Search results for: change literature

Authors: Xuan Li, Lei Xu

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By the end of 2014, China has an urban population of 749 million, reaching the urbanization rate of 54.77%. Dense and vertical urban structure has become a common choice for China and most of the densely populated Asian countries for sustainable development. This paper focuses on the most conspicuous urban change period in China, from 2000 to 2010, during which China's population shifted the fastest from rural region to cities. On one hand, the 200 million nationwide "new citizen" along with the 456 million "old citizen" explored in the new-century city for new urban lifestyle and livable built environment; On the other hand, however, large-scale rapid urban constructions are confined to the methods of traditional two-dimensional architectural thinking. Human-oriented design and system thinking have been missing in this intricate postmodern urban condition. This phenomenon, especially the gap and spark between the solid, huge urban physical system and the rich, subtle everyday urban life, will be studied in depth: How the 20th-century high-rise residential building "spontaneously" turned into an old but expensive multi-functional high-rise complex in the 21st century city center; how 21st century new/late 20th century old public buildings with the same function integrated their different architectural forms into the new / old city center? Finally the paper studies cases in Hangzhou: 1) Function Evolve–downtown high-rise residential building “International Garden” and “Zhongshan Garden” (1999). 2) Form Compare–Hangzhou Theater (1998) vs Hangzhou Grand Theatre (2004), Hangzhou City Railway Station (1999) vs Hangzhou East Railway Station (2013). The research aims at the exploring the essence of city from the building form dispel and urban program re-configuration approach, gaining a better consideration of human behavior through compact urban design effort for improving urban intertextuality, searching for a sustainable development path in the crucial time of urban population explosion in China.

Keywords: architecture form dispel, compact urban design, urban intertextuality, urban program re-configuration

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Authors: Jee-Young Lee, Joaquim J. Ferreira, Hyeo-il Ma, José-Francisco Rocha, Beomseok Jeon

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The effective management of wearing-off is a key driver of medication changes for patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) treated with levodopa (L-DOPA). While L-DOPA is well tolerated and efficacious, its clinical utility over time is often limited by the development of complications such as dyskinesia. Still, common first-line option includes adjusting the daily L-DOPA dose followed by adjunctive therapies usually counting for the L-DOPA equivalent daily dose (LEDD). The LEDD conversion formulae are a tool used to compare the equivalence of anti-PD medications. The aim of this work is to compare the effects of opicapone (OPC) 50 mg, a catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitor, and an additional 100 mg dose of L-DOPA in reducing the off time in PD patients with early motor fluctuations receiving different daily L-DOPA doses. OPC was found to be well tolerated and efficacious in advanced PD population. This work utilized patients' home diary data from a 4-week Phase 2 pharmacokinetics clinical study. The Korean ADOPTION study randomized (1:1) patients with PD and early motor fluctuations treated with up to 600 mg of L-DOPA given 3–4 times daily. The main endpoint was change from baseline in off time in the subgroup of patients receiving 300–400 mg/day L-DOPA at baseline plus OPC 50 mg and in the subgroup receiving >300 mg/day L-DOPA at baseline plus an additional dose of L-DOPA 100 mg. Of the 86 patients included in this subgroup analysis, 39 received OPC 50 mg and 47 L-DOPA 100 mg. At baseline, both L-DOPA total daily dose and LEDD were lower in the L-DOPA 300–400 mg/day plus OPC 50 mg group than in the L-DOPA >300 mg/day plus L-DOPA 100 mg. However, at Week 4, LEDD was similar between the two groups. The mean (±standard error) reduction in off time was approximately three-fold greater for the OPC 50 mg than for the L-DOPA 100 mg group, being -63.0 (14.6) minutes for patients treated with L-DOPA 300–400 mg/day plus OPC 50 mg, and -22.1 (9.3) minutes for those receiving L-DOPA >300 mg/day plus L-DOPA 100 mg. In conclusion, despite similar LEDD, OPC demonstrated a significantly greater reduction in off time when compared to an additional 100 mg L-DOPA dose. The effect of OPC appears to be LEDD independent, suggesting that caution should be exercised when employing LEDD to guide treatment decisions as this does not take into account the timing of each dose, onset, duration of therapeutic effect and individual responsiveness. Additionally, OPC could be used for keeping the L-DOPA dose as low as possible for as long as possible to avoid the development of motor complications which are a significant source of disability.

Keywords: opicapone, levodopa, pharmacokinetics, off-time

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Authors: Elif Tugce Aksun Tumerkan

