Search results for: physical assessment technique

Authors: Esther Liyanage, Indrajith Liyanage, A. A. J. Rajaratne

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During the 30 year civil war in Sri Lanka, a large number of individuals were injured and disabled. These disabilities have reduced their daily physical activities which may cause reduction in flexibility of upper limb, shoulder girdle, lower back and lower limb. Muscle flexibility is important for a healthy lifestyle. The main objective of the study was to assess the upper limb, shoulder girdle and lower back, hamstring flexibility of the intact lower limb in disabled individuals in the North and Eastern parts of Sri Lanka. Back saver sits and reach test and shoulder scratch test described in FITNESS GRAM was used in the study. A total of 125 disabled soldiers with lower limb disabilities were recruited for the study. Flexibility of the lower back and hamstring muscles of uninjured lower limb was measured using back saver sit and reach test described by Wells and Dillon (1952). Upper limb and shoulder girdle flexibility was assessed using shoulder stretch test. Score 0-3 was given according to the ability to reach Superior medial angle of the opposite scapula, top of the head or the mouth. The results indicate that 31 (24.8%) disabled soldiers have lower limb flexibility less than 8, 2 (1.6 % ) have flexibility of 8, 2 (1.6 %) have flexibility of 8.5, 11 ( 8.8% ) have flexibility of 9, 14 (11.2 %) have flexibility of 9.5, 23 (18.4 %) have flexibility of 10, 17 (13.6 %) have 10.5 flexibility, 13 (10.4%) have 11 flexibility, 2 (1.6%) have 11.5 flexibility, 10 (8 %) have flexibility of 12 and 3 (2.34 %) have flexibility of 12.5. Six disabled soldiers (4.8%) have upper limb flexibility of 2 and remaining 95.2% have normal upper limb flexibility (score 3). A reduction in the flexibility of muscles in lower body and lower limbs was seen in 25% disabled soldiers which could be due to reduction in their daily physical activities.

Keywords: disability, flexibility, rehabilitation, quality of life

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Authors: Md.Noman Habib Khan, M. S. Tajul Islam, T. S. Gunawan, M. Hasanuzzaman

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The photovoltaic (PV) panel with no galvanic isolation system is well-known technique in the world which is effective and deliver power with enhanced efficiency. The PV generation presented here is for stand-alone system installed in remote areas when as the resulting power gets connected to electronic load installation instead of being tied to the grid. Though very small, even then transformer-less topology is shown to be with leakage in pico-ampere range. By using PWM technique PWM, leakage current in different situations is shown. The results that are demonstrated in this paper show how the pico-ampere current is reduced to femto-ampere through use of inductors and capacitors of suitable values of inductor and capacitors with the load.

Keywords: photovoltaic (PV) panel, duty cycle, pulse duration modulation (PDM), leakage current

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Authors: J. Tamosaitiene

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The article focuses on the identification and classification of key risk management criteria that represent the most important sustainability aspects of the construction industry. The construction sector is one of the most important sectors in Lithuania. Nowadays, the assessment of the risk level of a construction project is especially important for the quality of construction projects, the growth of enterprises and the sector. To establish the most important criteria for successful growth of the sector, a questionnaire for experts was developed. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP), the expert judgement method and other multicriteria decision making (MCDM) methods were used to develop the hybrid model. The results were used to develop an integrated knowledge system for the measurement of a risk level particular to construction projects. The article presents a practical case that details the developed system, sustainable aspects, and risk assessment.

Keywords: risk, system, model, construction

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Authors: Priti Saha, Biswajit Paul

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Rapid urbanization and industrialization have increased the demand of groundwater. However, the present era has evident an enormous level of groundwater pollution. Therefore, water quality assessment is paramount importance to evaluate its suitability for drinking, irrigation and industrial use. This study focus to evaluate the groundwater quality of an industrial city in eastern India through interdisciplinary techniques. The multi-purpose Water Quality Index (WQI) assess the suitability for drinking as well as irrigation of forty sampling locations, where 2.5% and 15% of sampling locations have excellent water quality (WQI:0-25) as well as 15% and 40% have good quality (WQI:25-50), which represents its suitability for drinking and irrigation respectively. However, the industrial water quality was assessed through Ryznar Stability Index (LSI), which affirmed that only 2.5% of sampling locations have neither corrosive nor scale forming properties (RSI: 6.2-6.8). These techniques with the integration of geographical information system (GIS) for spatial assessment indorsed its effectiveness to identify the regions where the water bodies are suitable to use for drinking, irrigation as well as industrial activities. Further, the sources of these contaminants were identified through factor analysis (FA), which revealed that both the geogenic as well as anthropogenic sources were responsible for groundwater pollution. This research demonstrates the effectiveness of statistical and GIS techniques for the analysis of environmental contaminants.

