Search results for: time series prediction

Authors: Liubov Lutsyshyn, Yaroslava Zhukova

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Over the past twenty years, there has been a drastic change in the mode of nutrition in many countries which has been reflected in the development of new products, production techniques, and has also led to the expansion of sales markets for food products. Studies have shown that solution of the food safety problems is almost impossible without the active and systematic activity of organizations directly involved in the production, storage and sale of food products, as well as without management of end-to-end traceability and exchange of information. The aim of this research is development of the integrated system of the quality management and safety assurance based on the principles of HACCP, traceability and system approach with creation of an algorithm for the identification and monitoring of parameters of technological process of manufacture of cooked sausage products. Methodology of implementation of the integrated system based on the principles of HACCP, traceability and system approach during the manufacturing of cooked sausage products for effective provision for the defined properties of the finished product has been developed. As a result of the research evaluation technique and criteria of performance of the implementation and operation of the system of the quality management and safety assurance based on the principles of HACCP have been developed and substantiated. In the paper regularities of influence of the application of HACCP principles, traceability and system approach on parameters of quality and safety of the finished product have been revealed. In the study regularities in identification of critical control points have been determined. The algorithm of functioning of the integrated system of the quality management and safety assurance has also been described and key requirements for the development of software allowing the prediction of properties of finished product, as well as the timely correction of the technological process and traceability of manufacturing flows have been defined. Based on the obtained results typical scheme of the integrated system of the quality management and safety assurance based on HACCP principles with the elements of end-to-end traceability and system approach for manufacture of cooked sausage products has been developed. As a result of the studies quantitative criteria for evaluation of performance of the system of the quality management and safety assurance have been developed. A set of guidance documents for the implementation and evaluation of the integrated system based on the HACCP principles in meat processing plants have also been developed. On the basis of the research the effectiveness of application of continuous monitoring of the manufacturing process during the control on the identified critical control points have been revealed. The optimal number of critical control points in relation to the manufacture of cooked sausage products has been substantiated. The main results of the research have been appraised during 2013-2014 under the conditions of seven enterprises of the meat processing industry and have been implemented at JSC «Kyiv meat processing plant».

Keywords: cooked sausage products, HACCP, quality management, safety assurance

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Authors: Yitian Ren, Liyin Shen, Tao Zhou, Xiao Li

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The past urbanization process in China has brought out series of problems, the Chinese government has then positioned small towns in essential roles for implementing the strategy 'The National New-type Urbanization Plan (2014-2020)'. As the connector and transfer station of cities and countryside, small towns are important force to narrow the gap between urban and rural area, and to achieve the mission of new-type urbanization in China. The sustainable development of small towns plays crucial role because cities are not capable enough to absorb the surplus rural population. Nevertheless, there are various types of barriers hindering the sustainable development of small towns, which led to the limited development of small towns and has presented a bottleneck in Chinese urbanization process. Therefore, this paper makes deep understanding of these barriers, thus effective actions can be taken to address them. And this paper chooses the perspective of Southwest China (refers to Sichuan province, Yunnan province, Guizhou province, Chongqing Municipality City and Tibet Autonomous Region), cause the urbanization rate in Southwest China is far behind the average urbanization level of the nation and the number of small towns accounts for a great proportion in mainland China, also the characteristics of small towns in Southwest China are distinct. This paper investigates the barriers of sustainable development of small towns which located in Southwest China by using the content analysis method, combing with the field work and interviews in sample small towns, then identified and concludes 18 barriers into four dimensions, namely, institutional barriers, economic barriers, social barriers and ecological barriers. Based on the research above, questionnaire survey and data analysis are implemented, thus the key barriers hinder the sustainable development of small towns in Southwest China are identified by using fuzzy set theory, those barriers are, lack of independent financial power, lack of construction land index, financial channels limitation, single industrial structure, topography variety and complexity, which mainly belongs to institutional barriers and economic barriers. In conclusion part, policy suggestions are come up with to improve the politic and institutional environment of small town development, also the market mechanism are supposed to be introduced to the development process of small towns, which can effectively overcome the economic barriers, promote the sustainable development of small towns, accelerate the in-situ urbanization by absorbing peasants in nearby villages, and achieve the mission of new-type urbanization in China from the perspective of people-oriented.

Keywords: barrier analysis, sustainable development, small town, Southwest China

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Authors: Saimir Cenameri, Arjana Tereziu, Kastriot Dallaku

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Introduction: Intra-uterine death is a common problem in obstetrical practice, and can lead to complications if left to resolve spontaneously. The cervix is unprepared, making inducing of labor difficult. Misoprostol is a synthetic prostaglandin E1 analogue, inexpensive, and is presented valid thanks to its ability to bring about changes in the cervix that lead to the induction of uterine contractions. Misoprostol is quickly absorbed when taken orally, resulting in high initial peak serum concentrations compared with the vaginal route. The vaginal misoprostol peak serum concentration is not as high and demonstrates a more gradual serum concentration decline. This is associated with many benefits for the patient; fast induction of labor; smaller doses; and fewer side effects (dose-depended). Mostly it has been used the regime of 50 μg/4 hour, with a high percentage of success and limited side effects. Objective: Evaluation of the efficiency of the use of oral and vaginal misoprostol in inducing labor, and comparing it with its use not by a previously defined protocol. Methods: Participants in this study included patients at U.H.O.G. 'Koco Gliozheni', Tirana from April 2004-July 2006, presenting with an indication for inducing labor in the third trimester for pregnancy termination. A total of 37 patients were randomly admitted for birth inducing activity, according to protocol (26), oral or vaginal protocol (10 vs. 16), and a control group (11), not subject to the protocol, was created. Oral or vaginal misoprostol was administered at a dose of 50 μg/4 h, while the fourth group participants were treated individually by the members of the medical staff. The main result of interest was the time between induction of labor to birth. Kruskal-Wallis test was used to compare the average age, parity, women weight, gestational age, Bishop's score, the size of the uterus and weight of the fetus between the four groups in the study. The Fisher exact test was used to compare day-stay and causes in the four groups. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare the time of the expulsion and the number of doses between oral and vaginal group. For all statistical tests used, the value of P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: The four groups were comparable with regard to woman age and weight, parity, abortion indication, Bishop's score, fetal weight and the gestational age. There was significant difference in the percentage of deliveries within 24 hours. The average time from induction to birth per route (vaginal, oral, according to protocol and not according to the protocol) was respectively; 10.43h; 21.10h; 15.77h, 21.57h. There was no difference in maternal complications in groups. Conclusions: Use of vaginal misoprostol for inducing labor in the third trimester for termination of pregnancy appears to be more effective than the oral route, and even more to uses not according to the protocols approved before, where complications are greater and unjustified.

