supply chain management, contract theory, Stackelberg game, optimization

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Authors: Gloria James, S. K. Nema, T. S. Anantha Singh, P. Vadivel Murugan

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The usage of tyre has increased enormously in day to day life. The used tyre and rubber products pose major threat to the environment. Conventional thermal techniques such as low temperature pyrolysis and incineration produce high molecular organic compounds (condensed and collected as aromatic oil) and carbon soot particles. Plasma gasification technique can dispose tyre waste and generate combustible gases and avoid the formation of high molecular aromatic compounds. These gases generated in plasma gasification process can be used to generate electricity or as fuel wherever required. Although many experiments have been done on plasma pyrolysis of tyres, very little work has been done on plasma gasification of tyres. In this work plasma gasification of waste tyres have been conducted in a fixed bed reactor having graphite electrodes and direct current (DC) arc plasma system. The output of this work has been compared with the previous work done on plasma pyrolysis of tyres by different authors. The aim of this work is to compare different process based on gas generation, efficiency of the process and explore the most effective option for energy recovery from waste tyres.

Keywords: plasma, gasification, syngas, tyre waste

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Authors: Adama Sow, Abdoulaye Guiss´e, Oumar Niang

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To assist medical diagnosis, we propose a federation of several existing and open medical ontologies and terminologies. The goal is to merge the strengths of all these resources to provide clinicians the access to a variety of shared knowledges that can facilitate identification and association of human diseases and all of their available characteristic signs such as symptoms and clinical signs. This work results to an integration model loaded from target known ontologies of the bioportal platform such as DOID, MESH, and SNOMED for diseases selection, SYMP, and CSSO for all existing signs.

Keywords: medical decision, medical ontologies, ontologies integration, linked data, knowledge engineering, e-health system

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Authors: Lei Qin

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As shared accommodation has become one of the most important market developments in the tourism industry, numerous contributions have emerged on travelers’ motivations to choose shared accommodation. A debated question, however, resides in the heterogeneity of travelers based on motivations. This paper aims to reconcile opposing perspectives by comparing motivation segmentation at two distinct phases of innovation adoption of this new hospitality option: (i) before the first travel – potential users showing interest (n=420) and (ii) after the first travel – users (n=420). Interestingly, we find that travelers (including pre-and-post adopters) have a stronger agreement in experiential motivations than practical motivations. However, the heterogeneity of motivations among travelers is significantly higher in users, increasing from two to six clusters, which means travelers cluster into more and distinct motivation groups after adoption. Rather than invalidating specific assumptions used in the literature in terms of motivation heterogeneity, this paper reconciles opposing findings by putting them along with one another in the process of innovation adoption. A subsequent tourists’ segmentation based on motivations were conducted according to their innovation adoption stages.

Keywords: motivation, pre-and-post adoption, shared accommodation, segmentation

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Authors: Muhammad Rizwan Tabassum, Ao Xia, Jerry D. Murphy

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The aim of this work is to provide an overview of macroalgae as an alternative feedstock for gaseous fuel production and key innovative technologies. Climate change and continuously depleting resources are the key driving forces to think for alternative sources of energy. Macroalgae can be favored over land based energy crops because they are not in direct competition with food crops. However, some drawbacks, such as high moisture content, seasonal variation in chemical composition and process inhibition limit the economic practicability. Macroalgae, like brown seaweed can be converted into gaseous and liquid fuel by different conversion technologies. Biomethane via anaerobic digestion is the appealing technology due to its dual advantage of a commercially applicable and environment friendly technology. Other technologies like biodiesel and bioethanol conversion technologies from seaweed are still under progress. Screening of high yielding macroalgae species, peak harvesting season and process optimization make the technology economically feasible for alternative source of feedstock for biofuel production in future.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion, biofuels, bio-methane, advanced conversion technologies, macroalgae

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Authors: Gebeyaw Molla Wondim, Damen Haile Mariam, Wubegzier Mekonnen, Catherine Arsenault

