Search results for: physical contact

Authors: Ingrid R. Avanzi, Marcela dos P. G. Baltazar, Louise H. Gracioso, Luciana J. Gimenes, Bruno Karolski, Elen A. Perpetuo, Claudio Auguto Oller do Nascimento

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In this study was developed a natural process using a biological system for the uptake of Copper and possible removal of copper from wastewater by dead biomass of the strain Burkholderia cenocepacia. Dead and live biomass of Burkholderia cenocepacia was used to analyze the equilibrium and kinetics of copper biosorption by this strain in function of the pH. Living biomass exhibited the highest biosorption capacity of copper, 50 mg g−1, which was achieved within 5 hours of contact, at pH 7.0, temperature of 30°C, and agitation speed of 150 rpm. The dead biomass of Burkholderia cenocepacia may be considered an efficiently bioprocess, being fast and low-cost to production of copper and also a probably nano-adsorbent of this metal ion in wastewater in bioremediation process. In this study was developed a natural process using a biological system for the uptake of Copper and possible removal of copper from wastewater by dead biomass of the strain Burkholderia cenocepacia. Dead and live biomass of Burkholderia cenocepacia was used to analyze the equilibrium and kinetics of copper biosorption by this strain in function of the pH. Living biomass exhibited the highest biosorption capacity of copper, 50 mg g−1, which was achieved within 5 hours of contact, at pH 7.0, temperature of 30°C, and agitation speed of 150 rpm. The dead biomass of Burkholderia cenocepacia may be considered an efficiently bioprocess, being fast and low-cost to production of copper and also a probably nano-adsorbent of this metal ion in wastewater in bioremediation process.

Keywords: biosorption, dead biomass, biotechnology, copper recovery

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Authors: Alfonso Ippolito, Cristiana Bartolomei

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A growing demand is felt today for realistic 3D models enabling the cognition and popularization of historical-artistic heritage. Evaluation and preservation of Cultural Heritage is inextricably connected with the innovative processes of gaining, managing, and using knowledge. The development and perfecting of techniques for acquiring and elaborating photorealistic 3D models, made them pivotal elements for popularizing information of objects on the scale of architectonic structures.

Keywords: cultural heritage, databases, non-contact survey, 2D-3D models

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Authors: Neda Najafi, Mehran Allalhesabi

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At present, the natural, geographical, physical contexts of the rural textures, which play a crucial role in making the concept behind their body, are not considered in the new designs. Despite the fundamental differences in contexts, this issue has caused that, the new rural textures in our country become similar to each other and the cohesive structure of many villages in the development of rural areas are exposed to deterioration. The villages of northern Iran are not immune from this situation and nothing have remained from their physical characteristic, and the new sections of rural areas are designed heterogeneously and regardless to the concepts behind the region's architecture, which destroys the originality of the environment. The purpose of this study is to extract the concepts and criteria that differentiate the body of the village and reveal its similarity with the same structures. In this way, understanding the underlying values is extremely useful and is considered very important to approach the new model. In the first part, the subject matters of the research (context, village and rural architecture) are defined and then the characteristics of context-oriented rural architecture and criteria that can be examined from the perspective of contextualism approach are presented. In the second part, by selecting 3 samples from the houses of Baliran village, these concepts and criteria have been evaluated in the houses of the village. The results of this study show that the characteristics of contextual rural architecture have the ability to adapt to the body of the village and can be the best model to achieve contextual architecture in this area. Therefore, by using these concepts and criteria, it is possible to achieve a type of architecture that is located along with the past architecture and, with the help of the modern facilities and environmental potentials, creates a logical and correct flow in the physical development of the rural textures.

Keywords: context, village, rural architecture, concepts and criteria of physical contextualism

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Authors: Katalin Gocze, Vanda A Nemes, Charlotte Briest

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Introduction: Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a psychoneuroendocrinological disorder adversely affecting life-quality for over 80% of hormonally active women. PMS has a negative impact on women’s daily life in terms of work, interpersonal relationships and leisure time activities. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of a yoga intervention focusing on the female pelvic area. Materials and methods: 34 women (ages 18-40) with PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome Screening Tool) and no previous experience in yoga were recruited and randomly assigned to either the yoga or the control group. The intervention consisted of 90’ yoga sessions twice a week and a daily 15’ self-practice module with carefully chosen yogic exercises addressing the reproductive organs by toning the pelvic floor and opening the hips as well as relieving stress and improving concentration. Severity of symptoms of PMS was assessed at the beginning and after the 8-week-long intervention. Pre- and post-program data collection included physical and psychological parameters and the evaluation of ACOQ PMS questionnaire and daily symptom diary. Results: Age and educational background were similar in the control and intervention group with an overall mean age of 29.11±4.78 years. PSST scores significantly improved in the yoga group (p=0.002), while difference in the control group’s pre and post-program values were non-significant (p=0.38). Perception and tolerance of anxiety and stress was significantly better after the intervention (p=0.008). As for changes in physical symptoms distinct improvement was registered for breast tenderness (p=0.028) and for meteorism (p=0.015). Discussion: Yoga’s success originates from the synergic positive effects of stress relief and regular physical activity. Benefits (both mental and physical) of strategically planned, focused yoga practice are apparent even after shorter time periods and can help women with PMS manage or eliminate symptoms in order to improve their life-quality.