Keywords: inducing labor, misoprostol, pregnancy termination, third trimester

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Authors: Felice De Luca, Vincenzo Galdi, Piera Stella, Vito Calderaro, Adriano Campagna, Antonio Piccolo

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Sustainable mobility has become one of the major issues of recent years. The challenge in reducing polluting emissions as much as possible has led to the production and diffusion of vehicles with internal combustion engines that are less polluting and to the adoption of green energy vectors, such as vehicles powered by natural gas or LPG and, more recently, with hybrid and electric ones. While on the one hand, the spread of electric vehicles for private use is becoming a reality, albeit rather slowly, not the same is happening for vehicles used for public transport, especially those that operate in the congested areas of the cities. Even if the first electric buses are increasingly being offered on the market, it remains central to the problem of autonomy for battery fed vehicles with high daily routes and little time available for recharging. In fact, at present, solid-state batteries are still too large in size, heavy, and unable to guarantee the required autonomy. Therefore, in order to maximize the energy management on the vehicle, the optimization of driving profiles offer a faster and cheaper contribution to improve vehicle autonomy. In this paper, following the authors’ precedent works on electric vehicles in public transport and energy management strategies in the electric mobility area, an eco-driving strategy for electric bus is presented and validated. Particularly, the characteristics of the prototype bus are described, and a general-purpose eco-drive methodology is briefly presented. The model is firstly simulated in MATLAB™ and then implemented on a mobile device installed on-board of a prototype bus developed by the authors in a previous research project. The solution implemented furnishes the bus-driver suggestions on the guide style to adopt. The result of the test in a real case will be shown to highlight the effectiveness of the solution proposed in terms of energy saving.

Keywords: eco-drive, electric bus, energy management, prototype

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Authors: Alina Smalinskiene Janina Petkeviciene, Jurate Klumbiene, Vilma Kriaucioniene, Vaiva Lesauskaite

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The worldwide prevalence of obesity has been increasing dramatically in the last few decades, and Lithuania is no exception. In 2012, every fifth adult (19% of men and 20.5 % of women) was obese and every third was overweight Association studies have highlighted the influence of SNPs in obesity, with particular focus on FTO rs9939609. Thus far, no data on the possible association of this SNP to obesity in the adult Lithuanian population has been reported. Here, for the first time, we demonstrate an association between the FTO rs9939609 homozygous AA genotype and increased BMI when compared to homozygous TT. Furthermore, a positive association was determined between the FTO rs9939609 variant and risk of metabolic syndrome. Background: This study aimed to examine the associations between the fat mass and obesity associated (FTO) gene rs9939609 variant with obesity and metabolic syndrome in Lithuanian adult population. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional health survey was carried out in randomly selected municipalities of Lithuania. The random sample was obtained from lists of 25–64 year-old inhabitants. The data from 1020 subjects were analysed. The rs9939609 SNP of the FTO gene was assessed using TaqMan assays (Applied Biosystems, Foster City, CA, USA). The Applied Biosystems 7900HT Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction System was used for detecting the SNPs. Results: The carriers of the AA genotype had the highest mean values of BMI and waist circumference (WC) and the highest risk of obesity. Interactions ‘genotype x age’ and ‘genotype x physical activity’ in determining BMI and WC were shown. Neither lipid and glucose levels, nor blood pressure were associated with the rs9939609 independently of BMI. In the age group of 25-44 years, association between the FTO genotypes and metabolic syndrome was found. Conclusion: The FTO rs9939609 variant was significantly associated with BMI and WC, and with the risk of obesity in Lithuanian population. The FTO polymorphism might have a greater influence on weight status in younger individuals and in subjects with a low level of physical activity.

Keywords: obesity metabolic syndrome, FTO gene, polymorphism, Lithuania

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Authors: Mark Daniel De Luna, Ma. Katreena Pillejera, Wei-Hsin Chen

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The raw bamboo (Phyllostachys mankinoi), with a moisture content of 13.54 % and a higher heating value (HHV) of 17.657 MJ/kg, was subjected to torrefaction under a high gravity (higee) environment using a rotating packed bed. The performance of the higee torrefaction was explored in two parts: (1) effect of rotation and temperature and (2) effect of duration on the solid yield, HHV and energy yield. By statistical analyses, the results indicated that the rotation, temperature and their interaction has a significant effect on the three responses. Same remarks on the effect of duration where when the duration (temperature and rotation) increases, the HHV increases, while the solid yield and energy yield decreases. Graphical interpretations showed that at 300 °C, the rotating speed has no evident effect on the responses. At 30-min holding time, the highest HHV reached (28.389 MJ/kg) was obtained in the most severe torrefaction condition (the rotating speed at 1800 rpm and temperature at 300 °C) with an enhancement factor of HHV corresponding to 1.61 and an energy yield of 63.51%. Upon inspection, the recommended operating condition under a 30-min holding time is at 255 °C-1800 rpm since the enhancement factor of HHV (1.53), HHV (26.988 MJ/kg), and energy yield (65.21%) values are relatively close to that of the aforementioned torrefaction condition. The Van Krevelen diagram of the torrefied biomass showed that the ratios decrease as the torrefaction intensifies, hence improving the hydrophobicity of the product. The spreads of the results of the solid yield, enhancement factor (EF) of HHV, energy yield, and H/C and O/C ratios were in accordance with the trends of the responses. Overall, from the results presented, it can be concluded that the quality of the product from the process is at par to that of coal (i.e. HHV of coal is 21-35 MJ/kg). The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy results indicated that cellulose and lignin may have been degraded at a lower temperature accompanied with a high rotating speed. The results suggested that torrefaction under higee environment indicates promising process for the utilization of bamboo.

