Search results for: optimal stress location
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 8905

Search results for: optimal stress location

8095 HBTOnto: An Ontology Model for Analyzing Human Behavior Trajectories

Authors: Heba M. Wagih, Hoda M. O. Mokhtar

Abstract:

Social Network has recently played a significant role in both scientific and social communities. The growing adoption of social network applications has been a relevant source of information nowadays. Due to its popularity, several research trends are emerged to service the huge volume of users including, Location-Based Social Networks (LBSN), Recommendation Systems, Sentiment Analysis Applications, and many others. LBSNs applications are among the highly demanded applications that do not focus only on analyzing the spatiotemporal positions in a given raw trajectory but also on understanding the semantics behind the dynamics of the moving object. LBSNs are possible means of predicting human mobility based on users social ties as well as their spatial preferences. LBSNs rely on the efficient representation of users’ trajectories. Hence, traditional raw trajectory information is no longer convenient. In our research, we focus on studying human behavior trajectory which is the major pillar in location recommendation systems. In this paper, we propose an ontology design patterns with their underlying description logics to efficiently annotate human behavior trajectories.

Keywords: human behavior trajectory, location-based social network, ontology, social network

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8094 Evaluation of Relationship between Job Stress Dimensions with Occupational Accidents in Industrial Factories in Southwest of Iran

Authors: Ali Ahmadi, Maryam Abbasi, Mohammad Mehdi Parsaei

Abstract:

Background: Stress in the workplace today is one of the most important public health concerns and a serious threat to the health of the workforce worldwide. Occupational stress can cause occupational events and reduce quality of life. As a result, it has a very undesirable impact on the performance of organizations, companies, and their human resources. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between job stress dimensions and occupational accidents in industrial factories in Southwest Iran. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 workers in the summer of 2023 in the Southwest of Iran. To select participants, we used a convenience sampling method. The research tools in this study were the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) stress questionnaire with 35 questions and 7 dimensions and demographic information. A high score on this questionnaire indicates that there is low job stress and pressure. All workers completed the informed consent form. Univariate analysis was performed using chi-square and T-test. Multiple regression analysis was used to estimate the odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for the association of stress-related factors with job accidents in participants. Stata 14.0 software was used for analysis. Results: The mean age of the participants was 39.81(6.36) years. The prevalence of job accidents was 28.0% (95%CI: 21.0, 34.0). Based on the results of the multiple logistic regression with the adjustment of the effect of the confounding variables, one increase in the score of the demand dimension had a protective impact on the risk of job accidents(aOR=0.91,95%CI:0.85-0.95). Additionally, an increase in one of the scores of the managerial support (aOR=0.89, 95% CI: 0.83-0.95) and peer support (aOR=0.76, 95%CI: 0.67-87) dimensions was associated with a lower number of job accidents. Among dimensions, an increase in the score of relationship (aOR=0.89, 95%CI: 0.80-0.98) and change (aOR=0.86, 95%CI: 0.74-0.96) reduced the odds of the accident's occurrence among the workers by 11% and 16%, respectively. However, there was no significant association between role and control dimensions and the job accident (p>0.05). Conclusions: The results show that the prevalence of job accidents was alarmingly high. Our results suggested that an increase in scores of dimensions HSE questioners is significantly associated with a decrease the accident occurrence in the workplace. Therefore, planning to address stressful factors in the workplace seems necessary to prevent occupational accidents.

Keywords: HSE, Iran, job stress occupational accident, safety, occupational health

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8093 Development of Vertically Integrated 2D Lake Victoria Flow Models in COMSOL Multiphysics

Authors: Seema Paul, Jesper Oppelstrup, Roger Thunvik, Vladimir Cvetkovic

Abstract:

Lake Victoria is the second largest fresh water body in the world, located in East Africa with a catchment area of 250,000 km², of which 68,800 km² is the actual lake surface. The hydrodynamic processes of the shallow (40–80 m deep) water system are unique due to its location at the equator, which makes Coriolis effects weak. The paper describes a St.Venant shallow water model of Lake Victoria developed in COMSOL Multiphysics software, a general purpose finite element tool for solving partial differential equations. Depth soundings taken in smaller parts of the lake were combined with recent more extensive data to resolve the discrepancies of the lake shore coordinates. The topography model must have continuous gradients, and Delaunay triangulation with Gaussian smoothing was used to produce the lake depth model. The model shows large-scale flow patterns, passive tracer concentration and water level variations in response to river and tracer inflow, rain and evaporation, and wind stress. Actual data of precipitation, evaporation, in- and outflows were applied in a fifty-year simulation model. It should be noted that the water balance is dominated by rain and evaporation and model simulations are validated by Matlab and COMSOL. The model conserves water volume, the celerity gradients are very small, and the volume flow is very slow and irrotational except at river mouths. Numerical experiments show that the single outflow can be modelled by a simple linear control law responding only to mean water level, except for a few instances. Experiments with tracer input in rivers show very slow dispersion of the tracer, a result of the slow mean velocities, in turn, caused by the near-balance of rain with evaporation. The numerical and hydrodynamical model can evaluate the effects of wind stress which is exerted by the wind on the lake surface that will impact on lake water level. Also, model can evaluate the effects of the expected climate change, as manifest in changes to rainfall over the catchment area of Lake Victoria in the future.