Keywords: groundwater, water quality analysis, water quality index, WQI, factor analysis, FA, spatial assessment

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Authors: Raj Chavan

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Currently, there are over 14,500 Water Resource Recovery Facilities (WRRFs) in the United States, with ~35% of them having some type of nutrient limits in place. These WRRFs account for about 1% of overall power demand and 2% of total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in the United States and contribute for 10 to 15% of the overall nutrient load to surface rivers in the United States. The evolution of densification technologies toward more compact and energy-efficient nutrient removal processes has been impacted by a number of factors. Existing facilities that require capacity expansion or biomass densification for higher treatability within the same footprint are being subjected to more stringent requirements relating to nutrient removal prior to surface water discharge. Densification of activated sludge has received recent widespread interest as a means for achieving process intensification and nutrient removal at WRRFs. At the core of the technology are the aerobic sludge granules where the biological processes occur. There is considerable interest in the prospect of producing granular sludge in continuous (or traditional) activated sludge processes (CAS) or densification of biomass by moving activated sludge flocs to a denser aggregate of biomass as a highly effective technique of intensification. This presentation will provide a fundamental understanding of densification by presenting insights and practical issues. The topics that will be discussed include methods used to generate and retain densified granules; the mechanisms that allow biological flocs to densify; the role that physical selectors play in the densification of biological flocs; some viable ways for managing biological flocs that have become densified; effects of physical selection design parameters on the retention of densified biological flocs and finally some operational solutions for customizing the flocs and granules required to meet performance and capacity targets. In addition, it will present some case studies where biological and physical parameters were used to generate aerobic granular sludge in the continuous flow system.

Keywords: densification, aerobic granular sludge, nutrient removal, intensification

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Authors: Khwaja Naweed Seddiqi

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Hydrocarbon resources are important for the redevelopment and sustainable progress of Afghanistan’s infrastructure. This paper aim is to increase the oil recovery of Hitervian reservoir of Angut oil field in north part of Afghanistan by an easy and available method, which is Buckley-Leveret frontal displacement theory. In this paper oil displacement by water that takes placed by injecting water into the under laying petroleum reservoir which called waterflooding technique is investigated. The theory is investigated in a laboratory experiment first then applied in Angut oil field which is now under the operation of a private petroleum company. Based on this study oil recovery of Angut oil field, residual oil saturation, Buckle-Leveret saturation and FBL is determined.

Keywords: waterflooding technique, two phase fluid flow, Buckley-Leveret, petroleum engineering

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Authors: Rajlakshmi Banerjee, Sujoy Banerjee

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The prevalence of malnutrition, as the most common cause of morbidity and mortality increases with old age, especially in developing countries like India, because of many factors out of which dentate status is one. It affects diet, nutritional status and general health due to reduced chewing ability and poor food choices. Aim and Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of nutritional status, dietary intake on the Oral Health-related Quality of life (OHRQoL) of elderly edentulous complete denture wearing patients and to know whether they are at a higher risk of malnutrition. The objective was to assess the need to include dietary and nutritional counselling during Prosthodontic rehabilitation of elderly edentulous patients. Materials and method: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 elderly denture wearing patients above 60 yrs of age from Nagpur, Maharashtra. The majority of study subjects (60%) were between the age group 60 and 75 years. Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA) Questionnaire was used to assess nutritional status and General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI) questionnaire was used to determine the Oral health related Quality of life of these patients.Descriptive statistics was used to analyze data using SPSS version 21. Results: Among the assessed subjects, nearly 80% of them had total scores of GOHAI between 12 and 57 which require ‘needed dental care.’ As per MNA, 10.5% had adequate nutrition, 70 % were at risk of malnutrition, and remaining 19.5 % of subjects were malnourished. There was a significant correlation between GOHAI and MNA scores. A strong association was found between mean GOHAI and MNA scores and thereby nutritional status and OHRQOL.Conclusion: The use of conventional dentures increases the risk of malnutrition in the elderly due to inability to eat and chew food properly and therefore severely affecting the quality of life. Dietary analysis and counselling should be strictly incorporated into geriatric treatment planning during Prosthetic rehabilitation.

Keywords: general oral health assessment index, General Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI), nutritional assessment, mini-nutritional assessment, Mini-Nutritional Assessment (MNA), quality of life

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Authors: José María Agugusto-landa, Inmaculada García-Martínez, Lara Checa Domene, Óscar Gavín Chocano

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Self-concept is the perception that a person has of himself, of his abilities, skills, traits, and values. Self-concept is composed of different dimensions, such as academic self-concept, physical self-concept, social self-concept, emotional self-concept, and family self-concept. The relationship between the dimensions of self-concept and mental health and academic performance among future teachers is a topic of interest for educational psychology. Some studies have found that: (i) There is a positive relationship between general self-concept, academic self-concept and academic performance, that is, students who have a more positive image of themselves tend to get better grades and be more motivated to learn. (ii) There is a positive relationship between emotional intelligence, physical self-concept and healthy habits, that is, students who regulate and understand their emotions better have a higher satisfaction with their physical appearance and follow a more balanced diet and a higher physical activity. As for gender differences in the dimensions of self-concept among future teachers, some studies have found that: (i) Girls tend to have a higher self-concept in the social, family and verbal dimensions, that is, they perceive themselves as more capable of relating to others, communicating effectively and receiving support from their family. (ii) Boys tend to have a higher self-concept in the physical, emotional and mathematical dimensions, that is, they perceive themselves as more capable of performing physical activities, controlling their emotions and solving mathematical problems. (iii) There are no significant differences between general self-concept and academic self-concept according to gender, that is, both girls and boys have a similar perception of their global worth and academic competence.

