Search results for: street level bureaucracy

Authors: Rajesh S. Mony, Vaidyaratnam Oushadhasala

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An attempt is made in this study to evolve a drug development modality based on classical Ayurvedic knowledge base as well as on modern scientific methodology. The present study involves (a) identification of a specific ailment condition, (b) the selection of a polyherbal formulation, (c) deciding suitable extraction procedure, (d) confirming the efficacy of the combination by in-vitro trials and (e) fixing up the recommended dose. The ailment segment selected is arthritic condition. The selected herbal combination is Kunturushka, Vibhitaki, Guggulu, Haridra, Maricha and Nirgundi. They were selected as per Classical Ayurvedic references, Authentified as per API (Ayurvedic Pharmacopeia of India), Extraction of each drug was done by different ratios of Hydroalcoholic menstrums, Invitro assessment of each extract after removing residual solvent for anti-Inflammatory, anti-arthritic activities (by UV-Vis. Spectrophotometer with positive control), Invitro assessment of each extract for COX enzyme inhibition (by UV-Vis. Spectrophotometer with positive control), Selection of the extracts was made having good in-vitro activity, Performed the QC testing of each selected extract including HPTLC, that is the in process QC specifications, h. Decision of the single dose with mixtures of selected extracts was made as per the level of in-vitro activity and available toxicology data, Quantification of major groups like Phenolics, Flavonoids, Alkaloids and Bitters was done with both standard Spectrophotometric and Gravimetric methods, Method for Marker assay was developed and validated by HPTLC and a good resolved HPTLC finger print was developed for the single dosage API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient mixture of extracts), Three batches was prepared to fix the in process and API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) QC specifications.

Keywords: drug development, antiinflammatory, quality stardardisation, planar chromatography

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Authors: Chia-Lin Tu

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Towards the end of the 20th century, a reductive picture has dominated in philosophy of science and philosophy of mind. Reductive physicalism claims that all entities and properties in this world are eventually able to be reduced to the physical level. It means that all phenomena in the world are able to be explained by laws of physics. However, quantum physics provides another picture. It says that the world is undergoing change and the energy of change is, in fact, the most important part to constitute world phenomena. Quantum physics provides us another point of view to reconsider the reality of the world. Throughout the history of philosophy of mind, reductive physicalism tries to reduce the conscious phenomena to physical particles as well, meaning that the reality of consciousness is composed by physical particles. However, reductive physicalism is unable to explain conscious phenomena and mind-body causation. Conscious phenomena, e.g., qualia, is not composed by physical particles. The current popular theory for consciousness is emergentism. Emergentism is an ambiguous concept which has not had clear idea of how conscious phenomena are emerged by physical particles. In order to understand the emergence of conscious phenomena, it seems that quantum physics is an appropriate analogy. Quantum physics claims that physical particles and processes together construct the most fundamental field of world phenomena, and thus all natural processes, i.e., wave functions, have occurred within. The traditional space-time description of classical physics is overtaken by the wave-function story. If this methodology of quantum physics works well to explain world phenomena, then it is not necessary to describe the world by the idea of physical particles like classical physics did. Conscious phenomena are one kind of world phenomena. Scientists and philosophers have tried to explain the reality of them, but it has not come out any conclusion. Quantum physics tells us that the fundamental field of the natural world is processed metaphysics. The emergence of conscious phenomena is only possible within this process metaphysics and has clearly occurred. By the framework of quantum physics, we are able to take emergence more seriously, and thus we can account for such emergent phenomena as consciousness. By questioning the particle-mechanistic concept of the world, the new metaphysics offers an opportunity to reconsider the reality of conscious phenomena.

Keywords: quantum physics, reduction, emergence, qualia

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Authors: Hui Tag, Jambey Tsering, Pallabi Kalita Hui, Baikuntha Jyoti Gogoi, Vijay Veer

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The food security issues and its relevance in High Mountain regions of the world have been often neglected. Wild edible plants have been playing a major role in livelihood security among the tribal Communities of East Himalayan Region of the world since time immemorial. The Eastern Himalayan Region of India is one of the mega diverse regions of world and rated as top 12th Global Biodiversity Hotspots by IUCN and recognized as one of the 200 significant eco-regions of the Globe. The region supports one of the world’s richest alpine floras and about one-third of them are endemic to the region. There are at least 7,500 flowering plants, 700 orchids, 58 bamboo species, 64 citrus species, 28 conifers, 500 mosses, 700 ferns and 728 lichens. The region is the home of more than three hundred different ethnic communities having diverse knowledge on traditional uses of flora and fauna as food, medicine and beverages. Monpa, Memba and Khamba are among the local communities residing in high altitude region of Eastern Himalaya with rich traditional knowledge related to utilization of wild edible plants. The Monpas, Memba and Khamba are the followers Mahayana sect of Himalayan Buddhism and they are mostly agrarian by primary occupation and also heavily relaying on wild edible plants for their livelihood security during famine since millennia. In the present study, we have reported traditional uses of 40 wild edible plant species and out of which 6 species were analysed at biochemical level for nutrients contents and free radical scavenging activities. The results have shown significant free radical scavenging (antioxidant) activity and nutritional potential of the selected 6 wild edible plants used by the local communities of Eastern Himalayan Region of India.

Keywords: East Himalaya, local community, wild edible plants, nutrition, food security

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Authors: Pepur Sandra, Bulog Ivana, Rimac Smiljanić Ana

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, stress and family financial fragility arose worldwide. Economic and health uncertainty created new pressure on the everyday life of families. The work from home, homeschooling, and care of other family members caused an increase in unpaid work and generated a new division of intrahousehold. As many times before, women have taken the higher burden. This paper analyzes family stress and finance during the COVID-19 pandemic. We propose that women's inclusion in paid and unpaid work and their financial literacy influence family finances. We build up our assumptions according to the two theories that explain intrahousehold family decision-making: traditional and barging models. The traditional model assumes that partners specialize in their roles in line with time availability. Consequently, partners less engaged in payable working activities will spend more time on domestic activities and vice versa. According to the bargaining model, each individual has their preferences, and the one with more household bargaining power, e.g., higher income, higher level of education, better employment, or higher financial knowledge, is likely to make family decisions and avoid unpaid work. Our results are based on an anonymous and voluntary survey of 869 valid responses from women older than 18 conducted in Croatia at the beginning of 2021. We found that families who experienced delays in settling current obligations before the pandemic were in a worse financial situation during the pandemic. However, all families reported problems settling current obligations during pandemic times regardless of their financial condition before the crisis. Women from families with financial issues reported higher levels of family and personal stress during the pandemic. Furthermore, we provide evidence that more women's unpaid work negatively affects the family's financial fragility during the pandemic. In addition, in families where women have better financial literacy and are more financially independent, families cope better with finance before and during pandemics.