Keywords: life-quality, physical symptoms, premenstrual syndrome, psychological impact, yoga

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Authors: Reza Soleimanpour, Ching Tai Ng

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Fibre-composites are widely used in various structures due to their attractive properties such as higher stiffness to mass ratio and better corrosion resistance compared to metallic materials. However, one serious weakness of this composite material is delamination, which is a subsurface separation of laminae. A low level of this barely visible damage can cause a significant reduction in residual compressive strength. In the last decade, the application of guided waves for damage detection has been a topic of significant interest for many researches. Among all guided wave techniques, nonlinear guided wave has shown outstanding sensitivity and capability for detecting different types of damages, e.g. cracks and delaminations. So far, most of researches on applications of nonlinear guided wave have been dedicated to isotropic material, such as aluminium and steel, while only a few works have been done on applications of nonlinear characteristics of guided waves in anisotropic materials. This study investigates the nonlinear interactions of the fundamental antisymmetric lamb wave (A0) with delamination in composite laminates using three-dimensional (3D) explicit finite element (FE) simulations. The nonlinearity considered in this study arises from interactions of two interfaces of sub-laminates at the delamination region, which generates contact acoustic nonlinearity (CAN). The aim of this research is to investigate the phenomena of CAN in composite laminated beams by a series of numerical case studies. In this study interaction of fundamental antisymmetric lamb wave with delamination of different sizes are studied in detail. The results show that the A0 lamb wave interacts with the delaminations generating CAN in the form of higher harmonics, which is a good indicator for determining the existence of delaminations in composite laminates.

Keywords: contact acoustic nonlinearity, delamination, fibre reinforced composite beam, finite element, nonlinear guided waves

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Authors: Akindele Ojo, Olanike Ojo, Agatha Oseghale

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The empirical study examined the allocative efficiency of small holder tuber crop farmers in North central, Nigeria. Data used for the study were obtained from primary source using a multi-stage sampling technique with structured questionnaires administered to 300 randomly selected tuber crop farmers from the study area. Descriptive statistics, data envelopment analysis and Tobit regression model were used to analyze the data. The DEA result on the classification of the farmers into efficient and inefficient farmers showed that 17.67% of the sampled tuber crop farmers in the study area were operating at frontier and optimum level of production with mean allocative efficiency of 1.00. This shows that 82.33% of the farmers in the study area can still improve on their level of efficiency through better utilization of available resources, given the current state of technology. The results of the Tobit model for factors influencing allocative inefficiency in the study area showed that as the year of farming experience, level of education, cooperative society membership, extension contacts, credit access and farm size increased in the study area, the allocative inefficiency of the farmers decreased. The results on effects of the significant determinants of allocative inefficiency at various distribution levels revealed that allocative efficiency increased from 22% to 34% as the farmer acquired more farming experience. The allocative efficiency index of farmers that belonged to cooperative society was 0.23 while their counterparts without cooperative society had index value of 0.21. The result also showed that allocative efficiency increased from 0.43 as farmer acquired high formal education and decreased to 0.16 with farmers with non-formal education. The efficiency level in the allocation of resources increased with more contact with extension services as the allocative efficeincy index increased from 0.16 to 0.31 with frequency of extension contact increasing from zero contact to maximum of twenty contacts per annum. These results confirm that increase in year of farming experience, level of education, cooperative society membership, extension contacts, credit access and farm size leads to increases efficiency. The results further show that the age of the farmers had 32% input to the efficiency but reduces to an average of 15%, as the farmer grows old. It is therefore recommended that enhanced research, extension delivery and farm advisory services should be put in place for farmers who did not attain optimum frontier level to learn how to attain the remaining 74.39% level of allocative efficiency through a better production practices from the robustly efficient farms. This will go a long way to increase the efficiency level of the farmers in the study area.

Keywords: allocative efficiency, DEA, Tobit regression, tuber crop

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Authors: Matt Fullmer, Carol Wilkinson, Keven Prusak, Dennis Eggett, Todd Pennington

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Obesity and chronic health issues are linked to physical inactivity. Physical education (PE) programs in school can play a major role in combating these health-related issues. This study focused on supporting competence through keeping a leisure-time physical activity (LTPA) record as part of PE. Keeping a daily LTPA record may be an effective intervention helping students feel more competent toward exercise, and thus, self-determined (within the context of self-determination theory) to exercise. Little is known about the relationship between daily LTPA records and perceived competence, motivational profiles, and LTPA levels of students enrolled in PE. This study examined the relationship between keeping a daily, online LTPA record and adolescent (a) motivational profiles toward LTPA, (b) perceived competence toward LTPA, and (c) LTPA behaviors. Secondary students (N = 124) in physical education classes completed a baseline questionnaire which consisted of the Behavioural Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire–2, the Perceived Competence Scale, and the Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire. For three weeks, the students were assigned to keep the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award Challenge (PALAC) as their online LTPA record. They completed the questionnaire after each week. A 2 (gender) x 4 (trials) repeated measures ANCOVA examined the relationships between recording compliance and motivation, perceived competence, and physical activity. Results showed that recording compliance was not a significant predictor of perceived competence to participate in LTPA. Examining motivational factors, a significant interaction between recording compliance and introjected regulation was found. The more students recorded the less motivated they were by guilt or obligation to exercise in their leisure-time. Also, a significant interaction was found between recording compliance and intrinsic regulation, indicating that the more students recorded the more intrinsically motivated they were to exercise in their leisure-time. Lastly, there was a significant interaction between recording compliance and LTPA. As students kept the LTPA record, girls’ LTPA levels significantly decreased and boys’ LTPA levels significantly increased. The key findings are that, as implemented in this study: a) the lack of PALAC compliance suggests that daily LTPA records may NOT be the most effective intervention for this population, b) keeping a daily LTPA record did NOT help students feel more competent to exercise in their leisure-time, c) a daily LTPA record may help students move towards being more self-determined in their feelings towards LTPA, and d) the outcome of keeping a LTPA record on LTPA behavior is statistically significant, although actual differences may not be practically important.