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Fluorescent proteins (FPs) have become very popular since green fluorescent protein discovered from crystal jellyfish. It is known that Anthozoa species have a wide range of chromophore organisms, and the initial crystal structure for non-fluorescent chromophores obtained from the reef-building coral has been determined. There are also differently coloured pigments in non-bioluminescent Anthozoa zooxanthellate and azooxanthellate which are frequently members of the GFP-like protein family. The development of fluorescent proteins (FPs) and their applications is an outstanding example of basic science leading to practical biotechnological and medical applications. Fluorescent proteins have several applications in science and are used as important indicators in molecular biology and cell-based research. With rising interest in cell biology, FPs have used as biosensor indicators and probes in pharmacology and cell biology. Using fluorescent proteins in genetically encoded metabolite sensors has many advantages than chemical probes for metabolites such as easily introduced into any cell or organism in any sub-cellular localization and giving chance to fixing to fluoresce of different colours or characteristics. There are different factors effects to signalling mechanism when they used as a biosensor. While there are wide ranges of research have been done on the significance and applications of fluorescent proteins, the cell signalling response of FPs and target cell are less well understood. In this study, it was aimed to clarify the response of adaptive mechanisms of coral species such as pH, temperature and symbiotic relationship and target cells properties on the signalling capacity. Corals are a rich natural source of fluorescent proteins that change with environmental conditions such as light, heat stress and injury. Adaptation mechanism of coral species to these types of environmental variations is important factor due to FPs properties have affected by this mechanism. Since fluorescent proteins obtained from nature, their own ecological property like the symbiotic relationship is observed very commonly in coral species and living conditions have the impact on FPs efficiency. Target cell properties also have an effect on signalling and visualization. The dynamicity of detector that used for reading fluorescence and the level of background fluorescence are key parameters for the quality of the fluorescent signal. Among the factors, it can be concluded that coral species adaptive characteristics have the strongest effect on FPs signalling capacity.

Keywords: biosensor, cell biology, environmental conditions, fluorescent protein, sea anemone

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Authors: Kalyan Sundar Som, Ghanshyam Prasad Jhariya

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Population growth is an important pervasive phenomenon in the world. Its survival depends upon many daily needs and food is one of them. Population factors play a decisive role in the human endeavor to attain food. Nutrition and health status compose integral part of human development and progress of a society. Therefore, the neglect any one of these components may leads to the deterioration of the quality of life. Food is also intimately related with economic growth and social progress as well as with political stability and peace. It refers to the availability of food and its access to it. It can be observed from global to local level. Food scarcity has emerged as a matter of great concern all over the world due to uncontrolled and unregulated growth of population .For this purpose this study try to find out the deficit or surplus production of food availability in terms of their total population in the study area. It also ascertains the population pressure, demand and supply of food stuff and demarcation of insecure areas.The data base of the study under discussion includes government published data regarding agriculture production, yield and cropped area in 2005-06 to 2011-12 available at commissioner land record Madhya Pradesh, Gwalior. It also includes the census of India for population data. For measuring food security or insecurity regions is based on the consumption of net food available in terms caloric value minus the consumption by the weighted total population. This approach has been adopted because the direct estimate of production and consumption is the only reliable way to ascertain food security in a unit area and to compare one area with another (Noor Mohammad, dec. 2002). The scenario in 2005-06 is 57.78 percent district has food insufficient in terms of their population. On the other hand after 5 years, there are only 22 % districts are deficit in term of food availability where Burhanpur is the most deficit (56 percent) district. While 20% district are highly surplus district in the state where Harda and Hoshangabad districts are very high surplus district (5 times and 3.95 times) in term of food availability(2011). The drastic change (agriculture transformation) is happen due government good intervention in the agricultural sector.

Keywords: agriculture transformation, caloric value method, deficit or surplus region, population pressure

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Authors: Akimitsu Kugimiya, Kouhei Iwato, Toru Saito, Jiro Kohda, Yasuhisa Nakano, Yu Takano

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The measurement of amino acid content is reported to be useful for the diagnosis of several types of diseases, including lung cancer, gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, and diabetes. The conventional detection methods for amino acid are high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS), but they have several drawbacks as the equipment is cumbersome and the techniques are costly in terms of time and costs. In contrast, biosensors and biosensing methods provide more rapid and facile detection strategies that use simple equipment. The authors have reported a novel approach for the detection of each amino acid that involved the use of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS) as a molecular recognition element because aaRS is expected to a selective binding ability for corresponding amino acid. The consecutive enzymatic reactions used in this study are as follows: aaRS binds to its cognate amino acid and releases inorganic pyrophosphate. Hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) was produced by the enzyme reactions of inorganic pyrophosphatase and pyruvate oxidase. The Trinder’s reagent was added into the reaction mixture, and the absorbance change at 556 nm was measured using a microplate reader. In this study, an amino acid-sensing method using histidyl-tRNA synthetase (HisRS; histidine-specific aaRS) as molecular recognition element in combination with the Trinder’s reagent spectrophotometric method was developed. The quantitative performance and selectivity of the method were evaluated, and the optimal enzyme reaction and detection conditions were determined. The authors developed a simple and rapid method for detecting histidine with a combination of enzymatic reaction and spectrophotometric detection. In this study, HisRS was used to detect histidine, and the reaction and detection conditions were optimized for quantitation of these amino acids in the ranges of 1–100 µM histidine. The detection limits are sufficient to analyze these amino acids in biological fluids. This work was partly supported by Hiroshima City University Grant for Special Academic Research (General Studies).