Keywords: family financial fragility, stress, unpaid work, women's financial literacy

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Authors: Hossein Ghaedamini, Salman Farahbakhsh, Alireza Amirbeigi, Zahra Saghafi, Salman Daneshi, Alireza Ghaedamini

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Background: Assessing the challenges of clinical education of medical students is one of the most important and sensitive parts of medical education. The aim of this study was to investigate the views and experiences of Kerman medical students on the factors that facilitate and inhibit the quality of clinical education. Materials and Methods: This research was qualitative and used a phenomenological approach. The study population included medical interns of Kerman University of Medical Sciences in 1400. The method of data collection was in-depth interviews with participants. Data were encoded and analyzed by Claizey stepwise model. Results: First, about 540 primary codes were extracted in the form of two main themes (facilitators and inhibitors) and 10 sub-themes including providing motivational models and creating interest in interns, high scientific level of professors and the appropriate quality of their teaching, the use of technology in the clinical education process, delegating authority and freedom of action and more responsibilities to interns, inappropriate treatment of some officials, professors, assistants and department staff with their interns, inadequate educational programming, lack of necessary cooperation and providing inappropriate treatment by clinical training experts for interns, inadequate evaluation method in clinical training for interns, poor quality mornings, the unefficiency of grand rounds, the inappropriate way of evaluating clinical training for interns, the lack of suitable facilities and conditions with the position of a medical intern, and the hardwork of some departments were categorized. Conclusion: Clinical education is always mixed with special principles and subtleties, and special attention to facilitators and inhibitors in this process has an important role in improving its quality.

Keywords: clinical education, medical students, qualitative study, education

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Authors: Olufunmilayo Folaranmi

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This research was carried out to examine the impact of socio-cultural factors on the management and utilization of solid waste in Ibadan Metropolis. A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study while a systematic and stratified random sampling technique was used to select 300 respondents which were categorized into high, middle and low-density areas. Four hypothesis were tested using chi-square test on variables of unavailability of waste disposal facilities and waste management, negligence of contractors to liaise with community members, lack of adequate environmental education and waste management and utilization, low level of motivation of sanitation workers with solid wastes management, lack of community full participation with solid waste management and utilization. Results showed that significant effect of waste disposal facilities on solid waste management and utilization (X2 +16.6, P < .05). Also, there is a significant relationship between negligence of the contractors to liaise with community elites with improper disposal (X2 = 87.5, P < .05). The motivation of sanitation workers is significantly related to solid waste management (X2 = 70.4, P < .05). Adequate environmental education and awareness influenced solid waste management. There was also a significant relationship between lack of community participation with waste management disposal and improper waste disposal. Based on the findings from the study it was recommended that the quality of life in urban centers should be improved, social welfare of the populace enhanced and environment should be adequately attended to. Poverty alleviation programmes should be intensified and made to live beyond the life of a particular administration, micro-credit facilities should be available to community members to promote their welfare. Lastly, sustained environmental education programmes for citizens at all levels of education, formal and informal through the use of agencies like Ethical and Attitudinal Reorientation Commission (EARCOM) and the National Orientation Agency (NOA).

Keywords: management, social welfare, socio-cultural factors, solid waste

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Authors: Yimei Huang, Harvey Lui, Jianhua Zhao, Zhenguo Wu, Haishan Zeng

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Conventional laser treatment of skin diseases and cosmetic surgery is based on the principle of one-photon absorption selective photothermolysis which relies strongly on the difference in the light absorption between the therapeutic target and its surrounding tissue. However, when the difference in one-photon absorption is not sufficient, collateral damage would occur due to indiscriminate and nonspecific tissue heating. To overcome this problem, we developed a spatially selective photothermolysis method based on multiphoton absorption in which the heat generation is restricted to the focal point of a tightly focused near-infrared femtosecond laser beam aligned with the target of interest. A multimodal optical microscope with co-registered reflectance confocal imaging (RCM), two-photon fluorescence imaging (TPF), and second harmonic generation imaging (SHG) capabilities was used to perform and monitor the spatially selective photothermolysis. Skin samples excised from the shaved backs of euthanized NODSCID mice were used in this study. Treatments were performed by focusing and scaning the laser beam in the dermis with a 50µm×50µm target area. Treatment power levels of 200 mW to 400 mW and modulated pulse trains of different duration and period were experimented. Different treatment parameters achieved different degrees of spatial confinement of tissue alterations as visualized by 3-D RCM/TPF/SHG imaging. At 200 mW power level, 0.1 s pulse train duration, 4.1 s pulse train period, the tissue damage was found to be restricted precisely to the 50µm×50µm×10µm volume, where the laser focus spot had scanned through. The overlying epidermis/dermis tissue and the underneath dermis tissue were intact although there was light passing through these regions.

Keywords: multiphoton absorption photothermolysis, reflectance confocal microscopy, second harmonic generation microscopy, spatially selective photothermolysis, two-photon fluorescence microscopy

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Authors: Seungho Shin, Keunwoo Choi, Ali Akbar, Sukkee Um

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In this study, the nanoscale transport properties and catalyst utilization of vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) catalyst layers are computationally predicted by the three-dimensional lattice Boltzmann simulation based on the quasi-random nanostructural model in pursuance of fuel cell catalyst performance improvement. A series of catalyst layers are randomly generated with statistical significance at the 95% confidence level to reflect the heterogeneity of the catalyst layer nanostructures. The nanoscale gas transport phenomena inside the catalyst layers are simulated by the D3Q19 (i.e., three-dimensional, 19 velocities) lattice Boltzmann method, and the corresponding mass transport characteristics are mathematically modeled in terms of structural properties. Considering the nanoscale reactant transport phenomena, a transport-based effective catalyst utilization factor is defined and statistically analyzed to determine the structure-transport influence on catalyst utilization. The tortuosity of the reactant mass transport path of VACNT catalyst layers is directly calculated from the streaklines. Subsequently, the corresponding effective mass diffusion coefficient is statistically predicted by applying the pre-estimated tortuosity factors to the Knudsen diffusion coefficient in the VACNT catalyst layers. The statistical estimation results clearly indicate that the morphological structures of VACNT catalyst layers reduce the tortuosity of reactant mass transport path when compared to conventional catalyst layer and significantly improve consequential effective mass diffusion coefficient of VACNT catalyst layer. Furthermore, catalyst utilization of the VACNT catalyst layer is substantially improved by enhanced mass diffusion and electric current paths despite the relatively poor interconnections of the ion transport paths.