Keywords: behavioural regulation in exercise questionnaire–2, Godin leisure–time exercise questionnaire, online physical activity log, perceived competence scale, self-determination theory

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Authors: Laura Masilionyte, Danute Jablonskyte-Rasce, Kestutis Venslauskas, Zita Kriauciuniene

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Alternative farming systems are used to cultivate high-quality food products and sustain the viability and fertility of the soil. Plant nutrition in all ecosystems depends not only on fertilization intensity or soil richness in organic matter but also on soil physical parameters –bulk density, structure, pores with the optimum moisture and air ratio available to plants. The field experiments of alternative (sustainable and organic) farming systems were conducted at Joniskelis Experimental Station of the Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry in 2006–2016. The soil of the experimental site was Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol (CMg-n-w-can). In alternative farming systems, farmyard manure, straw and catch crops for green manure were used for fertilization both in the soil with low and moderate humus contents. It had a more significant effect in the 0–20 cm depth layer on soil moisture than on other physical soil properties. In the agricultural systems, where catch crops were grown, soil physical characteristics did not differ significantly before their biomass incorporation, except for the moisture content, which was lower in rainy periods and higher in drier periods than in the soil of farming systems without catch crops. Soil bulk density and porosity in the topsoil layer were more dependent on soil humus content than on agricultural measures used: in the soil with moderate humus content, compared with the soil with low humus content, bulk density was by 1.4% lower, and porosity by 1.8% higher. The research findings allow to make improvements in alternative farming systems by choosing appropriate combinations of organic fertilizers and catch crops that have a sustainable effect on soil and maintain the sustainability of soil productivity parameters. Rational fertilization systems, securing the stability of soil productivity parameters and crop rotation productivity will promote the development of organic agriculture.

Keywords: agro-measures, soil physical parameters, organic farming, sustainable farming

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Authors: K. Rattawan, W. Intagun, W. Kanoksilapatham

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Objective of this research is to study effect of coffee grounds on physical and heating value properties of sugarcane bagasse pellets. The coffee grounds were tested as an additive for pelletizing process of bagasse pellets. Pelletizing was performed using a Flat–die pellet mill machine. Moisture content of raw materials was controlled at 10-13%. Die temperature range during the process was 75-80 ^oC. Physical characteristics (bulk density and durability) of the bagasse pellet and pellets with 1-5% coffee ground were determined following the standard assigned by the Pellet Fuel Institute (PFI). The results revealed increasing values of 648±3.4, 659 ± 3.1, 679 ± 3.3 and 685 ± 3.1 kg/m³ (for pellet bulk density); and 98.7 ± 0.11, 99.2 ± 0.26, 99.3 ± 0.19 and 99.4 ± 0.07% (for pellet durability), respectively. In addition, the heating values of the coffee ground supplemented pellets (15.9 ± 1.16, 17.0 ± 1.23 and 18.8 ± 1.34 MJ/kg) were improved comparing to the non-supplemented control (14.9 ± 1.14 MJ/kg), respectively. The results indicated that both the bulk density and durability values of the bagasse pellets were increased with the increasing proportion of the coffee ground additive.

Keywords: bagasse, coffee grounds, pelletizing, heating value, sugar cane bagasse

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Authors: Niloofar Nazeri, Mohammad Ali Derakhshan, Reza Faridi Majidi, Hossein Ghanbari

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Injury of peripheral nervous system (PNS) can lead to loss of sensation or movement. To date, one of the challenges for surgeons is repairing large gaps in PNS. To solve this problem, nerve conduits have been developed. Conduits produced by means of electrospinning can mimic extracellular matrix and provide enough surface for further functionalization. In this research, a conductive bilayer nerve conduit with poly caprolactone (PCL), poly (lactic acid co glycolic acid) (PLGA) and MWCNT for promoting peripheral nerve regeneration was fabricated. The conduit was made of longitudinally aligned PLGA nanofibrous sheets in the lumen to promote nerve regeneration and randomly oriented PCL nanofibers on the outer surface for mechanical support. The intra-luminal guidance channel was made out of conductive aligned nanofibrous rolled sheets which are coated with laminin via dopamine. Different properties of electrospun scaffolds were investigated by using contact angle, mechanical strength, degradation time, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The SEM analysis was shown that size range of nanofibrous mat were about 600-750 nm and MWCNTs deposited between nanofibers. The XPS result was shown that laminin attached to the nanofibers surface successfully. The contact-angle and tensile tests analysis revealed that scaffolds have good hydrophilicity and enough mechanical strength. In vitro studies demonstrated that this conductive surface was able to enhance the attachment and proliferation of PC12 and Schwann cells. We concluded that this bilayer composite conduit has good potential for nerve regeneration.

Keywords: conductive, conduit, laminin, MWCNT

Procedia PDF Downloads 188

Authors: Arunas Emeljanovas, Brigita Mieziene, Vida Cesnaitiene, Ingunn Fjortoft, Lise Kjonniksen