Keywords: amino acid, aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase, biosensing, enzyme reaction

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Authors: Getahun Nigusie Demise

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Background; antiretroviral treatment reduce HIV-related morbidity, and prolonged survival of patients however, there is lack of up-to-date information concerning the treatment long term effect on the survival of HIV positive children especially in the study area. Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the incidence and predictors of mortality among HIV positive children on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in public hospitals of Harer town who were enrolled from 2011 to 2021. Methodology: Institution based retrospective cohort study was conducted among 429 HIV positive children enrolled in ART clinic from January 1st 2011 to December30th 2021. Data were collected from medical cards by using a data extraction form, Descriptive analyses were used to Summarized the results, and life table was used to estimate survival probability at specific point of time after introduction of ART. Kaplan Meier survival curve together with log rank test was used to compare survival between different categories of covariates, and Multivariate Cox-proportional hazard regression model was used to estimate adjusted Hazard rate. Variables with p-values ≤0.25 in bivariable analysis were candidates to the multivariable analysis. Finally, variables with p-values < 0.05 were considered as significant variables. Results: The study participants had followed for a total of 2549.6 child-years (30596 child months) with an overall mortality rate of 1.5 (95% CI: 1.1, 2.04) per 100 child-years. Their median survival time was 112 months (95% CI: 101–117). There were 38 children with unknown outcome, 39 deaths, and 55 children transfer out to different facility. The overall survival at 6, 12, 24, 48 months were 98%, 96%, 95%, 94% respectively. being in WHO clinical Stage four (AHR=4.55, 95% CI:1.36, 15.24), having anemia(AHR=2.56, 95% CI:1.11, 5.93), baseline low absolute CD4 count (AHR=2.95, 95% CI: 1.22, 7.12), stunting (AHR=4.1, 95% CI: 1.11, 15.42), wasting (AHR=4.93, 95% CI: 1.31, 18.76), poor adherence to treatment (AHR=3.37, 95% CI: 1.25, 9.11), having TB infection at enrollment (AHR=3.26, 95% CI: 1.25, 8.49),and no history of change their regimen(AHR=7.1, 95% CI: 2.74, 18.24), were independent predictors of death. Conclusion: more than half of death occurs within 2 years. Prevalent tuberculosis, anemia, wasting, and stunting nutritional status, socioeconomic factors, and baseline opportunistic infection were independent predictors of death. Increasing early screening and managing those predictors are required.

Keywords: human immunodeficiency virus-positive children, anti-retroviral therapy, survival, treatment, Ethiopia

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Authors: Awadh O. Al-Anazi

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As part of the organizational needs toward successful maintaining activities, a proper management system need to be put in place, ensuring the effectiveness of maintenance activities. The management system shall clearly describes the process of identifying, prioritizing, planning, scheduling, execution, and providing valuable feedback for all maintenance activities. Completion and accuracy of the system with proper implementation shall provide the organization with a strong platform for effective maintenance activities that are resulted in efficient outcomes toward business success. The purpose of this research was to introduce a practical tool for measuring the maintenance efficiency level within Saudi organizations. A comprehensive study was launched across many maintenance professionals throughout Saudi leading organizations. The study covered five main categories: work process, identification, planning and scheduling, execution, and performance monitoring. Each category was evaluated across many dimensions to determine its current effectiveness through a five-level scale from 'process is not there' to 'mature implementation'. Wide participation was received, responses were analyzed, and the study was concluded by highlighting major gaps and improvement opportunities within Saudi organizations. One effective implementation of the efficiency enhancement efforts was deployed in Saudi Kayan (one of Sabic affiliates). Below details describes the project outcomes: SK overall maintenance wrench time was measured at 20% (on average) from the total daily working time. The assessment indicates the appearance of several organizational gaps, such as a high amount of reactive work, poor coordination and teamwork, Unclear roles and responsibilities, as well as underutilization of resources. Multidiscipline team was assigned to design and implement an appropriate work process that is capable to govern the execution process, improve the maintenance workforce efficiency, and maximize wrench time (targeting > 50%). The enhanced work process was introduced through brainstorming and wide benchmarking, incorporated with a proper change management plan and leadership sponsorship. The project was completed in 2018. Achieved Results: SK WT was improved to 50%, which resulted in 1) reducing the Average Notification completion time. 2) reducing maintenance expenses on OT and manpower support (3.6 MSAR Actual Saving from Budget within 6 months).

Keywords: efficiency, enhancement, maintenance, work force, wrench time

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Authors: Evelyn Marie Richmond, Andrew McBride, Chris Johnston, John Marley

