Search results for: young girls
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 2609

Search results for: young girls

1769 The Traditional Ceramics Value in the Middle East

Authors: Abdelmessih Malak Sadek Labib

Abstract:

Ceramic materials are known for their stability in harsh environments and excellent electrical, mechanical, and thermal properties. They have been widely used in various applications despite the emergence of new materials such as plastics and composites. However, ceramics are often brittle, which can lead to catastrophic failure. The fragility of ceramics and the mechanisms behind their failure have been a topic of extensive research, particularly in load-bearing applications like veneers. Porcelain, a type of traditional pottery, is commonly used in such applications. Traditional pottery consists of clay, silica, and feldspar, and the presence of quartz in the ceramic body can lead to microcracks and stress concentrations. The mullite hypothesis suggests that the strength of porcelain can be improved by increasing the interlocking of mullite needles in the ceramic body. However, there is a lack of reports on Young's moduli in the literature, leading to erroneous conclusions about the mechanical behavior of porcelain. This project aims to investigate the role of quartz and mullite on the mechanical strength of various porcelains while considering factors such as particle size, flexural strength, and fractographic forces. Research Aim: The aim of this research project is to assess the role of quartz and mullite in enhancing the mechanical strength of different porcelains. The project will also explore the effect of reducing particle size on the properties of porcelain, as well as investigate flexural strength and fractographic techniques. Methodology: The methodology for this project involves using scientific expressions and a mix of modern English to ensure the understanding of all attendees. It will include the measurement of Young's modulus and the evaluation of the mechanical behavior of porcelains through various experimental techniques. Findings: The findings of this study will provide a realistic assessment of the role of quartz and mullite in strengthening and reducing the fragility of porcelain. The research will also contribute to a better understanding of the mechanical behavior of ceramics, specifically in load-bearing applications. Theoretical Importance: The theoretical importance of this research lies in its contribution to the understanding of the factors influencing the mechanical strength and fragility of ceramics, particularly porcelain. By investigating the interplay between quartz, mullite, and other variables, this study will enhance our knowledge of the properties and behavior of traditional ceramics. Data Collection and Analysis Procedures: Data for this research will be collected through experiments involving the measurement of Young's modulus and other mechanical properties of porcelains. The effects of quartz, mullite, particle size, flexural strength, and fractographic forces will be examined and analyzed using appropriate statistical techniques and fractographic analysis. Questions Addressed: This research project aims to address the following questions: (1) How does the presence of quartz and mullite affect the mechanical strength of porcelain? (2) What is the impact of reducing particle size on the properties of porcelain? (3) How do flexural strength and fractographic forces influence the behavior of porcelains? Conclusion: In conclusion, this research project aims to enhance the understanding of the role of quartz and mullite in strengthening and reducing the fragility of porcelain. By investigating the mechanical properties of porcelains and considering factors such as particle size, flexural strength, and fractographic forces, this study will contribute to the knowledge of traditional ceramics and their potential applications. The findings will have practical implications for the use of ceramics in various fields.

Keywords: stability, harsh environments, electrical, techniques, mechanical disadvantages, materials

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1768 Suicidal Ideation and Associated Factors among Students Aged 13-15 Years in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States, 2007-2014

Authors: Karl Peltzer, Supa Pengpid

Abstract:

Introduction: The aim of this study was to assess suicidal ideation and associated factors in school-going adolescents in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Member States. Methods: The analysis included 30284 school children aged 13-15 years from seven ASEAN that participated in the cross-sectional Global School-based Student Health Survey (GSHS) between 2007 and 2013. Results: The overall prevalence of suicidal ideation across seven ASEAN countries (excluding Brunei) was 12.3%, significantly higher in girls (15.1%) than boys (9.3%). Among eight ASEAN countries with the highest prevalence of suicidal ideation was in the Philippines (17.0%) and Vietnam (16.9%) and the lowest in Myanmar (1.1%) and Indonesia (4.2%). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, female gender, older age (14 or 15 years), living in a low income or lower middle income country, having no friends, loneliness, bullying victimization, having been in a physical fight in the past 12 months, lack of parental or guardian support, tobacco use and having a history of ever got drunk were associated with suicidal ideatiion. Conclusion: Different rates of suicidal ideation were observed in ASEAN member states. Several risk factors for suicidal ideation were identified which can help guide preventive efforts.

Keywords: adolesents, ASEAN, correlates, suicidal behaviour

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1767 Experimental Study of Sand-Silt Mixtures with Torsional and Flexural Resonant Column Tests

Authors: Meghdad Payan, Kostas Senetakis, Arman Khoshghalb, Nasser Khalili

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Dynamic properties of soils, especially at the range of very small strains, are of particular interest in geotechnical engineering practice for characterization of the behavior of geo-structures subjected to a variety of stress states. This study reports on the small-strain dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures with particular emphasis on the effect of non-plastic fines content on the small strain shear modulus (Gmax), Young’s Modulus (Emax), material damping (Ds,min) and Poisson’s Ratio (v). Several clean sands with a wide range of grain size characteristics and particle shape are mixed with variable percentages of a silica non-plastic silt as fines content. Prepared specimens of sand-silt mixtures at different initial void ratios are subjected to sequential torsional and flexural resonant column tests with elastic dynamic properties measured along an isotropic stress path up to 800 kPa. It is shown that while at low percentages of fines content, there is a significant difference between the dynamic properties of the various samples due to the different characteristics of the sand portion of the mixtures, this variance diminishes as the fines content increases and the soil behavior becomes mainly silt-dominant, rendering no significant influence of sand properties on the elastic dynamic parameters. Indeed, beyond a specific portion of fines content, around 20% to 30% typically denoted as threshold fines content, silt is controlling the behavior of the mixture. Using the experimental results, new expressions for the prediction of small-strain dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures are developed accounting for the percentage of silt and the characteristics of the sand portion. These expressions are general in nature and are capable of evaluating the elastic dynamic properties of sand-silt mixtures with any types of parent sand in the whole range of silt percentage. The inefficiency of skeleton void ratio concept in the estimation of small-strain stiffness of sand-silt mixtures is also illustrated.

