Search results for: register transfer level

Authors: Adam Chlapecka, Anna Kagstrom, Pavla Cermakova

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Background: Increasing educational attainment (EA) could decrease the occurrence of depression. We investigated the relationship between EA and depressive symptoms in older individuals across four European regions. Methods: We studied 108 315 Europeans (54 % women, median age 63 years old) from the Survey on Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe assessing EA (7 educational levels based on ISCED classification); and depressive symptoms (≥ 4 points on EURO-D scale). Logistic regression estimated the association between EA and depressive symptoms, adjusting for sociodemographic and health-related factors; testing for sex/age/region and education interactions. Results: Higher EA was associated with lower odds of depressive symptoms, independent of sociodemographic and health-related factors. A threshold of the lowest odds of depressive symptoms was detected at the first stage of tertiary education (OR 0.60; 95% CI 0.55-0.65; p<0.001; relative to no education). Central and Eastern Europe showed the strongest association (OR for high vs. low education 0.37; 95% CI 0.33-0.40; p<0.001) and Scandinavia the weakest (OR for high vs. low education 0.69; 95% CI 0.60-0.80; p<0.001). The association was strongest amongst younger individuals. There was a sex and education interaction only within Central and Eastern Europe. Conclusion: The level of EA is reflected in later-life depressive symptoms, suggesting that supporting individuals in achieving EA, and considering those with lower EA at increased risk for depression, could lead to the decreased burden of depression across the life course. Further educational support in Central and Eastern Europe may decrease the higher burden of depressive symptoms in women.

Keywords: depression, education, epidemiology, Europe

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Authors: Dalia O. Saleha, Gehad A. Abdel Jaleela, Sally W. Al-Awdana

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Diabetes mellitus (DM) is known to exacerbate cerebral ischemic injury. The present study aimed to investigate the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of oral supplementation of melatonin (MLN) on cerebral injury caused by middle cerebral artery occlusion and reperfusion (MCAO/Re) in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced hyperglycemic rats. Hyperglycemia was induced by a single injection of STZ (55mg/kg; i.p.), six weeks later the cerebral injury was induced by MCAO/Re. Twenty-four hours after the MCAO/Re the MLN (10 mg/kg) was injected for 14 consecutive days. Results of the present study revealed that MCAO/Re in STZ-induced hyperglycemia in rats causes an increase in the oxidative stress biomarkers; it increased brain lipid peroxidation (measured as malondialdehyde; MDA) and brain level of nitric oxide (NO). Moreover, MCAO/Reproduces a prominent increase in the brain inflammatory markers viz. interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and tumor necrosis nuclear factor-alpha (TNF-α). Oral treatment of MCAO/Re in STZ-induced hyperglycemic rats with MLN (10 mg/kg) for two weeks restored the brain levels of MDA, GSH, NO, IL-6, IL-1β and the TNF-α. MLN succeeded to suppress the exacerbation of damage in the brain of hyperglycemic rats. These results suggest that daily intake of MLN attenuates the exacerbation of cerebral ischemic injury in a diabetic state, which may be attributed to anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in the brain.

Keywords: melatonin, brain injury, cerebral ischemia/reperfusion, hyperglycemia, rats

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Authors: Gargi Ghoshal, Ashay Jain

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Microencapsulation of β-carotene was optimized by complex coacervation technique using casein/gum tragacanth (CAS/GT) coating as a function of pH, initial protein to polysaccharide mixing ratio (Pr:Ps), total biopolymer concentration, core material load, zeta potential, and ionic strength. This study was aimed to understand the influence of experimental parameters on the coacervation kinetics, the coacervate yield, and entrapment efficiency. At a Pr:Ps = 2:1, an optimum pH of complex coacervation was found 4.35, at which the intensity of electrostatic interaction was maximum. At these ratios of coating, the phase separation occurred the fastest and the final coacervate yield and entrapment efficiency was the highest. Varying the Pr: Ps shifted the value of optimum pH. This incident was due to the level of charge compensation of the CAS/GT complexes. Finally, electrostatic interaction and formation of coacervates between CAS and GT were confirmed by Fourier transform infra-red (FTIR) spectra. The size and surface properties of coacervates were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The resultant formulation (β-carotene loaded microcapsules) was evaluated for in vitro release study and antioxidant activity. Stability of encapsulated β-carotene was also evaluated under three levels of temperature (5, 25 and 40 °C) for 3 months. Encapsulation strongly increased the stability of micronutrients. Our results advocate potential of microcapsules as a novel carrier for the safeguard and sustained release of micronutrient.