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Background: Good quality patient information resources for orthognathic treatment help to reinforce information delivered during the initial consultation and help patients make informed decisions about their care. The Consultant Orthodontists and a Dental Core Trainee noted limited patient engagement with the British Orthodontic Society (BOS) 'Your Jaw Surgery' online resources and that the existing BOS patient information leaflet (PIL) could be customised and developed to meet local requirements. Aim: The quality improvement project (QIP) aimed to improve patients' understanding of orthognathic treatment by ensuring at least 90% of patients had read the new in-house patient information leaflet (PIL) and a minimum of 50% of patients had accessed the British Orthodontic Society (BOS) 'Your Jaw Surgery' online resources before attending the joint orthognathic multidisciplinary clinic by June 2023. Methods: The QIP was undertaken in the orthodontic department of the School of Dentistry, Belfast. Data was collected prospectively during a 6-month period from January 2023 to June 2023 over 3 Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycles. Suitable patients were identified at consultant orthodontic new patient clinics. Following initial consultation for orthognathic treatment, patients were contacted to complete a patient questionnaire. Design: The change ideas were a poster with a QR code directing patients to the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website in consultation areas and a new in-house PIL with a QR code directing patients to the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website. Results: In PDSA cycle 1, 86.7% of patients were verbally directed to the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website, and 53.3% accessed the online resources after their initial consultation. Although 100% of patients reported reading the existing PIL, only 64.3% felt it discussed the risks of orthognathic treatment in sufficient detail. By PDSA cycle 3, 100% of patients reported being directed to the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website, however, only 58.3% engaged with the website. 100% of patients who read the new PIL felt that it discussed the risks of orthognathic treatment in sufficient detail. Conclusion: The slight improvement in access to the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website shows that patients do not necessarily choose to access information online despite its availability. The uptake of the new PIL was greater than reported patient engagement with the BOS 'Your Jaw Surgery' website, which indicates patients still value written information despite the availability of online resources.

Keywords: orthognathic surgery, patient information resources, quality improvement project, risks

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Authors: Averalda van Graan, Joelaine Chetty, Malory Links, Agness Mwangwela, Sitilitha Masangwi, Dalitso Chimwala, Shiban Ghosh, Elizabeth Marino-Costello

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Food composition data is becoming increasingly important as dealing with food insecurity and malnutrition in its persistent form of under-nutrition is now coupled with increasing over-nutrition and its related ailments in the developing world, of which Malawi is not spared. In the absence of a food composition database (FCDB) inherent to our dietary patterns, efforts were made to develop a country-specific FCDB for nutrition practice, research, and programming. The main objective was to develop a multi-user, country-specific food composition database, and table from existing published and unpublished scientific literature. A multi-phased approach guided by the project framework was employed. Phase 1 comprised a scoping mission to assess the nutrition landscape for compilation activities. Phase 2 involved training of a compiler and data collection from various sources, primarily; institutional libraries, online databases, and food industry nutrient data. Phase 3 subsumed evaluation and compilation of data using FAO and IN FOODS standards and guidelines. Phase 4 concluded the process with quality assurance. 316 Malawian food items categorized into eight food groups for 42 components were captured. The majority were from the baby food group (27%), followed by a staple (22%) and animal (22%) food group. Fats and oils consisted the least number of food items (2%), followed by fruits (6%). Proximate values are well represented; however, the percent missing data is huge for some components, including Se 68%, I 75%, Vitamin A 42%, and lipid profile; saturated fat 53%, mono-saturated fat 59%, poly-saturated fat 59% and cholesterol 56%. A multi-phased approach following the project framework led to the development of the first Malawian FCDB and table. The table reflects inherent Malawian dietary patterns and nutritional concerns. The FCDB can be used by various professionals in nutrition and health. Rising over-nutrition, NCD, and changing diets challenge us for nutrient profiles of processed foods and complete lipid profiles.

Keywords: analytical data, dietary pattern, food composition data, multi-phased approach

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Authors: Payal Bose

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The impact of music on consumers' attention and emotions at different parts of the day are rarely/never studied. Music has been widely studied in different parameters, such as in-store music and its atmospheric effects, to understand consumer arousal, in-store traffic, perceptions of visual stimuli, and actual time spent in the store. Further other parameters such as tempo, shopper's age, volume, music preference, and its usage as foreground or background music acting as a mediator and impacting consumer behavior is also well researched. However, no study has traversed the influence of music on social media advertisements and its impact on the consumer mind. Most studies have catered to the influence of music on consumers conscious. A recent study found that playing pleasant music is more effective on weekdays in enhancing supermarkets' sales than on weekends. This led to a more pertinent question about the impact of music on different parts of the day and how it impacts the attention and emotion in the consumers’ mind is an interesting question to be asked given the fact that there is a high usage of social media advertisement consumption in the recent past on a day-to-day basis. This study would help brands on social media to structure their advertisements and engage more consumers towards their products. Prior literature has examined the effects or influence of music on consumers largely in retail, brick-and-mortar format. Hence most of the outcomes are favorable for physical retail environments. However, with the rise of Web 3.0 and social media marketing, it would be interesting to see how consumers' attention and emotion can be studied with the effects of music embedded in an advertisement during different parts of the day. A smartphone is considered a personal gadget, and viewing social media advertisements on them is mostly an intimate experience. Hence in a social media advertisement, most of the viewing happens on a one-on-one basis between the consumer and the brand advertisement. To the best of our knowledge, little or no work has explored the influence of music on different parts of the day (per the circadian rhythm) in advertising research. Previous works on social media advertisement have explored the timing of social media posts, deploying Targeted Content Advertising, appropriate content, reallocation of time, and advertising expenditure. Hence, I propose studying advertisements embedded with music during different parts of the day and its influence on consumers' attention and emotions. To address the research objectives and knowledge gap, it is intended to use a neuroscientific approach using fMRI and eye-tracking. The influence of music embedded in social media advertisement during different parts of the day would be assessed.