Keywords: damping ratio, Poisson’s ratio, resonant column, sand-silt mixture, shear modulus, Young’s modulus

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1766 Enhancing Students’ Achievement, Interest and Retention in Chemistry through an Integrated Teaching/Learning Approach

Authors: K. V. F. Fatokun, P. A. Eniayeju

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This study concerns the effects of concept mapping-guided discovery integrated teaching approach on the learning style and achievement of chemistry students. The sample comprised 162 senior secondary school (SS 2) students drawn from two science schools in Nasarawa State which have equivalent mean scores of 9.68 and 9.49 in their pre-test. Five instruments were developed and validated while the sixth was purely adopted by the investigator for the study, Four null hypotheses were tested at α = 0.05 level of significance. Chi square analysis showed that there is a significant shift in students’ learning style from accommodating and diverging to converging and assimilating when exposed to concept mapping- guided discovery approach. Also t-test and ANOVA that those in experimental group achieve and retain content learnt better. Results of the Scheffe’s test for multiple comparisons showed that boys in the experimental group performed better than girls. It is therefore concluded that the concept mapping-guided discovery integrated approach should be used in secondary schools to successfully teach electrochemistry. It is strongly recommended that chemistry teachers should be encouraged to adopt this method for teaching difficult concepts.

Keywords: integrated teaching approach, concept mapping-guided discovery, achievement, retention, learning styles and interest

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1765 The Role of Parental Stress and Emotion Regulation in Responding to Children’s Expression of Negative Emotion

Authors: Lizel Bertie, Kim Johnston

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Parental emotion regulation plays a central role in the socialisation of emotion, especially when teaching young children to cope with negative emotions. Despite evidence which shows non-supportive parental responses to children’s expression of negative emotions has implications for the social and emotional development of the child, few studies have investigated risk factors which impact parental emotion socialisation processes. The current study aimed to explore the extent to which parental stress contributes to both difficulties in parental emotion regulation and non-supportive parental responses to children’s expression of negative emotions. In addition, the study examined whether parental use of expressive suppression as an emotion regulation strategy facilitates the influence of parental stress on non-supportive responses by testing the relations in a mediation model. A sample of 140 Australian adults, who identified as parents with children aged 5 to 10 years, completed an online questionnaire. The measures explored recent symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress, the use of expressive suppression as an emotion regulation strategy, and hypothetical parental responses to scenarios related to children’s expression of negative emotions. A mediated regression indicated that parents who reported higher levels of stress also reported higher levels of expressive suppression as an emotion regulation strategy and increased use of non-supportive responses in relation to young children’s expression of negative emotions. These findings suggest that parents who experience heightened symptoms of stress are more likely to both suppress their emotions in parent-child interaction and engage in non-supportive responses. Furthermore, higher use of expressive suppression strongly predicted the use of non-supportive responses, despite the presence of parental stress. Contrary to expectation, no indirect effect of stress on non-supportive responses was observed via expressive suppression. The findings from the study suggest that parental stress may become a more salient manifestation of psychological distress in a sub-clinical population of parents while contributing to impaired parental responses. As such, the study offers support for targeting overarching factors such as difficulties in parental emotion regulation and stress management, not only as an intervention for parental psychological distress, but also the detection and prevention of maladaptive parenting practices.

Keywords: emotion regulation, emotion socialisation, expressive suppression, non-supportive responses, parental stress

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1764 Extremism among College and High School Students in Moscow: Diagnostics Features

Authors: Puzanova Zhanna Vasilyevna, Larina Tatiana Igorevna, Tertyshnikova Anastasia Gennadyevna

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In this day and age, extremism in various forms of its manifestation is a real threat to the world community, the national security of a state and its territorial integrity, as well as to the constitutional rights and freedoms of citizens. Extremism, as it is known, in general terms described as a commitment to extreme views and actions, radically denying the existing social norms and rules. Supporters of extremism in the ideological and political struggles often adopt methods and means of psychological warfare, appeal not to reason and logical arguments, but to emotions and instincts of the people, to prejudices, biases, and a variety of mythological designs. They are dissatisfied with the established order and aim at increasing this dissatisfaction among the masses. Youth extremism holds a specific place among the existing forms and types of extremism. In this context in 2015, we conducted a survey among Moscow college and high school students. The aim of this study was to determine how great or small is the difference in understanding and attitudes towards extremism manifestations, inclination and readiness to take part in extremist activities and what causes this predisposition, if it exists. We performed multivariate analysis and found the Russian college and high school students' opinion about the extremism and terrorism situation in our country and also their cognition on these topics. Among other things, we showed, that the level of aggressiveness of young people were not above the average for the whole population. The survey was conducted using the questionnaire method. The sample included college and high school students in Moscow (642 and 382, respectively) by method of random selection. The questionnaire was developed by specialists of RUDN University Sociological Laboratory and included both original questions (projective questions, the technique of incomplete sentences), and the standard test Dayhoff S. to determine the level of internal aggressiveness. It is also used as an experiment, the technique of study option using of FACS and SPAFF to determine the psychotypes and determination of non-verbal manifestations of emotions. The study confirmed the hypothesis that in respondents’ opinion, the level of aggression is higher today than a few years ago. Differences were found in the understanding of and respect for such social phenomena as extremism, terrorism, and their danger and appeal for the two age groups of young people. Theory of psychotypes, SPAFF (specific affect cording system) and FACS (facial action cording system) are considered as additional techniques for the diagnosis of a tendency to extreme views. Thus, it is established that diagnostics of acceptance of extreme views among young people is possible thanks to simultaneous use of knowledge from the different fields of socio-humanistic sciences. The results of the research can be used in a comparative context with other countries and as a starting point for further research in the field, taking into account its extreme relevance.