Keywords: β-carotene, casein, complex coacervation, controlled release, gum tragacanth, microcapsules

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Authors: Husmaini, Rijal Zein, Zulkarnain, Marlito Latifa, Syahrul E. Rambee

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The present study was conducted to evaluate the effects of probiotics–fermented purple sweet potato (PPSP) on performance and cholesterol meat of local ducks. One hundred two weeks old male local ducks placed in 4 treatment doses for ten weeks. The treatments were the dosage of PPSP, i.e., 0, 1, 2 and 3 grams of PPSP/bird/week. One gram PPSP contains 1.3 x 108 colony form unit. Data were analyzed statistically using SPSS and DMRT. The results showed that PPSP administration in local ducks did not affect intestinal villi height and fed consumption (P > 0.05), but highly significant (P < 0.01) increasing duodenum thickness, body weight, carcass yield and reducing both feed conversion and cholesterol meat content. The difference in PPSP dosage (1.2 and 3 grams) had the same effect on body weight gain. However, it has a different impact on feed conversion and meat cholesterol levels. The higher the PPSP dose given, the lower the feed conversion and meat cholesterol level. This study has shown that administration of PPSP can improve performance and reduce cholesterol levels of local duck meat. Giving PPSP as much as 3 grams per bird every week has provided the best results.

Keywords: cholesterol, local duck, performance, probiotics, purple sweet potato

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Authors: Oktawia Braniewicz

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The phenomenon of emigration and migration increasingly affects Poland's borders as well. For this reason, it is necessary to examine the level of protection of Human Rights in Polish Centres for Foreigners. The field study covered 11 centers for Foreigners in the provinces Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region, Lubelskie Region, Lodzkie Region, Mazowieckie Region and Podlaskie Region. Photographic documentation of living and social conditions, conversations with center employees and refugees allow to show a comprehensive picture of the situation prevailing in Centres for Foreigners. The object of reflection will be, in particular, the standards resulting from art. 8 and 13 of the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and article 2 of Protocol No. 1 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. The degree of realization of the right to education and the right to respect for family and private life will be shown. Issues related to learning the Polish language, access to a professional translator and psychological help will also be approximated. Learning Polish is not obligatory, which causes problems with assimilation and integration with other members of the new community. In centers for foreigners, there are no translators - a translator from an external company is rented if necessary. The waiting time for an interpreter makes the refugees feel anxious, unable to communicate with the employees of the centers (this is a situation in which the refugees do not know either English, Polish or Russian). Psychologist's help is available on designated days of the week. There is no separate specialist in child psychology, which is a serious problem.

Keywords: human rights, Polish centres, foreigners, fundamental freedoms

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Authors: Nail Nazarov, Vladimir Zobov, Alexandra Vyshtakalyuk, Vyacheslav Semenov, Irina Galyametdinova, Vladimir Reznik

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There have been studied effects of xymedon and six new pyrimidine derivatives, that are close and distant analogs of xymedon, on rats' working capacity in the test 'swimming to failure'. It has been shown that a single administration of the studied compounds did not have a statistically significant effect in the test. In the conditions of multiple intraperitoneal administration of the studied pyrimidine derivatives, the compound L-ascorbate, 1-(2-hydroxyethyl)-4.6-dimethyl-1.2-dihydropyrimidine-2-one had the lowest toxicity and the most pronounced actoprotective effect. Introduction in the dose of 20 mg/kg caused a statistically significant increase 440 % in the duration of swimming of rats on the 14th day of the experiment compared with the control group. Multiple administration of the compound in the conditions of physical load did not affect leucopoiesis but stimulates erythropoiesis resulting in an increase in the number of erythrocytes and a hemoglobin level. The substance introduction under mixed exhausting loads prevented such changes of blood biochemical parameters as reduction of glucose, increased of urea and lactic acid levels, what indicates improvement in the animals' tolerability of loads and an anti-catabolic effect of the compound. Absence of hepato and cardiotoxic effects of the substance has been shown. This work was performed with the financial support of Russian Science Foundation (grant № 14-50-00014).

Keywords: actoprotectors, physical working capacity, pyrimidine derivatives, xymedon

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Authors: Hieu Duy Nguyen, Chitsan Lin Jr., Dung Duc Tran

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Nowadays, drought and salinity intrusion becomes a severe problem in the Lower Mekong region due to climate change, especially in coastal provinces. Freshwater resources are decreased due to sea-level rise and the decline in water flow from upstream in the dry season. The combination of the above issues can lead to many effects on the environment and human health in affected areas such as the pathological of digestive or decreased the immune system. Tidal cycle and upstream flows are the two main factors affecting the saline intrusion process and the former salt-wedge in the estuary. Under suitable conditions, salt-wedge can be going further upstream under the water surface and affected groundwater. In order to have a proper plan for the mitigation of the above adverse effects, we need to understand the characteristics of this process. In this study, 3D model is used to investigate the movement of salt-wedge under different conditions of tidal and flow discharge. The salinity in the vertical profile is also measured in the dry season of 2017 and 2018 for model calibrating. The data has proved that there is the presence of salt-wedge in the study area. The obtained results will help strategic planners to use and preserve water resources more effectively and serve as a basis for new research directions on saline intrusion and human health.