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Background: Gender differences in physical fitness were tracked in many studies with lower effect in preschool children and increasing difference among genders across age. In Lithuania, on a population level, secular trends in physical fitness were regularly observed each ten years for the last two decades for 11-18 years old students. However, there is apparently a lack of such epidemiological studies among primary school students. Assessing and monitoring physical fitness from an early age is of particular importance seeking to develop and strengthen physical abilities of youths for future health benefits. The goal of the current study was to indicate age and gender differences in anthropometric measures, musculoskeletal, motor and cardiorespiratory fitness in Lithuanian primary school children. Methods: The study included 3456 1-4th grade students from 6 to 10 years. The data reliably represents the population of primary school children in Lithuania. Among them, 1721 (49.8 percent) were boys. Physical fitness was measured by the 9-item test battery, developed by Fjørtoft and colleagues (2011). Height and weight were measured and body mass index was calculated. Student t test evaluated differences in physical fitness between boys and girls, ANOVA was performed to indicate differences across age. Results: All anthropometric and fitness means that were identified as significantly different were better in boys than in girls and in older than younger students (p < .05). Among anthropometric measures, height was higher in boys aged 7 through 9 years. Weight and BMI differed among boys and girls only at 8 years old. Means of height and weight increased significantly across all ages. Among musculoskeletal fitness tests, means of standing broad jump, throwing a tennis ball and pushing a medicine ball were different between genders within each age group and across all ages. Differences between genders were less likely in motor fitness than in musculoskeletal or cardiorespiratory fitness. Differences in means of shuttle run 10 x 5 test between genders occurred at age 6, 9 and 10 years; running 20 m at age 6 and 9 years, and climbing wall bars at age 9 and 10. Means of Reduced Cooper test representing cardiorespiratory fitness were different between genders within each age group but did not differ among age 6 and 8 as well as 7 and 8 years in boys, and among age 7 and 8 years in girls. Conclusion: In general, the current study confirms gender differences in musculoskeletal, motor and cardiorespiratory fitness found in other studies across the world in primary school and older children. Observed gender differences might be explained by higher physical activity in boys rather than girls. As it is explained by previous literature, older boys and girls had better performances than younger ones, because of the components of fitness change as a function of growth, maturation, development, and interactions among the three processes.

Keywords: primary school children, motor fitness, musculoskeletal fitness, cardiovascular fitness

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Authors: A. Al-Wandi, A. Al-Ali, R. Dali, Y. Al-Karaghouli

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Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have become an alarming health problem across the globe. The risk of developing those diseases begins in childhood and develops gradually under the influence of risk factors including obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, cigarette smoking and decreased physical activity. Therefore, this study aims to determine the level of knowledge, attitudes, and practices of the risk factors of lifestyle induced chronic diseases (non-communicable diseases) among secondary school students in Sharjah city. Methods: Five hundred and ninety-one school children, from grades 10 to 12, formed the study sample, using the multistage stratified cluster sampling method. Four governmental schools were chosen, for each gender. Data was collected through a pretested, close-ended questionnaire consisting of five sections; demographics, physical activity, diet, smoking and sleeping patterns. Frequencies and descriptive statistics were used to analyze data through SPSS 23. Results: The data showed 64.6% of students had low knowledge of risk factors of non-communicable diseases. Concerning physical activity, 58.2 % were physically inactive and females being less active than males. More than 2/3 of students didn’t fulfill the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables (75.9%). 8% reported to be smokers with cigarettes being the most encountered tobacco product. Conclusion: Our study has demonstrated a low level of knowledge and practices yet, positive attitudes towards risk factors of chronic diseases. We recommend implementation of thorough awareness campaigns through public health education about the risk factors of non-communicable diseases.

Keywords: non-communicable diseases, physical activity, diet, knowledge, attitudes, practices, smoking

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Authors: Nuntaporn Aukkanit

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The aim of this study was to determine the effect of oils on chemical, physical, and sensory properties of deep-fried dough stick. Five kinds of vegetable oil which were used for addition and frying consist of: palm oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, rice bran oil, and canola oil. The results of this study showed that using different kinds of oil made significant difference in the quality of deep-fried dough stick. Deep-fried dough stick fried with the rice bran oil had the lowest moisture loss and oil absorption (p≤0.05), but it had some unsatisfactory physical properties (color, specific volume, density, and texture) and sensory characteristics. Nonetheless, deep-fried dough stick fried with the sunflower oil had moisture loss and oil absorption slightly more than the rice bran oil, but it had almost higher physical and sensory properties. Deep-fried dough sticks together with the sunflower oil did not have different sensory score from the palm oil, commonly used for production of deep-fried dough stick. These results indicated that addition and frying with the sunflower oil are appropriate for the production of deep-fried dough stick.

Keywords: deep-fried dough stick, palm oil, sunflower oil, rice bran oil

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Authors: P. F. Msomi, P. T. Nonjola, P. G. Ndungu, J. Ramontja

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In view of the projected global energy demand and increasing levels of greenhouse gases and pollutants issues have inspired an intense search for alternative new energy technologies, which will provide clean, low cost and environmentally friendly solutions to meet the end user requirements. Alkaline anion exchange membrane fuel cells (AAEMFC) have been recognized as ideal candidates for the generation of such clean energy for future stationary and mobile applications due to their many advantages. The key component of the AAEMFC is the anion exchange membrane (AEM). In this report, a series of quaternized poly (2.6 dimethyl – 1.4 phenylene oxide)/ polysulfone (QPPO/PSF) blend anionic exchange membranes (AEM) were successfully fabricated and characterized for alkaline fuel cell application. Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were introduced in the polymer matrix to enhance the intrinsic properties of the AEM. The characteristic properties of the QPPO/PSF and QPPO/PSF-ZnO blend membrane were investigated with X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) scanning electron microscope (SEM) and contact angle (CA). To confirm successful quaternisation, FT-IR spectroscopy and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) were used. Other properties such as ion exchange capacity (IEC), water uptake, contact angle and ion conductivity (IC) were also undertaken to check if the prepared nanocomposite materials are suitable for fuel cell application. The membrane intrinsic properties were found to be enhanced by the addition of ZnO nanoparticles. The addition of ZnO nanoparticles resulted to a highest IEC of 3.72 mmol/g and a 30-fold IC increase of the nanocomposite due to its lower methanol permeability. The above results indicate that QPPO/PSF-ZnO is a good candidate for AAEMFC application.