Keywords: extremism, youth extremism, diagnostics of extremist manifestations, forecast of behavior, sociological polls, theory of psychotypes, FACS, SPAFF

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1763 Sand Dollars: Sex Tourism and Coloniality of Power in the Dominican Republic

Authors: Fernando Valerio-Holguin

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Over the recent three decades, the tourism industry in the Dominican Republic has had an enormous impact on the country’s culture. The arrival of tourists from Germany, France, Italy, Russia and the United States has rewritten Dominican cultural identity and created a cultural palimpsest in the areas of language, gastronomy, habits, fashion, values, and gender relations. As a consequence of tourism, a prostitution network has flourished across the country. In the film Sand Dollars (2015) directed by Laura Amelia Guzmán and Israel Cárdenas, Noelí (Janet Mojica), a young mulatto woman, altogether with her boyfriend (Ricardo Ariel Toribio), strips tourists of dollars and euro through prostitution. One of her frequent clients is Anne, a mature French woman (Geraldine Chaplin). While Noeli’s goal is to get all the euros she can, Anne falls in love with her and tries to bring her to France. Both the content of the film and its cinematographic languages are analyzed in light of theory of coloniality. This concept shows how European and American tourism, through the power of money, perpetuates colonial discourse, i. e., how race and ethnocentrism permeate cultural activities in their former colonies. Moreover, in the content analysis of the film the concepts of exchange value and fetishism are crucial to understanding how the colonial body becomes sexual commodity. They facilitate grasping the film’s inequity in terms of power in the relationship between the two women: the white old European woman and the young, poor, third-world mulatta. Even though the film attempts to break away from compulsory heterosexuality, the power relation between the two women persists due to the presence of the axis of race, ethnicity, age and gender. Both the novel Les dollars des sables written by Jean-Noel Pancrazi, and the film Sand Dollars offer an interesting insight into sex tourism and coloniality and shed additional light on the power relations between the former colonizers and its colonies.

Keywords: coloniality, ethnocentrism, exchange value, Europe, fetishism, money, power, prostitution, sex tourism, United States of America

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1762 Wide Dissemination of CTX-M-Type Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamases in Korean Swine Farms

Authors: Young Ah Kim, Hyunsoo Kim, Eun-Jeong Yoon, Young Hee Seo, Kyungwon Lee

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Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli from food animals are considered as a reservoir for transmission of ESBL genes to human. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence and molecular epidemiology of ESBL-producing E. coli colonization in pigs, farm workers, and farm environments to elucidate the transmission of multidrug-resistant clones from animal to human. Nineteen pig farms were enrolled across the country in Korea from August to December 2017. ESBL-producing E. coli isolates were detected in 190 pigs, 38 farm workers, and 112 sites of farm environments using ChromID ESBL (bioMerieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France), directly (stool or perirectal swab) or after enrichment (sewage). Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were done with disk diffusion methods and blaTEM, blaSHV, and blaCTX-M were detected with PCR and sequencing. The genomes of the four CTX-M-55-producing E. coli isolates from various sources in one farm were entirely sequenced to assess the relatedness of the strains. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was performed with PacBio RS II system (Pacific Biosciences, Menlo Park, CA, USA). ESBL genotypes were 85 CTX-M-1 group (one CTX-M-3, 23 CTX-M-15, one CTX-M-28, 59 CTX-M-55, one CTX-M-69) and 60 CTX-M-9 group (41 CTX-M-14, one CTX-M-17, one CTX-M-27, 13 CTX-M-65, 4 CTX-M-102) in total 145 isolates. The rectal colonization rates were 53.2% (101/190) in pigs and 39.5% (15/38) in farm workers. In WGS, sequence types (STs) were determined as ST69 (E. coli PJFH115 isolate from a human carrier), ST457 (two E. coli isolates PJFE101 recovered from a fence and PJFA1104 from a pig) and ST5899 (E. coli PJFA173 isolate from the other pig). The four plasmids encoding CTX-M-55 (88,456 to 149, 674 base pair), whether it belonged to IncFIB or IncFIC-IncFIB type, shared IncF backbone furnishing the conjugal elements, suggesting of genes originated from same ancestor. In conclusion, the prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli in swine farms was surprisingly high, and many of them shared common ESBL genotypes of clinical isolates such as CTX-M-14, 15, and 55 in Korea. It could spread by horizontal transfer between isolates from different reservoirs (human-animal-environment).

Keywords: Escherichia coli, extended-spectrum β-lactamase, prevalence, whole genome sequencing

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1761 The Effect of Physical Activity and Responses of Leptin

Authors: Sh. Khoshemehry, M. J. Pourvaghar, M. E. Bahram

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In modern life, daily physical activity is relatively reduced, which is why the incidence of some diseases associated with overweight and obesity, such as hypertension, diabetes and other chronic illnesses, even in young people are observed. Obesity and overweight is one of the most common metabolic disorders in industrialized countries and in developing countries. One consequence of pathological obesity is cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. In the past, it was believed that adipose tissue was ineffective and served only for storing triglycerides. In this review article, it was tried to refer to the esteemed scientific sources about physical activity and responses of leptin.