Keywords: salt-wedge, salinity intrusion, human health, 3D model

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Authors: Azeez Shaik, Amit Salvi, B. P. Gautham

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Fiber reinforced polymer resin composite materials are finding wide variety of applications in automotive and aerospace industry because of their high specific stiffness and specific strengths when compared to metals. New class of 2D and 3D textile and woven fabric composites offer excellent fracture toughens as they bridge the cracks formed during fracture. Due to complexity of their fiber architectures and its resulting composite microstructures, optimized design and analysis of these structures is very complicated. A traditional homogenization approach is typically used to analyze structures made up of these materials. This approach usually fails to predict damage initiation as well as damage propagation and ultimate failure of structure made up of woven and textile composites. This study demonstrates a methodology to analyze woven and textile composites by using the multi-level multi-scale modelling approach. In this approach, a geometric repetitive unit cell (RUC) is developed with all its constituents to develop a representative volume element (RVE) with all its constituents and their interaction modeled correctly. The structure is modeled based on the RUC/RVE and analyzed at different length scales with desired levels of fidelity incorporating the damage and failure. The results are passed across (up and down) the scales qualitatively as well as quantitatively from the perspective of material, configuration and architecture.

Keywords: cohesive zone, multi-scale modeling, rate dependency, RUC, woven textiles

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Authors: Nadia A. Mohamed, Zakaria El-Khayat, Wagdy K. B. Khalil, Mehrez E. El-Naggar

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Drug nephrotoxicity is still a problem for patients who have taken drugs for elongated periods or permanently. Ultrasound-assisted sol−gel method was used to prepare hollow structured poroussilica nanoemulsion loaded with sodium salicylate as a model drug. The work was extended to achieve the target of the current work via investigating the protective role of this nanoemulsion model as anti-inflammatory drug or ginger for its antioxidant effect against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in male albino rats. The results clarify that the nanoemulsion model was synthesized using ultrasonic assisted with small size and well stabilization as proved by TEM and DLS analysis. Additionally, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), Serum creatinine (SC) and Urinary total protein (UTP) were increased, and the level of creatinine clearance (Crcl) was decreased. All those were met with disorders in oxidative stress and downregulation in the expression of the nephrin gene. Also, histopathological changes of the kidney tissue were observed. These changes back to normal by treatment with silica nanoparticles loaded sodium salicylate (Si-Sc-NPs), ginger or both. Conclusions oil/water nanoemulsion of (Si-Sc NPs) and ginger showed a protective and promising preventive strategy against nephrotoxicity due to their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, and that offers a new approach in attenuating drug induced nephrotoxicity.

Keywords: sodium salicylate nanoencapsulation, nephrin mRNA, drug nephrotoxicity, cisplatin, experimental rats

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Authors: Colin Smith, Linsey S Passarella

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Due to the proliferation and decentralized nature of academic publication, no widely accepted scheme exists for organizing papers by their scientific field of study (FoS) to the author’s best knowledge. While many academic journals require author provided keywords for papers, these keywords range wildly in scope and are not consistent across papers, journals, or field domains, necessitating alternative approaches to paper classification. Past attempts to perform field-of-study (FoS) classification on scientific texts have largely used a-hierarchical FoS schemas or ignored the schema’s inherently hierarchical structure, e.g. by compressing the structure into a single layer for multi-label classification. In this paper, we introduce an application of a Layered Neural Network (LNN) to the problem of performing supervised hierarchical classification of scientific fields of study (FoS) on research papers. In this approach, paper embeddings from a pretrained language model are fed into a top-down LNN. Beginning with a single neural network (NN) for the highest layer of the class hierarchy, each node uses a separate local NN to classify the subsequent subfield child node(s) for an input embedding of concatenated paper titles and abstracts. We compare our LNN-FOS method to other recent machine learning methods using the Microsoft Academic Graph (MAG) FoS hierarchy and find that the LNN-FOS offers increased classification accuracy at each FoS hierarchical level.

Keywords: hierarchical classification, layer neural network, scientific field of study, scientific taxonomy

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Authors: Elham Zabetian Targhi, Niusha Fardnava, Saba Saghafi

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Urban resilience to Corona Virus has become a major concern for cities these days. Our country also has not been safe from the destructive effects of this virus in social, economic, physical, governance, and management dimensions; and according to official statistics, hundreds of thousands of people in Iran have been infected with this virus and tens of thousands have died so far. Therefore, to measure urban resilience to this pandemic, some criteria and sub-criteria were developed based on the authors’ documentary and field studies, and their significance or weights were determined using analytical-comparative research method using a questionnaire of paired or L-Saati comparisons from the viewpoint of experts in urban sciences and urban development using AHP hierarchical analysis in EXPERT CHOICE software. Then, designing a questionnaire with a five-point Likert scale, the satisfaction of Tehran residents with the extracted criteria and sub-criteria was measured and the correlation between the important criteria in each dimension was assessed using correlation tests in SPSS16 software. According to the obtained results of AHP analysis and the scores of each sub-criterion, the weight of all criteria was normal. In the next stage, according to the pairwise correlation tests between the important criteria in each dimension from the viewpoint of urban science experts and Tehran residents, it was concluded that the reliability of the correlation between the criteria is 99%. In all the cases, the P-value or the same significance level was less than 0.05, which indicated the significance of the pairwise relations between the variables.

Keywords: Urban Resilience, Pandemics, Corona Virus (Covid-19), Criteria.