Keywords: anion exchange membrane, fuel cell, zinc oxide nanoparticle, nanocomposite

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Authors: Armin Samarghandi, Amirreza Jafari, Mohamad Ghiasi

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Numerous assertions and some empirical evidence imply that 'green' buildings ought to be more productive and healthier (mentally and physiologically) than conventional structures. Since then, empirical data has been equivocal, indicating either that the studies are inaccurate or that the research has just scratched the surface of green buildings in offices, accommodation, and hospital settings and not taken the aforementioned holistically. This study compared four green-certified buildings -one residential green building, one green hospital, and one green school- with conventional structures in Tehran, Iran, by means of a questionnaire spread among those utilizing these buildings, and assessing their productivity and health rate as opposed to the time they resided, worked in conventional buildings. The results demonstrated higher scores pertaining to productivity and physical and mental wellness as a consequence of better indoor environmental quality (IEQ), natural lighting, design, and sustainability of these buildings against non-green buildings. In addition, ancillary matters -environmental, financial, intellectual, emotional, social, and spiritual dimensions of participants- were indirectly evaluated, and the same results were produced.

Keywords: green building, LEED, productivity, physical and mental health, indoor environmental quality

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Authors: Kuei-Yu Chien, Hsiu-Yu Chiu, Chia-Nan Chen, Shu-Chen Chen

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Background: Frailty is associated with decreased physical performances that affect mobility of the elderly. Time up and go test (TUG) was the common method to evaluate mobility in the community. The purpose of this study was to compare the parameters in different stages of Time up and go test (TUG) and physical performance between pre-frail elderly (PFE) and non-frail elderly (NFE). We also investigated the relationship between TUG parameters and physical performance. Methods: Ninety-two community-dwelling older adults were as participants in this study. Based on Canadian Study of Health and Aging Clinical Frailty Scale, 22 older adults were classified as PFE (71.77 ± 6.05 yrs.) and 70 were classified as NFE (71.2 ± 5.02 yrs.). We performed body composition and physical performance, including balance, muscular strength/endurance, mobility, cardiorespiratory endurance, and flexibility. Results: Pre-frail elderly took significantly longer time than NFE in TUG test (p=.004). Pre-frail elderly had lower turning average angular velocity (p = .017), turning peak angular velocity (p = .041) and turning-stand to sit peak angular velocity (p = .037) than NFE. The turning related parameters related to open-eye stand on right foot, 30-second chair stand test, back scratch, and 2-min step tests. Conclusions: Turning average angular velocity, turning peak angular velocity and turning-stand to sit peak angular velocity mainly affected the TUG performance. We suggested that static/dynamic balance, agility, flexibility, and muscle strengthening of lower limbs exercise were important to PFE.

Keywords: mobility, aglity, active ageing, functional fitness

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Authors: L. Masilionyte, S. Maiksteniene

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Alternative farming systems are used to cultivate high quality food products and retain the viability and fertility of soil. The field experiments of different farming systems were conducted at Joniškėlis Experimental Station of the Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry in 2006–2013. The soil of the experimental site was Endocalcari-Endohypogleyic Cambisol (CMg-n-w-can). In different farming systems, farmyard manure, straw and green manure catch crops used for fertilization both in the soil low in humus and in the soil moderate in humus. In the 0–20 cm depth layer, it had a more significant effect on soil moisture than on other physical soil properties. In the agricultural systems, in which catch crops had been grown, soil physical characteristics did not differ significantly before their biomass incorporation, except for the moisture content, which was lower in rainy periods and higher in drier periods than in the soil without catch crops. Soil bulk density and porosity in the topsoil layer were more dependent on soil humus content than on agricultural measures used: in the soil moderate in humus content, compared with the soil low in humus, bulk density was by 1.4 % lower, and porosity by 1.8 % higher. The research findings create a possibility to make improvements in alternative cropping systems by choosing organic fertilizers and catch crops’ combinations that have the sustainable effect on soil and that maintain the sustainability of soil productivity parameters. Rational fertilization systems, securing the stability of soil productivity parameters and crop rotation productivity will promote a development of organic agriculture.

Keywords: agro-measures, soil physical parameters, organic farming, sustainable farming

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Authors: Nimasha Malalasekera

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Working with the indigenous Adivasi (Vedda) community of Dambana in the district of Badulla in Sri Lanka, this research documents linguistic data to address language and cultural endangerment. The ancestral language of Adivasi has undergone sustained restructuration over a long historical period due to its contact with Sinhala, an Indo-Aryan language spoken by the majority Sinhalese. The Vedda language is highly endangered today. At present, all speakers of the Vedda language spoken in Dambana are Adivasi men in the parent generation, who are Sinhala-Vedda bilinguals. Adivasi women and children do not speak the Vedda language but Sinhala in everyday life. Women can understand the Vedda language and would respond to a Vedda language utterance in Sinhala. The use of the Vedda language is largely restricted to self-ascribing Adivasi men who employ it in the context of cultural tourism in Dambana to index ethnolinguistic otherness. Adivasi of Dambana often refers to this distinct linguistic code that they speak as baasapojja or language. This research employs a cooperative model of ethnographic documentation to explore the interrelations between discursive practices, linguistic structures, and linguistic (and broader sociocultural) ideologies in this community. The Vedda language has been previously identified as a dialect of Sinhala or a creole emerging in the contact between Sinhala and the ancestral Vedda language. This paper analyzes the current language endangerment context of bilingual Adivasi members that allows the birth of a mixed language. The aim of this research is to preserve ongoing linguistic innovation among this endangered language speech community. It contributes to the appreciation of creative cultural and linguistic production of a stigmatized minuscule indigenous community of South Asia that strives to assert a distinct linguistic and cultural identity from the dominant populations.