Keywords: disease, leptin, obesity, physical activity

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1760 Young Adult Gay Men's Healthcare Access in the Era of the Affordable Care Act

Authors: Marybec Griffin

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Purpose: The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to get a better understanding of healthcare usage and satisfaction among young adult gay men (YAGM), including the facility used as the usual source of healthcare, preference for coordinated healthcare, and if their primary care provider (PCP) adequately addressed the health needs of gay men. Methods: Interviews were conducted among n=800 YAGM in New York City (NYC). Participants were surveyed about their sociodemographic characteristics and healthcare usage and satisfaction access using multivariable logistic regression models. The surveys were conducted between November 2015 and June 2016. Results: The mean age of the sample was 24.22 years old (SD=4.26). The racial and ethnic background of the participants is as follows: 35.8% (n=286) Black Non-Hispanic, 31.9% (n=225) Hispanic/Latino, 20.5% (n=164) White Non-Hispanic, 4.4% (n=35) Asian/Pacific Islander, and 6.9% (n=55) reporting some other racial or ethnic background. 31.1% (n=249) of the sample had an income below $14,999. 86.7% (n=694) report having either public or private health insurance. For usual source of healthcare, 44.6% (n=357) of the sample reported a private doctor’s office, 16.3% (n=130) reported a community health center, and 7.4% (n=59) reported an urgent care facility, and 7.6% (n=61) reported not having a usual source of healthcare. 56.4% (n=451) of the sample indicated a preference for coordinated healthcare. 54% (n=334) of the sample were very satisfied with their healthcare. Findings from multivariable logistical regression models indicate that participants with higher incomes (AOR=0.54, 95% CI 0.36-0.81, p < 0.01) and participants with a PCP (AOR=0.12, 95% CI 0.07-0.20, p < 0.001) were less likely to use a walk-in facility as their usual source of healthcare. Results from the second multivariable logistic regression model indicated that participants who experienced discrimination in a healthcare setting were less likely to prefer coordinated healthcare (AOR=0.63, 95% CI 0.42-0.96, p < 0.05). In the final multivariable logistic model, results indicated that participants who had disclosed their sexual orientation to their PCP (AOR=2.57, 95% CI 1.25-5.21, p < 0.01) and were comfortable discussing their sexual activity with their PCP (AOR=8.04, 95% CI 4.76-13.58, p < 0.001) were more likely to agree that their PCP adequately addressed the healthcare needs of gay men. Conclusion: Understanding healthcare usage and satisfaction among YAGM is necessary as the healthcare landscape changes, especially given the relatively recent addition of urgent care facilities. The type of healthcare facility used as a usual source of care influences the ability to seek comprehensive and coordinated healthcare services. While coordinated primary and sexual healthcare may be ideal, individual preference for this coordination among YAGM is desired but may be limited due to experiences of discrimination in primary care settings.

Keywords: healthcare policy, gay men, healthcare access, Affordable Care Act

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1759 Using Indigenous Games to Demystify Probability Theorem in Ghanaian Classrooms: Mathematical Analysis of Ampe

Authors: Peter Akayuure, Michael Johnson Nabie

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Similar to many colonized nations in the world, one indelible mark left by colonial masters after Ghana’s independence in 1957 has been the fact that many contexts used to teach statistics and probability concepts are often alien and do not resonate with the social domain of our indigenous Ghanaian child. This has seriously limited the understanding, discoveries, and applications of mathematics for national developments. With the recent curriculum demands of making the Ghanaian child mathematically literate, this qualitative study involved video recordings and mathematical analysis of play sessions of an indigenous girl game called Ampe with the aim to demystify the concepts in probability theorem, which is applied in mathematics related fields of study. The mathematical analysis shows that the game of Ampe, which is widely played by school girls in Ghana, is suitable for learning concepts of the probability theorems. It was also revealed that as a girl game, the use of Ampe provides good lessons to educators, textbook writers, and teachers to rethink about the selection of mathematics tasks and learning contexts that are sensitive to gender. As we undertake to transform teacher education and student learning, the use of indigenous games should be critically revisited.

Keywords: Ampe, mathematical analysis, probability theorem, Ghanaian girl game

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1758 Advanced CoMP Scheme for LTE-based V2X System

Authors: Su-Hyun Jung, Young-Su Ryu, Yong-Jun Kim, Hyoung-Kyu Song

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In this paper, a highly efficient coordinated multiple-point (CoMP) scheme for vehicular communication is proposed. The proposed scheme controls the transmit power and applies proper transmission scheme for the various situations. The proposed CoMP scheme provides comparable performance to the conventional dynamic cell selection (DCS) scheme. Moreover, this scheme provides improved power efficiency compared with the conventional joint transmission (JT) scheme. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme can achieve more enhanced performance with the high power efficiency and improve the cell capacity.

Keywords: CoMP, LTE-A, V2I, V2V, V2X.