Keywords: bathymetry, lake flow and steady state analysis, water level validation and concentration, wind stress

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8092 A Metaheuristic for the Layout and Scheduling Problem in a Job Shop Environment

Authors: Hernández Eva Selene, Reyna Mary Carmen, Rivera Héctor, Barragán Irving

Abstract:

We propose an approach that jointly addresses the layout of a facility and the scheduling of a sequence of jobs. In real production, these two problems are interrelated. However, they are treated separately in the literature. Our approach is an extension of the job shop problem with transportation delay, where the location of the machines is selected among possible sites. The model minimizes the makespan, using the short processing times rule with two algorithms; the first one considers all the permutations for the location of machines, and the second only a heuristic to select some specific permutations that reduces computational time. Some instances are proved and compared with literature.

Keywords: layout problem, job shop scheduling problem, concurrent scheduling and layout problem, metaheuristic

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8091 Improvement of Ride Comfort of Turning Electric Vehicle Using Optimal Speed Control

Authors: Yingyi Zhou, Tohru Kawabe

Abstract:

With the spread of EVs (electric Vehicles), the ride comfort has been gaining a lot of attention. The influence of the lateral acceleration is important for the improvement of ride comfort of EVs as well as the longitudinal acceleration, especially upon turning of the vehicle. Therefore, this paper proposes a practical optimal speed control method to greatly improve the ride comfort in the vehicle turning situation. For consturcting this method, effective criteria that can appropriately evaluate deterioration of ride comfort is derived. The method can reduce the influence of both the longitudinal and the lateral speed changes for providing a confortable ride. From several simulation results, we can see the fact that the method can prevent aggravation of the ride comfort by suppressing the influence of longitudinal speed change in the turning situation. Hence, the effectiveness of the method is recognized.

Keywords: electric vehicle, speed control, ride comfort, optimal control theory, driving support system

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8090 Unknown Groundwater Pollution Source Characterization in Contaminated Mine Sites Using Optimal Monitoring Network Design

Authors: H. K. Esfahani, B. Datta

Abstract:

Groundwater is one of the most important natural resources in many parts of the world; however it is widely polluted due to human activities. Currently, effective and reliable groundwater management and remediation strategies are obtained using characterization of groundwater pollution sources, where the measured data in monitoring locations are utilized to estimate the unknown pollutant source location and magnitude. However, accurately identifying characteristics of contaminant sources is a challenging task due to uncertainties in terms of predicting source flux injection, hydro-geological and geo-chemical parameters, and the concentration field measurement. Reactive transport of chemical species in contaminated groundwater systems, especially with multiple species, is a complex and highly non-linear geochemical process. Although sufficient concentration measurement data is essential to accurately identify sources characteristics, available data are often sparse and limited in quantity. Therefore, this inverse problem-solving method for characterizing unknown groundwater pollution sources is often considered ill-posed, complex and non- unique. Different methods have been utilized to identify pollution sources; however, the linked simulation-optimization approach is one effective method to obtain acceptable results under uncertainties in complex real life scenarios. With this approach, the numerical flow and contaminant transport simulation models are externally linked to an optimization algorithm, with the objective of minimizing the difference between measured concentration and estimated pollutant concentration at observation locations. Concentration measurement data are very important to accurately estimate pollution source properties; therefore, optimal design of the monitoring network is essential to gather adequate measured data at desired times and locations. Due to budget and physical restrictions, an efficient and effective approach for groundwater pollutant source characterization is to design an optimal monitoring network, especially when only inadequate and arbitrary concentration measurement data are initially available. In this approach, preliminary concentration observation data are utilized for preliminary source location, magnitude and duration of source activity identification, and these results are utilized for monitoring network design. Further, feedback information from the monitoring network is used as inputs for sequential monitoring network design, to improve the identification of unknown source characteristics. To design an effective monitoring network of observation wells, optimization and interpolation techniques are used. A simulation model should be utilized to accurately describe the aquifer properties in terms of hydro-geochemical parameters and boundary conditions. However, the simulation of the transport processes becomes complex when the pollutants are chemically reactive. Three dimensional transient flow and reactive contaminant transport process is considered. The proposed methodology uses HYDROGEOCHEM 5.0 (HGCH) as the simulation model for flow and transport processes with chemically multiple reactive species. Adaptive Simulated Annealing (ASA) is used as optimization algorithm in linked simulation-optimization methodology to identify the unknown source characteristics. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to develop a methodology to optimally design an effective monitoring network for pollution source characterization with reactive species in polluted aquifers. The performance of the developed methodology will be evaluated for an illustrative polluted aquifer sites, for example an abandoned mine site in Queensland, Australia.

Keywords: monitoring network design, source characterization, chemical reactive transport process, contaminated mine site

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8089 The Role of Physical Activities in Improving the Psychological State, Reducing Stress and Anxiety Resulting from the Corona (Covid-19) Pandemic

Authors: Saidia Houari

Abstract:

The current coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) is a special and unusual reality. It can affect people physically, but also psychologically. Indeed, in such a context, many people will experience reactions of stress, anxiety and depression, and Sports is known to be a great in improving the effectiveness of the nervous system and mental health. Professor Ango Frubuze“many studies proved that sports play an important role in fighting psychological tension and some other psychological problems, such as depression and sleep difficulties, but on condition of practicing them properly,choosing the kind that generates comfort and happiness for man “ .The sports university professor in the German city of Cologne added that the effort exerted during the exercise works on restoring balance to the stress hormones like cortisol.The case report provides an insight into the COVID-19 current situation and represents a picture of the current state of mental health and an overview of novel coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreaks in some countries of the world. Some procedures taken to combat the coronavirus. We proposed the practice of physical activities during the quarantine period, and we showed their importance and their positive effects.