Keywords: Lattice Boltzmann method, nano transport phenomena, polymer electrolyte fuel cells, vertically aligned carbon nanotube

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Authors: Jamal Alqinai

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A pragmatic approach to translation studies the rules and principles governing the use of language over and above the rules of syntax or morphology, and what makes some uses of language more appropriate than others in [communicative] situations. It attempts to explain translation as a procedure and product from the point of view of how, why and what is done by the source text author (ST) and what is to be done in the target text (TT) rendition. The latter will be subject to evaluation not as generated by the linguistics system but as conveyed and manipulated by participants in a communicative situation according to the referential and pragmatic standards employed. The failure of a purely lexical or structural translation stems from ignoring the relation between words as signs and the effect they have on their users. A more refined approach would also consider those processes that are sometimes labeled extra-linguistic or intuitive and which translators strive to reproduce unscathed in the translation process. We need to grasp the kind of actions an ST author performs on his readers by combining linguistic and non-linguistic elements against a backdrop of beliefs and cultural values. In other words, aside from considering the cohesive ties at the textual level, one needs to understand how the whole ST discourse hangs together logically in order to reproduce a coherent TT. The latter can only be achieved by an analysis of the pragmatic elements of presuppositions, implicatures and acts performed in the ST. Establishing cohesive ties within a text may require seeking reference outside the immediate text. The illocutionary functions manifested in one language/culture are relatively autonomous cultural/linguistic categories, but are imaginable by members of other cultures and, to some extent , are translatable though not, of course, without translation loss. Globalization and the spread of literacy worldwide may have created a universal empathy to comprehend the performative aspect of utterances when explained by approximate glosses or by paraphrase. Yet, it is often the multilayered and the culture-specific nature of illocutionary functions that de-universalize their possible interpretations. This paper addresses the pragmatic interpretation of culturally specific texts with examples adduced from a number of distinct settings to illustrate the influence of the pragmatic factors at stake.

Keywords: pragmatic, presupposition, implicature, cohesion

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Authors: Jill Villarreal, Kristalyn Cooksey, Kai Lloyd, Daniel Ha

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Little research has been conducted to examine college students' reading attitudes, including students' perceptions of reading behaviors and reading abilities. This is problematic, as reading assigned course material is a critical component to an undergraduate student's academic success. For this study, flyers were electronically disseminated to instructors at 24 public and 10 private U.S. institutions in “Reading-Intensive Departments” including Psychology, Sociology, Education, Business, and Communications. We requested the online survey be completed as an in-class activity during the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters. All participants voluntarily completed the questionnaire anonymously. Of the participants, 280 self-identified their race as Black and 280 self-identified their race as White. Of the participants, 177 self-identified their gender as Male and 383 self-identified their Gender as Female. Participants ranged in age from 18-24. Factor analysis found four dimensions resulting from the questions regarding reading. The first we interpret as “Reading Proficiency”, accounted for 19% of the variability. The second dimension was “Reading Anxiety” (15%), the third was “Textbook Reading Ability” (9%), and the fourth was “Reading Enjoyment” (8%). Linear models on each of these dimensions revealed no effect of Age, Gender, Race, or Income on “Reading proficiency”. The linear model of “Reading Anxiety” showed a significant effect of race (p = 0.02), with higher anxiety in white students, as well as higher reading anxiety in female students (p < 0.001). The model of “Textbook Reading Ability” found a significant effect of race (p < 0.001), with higher textbook problems in white students. The model of “Reading Enjoyment” showed significant effects of race (p = 0.013) with more enjoyment for white students, gender (p = 0.001) with higher enjoyment for female students, and age (p = 0.033) with older students showing higher enjoyment. These findings suggest that gender, age, and race are important factors in many aspects of college students' reading attitudes. Further research will investigate possible causes for these differences. In addition, the effectiveness of college-level programs to reduce reading anxiety, promote the reading of textbooks, and foster a love of reading will be assessed.

Keywords: age, college, gender, race, reading

Procedia PDF Downloads 153

Authors: V. V. Belavadi, Syed Najeer E. Noor Khadri, Shivamurthy Naik

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Members of aculeate Hymenoptera exhibit different levels of sociality. While Chrysidoidea are primarily parasitic and use their sting only for the purpose parasitizing the host and never for defense, all vespoid and apoid (sphecid) wasps use their sting for paralysing their prey as well as for defending themselves from predators and intruders. Though most apoid bees use their sting for defending themselves, a few bees (Apis spp.) use their sting exclusively for defending their colonies and the brood. A preliminary study conducted on the comparative morphology of stings of apoid bees and wasps and that of vespid wasps, indicated that the backward projected barbs are more pronounced only in the genus Apis, which is considered as the reason why a honey bee worker, loses its sting and dies when it stings a higher animal. This raises an important question: How barbs on lancets of Apis bees evolved? Supposing the barbs had not been strong, the worker bee would have been more efficient in defending the colony instead of only once in its lifetime! Some arguments in favour of worker altruistic behaviour, mention that in highly social insects, the colony size is large, workers are closely related among themselves and a worker sacrificing its life for the colony is beneficial for the colony. However, in colonies with a queen that has mated multiple times, the coefficient of relatedness among workers gets reduced and still the workers continue to exhibit the same behaviour. In this paper, we have tried to compare the morphology of stings of aculeate Hymenoptera and have attempted to relate sting morphology with social behaviour. Species examined for sting morphology are A. cerana, Apis dorsata, A. florea, Amegilla violacea, A. zonata, Megachile anthracina, M. Disjuncta, Liris aurulentus, Tachysphex bengalensis. Our studies indicate that occurrence of barbs on lancets correlates with the degree of sociality and sting autotomy is more pronounced in swarm-founding species than in haplometrotic species. The number of barbs on the lancets varied from 0 to 11. Additionally SEM images also revealed interesting characters of barbs.