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1757 Factors Associated with Condom Breakage among Female Sex Workers: Evidence from Behavioral Tracking Survey in Thane District of Maharashtra, India

Authors: Sukhvinder Kaur, Jayanta Bora, Ashok Agarwal, Sangeeta Kaul

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Background: HIV and STI transmission can be prevented if condoms are used properly, but condom tear may lead to infections even if are used consistently. Studies reveal high rates of condom breakage among Female Sex Workers (FSWs). USAID PHFI-PIPPSE is piloting a prevention model among high risk groups at Thane district of Maharashtra, India by implementing prevention and advocacy efforts for such risk behaviors. The current analysis highlights the correlates of condom breakage among FSWs from Thane. Method: A Behavioral Tracking Survey was conducted in 2014-15 among 503 FSWs through probability-based two stage random sampling from 3,660 FSWs at 100 hotspots, to understand levels of high risk behaviors, awareness and exposure to prevention programs. Bi-variate and multivariate-logistic regression methods used to assess the association of condom breakage while having sex with age, STI occurrence, anal sex with clients and alcohol consumption. Only self-reported STIs (Genital sore/ulcer, yellowish/ greenish discharge from vagina with/without foul smell, lower abdominal pain without diarrhea/dysentery or menses) were considered. Major Findings: Results depicted FSWs who reported condom breakage while having sex with any type of partner (paying clients, non-paying partners and other than main partner husband/boyfriend) had significantly high number of STIs (42.3% vs 16.9 %, P, 0.000) and had started sexual relationship in <16 years of age (31.0% vs 16.4 %, P, 0.000). Multivariate analysis after controlling the age at sex, knowledge about HIV and literacy, highlighted significantly higher odds of condom breakage among FSWs who have reported currently suffering with STI [AOR 2.91, 95% CI 1.75 - 4.83; P, 0.000]; who had anal sex with their paying client [AOR 2.59, 95% CI 1.59 - 4.19; P, 0.000]; and who consumed alcohol in the last 12 months [AOR 1.89, 95% CI 1.01 - 3.53; P, 0.047]. Conclusion: Risky behavior like anal sex with paying clients and impact of alcohol while having sex are main factors for condom breakage among young sex workers; and condom breakage leads to STIs. Hence, program interventions should address measures for prevention of condom breakage for HIV/STI prevention.

Keywords: female sex workers, condom breakage, anal sex, young sex workers

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1756 Women from the Margins: An Exploration of the African Women Marginalization in the South African Context from Postcolonial Feminist Perspective

Authors: Goodness Thandi Ntuli

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As one of the sub-Saharan African countries, South Africa has a majority of women living at the receiving end of all ferocious atrocities, afflictions and social ills such as utter poverty, unemployment, morbidity, sexual exploitation and abuse, gender-based and domestic violence. The response to these social ills that permeate the South African context like wildfire requires postcolonial feminism as a lens which needs to directly address this particular context. In the empirical study that was conducted among the Zulu people about Zulu young women in the South African context, it was found that a postcolonial young woman has a lot of social challenges that militate against her. In her struggle to liberate herself, there are layers of oppression that she has to deal with before attaining emancipation of any kind. These layers of oppression emanate from postcolonial effects on cultural norms that come with patriarchal issues, racial issues as the woman of colour and socio-economic issues as the poverty-stricken marginalised woman. Such layers also render marginalized women voiceless on many occasions, and hence the kind of feminism that needs to be applied in this context has to give them a voice, worth and human dignity that they deserve. From the postcolonial feminist perspective, this paper examines the condition of women from the margins and seeks the ways in which the layers of oppression could be disengaged. In the process of the severed layers of oppression, these women can be uplifted to becoming the women of worth, restored to life-giving dignity from the inferiority complex of racial discrimination and liberation from all forms of patriarchy and its upshots that keep them bound by gender inequality. This requires, in particular, postcolonial feminism that would find profound ways of reaching into the deep-seated socialization and internalization of every kind of prejudice against women. It is the kind of feminism that questions the status core even among those who consider themselves feminists. With the ruination of all postcolonial layers of oppression, women in the margins could find real emancipation that they have always longed for through feminism that will take into consideration their context. This calls for the rethinking of feminism in different contexts because the conditions of the oppressed woman of the South cannot be the same as the conditions of the woman who considers herself oppressed in the North.

Keywords: exploration, feminism, postcolonial, margins, South African, women

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1755 Allergy to Animal Hair in the Algerian Population

Authors: Meriche Hacene

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Introduction: Allergy to animal hair is hypersensitivity to animal appendages to look for in front of any rhinoconjunctivitis or asthma. An anamnesis associated with the prick-tests makes it possible to guide the diagnosis, which will be supplemented in case of doubt by specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) assays. The objective of our study is to study the characteristics of patients sensitized to animal hair. Patients and methods: Retrospective study conducted on 105 adult patients and 69 children over a period of 3 years, including patients who received a specific IgE assay (respiratory panel and pediatric panel) by immunodot method. Result: 105 adult patients, including 74 women and 31 men, with an average age of 41 years, of which 8.5% had sensitization to animal hair (5 men and 4 women), namely: cat (5%), horse (4.7%) and dog (3.8%). For the 69 children, a slight female predominance was noted (56%), with an average age of 7.5 years, of which (13%) are sensitized to animal hair (5 girls and 4 boys): cat (10%), while awareness of dog and horse hair was less frequent with an identical prevalence of (4.34%). The dominant symptoms are rhinorrhea and sneezing for both categories, respectively (40% and 26.6% in adults and 23% for both symptoms in children). Cross-sensitization was observed in the 2 series: 1 single cat-dog and cat-horse case and 2 dog-horse cases in adults. In children, 100% of patients with sensitization to dog hair had cross-sensitization to cat hair, only 1 case was observed for cat-horse cross-reactivity. Conclusion This work shows that allergy to animal hair is common. Studies on more representative samples are recommended.