Keywords: preservice teachers, self-concept, academic performance, mental wellbeing

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Authors: Piotr Tylec, Alicja Dudek, Grzegorz Torbicz, Magdalena Mizera, Natalia Gajewska, Michael Su, Tanawat Vongsurbchart, Tomasz Stefura, Magdalena Pisarska, Mateusz Rubinkiewicz, Piotr Malczak, Piotr Major, Michal Pedziwiatr

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Introduction: Quality of life after bariatric surgery is an important factor when evaluating the final result of the treatment. Considering the vast surgical options, we tried to globally compare available methods in terms of quality of following the surgery. The aim of the study is to compare the quality of life a year after bariatric intervention using network meta-analysis methods. Material and Methods: We performed a systematic review according to PRISMA guidelines with Bayesian network meta-analysis. Inclusion criteria were: studies comparing at least two methods of weight loss treatment of which at least one is surgical, assessment of the quality of life one year after surgery by validated questionnaires. Primary outcomes were quality of life one year after bariatric procedure. The following aspects of quality of life were analyzed: physical, emotional, general health, vitality, role physical, social, mental, and bodily pain. All questionnaires were standardized and pooled to a single scale. Lifestyle intervention was considered as a referenced point. Results: An initial reference search yielded 5636 articles. 18 studies were evaluated. In comparison of total score of quality of life, we observed that laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (LSG) (median (M): 3.606, Credible Interval 97.5% (CrI): 1.039; 6.191), laparoscopic Roux en-Y gastric by-pass (LRYGB) (M: 4.973, CrI: 2.627; 7.317) and open Roux en-Y gastric by-pass (RYGB) (M: 9.735, CrI: 6.708; 12.760) had better results than other bariatric intervention in relation to lifestyle interventions. In the analysis of the physical aspects of quality of life, we notice better results in LSG (M: 3.348, CrI: 0.548; 6.147) and in LRYGB procedure (M: 5.070, CrI: 2.896; 7.208) than control intervention, and worst results in open RYGB (M: -9.212, CrI: -11.610; -6.844). Analyzing emotional aspects, we found better results than control intervention in LSG, in LRYGB, in open RYGB, and laparoscopic gastric plication. In general health better results were in LSG (M: 9.144, CrI: 4.704; 13.470), in LRYGB (M: 6.451, CrI: 10.240; 13.830) and in single-anastomosis gastric by-pass (M: 8.671, CrI: 1.986; 15.310), and worst results in open RYGB (M: -4.048, CrI: -7.984; -0.305). In social and vital aspects of quality of life, better results were observed in LSG and LRYGB than control intervention. We did not find any differences between bariatric interventions in physical role, mental and bodily aspects of quality of life. Conclusion: The network meta-analysis revealed that better quality of life in total score one year after bariatric interventions were after LSG, LRYGB, open RYGB. In physical and general health aspects worst quality of life was in open RYGB procedure. Other interventions did not significantly affect the quality of life after a year compared to dietary intervention.

Keywords: bariatric surgery, network meta-analysis, quality of life, one year follow-up

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Authors: Gagnesh Kumar, Nitin Gupta

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Ternary Content Addressable Memory cells are mainly popular in network routers for packet forwarding and packet classification, but they are also useful in a variety of other applications that require high-speed table look-up. The main TCAM-design challenge is to decrease the power consumption associated with the large amount of parallel active circuitry, without compromising with speed or memory density. Furthermore, when the channel length decreases, leakage power becomes more significant, and it can even dominate dynamic power at lower technologies. In this paper, we propose a TCAM-design technique, called Virtual Power Supply technique that reduces the leakage by a substantial amount.

Keywords: match line (ML), search line (SL), ternary content addressable memory (TCAM), Leakage power (LP)

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Authors: Şenay Pehli̇van, Gülümser Kublay

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Female inmates placed in a Correctional Institution (CI) have more physical health problems than other women and their male counterparts. Thus, they require more health care services in the CI and nursing services in particular. CI nurses also have the opportunity to teach behaviors which will protect and improve their health to these women who are difficult to reach in the community. The aim of this study was to evaluate effect of nursing services provided in a CI on the physical health levels and health behaviors of female inmates. The study has a quasi-experimental design. The study was done in Female Closed CI in Ankara, Turkey. The study was conducted on 30 female inmates. Before the implementation of nursing interventions in the initial phase of the study, female inmates were evaluated in terms of physical health problems and health behavior using forms, a physical examination, medical history, health files (file containing medical information related to prisons) and the Omaha System (OS). Findings obtained from evaluations were grouped and symptoms-findings were expressed with OS diagnosis codes. Knowledge, behavior and status scores of prisoners in relation to health problems were determined. After the implementation of the nursing interventions, female inmates were evaluated in terms of physical health problems and health behavior using OS. The research data were collected using the Female Evaluation Form developed by the researcher and the OS. It was found that knowledge, behavior and status scores of prisoners significantly increased after the implementation of nursing interventions (p < 0.05).