Keywords: COVID-19, psycholiqical impacts, stress, physical activities

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8088 Co-Existence of Central Serous Retinopathy and Diabetic Retinopathy: A Diagnostic Dilemma

Authors: Avantika Verma

Abstract:

Diabetic retinopathy (DR) and Central serous retinopathy (CSR) are 2 distinct entities, with difference in age of presentation, eitiopathogenesis and clinical features, but when occurring together, can be a diagnostic dilemma and requires careful evaluation. Case study of 3 patients with long standing diabetes (>15yrs) and features of Central serous retinopathy was done at Bangalore West Lions Superspeciality Eye Hospital, Bangalore, India in 2013. Even though diabetic retinopathy and CSR have different pathologies, they can coexist. The reason for coexistence could be the following: A patient with CSR as a young adult could develop DR in later years. Stress could be the contributing factor in older patient with diabetes.Stress could be a common factor for both, as it is one of the important factors in the pathogenesis of Maturity Onset Diabetes Miletus (MODY). In any situation, a careful evaluation is necessary to differentiate the cause of fundus picture, as treatment differs for the two diseases.

Keywords: central serous retinopathy, diabetic retinopathy, existence, stress

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8087 The Impact of Alkaline Water Supplemented with Sodium Ascorbate on Glucose and Cortisol Levels in the Blood Serum During Acute Hyperthermic Exposure of White Laboratory Rats

Authors: Valdrina Ajeti, Icko Gjorgoski

Abstract:

Stress can be a reason for some physiological and biological disorders in the body. The antioxidative defense system is necessary for the maintenance of redox homeostasis in organisms. Because of its antioxidant effect, alkaline water (AW) is the focus of scientific interest. Adding AW and co-treatment with sodium ascorbate (SA) is expected for the organism to act preventively to hyperthermic stress. To investigate the effect of AW and SA on glucose and cortisol levels during acute hyperthermic stress, white female Wistar laboratory rats, divided into three groups of 10 individuals, were exposed to heat for 80 min, for 21 days. Acute hyperthermic exposure at 41˚C was a cause for oxidative stress. The first group is the control group, the second group is treated with AW, and the third group with AW and SA. Plasma glucose levels were determined by colorimetric method and cortisol was measured using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. The comparison of the means was made using the Tukey test. Differences were considered significant at a level of p < 0.05. Our results show that levels of glucose and cortisol have been increased in the group treated with AW on the 21st day after treatment (p < 0.0001), but not on the 7th and 14th day as compared to the control group. Also, co-treatment of animals with AW and SA significantly increased the levels of glucose and cortisol on the 21st day after treatment showing a synergistic effect. The individual action of AW, as well as synergism with SA, caused a high protective effect on oxidative damage.

Keywords: alkaline water, sodium ascorbate, hyperthermic stress, glucose, cortisol

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8086 Study on Energy Performance Comparison of Information Centric Network Based on Difference of Network Architecture

Authors: Takumi Shindo, Koji Okamura

Abstract:

The first generation of the wide area network was circuit centric network. How the optimal circuit can be signed was the most important issue to get the best performance. This architecture had succeeded for line based telephone system. The second generation was host centric network and Internet based on this architecture has very succeeded world widely. And Internet became as new social infrastructure. Currently the architecture of the network is based on the location of the information. This future network is called Information centric network (ICN). The information-centric network (ICN) has being researched by many projects and different architectures for implementation of ICN have been proposed. The goal of this study is to compare performances of those ICN architectures. In this paper, the authors propose general ICN model which can represent two typical ICN architectures and compare communication performances using request routing. Finally, simulation results are shown. Also, we assume that this network architecture should be adapt to energy on-demand routing.

Keywords: ICN, information centric network, CCN, energy

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8085 Anisotropic Behavior of Sand Stabilized with Colloidal Silica

Authors: Eleni Maria Pavlopoulou, Vasiliki N. Georgiannou, Filippos C. Chortis

Abstract:

The response of M31 sand stabilized with colloidal silica (CS) aqueous gel is investigated in the laboratory. CS is introduced in the water regime, forming a hydrosol. The low viscosity hydrosol thickens in a controllable manner to form a stable, non-toxic gel; the gel fills the pore space, retains the pore water, and supports the grain structure. The role of colloidal silica on subsequent sand behavior is examined with the aid of direct shear, triaxial, and normal compression tests. Under the examined loading modes, while the strength of the treated sand is enhanced, its stiffness may reduce, and its compressibility increase. However, in most geotechnical problems, the loading conditions are complex, involving changes in both stress magnitude and direction. Rotation of principal stresses (σ1, σ2, σ3) in varying amounts expressed as angle α, (from α=0° to 90°) in concurrence with increasing shear stress loading is commonly encountered in soil structures such as foundations, embankments, underwater slopes. To assess the influence of anisotropy on the response of sands before and after their stabilization, hollow cylinder tests were performed. The behavior of stabilized sand is compared with the characteristic sand behavior, i.e., a reduction in peak stress ratio associated with a softer stress-strain response with the increasing angle a. The influence of the magnitude of the intermediate principal stress (σ2) on the mechanical response of treated and untreated sand is also examined.