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Introduction: Maternal depression is a common psychological disorder that mostly occurs during pregnancy and after childbirth. It affects approximately one in four women worldwide. There is inconsistent evidence regarding the association between anemia and maternal depression. The objective of this systematic review was to examine the association between anemia and depression during pregnancy. Method: A comprehensive search of articles published before March 8, 2024, was conducted in seven databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar. The Boolean operators “AND” or “OR” and “NOT” were used to connect the MeSH terms and keywords. Rayyan software was used to screen articles for final retrieval, and the PRISMA diagram was used to show the article selection process. Data extraction and risk bias assessment were done by two reviewers independently. JBI critical appraisal tool was used to assess the methodological quality of the retrieved articles. Heterogenicity was assessed through visual inspection of the extracted result, and narrative analysis was used to synthesize the result. Result: A total of 2,413 articles were obtained from seven electronic databases. Among these articles, a total of 2,398 were removed due to duplication (702 articles), by title and abstract selection criteria (1,678 articles), and by full-text review (18 articles). Finally, in this systematic review, 15 articles with a total of 628,781 pregnant women were included: seven articles were cohort studies, two were case-control, and six studies were cross-sectional. All included studies were published between 2013 and 2022. Studies conducted in the United States, South Korea, Finland, and one in South India found no significant association between anemia and maternal depression during pregnancy. On the other hand, studies conducted in Australia, Canada, Finland, Israel, Turkey, Vietnam, Ethiopia, and South India showed a significant association between anemia and depression during pregnancy. Conclusion: The overall finding of the systematic review shows the burden of anemia and antenatal depression is much higher among pregnant women in developing countries. Around three-fourths of the studies show that anemia is positively associated with antenatal depression. Almost all studies conducted in LMICs show anemia positively associated with antenatal depression.

Keywords: pregnant, women, anemia, depression

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Authors: Fakunle Egbo, Kammalchukwu A., Akinremi T.

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Physical activity and nutritional status influence the health status and cognition of young adults. Lack of physical activity increases the likelihood of developing obesity which leads to the risk of heart diseases and other risk factors like high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol, diabetes etc. The study employed a cross-sectional study design. The study used a multi stage sampling technique multi- stage sampling technique; Purposive, for the selection of colleges that would be used, stratified random sampling for stratifying the colleges into departments and the simple random sampling for the selection of each respondent from the departments. Structured questionnaires were used to obtain data from the respondents and pre-tested anthropometric instruments were used to get the weight and height of the respondents and statistically analyzed using SPSS version 22.0 and the TDA (Total dietary allowance) software which was used to analyze the nutrient intake of the respondents. This study showed that they comprised of 50.1% males and 40.9% females. Slightly above average 51.8% were between ages of 15-19 with mean age being 19.57 years; ages 20-24 were slightly below average at 45.7%. The male students 58.7% had vigorous physical activity, whereas majority of females 76.5% had light physical activity level. 39.1% of the male students carried out physical activity 2-3 times per week while One third of the female students (38.3%) carried out physical activity 6-7 times per week. Majority of the respondents had Inadequate Protein- 63.8%, Carbohydrate- 60.2%, and Dietary fiber- 88.8. 36% eat rice 4-6 times per week. Majority of the respondents had inadequate fruit and vegetables (Efo, Banana,) at 47.7%, 40.6% respectively. Using Body mass index, (63.2%) have normal weight. 22.9% are overweight, 6.8% are underweight, 5.4% have grade 1 obesity and 1.6% have grade II obesity. There was a statistically significant association between the physical activity of the respondents with their nutritional status (p=0.037), physical activity and sex (p=0.000), nutritional status and amount spent on food daily (p=0.007). The study concluded that the physical activity level of the respondents, most especially the females were low; One third of the students were malnourished therefore, there should be an urgent need for improving the overall health status of students by providing the students with well-equipped gyms and other sporting equipment’s that would make them participate actively and keep fit.