Keywords: heat transfer, high gravity environment, FTIR, rotation, rotating speed, torrefaction

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Authors: Najma Najam, Rukhsana Kausar, Rabia Hussain Kanwal, Saira Batool, Anum Javed

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In Pakistan, elderly population though increasing but it has been neglected by the researchers and policy makers which resulted in compromised quality of life of the ageing population. Two regions, Punjab and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) were selected for comparison as Lahore and Multan (Punjab) are highly urbanized, large cities whereas Gilgit and Skardu are remote and mountain bounded valleys in GB. This study focuses on psychological and emotional functioning of elderly and a series of measures translated and adapted in Urdu language was used to assess quality of life, psychological and mental well-being, actual and perceived social support, attachment patterns, forgiveness, affects, geriatric depression, and emotional disturbance patterns (depression, anxiety, and stress) in elderly. A gender-equated sample of 201 elderly participants, 93 from GB (60 from Gilgit, 33 from Skardu) and 108 from Punjab (61 from Lahore, 47 from Multan) with over 60 years age was collected from the multiethnic community of Punjab and GB through purposive convenient sampling technique. Findings revealed that elderly from Multan have better psychological and emotional functioning, higher levels of social support, tendency to forgive, better mental wellbeing and quality of life and lower levels of stress, anxiety, depression, negative affect and attachment avoidance and anxiety related to partner as compared to the elderly from Lahore. Furthermore, both elderly male of Gilgit & Skardu have adequate mental well-being including subjective well-being and psychological functioning which showed positive aspects of mental health but elderly female are more attached to their home and neighbourhood which shows their social and environmental mastery. Gilgiti elderly male reported more degree of positive affect such as enthusiasm, active, alertness, excitement and strong whereas among elderly from Skardu shows more negative affect i.e. aversive mood states, irritability, hostility, and general distress. The need of psychosocial therapy and family counseling for the elderly in urban areas has been identified, which can facilitate in reducing or preventing the depressive and stressful tendencies. The findings are expected to have implications for improving quality of life of the elderly, designing interventions, support system and rehabilitation services to help them. However, findings may attract attention of policy makers and researchers as currently this is the most neglected population in Pakistan.

Keywords: psychological, emotional, aging, elderly, quality of life

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Authors: Inga Badasyan

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Every year we do monitoring of water pollution of catchment basin of Debed River. Next, the Ministry of Nature Protection does modeling programme. Finely, we are managing the impact of water pollution in Debed river. Ecosystem technologies efficiency performance were estimated based on the physical, chemical, and macrobiological analyses of water on regular base between 2012 to 2015. Algae community composition was determined to assess the ecological status of Debed river, while vegetation was determined to assess biodiversity. Last time, experts werespeaking about global warming, which is having bad impact on the surface water, freshwater, etc. As, we know that global warming is caused by the current high levels of carbon dioxide in the water. Geochemical modelling is increasingly playing an important role in various areas of hydro sciences and earth sciences. Geochemical modelling of highly concentrated aqueous solutions represents an important topic in the study of many environments such as evaporation ponds, groundwater and soils in arid and semi-arid zones, costal aquifers, etc. The sampling time is important for benthic macroinvertebrates, for that reason we have chosen in the spring (abundant flow of the river, the beginning of the vegetation season) and autumn (the flow of river is scarce). The macroinvertebrates are good indicator for a chromic pollution and aquatic ecosystems. Results of our earlier investigations in the Debed river reservoirs clearly show that management problem of ecosystem reservoirs is topical. Research results can be applied to studies of monitoring water quality in the rivers and allow for rate changes and to predict possible future changes in the nature of the lake.

Keywords: ecohydrological monitoring, flood risk management, global warming, aquatic macroinvertebrates

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Authors: Wafula Simon Peter, Kimuli Nabayego Ibtihal, Nabaggala Kimuli Nashua

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The worldwide use of information and communications technology (ICT) equipment and other electronic equipment is growing and consequently, there is a growing amount of equipment that becomes waste after its time in use. This growth is expected to accelerate since equipment lifetime decreases with time and growing consumption. As a result, e-waste is one of the fastest-growing waste streams globally. The United Nations University (UNU) calculates in its second Global E-waste Monitor 44.7 million metric tonnes (Mt) of e-waste were generated globally in 2016. The study population was 80 respondents, from which a sample of 69 respondents was selected using simple and purposive sampling techniques. This research was carried out to investigate the problem of e-waste and come up with a framework to improve e-waste management. The objective of the study was to develop a framework for improving e-waste management at the College of Engineering, Design, Art and Technology (CEDAT). This was achieved by breaking it down into specific objectives, and these included the establishment of the policy and other Regulatory frameworks being used in e-waste management at CEDAT, the determination of the effectiveness of the e-waste management practices at CEDAT, the establishment of the critical challenges constraining e-waste management at the College, development of a framework for e-waste management. The study reviewed the e-waste regulatory framework used at the college and then collected data which was used to come up with a framework. The study also established that weak policy and regulatory framework, lack of proper infrastructure, improper disposal of e-waste and a general lack of awareness of the e-waste and the magnitude of the problem are the critical challenges of e-waste management. In conclusion, the policy and regulatory framework should be revised, localized and strengthened to contextually address the problem. Awareness campaigns, the development of proper infrastructure and extensive research to establish the volumes and magnitude of the problems will come in handy. The study recommends a framework for the improvement of e-waste.

Keywords: e-waste, treatment, disposal, computers, model, management policy and guidelines

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Authors: Shigenori Togashi, Yukako Asano

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We developed an effective microfluidic device for photoreactions with low reflectance and good heat conductance. The performance of this microfluidic device was tested by carrying out a photoreactive synthesis of benzopinacol and acetone from benzophenone and 2-propanol. The yield reached 36% with an irradiation time of 469.2 s and was improved by more than 30% when compared to the values obtained by the batch method. Therefore, the microfluidic device was found to be effective for improving the yields of photoreactions.

Keywords: microfluidic device, photoreaction, black aluminum oxide, benzophenone, yield improvement

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Authors: Muhammad Shahzad Tufail, Iram Liaqat, Umer Sohail Meer, Muhammad Ishtaiq, Muhammad Sattar

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Nanotechnology is a vibrant field with numerous applications in many different branches of science and technology. Several methods are used to synthesize nanoparticles (NPs), which have multiple range of applications. Comparatively, the biogenic synthesis of NPs is a more economical and environmentally favourable method than the traditional chemical method. The current study aims to synthesize biogenically silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using bacterial isolates. Four bacterial strains Escherichia coli (MT448673), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MN900691), Bacillus subtilis (MN900684) and Bacillus licheniformis (MN900686) were used for the synthesis of AgNPs from silver nitrate (AgNO3) solution. The biofilm time kinetics of four bacterial isolates (P. aeruginosa, E. coli, B. licheniformis and B. subtilis) was analysed by incubating bacterial cultures at 37◦C in test tubes over a period of different time intervals i.e., 2, 3, 5 and 7 days following crystal violet staining method. All the four strains had ability to form strong biofilms between 48 to 72 hours of incubation. Two strains (B. subtilis and B. licheniformis) formed significant (p < 0.05) biofilm after 3 days of incubation period. The other two strains (E. coli and P. aeruginosa) showed strong biofilm formation after 2 days of incubation. Next, the antibiofilm activity of biogenically synthesized AgNPs (10 - 100 µgmL-1) was analysed against biofilm forming human pathogenic bacteria. Findings of the work revealed that 60-90% inhibition was observed at 60 µgmL-1 of AgNPs, while maximum inhibition (i.e.,100%) was found at highest concentration (90 µgmL-1). It was evident that highly significant (p < 0.05) decrease in biofilm formation was observed with increasing concentration of AgNPs.