Keywords: anisotropy, colloidal silica, laboratory tests, sands, soil stabilization

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8084 Preventable Stress and Trauma, and Menstrual Health Management: Experiences of Adolescent Girls from India

Authors: Daisy Dutta, Chhanda Chakraborti

Abstract:

Background and significance of the study: Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) is poor in many Lower and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC) such as India. Poor and inadequate menstrual hygiene has an adverse effect on the health and social life of adolescent girls and women. There are many well-known barriers to adequate Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM); e.g., lack of awareness, lack of WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) facilities, lack of affordable menstrual absorbents, etc. But, there is a unique barrier which is very much avoidable; i.e., lack of proper guidance and counseling about menstruation. Menstruation is associated with various social and cultural restrictions and taboos and being a taboo topic; often there is no discussion in the society on this topic. Thus, many adolescent girls encounter the menarche with a lot of unnecessary and avoidable trauma, stress and awkwardness. This trauma, stress, and anxiety are even more prevalent among adolescent girls residing in rural areas. This study argues that this unnecessary stress and anxiety of the adolescent girls can be alleviated by reinforcing social support and adequate information and guidance about MHM and eliminating the futile socio-cultural restrictions during menstruation. Methodology: A qualitative study was conducted in a North-eastern State of India where 45 adolescent girls were interviewed both from rural and urban areas. The adolescent girls were asked about their experiences of stress and anxiety on their first menstruation, their preparedness for menarche, their source of information and guidance, their hygiene-practices, and the various restrictions they follow. Findings: Maximum number of girls did not receive any information about menstruation before menarche. Most of them reported that they were terrified about their first menstruation as they were unprepared. Among those who were aware before menarche, reported that they did not receive proper guidance to manage their menstruation in a hygienic manner. Hygiene-related practices are also influenced by their knowledge about MHM. In maximum cases, girls are bound to follow certain cultural and religious restrictions even if they don’t want to follow which created additional stress in managing their menstruation with dignity. Conclusion: Lack of proper guidance and counseling about menstruation and MHM along with an array of socio-cultural restrictions can enhance a negative attitude in adolescent girls towards menstruation due to which they have to go through an extra and unnecessary burden of stress and trauma. This stress and trauma is preventable by improving the provisions of proper guidance and counseling about menstruation in a supportive environment.

Keywords: adolescent girls, menstrual hygiene management, socio-cultural restrictions, stress, trauma

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8083 Nonlinear Defects and Discombinations in Anisotropic Solids

Authors: Ashkan Golgoon, Arash Yavari

Abstract:

In this paper, we present some analytical solutions for the stress fields of nonlinear anisotropic solids with line and point defects distributions. In particular, we determine the induced stress fields of a parallel cylindrically-symmetric distribution of screw dislocations in infinite orthotropic and monoclinic media as well as a cylindrically-symmetric distribution of parallel wedge disclinations in an infinite orthotropic medium. For a given distribution of edge dislocations, the material manifold is constructed using Cartan's moving frames and the stress field is obtained assuming that the medium is orthotropic. Also, we consider a spherically-symmetric distribution of point defects in a transversely isotropic spherical ball. We show that for an arbitrary incompressible transversely isotropic ball with the radial material preferred direction, a uniform point defect distribution results in a uniform hydrostatic stress field inside the spherical region the distribution is supported in. Finally, we find the stresses induced by a discombination in an orthotropic medium.

Keywords: defects, disclinations, dislocations, monoclinic solids, nonlinear elasticity, orthotropic solids, transversely isotropic solids

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8082 Impact Location From Instrumented Mouthguard Kinematic Data In Rugby

Authors: Jazim Sohail, Filipe Teixeira-Dias

Abstract:

Mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) within non-helmeted contact sports is a growing concern due to the serious risk of potential injury. Extensive research is being conducted looking into head kinematics in non-helmeted contact sports utilizing instrumented mouthguards that allow researchers to record accelerations and velocities of the head during and after an impact. This does not, however, allow the location of the impact on the head, and its magnitude and orientation, to be determined. This research proposes and validates two methods to quantify impact locations from instrumented mouthguard kinematic data, one using rigid body dynamics, the other utilizing machine learning. The rigid body dynamics technique focuses on establishing and matching moments from Euler’s and torque equations in order to find the impact location on the head. The methodology is validated with impact data collected from a lab test with the dummy head fitted with an instrumented mouthguard. Additionally, a Hybrid III Dummy head finite element model was utilized to create synthetic kinematic data sets for impacts from varying locations to validate the impact location algorithm. The algorithm calculates accurate impact locations; however, it will require preprocessing of live data, which is currently being done by cross-referencing data timestamps to video footage. The machine learning technique focuses on eliminating the preprocessing aspect by establishing trends within time-series signals from instrumented mouthguards to determine the impact location on the head. An unsupervised learning technique is used to cluster together impacts within similar regions from an entire time-series signal. The kinematic signals established from mouthguards are converted to the frequency domain before using a clustering algorithm to cluster together similar signals within a time series that may span the length of a game. Impacts are clustered within predetermined location bins. The same Hybrid III Dummy finite element model is used to create impacts that closely replicate on-field impacts in order to create synthetic time-series datasets consisting of impacts in varying locations. These time-series data sets are used to validate the machine learning technique. The rigid body dynamics technique provides a good method to establish accurate impact location of impact signals that have already been labeled as true impacts and filtered out of the entire time series. However, the machine learning technique provides a method that can be implemented with long time series signal data but will provide impact location within predetermined regions on the head. Additionally, the machine learning technique can be used to eliminate false impacts captured by sensors saving additional time for data scientists using instrumented mouthguard kinematic data as validating true impacts with video footage would not be required.

Keywords: head impacts, impact location, instrumented mouthguard, machine learning, mTBI

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8081 Hydro-Mechanical Behavior of a Tuff and Calcareous Sand Mixture for Use in Pavement in Arid Region

Authors: I. Goual, M. S. Goual, M. K. Gueddouda, Taïbi Saïd, Abou-Bekr Nabil, A. Ferhat

Abstract:

The aim of the paper is to study the hydro-mechanical behavior of a tuff and calcareous sand mixture. A first experimental phase was carried out in order to find the optimal mixture. This showed that the material composed of 80% tuff and 20% calcareous sand provides the maximum mechanical strength. The second experimental phase concerns the study of the drying-wetting behavior of the optimal mixture was carried out on slurry samples and compacted samples at the MPO. Experimental results let to deduce the parameters necessary for the prediction of the hydro-mechanical behavior of pavement formulated from tuff and calcareous sand mixtures, related to moisture. This optimal mixture satisfies the regulation rules and hence constitutes a good local eco-material, abundantly available, for the conception of pavements.