Keywords: physical activity, nutritional status, undergraduates, dietary pattern

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Authors: Hossein Kh. Bisheh, Nan Wu

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Advanced composite materials have a great importance in engineering structures due to their high specific modulus and strength and low weight. These materials can be used in design and fabrication of automotive drive shafts to reduce the weight of the structure. Hence, an optimum design of a composite drive shaft satisfying the design criteria, can be an appropriate substitution of metallic drive shafts. The aim of this study is to design and analyze a composite automotive drive shaft with high specific strength and low weight satisfying the design criteria. Tsai-Wu criterion is chosen as the failure criterion. Various designs with different lay-ups and materials are investigated based on the design requirements and finally, an optimum design satisfying the design criteria is chosen based on the weight and cost considerations. The results of this study indicate that if the weight is the main concern, a shaft made of Carbon/Epoxy can be a good option, and if the cost is a more important parameter, a hybrid shaft made of aluminum and Carbon/Epoxy can be considered.

Keywords: Bending natural frequency, Composite drive shaft, Peak torque, Torsional buckling

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Authors: E. Azizi Asiyabar

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The phenomenon of migration to larger cities has brought about a range of consequences, including increased travel demand and the necessity for smooth traffic flow to expedite transportation. Regrettably, insufficient urban transportation infrastructure has given rise to various issues, including air pollution, heightened fuel consumption, and wasted time. To address traffic-related problems and the economic, social, and environmental challenges that ensue, a well-equipped, efficient, fast, cost-effective, and high-capacity transportation system is imperative, with a focus on reliability. This study undertakes a comprehensive examination of rail transportation systems and subsequently compares their advantages and limitations. The findings of this investigation reveal that hybrid monorails exhibit lower maintenance requirements and associated costs when compared to other types of monorails, standard trains, and urban light rail systems. Given their favorable attributes in terms of pollution reduction, increased transportation speed, and enhanced quality of service, hybrid monorails emerge as a highly recommended and suitable option.

Keywords: comparing, most efficient, selecting, urban transportation

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Authors: Edi Artono, Budi Tamtomo, Gema Wahyudi Purnama

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The world energy demand increasing extreamly high time by time, including domestic demand. That is impossible to avoid because energy a country demand proportional to surge in the number of residents, economic growth and addition of industrial sector. Domestic Oil and gas conventional reserves depleted naturally while production outcome from reservoir also depleted time to time. In the other hand, new reserve did not discover significantly to replace it all. Many people are investigating to looking for new alternative energy to answer the challenge. There are several option to solve energy fossil needed problem using Unconventional Hydrocarbon. There are four aspects to consider as a management reference in order that Unconventional Hydrocarbon business can work properly, divided to: 1. Legal aspect, 2. Environmental aspect, 3. Technical aspect and 4. Economy aspect. The economic aspect as the key to whether or not a project can be implemented or not in Oil and Gas business scheme, so do Unconventional Hydorcarbon business scheme. The support of regulation are needed to buttress Unconventional Hydorcarbon business grow up and make benefits contribute to Government.

Keywords: alternative energy, unconventional hydrocarbon, regulation support, management strategy

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Authors: R. L. Ujjwal, Abhishek Jain

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In the field of computer vision, most facial variations such as identity, expression, emotions and gender have been extensively studied. Automatic age estimation has been rarely explored. With age progression of a human, the features of the face changes. This paper is providing a new comparable study of different type of algorithm to feature extraction [Hybrid features using HAAR cascade & HOG features] & classification [KNN & SVM] training dataset. By using these algorithms we are trying to find out one of the best classification algorithms. Same thing we have done on the feature selection part, we extract the feature by using HAAR cascade and HOG. This work will be done in context of age group classification model.