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Authors: Olusegun Adeleke Adenuga

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The study examined effect of fishbone creative thinking strategy on problem-solving skills of public teachers in Ogun state, Nigeria. A 2x2x2 factorial design was employed for the study which consisted of 80 participants made up of 40 male and 40 female public teachers randomly selected among public teaching personnel from the two local government area headquarters (Ijebu-ode and Ijebu-Igbo) within Ogun East Senatorial District. Each treatment group received 45minutes instructions and training per week for 8weeks. Data was collected from participants with the use of standardized instrument tagged ‘Problem Solving Inventory’ (PSI) developed by the researchers prior to the training to form a pre-test and immediately after eight weeks of training to form a post-test. One hypothesis was tested; the data obtained was analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) tested at significance level of 0.05. The result of the data analysis shows that there was a significant effect of the fishbone creative thinking technique on the participants (F (2,99) = 12.410; p <.05). Based on the findings, it is therefore recommended that the report of this study be used to effect organizational change and development of teaching service in Nigeria through teachers’ retraining and capacity building.

Keywords: fishbone, creative thinking strategy, and problem-solving skills, public teachers

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Authors: Luis Felipe Brito-Gaona, Emma M. Iglesias

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There is a growing literature that studies the main determinants and drivers of inequality and economic growth in several countries, using panel data and different estimation methods (fixed effects, Generalized Methods of Moments (GMM) and Two Stages Least Squares (TSLS)). Recently, it was studied the evolution of these variables in the period 1980-2009 in the 18 countries of Latin-America and it was found that one of the main variables that explained their evolution was Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). We extend this study to the year 2015 in the same 18 countries in Latin-America, and we find that FDI does not have a significant role anymore, while we find a significant negative and positive effect of schooling levels on inequality and economic growth respectively. We also find that the point estimates associated with human capital are the largest ones of the variables included in the analysis, and this means that an increase in human capital (measured by schooling levels of secondary education) is the main determinant that can help to reduce inequality and to increase economic growth in Latin-America. Therefore, we advise that economic policies in Latin-America should be directed towards increasing the level of education. We use the methodologies of estimating by fixed effects, GMM and TSLS to check the robustness of our results. Our conclusion is the same regardless of the estimation method we choose. We also find that the international recession in the Latin-American countries in 2008 reduced significantly their economic growth.

Keywords: economic growth, human capital, inequality, Latin-America

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Authors: Osung Im, Neha Yadav, Eui Hoon Lee, Joong Hoon Kim

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Artificial Neural Network (ANN) approach is commonly used in lots of fields for forecasting. In water resources engineering, forecast of water level or inflow of reservoir is useful for various kind of purposes. Due to advantages of ANN, many papers were written for inflow prediction in river networks, but in this study, ANN is used in urban sewer networks. The growth of severe rain storm in Korea has increased flood damage severely, and the precipitation distribution is getting more erratic. Therefore, effective pump operation in pump station is an essential task for the reduction in urban area. If real time inflow of pump station reservoir can be predicted, it is possible to operate pump effectively for reducing the flood damage. This study used ANN model for pump station reservoir inflow prediction using upstream sewer depth data. For this study, rainfall events, sewer depth, and inflow into Banpo pump station reservoir between years of 2013-2014 were considered. Feed – Forward Back Propagation (FFBF), Cascade – Forward Back Propagation (CFBP), Elman Back Propagation (EBP) and Nonlinear Autoregressive Exogenous (NARX) were used as ANN model for prediction. A comparison of results with ANN model suggests that ANN is a powerful tool for inflow prediction using the sewer depth data.

Keywords: artificial neural network, forecasting, reservoir inflow, sewer depth

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Authors: Juliana A. Knocikova

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Methods of nonlinear signal analysis are based on finding that random behavior can arise in deterministic nonlinear systems with a few degrees of freedom. Considering the dynamical systems, entropy is usually understood as a rate of information production. Changes in temporal dynamics of physiological data are indicating evolving of system in time, thus a level of new signal pattern generation. During last decades, many algorithms were introduced to assess some patterns of physiological responses to external stimulus. However, the reflex responses are usually characterized by short periods of time. This characteristic represents a great limitation for usual methods of nonlinear analysis. To solve the problems of short recordings, parameter of approximate entropy has been introduced as a measure of system complexity. Low value of this parameter is reflecting regularity and predictability in analyzed time series. On the other side, increasing of this parameter means unpredictability and a random behavior, hence a higher system complexity. Reduced neurophysiological data complexity has been observed repeatedly when analyzing electroneurogram and electromyogram activities during defence reflex responses. Quantitative phrenic neurogram changes are also obvious during severe hypoxia, as well as during airway reflex episodes. Concluding, the approximate entropy parameter serves as a convenient tool for analysis of reflex behavior characterized by short lasting time series.