Keywords: tuff, sandy calcareous, road engineering, hydro mechanical behaviour, suction

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8080 Seismotectonic Deformations along Strike-Slip Fault Systems of the Maghreb Region, Western Mediterranean

Authors: Abdelkader Soumaya, Noureddine Ben Ayed, Mojtaba Rajabi, Mustapha Meghraoui, Damien Delvaux, Ali Kadri, Moritz Ziegler, Said Maouche, Ahmed Braham, Aymen Arfaoui

Abstract:

The northern Maghreb region (Western Mediterranean) is a key area to study the seismotectonic deformations across the Africa-Eurasia convergent plate boundary. On the basis of young geologic fault slip data and stress inversion of focal mechanisms, we defined a first-order transpression-compatible stress field and a second-order spatial variation of tectonic regime across the Maghreb region, with a relatively stable SHmax orientation from east to west. Therefore, the present-day active contraction of the western Africa-Eurasia plate boundary is accommodated by (1) E-W strike-slip faulting with a reverse component along the Eastern Tell and Saharan-Tunisian Atlas, (2) a predominantly NE trending thrust faulting with strike-slip component in the Western Tell part, and (3) a conjugate strike-slip faulting regime with a normal component in the Alboran/Rif domain. This spatial variation of the active stress field and the tectonic regime is relatively in agreement with the inferred stress information from neotectonic features. According to newly suggested structural models, we highlight the role of main geometrically complex shear zones in the present-day stress pattern of the Maghreb region. Then, different geometries of these major preexisting strike-slip faults and related fractures (V-shaped conjugate fractures, horsetail splays faults, and Riedel fractures) impose their component on the second- and third-order stress regimes. Smoothed present-day and Neotectonic stress maps (mean SHmax orientation) reveal that plate boundary forces acting on the Africa-Eurasia collisional plates control the long wavelength of the stress field pattern in the Maghreb. The seismotectonic deformations and the upper crustal stress field in the study area are governed by the interplay of the oblique plate convergence (i.e., Africa-Eurasia), lithosphere-mantle interaction, and preexisting tectonic weakness zones.

Keywords: Maghreb, strike-slip fault, seismotectonic, focal mechanism, inversion

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8079 Breast Cancer as a Response to Distress in Women with or without a History of Precancerous Breast Disease

Authors: Viacheslav Sushko, Viktor Sushko

Abstract:

Pre-cancerous breast diseases are pathological changes that precede the appearance of adenocarcinoma. The most common benign breast disease is mastopathy. We examined the life and disease history of 114 women aged 58-69 who were diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the breast at different stages of development. They filled out the Reeder Scale to determine the level of stress. The results of the study revealed that 62 of them had mastopathy at the age of 30-45 years old. These women refused surgical treatment for mastopathy. Five to six years before their diagnosis of adenocarcinoma of the mammary gland, 84 women had experienced severe stress (death of a beloved close relative, torture accompanied by rape, prolonged stay in extreme conditions (under bombardment and bombardment). In the assessment of data from completed Reeder scales, 114 women had a high level of mental stress, with a score from 1-1.72. The 84 women who suffered from severe stress showed overeating or a significant decrease in food intake, insomnia, apathy, increased irritability and restlessness, loss of interest in sexual relationships, forgetfulness, difficulty in performing routine work, prolonged uncontrollable headaches, unexplained fatigue, heart pain, reduced capacity for work. In conclusion, it is important to provide psychotherapy for breast cancer patients as the diagnosis, and the different stages of treatment are very stressful. It is also advisable to see a psychiatrist at an early stage and prevent distress and treat precancerous breast disease.

Keywords: breast cancer, distress, mastopathy, severe stress

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8078 Nitrogen Fixation of Soybean Approaches for Enhancing under Saline and Water Stress Conditions

Authors: Ayman El Sabagh, AbdElhamid Omar, Dekoum Assaha, Khair Mohammad Youldash, Akihiro Ueda, Celaleddin Barutçular, Hirofumi Saneoka

Abstract:

Drought and salinity stress are a worldwide problem, constraining global crop production seriously. Hence, soybean is susceptible to yield loss from water deficit and salinity stress. Therefore, different approaches have been suggested to solve these issues. Osmoprotectants play an important role in protection the plants from various environmental stresses. Moreover, organic fertilization has several beneficial effects on agricultural fields. Presently, efforts to maximize nitrogen fixation in soybean are critical because of widespread increase in soil degradation in Egypt. Therefore, a greenhouse research was conducted at plant nutritional physiology laboratory, Hiroshima University, Japan for assessing the impact of exogenous osmoregulators and compost application in alleviating the adverse effects of salinity and water stress on soybean. Treatments was included (i) water stress treatments (different soil moisture levels consisting of (100%, 75%, and 50% of field water holding capacity), (ii) salinity concentrations (0 and 15 mM) were applied in fully developed trifoliolate leaf node (V1), (iii) compost treatments (0 and 24 t ha-1) and (iv) the exogenous, proline and glycine betaine concentrations (0 mM and 25 mM) for each, was applied at two growth stages (V1 and R1). The seeds of soybean cultivar Giza 111, was sown into basin from wood (length10 meter, width 50cm, height 50cm and depth 350cm) containing a soil mixture of granite regosol soil and perlite (2:1 v/v). The nitrogen-fixing activity was estimated by using gas chromatography and all measurements were made in three replicates. The results showed that water deficit and salinity stress reduced biological nitrogen fixation and specific nodule activity than normal irrigation conditions. Exogenous osmoprotectants were improved biological nitrogen fixation and specific nodule activity as well as, applying of compost led to improving many of biological nitrogen fixation and specific nodule activity with superiority than stress conditions. The combined application compost fertilizer and exogenous osmoprotectants were more effective in alleviating the adverse effect of stress to improve biological nitrogen fixation and specific nodule activity of Soybean.