Keywords: computer vision, age group, face detection

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Authors: Soukaina Boutaky, Abdelhak Sahibeddine

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A study was carried out among students who have especially a scientific and technical educational background and who had opportunities to benefit from a program entrepreneurship course of 50 hours; at Higher School of Technology Khenifra, Morocco. This article has as a goal to explain the relationship between entrepreneurial education, entrepreneurial passion and entrepreneurial intention. The authors chose Bandura’s theory of social cognition as a theoretical framework. The modeling methods equation is adopted to analyze the hypotheses by SMART PLS for 188 students. The results show a strong positive relationship between entrepreneurial education and entrepreneurial passion. They also reveal that entrepreneurship education affects entrepreneurial intention through the effect of entrepreneurial passion, particularly among women than men. In addition, this study contributes in a theoretical way to the level of the relationship between entrepreneurial education and entrepreneurial passion, and these results provide educators and public decision-makers with advice on the importance of entrepreneurship training based on emotional traits such as passion; which constitutes a key and essential element to encourage young graduates to choose an entrepreneurial career as an alternative option or to develop entrepreneurial passion among the business leaders of tomorrow.

Keywords: entrepreneurship education, entrepreneurial passion, entrepreneurial intention, equation modeling methods

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Authors: Jonas P. Reges, Jessyca A. Bessa, Auzuir R. Alexandria

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The research came up with the need of monitoring them of temperature and relative moisture in past work that enveloped the study of a greenhouse located in the Research and Extension Unit(UEPE). This research brought several unknowns that were resolved from bibliographical research. Based on the studies performed were found some monitoring methods, including the serial communication between the arduino and matlab which showed a great option due to the low cost. The project was conducted in two stages, the first, an algorithm was developed to the Arduino and Matlab, and second, the circuits were assembled and performed the monitoring tests the following variables: moisture, temperature, and distance. During testing it was possible to momentarily observe the change in the levels of monitored variables. The project showed satisfactory results, such as: real-time verification of the change of state variables, the low cost of acquisition of the prototype, possibility of easy change of programming for the execution of monitoring of other variables. Therefore, the project showed the possibility of monitoring through software and hardware that have easy programming and can be used in several areas. However, it is observed also the possibility of improving the project from a remote monitoring via Bluetooth or web server and through the control of monitored variables.

Keywords: automation, monitoring, programming, arduino, matlab

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Authors: He Li

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Around the mid-1980s, Confucianism was reintroduced into China from Taiwan and Hong Kong as a result of China’s policies of reform and openness. Since then, the revival of neo-Confucianism in mainland China has accelerated and become a crucial component of the public intellectual sphere. The term xinrujia or xinruxue, loosely translated as “neo-Confucianism,” is increasingly understood as an intellectual and cultural phenomenon of the last four decades. The Confucian scholarship is in the process of restoration. This paper examines the Chinese intellectual discourse on Confucianism and democracy and places it in comparative and theoretical perspectives. With China’s rise and surge of populism in the West, particularly in the US, the leading political values of Confucianism could increasingly shape both China and the world at large. This state of affairs points to the need for more systematic efforts to assess the discourse on neo-Confucianism and its implications for China’s transformation. A number of scholars in the camp of neo-Confucianism maintain that some elements of Confucianism are not only compatible with democratic values and institutions but actually promote liberal democracy. They refer to it as Confucian democracy. By contrast, others either view Confucianism as a roadblock to democracy or envision that a convergence of democracy with Confucian values could result in a new hybrid system. The paper traces the complex interplay between Confucianism and democracy. It explores ideological differences between neo-Confucianism and liberal democracy and ascertains whether certain features of neo-Confucianism possess an affinity for the authoritarian political system. In addition to printed materials such as books and journal articles, a selection of articles from the website entitled Confucianism in China will be analyzed. The selection of this website is due to the fact that it is the leading website run by Chinese scholars focusing on neo-Confucianism. Another reason for selecting this website is its accessibility and availability. In the past few years, quite a few websites, left or right, were shut down by the authorities, but this website remains open. This paper explores the core components, dynamics, and implications of neo-Confucianism. My paper is divided into three parts. The first one discusses the origins of neo-Confucianism. The second section reviews the intellectual discourse among Chinese scholars on Confucian democracy. The third one explores the implications of the Chinese intellectual discourse on neo-Confucianism. Recently, liberal democracy has entered more conflict with official ideology. This paper, which is based on my extensive interviews in China prior to the pandemic and analysis of the primary sources in Chinese, will lay the foundation for a chapter on neo-Confucianism and democracy in my next book-length manuscript, tentatively entitled Chinese Intellectual Discourse on Democracy.