Keywords: prison nursing, health promotion and protecting, nursi̇ng servi̇ces, omaha system

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Authors: Caglayan Hizal, Hasan Emre Demirci, Engin Aktas, Alper Sezer

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Offshore wind turbines consist of a long slender tower with a heavy fixed mass on the top of the tower (nacelle), together with a heavy rotating mass (blades and hub). They are always subjected to environmental loads including wind and wave loads in their service life. This study presents a three-stage methodology for reliability-based condition assessment of offshore wind-turbines against the seismic, wave and wind induced effects considering the soil-structure interaction. In this context, failure criterions are considered as serviceability limits of a monopile supporting an Offshore Wind Turbine: (a) allowable horizontal displacement at pile head should not exceed 0.2 m, (b) rotations at pile head should not exceed 0.5°. A Bayesian system identification framework is adapted to the classical reliability analysis procedure. Using this framework, a reliability assessment can be directly implemented to the updated finite element model without performing time-consuming methods. For numerical verification, simulation data of the finite model of a real offshore wind-turbine structure is investigated using the three-stage methodology.

Keywords: Offshore wind turbines, SHM, reliability assessment, soil-structure interaction

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Authors: Tami Peterson

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Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) has been hypothesized as an effective treatment for increasing verbal language skills in individuals on the autism spectrum. A child’s ability to effectively communicate with peers, parents, and caregivers impacts their level of independence and quality of personal relationships. This retrospective study will compare the speech development of participants aged 2-17 years that received 40 sessions of HBOT at 2.0 ATA to those who had not. Both groups will have a verbal assessment every six months. There were 31 subjects in the HBO group and 32 subjects in the non-HBO group. The statistical analysis will focus on whether hyperbaric oxygen therapy made a significant difference in Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment and Placement Program (VB-MAPP) or Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills (ABLLS) results. The evidence demonstrates a strong correlation between HBOT and an increased change from baseline verbal scores compared to the control group, even in difficult to grasp areas such as spontaneous vocalization. We suggest this is due to the anti-inflammatory effects of hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Neuroinflammation causes hypoperfusion of critical central nervous system areas responsible for the symptoms described within the autism spectrum, such as problems with thought processing, memory, and speech. Decreasing the inflammation allows the brain to function properly, which results in improved verbal scores for the participants that underwent HBOT.

Keywords: assessment of basic language and learning skills, autism spectrum disorder, hyperbaric oxygen therapy, verbal behavior milestones assessment and placement program

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Authors: M. R. S. Nasuha, K. Azman, H. Azhan, S. A. Senawi, A . Mardhiah

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Sm3+ doped borotellurite glasses of the system (70-x) TeO2-20B2O3-10ZnO-xSm2O3 (where x = 0.0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 mol%) have been prepared using melt-quenching method. Their physical properties such as density, molar volume and oxygen packing density as well as the optical measurements by mean of their absorption and emission characteristic have been carried out at room temperature using UV/VIS and photoluminescence spectrophotometer. The result of physical properties is found to vary with respect to Sm3+ ions content. Meanwhile, three strong absorption peaks are observed and are well resolved in the ultraviolet and visible regions due to transitions between the ground state and various excited state of Sm3+ ions. Thus, the photoluminescence spectra exhibit four emission bands from the initial state, which correspond to the 4G5/2 → 6H5/2, 4G5/2 → 6H7/2, 4G5/2 → 6H9/2 and 4G5/2 → 6H11/2 fluorescence transitions at 562 nm, 599 nm, 645 nm, and 706 nm, respectively.

Keywords: absorption, borotellurite, emission, optical, physical

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Authors: Hossam Shalabi, George Hadjisophocleous

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The Canadian Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) use some portions of NUREG/CR-6850 in carrying out Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA). An assessment for the applicability of NUREG/CR-6850 to CANDU reactors was performed and a CANDU Fire PRA was introduced. There are 19 operating CANDU reactors in Canada at five sites (Bruce A, Bruce B, Darlington, Pickering and Point Lepreau). A fire load density survey was done for all Fire Safe Shutdown Analysis (FSSA) fire zones in all CANDU sites in Canada. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Standard 557 proposes that a fire load survey must be conducted by either the weighing method or the inventory method or a combination of both. The combination method results in the most accurate values for fire loads. An updated CANDU Fire PRA model is demonstrated in this paper that includes the fuel survey in all Canadian CANDU stations. A qualitative screening step for the CANDU fire PRA is illustrated in this paper to include any fire events that can damage any part of the emergency power supply in addition to FSSA cables.

Keywords: fire safety, CANDU, nuclear, fuel densities, FDS, qualitative analysis, fire probabilistic risk assessment

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Authors: Rossukhon Makaramani, Supanan Sittilerd, Wipada Prasarnsaph