Keywords: a biotic stress, biological nitrogen fixation, compost, osmoprotectants, specific nodule activity, soybean

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8077 Viscoelastic Characterization of Bovine Trabecular Bone Samples

Authors: I. Ramirez D. Edgar, J. Angeles H. José, Ruiz C. Osvaldo, H. Jacobo A. Victor, Ortiz P. Armando

Abstract:

Knowledge of bone mechanical properties is important for bone substitutes design and fabrication, and more efficient prostheses development. The aim of this study is to characterize the viscoelastic behavior of bone specimens, through stress relaxation and fatigue tests performed to trabecular bone samples from bovine femoral heads. Relaxation tests consisted on preloading the samples at five different magnitudes and evaluate them for 1020 seconds, adjusting the results to a KWW mathematical model. Fatigue tests consisted of 700 load cycles and analyze their status at the end of the tests. As a conclusion we have that between relaxation stress and each preload there is linear relation and for samples with initial Young´s modulus greater than 1.5 GPa showed no effects due fatigue test loading cycles.

Keywords: bone viscoelasticity, fatigue test, stress relaxation test, trabecular bone properties

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8076 Household Wealth and Portfolio Choice When Tail Events Are Salient

Authors: Carlson Murray, Ali Lazrak

Abstract:

Robust experimental evidence of systematic violations of expected utility (EU) establishes that individuals facing risk overweight utility from low probability gains and losses when making choices. These findings motivated development of models of preferences with probability weighting functions, such as rank dependent utility (RDU). We solve for the optimal investing strategy of an RDU investor in a dynamic binomial setting from which we derive implications for investing behavior. We show that relative to EU investors with constant relative risk aversion, commonly measured probability weighting functions produce optimal RDU terminal wealth with significant downside protection and upside exposure. We additionally find that in contrast to EU investors, RDU investors optimally choose a portfolio that contains fair bets that provide payo↵s that can be interpreted as lottery outcomes or exposure to idiosyncratic returns. In a calibrated version of the model, we calculate that RDU investors would be willing to pay 5% of their initial wealth for the freedom to trade away from an optimal EU wealth allocation. The dynamic trading strategy that supports the optimal wealth allocation implies portfolio weights that are independent of initial wealth but requires higher risky share after good stock return histories. Optimal trading also implies the possibility of non-participation when historical returns are poor. Our model fills a gap in the literature by providing new quantitative and qualitative predictions that can be tested experimentally or using data on household wealth and portfolio choice.

Keywords: behavioral finance, probability weighting, portfolio choice

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8075 Use of Linear Programming for Optimal Production in a Production Line in Saudi Food Co.

Authors: Qasim M. Kriri

Abstract:

Few Saudi Arabia production companies face financial profit issues until this moment. This work presents a linear integer programming model that solves a production problem of a Saudi Food Company in Saudi Arabia. An optimal solution to the above-mentioned problem is a Linear Programming solution. In this regard, the main purpose of this project is to maximize profit. Linear Programming Technique has been used to derive the maximum profit from production of natural juice at Saudi Food Co. The operations of production of the company were formulated and optimal results are found out by using Lindo Software that employed Sensitivity Analysis and Parametric linear programming in order develop Linear Programming. In addition, the parameter values are increased, then the values of the objective function will be increased.

Keywords: parameter linear programming, objective function, sensitivity analysis, optimize profit

Procedia PDF Downloads 207
8074 A Review: Role of Chromium in Broiler

Authors: Naveed Zahra, Zahid Kamran, Shakeel Ahmad

Abstract:

Heat stress is one of the most important environmental stressors challenging poultry production worldwide. The detrimental effect of heat stress results in reduction in the productive performance of poultry with high incidences of mortality. Researchers have made efforts to prevent such damage to poultry production through dietary manipulation. Supplementation with Chromium (Cr) might have some positive effects on some aspect of blood parameters and broilers performance. Chromium (Cr) the element whose trivalent Cr (III) organic state is present in trace amounts in animal feed and water is found to be a key element in evading heat stress and thus cutting down the heavy expenditure on air conditioning in broiler sheds. Chromium, along with other essential minerals is lost due to increased excretion during heat stress and thus its inclusion in broiler diet is kind of mandatory in areas of hot climate. Chromium picolinate in broiler diet has shown a hike in growth rate including muscle gain with body fat reduction under environmental stress. Fat reduction is probably linked to the ability of chromium to increase the sensitivity of the insulin receptors on tissues and thus the uptake of sugar from blood increases which decreases the amount of glucose to be converted to amino acids and stored in adipose tissue as triglycerides. Organic chromium has also shown to increase lymphocyte proliferation rate and antioxidant levels. So, the immune competency, muscle gain and fat reduction along with evasion of heat stress are good enough signs that indicate the fruitful inclusion of dietary chromium for broiler. This promising element may bring the much needed break in the local poultry industry. The task is now to set the exact dose of the element in the diet that would be useful enough and still not toxic to broiler. In conclusion there is a growing body of evidence which suggest that chromium may be an essential trace element for livestock and poultry. The nutritional requirement for chromium may vary with different species and physiological state within a species.