Keywords: China, confucius, confucianism, neo-confucianism, democracy

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Authors: Claudia Cocozza, Niccolò Frassinelli, Enrico Marchi, Cristiano Foderi, Alessandro Bizzarri, Margherita Paladini, Maria Laura Traversi, Eleftherious Touloupakis, Alessio Giovannelli

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The development of tools to quickly identify the fate of injured trees after stress is highly relevant when biodiversity restoration of damaged sites is based on nature-based solutions. In this context, an approach to assess irreversible physiological damages within trees could help to support planning management decisions of perturbed sites to restore biodiversity, for the safety of the environment and understanding functionality adjustments of the ecosystems. Tree vitality can be estimated by a series of physiological proxies like cambium activity, starch, and soluble sugars amount in C-sinks whilst the accumulation of ethanol within the cambial cells and phloem is considered an alert of cell death. However, their determination requires time-consuming laboratory protocols, which makes the approach unfeasible as a practical option in the field. The project aims to develop biosensors to assess the concentration of soluble sugars and ethanol in stem tissues. Soluble sugars and ethanol concentrations will be used to define injured trees to discriminate compromised and recovering trees in the forest directly. To reach this goal, we select study sites subjected to prescribed fires or recent wildfires as experimental set-ups. Indeed, in Mediterranean countries, forest fire is a recurrent event that must be considered as a central component of regional and global strategies in forest management and biodiversity restoration programs. A biosensor will be developed through a multistep process related to target analytes characterization, bioreceptor selection, and, finally, calibration/testing of the sensor. To validate biosensor signals, soluble sugars and ethanol will be quantified by HPLC and GC using synthetic media (in lab) and phloem sap (in field) whilst cambium vitality will be assessed by anatomical observations. On burnt trees, the stem growth will be monitored by dendrometers and/or estimated by tree ring analyses, whilst the tree response to past fire events will be assessed by isotopic discrimination. Moreover, the fire characterization and the visual assessment procedure will be used to assign burnt trees to a vitality class. At the end of the project, a well-defined procedure combining biosensor signal and visual assessment will be produced and applied to a study case. The project outcomes and the results obtained will be properly packaged to reach, engage and address the needs of the final users and widely shared with relevant stakeholders involved in the optimal use of biosensors and in the management of post-fire areas. This project was funded by National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4, Component C2, Investment 1.1 - Call for tender No. 1409 of 14 September 2022 – ‘Progetti di Ricerca di Rilevante interesse Nazionale – PRIN’ of Italian Ministry of University and Research funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU; Grant N° P2022Z5742, CUP B53D23023780001.

Keywords: phloem, scorched crown, conifers, prescribed burning, biosensors

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Authors: Ika Wulansari, Yati Afiyanti, Indang Trihandini

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Sleeping disorder experienced by patients with breast cancer can affect the physical, mental, health, and well-being. This study examines the effect of progressive muscle relaxation training and sleep hygiene education to change sleep quality scores of the patient with breast cancer. The study design using quasi-experiment with pre-post test within the control group, involving 62 breast cancer patients using consecutive sampling method in Jakarta. Statistical test results with independent t-test showed a significant difference in score of sleep quality between in intervention group and the control group (6,66±3,815; 9,30±3,334, p-value = 0,005). Progressive muscle relaxation exercise and sleep hygiene education proven to be affective to change the patients sleeping quality, so that it can be an alternative therapeutic option to overcome sleeping disorders.