Keywords: Vedda language, language endangerment, mixed languages, indigenous identity

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Authors: Farjina Malek, Julie King, Niki Edwards

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Across the globe more than a billion people live with a disability and a further billion people, mostly carers, are indirectly impacted. While prevalence data is problematic, it is estimated that more than 15% of the population in Bangladesh live with a disability. Disability service infrastructure in Bangladesh is under-developed; and consequently, the onus of care falls on family, especially on mothers. Within the caring role, mothers encounter many challenging experiences which are not only due to the lack of support delivered through the Bangladeshi health care system but also related to the existence of stigma and perception around disability in the Bangladeshi society. Within this perception, the causes of disability are mostly associated with 'God’s will'; 'possession of ghosts on the disabled person'; and 'karma or the result of past sins of the family members especially the mothers'. These beliefs are likely to have a significant impact on the well-being of mothers and their caring experience of children with disability. This is an ongoing qualitative study which is conducting in-depth interviews with 30 mothers from five districts (Dhaka, Mymensingh, Manikganj, Tangail, and Gazipur) of Bangladesh with the aim to explore the impact of social perception and stigma around physical disability on the caring role of the mothers of children with physical disability. The major findings of this study show that the social perception around disability and the social expectation from a mother regarding her caring role have a huge impact on the well-being of mothers. Mothers are mostly expected to take their child on their lap to prove that they are ‘good mother’. These practices of lifting their children with physical disability and keeping them on the lap for a long time often cause chronic back pain of the mothers. Existing social beliefs consider disability as a ‘curse’ and punishment for the ‘sins’ of the family members, most often by the mother. Mothers are blamed if they give birth to ‘abnormal’ children. This social construction creates stigma, and thus, the caring responsibility of mothers become more challenging. It also encourages the family and mothers to hide their children from the society and to avoid seeking accessible disability services. The mothers also compromise their careers and social interaction as they have to stay with their children at home, and that has a significant impact on personal wellbeing, income, and empowerment of the mothers. The research is informed by intersectional theory and employed an interpretive phenomenological methodology to explore mothers’ experience of caring their children with physical disability, and the contribution and impact of key relationships within the family and the intersection with community and services.

Keywords: mother, family carer, physical disability, children, social stigma, key relationship

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Authors: Jean Marie Ntaganda, Froduald Minani, Wellars Banzi, Lydie Mpinganzima, Japhet Niyobuhungiro, Jean Bosco Gahutu, Vincent Dusabejambo, Immaculate Kambutse

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In this paper, we present a nonlinear dynamic model for the interactive mechanism of the cardiovascular and respiratory system. The model is designed and analyzed for human during physical exercises. In order to verify the adequacy of the designed model, data collected in Rwanda are used for validation. We have simulated the impact of heart rate and alveolar ventilation as controls of cardiovascular and respiratory system respectively to steady state response of the main cardiovascular hemodynamic quantities i.e., systemic arterial and venous blood pressures, arterial oxygen partial pressure and arterial carbon dioxide partial pressure, to the stabilised values of controls. We used data collected in Rwanda for both male and female during physical activities. We obtained a good agreement with physiological data in the literature. The model may represent an important tool to improve the understanding of exercise physiology.

Keywords: exercise, cardiovascular/respiratory, hemodynamic quantities, numerical simulation, physical activity, sportsmen in Rwanda, system

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Authors: Yisong Cong, Mingming Guo, Xiaozan Wang, Yizhi Zhang, Qingqing Yuan

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This study is to test the correlation between the Physical Fitness (PF) of middle school students and their performance and sports grade of table tennis. Methods: 398 middle school students from Shanghai Tongji No.2 Middle School participated in the study, including 232 boys and 166 girls. Each participant participated in the Chinese Students’ Physical Fitness Test (CSPFT), including BMI, 50-meter running, vital capacity, sitting body flexion, standing long jump, 800-meter running, 1000-meter running, pull-ups, and sit-ups. Test scores were converted to a percentage score according to the CSPFT guidelines. In addition, each student participated in the Nation Junior Table Tennis grade test, and completed the table tennis sports grade assessment of 1-9. Results: There is a significant positive correlation between the scores of multiple PF tests and the total scores of table tennis, such as BMI (r = 0.15, p < 0.01), standing long jump (r = 0.15, p < 0.05), 800-meter run (r = 0.02, p <0.01); The scores of multiple PF are positively correlated with table tennis grade, such as vital capacity (r = 0.1, p < 0.01) and 50-meter running (r = 0.18, p < 0.05). At the same time, the sit-ups performance showed a significant negative correlation with the table tennis performance (r = -0.08, p < 0.01); There is no significant correlation between the other PF indicators and the performance and grade of table tennis. Conclusions: This study shows that there is a corresponding relationship between some PF indicators of middle school students and their table tennis performance and table tennis grade，but the specific form and reason of the relationship need to be further explored.

Keywords: middle school students, physical fitness, table tennis grade, table tennis performance

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Authors: Vidya Yadav

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In every society, males and females are expected to behave in certain ways, and in every culture, those expectation, values and norms are different and vary accordingly. Many of the inequalities between men and women are rooted in institutional structure such as in educational field, labour market, wages, decision-making power, access to services as well as in accessing the health and well-being care also. The marriage and kinship pattern shape both men’s and women’s lives. Earlier many studies have highlighted the gender disparities which vary tremendously between regions, social classes, and communities. This study will try to explore the prominent indicators to show the status of women and well-being condition in Indian society. Primarily this paper concern with firstly identification of indicators related to gender in each area like education, work status, mobility, women participation in public and private decision making, autonomy and domestic violence etc. And once the indicators are identified next task is to define them. The indicators which are selected here are for a comparison of women’s status across Indian states. Recent Indian Human Development Survey, 2011-12 has been procured to show the current situation of women. Result shows that in spite of rising levels of education and images of growing westernization in India, love marriages remain in rarity even among urban elite. In India marriage is universal, and most of the men and women marry at relatively young age. Even though the legal age of marriage is 18, but more than 60 percent are married before the legal age. Not surprisingly, but Bihar and Rajasthan are the states with earliest age at marriage. Most of them reported that they have very limited contact with their husband before marriages. Around 69 percent of women met their husbands on the day of the wedding or shortly before. In spite of decline in fertility, still childbearing remains essential to women’s lives. Mostly women aged 25 and older had at least one child. Women’s control over household resources, physical space and mobility is also limited. Indian women’s, mostly rely on men to purchase day to day necessities, as well as medicines, as well as other necessary items. This ultimately reduces the likelihood that women have cash in hand for such purchases. The story is quite different when it comes to have control over decision over purchasing household assets such as TVs or refrigerator, names on the bank account, and home ownership papers. However, the likelihood of ownership rises among urbanite educated women’s. Women’s still have to the cultural norms and the practice of purdah or ghunghat, familial control over women’s physical movement. Wife beating and domestic violence still remain pervasive, and beaten for minor transgression like going out without permission. Development of India cannot be realized without the very significant component of gender. Therefore detailed examinations of different indicators are required to understand, strategize, plan and formulate programmes.