Keywords: altruistic, barbs, sociality, sting autotomy

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Authors: Joseph Lillington, Tom Gout, Mike Harrison, Ian Farnan

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The vitrification of high-level nuclear waste within borosilicate glass and its incorporation within a multi-barrier repository deep underground is widely accepted as the preferred disposal method. However, for this to happen, any safety case will require validation that the initially localized radionuclides will not be considerably released into the near/far-field. Therefore, accurate mechanistic models are necessary to predict glass dissolution, and these should be robust to a variety of incorporated waste species and leaching test conditions, particularly given substantial variations across international waste-streams. Here, machine learning is used to predict glass material properties (viscosity, density) and glass leaching model parameters from large-scale industrial data. A variety of different machine learning algorithms have been compared to assess performance. Density was predicted solely from composition, whereas viscosity additionally considered temperature. To predict suitable glass leaching model parameters, a large simulated dataset was created by coupling MATLAB and the chemical reactive-transport code HYTEC, considering the state-of-the-art GRAAL model (glass reactivity in allowance of the alteration layer). The trained models were then subsequently applied to the large-scale industrial, experimental data to identify potentially appropriate model parameters. Results indicate that ensemble methods can accurately predict viscosity as a function of temperature and composition across all three industrial datasets. Glass density prediction shows reliable learning performance with predictions primarily being within the experimental uncertainty of the test data. Furthermore, machine learning can predict glass dissolution model parameters behavior, demonstrating potential value in GRAAL model development and in assessing suitable model parameters for large-scale industrial glass dissolution data.

Keywords: machine learning, predictive modelling, pattern recognition, radioactive waste glass

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Authors: C. Catalina Zapata, Z. Claudia Montoya

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Transplant from hematopoietic parents (THP) or medulla (MT) is a procedure used to replace the medulla that does not work as part of a disease or when it is destroyed either by a treatment of high medication doses against cancer or by radiation. The transplant process has three stages, a stage prior to transplant, during and after the transplant. It is held with the help of an interdisciplinary team, including nursing, carrying out mainly educative procedures to warrant the adhesion and the changes in lifestyles needed to whom will undergo this procedure. The aim of the study was to assess the results of an educative procedure by nursing, on adult patients subjected to a transplant from hematopoietic parents at a high complexity institution of Medellin city, Colombia. This study had an observational longitudinal design. According to the rules of protocol, the educative activity must be held on all patients joining the procedure. Four instruments were designed in order to collect all the information. One of them to measure the sociodemographic variables, another one to measure self-care practices, another one to measure transplant knowledge and its cares and the other one to measure the 30-day post-transplant complications. The last three instruments were applied before and after the educative procedure. A univaried analysis was carried out but the bivaried analysis was not carried out since there were not statistically meaningful differences before and after. Within the results, ten patients were evaluated. The average age was 38.2 (13.38 SD – standard deviation), 8/10 were men. Some self-care practices such us having pets and plants and consuming some specific food as well as little use of UV protection are all present in this type of patients and are not modified after the procedure. In measuring the knowledge, something stands out among the answers. It is the fact that some patients do not know what the medulla is, the nature of separating wastes at home and the need to consult about vomit and nausea. The most frequent complications during the first thirty days were: nausea, vomit, fever, and rash. They are considered to be expected within this period. Patients do not exhibit differences in their level of knowledge before and after the educative procedure by nursing. The patients’ self-care practices do not involve all the necessary ones to avoid complications. During the first 30 days, most of the complications are typical of the transplant process from hematopoietic parents.

Keywords: bone marrow transplant, education, family, nursing, patients, Transplantation of hematopoietic progenitors

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Authors: L. Shafiq, A. Rigby

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All polyethylene processes are highly exothermic, and the safe removal of the heat of reaction is a fundamental issue in the process design. In slurry and gas processes, the velocity of the polymer particles in the reactor and external coolers can be very high, and under certain conditions, this can lead to static charging of these particles. Such static charged polymer particles may start building up on the reactor wall, limiting heat transfer, and ultimately leading to severe reactor fouling and forced reactor shut down. Statsafe™ is an FDA approved anti-fouling additive currently used around the world for polyolefin production as an anti-fouling additive. The unique polymer chemistry aids static discharge, which prevents the build-up of charged polyolefin particles, which could lead to fouling. Statsafe™ is being used and trailed in gas, slurry, and a combination of these technologies around the world. We will share data to demonstrate how the use of Statsafe™ allows more stable operation at higher solids level by eliminating static, which would otherwise prevent closer packing of particles in the hydrocarbon slurry. Because static charge generation depends also on the concentration of polymer particles in the slurry, the maximum slurry concentration can be higher when using Statsafe™, leading to higher production rates. The elimination of fouling also leads to less downtime. Special focus will be made on the impact anti-static additives have on catalyst performance within the polymerization process and how this has been measured. Lab-scale studies have investigated the effect on the activity of Ziegler Natta catalysts when anti-static additives are used at various concentrations in gas and slurry, polyethylene and polypropylene processes. An in-depth gas phase study investigated the effect of additives on the final polyethylene properties such as particle size, morphology, fines, bulk density, melt flow index, gradient density, and melting point.

Keywords: anti-static additives, catalyst performance, FDA approved anti-fouling additive, polymerisation

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Authors: Xuan Zhao, Wen Jiang

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In this study, a web crawler was used to collect POI sample data from 38 districts and counties of Chongqing in 2022, and ArcGIS was combined to coordinate and projection conversion and realize data visualization. Nuclear density analysis and spatial correlation analysis were used to explore the spatial distribution characteristics of elderly care facilities in Chongqing, and K mean cluster analysis was carried out with GeoDa to study the spatial concentration degree of elderly care resources in 38 districts and counties. Finally, the driving force of spatial differentiation of elderly care facilities in various districts and counties of Chongqing is studied by using the method of geographic detector. The results show that: (1) in terms of spatial distribution structure, the distribution of elderly care facilities in Chongqing is unbalanced, showing a distribution pattern of ‘large dispersion and small agglomeration’ and the asymmetric pattern of ‘west dense and east sparse, north dense and south sparse’ is prominent. (2) In terms of the spatial matching between elderly care resources and the elderly population, there is a weak coordination between the input of elderly care resources and the distribution of the elderly population at the county level in Chongqing. (3) The analysis of the results of the geographical detector shows that the single factor influence is mainly the number of elderly population, public financial revenue and district and county GDP. The high single factor influence is mainly caused by the elderly population, public financial income, and district and county GDP. The influence of each influence factor on the spatial distribution of elderly care facilities is not simply superimposed but has a nonlinear enhancement effect or double factor enhancement. It is necessary to strengthen the synergistic effect of two factors and promote the synergistic effect of multiple factors.