Keywords: specific IgE, allergy, cat, fed1

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1754 The Evaluation of Children Who Had Chest Pain on Pediatric Emergency Department

Authors: Sabiha Sahin

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Background: Chest pain is a common complaint in children visiting the emergency department (ED). True organic problems like cardiac disease are rare. We assess the etiology of chest pain among children visiting a Pediatric ED in Eskisehir Osmangazi University. Method: We prospectively evaluated of children with chest pain who visited our Pediatric ED between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2014. Any case of trauma-associated chest pain was excluded from this study. Results: A total of 100 patients (54 boys, 46 girls), mean age: 11,86±3,51 (age range, 6–17 years) were enrolled into this study; 100 patients had chest radiograms (100 %). Pneumonia was identified in 15 patients. All patients had electrocardiogram study (100 %) and 16 of them showed abnormalities. Additional diagnostic tests were performed on all patients including complete blood count analysis, cardiac markers (CK-MB, Troponin I) and lactate (blood gas analysis). Echocardiograms were performed on all patients and 16 of them showed abnormality (five of majör abnormality). Panendoscopy was done in 20 patients, and gastroesophageal reflux was found in 12 (%12). Overall, idiopathic chest pain and myalgia was the most common diagnosis (32 %). Other associated disorders were asthma (12 %), panic attack (13 %). Conclusion: The most common cause of chest pain prompting a child to visit the ED is idiopathic chest pain. Careful physical examination can reveal important clues and save many unnecessary examinations.

Keywords: child, chest pain, pediatric emergency department, evaluation

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1753 Allostatic Load as a Predictor of Adolescents’ Executive Function: A Longitudinal Network Analysis

Authors: Sipu Guo, Silin Huang

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Background: Most studies investigate the link between executive function and allostatic load (AL) among adults aged 18 years and older. Studies differed regarding the specific biological indicators studied and executive functions accounted for. Specific executive functions may be differentially related to allostatic load. We investigated the comorbidities of executive functions and allostatic load via network analysis. Methods: We included 603 adolescents (49.84% girls; Mean age = 12.38, SD age = 1.79) from junior high school in rural China. Eight biological markers at T1 and four executive function tasks at T2 were used to evaluate networks. Network analysis was used to determine the network structure, core symptoms, and bridge symptoms in the AL-executive function network among rural adolescents. Results: The executive functions were related to 6 AL biological markers, not to cortisol and epinephrine. The most influential symptoms were inhibition control, cognitive flexibility, processing speed, and systolic blood pressure (SBP). SBP, dehydroepiandrosterone, and processing speed were the bridges through which AL was related to executive functions. dehydroepiandrosterone strongly predicted processing speed. The SBP was the biggest influencer in the entire network. Conclusions: We found evidence for differential relations between markers and executive functions. SBP was a driver in the network; dehydroepiandrosterone showed strong relations with executive function.

Keywords: allostatic load, executive function, network analysis, rural adolescent

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1752 Connecting Lives Inside and Outside the Classroom: Why and How to Implement Technology in the Language Learning Classroom

Authors: Geoffrey Sinha

Abstract:

This paper is primarily addressed to teachers who stand on the threshold of bringing technology and new media into their classrooms. Technology and new media, such as smart phones and tablets have changed the face of communication in general and of language teaching more specifically. New media has widespread appeal among young people in particular, so it is in the teacher’s best interests to bring new media into their lessons. It is the author’s firm belief that technology will never replace the teacher, but it is without question that the twenty-first century teacher must employ technology and new media in some form, or run the risk of failure. The level that one chooses to incorporate new media within their class is entirely in their hands.

Keywords: new media, social media, technology, education, language learning

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1751 Histamine Skin Reactivity Increased with Body Mass Index in Korean Children

Authors: Jeong Hong Kim, Ju Wan Kang

Abstract:

Objective: Histamine skin prick testing is most commonly used to diagnose immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated allergic diseases, and histamine reactivity is used as a standardized positive control in the interpretation of a skin prick test. However, reactivity to histamine differs among individuals for reasons that are poorly understood. The present study aimed to evaluate the potential association between body mass index (BMI) and histamine skin reactivity in children. Methods: A total of 451 children (246 boys, 205 girls) aged 7–8 years were enrolled in this study. The skin prick test was performed with 26 aeroallergens commonly found in Korea. Other information was collected, including sex, age, BMI, parental allergy history, and parental smoking status. Multivariate analysis was used to confirm the association between histamine skin reactivity and BMI. Results: The histamine wheal size was revealed to be associated with BMI (Spearman's Rho 0.161, p < 0.001). This association was confirmed by multivariate analysis, after adjusting for sex, age, parental allergy history, parental smoking status, and allergic sensitization (coefficient B 0.071, 95% confidence interval 0.030–0.112). Conclusions: Skin responses to histamine were primarily correlated with increased BMI. Further studies are needed to understand the clinical implication of BMI when interpreting the results of skin prick test.

Keywords: allergy, body mass index, histamine, skin prick test

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1750 Creation of a Mentoring Program for Improving the Education of Industrial Engineers

Authors: Maria Da Glória Diniz De Almeida, Andreia M. P. Salgado

Abstract:

This paper aims to present the creation of a mentoring program to be applied in developing future junior industrial engineers acting professionally. Its objective is to contribute to a better professional performance as engineers. It is a case-study for the RIP region (including the cities of Resende, Itatiaia and Porto Real), which is located in an industrial area in Rio de Janeiro State, in Brazil. As a result, 87% of mentors and mentees approved the program as efficient, based on the initial targets.