Keywords: music, neuromarketing, circadian rhythm, social media, engagement

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Authors: Camille Alexis-Garsee, Nicola Payne

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One consequence of the pandemic has been the debilitating health impact that some people experience over a longer period of time, known as long-COVID. This has been predominately researched in adults; however, there is emerging evidence on the effects of long-COVID in children. Research has indicated over half of children who contracted COVID-19 experienced persistent symptoms four months after a confirmed diagnosis. There is little research on the impact of this on children and their families. This study aimed to explore the experiences of children with long-COVID, to enable further understanding of the impacts and needs within this group. Semi-structured interviews, facilitated by children’s drawings, were conducted with 15 children (aged 9-16, 9 females). Inductive thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings tell a story of loss, change and of resilience. Many children were unable to engage in normal daily activities and were unable to attend school, however, all employed self-management techniques to cope with symptoms and were positive for the future. Four main themes were identified: (1) Education challenges: although some schools tried to accommodate the child’s new limitations with provision of flexi-attendance, online classes and a reduced timetable, children struggled to keep up with their schoolwork and needed more support; (2) Disrupted relationships: children felt socially isolated; they were forced to give up co and extra-curricular activities, were no longer in contact with friendship groups and missed out on key experiences with friends and family; (3) Diverse health-related challenges: children’s symptoms affected daily functioning but were also triggers for changes in thoughts and mood; (4) Coping and resilience: children actively engaged in symptom management and were able to ‘self-pace’ and/or employ distraction activities to cope. They were also focused on living a ‘normal’ life and looked to the future with great positivity. A key challenge of the long-term effects of COVID is recognizing and treating the illness in children and the subsequent impact on multiple aspects of their lives. Even though children described feeling disconnected in many ways, their life goals were still important. A multi-faceted approach is needed for management of this illness, with a focus on helping these children successfully reintegrate into society and achieve their dreams.

Keywords: children’s illness experience, COVID-19, long-COVID in children, long-COVID kids, qualitative research

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Authors: Karina I. Hidas, Csaba Németh, Anna Visy, Judit Csonka, László Friedrich, Ildikó Cs. Nyulas-Zeke

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Egg yolk is a popular ingredient in the food industry due to its gelling, emulsifying, colouring, and coagulating properties. Because of the heat sensitivity of proteins, egg yolk can only be heat treated at low temperatures, so its shelf life, even with the addition of a preservative, is only a few weeks. Freezing can increase the shelf life of liquid egg yolk up to 1 year, but it undergoes gelling below -6 ° C, which is an irreversible phenomenon. The degree of gelation depends on the time and temperature of freezing and is influenced by the process of thawing. Therefore, in our experiment, we examined egg yolks thawed in different ways. In this study, unpasteurized, industrially broken, separated, and homogenized liquid egg yolk was used. Freshly produced samples were frozen in plastic containers at -18°C in a laboratory freezer. Frozen storage was performed for 90 days. Samples were analysed at day zero (unfrozen) and after frozen storage for 1, 7, 14, 30, 60 and 90 days. Samples were thawed in two ways (at 5°C for 24 hours and 30°C for 3 hours) before testing. Calorimetric properties were examined by differential scanning calorimetry, where heat flow curves were recorded. Denaturation enthalpy values were calculated by fitting a linear baseline, and denaturation temperature values were evaluated. Besides, dry matter content of samples was measured by the oven method with drying at 105°C to constant weight. For statistical analysis two-way ANOVA (α = 0.05) was employed, where thawing mode and freezing time were the fixed factors. Denaturation enthalpy values decreased from 1.1 to 0.47 at the end of the storage experiment, which represents a reduction of about 60%. The effect of freezing time was significant on these values, already the enthalpy of samples stored frozen for 1 day was significantly reduced. However, the mode of thawing did not significantly affect the denaturation enthalpy of the samples, and no interaction was seen between the two factors. The denaturation temperature and dry matter content did not change significantly either during the freezing period or during the defrosting mode. Results of our study show that slow freezing and frozen storage at -18°C greatly reduces the amount of protein that can be denatured in egg yolk, indicating that the proteins have been subjected to aggregation, denaturation or other protein conversions regardless of how they were thawed.

Keywords: denaturation enthalpy, differential scanning calorimetry, liquid egg yolk, slow freezing

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Authors: Dolores Sucozhañay, Gustavo Pacheco, Paul Vanegas