Keywords: aging, elderly care facilities, spatial differentiation, geographical detector, driving force analysis, Mountain city

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Authors: Aisha Khodijah Kholib Jati, Suharni Mohamad, Azlan Husin, Wan Suriana Wan Ab Rahman

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Introduction: Toxoplasmosis is caused by an obligate intracellular parasite, Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii). It is commonly asymptomatic in normal individual, but it can be fatal to immunocompromised patients as it can lead to severe complications such as encephalitis, chorioetinitis and myocarditis. Objective: The aim of the study was to determine the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis and its association with socio-demographic and behavioral characteristics among hemato-oncology patients in Hospital USM. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 56 hemato-oncology patients were screened for immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies, immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies, and IgG avidity of T. gondii by using ELISA Kit (BioRad, USA). For anti-T. gondii IgG antibody, titer ≥ 9 IU/ml was considered as recent infection, while for IgM, ratio ≥ 1.00 was considered as reactive for the anti-T. gondii IgM antibodies. Low avidity index is considered as recent infection within 20 weeks while high avidity considered as past infection. T. gondii exposure, socio-demographic and behavioral characteristics was assessed by a questionnaire and interview. Results: A total of 28 (50.0%) hemato-oncology patients were seropositive for T. gondii antibodies. Out of that total, 27 (48.21%) patients were IgG+/IgM- and one patient (1.79%) was IgG+/IgM+ with high avidity index. Univariate analysis showed that age, gender, ethnicity, marital status, educational level, employment status, stem cell transplant, blood transfusion, close contact with cats, water supply, and consumption of undercooked meat were not significantly associated with Toxoplasma seropositivity rate. Discussion: The seropositivity rate of IgG anti-T. gondii was high among hemato-oncology patients in Hospital USM. With impaired immune system, these patients might have a severe consequence if the infection reactivated. Therefore, screening for anti-T. gondii may be considered in the future. Moreover, health programme towards healthy food and good hygiene practice need to be implemented.

Keywords: immunocompromised, seroprevalence, socio-demographic, toxoplasmosis

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Authors: Zhipeng Yan, Janice Wing-Tung Kwong, Ching-Lung Lai

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Background: Advanced melanoma accounts for the majority of skin cancer death due to its poor prognosis. Nivolumab and ipilimumab are monoclonal antibodies targeting programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) and cytotoxic T-lymphocytes antigen 4 (CTLA-4). Nivolumab and ipilimumab combination therapy has been proven to be effective for advanced melanoma. This systematic review and meta-analysis are to evaluate its clinical efficacy and adverse events. Method: A systematic search was done on databases (Pubmed, Embase, Medline, Cochrane) on 21 June 2020. Search keywords were nivolumab, ipilimumab, melanoma, and randomised controlled trials. Clinical trials fulfilling the inclusion criteria were selected to evaluate the efficacy of combination therapy in terms of prolongation of progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), and objective response rate (ORR). The odd ratios and distributions of grade 3 or above adverse events were documented. Subgroup analysis was performed based on PD-L1 expression-status and BRAF-mutation status. Results: Compared with nivolumab monotherapy, the hazard ratios of PFS, OS and odd ratio of ORR in combination therapy were 0.64 (95% CI, 0.48-0.85; p=0.002), 0.84 (95% CI, 0.74-0.95; p=0.007) and 1.76 (95% CI, 1.51-2.06; p < 0.001), respectively. Compared with ipilimumab monotherapy, the hazard ratios of PFS, OS and odd ratio of ORR were 0.46 (95% CI, 0.37-0.57; p < 0.001), 0.54 (95% CI, 0.48-0.61; p < 0.001) and 6.18 (95% CI, 5.19-7.36; p < 0.001), respectively. In combination therapy, the odds ratios of grade 3 or above adverse events were 4.71 (95% CI, 3.57-6.22; p < 0.001) compared with nivolumab monotherapy, and 3.44 (95% CI, 2.49-4.74; p < 0.001) compared with ipilimumab monotherapy, respectively. High PD-L1 expression level and BRAF mutation were associated with better clinical outcomes in patients receiving combination therapy. Conclusion: Combination therapy is effective for the treatment of advanced melanoma. Adverse events were common but manageable. Better clinical outcomes were observed in patients with high PD-L1 expression levels and positive BRAF-mutation.

Keywords: nivolumab, ipilimumab, advanced melanoma, systematic review, meta-analysis

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Authors: Se-Mi Lim, Won-Jae Jung, Jin-Sup Kim, Jun-Seok Park, Hyung-Il Chae

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This paper presents a current-mode vertical hall device (VHD) structure using metal layers in a CMOS process. The proposed metal layer based vertical hall device (MLVHD) utilizes vertical connection among metal layers (from M1 to the top metal) to facilitate hall effect. The vertical metal structure unit flows a bias current Ibias from top to bottom, and an external magnetic field changes the current distribution by Lorentz force. The asymmetric current distribution can be detected by two differential-mode current outputs on each side at the bottom (M1), and each output sinks Ibias/2 ± Ihall. A single vertical metal structure generates only a small amount of hall effect of Ihall due to the short length from M1 to the top metal as well as the low conductivity of the metal, and a series connection between thousands of vertical structure units can solve the problem by providing NxIhall. The series connection between two units is another vertical metal structure flowing current in the opposite direction, and generates negative hall effect. To mitigate the negative hall effect from the series connection, the differential current outputs at the bottom (M1) from one unit merges on the top metal level of the other unit. The proposed MLVHD is simulated in a 3-dimensional model simulator in COMSOL Multiphysics, with 0.35 μm CMOS process parameters. The simulated MLVHD unit size is (W) 10 μm × (L) 6 μm × (D) 10 μm. In this paper, we use an MLVHD with 10 units; the overall hall device size is (W) 10 μm × (L)78 μm × (D) 10 μm. The COMSOL simulation result is as following: the maximum hall current is approximately 2 μA with a 12 μA bias current and 100mT magnetic field; This work was supported by Institute for Information & communications Technology Promotion(IITP) grant funded by the Korea government(MSIP) (No.R7117-16-0165, Development of Hall Effect Semiconductor for Smart Car and Device).