Keywords: mentoring program, mentors and mentees, student professional development, young engineers education

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1749 Nationalism and Culturalism: Unification Education in South Korea Curriculum

Authors: Eun-Young Yoon

Abstract:

The purpose of this research is to examine how unification with North Korea is being taught in South Korea classrooms. To analysis of the curriculum and textbooks about unification in South Korean classroom, this study uses nationalism and multiculturalism as major theoretical frameworks. Major findings show that curriculum and textbooks should describe unification with North Korea more detailed and complicated. And the balancing between ‘global citizenship’ and ‘national identity’ is needed.

Keywords: global citizenship, multiculturalism, nationalism, unification education

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1748 An Improved Transmission Scheme in Cooperative Communication System

Authors: Seung-Jun Yu, Young-Min Ko, Hyoung-Kyu Song

Abstract:

Recently developed cooperative diversity scheme enables a terminal to get transmit diversity through the support of other terminals. However, most of the introduced cooperative schemes have a common fault of decreased transmission rate because the destination should receive the decodable compositions of symbols from the source and the relay. In order to achieve high data rate, we propose a cooperative scheme that employs hierarchical modulation. This scheme is free from the rate loss and allows seamless cooperative communication.

Keywords: cooperative communication, hierarchical modulation, high data rate, transmission scheme

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1747 Serum Anti-Oxidation Enzymes Response to L-Carnitine Supplementation

Authors: Farah Nameni, Hamidreza Poursadra, Maasumeh Nurani Pilehrud

Abstract:

Exercise training induced Inflammation and stress. Antioxidant, for example L- Carnitine has beneficial effects in immune system and increased antioxidant enzymes activity. L- Carnitine protects the tissue against the oxidative side effect and helps the body to protect against stress during and after acute exercise. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of L-Carnitine on the blood enzymes: GPX SOD, CAT and GR response. In this study, 20 basketball players girls participated. Subjects were randomly assigned into two groups; placebo and supplementation. Antioxidadision enzymes (Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase, Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione Peroxidase) evaluated. L-Carnitine supplement group orally daily received 3000 mg powder for 14 dys. Then all participates trained basketball exercise acute. Blood samples were drawn vein before and immediately after exercise. Superoxide Dismutase, Catalase, Glutathione Reductase, Glutathione Peroxidase were measured, and data was analyzed using repeated measure ANOVA, Bonferroni and t-test. Our results showed: SOD, GPX and GPX (P < 0.05) have a significant increase. These results suggest L-Carnitine supplementation may increase GPX SOD, CAT, and basal anti oxidative capacity. L-Carnitine can modulate the alterations of exercise oxidative damage in girl basketball players.

Keywords: l-carnitine, GPX, SOD, CAT, exercise, GR, anti-oxidant

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1746 Behavioral Study Circumferential and Longitudinal Cracks in a Steel Pipeline X65 and Repair Patch

Authors: Sadok Aboubakr

Abstract:

The mechanical behavior of cracks from several manufacturing defect in an oil pipeline, is characterized by the fact that defects'm taking several forms: circumferential, longitudinal and inclined crack that evolve over time. Increased lifetime of the constructions and in particular cylindrical tubes under internal pressure requires knowledge improving these defects during loading. From this study we simulated various forms of cracking and also their pipeline repair patch.

Keywords: stress intensity factor, pressure, Young's modulus, Poisson's ratio, Shear modulus, Longueur du pipeline, the angle of crack, crack length

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1745 Gender Diversity in Early Years Education: An Exploratory Study Applied to Preschool Curriculum System in Romania

Authors: Emilia-Gheorghina Negru

Abstract:

As an EU goal, gender diversity in early year’s education aims and promotes equality of chances and respect for gender peculiarities of the pupils which are involved in formal educational activities. Early year’s education, as the first step to the Curriculum, prints to teachers the need to identify the role of the gender dimension on this stage, depending on the age level of preschool children through effective, complex, innovative and analytical awareness of gender diversity teaching and management strategies. Through gender educational work we, as teachers, will examine the effectiveness of the PATHS (Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies) curriculum the gender development of school-aged children. PATHS and a school-based preventive intervention model are necessary to be designed to improve children's ability to discuss and understand equality and gender concepts. Our teachers must create an intervention model and provide PATHS lessons during the school year. Results of the intervention will be effective for both low- and high-risk children in improving their range of math’s skills for girls and vocabulary, fluency and emotional part for boys in discussing gender experiences, their efficacy beliefs regarding the management of equality in gender area, and their developmental understanding of some aspects of gender.

Keywords: gender, gender differences, gender equality, gender role, gender stereotypes

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1744 Transmission Line Inspection Using Drones

Authors: Jae Kyung Lee, Joon Young Park

Abstract:

Maintenance on power transmission lines requires a lot of works. Sometimes they should be maintained on live-line environment with high altitude. Therefore, there always exist risks of falling from height and electric shock. To decline those risks, drones are recently applying on the electric power industry. This paper presents new operational technology while inspecting power transmission line. This paper also describes a technique for creating a flight path of a drone for transmission line inspection and a technique for controlling the drones of different types. Its technical and economical feasibilities have confirmed through experiments.