Keywords: antibiofilm, biofilm formation, nanotechnology, pathogenic bacteria, silver nanoparticles

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Authors: Massimo Mozzon, Nadia Raffaelli

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Proteases from herbs, woody plants, and trees are exploited for cheesemaking in several countries, especially in South Europe and West Africa. Particularly, “thistles” belonging to several genera within the Asteraceae family (Cynara, Silybum, Centaurea, Carlina, Cirsium, Onopordum) are traditionally used in Mediterranean countries for clotting raw ewe’s and goat’s milk. For the first time, the clotting performance of an aqueous extract from flowers of Onopordum tauricum Willd. (Taurian thistle, bull cottonthistle) were tested in milk of different origin (cow, goat, ewe). The vegetable material was collected in the Central Apennines range, between the Marche and Umbria regions. A response surface methodology (RSM) approach was used to study the effect of the curdling variables (temperature, pH, amount of enzymatic extract) on the technological performance of the thistle extract. A three-step procedure for the purification of the enzyme (ammonium sulphate precipitation, gel filtration and ion-exchange chromatography) was also carried out. The milk clotting activity (MCA) of O. tauricum crude extracts was strongly affected by temperature, pH and by the interaction between these two variables, according to a second-order response surface model, while the milk/coagulant ratio did not affect in a significant way the clotting properties. Experimental data showed that the addition of 10 mM CaCl2 reduced the clotting time of ewe’s, goat’s, and cow’s milk by about 3-fold, 8-fold, and 14-fold, respectively, at 35°C and pH 6.7-6.8. After purification, an enzymatic preparation very close to homogeneity was obtained, which showed a major band at about 30 kDa when analyzed by SDS-PAGE. The identity of the enzyme as an aspartic protease was confirmed by inhibition studies. Cheese-making trials were carried out to check the scale-up (1 to 5 L of milk; 37 °C; 10 mM CaCl2 fortification) and set the recipe: 35-45% of curd yields were recorded, according to curd cutting and pressing.

Keywords: milk clotting activity, Onopordum tauricum, plant proteases, vegetable rennet

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Authors: Himanshu Singh, Rishi Kant, Shantanu Bhattacharya

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This paper adopts a top-down approach for mathematical modeling to predict the size reduction from micro to nano-scale through persistent etching. The process is simulated using a finite difference approach. Previously, various researchers have simulated the etching process for 1-D and 2-D substrates. It consists of two processes: 1) Convection-Diffusion in the etchant domain; 2) Chemical reaction at the surface of the particle. Since the process requires analysis along moving boundary, partial differential equations involved cannot be solved using conventional methods. In 1-D, this problem is very similar to Stefan's problem of moving ice-water boundary. A fixed grid method using finite volume method is very popular for modelling of etching on a one and two dimensional substrate. Other popular approaches include moving grid method and level set method. In this method, finite difference method was used to discretize the spherical diffusion equation. Due to symmetrical distribution of etchant, the angular terms in the equation can be neglected. Concentration is assumed to be constant at the outer boundary. At the particle boundary, the concentration of the etchant is assumed to be zero since the rate of reaction is much faster than rate of diffusion. The rate of reaction is proportional to the velocity of the moving boundary of the particle. Modelling of the above reaction was carried out using Matlab. The initial particle size was taken to be 50 microns. The density, molecular weight and diffusion coefficient of the substrate were taken as 2.1 gm/cm3, 60 and 10-5 cm2/s respectively. The etch-rate was found to decline initially and it gradually became constant at 0.02µ/s (1.2µ/min). The concentration profile was plotted along with space at different time intervals. Initially, a sudden drop is observed at the particle boundary due to high-etch rate. This change becomes more gradual with time due to declination of etch rate.

Keywords: particle size reduction, micromixer, FDM modelling, wet etching

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Authors: El Asnaoui Khalid, Aksasse Brahim, Ouanan Mohammed

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This paper presents an unsupervised color image segmentation method. It is based on a hierarchical analysis of 2-D histogram in RGB color space. This histogram minimizes storage space of images and thus facilitates the operations between them. The improved segmentation approach shows a better identification of objects in a color image and, at the same time, the system is fast.

Keywords: image segmentation, hierarchical analysis, 2-D histogram, classification

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Authors: Hanna Teklu Gebregziabher

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Background: A variety of techniques for medical termination of second-trimester pregnancy can be used, but there is no consensus about which is the best. Even though most evidence suggests the combined use of intracervical Foley catheter and vaginal misoprostol is safe, effective, and acceptable method for termination of second-trimester pregnancy, which is comparable to mifepristone-misoprostol combination regimen with lower cost and no additional maternal risks. The use of mifepristone and misoprostol alone with no other procedure is still the most common procedure in different institutions for 2nd-trimester pregnancy. Methods: A cross-sectional comparative prospective study design is employed on women who were admitted for 2nd-trimester medical abortion and medical abortion failed or if there was no change in cervical status after 24 hours of 1st dose of misoprostol. The study was conducted at St. Paulose Hospital Millennium Medical College. A sample of 44 participants in each arm was necessary to give a two-tailed test, a type 1 error of 5%, 80% statistical power, and a 1:1 ratio among groups. Thus, a total of 94 cases, 47 from each arm, were recruited. Data was entered and cleaned by using Epi-info and analyzed using SPSS version 29.0 statistical software and was presented in descriptive and tabular forms. Different variables were cross-tabulated and compared for significant differences and statistical analysis using the chi-square test and independent t-test, to conclude. Result: There was a significant difference between the two groups on induction to expulsion time and number of doses used. The mean ± SD of induction to expulsion time for those used misoprostol alone was 48.09 ± 11.86 and those who used trans-cervical catheter sequentially with misoprostol were 36.7 ±6.772. Conclusion: The use of a trans-cervical Foley catheter in conjunction with misoprostol in a sequential manner is a more effective, safe, and easily accessible procedure. In addition, the cost of utilizing the catheter is less compared to the cost of misoprostol and is readily available. As a good substitute, we advised using Trans-cervical Catether even for medical abortions performed in the second trimester.