Keywords: CMOS, vertical hall device, current mode, COMSOL

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Authors: Hamide Azimi Lolaty, Fateme Alsadat Ghanipoor, Azar Ramzani, Reza Ali Mohammadpoor, Alireza Babaei

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Background and Objective: Despite the merits behind orthognathic surgery, self-care training in such patients seems logical. The current research was performed pursuing the goal of outlining the effect of training mindfulness-based self-care on Self-Esteem (SE) and Body Image Concern (BIC) of orthognathic surgery candidate patients. Material and Methods: The present study was performed using a semi-experimental method with pre-and post-design in the control and intervention groups. The eligible patients to enter the Babol-based Shahid Beheshti Orthognathic Surgery Clinic were conveniently divided into two 25-person groups. The variables of Self-Esteem and Body Image Concern were measured before and after executing the eight 90-minute training sessions and in the follow-up period done three months after executing the intervention using Cooper Smith’s Self-Esteem Inventory (CSEI) and Body Image Concern Inventory (BICI). The data were analyzed using ANOVA and the independent t-test and using SPSS-26, the data were analyzed at a 0.05 level. Results: As a result of the intervention, the intervention group’s SE score critically changed on average from 25.4±7.31 in the pre-intervention to 31.16±7.05 in the post-intervention and to 40.45±3.51 in the follow-up period (P=0.01), the intervention group’s BIC score changed on average from 60.28±16.47 in the pre-intervention to 47.15±80.47 in the post-intervention and to 32.20 ± 10.73 in the follow-up period. This difference was meaningful (P=0.001). But due to time and the intervention interaction, the control group underwent this significant reduction with a delay. The study revealed the scores of the SE as 32± 6.84 and that of the BIC as 43.32±10.64 in the control group didn’t result in any meaningful statistical difference (P<0.05). Conclusion: Training mindfulness-based self-care exerts an effect on the SE and BIC of the patients undergoing orthognathic surgery. Therefore, it’s recommended to train mindfulness-based self-care for orthognathic surgery candidate patients.

Keywords: self-care, mindfulness, self-esteem, body image concern, orthognathic surgery

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Authors: Azadeh Razzagh Shoar, Hassan Sadeghi Naeini

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There is little doubt that concepts such as space and place have become more common considering that human beings have grown more apart and more than having contact with each other, they are in contact with objects, spaces, and places. Cafés, as a third place which is neither home nor workplace, have attracted these authors’ interests, who are industrial and interior designers. There has been much research on providing suitable cafés, customer behavior, and criteria for spatial sense. However, little research has been carried out on consumerism, desire for variety, and their relationship with changing places, and specifically cafes in term of interior design. In fact, customer’s sense of place has mostly been overlooked. In this case study, authors conducted to challenge the desire for variety and consumerism as well as investigating the addictive factors in cafés. From the designers’ point of view and by collecting data through observing and interviewing café managers, this study investigates and analyzes the customers in two cafes located in a commercial building in northern Tehran (a part of city with above average economic conditions). Since these two cafés are at the same level in terms of interior and spatial design, the question is raised as to why customers patronize the newly built café despite their loyalty to the older café. This study aims to investigate and find the criteria based on the sense of space (café) in a consumerist society, a world where consumption is a myth. Going to cafés in a larger scale than a product can show a selection and finally who you are, where you go, which brand of coffee you prefer, and what time of the day you would like to have your coffee. The results show that since people spend time in cafés more than any other third place, the interaction they have with their environment is more than anything else, and they are consumers of time and place more than coffee or any other product. Also, if there is a sense of consumerism and variety, it is mostly for the place rather than coffee and other products. To satisfy this sense, individuals go to a new place (the new café). It can be easily observed that this sense overshadows the sense of efficiency, design, facilities and all important factor for a café.

Keywords: place, cafe, consumerist society, consumerism, desire for variety

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Authors: Sarra Haouala, Issam Doghri

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In this work, a multiscale computational strategy is proposed for the analysis of structures, which are described at a refined level both in space and in time. The proposal is applied to two-phase viscoelastic-viscoplastic (VE-VP) reinforced thermoplastics subjected to large numbers of cycles. The main aim is to predict the effective long time response while reducing the computational cost considerably. The proposed computational framework is a combination of the mean-field space homogenization based on the generalized incrementally affine formulation for VE-VP composites, and the asymptotic time homogenization approach for coupled isotropic VE-VP homogeneous solids under large numbers of cycles. The time homogenization method is based on the definition of micro and macro-chronological time scales, and on asymptotic expansions of the unknown variables. First, the original anisotropic VE-VP initial-boundary value problem of the composite material is decomposed into coupled micro-chronological (fast time scale) and macro-chronological (slow time-scale) problems. The former is purely VE, and solved once for each macro time step, whereas the latter problem is nonlinear and solved iteratively using fully implicit time integration. Second, mean-field space homogenization is used for both micro and macro-chronological problems to determine the micro and macro-chronological effective behavior of the composite material. The response of the matrix material is VE-VP with J2 flow theory assuming small strains. The formulation exploits the return-mapping algorithm for the J2 model, with its two steps: viscoelastic predictor and plastic corrections. The proposal is implemented for an extended Mori-Tanaka scheme, and verified against finite element simulations of representative volume elements, for a number of polymer composite materials subjected to large numbers of cycles.

Keywords: asymptotic expansions, cyclic loadings, inclusion-reinforced thermoplastics, mean-field homogenization, time homogenization

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Authors: Luojie Tang

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Riverside space is an important public space and ecological corridor in urban areas, but mountainous urban rivers are often overlooked due to their deep valleys and poor accessibility. This article takes the Qing Shui Xi River in Chongqing as an example, and through long-term field inspections, measurements, interviews, and online surveys, summarizes the problems of poor accessibility, limited space for renovation, lack of waterfront facilities, excessive artificial intervention, low average runoff, severe river water pollution, and difficulty in integrated watershed management in riverside space. Based on the current situation and drawing on relevant experiences, this article summarizes the design methods for riverside space in deep valley rivers in mountainous urban areas. Regarding spatial design techniques, the article emphasizes the importance of integrating waterfront spaces into the urban public space system and vertical linkages. Furthermore, the article suggests different design methods and improvement strategies for the already developed areas and new development areas. Specifically, the article proposes a planning and design strategy of "protection" and "empowerment" for new development areas and an updating and transformation strategy of "improvement" and "revitalization" for already developed areas. In terms of ecological restoration methods, the article suggests three focus points: increasing the runoff of urban rivers, raising the landscape water level during dry seasons, and restoring vegetation and wetlands in the riverbank buffer zone while protecting the overall pattern of the watershed. Additionally, the article presents specific design details of the Qingshuixi River to illustrate the proposed design and restoration techniques.