Keywords: approximate entropy, neurophysiological data, nonlinear dynamics, reflex

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Authors: Wahyu Purnama Putra, Artono Isharanto

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Thoracic trauma is trauma that hits the thoracic wall or intrathoracic organs, either due to blunt trauma or sharp trauma. Thoracic trauma often causes impaired ventilation-perfusion due to damage to the lung parenchyma. This results in impaired tissue oxygenation, which is one of the causes of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). These changes are caused by the release of pro-inflammatory mediators, plasmatic proteins, and proteases into the alveolar space associated with ongoing edema, as well as oxidative products that ultimately result in severe inhibition of the surfactant system. This study aims to predict the incidence of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) through human neutrophil elastase levels. This study examines the relationship between plasma elastase levels as a predictor of the incidence of ARDS in thoracic trauma patients in Malang. This study is an observational cohort study. Data analysis uses the Pearson correlation test and ROC curve (receiver operating characteristic curve). It can be concluded that there is a significant (p= 0.000, r= -0.988) relationship between elastase levels and BGA-3. If the value of elastase levels is limited to 23.79 ± 3.95, the patient will experience mild ARDS. While if the value of elastase levels is limited to 57.68 ± 18.55, in the future, the patient will experience moderate ARDS. Meanwhile, if the elastase level is between 107.85 ± 5.04, the patient will likely experience severe ARDS. Neutrophil elastase levels correlate with the degree of severity of ARDS incidence.

Keywords: ARDS, human neutrophil elastase, severity, thoracic trauma

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Authors: A. Das, L. Hitihamillage, S. Moridpour

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Natural disasters are inevitable to the biodiversity. Disasters such as flood, tsunami and tornadoes could be brutal, harsh and devastating. In Australia, flooding is a major issue experienced by different parts of the country. In such crisis, delays in evacuation could decide the life and death of the people living in those regions. Congestion management could become a mammoth task if there are no steps taken before such situations. In the past to manage congestion in such circumstances, many strategies were utilised such as converting the road shoulders to extra lanes or changing the road geometry by adding more lanes. However, expansion of road to resolving congestion problems is not considered a viable option nowadays. The authorities avoid this option due to many reasons, such as lack of financial support and land space. They tend to focus their attention on optimising the current resources they possess and use traffic signals to overcome congestion problems. Traffic Signal Management strategy was considered a viable option, to alleviate congestion problems in the City of Geelong, Victoria. Arterial road with signalised intersections considered in this paper and the traffic data required for modelling collected from VicRoads. Traffic signalling software SIDRA used to model the roads, and the information gathered from VicRoads. In this paper, various signal parameters utilised to assess and improve the corridor performance to achieve the best possible Level of Services (LOS) for the arterial road.

Keywords: congestion, constraints, management, LOS

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Authors: Rafael Ricieri, Rogerio Barros

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Objective: This study is to report a case of massive necrotizing enterocolitis in a six-month-old patient, requiring ileostomy and protective jejunostomy as a damage control measure in the first exploratory laparotomy surgery in massive enterocolitis without a previous diagnosis. Methods: This study is a case report of success in making and closing a protective jejunostomy. However, the low number of publications on this staged and risky measure of surgical resolution encouraged the team to study the indication and especially the correct time for closing the patient's protective jejunostomy. The main study instrument will be the six-month-old patient's medical record. Results: Based on the observation of the case described, it was observed that the time for the closure of the described procedure (protective jejunostomy) varies according to the level of compromise of the health status of your patient and of an individual of each person. Early closure, or failure to close, can lead to a favorable problem for the patient since several problems can result from this closure, such as new intestinal perforations, hydroelectrolyte disturbances. Despite the risk of new perforations, we suggest closing the protective jejunostomy around the 14th day of the procedure, thus keeping the patient on broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy and absolute fasting, thus reducing the chances of new intestinal perforations. Associated with the closure of the jejunostomy, a gastric tube for decompression is necessary, and care in an intensive care unit and electrolyte replacement is necessary to maintain the stability of the case.

Keywords: jejunostomy, ileostomy, enterocolitis, pediatric surgery, gastric surgery

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Authors: James Waide

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In music, subject typically denotes the initial idea to which the entire composition refers—a concept congruous with Aristotle's notion of subject as primary substance, in the sense of an irreducible this particular. Gioseffo Zarlino, who established subject (soggetto) as a musical term, insisted the composer as “rediscovering” the subject within their music in order to “[bring] it to perfection” and, furthermore, that if the composer had not rediscovered the subject already, then one would simply take the first part of the composition to be the subject. Meanwhile, Žižek reads the Hegelian subject (as negativity set against positive object) through Lacanian Psychoanalysis (in which the subject is a kind of fictive entity of the clinic: a mere appearance which sits atop the objects of analysis) in the concept of Absolute Recoil. For Žižek, subject exists retroactively in Absolute Recoil from object, meaning subject is a void which only has meaning because of the object it is seen through. Following the work of theorists such as Adorno and Althusser, one can understand the ideological construction of such a subject. It may be argued that in Zarlino, musical subject can be similarly read as retroactively constructed, either by the composer or the listener. Furthermore, in recent work, Samuel Wilson identifies different kinds of subjects in music which can be psychoanalytically examined, including the fictive subject: a purely musical entity raised to the level of psychoanalytic subject. On which basis if, as Adorno insisted, 'authentic' music constitutes 'cognition without concepts', where and what is this subject without concept?.