Keywords: broiler, chromium, heat stress, performance

Procedia PDF Downloads 294
8073 Optimal Placement of Phasor Measurement Units Using Gravitational Search Method

Authors: Satyendra Pratap Singh, S. P. Singh

Abstract:

This paper presents a methodology using Gravitational Search Algorithm for optimal placement of Phasor Measurement Units (PMUs) in order to achieve complete observability of the power system. The objective of proposed algorithm is to minimize the total number of PMUs at the power system buses, which in turn minimize installation cost of the PMUs. In this algorithm, the searcher agents are collection of masses which interact with each other using Newton’s laws of gravity and motion. This new Gravitational Search Algorithm based method has been applied to the IEEE 14-bus, IEEE 30-bus and IEEE 118-bus test systems. Case studies reveal optimal number of PMUs with better observability by proposed method.

Keywords: gravitational search algorithm (GSA), law of motion, law of gravity, observability, phasor measurement unit

Procedia PDF Downloads 511
8072 Protective Effect of Celosia Argentea Leaf Extract on Cadmium Induced Toxicity and Oxidative Stress in Rats

Authors: Sulyman Abdulhakeem Olarewaju, S. O. Malomo, M. T. Yakubu, J. O. Akolade

Abstract:

The ameliorative effect of Celosia argentea var. cristata leaf extract against cadmium (Cd) induced oxidative stress and toxicity in selected tissues of rats was investigated. Toxicity coupled with oxidative stress was induced in rats by oral administration of Cd (8 mg/kg b. wt). Preliminary quantitative phytochemical and in vitro antioxidant analyses showed that the methanolic extract of C. argentea leaves was constituted by polyphenols (5.72%), saponins (3.20%), tannins (0.65%) and cadenolides (0.006%). IC50 of 9800, 7406, and 45.04 μg/ml were recorded for inhibition of linoleic acid oxidation, 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and hydrogen peroxide radicals respectively. Simultaneous administration of C. argentea leaf extract with Cd significantly attenuated Cd-induced elevation of serum enzyme markers such as aspartate and alanine transaminase, alkaline and acid phosphatase as well as γ-glutaryltransferase in a dose-dependent fashion, while their reduced level in the liver were significantly increased. Higher levels of enzymatic antioxidants; superoxide dismutase and catalase activities were observed in the liver, brain, kidney and testes of the Cd-induced rats treated with C. argentea extract, while lipid peroxidation expressed in malondialdehyde concentrations were lower when compared to values in rats administered Cd only. Other Cd-induced toxicity and stress markers in the serum viz. reduced uric acid and albumin levels as well as elevated total and unconjugated bilirubin were attenuated by the extract and their values compared favorably with those animals co-administered cadmium with ascorbic acid. Data from the study showed that oral administration of extract from the leaf C. argentea may ameliorate Cd-induced oxidative stress and toxicity in rats.

Keywords: toxicity, cadmium, celosia, antioxidants, oxidative stress

Procedia PDF Downloads 351
8071 Implementation of Iterative Algorithm for Earthquake Location

Authors: Hussain K. Chaiel

Abstract:

The development in the field of the digital signal processing (DSP) and the microelectronics technology reduces the complexity of the iterative algorithms that need large number of arithmetic operations. Virtex-Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) are programmable silicon foundations which offer an important solution for addressing the needs of high performance DSP designer. In this work, Virtex-7 FPGA technology is used to implement an iterative algorithm to estimate the earthquake location. Simulation results show that an implementation based on block RAMB36E1 and DSP48E1 slices of Virtex-7 type reduces the number of cycles of the clock frequency. This enables the algorithm to be used for earthquake prediction.

Keywords: DSP, earthquake, FPGA, iterative algorithm

Procedia PDF Downloads 394
8070 The Estimation Method of Stress Distribution for Beam Structures Using the Terrestrial Laser Scanning

Authors: Sang Wook Park, Jun Su Park, Byung Kwan Oh, Yousok Kim, Hyo Seon Park

Abstract:

This study suggests the estimation method of stress distribution for the beam structures based on TLS (Terrestrial Laser Scanning). The main components of method are the creation of the lattices of raw data from TLS to satisfy the suitable condition and application of CSSI (Cubic Smoothing Spline Interpolation) for estimating stress distribution. Estimation of stress distribution for the structural member or the whole structure is one of the important factors for safety evaluation of the structure. Existing sensors which include ESG (Electric strain gauge) and LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) can be categorized as contact type sensor which should be installed on the structural members and also there are various limitations such as the need of separate space where the network cables are installed and the difficulty of access for sensor installation in real buildings. To overcome these problems inherent in the contact type sensors, TLS system of LiDAR (light detection and ranging), which can measure the displacement of a target in a long range without the influence of surrounding environment and also get the whole shape of the structure, has been applied to the field of structural health monitoring. The important characteristic of TLS measuring is a formation of point clouds which has many points including the local coordinate. Point clouds is not linear distribution but dispersed shape. Thus, to analyze point clouds, the interpolation is needed vitally. Through formation of averaged lattices and CSSI for the raw data, the method which can estimate the displacement of simple beam was developed. Also, the developed method can be extended to calculate the strain and finally applicable to estimate a stress distribution of a structural member. To verify the validity of the method, the loading test on a simple beam was conducted and TLS measured it. Through a comparison of the estimated stress and reference stress, the validity of the method is confirmed.