Keywords: drones, transmission line, inspection, control system

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1743 Tourism Potentials of Ikogosi Warm Spring in Nigeria

Authors: A.I. Adeyemo

Abstract:

Ikogosi warm spring results from a complex mechanical and chemical forces that generates internal heat in the rocks forming a warm and cold water at the same geographical location at the same time. From time immemorial, the local community had thought, it to be the work of a deity, and they were worshipping the spring. This complex phenomenon has been a source of tourist attraction to both local and international tourists over the years. 450 copies of a structured questionnaire were given out, and a total of 500 respondents were interviewed. The result showed that ikogosi warm spring impacts the community positively by providing employment to the teeming youths, and it provides income to traders. The result shows that 66% of the respondents confirmed that it increased their income and that transportation business increased more than 73%.the level of enlightenment and socialization increased greatly in the community. However, it also impacted the community negatively as it increased crime rates such as stealing, kidnapping, prostitution, and unwanted pregnancy among the secondary school girls and the other teenagers. Generally, 50% of the respondents reported that tourism in the warm spring results in insecurity in the community. IT also increased environmental problems such as noise and waste pollutions; the continuous movement on the land results in soil compartment leading to erosion, and leaching, which also results in loss of soil fertility. It was concluded that if the potentials of the spring are fully tapped, it will be a good avenue for income generation to the country.

Keywords: community, Ikogosi, revenue, warm spring

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1742 Cognitive Relaying in Interference Limited Spectrum Sharing Environment: Outage Probability and Outage Capacity

Authors: Md Fazlul Kader, Soo Young Shin

Abstract:

In this paper, we consider a cognitive relay network (CRN) in which the primary receiver (PR) is protected by peak transmit power $\bar{P}_{ST}$ and/or peak interference power Q constraints. In addition, the interference effect from the primary transmitter (PT) is considered to show its impact on the performance of the CRN. We investigate the outage probability (OP) and outage capacity (OC) of the CRN by deriving closed-form expressions over Rayleigh fading channel. Results show that both the OP and OC improve by increasing the cooperative relay nodes as well as when the PT is far away from the SR.

Keywords: cognitive relay, outage, interference limited, decode-and-forward (DF)

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1741 Mechanical Characterization of Banana by Inverse Analysis Method Combined with Indentation Test

Authors: Juan F. P. Ramírez, Jésica A. L. Isaza, Benjamín A. Rojano

Abstract:

This study proposes a novel use of a method to determine the mechanical properties of fruits by the use of the indentation tests. The method combines experimental results with a numerical finite elements model. The results presented correspond to a simplified numerical modeling of banana. The banana was assumed as one-layer material with an isotropic linear elastic mechanical behavior, the Young’s modulus found is 0.3Mpa. The method will be extended to multilayer models in further studies.

Keywords: finite element method, fruits, inverse analysis, mechanical properties

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1740 Single Cell Analysis of Circulating Monocytes in Prostate Cancer Patients

Authors: Leander Van Neste, Kirk Wojno

Abstract:

The innate immune system reacts to foreign insult in several unique ways, one of which is phagocytosis of perceived threats such as cancer, bacteria, and viruses. The goal of this study was to look for evidence of phagocytosed RNA from tumor cells in circulating monocytes. While all monocytes possess phagocytic capabilities, the non-classical CD14+/FCGR3A+ monocytes and the intermediate CD14++/FCGR3A+ monocytes most actively remove threatening ‘external’ cellular materials. Purified CD14-positive monocyte samples from fourteen patients recently diagnosed with clinically localized prostate cancer (PCa) were investigated by single-cell RNA sequencing using the 10X Genomics protocol followed by paired-end sequencing on Illumina’s NovaSeq. Similarly, samples were processed and used as controls, i.e., one patient underwent biopsy but was found not to harbor prostate cancer (benign), three young, healthy men, and three men previously diagnosed with prostate cancer that recently underwent (curative) radical prostatectomy (post-RP). Sequencing data were mapped using 10X Genomics’ CellRanger software and viable cells were subsequently identified using CellBender, removing technical artifacts such as doublets and non-cellular RNA. Next, data analysis was performed in R, using the Seurat package. Because the main goal was to identify differences between PCa patients and ‘control’ patients, rather than exploring differences between individual subjects, the individual Seurat objects of all 21 patients were merged into one Seurat object per Seurat’s recommendation. Finally, the single-cell dataset was normalized as a whole prior to further analysis. Cell identity was assessed using the SingleR and cell dex packages. The Monaco Immune Data was selected as the reference dataset, consisting of bulk RNA-seq data of sorted human immune cells. The Monaco classification was supplemented with normalized PCa data obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), which consists of bulk RNA sequencing data from 499 prostate tumor tissues (including 1 metastatic) and 52 (adjacent) normal prostate tissues. SingleR was subsequently run on the combined immune cell and PCa datasets. As expected, the vast majority of cells were labeled as having a monocytic origin (~90%), with the most noticeable difference being the larger number of intermediate monocytes in the PCa patients (13.6% versus 7.1%; p<.001). In men harboring PCa, 0.60% of all purified monocytes were classified as harboring PCa signals when the TCGA data were included. This was 3-fold, 7.5-fold, and 4-fold higher compared to post-RP, benign, and young men, respectively (all p<.001). In addition, with 7.91%, the number of unclassified cells, i.e., cells with pruned labels due to high uncertainty of the assigned label, was also highest in men with PCa, compared to 3.51%, 2.67%, and 5.51% of cells in post-RP, benign, and young men, respectively (all p<.001). It can be postulated that actively phagocytosing cells are hardest to classify due to their dual immune cell and foreign cell nature. Hence, the higher number of unclassified cells and intermediate monocytes in PCa patients might reflect higher phagocytic activity due to tumor burden. This also illustrates that small numbers (~1%) of circulating peripheral blood monocytes that have interacted with tumor cells might still possess detectable phagocytosed tumor RNA.

Keywords: circulating monocytes, phagocytic cells, prostate cancer, tumor immune response

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