Keywords: absolute recoil, critical theory, ideology, music analysis, psychoanalysis, retroactivity, subject

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Authors: Akram Khelaifia, Nesreddine Djafar Henni

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Reinforced concrete shear walls are essential components in protecting buildings from seismic forces by providing both strength and stiffness. This study focuses on optimizing the placement of shear walls in a high seismic zone. Through nonlinear analyses conducted on an eight-story building, various scenarios of shear wall positions are investigated to evaluate their impact on seismic performance. Employing a performance-based seismic design (PBSD) approach, the study aims to meet acceptance criteria related to inter-story drift ratio and damage levels. The findings emphasize the importance of concentrating shear walls in the central area of the building during the design phase. This strategic placement proves more effective compared to peripheral distributions, resulting in reduced inter-story drift and mitigated potential damage during seismic events. Additionally, the research explores the use of shear walls that completely infill the frame, forming compound shapes like Box configurations. It is discovered that incorporating such complete shear walls significantly enhances the structure's reliability concerning inter-story drift. Conversely, the absence of complete shear walls within the frame leads to reduced stiffness and the potential deterioration of short beams.

Keywords: performance level, pushover analysis, shear wall, plastic hinge, nonlinear analyses

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Authors: Yefrem Yefremov

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In Kazakhstan, there are approximately 100,000 ethnic Koreans with the ethnonym "Koryo Saram". They are part of the global Korean diaspora around the world, deported to Kazakhstan by Stalin’s decree in 1937. Koryo Saram's diasporic identity is a composite of numerous identities based on a shared cultural heritage of the USSR and independent Kazakhstan and has mosaic character. The author has conducted a sociological survey to find out the main features of the identity of the Koryo Saram diaspora. The purpose of this paper is to depict the degree of ethnic, cultural, and diasporic identity of Koryo Saram and which effect on the preserving Korean diaspora in Kazakhstna do they have. The following elements impacting the above-mentioned identities were investigated in the survey: criteria by which Koryo Saram perceive themselves to be Korean, attitude of Koryo Saram to their ethnicity, degree of feeling of ethnocultural similarity between Koreans of Kazakhstan and Koreans of the Republic of Korea, degree of association of Koreans of Kazakhstan with other Koreans living in other CIS countries, degree of practicing Korean traditions Koryo Saram's attitudes towards interethnic marriages. The primary factor in defining the identity among the respondents is the factor of ethnic origin. Nationality is the second most significant component in establishing Koryo Saram’s identity. The maintenance of "Koreanness" of Koryo Sarams in the context of a multiethnic community, particularly in Kazakhstan, is based on genetic elements as well as the preservation of the culture. In conclusion, the high level of preserving Korean identity is being observed in the Korean Diaspora of Kazakhstan.

Keywords: diasporic identity, diaspora, ethnic identity, identity markers, korean diaspora, koreans of kazakhstan, koryo saram, multiethnicity

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Authors: Wildan Syafitri

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The main purpose of the development is to embody public welfare. Its indication is shown by the increasing of the public prosperity in which it will be related to the consumption level as a consequence of the increasing of public income. One of the government’s efforts to increase public welfare is to create development equity in order to alleviate poor people. Poverty’s problem is not merely about the number and percentage of the poor people, but also it includes the gap and severity of poverty.the analysis method used is Benefit Incidence Analysis (BIA) that is an analysis method used to disclose the impact of government policy or individual access based on the income distribution in society. Further, the finding of the study revealed is that the highest number of the poor people in the village is those who are unemployed and have family members who are still in the Junior High School. The income distribution calculation shows a fairly good budget allocation applied with good mass ratio that is 0.31. In addition, the finding of this study also discloses that Indonesian Government policy to subsidize education cost for Elementary and Junior High School students has reached the right target. It is indicated by more benefits received by Elementary and Junior High School students who are poor and very poor than other income group.

Keywords: benefit incidence analysis, budget allocation, poverty, education

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Authors: Misbah Javaid, Vladimir Estivill-Castro, Rene Hexel

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The field of robotics is advancing rapidly to the point where robots have become an integral part of the modern society. These robots collaborate and contribute productively with humans and compensate some shortcomings from human abilities and complement them with their skills. Effective teamwork of humans and robots demands to investigate the critical issue of trust. The field of human-computer interaction (HCI) has already examined trust humans place in technical systems mostly on issues like reliability and accuracy of performance. Early work in the area of expert systems suggested that automatic generation of explanations improved trust and acceptability of these systems. In this work, we augmented a robot with the user-invoked explanation generation proficiency. To measure explanations effect on human’s level of trust, we collected subjective survey measures and behavioral data in a human-robot team task into an interactive, adversarial and partial information environment. The results showed that with the explanation capability humans not only understand and recognize robot as an expert team partner. But, it was also observed that human's learning and human-robot team performance also significantly improved because of the meaningful interaction with the robot in the human-robot team. Moreover, by observing distinctive outcomes, we expect our research outcomes will also provide insights into further improvement of human-robot trustworthy relationships.