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In the context of sustainable development and the transition towards a sustainable circular economy (CE), evaluating the social dimension remains a challenge. Therefore, developing a respective methodology is highly important. First, the change of the economic model may cause significant social effects, which today remain unaddressed. Second, following the current level of globalization, CE implementation requires targeting global material cycles and causes social impacts on potentially vulnerable social groups. A promising methodology is the Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA), which embraces the philosophy of life cycle thinking and provides complementary information to environmental and economic assessments. In this context, the present work uses the updated Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) Guidelines 2020 to assess the social performance of the recycling system of Cuenca, Ecuador, to exemplify a social assessment method. Like many other developing countries, Ecuador heavily depends on the work of informal waste pickers (recyclers), who, even contributing to a CE, face harsh socio-economic circumstances, including inappropriate working conditions, social exclusion, exploitation, etc. Under a Reference Scale approach (Type 1), 12 impact subcategories were assessed through 73 site-specific inventory indicators, using an ascending reference scale ranging from -2 to +2. Findings reveal a social performance below compliance levels with local and international laws, basic societal expectations, and practices in the recycling sector; only eight and five indicators present a positive score. In addition, a social hotspot analysis depicts collection as the most time-consuming lifecycle stage and the one with the most hotspots, mainly related to working hours and health and safety aspects. This study provides an integrated view of the recyclers’ contributions, challenges, and opportunities within the recycling system while highlighting the relevance of assessing the social dimension of CE practices. It also fosters an understanding of the social impact of CE operations in developing countries, highlights the need for a close north-south relationship in CE, and enables the connection among the environmental, economic, and social dimensions.

Keywords: SLCA, circular economy, recycling, social impact assessment

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Authors: Bantie Getnet Yirsaw, Muluken Chanie Agimas, Gebrie Getu Alemu, Tigabu Kidie Tesfie, Nebiyu Mekonnen Derseh, Habtamu Wagnew Abuhay, Meron Asmamaw Alemayehu, Getaneh Awoke Yismaw

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Introduction: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the major public health problems globally and needs an urgent response. It is one of the most responsible causes of mortality among the five hepatitis viruses, and it affects almost every class of individuals. Thus, the main objective of this study was to determine the pooled prevalence and its determinants among pregnant women in East Africa. Methods: We searched studies using PubMed, Scopus, Embase, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and grey literature that were published between January 01/2020 to January 30/2024. The studies were assessed using the Newcastle Ottawa Scale (NOS) quality assessment scale. The random-effect (DerSimonian) model was used to determine the pooled prevalence and associated factors of HBV among pregnant women. Heterogeneity was assessed by I² statistic, sub-group analysis, and sensitivity analysis. Publication bias was assessed by the Egger test, and the analysis was done using STATA version 17. Result: A total of 45 studies with 35639 pregnant women were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The overall pooled prevalence of HBV among pregnant women in East Africa was 6.0% (95% CI: 6.0%−7.0%, I² = 89.7%). The highest prevalence of 8% ((95% CI: 6%, 10%), I² = 91.08%) was seen in 2021, and the lowest prevalence of 5% ((95% CI: 4%, 6%) I² = 52.52%) was observed in 2022. A pooled meta-analysis showed that history of surgical procedure (OR = 2.14 (95% CI: 1.27, 3.61)), having multiple sexual partners (OR = 3.87 (95% CI: 2.52, 5.95), history of body tattooing (OR = 2.55 (95% CI: 1.62, 4.01)), history of tooth extraction (OR = 2.09 (95% CI: 1.29, 3.39)), abortion history(OR = 2.20(95% CI: 1.38, 3.50)), history of sharing sharp material (OR = 1.88 (95% CI: 1.07, 3.31)), blood transfusion (OR = 2.41 (95% CI: 1.62, 3.57)), family history of HBV (OR = 4.87 (95% CI: 2.95, 8.05)) and history needle injury (OR = 2.62 (95% CI: 1.20, 5.72)) were significant risk factors associated with HBV infection among pregnant women. Conclusions: The pooled prevalence of HBV infection among pregnant women in East Africa was at an intermediate level and different across countries, ranging from 1.5% to 22.2%. The result of this pooled prevalence was an indication of the need for screening, prevention, and control of HBV infection among pregnant women in the region. Therefore, early identification of risk factors, awareness creation of the mode of transmission of HBV, and implementation of preventive measures are essential in reducing the burden of HBV infection among pregnant women.

Keywords: hepatitis B virus, prevalence, determinants, pregnant women, meta-analysis, East Africa

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Authors: Jingyi Li, Laurence Stamford, Alejandro Gallego-Schmid

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Renewable electricity has become an indispensable contributor to achieving net-zero by the mid-century to tackle climate change. Unlike solar, wind, or hydro, geothermal was stagnant in its electricity production development for decades. However, with the significant breakthrough made in recent years, especially the implementation of enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) in various regions globally, geothermal electricity could play a pivotal role in alleviating greenhouse gas emissions. Life cycle assessment has been applied to analyze specific geothermal power generation technologies, which proposed suggestions to optimize its environmental performance. For instance, selecting a high heat gradient region enables a higher flow rate from the production well and extends the technical lifespan. Although such process-level improvements have been made, the significance of geothermal power generation technologies so far has not explicitly displayed its competitiveness on a broader horizon. Therefore, this review-based study integrates a circular economy framework into life cycle assessment, clarifying the underlying added values for geothermal power plants to complete the sustainability profile. The derived results have provided an enlarged platform to discuss geothermal power generation technologies: (i) recover the heat and electricity from the process to reduce the fossil fuel requirements; (ii) recycle the construction materials, such as copper, steel, and aluminum for future projects; (iii) extract the lithium ions from geothermal brine and make geothermal reservoir become a potential supplier of the lithium battery industry; (iv) repurpose the abandoned oil and gas wells to build geothermal power plants; (v) integrate geothermal energy with other available renewable energies (e.g., solar and wind) to provide heat and electricity as a hybrid system at different weather; (vi) rethink the fluids used in stimulation process (EGS only), replace water with CO2 to achieve negative emissions from the system. These results provided a new perspective to the researchers, investors, and policymakers to rethink the role of geothermal in the energy supply network.