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The study aimed to 1) examine management status of a Program in Education at the Faculty of Education, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University (SSRU); 2) determine main components, indicators and criteria for constructing quality assessment framework; 3) assess quality of a SSRU Program in Education; and 4) provide recommendations to promote academic excellence. The program to be assessed was Bachelor of Education Program in Education (5 years), Revised Version 2009. Population and samples were stakeholders involving implementation of this program during an academic year 2012. Results were: 1) Management status of the Program in Education showed that the Faculty of Education depicted good level (4.20) in the third cycle of external quality assessment by the Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment (ONESQA). There were 1,192 students enrolling in the program, divided into 5 major fields of study. There were 50 faculty members, 37 holding master’s degrees and 13 holding doctorate degrees. Their academic position consisted of 35 lecturers, 10 assistant professors, and 5 associate professors. For program management, there was a committee of 5 members for the program and also a committee of 4 or 5 members for each major field of study. Among the faculty members, 41 persons taught in this program. The ratio between faculty and student was 1:26. The result of 2013 internal quality assessment indicated that system and mechanism of the program development and management was at fair level. However, the overall result yielded good level either by criteria of the Office of Higher Education Commission (4.29) or the NESQA (4.37); 2) Framework for assessing the quality of the program consisted of 4 dimensions and 15 indicators; 3) Assessment of the program yielded Good level of quality (4.04); 4) Recommendations to promote academic excellence included management and development of the program focusing on teacher reform toward highly recognized profession; cultivation of values, moral, ethics, and spirits of being a teacher; construction of specialized programs; development of faculty potentials; enhancement of the demonstration school’s readiness level; and provision of dormitories for learning.

Keywords: quality assessment, education program, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, academic excellence

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Dawoudi

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With the increasing rate of patients suffering from chronic pain, several methods for evaluating of chronic pain are suggested. Motion of morbid has been defined as the rate of pine and it is linked with various co-morbid conditions. This study provides a summary of procedure useful to statistics performing direct behavioral observation in hospital settings. We describe the need for and usefulness of comprehensive “morbid motions” observations; provide a primer on the identification, definition, and assessment of morbid behaviors; and outline and discuss specific statistical procedures, including formulating referral motions, describing and conducting the observation. We also provide practical devices for observing and analyzing the obtained information into a report that guides clinical intervention.

Keywords: assessing pain, DNA modeling, image matching technique, pain scale

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Authors: Mohamed M. Diab, Fahmy E. Mohamed, Alaa Balbaa

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Background: Myofascial pain syndrome a common type of non-articular musculoskeletal pain, is a condition associated with regional pain and muscle tenderness characterized by the presence of hypersensitive nodules. Objectives: the purpose of this study is to compare between the effects of manual progressive ischemic pressure versus the effect of post isometric facilitation in the treatment of Rhomboid latent myofascial trigger points. Methods: six patients had participated in this study. Patients divided into two groups. Group A treated by manual progressive ischemic pressure and traditional physical therapy program. Group B treated by post isometric facilitation and traditional physical therapy program. Treatment program was for 6 sessions over two week’s period. Result: Statistical analysis revealed that there is no significant difference in post treatment from pretreatment in pain severity (VAS) in myofascial trigger points with Rhomboid muscles) and Pain pressure threshold (PPT) for tenderness at both groups (A,B). Conclusion: ischemic pressure technique appear to be no more effective than post isometric facilitation in treatment of rhomboids latent myofacial trigger point.

Keywords: Rhmoiboid trigger point, myofacila trigger point, ischemic pressure, post isometric facilitation

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Authors: C. Silveira, A. Ascenso, J. Ferreira, A. I. Miranda, P. Tuccella, G. Curci

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Poor air quality is one of the main environmental causes of premature deaths worldwide, and mainly in cities, where the majority of the population lives. It is a consequence of successive land cover (LC) and use changes, as a result of the intensification of human activities. Knowing these landscape modifications in a comprehensive spatiotemporal dimension is, therefore, essential for understanding variations in air pollutant concentrations. In this sense, the use of air quality models is very useful to simulate the physical and chemical processes that affect the dispersion and reaction of chemical species into the atmosphere. However, the modelling performance should always be evaluated since the resolution of the input datasets largely dictates the reliability of the air quality outcomes. Among these data, the updated LC is an important parameter to be considered in atmospheric models, since it takes into account the Earth’s surface changes due to natural and anthropic actions, and regulates the exchanges of fluxes (emissions, heat, moisture, etc.) between the soil and the air. This work aims to evaluate the performance of the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with Chemistry (WRF-Chem), when different LC classifications are used as an input. The influence of two LC classifications was tested: i) the 24-classes USGS (United States Geological Survey) LC database included by default in the model, and the ii) CLC (Corine Land Cover) and specific high-resolution LC data for Portugal, reclassified according to the new USGS nomenclature (33-classes). Two distinct WRF-Chem simulations were carried out to assess the influence of the LC on air quality over Europe and Portugal, as a case study, for the year 2015, using the nesting technique over three simulation domains (25 km², 5 km² and 1 km² horizontal resolution). Based on the 33-classes LC approach, particular emphasis was attributed to Portugal, given the detail and higher LC spatial resolution (100 m x 100 m) than the CLC data (5000 m x 5000 m). As regards to the air quality, only the LC impacts on tropospheric ozone concentrations were evaluated, because ozone pollution episodes typically occur in Portugal, in particular during the spring/summer, and there are few research works relating to this pollutant with LC changes. The WRF-Chem results were validated by season and station typology using background measurements from the Portuguese air quality monitoring network. As expected, a better model performance was achieved in rural stations: moderate correlation (0.4 – 0.7), BIAS (10 – 21µg.m^-3) and RMSE (20 – 30 µg.m^-3), and where higher average ozone concentrations were estimated. Comparing both simulations, small differences grounded on the Leaf Area Index and air temperature values were found, although the high-resolution LC approach shows a slight enhancement in the model evaluation. This highlights the role of the LC on the exchange of atmospheric fluxes, and stresses the need to consider a high-resolution LC characterization combined with other detailed model inputs, such as the emission inventory, to improve air quality assessment.