Keywords: explanation interface, adversaries, partial observability, trust building

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Authors: Abderrazak Bannari

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Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) from mine wastes and contaminations of soils and water with metals are considered as a major environmental problem in mining areas. It is produced by interactions of water, air, and sulphidic mine wastes. This environment problem results from a series of chemical and biochemical oxidation reactions of sulfide minerals e.g. pyrite and pyrrhotite. These reactions lead to acidity as well as the dissolution of toxic and heavy metals (Fe, Mn, Cu, etc.) from tailings waste rock piles, and open pits. Soil and aquatic ecosystems could be contaminated and, consequently, human health and wildlife will be affected. Furthermore, secondary minerals, typically formed during weathering of mine waste storage areas when the concentration of soluble constituents exceeds the corresponding solubility product, are also important. The most common secondary mineral compositions are hydrous iron oxide (goethite, etc.) and hydrated iron sulfate (jarosite, etc.). The objectives of this study focus on the detection and mapping of MIOP in the soil using Hyperion EO-1 (Earth Observing - 1) hyperspectral data and constrained linear spectral mixture analysis (CLSMA) algorithm. The abandoned Kettara mine, located approximately 35 km northwest of Marrakech city (Morocco) was chosen as study area. During 44 years (from 1938 to 1981) this mine was exploited for iron oxide and iron sulphide minerals. Previous studies have shown that Kettara surrounding soils are contaminated by heavy metals (Fe, Cu, etc.) as well as by secondary minerals. To achieve our objectives, several soil samples representing different MIOP classes have been resampled and located using accurate GPS ( ≤ ± 30 cm). Then, endmembers spectra were acquired over each sample using an Analytical Spectral Device (ASD) covering the spectral domain from 350 to 2500 nm. Considering each soil sample separately, the average of forty spectra was resampled and convolved using Gaussian response profiles to match the bandwidths and the band centers of the Hyperion sensor. Moreover, the MIOP content in each sample was estimated by geochemical analyses in the laboratory, and a ground truth map was generated using simple Kriging in GIS environment for validation purposes. The acquired and used Hyperion data were corrected for a spatial shift between the VNIR and SWIR detectors, striping, dead column, noise, and gain and offset errors. Then, atmospherically corrected using the MODTRAN 4.2 radiative transfer code, and transformed to surface reflectance, corrected for sensor smile (1-3 nm shift in VNIR and SWIR), and post-processed to remove residual errors. Finally, geometric distortions and relief displacement effects were corrected using a digital elevation model. The MIOP fraction map was extracted using CLSMA considering the entire spectral range (427-2355 nm), and validated by reference to the ground truth map generated by Kriging. The obtained results show the promising potential of the proposed methodology for the detection and mapping of mine iron oxide pollution in the soil.

Keywords: hyperion eo-1, hyperspectral, mine iron oxide pollution, environmental impact, unmixing

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Authors: K. C. Sony

Abstract:

This paper investigates the coping strategies of households confronting disease in large cardamom (Amomum Subulatum Roxb.) in eastern Nepal. Cardamom farmers draw on various coping strategies to reduce the impact of crop disease in their livelihoods. Yet farmers face tremendous decline in production with a constant effort for revival. Past evidences provides dearth of information about coping strategies employed by farmers and institutional intervention to combat disease. Using factual data from Ilam district, and conducting a political economic analysis, this research addresses the gap by 1) understanding the impact of crop disease in farmers’ livelihoods, 2) identifying the coping strategies adopted by farmers and, 3) examining the existing institutional arrangements to address the disease. Coping strategies vary by household’s status defined by size of land, alternative income, and access to supporting institutions. Measures adopted are burning the cardamom field, changing land use pattern, diversifying crops, and visiting institutions for support. The local government’s support is limited to providing trainings and producing new varieties of cardamom. During crisis, farmers expect institutions to help revive the cardamom production, despite customary practice to combat disease. To retain and improve the livelihoods of farmers, there needs to be institutional innovation at the community level and policies that endorse immediate and sustainable support during hazards.

Keywords: cardamom, coping strategy, disease, institutions, Nepal

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Authors: Aulia Dwi Nastiti

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A number of studies and reports on terrorism have continuously addressed the role of internet and online activism to support terrorist and extremist groups. In particular, they stress on social media’s usage that generally serves for the terrorist’s propaganda as well as justification of their causes. While those analyses are important to understand how social media is a vital tool for global network terrorism, they are inadequate to explain the online communication patterns that enable terrorism acts. Beyond apparent online narratives, there is a deep cyber sphere where the very vein of terrorism movement lies. That is a hidden space in the internet called ‘darknet’. Recent investigations, particularly in Middle Eastern context, have shed some lights that this invisible space in the internet is fundamental to maintain the terrorist activities. Despite that, limited number of research examines darknet within the issue of terrorist movements in Indonesian context—where the country is considered quite a hotbed for extremist groups. Therefore, this paper attempts to provide an insight of darknet operation in Indonesian cases. By exploring how the darknet is used by the Indonesian-based extremist groups, this paper maps out communication patterns of terrorist groups on the internet which appear as an intermingled network. It shows the usage of internet is differentiated in different level of anonymity for distinctive purposes. This paper further argues that the emerging terrorist communication network calls for a more comprehensive counterterrorism strategy on the Internet.