Keywords: sleeping disorders, breast cancer, progressive muscle relaxation, sleep hygiene education

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Authors: Belkadi Adel, Beboucha Wahib, Cherara lalia

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Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of Kumi-kata in elite judokas and characterize the kinematic and temporal parameters of different types of handgrip (HG). Method: fourteen participated in this study male athlete (23.5±2.61 years; 1.81±0.37 0 m; 87.25±22.75 kg), members of the Georgian Judo team. To characterize the dominance and types of kumi-kata used, videos of international competitions from each athlete were analyzed, and to characterize kinematic and temporal parameters and handgrip, and the volunteers pressed a digital dynamometer with each hand for 30 seconds(s) after a visual signal. Results: The values of 0.26±0.69s and 0.31±0.03s for reaction time were obtained, respectively, in the full grip and pinch grip; 19.62±18.83N/cm/s and 6.17±3.48N/cm/s for the rate of force development; 475,21 ± 101,322N and 494,65±112,73 for the FDR; 1,37 ± 0,521s and 1,45 ± 0,824s for the time between the force onset to the TFP; and 41,27±4,54N/cm/s and 45,16 ± 5,64N/cm/s for the fall index, in the dominant hand. There was no significant difference between hands for any variable, except for the dominance of Kumi-kata (p<0.05) used in combat. Conclusion: The dominance of application of the Kumi-kata is a technical option, as it does not depend on the kinetic-temporal parameters of the handgrip.

Keywords: hand grip, judo, athletes, Kumi-Kata

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Authors: Awole Seid, Yosef Zenebe, Hadgu Gerensea, Kebede Haile Misgina

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Background: Clinical competence is one of the ultimate goals of nursing education. Clinical skills are more than successfully performing tasks; it incorporates client assessment, identification of deficits and the ability to critically think to provide solutions. Assessment of clinical competence, particularly identifying gaps that need improvement and determining the educational needs of nursing students have great importance in nursing education. Thus this study aims determining clinical self-efficacy of final year school of nursing students in three universities of Tigray Region. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 224 final year school of nursing students from department of nursing, psychiatric nursing, and midwifery on three universities of Tigray region. Anonymous self-administered questionnaire was administered to generate data collected on June, 2017. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. The result is described using tables and charts as required. Logistic regression was employed to test associations. Result: The mean age of students was 22.94 + 1.44. Generally, 21% of students have been graduated in the department in which they are not interested. The study demonstrated 28.6% had poor and 71.4% had good perceived clinical self-efficacy. Beside this, 43.8% of psychiatric nursing and 32.6% of comprehensive nursing students have poor clinical self-efficacy. Among the four domains, 39.3% and 37.9% have poor clinical self- efficacy with regard to ‘Professional development’ and ‘Management of care’. Place of the institution [AOR=3.480 (1.333 - 9.088), p=0.011], interest during department selection [AOR=2.202 (1.045 - 4.642), p=.038], and theory-practice gap [AOR=0.224 (0.110 - 0.457), p=0.000] were significantly associated with perceived clinical self-efficacy. Conclusion: The magnitude of students with poor clinically self efficacy was high. Place of institution, theory-practice gap, students interest to the discipline were the significant predictors of clinical self-efficacy. Students from youngest universities have good clinical self-efficacy. During department selection, student’s interest should be respected. The universities and other stakeholders should improve the capacity of surrounding affiliate teaching hospitals to set and improve care standards in order to narrow the theory-practice gap. School faculties should provide trainings to hospital staffs and monitor standards of clinical procedures.

Keywords: clinical self-efficacy, nursing students, Tigray, northern Ethiopia

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Authors: Anuja Askhedkar, G. H. Agrawal, Madhu Gudgunti

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Direct Charge Transfer Switched Capacitor (DCT-SC) DAC is the internal DAC used in Delta-Sigma (∆∑) DAC which works on Over-Sampling concept. The Switched Capacitor DAC mainly suffers from mismatch among capacitors. Mismatch among capacitors in DAC, causes non linearity between output and input. Dynamic Element Matching (DEM) technique is used to match the capacitors. According to element selection logic there are many types. In this paper, Data Weighted Averaging (DWA) technique is used for mismatch shaping. In this paper, the 4 bit DCT-SC-DAC with DWA-DEM technique is implemented using WINSPICE simulation software in 180nm CMOS technology. DNL for DAC with DWA is ±0.03 LSB and INL is ± 0.02LSB.