Keywords: land use, spatial resolution, WRF-Chem, air quality assessment

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Authors: Amy Hodges, Deanna Rasmussen, Sherry Ward

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This paper examines the use of ePortfolios in a two-course sequence for ESL (English as a Second Language) students at an international branch campus in Doha, Qatar. ePortfolios support the transfer of language learning, but few have examined the sustainability of that transfer across an ESL program. Drawing upon surveys and interviews with students, we analyze three case studies that complicate previous research on metacognition, language learning, and ePortfolios. Our findings have implications for those involved in ESL programs and assessment of student writing.

Keywords: TESOL, electronic portfolios, assessment, technology

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Authors: D. Aboutaleb, B. Safi

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The borate glasses are known by their structural characterized by existence of unit’s structural composed by triangles and tetrahedrons boron in different configurations depending on the percentage of B2O3 in the glass chemical composition. In this paper, effect of lithium oxide addition on the thermal and physical properties of an alumina borate glass, was investigated. It was found that the boron abnormality has a significant effect in the change of glass properties according to the addition rate of lithium oxide.

Keywords: borate glasses, triangles and tetrahedrons boron, lithium oxide, boron anomaly, thermal properties, physical properties

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Authors: M. S. M. El-Bady

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Water quality and heavy metals pollution of the Damietta Nile Branch at Damietta governorate were investigated in the current work. Fourteen different sampling points were selected along the Damietta Nile branch from Ras EL-Bar (sample 1) to Sheremsah (sample 14). Physical and chemical parameters and the concentrations of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Fe, Al, Hg, Pb and Zn were investigated for water quality assessment of Damietta Nile Branch at Damietta Governorate. Most of the samples show that the water is suitable for drinking and irrigation purposes. All locations of samples near the sea are unsuitable water but the samples in the south direction away from the sea are suitable or good water for drinking and irrigation.

Keywords: water quality indices, Damietta Governorate, Nile river, pollution

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Authors: Jose Ruiz, Jose Velasquez, Holger Lovon

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Peruvian university buildings are critical structures for which very little research about its seismic vulnerability is available. This paper develops a probabilistic methodology that predicts seismic loss for university buildings with simulated fragility functions. Two university buildings located in the city of Cusco were analyzed. Fragility functions were developed considering seismic and structural parameters uncertainty. The fragility functions were generated with the Latin Hypercube technique, an improved Montecarlo-based method, which optimizes the sampling of structural parameters and provides at least 100 reliable samples for every level of seismic demand. Concrete compressive strength, maximum concrete strain and yield stress of the reinforcing steel were considered as the key structural parameters. The seismic demand is defined by synthetic records which are compatible with the elastic Peruvian design spectrum. Acceleration records are scaled based on the peak ground acceleration on rigid soil (PGA) which goes from 0.05g to 1.00g. A total of 2000 structural models were considered to account for both structural and seismic variability. These functions represent the overall building behavior because they give rational information regarding damage ratios for defined levels of seismic demand. The university buildings show an expected Mean Damage Factor of 8.80% and 19.05%, respectively, for the 0.22g-PGA scenario, which was amplified by the soil type coefficient and resulted in 0.26g-PGA. These ratios were computed considering a seismic demand related to 10% of probability of exceedance in 50 years which is a requirement in the Peruvian seismic code. These results show an acceptable seismic performance for both buildings.

Keywords: fragility functions, university buildings, loss assessment, Montecarlo simulation, latin hypercube

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Authors: Sari F. Alkhatib, Chang Je Park, Gyuhong Roh

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The iterative scheme which is used to treat buildup factors for stratified shields is being investigated here using the layer-splitting technique. A simple suggested formalism for the scheme based on the Kalos’ formula is introduced, based on which the implementation of the testing technique is carried out. The second layer in a double-layer shield was split into two equivalent layers and the scheme (with the suggested formalism) was implemented on the new “three-layer” shield configuration. The results of such manipulation on water-lead and water-iron shields combinations are presented here for 1 MeV photons. It was found that splitting the second layer introduces some deviation on the overall buildup factor value. This expected deviation appeared to be higher in the case of low Z layer followed by high Z. However, the overall performance of the iterative scheme showed a great consistency and strong coherence even with the introduced changes. The introduced layer-splitting testing technique shows the capability to be implemented in test the iterative scheme with a wide range of formalisms.