Keywords: second trimester, medical abortion, catheter, misoprostol

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Authors: Mergim Gasia, Bojan Milovanovica, Sanjin Gumbarevic

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Better energy performance of the building envelope is one of the most important aspects of energy savings if the goals set by the European Union are to be achieved in the future. Dynamic heat transfer simulations are being used for the calculation of building energy consumption because they give more realistic energy demands compared to the stationary calculations that do not take the building’s thermal mass into account. Software used for these dynamic simulation use methods that are based on the analytical models since numerical models are insufficient for longer periods. The analytical models used in this research fall in the category of the conduction transfer functions (CTFs). Two methods for calculating the CTFs covered by this research are the Laplace method and the State-Space method. The literature review showed that the main disadvantage of these methods is that they are inadequate for heavyweight façade elements and shorter time periods used for the calculation. The algorithms for both the Laplace and State-Space methods are implemented in Mathematica, and the results are compared to the results from EnergyPlus and TRNSYS since these software use similar algorithms for the calculation of the building’s energy demand. This research aims to check the efficiency of the Laplace and the State-Space method for calculating the building’s energy demand for heavyweight building elements and shorter sampling time, and it also gives the means for the improvement of the algorithms used by these methods. As the reference point for the boundary heat flux density, the finite difference method (FDM) is used. Even though the dynamic heat transfer simulations are superior to the calculation based on the stationary boundary conditions, they have their limitations and will give unsatisfactory results if not properly used.

Keywords: Laplace method, state-space method, conduction transfer functions, finite difference method

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Authors: Avirup Chowdhury, Angus K. McFadyen, Linsey Batchelor

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Blood cultures (BCs) are an important aspect of management of the septic patient, identifying the underlying pathogen and its antibiotic sensitivities. However, while the current literature outlines indications for initial BCs to be taken, there is little guidance for repeat sampling in the following 5-day period and little information on how antibiotic use can affect the usefulness of this investigation. A retrospective cohort study was conducted using inpatients who had undergone 2 or more BCs within 5 days between April 2016 and April 2017 at a 400-bed hospital in the west of Scotland and received antibiotic therapy between the first and second BCs. The data for BC sampling was collected from the electronic microbiology database, and cross-referenced with data from the hospital electronic prescribing system. Overall, 283 BCs were included in the study, taken from 92 patients (mean 3.08 cultures per patient, range 2-10). All 92 patients had initial BCs, of which 83 were positive (90%). 65 had a further sample within 24 hours of commencement of antibiotics, with 35 positive (54%). 23 had samples within 24-48 hours, with 4 (17%) positive; 12 patients had sampling at 48-72 hours, 12 at 72-96 hours, and 10 at 96-120 hours, with none positive. McNemar’s Exact Test was used to calculate statistical significance for patients who received blood cultures in multiple time blocks (Initial, < 24h, 24-120h, > 120h). For initial vs. < 24h-post BCs (53 patients tested), the proportion of positives fell from 46/53 to 29/53 (one-tailed P=0.002, OR 3.43, 95% CI 1.48-7.96). For initial vs 24-120h (n=42), the proportions were 38/42 and 4/42 respectively (P < 0.001, OR 35.0, 95% CI 4.79-255.48). For initial vs > 120h (n=36), these were 33/36 and 2/36 (P < 0.001,OR ∞). These were also calculated for a positive in initial or < 24h vs. 24-120h (n=42), with proportions of 41/42 and 4/42 (P < 0.001, OR 38.0, 95% CI 5.22-276.78); and for initial or < 24h vs > 120h (n=36), with proportions of 35/36 and 2/36 respectively (P < 0.001, OR ∞). This data appears to show that taking an initial BC followed by a BC within 24 hours of antibiotic commencement would maximise blood culture yield while minimising the risk of false negative results. This could potentially remove the need for as many as 46% of BC samples without adversely affecting patient care. BC yield decreases sharply after 48 hours of antibiotic use, and may not provide any clinically useful information after this time. Further multi-centre studies would validate these findings, and provide a foundation for future health policy generation.

Keywords: antibiotics, blood culture, efficacy, inpatient

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Authors: Peter Boyes, Sarah Sharples, Paul Tennent, Gary Priestnall, Jeremy Morley

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Significant long-term investment projects can involve complex decisions. These are often described as capital projects, and the factors that contribute to their complexity include budgets, motivating reasons for investment, stakeholder involvement, interdependent projects, and the delivery phases required. The complexity of these projects often requires management groups to be established involving stakeholder representatives; these teams are inherently multidisciplinary. This study uses two university campus capital projects as case studies for this type of management group. Due to the interaction of projects with wider campus infrastructure and users, decisions are made at varying spatial granularity throughout the project lifespan. This spatial-related context brings complexity to the group decisions. Sensemaking is the process used to achieve group situational awareness of a complex situation, enabling the team to arrive at a consensus and make a decision. The purpose of this study is to understand the role of people and data in the complex spatial related long-term decision and sensemaking processes. The paper aims to identify and present issues experienced in practical settings of these types of decision. A series of exploratory semi-structured interviews with members of the two projects elicit an understanding of their operation. From two stages of thematic analysis, inductive and deductive, emergent themes are identified around the group structure, the data usage, and the decision making within these groups. When data were made available to the group, there were commonly issues with the perception of veracity and validity of the data presented; this impacted the ability of group to reach consensus and, therefore, for decisions to be made. Similarly, there were different responses to forecasted or modelled data, shaped by the experience and occupation of the individuals within the multidisciplinary management group. This paper provides an understanding of further support required for team sensemaking and decision making in complex capital projects. The paper also discusses the barriers found to effective decision making in this setting and suggests opportunities to develop decision support systems in this team strategic decision-making process. Recommendations are made for further research into the sensemaking and decision-making process of this complex spatial-related setting.

Keywords: decision making, decisions under uncertainty, real decisions, sensemaking, spatial, team decision making

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Authors: Xianlu Zeng

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China has undergone rapid economic growth over the last three decades. During this time, China-focused study has become one of the most popular areas of research. However, even though China has one of the oldest legal traditions in the world, there is limited research available regarding the development and operation of China’s juvenile justice system. This article will provide general information about China’s juvenile justice tradition along with a review of its reformation in 2013. A discussion is presented that provides some thoughts about how successful these reforms have been and where China may need to head.