Keywords: ∑-Δ DAC, DCT-SC-DAC, mismatch shaping, DWA, DEM

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Authors: Chuang-Hung Lin, Cheng-Yuan Hsu, Jia-Yan Lin

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It is an indispensible strategy to adopt greenery approach on architectural bases so as to improve ecological habitats, decrease heat-island effect, purify air quality, and relieve surface runoff as well as noise pollution, all of which are done in an attempt to achieve sustainable environment. How we can do with plant design to attain the best visual quality and ideal carbon dioxide fixation depends on whether or not we can appropriately make use of greenery according to the nature of architectural bases. To achieve the goal, it is a need that architects and landscape architects should be provided with sufficient local references. Current greenery studies focus mainly on the heat-island effect of urban with large scale. Most of the architects still rely on people with years of expertise regarding the adoption and disposition of plantation in connection with microclimate scale. Therefore, environmental design, which integrates science and aesthetics, requires fundamental research on landscape environment technology divided from building environment technology. By doing so, we can create mutual benefits between green building and the environment. This issue is extremely important for the greening design of the bases of green buildings in cities and various open spaces. The purpose of this study is to establish plant selection and allocation strategies under different building sunshade levels. Initially, with the shading of sunshine on the greening bases as the starting point, the effects of the shades produced by different building types on the greening strategies were analyzed. Then, by measuring the PAR( photosynthetic active radiation), the relative DLI( daily light integral) was calculated, while the DLI Map was established in order to evaluate the effects of the building shading on the established environmental greening, thereby serving as a reference for plant selection and allocation. The discussion results were to be applied in the evaluation of environment greening of greening buildings and establish the “right plant, right place” design strategy of multi-level ecological greening for application in urban design and landscape design development, as well as the greening criteria to feedback to the eco-city greening buildings.

Keywords: daily light integral, plant design, urban open space

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Authors: Virginia Dickson-Swift, Amanda Kenny, Jane Farmer, Sarah Larkins, Karen Carlisle, Helen Hickson

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In this presentation, we will focus on the methods of Remote Services Futures (RSF), an evidence-based method of community participation that was developed in Scotland. Using oral health as the focus, we will discuss the ways that RSF can be used to achieve sustainable engagement with stakeholders from various parts of the community. We will describe our findings of using RSF methods to engage with rural communities, including the steps involved and what happened when we asked people about the oral health services that they thought were needed in their community. We found that most community members started by thinking that a public dental clinic was required in every community, which is not a sustainable health service delivery option. Through a series of facilitated workshops, communities were able to discuss and prioritise their needs and develop a costed plan for their community which will ensure sustainable service delivery into the future. Our study highlights the complexities of decision making in rural communities. It is important to ensure that when communities participate in health care planning that the outcomes are practical, feasible and sustainable.

Keywords: community participation, sustainable health planning, Remote Services Futures, rural communities

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Authors: Nura Suleiman

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The democratic dispensation in Nigeria witnessed allot of changes since its beginning up to the 2015 election. The issues of zoning formula, rigging, money politics, god fatherism, and political thuggery among the youths became the centre stage from 1999-2014. But 2015 came with new tune that brings about a little shift from the traditional politics mentioned above, the political socialisation and knowledge penetrated into the sense of electorate where people suddenly change and look for the better option. The paper will examine the democratic change in relation to the 2015 General election which brings General MohammaduBuhari on the mantle of leadership of Nigeria. Many reasons were attributed to the sudden change of government in Nigeria, but the major ones are lack of good governance, corruption, insecurity, political parties’ merger to formed APCand change in INEC leadership. Others are weakness of the leadership and undemocratic nature of PDP government at different level in the country. The glamor for change became necessary because People become more informs about the manifestation of good hope and better Nigeria from the major opposition party (APC). During 2015 election the electorate voted the incumbent government out and replaced it with their choice.