Keywords: buildup factor, iterative scheme, stratified shields, layer-splitting tecnique

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Authors: Ruben L. Tagare, Jr

Abstract:

This study was conducted to determine the parents’ motivating factors for their deaf and mute children to participate in physical and recreational activities. Data were collected from the 17 parents of the deaf and mute children using a specifically designed survey questionnaire as the primary instrument used in the study. Data analysis and interpretation were done with the aid of descriptive statistics, such as frequency, percentage, weighted mean and multiple responses. Most of the respondents were female with a mean average age of 38 years old. The average age of their children was 10 years old. In terms of monthly income, the respondents had an average monthly income of PhP 13,945. Furthermore, most of the respondents lived in the urban area and were all Catholic by faith or religion. As to the factors that parents used to motivate their deaf and mute children to engage in physical and recreational activities, these included the followings: First; to make my child experience and explore more meaningful things through physical and recreational activities; second; to gain other’s respect; third; to build friendship and interact with his peers; fourth; to experience the feeling of belongingness; and fifth: to learn and discover new things. On the other hand, the least chosen factors were: first; to help achieve and maintain a healthy weight; second; to reduce fats and lowering blood pressure; third; to improve balance, coordination and strength; fourth; to improve posture; and fifth; to assist the child in the development of gross motor and fine motor skills. Based on the findings of the study, it is hereby recommended that since the first factor is 'to make my child experience and explore more meaningful things through physical and recreational activities' and the other top factors are more on social aspect, the school should design extra-curricular activities such as theatrical play and other similar activities that the students will find interesting while the parents will be more motivated to engage their children into physical and recreational activities. Also, since the least chosen factors are more on physical aspect, the school should organize or conduct a seminar for the parents to be aware of the benefits of participating in physical and recreational activities for their deaf and mute children. They can also conduct an information campaign to encourage the other parents of deaf and mute children, whom they keep only inside their home to enroll in the school and let their children be exposed to the natural world. Considering that parents are the primary motivators that can best help their children become more interested in physical and recreational activities for their own development, the school should always remain motivated by creating activities for the deaf and mute children with their parents. The study also recommends conducting further study on the level of knowledge/understanding of the parents on the benefits that can be derived from participating in physical and recreational activities.

Keywords: deaf and mute, participation, physical and recreational activities, adaptive PE

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Authors: Sergo Tsiramua, Sulkhan Sulkhanishvili, Elisabed Asabashvili, Lazare Kvirtia

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The paper presents logical-probabilistic methods, models and algorithms for reliability assessment of complex systems, based on which a web application for structural analysis and reliability assessment of systems was created. The reliability assessment process included the following stages, which were reflected in the application: 1) Construction of a graphical scheme of the structural reliability of the system; 2) Transformation of the graphic scheme into a logical representation and modeling of the shortest ways of successful functioning of the system; 3) Description of system operability condition with logical function in the form of disjunctive normal form (DNF); 4) Transformation of DNF into orthogonal disjunction normal form (ODNF) using the orthogonalization algorithm; 5) Replacing logical elements with probabilistic elements in ODNF, obtaining a reliability estimation polynomial and quantifying reliability; 6) Calculation of weights of elements. Using the logical-probabilistic methods, models and algorithms discussed in the paper, a special software was created, by means of which a quantitative assessment of the reliability of systems of a complex structure is produced. As a result, structural analysis of systems, research and designing of optimal structure systems are carried out.

Keywords: Complex systems, logical-probabilistic methods, orthogonalization algorithm, reliability, weight of element

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Authors: Oloniyo Rebecca Olajumoke

Abstract:

The unstable free radicals molecules oxidize cells throughout the body to cause oxidative stress, which has been implicated in the pathogenesis of many chronic diseases. Thus, the consumption of antioxidant-rich snacks could help to reduce the production of these free radicals in the body. This study aimed at producing antioxidant–rich biscuits from an underutilized pearl millet and agricultural waste from orange peel flour (PMF and OPF, respectively) blends. Biscuits were produced from PMF, and OPF blends using various proportions (95:05; 90:10; 85:15; 80:20 with 100% PMF as control. The functional properties of the flours, as well as the antioxidant properties, physical evaluation, and consumer acceptability of the biscuits, were evaluated. The functional properties of the composite flour showed an increase in oil absorption capacity (7.73-8.80 g/ml), water absorption capacity (6.82-7.21 g/ml), foaming (3.91-5.88 g/ml), and emulsification (52.85-58.82 g/ml) properties. The increased addition of OPF significantly (p<0.05) increased the antioxidant properties of the biscuits produced from the composite flour. For instance, the ferric reducing properties (0.10-0.4 mgAAE/g), total flavonoid (1.20-8.12 mg QE/g), and ABTS radical scavenging (1.17-2.19 mmol/TEAC/g) of the composite flours were increasingly comparable to those of 100% PMF. The physical parameters of the biscuit were significantly different (p<0.05) from one another. The addition of OPF into PMF reduced the weight, diameter, and spread ratio of biscuits produced while contrarily increasing the height of the biscuit. The incorporation of OPF at 5% (95:05) substitution yielded a consumedly acceptable biscuit product. The significant increase in antioxidant properties with an increase in OPF during the production of biscuits would therefore increase the nutritional value and potential health benefits.