Keywords: China, history, juvenile justice, legal traditions

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Authors: Liu Canqi, Zeng Junsheng

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This study identifies two typical bottlenecks that occur when a vehicle cannot change lanes: car following and car stopping. The ideas of traffic field and traffic mass are presented in this work. When there are other vehicles in front of the target vehicle within a particular distance, a force is created that affects the target vehicle's driving speed. The characteristics of the driver and the vehicle collectively determine the traffic mass; the driving speed of the vehicle and external variables have no bearing on this. From a physical level, this study examines the vehicle's bottleneck when following a car, identifies the outside factors that have an impact on how it drives, takes into account that the vehicle will transform kinetic energy into potential energy during deceleration, and builds a calculation model for traffic mass. The energy-time conversion coefficient is created from an economic standpoint utilizing the social average wage level and the average cost of motor fuel. Vissim simulation program measures the vehicle's deceleration distance and delays under the Wiedemann car-following model. The difference between the measured value of deceleration delay acquired by simulation and the theoretical value calculated by the model is compared using the conversion calculation model of traffic mass and deceleration delay. The experimental data demonstrate that the model is reliable since the error rate between the theoretical calculation value of the deceleration delay obtained by the model and the measured value of simulation results is less than 10%. The article's conclusion is that the traffic field has an impact on moving cars on the road and that physical and socioeconomic factors should be taken into account while studying vehicle-following behavior. The deceleration delay value of a vehicle's driving and traffic mass have a socioeconomic relationship that can be utilized to calculate the energy-time conversion coefficient when dealing with the bottleneck of cars stopping and starting.

Keywords: traffic field, social economics, traffic mass, bottleneck, deceleration delay

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Authors: Lise P. Labéjof, Ivna Mororó, Raquel G. Bastos, Maria Isabel G. Severo, Arno H. de Oliveira

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This work presents an alternative mode of intestine mucosa renewal that may allow to better understand the total loss of villi after irradiation. It was tested a morphological method of 3d reconstruction using micrographs of serial sections of rat duodenum. We used hundreds of sections of each specimen of duodenum placed on glass slides and examined under a light microscope. Those containing the detachment, approximately a dozen, were chosen for observation under a transmission electron microscope (TEM). Each of these sections was glued on a block of epon resin and recut into a hundred of 60 nm-thick sections. Ribbons of these ultrathin sections were distributed on a series of copper grids in the same order of appearance than during the process of microstomia. They were then stained by solutions of uranyl and lead salts and observed under a TEM. The sections were pictured and the electron micrographs showing signs of cells detachment were transferred into two softwares, ImageJ to align the cellular structures and Reconstruct to realize the 3d reconstruction. It has been detected epithelial cells that exhibited all signs of programmed cell death and localized at the villus-crypt junction. Their nucleus was irregular in shape with a condensed chromatin in clumps. Their cytoplasm was darker than that of neighboring cells, containing many swollen mitochondria. In some places of the sections, we could see intercellular spaces enlarged by the presence of shrunk cells which displayed a plasma membrane with an irregular shape in thermowell as if the cell interdigitations would distant from each other. The three-dimensional reconstruction of the crypts has allowed observe gradual loss of intercellular contacts of crypt cells in the longitudinal plan of the duodenal mucosa. In the transverse direction, there was a gradual increase of the intercellular space as if these cells moved away from one another. This observation allows assume that the gradual remoteness of the cells at the villus-crypt junction is the beginning of the mucosa detachment. Thus, the shrinking of cells due to apoptosis is the way that they detach from the mucosa and progressively the villi also. These results are in agreement with our initial hypothesis and thus have demonstrated that the villi become detached from the mucosa at the villus-crypt junction by the programmed cell death process. This type of loss of entire villus helps explain the rapid denudation of the intestinal mucosa in case of irradiation.

Keywords: 3dr, transmission electron microscopy, ionizing radiations, rat small intestine, apoptosis

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Authors: Homa Hedayat

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Public spaces have been a central concern of urban planners for centuries but have been neglected for a long time. In the modernist planning, the focus has been on the requirements of cars rather than the needs and expectations of pedestrians, and therefore, cities have lost many qualities. Urban public space is a space within the city area which is accessible to all people and is the ground for their activity. People’s public life occurs in urban public spaces in a complex set of forms and functions. These spaces must facilitate diverse behavior, uses, and activities such as shopping, walking, conversation, entertainment, relaxation or even passing the time during festivities and events. One of the public spaces is the surrounding space of public transportation stations. Subway stations, although potentially encompass many different groups of people accommodate few social interactions. Making the surrounding areas of subway stations pedestrian-oriented, potentially increases the socialization capacity. The Sadeghieh Subway Station can be considered as the most important subway station in Tehran, which on the one hand is the rail port of Tehran's western entrance, and on the other is the port for railway journeys inside the city. The main concern of this study is to assess the success or failure of the interventions made by the municipality for changing the surrounding area of the Sadeghieh Subway Station into a pedestrian-oriented space and examine the amount of the area's improvement into a desirable space. The method used in this study is surveying, in which the data were collected using a questionnaire and interview. The study's population is all people who use Sadeghieh Subway, and the sample size for the study was 140 subjects. Using parametric one-sample t-test, we found improvement in factors such as transportation, security, pedestrian infrastructure, vitality and climate comfort. However, there was no improvement in mix use, recreational activity, readability.

Keywords: public space, public transportation stations, pedestrian-oriented space, socialization

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Authors: Surender Singh, Yogendra Kumar Gupta

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Boerhaavia diffusa (BD) Linn. belonging to family Nyctaginaceae is a herbaceous plant and known as ‘punarnava’ in Hindi, used as herbal medicine for pain relief and various ailments. It is widely used as a green leafy vegetable in many Asian and African countries. The objective of present study was to investigate potential adverse effects, if any, of standardized root extract of Boerhaavia diffusa in rats following subchronic administration. In acute toxicity study, no mortality was found at a dose of 2000mg/kg which indicates that oral LD50 of Boerhaavia diffusa root extract is more than 2000mg/kg. The chronic administration of Boerhaavia diffusa for 28 days at a dose of 1000mg/kg body weight did not produce any significant changes in hematological (RBC, WBC, platelets, hemoglobin, bleeding time, clotting time) and biochemical (triglycerides, blood glucose, high density lipoprotein, serum creatinine, serum glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase, serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase) parameters of male and female rats as compared to normal control group. All the animals survived until the scheduled necropsy, and their physical and behavioral examinations did not reveal any treatment-related adverse effects. No pathological changes were observed in histological section of heart, kidney, liver, testis, ovaries and brain of Boerhaavia diffusa treated male and female rats as compared to normal control animals.These observations from oral acute toxicitystudy suggest that the extract is practically non-toxic. Thus, it can be inferred that the Boerhaavia diffusa root extract at levels up to 1000 mg/kg/day was found to be safe and does not cause adverse effects in rats. So, the no-observed effect level (NOAEL) of the extract was found to be 1000mg/kg/day.