Keywords: autonomy, empowerment, gender, violence

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Authors: Saidia Houari

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

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

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Authors: Comfort Mokgothu

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This study investigated the relation between processing information and fitness level of active (fit) and sedentary (unfit) children drawn from rural and urban areas in Botswana. It was hypothesized that fit children would display faster simple reaction time (SRT), choice reaction times (CRT) and movement times (SMT). 60, third grade children (7.0 – 9.0 years) were initially selected and based upon fitness testing, 45 participated in the study (15 each of fit urban, unfit urban, fit rural). All children completed anthropometric measures, skinfold testing and submaximal cycle ergometer testing. The cognitive testing included SRT, CRT, SMT and Choice Movement Time (CMT) and memory sequence length. Results indicated that the rural fit group exhibited faster SMT than the urban fit and unfit groups. For CRT, both fit groups were faster than the unfit group. Collectively, the study shows that the relationship that exists between physical fitness and cognitive function amongst the elderly can tentatively be extended to the pediatric population. Physical fitness could be a factor in the speed at which we process information, including decision making, even in children.

Keywords: decision making, fitness, information processing, reaction time, cognition movement time

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Authors: R. M. Chandler, A. J. Stringer

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In adults, short bursts of high-intensity exercise (intensities between 80-95% of maximum heart rates) increase cardiovascular and metabolic function without the time investment of traditional aerobic training. Similar improvements in various health indices are also becoming increasingly evident in children in countries other than the United States. In the United States, physical education programs have become shorter in length and fewer in frequency. With this in the background, it is imperative that health and physical educators delivered well-organized and focused fitness programs that can be tolerated across many different somatotypes. Perhaps the least effective lag-time in a US physical education (PE) class is the first 10 minutes, a time during which children warm up. Replacing a traditional PE warmup with a 10 min high-intensity excise protocol is a time-efficient method to impact health, leaving as much time for other PE material such as skill development, motor behavior development as possible. This supplemented 10 min high-intensity exercise increases cardiovascular function as well as induces favorable body composition changes in as little as six weeks with further enhancement throughout a semester of activity. The supplemental high-intensity exercise did not detract from the PE lesson outcomes.

Keywords: cardiovascular fitness, high intensity interval training, high intensity exercise, pediatric

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Authors: Howaidi M. Al-Otaibi, Abdulrahman S. Al-Suhaibani, Hamad A. Alsoliman

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Fibers are extensively used in civil engineering applications for many years. In this study, empty fruit bunch of date palm trees were used to produce cellulose fiber that were used as additives in the asphalt binder. Two sizes (coarse and fine) of cellulose fibers were pre-blended in PG64-22 binder with various contents of 1.5%, 3%, 4.5%, 6%, and 7.5% by weight of asphalt binder. The physical and rheological properties of fiber modified asphalt binders were tested by using conventional tests such as penetration, softening point and viscosity; and SHRP test such as dynamic shear rheometer. The results indicated that the fiber modified asphalt binders were higher in softening point, viscosity, and complex shear modulus, and lower in penetration compared to pure asphalt. The fiber modified binders showed an improvement in rheological properties since it was possible to raise the control binder (pure asphalt) PG from 64 to 70 by adding 6% (by weight) of either fine or coarse fibers. Such improvement in stiffness of fiber modified binder is expected to improve pavement resistance to rutting.

Keywords: cellulose date palm fiber, fiber modified asphalt, physical properties, rheological properties

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Authors: Ahmed A. Abd El Rahim, Mohamed M. M. Essa, Magdy M. A. Shabana, Said A. Mohamed, Mohamed Ibrahim Mabrouk

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Background: Sacroiliac joint (SIJ) dysfunction is considered the main cause of pregnancy-related back pain, which may continue to persist postnatally. Myofascial release technique (MFR) is an application of low-intensity, prolonged stretch to myofascial structures to improve function by increasing the sliding properties of restricted myofascial tissues. Purpose: This study was designed to investigate the effect of MFR on postnatal SIJ hypo-mobility. Materials and Methods: Fifty postnatal women complaining of SIJ hypo-mobility participated in this study. Their ages ranged from 26 to 35 yrs., and their body mass index (BMI) didn`t exceed 30 kg/m2. They were randomly assigned to two equal groups, group A (Gr. A) and group B (Gr. B). Both groups received three sessions per week for eight successive weeks. Gr. A received a traditional physical therapy program, while Gr. B received a traditional physical therapy program in addition to MFR. Doppler imaging of vibration was utilized to measure SIJ mobility pre- and post-intervention, and an electronic digital goniometer was used to measure back flexion and extension Range of motion. Results: Findings revealed a statistical improvement in post-intervention values of SIJ mobility in addition to trunk flexion and extension ROM in Gr. B compared to Gr. A (P<0.001). Conclusion: Adding MFR to traditional physical therapy programs is highly recommended in the treatment of SIJ hypo-mobility in postnatal women.