Keywords: climate, renewable energy, R strategies, sustainability

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Authors: Amal G. Kurian

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The use of mathematical modeling has seen a considerable boost in recent times with the development of many advanced algorithms and mathematical modeling capabilities. The advantages this method has over other methods are that they are much closer to standard physics theories and thus represent a better theoretical model. They take lesser solving time and have the ability to change various parameters for optimization, which is a big advantage, especially in automotive industry. This thesis work focuses on a thorough investigation of the effects of vehicle speed and road roughness on a heavy commercial vehicle ride and structural dynamic responses. Since commercial vehicles are kept in operation continuously for longer periods of time, it is important to study effects of various physical conditions on the vehicle and its user. For this purpose, various experimental as well as simulation methodologies, are adopted ranging from experimental transfer path analysis to various road scenario simulations. To effectively investigate and eliminate several causes of unwanted responses, an efficient and robust technique is needed. Carrying forward this motivation, the present work focuses on the development of a mathematical model of a 4-axle configuration heavy commercial vehicle (HCV) capable of calculating responses of the vehicle on different road PSD inputs and vehicle speeds. Outputs from the model will include response transfer functions and PSDs and wheel forces experienced. A MATLAB code will be developed to implement the objectives in a robust and flexible manner which can be exploited further in a study of responses due to various suspension parameters, loading conditions as well as vehicle dimensions. The thesis work resulted in quantifying the effect of various physical conditions on ride comfort of the vehicle. An increase in discomfort is seen with velocity increase; also the effect of road profiles has a considerable effect on comfort of the driver. Details of dominant modes at each frequency are analysed and mentioned in work. The reduction in ride height or deflection of tire and suspension with loading along with load on each axle is analysed and it is seen that the front axle supports a greater portion of vehicle weight while more of payload weight comes on fourth and third axles. The deflection of the vehicle is seen to be well inside acceptable limits.

Keywords: mathematical modeling, HCV, suspension, ride analysis

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Authors: Ujunma Nnenna Egbuawa

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Rape or sexual assault is a hideous crime of violence done predominantly to women and occasionally to men. In institutions of higher learning, it’s mostly experienced within or outside the campus environment due to students who are from different backgrounds socially. These students also have been imbibed with conflicting ethical standards, thus act both morally and amoral with respect to their sexual urges. The most affected among these are the female students who live outside the campus environment that is suitable for any immoral activity. These female students that are victims of rape hardly would want to be identified and this has left them as habitual prey to the unsuspecting predators. The socio-cultural setting has also been a contributory factor to the psychological and physical damage these victims face throughout their time of study as female rape victims. This is an empirical study designed to elicit information from students of Federal Polytechnic Nekede Owerri Imo State Nigeria on whether they have been sexually assaulted or raped and how they handled it thereafter. This institution was used as a case study because the provost of this tertiary institution is a woman whose name is Dr( Mrs ) C.U Njoku who has made consented efforts to ensure these rape victims rise above the social stigma associated with it. This rector has also put in some measures to bring about a decline in cases of rape within and outside the campus environment. She also granted the researcher an oral interview on how she has been able to achieve these and the challenges she hitherto faced in the process. Three research questions and a hypothesis guided the study. Samples of 119 students were used and stratification was done for sex, age and the academic level of the students. 14 item questionnaires were used and data generated from the survey were analyzed using percentages. This workshop would engage the participants by investigating some courses that may help in declining the rate of rape cases within a campus. Also, necessary measures that would be taken to help in sensitizing the tertiary institutions in areas that can aid the healing procedures of these victims. The need also for guidance and counseling unit is also a necessity for the psychological survival of these rape victims. As a result, the participants would gain an increased awareness of the influence of rape and sexual assault on campus. There ought to be a paradigm shift in institutions of higher learning in policies, administrative decisions and introduction of courses that will uplift ethical standards in order to bring about a change both locally and globally.

Keywords: institutions, psychological, sexual assault, socio-cultural

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Authors: Mulaudzi Tshimbiluni Annah