Keywords: Boerhaavia diffusa, histology, toxicity, sub-acute

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Authors: Katarzyna Baruch, Agata Szelag, Aleksandra Majchrzak, Tadeusz Kamisinski

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Methodology of measurement of sound absorption coefficient in scaled models is based on the ISO 354 standard. The measurement is realised indirectly - the coefficient is calculated from the reverberation time of an empty chamber as well as a chamber with an inserted sample. It is crucial to maintain the atmospheric conditions stable during both measurements. Possible differences may be amended basing on the formulas for atmospheric attenuation coefficient α given in ISO 9613-1. Model studies require scaling particular factors in compliance with specified characteristic numbers. For absorption coefficient measurement, these are for example: frequency range or the value of attenuation coefficient m. Thanks to the possibilities of modern electroacoustic transducers, it is no longer a problem to scale the frequencies which have to be proportionally higher. However, it may be problematic to reduce values of the attenuation coefficient. It is practically obtained by drying the air down to a defined relative humidity. Despite the change of frequency range and relative humidity of the air, ISO 9613-1 standard still allows the calculation of the amendment for little differences of the atmospheric conditions in the chamber during measurements. The paper discusses a number of theoretical analyses and experimental measurements performed in order to obtain consistency between the values of attenuation coefficient calculated from the formulas given in the standard and by measurement. The authors performed measurements of reverberation time in a chamber made in a 1/8 scale in a corresponding frequency range, i.e. 800 Hz - 40 kHz and in different values of the relative air humidity (40% 5%). Based on the measurements, empirical values of attenuation coefficient were calculated and compared with theoretical ones. In general, the values correspond with each other, but for high frequencies and low values of relative air humidity the differences are significant. Those discrepancies may directly influence the values of measured sound absorption coefficient and cause errors. Therefore, the authors made an effort to determine an amendment minimizing described inaccuracy.

Keywords: air absorption correction, attenuation coefficient, dimensional analysis, model study, scaled modelling

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Authors: M. Mischopoulou, P. Naidis, S. Kalamaras, T. Kotsopoulos, P. Samaras

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The treatment of high strength wastewater by an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor has several benefits, such as high organic removal efficiency, short hydraulic retention time along with low operating costs. In addition, high volumes of biogas are released in these reactors, which can be utilized in several industrial facilities for energy production. This study aims at the examination of the application potential of anaerobic treatment of wastewater, with high molasses content derived from yeast manufacturing, by a lab-scale UASB reactor. The molasses wastewater and the sludge used in the experiments were collected from the wastewater treatment plant of a baker’s yeast manufacturing company. The experimental set-up consisted of a 15 L thermostated UASB reactor at 37 ◦C. Before the reactor start-up, the reactor was filled with sludge and molasses wastewater at a ratio 1:1 v/v. Influent was fed to the reactor at a flowrate of 12 L/d, corresponding to a hydraulic residence time of about 30 h. Effluents were collected from the system outlet and were analyzed for the determination of the following parameters: COD, pH, total solids, volatile solids, ammonium, phosphates and total nitrogen according to the standard methods of analysis. In addition, volatile fatty acid (VFA) composition of the effluent was determined by a gas chromatograph equipped with a flame ionization detector (FID), as an indicator to evaluate the process efficiency. The volume of biogas generated in the reactor was daily measured by the water displacement method, while gas composition was analyzed by a gas chromatograph equipped with a thermal conductivity detector (TCD). The effluent quality was greatly enhanced due to the use of the UASB reactor and high rate of biogas production was observed. The anaerobic treatment of the molasses wastewater by the UASB reactor improved the biodegradation potential of the influent, resulting at high methane yields and an effluent with better quality than the raw wastewater.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion, biogas production, molasses wastewater, UASB reactor

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Authors: Ishan Tank, Ashmita Rupal, Sanjay Kumar Sharma

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Concrete, a widely used building material, has cement as its main constituent. An excessive amount of emissions are released into the atmosphere during the manufacture of cement, which is detrimental to the environment. To minimize this problem, innovative materials like geopolymer mortar (GPM) seem to be a better alternative. By using fly ash-based geopolymer instead of standard cement mortar as a binding ingredient, this concept has been successfully applied to the building sector. The advancement of this technology significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions and helps in source reduction, thereby minimizing pollution of the environment. In order to produce mortar and use this geopolymer mortar in the development of building materials, the current investigation is properly introducing this geopolymeric material, namely fly ash, as a binder in place of standard cement. In the domain of the building material industry, fly ash based geopolymer is a new and optimistic replacement for traditional binding materials because it is both environmentally sustainable and has good durability. The setting behaviour and strength characteristics of fly ash, when mixed with alkaline activator solution with varied concentration of sodium hydroxide solution, alkaline liquids mix ratio, and curing temperature, must be investigated, though, in order to determine its suitability and application in comparison with the traditional binding material, by activating the raw materials, which include various elements of silica and alumina, finer material known as geopolymer mortar is created. The concentration of the activator solution has an impact on the compressive strength of the geopolymer concrete formed. An experimental examination of compressive strength after 7, 14, and 28 days of fly ash-based geopolymer concrete is presented in this paper. Furthermore, the process of geopolymerization largely relies on the curing temperature. So, the setting time of Geopolymer mortar due to different curing temperatures has been studied and discussed in this paper.