Keywords: democracy, election, insecurity, good governance

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Authors: Richard McGregor, Carmen Reaiche, Stephen Boyle

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Cyber threats are a relatively recent phenomenon and offer cyber insurers a dynamic and intelligent peril. As individuals en mass become increasingly digitally dependent, Personal Cyber Insurance (PCI) offers an attractive option to mitigate cyber risk at a personal level. This abstract proposes a literature review that conceptualises a framework for siting Personal Cyber Insurance (PCI) within the context of cyberspace. The lack of empirical research within this domain demonstrates an immediate need to define the scope of PCI to allow cyber insurers to understand personal cyber risk threats and vectors, customer awareness, capabilities, and their associated needs. Additionally, this will allow cyber insurers to conceptualise appropriate frameworks allowing effective management and distribution of PCI products and services within a landscape often in-congruent with risk attributes commonly associated with traditional personal line insurance products. Cyberspace has provided significant improvement to the quality of social connectivity and productivity during past decades and allowed enormous capability uplift of information sharing and communication between people and communities. Conversely, personal digital dependency furnish ample opportunities for adverse cyber events such as data breaches and cyber-attacksthus introducing a continuous and insidious threat of omnipresent cyber risk–particularly since the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic and wide-spread adoption of ‘work-from-home’ practices. Recognition of escalating inter-dependencies, vulnerabilities and inadequate personal cyber behaviours have prompted efforts by businesses and individuals alike to investigate strategies and tactics to mitigate cyber risk – of which cyber insurance is a viable, cost-effective option. It is argued that, ceteris parabus, the nature of cyberspace intrinsically provides characteristic peculiarities that pose significant and bespoke challenges to cyber insurers, often in-congruent with risk attributes commonly associated with traditional personal line insurance products. These challenges include (inter alia) a paucity of historical claim/loss data for underwriting and pricing purposes, interdependencies of cyber architecture promoting high correlation of cyber risk, difficulties in evaluating cyber risk, intangibility of risk assets (such as data, reputation), lack of standardisation across the industry, high and undetermined tail risks, and moral hazard among others. This study proposes a thematic overview of the literature deemed necessary to conceptualise the challenges to issuing personal cyber coverage. There is an evident absence of empirical research appertaining to PCI and the design of operational business models for this business domain, especially qualitative initiatives that (1) attempt to define the scope of the peril, (2) secure an understanding of the needs of both cyber insurer and customer, and (3) to identify elements pivotal to effective management and profitable distribution of PCI - leading to an argument proposed by the author that postulates that the traditional general insurance customer journey and business model are ill-suited for the lineaments of cyberspace. The findings of the review confirm significant gaps in contemporary research within the domain of personal cyber insurance.

Keywords: cyberspace, personal cyber risk, personal cyber insurance, customer journey, business model

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Authors: Parham Bakhtiari

Abstract:

This document follows the development of the prelude genre by analyzing specific pieces from a representative selection of composer from Bach to Shostakovich in every era. The research aims to prove the existence of an evolutionary axis in the genre of prelude's history, which is believed to be fading. In this research, Bach, Chopin, and Debussy's works are demonstrated and explored by creating a definition of the genre on his own terms and having an impact on future composers in the following generations. Taking into account, the educational aspect of the prelude and its connection to the genre of study, a brief conversation about it is also provided with an assessment of shorter versions of the genre, for instance, Chopin's preludes.

Keywords: music, piano, prelude, Bach, Chopin, Debussy

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Authors: Sara Khalifa, Dina Salem

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Cities have become overly automobile-oriented which clearly accommodates driving at the expense of walking in an age of global concerns about emerging health issues (obesity, cancer, heart disease) and environmental disasters (global warming, depletion of resources) which makes sustainable solutions a necessity not an option. One of these sustainable solutions is creating walkable communities. Walking is a distinctive and fundamental human activity that plays an important role in achieving urban sustainability and yields incredible benefits to people and environment with its influence on transportation infrastructure, public health, economic development, and social equity. Considerable research supports the idea that the presence of green, natural settings and quality urban landscapes can enhance walking and other physical activity and travel behaviour. Stepping towards a sustainable future, requires rethinking our communities in terms of walkability enhancement for this purpose, this paper starts with defining walkable communities and their characteristics, benefits and related concepts then discusses the contribution of urban landscape quality in promoting walkability.

Keywords: walkability, walkable community, liveable communities, urban landscape qualities

Procedia PDF Downloads 505