Keywords: communication pattern, counterterrorism, darknet, extremist groups, terrorism

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Authors: Kwan Hee Han

Abstract:

In today’s business environments, frequent change of customer requirements is a tough challenge to manufacturing company. To cope with these challenges, a production planning and scheduling (PP&S) function might be established to provide accountability for both customer service and operational efficiency. Nowadays, many manufacturing firms have utilized PP&S software solutions to generate a realistic production plan and schedule to adapt to external changes efficiently. However, companies which consider the introduction of PP&S software solution, still have difficulties for selecting adequate solution to meet their specific needs. Since the task of PP&S is the one of major building blocks of SCM (Supply Chain Management) architecture, which deals with short term decision making in the production process of SCM, it is needed that the functionalities of PP&S should be analysed within the whole SCM process. The aim of this paper is to analyse the PP&S functionalities and its system architecture from the SCM perspective by using the criteria of level of planning hierarchy, major 4 SCM processes and problem-solving approaches, and finally propose a classification framework of PP&S solutions to facilitate the comparison among various commercial software solutions. By using proposed framework, several major PP&S solutions are classified and positioned according to their functional characteristics in this paper. By using this framework, practitioners who consider the introduction of computerized PP&S solutions in manufacturing firms can prepare evaluation and benchmarking sheets for selecting the most suitable solution with ease and in less time.

Keywords: production planning, production scheduling, supply chain management, the advanced planning system

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Authors: Mostosi C., Stéphenne J., Kempeneers E.

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Introduction: Refuellers from Brussels South Charleroi Airport (BSCA) expressed concerns about the risks involved in handling JET-A1 fuel. The HSE Manager of BSCA, in collaboration with the occupational physician and the industrial hygiene unit of the External Service of Occupational Medicine, decided to assess the toxicological exposure of these workers. Materials and methods: Two measurement methods were used. The first was to assay three types of metabolites in urine to highlight the exposure to xylenes, toluene, and benzene in aircraft fuels. Out of 32 refuellers in the department, 26 participated in the sampling, and 23 samples were exploited. The second method targeted the assessment of environmental exposure to certain potentially hazardous substances that refuellers are likely to breathe in work areas at the airport. It was decided to carry out two ambient air measurement campaigns, using static systems on the one hand and, on the other hand, using individual sensors worn by the refuellers at the level of the respiratory tract. Volatile organic compounds and diesel particles were analyzed. Results: Despite the fears that motivated these analyzes, the overall results showed low levels of exposure, far below the existing limit values, both in air quality and in urinary measurements. Conclusion: These results are comparable to a study carried out in several French airports. The staff could be reassured, and then the medical surveillance was modified by the occupational physician. With the aviation development at BSCA, equipment and methods are evolving. Their exposure will have to be reassessed.

Keywords: refuelling, airport, exposure, fuel, occupational health, air quality

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Authors: Crispin Rakibu Mbamba

Abstract:

Twenty-two years after the adoption of the United Nation Trafficking Protocol, evidence suggest that child trafficking continues to rise. Community level factors, like poverty which creates the conditions for children’s vulnerability is key to the rise in trafficking cases in Ghana. Albeit, growing evidence suggestthat despite the vulnerabilities, communities have the capacity to prevent and address child trafficking issues. This study contributes to this positive agenda by exploring the ways in which communities (and the key actors) in Ghana contribute to child trafficking interventions.The study objective is explored through in-depth interviews with practitioners (including social workers) from an organization working in trafficking hotspots in Ghana. Interviews wereanalyzed thematically with the help of HyperRESEARCH software. From the in-depth interviews, three themes were identified as the ways in which communities are involved in child trafficking interventions: 1) engagement of community leaders, 2) community-led anti-trafficking committees and 3) knowledge about trafficking. Albeit the cultural differences, evidence on the instrumental role of community chiefs and leaders provide important learning on how to harness trafficking intervention measures and ensure better child protection practices. Based on the findings, we recommend the need to intensify trafficking awareness campaigns in rural communities where education is lacking to contribute to United Nations (UN) promoting Just, Peaceful and Inclusive societies’ mandate.

Keywords: child trafficking, community interventions, knowledge on trafficking, human trafficking intervention

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Authors: Nela Milosevic, Sladjana Barjaktarovic Rakocevic, Sladjana Benkovic, Nemanja Milanovic

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Nowadays, performance measurement systems play a key role in evaluating the strategic performances of an organization. On the other hand, there has been a shift towards the Balanced Scorecard (BSC), which has been recognized as a valuable managerial approach. The main goal of this paper is to analyze the main performances of Serbian banks measured at the branches level, through the usage of the Balanced Scorecard framework. Although an extensive number of practitioners have an interest in the Balanced Scorecard approach, little empirical research has been conducted on the implementation of its concept in the service sector like banks, especially within developing countries. From the beginning of August till the end of September 2015, authors have been conducting in-depth interviews among a number of experts from the most successful banks in Serbia. The results show that the non-financial measures, especially, customer oriented indicators and product/ service oriented indicators, seem to be very important factors for improving not only the financial situation within the bank, but also overall business performances. Additionally, the findings prove that there is the cause-effect relationship between non-financial and financial dimensions of the Balanced Scorecard. Having in mind that the banks are still using outdated performance evaluation systems, such as annual, quarterly and monthly reports, we hope that this paper will contribute to the knowledge of how banks in Serbia may apply the Balanced Scorecard approach to evaluate their performance on the most efficient and effective way.

Keywords: balanced scorecard approach, bank management, performance measurement systems, strategic performances

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