Keywords: geopolymer mortar, setting time, flyash, compressive strength, binder material

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Authors: Michael Sinclair, Andrea Ghermandi, Sheela A. Moses, Joseph Sabu

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Passively crowdsourced data, such as geotagged photographs from social media, represent an opportunistic source of location-based and time-specific behavioral data for ecosystem services analysis. Such data have innovative applications for environmental management and protection, which are replicable at wide spatial scales and in the context of both developed and developing countries. Here we test one such innovation, based on the analysis of the metadata of online geotagged photographs, to investigate the provision of recreational services by the entire network of wetland ecosystems in the state of Kerala, India. We estimate visitation to individual wetlands state-wide and extend, for the first time to a developing region, the emerging application of cultural ecosystem services modelling using data from social media. The impacts of restoration of wetland areal extension and water quality improvement are explored as a means to inform more sustainable management strategies. Findings show that improving water quality to a level suitable for the preservation of wildlife and fisheries could increase annual visits by 350,000, an increase of 13% in wetland visits state-wide, while restoring previously encroached wetland area could result in a 7% increase in annual visits, corresponding to 49,000 visitors, in the Ashtamudi and Vembanad lakes alone, two large coastal Ramsar wetlands in Kerala. We discuss how passive crowdsourcing of social media data has the potential to improve current ecosystem service analyses and environmental management practices also in the context of developing countries.

Keywords: coastal wetlands, cultural ecosystem services, India, passive crowdsourcing, social media, wetland restoration

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Authors: Amal Sellami, Ahlem Ammar

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Writing is acknowledged to be a cognitively demanding and complex task. Indeed, the writing process is composed of three iterative sub-processes, namely planning, translating (writing), and reviewing. Not only do second or foreign language learners need to write according to this process, but they also need to respect the norms and rules of language and writing in the text to-be-produced. Accordingly, researchers have suggested to approach writing as a collaborative task in order to al leviate its complexity. Consequently, collaboration has been implemented during the whole writing process or only during planning orreviewing. Researchers report that implementing collaboration during the whole process might be demanding in terms of time in comparison to individual writing tasks. Consequently, because of time constraints, teachers may avoid it. For this reason, it might be pedagogically more realistic to limit collaboration to one of the writing sub-processes(i.e., planning or reviewing). However, previous research implementing collaboration in planning or reviewing is limited and fails to explore the effects of the seconditionson the written text. Consequently, the present study examines the effects of collaboration in planning and collaboration in reviewing on the written text. To reach this objective, quantitative as well as qualitative methods are deployed to examine the written texts holistically and in terms of fluency, complexity, and accuracy. Participants of the study include 4 pairs in each group (n=8). They participated in two experimental conditions, which are: (1) collaborative planning followed by individual writing and individual reviewing and (2) individual planning followed by individual writing and collaborative reviewing. The comparative research findings indicate that while collaborative planning resulted in better overall text quality (precisely better content and organization ratings), better fluency, better complexity, and fewer lexical errors, collaborative reviewing produces better accuracy and less syntactical and mechanical errors. The discussion of the findings suggests the need to conduct more comparative research in order to further explore the effects of collaboration in planning or in reviewing. Pedagogical implications of the current study include advising teachers to choose between implementing collaboration in planning or in reviewing depending on their students’ need and what they need to improve.

Keywords: collaboration, writing, collaborative planning, collaborative reviewing

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Authors: Devante K. Barrett

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The objective of this research is to evaluate the association between one's subjective tiredness as it relates to the Stroop effect and the identification of subjective tiredness among adolescents. Individuals with a high subjective tired score are more likely to have a lower reaction time in incongruent trials. It is understood that sleep is an overlooked phenomenon in psychological research, and with the utilization of adequate testing, ways to address sleep in this manner may no longer be an issue of concern in the future. Sleep researchers often obtain significant results by way of Stroop testing. The caveat is that the integrity of Stroop testing can be negatively affected by various external factors. The propensity for interference to occur is caused by the automatic process of reading. This is deemed one of the most detrimental issues in understanding the dimensions of sleep. Interference subsequently decreases response time in the identification of the ink color. Considering the fact that the Stroop task is helpful in evaluating cognitive function in clinical populations, results should be interpreted cautiously due to the multitude of variables that may affect performance. When planning studies and analyzing data related to the Stroop effect, researchers must take individual differences and environmental factors into consideration. Having a thorough understanding of the Stroop effect can aid in the development of initiatives targeted at enhancing attention span and cognitive control across a range of demographics. Age-related changes in sleep patterns and selective attention from childhood to adolescence are key points of consideration in various areas of research, which are primarily focused on age-dependent performance in vigilant attention among young populations. Thus, findings related to Stroop testing may be deemed eligible to provide meaningful implications regarding vigilant attention among such populations. With respect to future research, this can be assessed by way of neuroimaging of brain-regions associated with selective attention and circadian cycles.

Keywords: sleep, selective attention, Stroop effect, cognitive function, sleep hygiene, vigilant attention

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Authors: Hugo T. Jorge, Richard T. Simanke

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Lacan’s work addresses overarching issues concerning the scientific intelligibility of the subject in its philosophical sense. Even though his reflection is not, strictly speaking, philosophy of science, it contains many traits that are typical of this branch of philosophy. However, the relation between Lacan’s early thought and the philosophy of science of the time is often disregarded or only incompletely accounted for in Lacanian scholarship. French philosopher of science Emile Meyerson was often implicitly or explicitly referred to in Lacan’s works, yet few publications can be found on their relationship. The objective of this paper is to contribute to the analysis of this relationship, indicating some of its possible implications. For this, the convergence between Meyerson’s doctrine of science and Lacan’s works between 1936 and 1953 is discussed, as well as the conditions under which Lacan’s reception of Meyerson’s ideas take place. In conclusion, it is argued that this convergence allows for the clarification of important issues in Lacan’s early work, such as the concept of imago, his views on the nature of truth, and his thesis of the anthropomorphism of natural sciences. Meyerson’s argument for the permanence of common sense within science makes Lacan’s claims on the anthropomorphism of natural sciences more understandable. Similarly, Meyerson’s views on the epistemological shortfall of the Principle of Identity sheds some light on Lacan’s 1936 critique of associationistic concepts of engram and truth and may be at the origins of his antirealist and anti-idealist stances. Meyerson’s Principle of Identity is also related to some aspects of Lacan’s concept of imago. The imago understood as the unconscious condition for the identity in time of family figures in childhood, would be an excellent expression of the Principle of Identity. In this sense, the Principle of Identity may be linked to the concept of imaginary as developed by Lacan in the 1950s. However, Lacan considerably distorts Meyerson’s views in his 1936 critique of Freud’s concept of libido. Finally, a possible relationship between Lacan’s late concept of the real and Meyerson’s concept of the irrational is suggested.

Keywords: imaginary, Lacan, Meyerson, philosophy of science, real

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