Keywords: deep-cut river, design method, mountainous city, Qingshuixi river in Chongqing, waterfront space design

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Authors: Mahmoud B. Rokaya

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The study of opinion mining and sentiment analysis includes analysis of opinions, sentiments, evaluations, attitudes, and emotions. The rapid growth of social media, social networks, reviews, forum discussions, microblogs, and Twitter, leads to a parallel growth in the field of sentiment analysis. The field of sentiment analysis tries to develop effective tools to make it possible to capture the trends of people. There are two approaches in the field, lexicon-based and corpus-based methods. A lexicon-based method uses a sentiment lexicon which includes sentiment words and phrases with assigned numeric scores. These scores reveal if sentiment phrases are positive or negative, their intensity, and/or their emotional orientations. Creation of manual lexicons is hard. This brings the need for adaptive automated methods for generating a lexicon. The proposed method generates dynamic lexicons based on the corpus and then classifies text using these lexicons. In the proposed method, different approaches are combined to generate lexicons from text. The proposed method classifies the tweets into 5 classes instead of +ve or –ve classes. The sentiment classification problem is written as an optimization problem, finding optimum sentiment lexicons are the goal of the optimization process. The solution was produced based on mathematical programming approaches to find the best lexicon to classify texts. A genetic algorithm was written to find the optimal lexicon. Then, extraction of a meta-level feature was done based on the optimal lexicon. The experiments were conducted on several datasets. Results, in terms of accuracy, recall and F measure, outperformed the state-of-the-art methods proposed in the literature in some of the datasets. A better understanding of the Arabic language and culture of Arab Twitter users and sentiment orientation of words in different contexts can be achieved based on the sentiment lexicons proposed by the algorithm.

Keywords: social media, Twitter sentiment, sentiment analysis, lexicon, genetic algorithm, evolutionary computation

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Authors: G. Medkour Ishak-Boushaki, A. Taibi, M. Allab

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Quantitative environmental radioactivity measurements are needed to determine the level of exposure of a population to ionizing radiations and for the assessment of the associated risks. Gamma spectrometry remains a very powerful tool for the analysis of radionuclides present in an environmental sample but the basic problem in such measurements is the low rate of detected events. Using large environmental samples could help to get around this difficulty but, unfortunately, new issues are raised by gamma rays attenuation and self-absorption. Recently, a new method has been suggested, to detect and identify without quantification, in a short time, a gamma ray of a low count source. This method does not require, as usually adopted in gamma spectrometry measurements, a pulse height spectrum acquisition. It is based on a chronological record of each detected photon by simultaneous measurements of its energy ε and its arrival time τ on the detector, the pair parameters [ε,τ] defining an event mode sequence (EMS). The EMS serials are analyzed sequentially by a Bayesian approach to detect the presence of a given radioactive source. The main object of the present work is to test the applicability of this sequential approach in radioactive environmental materials detection. Moreover, for an appropriate health oversight of the public and of the concerned workers, the analysis has been extended to get a reliable quantification of the radionuclides present in environmental samples. For illustration, we consider as an example, the problem of detection and quantification of 238U. Monte Carlo simulated experience is carried out consisting in the detection, by a Ge(Hp) semiconductor junction, of gamma rays of 63 keV emitted by 234Th (progeny of 238U). The generated EMS serials are analyzed by a Bayesian inference. The application of the sequential Bayesian approach, in environmental radioactivity analysis, offers the possibility of reducing the measurements time without requiring large environmental samples and consequently avoids the attached inconvenient. The work is still in progress.

Keywords: Bayesian approach, event mode sequence, gamma spectrometry, Monte Carlo method

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Authors: Asal Pournaghshband

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This paper presents the development of a finite element model to study the large deflection behavior of restrained stainless steel cellular beams at elevated temperature. Cellular beams are widely used for efficient utilization of raw materials to facilitate long spans with faster construction resulting sustainable design solution that can enhance the performance and merit of any construction project. However, their load carrying capacity is less than the equivalent beams without opening due to developing shear-moment interaction at the openings. In structural frames due to elements continuity, such beams are restrained by their adjoining members which has a substantial effect on beams behavior in fire. Stainless steel has also become integral part of the build environment due to its excellent corrosion resistance, whole life-cycle costs, and sustainability. This paper reports the numerical investigations into the effect of structural continuity on the thermo-mechanical performance of restrained steel beams with circle and elongated circle shapes of web opening in fire. The numerical model is firstly validated using existing numerical results from the literature, and then employed to perform a parametric study. The structural continuity is evaluated through the application of different levels of axial restraints on the response of carbon steel and stainless steel cellular beam in fire. The transit temperature for stainless steel cellular beam is shown to be less affected by the level of axial stiffness than the equivalent carbon steel cellular beam. Overall, it was established that whereas stainless steel cellular beams show similar stages of behavior of carbon steel cellular beams in fire, they are capable of withstanding higher temperatures prior to the onset of catenary action in large deflection, despite the higher thermal expansion of stainless steel material.

Keywords: axial restraint, catenary action, cellular beam, fire, numerical modeling, stainless steel, transit temperature

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Authors: Yusra Mahfooz, Saleha Mehmood

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With increase in industrialization and urbanization, water contaminating rivers through effluents laden with diverse chemicals in developing countries. The study was based on the waste water quality of the four drains (Outfall, Gulshan -e- Ravi, Hudiara, and Babu Sabu) which enter into river Ravi in Lahore, Pakistan. Different pollution parameters were analyzed including pH, DO, BOD, COD, turbidity, EC, TSS, nitrates, phosphates, sulfates and fecal coliform. Approximately all the water parameters of drains were exceeded the permissible level of wastewater standards. In calculation of pollution load, Hudiara drains showed highest pollution load in terms of COD i.e. 429.86 tons/day while in Babu Sabu drain highest pollution load was calculated in terms of BOD i.e. 162.82 tons/day (due to industrial and sewage discharge in it). Lab scale treatment (oxidation ponds) was designed in order to treat the waste water of Babu Sabu drain, through combination of different algae species i.e. chaetomorphasutoria, sirogoniumsticticum and zygnema sp. Two different sizes of ponds (horizontal and vertical), and three different concentration of algal samples (25g/3L, 50g/3L, and 75g/3L) were selected. After 6 days of treatment, 80 to 97% removal efficiency was found in the pollution parameters. It was observed that in the vertical pond, maximum reduction achieved i.e. turbidity 62.12%, EC 79.3%, BOD 86.6%, COD 79.72%, FC 100%, nitrates 89.6%, sulphates 96.9% and phosphates 85.3%. While in the horizontal pond, the maximum reduction in pollutant parameters, turbidity 69.79%, EC 83%, BOD 88.5%, COD 83.01%, FC 100%, nitrates 89.8%, sulphates 97% and phosphates 86.3% was observed. Overall treatment showed that maximum reduction was carried out in 50g algae setup in the horizontal pond due to large surface area, after 6 days of treatment. Results concluded that algae-based treatment are most energy efficient, which can improve drains water quality in cost effective manners.