Keywords: structural healthcare monitoring, terrestrial laser scanning, estimation of stress distribution, coordinate transformation, cubic smoothing spline interpolation

Procedia PDF Downloads 435
8069 Vulnerability Assessment of Vertically Irregular Structures during Earthquake

Authors: Pranab Kumar Das

Abstract:

Vulnerability assessment of buildings with irregularity in the vertical direction has been carried out in this study. The constructions of vertically irregular buildings are increasing in the context of fast urbanization in the developing countries including India. During two reconnaissance based survey performed after Nepal earthquake 2015 and Imphal (India) earthquake 2016, it has been observed that so many structures are damaged due to the vertically irregular configuration. These irregular buildings are necessary to perform safely during seismic excitation. Therefore, it is very urgent demand to point out the actual vulnerability of the irregular structure. So that remedial measures can be taken for protecting those structures during natural hazard as like earthquake. This assessment will be very helpful for India and as well as for the other developing countries. A sufficient number of research has been contributed to the vulnerability of plan asymmetric buildings. In the field of vertically irregular buildings, the effort has not been forwarded much to find out their vulnerability during an earthquake. Irregularity in vertical direction may be caused due to irregular distribution of mass, stiffness and geometrically irregular configuration. Detailed analysis of such structures, particularly non-linear/ push over analysis for performance based design seems to be challenging one. The present paper considered a number of models of irregular structures. Building models made of both reinforced concrete and brick masonry are considered for the sake of generality. The analyses are performed with both help of finite element method and computational method.The study, as a whole, may help to arrive at a reasonably good estimate, insight for fundamental and other natural periods of such vertically irregular structures. The ductility demand, storey drift, and seismic response study help to identify the location of critical stress concentration. Summarily, this paper is a humble step for understanding the vulnerability and framing up the guidelines for vertically irregular structures.

Keywords: ductility, stress concentration, vertically irregular structure, vulnerability

Procedia PDF Downloads 232
8068 Application of Simulation of Discrete Events in Resource Management of Massive Concreting

Authors: Mohammad Amin Hamedirad, Seyed Javad Vaziri Kang Olyaei

Abstract:

Project planning and control are one of the most critical issues in the management of construction projects. Traditional methods of project planning and control, such as the critical path method or Gantt chart, are not widely used for planning projects with discrete and repetitive activities, and one of the problems of project managers is planning the implementation process and optimal allocation of its resources. Massive concreting projects is also a project with discrete and repetitive activities. This study uses the concept of simulating discrete events to manage resources, which includes finding the optimal number of resources considering various limitations such as limitations of machinery, equipment, human resources and even technical, time and implementation limitations using analysis of resource consumption rate, project completion time and critical points analysis of the implementation process. For this purpose, the concept of discrete-event simulation has been used to model different stages of implementation. After reviewing the various scenarios, the optimal number of allocations for each resource is finally determined to reach the maximum utilization rate and also to reduce the project completion time or reduce its cost according to the existing constraints. The results showed that with the optimal allocation of resources, the project completion time could be reduced by 90%, and the resulting costs can be reduced by up to 49%. Thus, allocating the optimal number of project resources using this method will reduce its time and cost.

Keywords: simulation, massive concreting, discrete event simulation, resource management

Procedia PDF Downloads 150
8067 Comparison of Different Methods of Evaluating Nozzle Junction Stresses under External Loads

Authors: Vinod Kumar, Arun Kumar, Surjit Angra

Abstract:

This paper addresses the junction stress analysis of orthogonally intersecting thin walled cylindrical shell and thin walled cylindrical nozzle subjected to external loading on nozzle. Junction stresses have been calculated theoretically by welding research council (WRC) bulletins 107 and 297 for different nozzle loads. WRC bulletins 107 and 297 have been used by design engineers for calculating nozzle-vessel junction stresses since their publication. They give simple empirical relations and easy in application. Also 3D FEA in which material is elastic has been done in ANSYS software with 8 node solid element model and results of FEA have been compared with WRC results. Stress intensities obtained by WRC 297 are generally slightly higher than obtained by WRC 107. Membrane stresses obtained by FEA are much higher than WRC and membrane plus bending stresses obtained by FEA are lower than WRC.

Keywords: FEA, junction stress, solid element, WRC 107, WRC 297

Procedia PDF Downloads 585
8066 Adaptive Responses of Carum copticum to in vitro Salt Stress

Authors: R. Razavizadeh, F. Adabavazeh, M. Rezaee Chermahini

Abstract:

Salinity is one of the most widespread agricultural problems in arid and semi-arid areas that limits the plant growth and crop productivity. In this study, the salt stress effects on protein, reducing sugar, proline contents and antioxidant enzymes activities of Carum copticum L. under in vitro conditions were studied. Seeds of C. copticum were cultured in Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing 0, 25, 50, 100 and 150 mM NaCl and calli were cultured in MS medium containing 1 μM 2, 4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, 4 μM benzyl amino purine and different levels of NaCl (0, 25, 50, 100 and 150 mM). After NaCl treatment for 28 days, the proline and reducing sugar contents of shoots, roots and calli increased significantly in relation to the severity of the salt stress. The highest amount of proline and carbohydrate were observed at 150 and 100 mM NaCl, respectively. The reducing sugar accumulation in shoots was the highest as compared to roots, whereas, proline contents did not show any significant difference in roots and shoots under salt stress. The results showed significant reduction of protein contents in seedlings and calli. Based on these results, proteins extracted from the shoots, roots and calli of C. copticum treated with 150 mM NaCl showed the lowest contents. The positive relationships were observed between activity of antioxidant enzymes and the increase in stress levels. Catalase, ascorbate peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity increased significantly under salt concentrations in comparison to the control. These results suggest that the accumulation of proline and sugars, and activation of antioxidant enzymes play adaptive roles in the adaptation of seedlings and callus of C. copticum to saline conditions.

Keywords: antioxidant enzymes, Carum copticum, organic solutes, salt stress

Procedia PDF Downloads 285