Keywords: orange peel, biscuit, antioxidant, pearl millet

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Authors: R. Maher, D. Marchant, F. Fazel

Abstract:

Choking in sport has been defined as ‘an acute performance breakdown’, and is generally explained through a range of contributory antecedents, factors, and explanatory theories. The influence of mental antecedents on an athlete’s performance under pressure has been widely examined through numerous studies. Researchers have only recently begun to investigate the influence of physical effort and associated residual fatigue as a potential contributor to choking in sport. Consequently, the initial aim of the present study was to examine the extent to which both physical exertion and pressure affect free-throw shooting performance. It was hypothesized that the free-throw shooting scores would decline under manipulated conditions. Design and Methods: Using a within-subjects design, 50 student-athletes were assigned to four manipulated conditions: (a) higher pressure-running, (b) higher pressure-no running, (c) lower pressure-running, and (d) lower pressure-no running. The physical exertion was manipulated by including a 56 meter shuttle-run in two of the running conditions. The pressure was manipulated with the presence of an audience, video-recording, performance contingent rewards, and weighting successful shots in the higher pressure conditions. A repeated measure analysis of variance was used to analyse the data. Results: The free-throw performance significantly deteriorated under manipulated physical exertion F (1, 49) = 10.13, p = .003, ηp 2 = .17 and pressure conditions F (1, 49) = 5.25, p = .02, ηp 2 = .09. The lowest free-throw scores were observed in the higher pressure-running condition, whereas the highest free-throw scores were reported in the lower pressure-no running condition. Conclusions: Physical exertion and the associated residual fatigue were contributors to choking. The results of the present study herald a new concept in choking research and yield a practical platform for use by athletes, coaches, and sport psychologists to better manage the psychological and physiological aspects of performance under pressure.

Keywords: anxiety, basketball, choking, fatigue, free-throw shooting, physical exertion

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Authors: Arun Prasad

Abstract:

Background: Robotic Bariatric Surgery is a good option for the super obese where laparoscopy demands challenging technical skills. Gastric bypass can be difficult due to inability of the robot to work in two quadrants at the same time. Lonroth technique of gastric bypass involves a totally supracolic surgery where all anastomosis are done in one quadrant only. Methods: We have done 78 robotic gastric bypass surgeries using the modified Lonroth technique. The robot is docked above the head of the patient in the midline. Camera port is placed supra umbilically. Two ports are placed on the left side of the patient and one port on the right side of the patient. An assistant port is placed between the camera port and right sided robotic port for use of stapler. Gastric pouch is made first followed by the gastrojejunostomy that is a four layered sutured anastomosis. Jejuno jejunostomy is then performed followed by a leak test and then the jejunum is divided. A 150 cm biliopancreatic limb and a 75 cm alimentary limb are finally obtained. Mesenteric and Petersen’s defects are then closed. Results: All patients had a successful robotic procedure. Mean time taken in the first 5 cases was 130 minutes. This reduced to a mean of 95 minutes in the last five cases. There were no intraoperative or post operative complications. Conclusions: While a hybrid technique of partly laparoscopic and partly robotic gastric bypass has been done at many centres, we feel using the modified Lonroth technique, a totally robotic gastric bypass surgery fully utilizes the potential of robotic bariatric surgery.

Keywords: robot, bariatric, totally robotic, gastric bypass

Procedia PDF Downloads 258

Authors: Marinella Majorano, Rachele Ferrari, Tamara Bastianello

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The recent technological advance allows for applying innovative and multimedia screen-based assessment tools to test children's language and early literacy skills, monitor their growth over the preschool years, and test their readiness for primary school. Several are the advantages that a computer-based assessment tool offers with respect to paper-based tools. Firstly, computer-based tools which provide the use of games, videos, and audio may be more motivating and engaging for children, especially for those with language difficulties. Secondly, computer-based assessments are generally less time-consuming than traditional paper-based assessments: this makes them less demanding for children and provides clinicians and researchers, but also teachers, with the opportunity to test children multiple times over the same school year and, thus, to monitor their language growth more systematically. Finally, while paper-based tools require offline coding, computer-based tools sometimes allow obtaining automatically calculated scores, thus producing less subjective evaluations of the assessed skills and provide immediate feedback. Nonetheless, using computer-based assessment tools to test meta-phonological and language skills in children is not yet common practice in Italy. The present contribution aims to estimate the internal consistency of a computer-based assessment (i.e., the Simo-syl assessment). Sixty-three Italian pre-schoolers aged between 4;10 and 5;9 years were tested at the beginning of the last year of the preschool through paper-based standardised tools in their lexical (Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test), morpho-syntactical (Grammar Repetition Test for Children), meta-phonological (Meta-Phonological skills Evaluation test), and phono-articulatory skills (non-word repetition). The same children were tested through Simo-syl assessment on their phonological and meta-phonological skills (e.g., recognise syllables and vowels and read syllables and words). The internal consistency of the computer-based tool was acceptable (Cronbach's alpha = .799). Children's scores obtained in the paper-based assessment and scores obtained in each task of the computer-based assessment were correlated. Significant and positive correlations emerged between all the tasks of the computer-based assessment and the scores obtained in the CMF (r = .287 - .311, p < .05) and in the correct sentences in the RCGB (r = .360 - .481, p < .01); non-word repetition standardised test significantly correlates with the reading tasks only (r = .329 - .350, p < .05). Further tasks should be included in the current version of Simo-syl to have a comprehensive and multi-dimensional approach when assessing children. However, such a tool represents a good chance for the teachers to early identifying language-related problems even in the school environment.

Keywords: assessment, computer-based, early identification, language-related skills

Procedia PDF Downloads 183