Keywords: oxidation pond, ravi pollution, river water quality, wastewater treatment

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Authors: Robin Molinier

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Industrial symbiosis (I.S) rely on two modes of cooperation that are infrastructure sharing and resource substitution to obtain economic and environmental benefits. The former consists in the intensification of use of an asset while the latter is based on the use of waste, fatal energy (and utilities) as alternatives to standard inputs. Both modes, in fact, rely on the shift from a business-as-usual functioning towards an alternative production system structure so that in a business point of view the distinction is not clear. In order to investigate the way those cooperation modes can be distinguished, we consider the stakeholders' interplay in the business model structure regarding their resources and requirements. For infrastructure sharing (following economic engineering literature) the cost function of capacity induces economies of scale so that demand pooling reduces global expanses. Grassroot investment sizing decision and the ex-post pricing strongly depends on the design optimization phase for capacity sizing whereas ex-post operational cost sharing minimizing budgets are less dependent upon production rates. Value is then mainly design driven. For resource substitution, synergies value stems from availability and is at risk regarding both supplier and user load profiles and market prices of the standard input. Baseline input purchasing cost reduction is thus more driven by the operational phase of the symbiosis and must be analyzed within the whole sourcing policy (including diversification strategies and expensive back-up replacement). Moreover, while resource substitution involves a chain of intermediate processors to match quality requirements, the infrastructure model relies on a single operator whose competencies allow to produce non-rival goods. Transaction costs appear higher in resource substitution synergies due to the high level of customization which induces asset specificity, and non-homogeneity following transaction costs economics arguments.

Keywords: business model, capacity, sourcing, synergies

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Authors: Sisay Tiroro Salato

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Background: Ethiopia has been implementing the maternal death surveillance and response system to provide real-time actionable information, including causes of death and contributing factors. Analysis of maternal mortality surveillance data was conducted to identify the causes and underlying factors in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods: We carried out a retrospective surveillance data analysis of 324 maternal deaths reported in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 2017 to 2021. The data were extracted from the national maternal death surveillance and response database, including information from case investigation, verbal autopsy, and facility extraction forms. The data were analyzed by computing frequency and presented in numbers, proportions, and ratios. Results: Of 324 maternal deaths, 92% died in the health facilities, 6.2% in transit, and 1.5% at home. The mean age at death was 28 years, ranging from 17 to 45. The maternal mortality ratio per 100,000 live births was 77for the five years, ranging from 126 in 2017 to 21 in 2021. The direct and indirect causes of death were responsible for 87% and 13%, respectively. The direct causes included obstetric haemorrhage, hypertensive disorders in pregnancy, puerperal sepsis, embolism, obstructed labour, and abortion. The third delay (delay in receiving care after reaching health facilities) accounted for 57% of deaths, while the first delay (delay in deciding to seek health care) and the second delay (delay in reaching health facilities) and accounted for 34% and 24%, respectively. Late arrival to the referral facility, delayed management after admission, andnon-recognition of danger signs were underlying factors. Conclusion: Over 86% of maternal deaths were attributed by avoidable direct causes. The majority of women do try to reach health services when an emergency occurs, but the third delays present a major problem. Improving the quality of care at the healthcare facility level will help to reduce maternal death.

Keywords: maternal death, surveillance, delays, factors

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Authors: Data Collete Bob-Manuel

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In light of global financial crisis in 2007-2008 various factors including board diversity, succession planning and board evaluation have been identified as essential ingredients in ensuring board effectiveness. The composition and structure of the board is of outmost importance in assessing a board’s ability and success in achieving its objectives. Following the corporate frauds and accounting scandals such as Enron, WorldCom, Parmalat, Oceanic Bank Nigeria and AfriBank Nigeria, there has been a notable amount of research about the effectiveness of the board of directors in the corporate governance of firms. The need to have an effective board cannot be over emphasized as it results in a more stable and thriving company. There has been an overarching need in the business world for a more diverse workforce and board of directors. Big corporations like Texaco, Ford Motors and DuPont have stated how diversity at every level of the workforce including the board of directors has been cited as a vital element for a company to succeed. Developed countries are also seeking for companies to have a more diverse board. For instance Norway has implemented a 60:40 board ratio to all companies. In West Africa, particularly Nigeria, the topic of diversity has received little attention as most studies conducted have focused on the gender aspect of diversity, which results found to have a negative impact on firm performance. This paper seeks to examine four variables of diversity; age, ethnicity, gender and skills to weigh the positive or negative impact the variables have on firm performance, based on evidence from the Nigerian Financial sector. Information used for this study will be gathered from financial statements and annual reports so as to enable the researcher to reflect on past years to know what is being done differently today. The findings of this study will help the researcher to develop a working definition for ethnicity with regards to the West African context where the issue of “tribe” is a sensitive topic.

Keywords: Board of Directors, Board Diversity, Firm Performance, Nigeria

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Authors: O. J. Ajayi, J. H. Tsado, F. Olah

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The study analyzed the effect of information and communication technology (ICT) usage on cassava farmers in Otukpo local government area of Benue state, Nigeria. Primary data was collected from 120 randomly selected cassava farmers using multi-stage sampling technique. A structured questionnaire and interview schedule was employed to generate data. Data were analyzed using descriptive (frequency, mean and percentage) and inferential statistics (OLS (ordinary least square) and Chi-square). The result revealed that majority (78.3%) were within the age range of 21-50 years implying that the respondents were within the active age for maximum production. 96.8% of the respondents had one form of formal education or the other. The sources of ICT facilities readily available in area were radio(84.2%), television(64.2%) and mobile phone(90.8%) with the latter being the most relied upon for cassava farming. Most of the farmers were aware (98.3%) and had access (95.8%) to these ICT facilities. The dependence on mobile phone and radio were highly relevant in cassava stem selection, land selection, land preparation, cassava planting technique, fertilizer application and pest and disease management. The value of coefficient of determination (R2) indicated an 89.1% variation in the output of cassava farmers explained by the inputs indicated in the regression model implying that, there is a positive and significant relationship between the inputs and output. The results also indicated that labour, fertilizer and farm size were significant at 1% level of probability while ICT use was significant at 10%. Further findings showed that finance (78.3%) was the major constraint associated with ICT use. Recommendations were made on strengthening the use of ICT especially contemporary ones like the computer and internet among farmers for easy information sourcing which can boost agricultural production, improve livelihood and subsequently food security. This may be achieved by providing credit or subsidies and information centres like telecentres and cyber cafes through government assistance or partnership.

Keywords: ICT, cassava farmers, inputs, output

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