Keywords: sacroiliac hypo-mobility, sacroiliac dysfunction, myofascial release technique, traditional physical therapy, postnatal

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Authors: Yi-Hsiang Pan, Ching-Hsiang Chen, Wei-Ting Hsu

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The purpose of this study was to compare the learning effects of the sports education model (SEM) to those of the traditional teaching model (TTM) in physical education classes in terms of students learning motivation, action control, learning strategies, and learning performance. A quasi-experimental design was utilized in this study, and participants included two physical educators and four classes with a total of 94 students in grades 5 and 6 of elementary schools. Two classes implemented the SEM (n=47, male=24, female=23; age=11.89, SD=0.78) and two classes implemented the TTM (n=47, male=25, female=22, age=11.77; SD=0.66). Data were collected from these participants using a self-report questionnaire (including a learning motivation scale, action control scale, and learning strategy scale) and a game performance assessment instrument, and multivariate analysis of covariance was used to conduct statistical analysis. The findings of the study revealed that the SEM was significantly better than the TTM in promoting students learning motivation, action control, learning strategies, and game performance. It was concluded that the SEM could promote the mechanics of students self-regulated learning process, and thereby improve students movement performance.

Keywords: self-regulated learning theory, learning process, curriculum model, physical education

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Authors: Shahid Mahmood, Ghulam Mueen-Ud-Din, Farah Naz Akbar, Yousaf Quddoos, Syeda Mahvish Zahra, Wajiha Saeed, Tayyaba Sami Ullah

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Obesity is an epidemic across the globe that affects all the segments of the population. Physical inactivity, passionate consumption of junk food, inadequate water intake and an unhealthy lifestyle are evident among university girls that are ruining their health gravely especially fat accumulation. The study was carried out to investigate the potential etiological factors of obesity development in university girls. The cross sectional study was carried out after approval of the Departmental Review Committee for Ethics (DRCE) as the par Declaration of Helsinki at Institute of Food Science and Nutrition (IFSN), University of Sargodha, Sargodha-Pakistan and Department of Food Science and Home Economics, G. C. Women University, Faisalabad-Pakistan. 400 girls were selected randomly from different departments of both universities. Nutritional status of the volunteers was assessed through approved protocols for demographics, anthropometrics, body composition, energetics, vital signs, clinical signs and symptoms, medical/family history, and dietary intake assessment (FFQ), water intake and physical activity level. The obesity was determined on body fat (%). Alarming and unheeded etiological factors for the development of obesity in girls were explored by the study. About 93 % girls had a sedentary level of physical activity, zealous consumption of junk food (5.31±1.23 servings), drank little water (1.09±0.26 L/day) that consequent high heaps of fat (35.06±3.02 %), measly body water (52.38±3.4 %), poor bone mass (05.14±0.31 Kg), and high BMI (26.68±1.14 Kg/m²) in 34% girls. The malnutrition also depicted by poor vital signs i.e. low body temperature (97.11±0.93 °F), slightly higher blood pressure (124.19±4.08 / 85.25±2.97 mmHg), rapid pulse rate (99.2 ± 6.85 beats/min), reduced blood O₂ saturation (96.53±0.96 %), scanty peak expiratory flow rate (297 ± 15.7 L /min). The outcomes of the research articulated that physical inactivity; extreme intakes of junk food, insufficient water consumption are etiological factors for obesity development among girls which are usually overlooked in Pakistan.

Keywords: informed consent, junk food, obesity, physical inactivity

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Authors: Ingrid Van Der Heijden, Naeemah Abrahams, Jane Harries

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Background: Commonly, womanhood is defined as the qualities considered to be natural to or characteristic of a woman. However, womanhood is not a static concept; it is contextual and negotiable. For women with disabilities, gender roles or ‘qualities’ of womanhood are often overstated or contradicted because of assumptions of weakness, passivity, asexuality and infertility. Currently, little is known about how disability stigma intersects with notions of womanhood to make women with disabilities vulnerable to violence, or how women navigate this intersection to prevent or protect themselves from violence. Objective: To describe how the stigmatized constructions of womanhood and disability promote women with physical disabilities’ exposure to or protection from violence. Methods: Qualitative data for this paper comes from a doctoral study involving women with disabilities living in Cape Town, South Africa. It presents data from repeat in-depth interviews with 30 women with a range of physical impairments. Women attending protective workshops, rehabilitative centers and residential care facilities for people living with disabilities were invited to participate. Consent procedures and interviews were conducted by the first author (who is herself a woman living with a physical disability), and a female research assistant/translator who is a qualified occupational therapist. Reasonable accommodation is central to the methodology and the study as a whole. Findings: Descriptive and thematic analyses reveal how stigma and local constructions around womanhood, as well as women’s self-image and physical limitations, promotes women’s exposure to psychological, physical and sexual violence. It reveals how disabled women feel they are presumed incapable of living up to expectations of a ‘proper’ woman. This plays out as psychological violence, with women reporting that they feel ‘devalued,' ‘rejected’ and deprived of lasting intimate relationships. Furthermore, forms of psychological violence perpetuate physical and sexual violence. Women also discuss using strategies to prevent violence; by refusing to date, avoiding certain places or avoiding isolation, creating awareness, hiding their physical impairments, and exaggerating their ‘femininity.' Implications: Service providers need to be made aware of women’s violence experiences, and provide a range of accessible psychological and mental health services to women living with disabilities, as well as raising awareness around disability, and violence prevention, among caregivers, men, and women. Violence awareness and prevention interventions need to involve disability experts, researchers and people with disabilities.

Keywords: disability, gender, stigma, violence awareness and prevention interventions

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