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South African city centres depict dynamic urban spaces which reflect complex interactions between multiple actors: the state, formal businesses and informal street traders, with each competing for territorial claims and spatial dominance. The objective of the study is exploring how space is contested, negotiated and occupied between formal and informal sectors, while consequently trying to understand the implication that this has on spatial planning and spatial justice. Through a case-study analysis of the eThekwini city centre, this research examines spatial arrangement, coexistence and conflicts that shape the urban fabric. The study employs spatial justice as a theoretical lens to highlight the inequalities that are embedded within urban planning policies and how street traders are resilient to the harsh restrictive spatial frameworks. Limited evidence is known about how urban planning frameworks can integrate informal street traders in city centres and recognize them as legitimate stakeholders. The study investigates how spatial planning frameworks can be reimagined to promote spatial justice and further facilitate coexistence between formal and informal stakeholders in city centres. Primary data collection included interviews with key stakeholders, while NVivo software was used to analyse the interview data. Observations were conducted through transect walks, which allowed for insight into the spatial dynamics and daily interactions. Visual representations were depicted using GIS mapping to show areas of contestation as well as areas where formal and informal activities intersect. Furthermore, secondary data from literature enabled a comparative analysis of similar case studies through precedent studies. The study revealed continuous contestation by formal businesses and the state, who are for the most part often prioritized by planning frameworks while street traders are often marginalized regardless of their contribution towards economic development. This study therefore proposes strategies for spatial planning that supports an integrative urban framework which ensures equitable access and also a reduction of the marginalization of street traders within urban spaces. This study aims to contribute to understanding urban coexistence and further advocates for spatial planning approaches that integrates informal street traders as legitimate actors in the urban landscape while fostering spatial justice within city centres.

Keywords: coexistence, contestation, integration, spatial justice, spatial planning, street traders

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Authors: Mwenya Mubanga, Sula Mazimba

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Background: In Zambia, much of the focus on nutrition and health has been on reducing micronutrient deficiencies, wasting and underweight malnutrition and not on the rising global projections of trends in obesity and type 2 diabetes. The aim of this review was to identify and collate studies on the prevalence of obesity, diabetes and diabetes-related cardiovascular disease conducted in Zambia, to summarize their findings and to identify areas that need further research. Methods: The Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System (MEDLINE) database was searched for peer-reviewed articles on the prevalence of, and factors associated with obesity, type 2 diabetes, and diabetes-related cardiovascular disease amongst Zambian residents using a combination of search terms. The period of search was from 1 January 2000 to 31 December 2016. We expanded the search terms to include all possible synonyms and spellings obtained in the search strategy. Additionally, we performed a manual search for other articles and references of peer-reviewed articles. Results: In Zambia, the current prevalence of Obesity and Type 2 diabetes is estimated at 13%-16% and 2.0 – 3.0% respectively. Risk factors such as the adoption of western dietary habits, the social stigmatization associated with rapid weight loss due to Tuberculosis and/ or the human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) and rapid urbanization have all been blamed for fueling the increased risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. However, unlike traditional Western populations, those with no formal education were less likely to be obese than those who attained secondary or tertiary level education. Approximately 30% of those surveyed were unaware of their diabetes diagnosis and more than 60% were not on treatment despite a known diabetic status. Socio-demographic factors such as older age, female sex, urban dwelling, lack of tobacco use and marital status were associated with an increased risk of obesity, impaired glucose tolerance and type 2 diabetes. We were unable to identify studies that specifically looked at diabetes-related cardiovascular disease. Conclusion: Although the prevalence of Obesity and Type 2 diabetes in Zambia appears low, more representative studies focusing on parts of the country outside of the main industrial zone need to be conducted. There also needs to be research on diabetes-related cardiovascular disease. National surveillance, monitoring and evaluation on all non-communicable diseases need to be prioritized and policies that address underweight, obesity and type 2 diabetes developed.

Keywords: type 2 diabetes, Zambia, obesity, cardiovascular disease

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Authors: Kemkanit Sanyanunthana

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The purpose of this research is to study the management system of information technology which supports the education of five private universities in Thailand, according to the case studies which have been developing their qualities and standards of management and education by service provision of information technology to support the excellence performance. The concept to connect information technology with a suitable system has been created by information technology administrators for development, as a system that can be used throughout the organizations to help reach the utmost benefits of using all resources. Hence, the researcher as a person who has been performing these duties within higher education is interested to do this research by selecting the Control Objective for Information and Related Technology 5 (COBIT 5) for the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) of America, or the National Award which applies the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) to the organization evaluation. Such evaluation is called the Education Criteria for Performance Excellence (EdPEx) focuses on studying and comparing education quality development for excellent performance using COBIT 5 in terms of information technology to study the problems and obstacles of the investigation process for an information technology system, which is considered as an instrument to drive all organizations to reach the excellence performance of the information technology, and to be the model of evaluation and analysis of the process to be in accordance with the strategic plans of the information technology in the universities. This research is conducted in the form of descriptive and survey research according to the case studies. The data collection were carried out by using questionnaires through the administrators working related to the information technology field, and the research documents related to the change management as the main study. The research can be concluded that the performance based on the APO domain process (ALIGN, PLAN AND ORGANISE) of the COBIT 5 standard frame, which emphasizes concordant governance and management of strategic plans for the organizations, could reach only 95%. This might be because of some restrictions such as organizational cultures; therefore, the researcher has studied and analyzed the management of information technology in universities as a whole, under the organizational structures, to reach the performance in accordance with the overall APO domain which would affect the determined strategic plans to be able to develop based on the excellence performance of information technology, and to apply the risk management system at the organizational level into every performance process which would develop the work effectiveness for the resources management of information technology to reach the utmost benefits. 

Keywords: COBIT5, APO, EdPEx Criteria, MBNQA

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Authors: Hacer Erdöl, Merve Aydın, Hacer Kobya Bulut, Kıymet Yeşilçiçek Çalık

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Like all occupations, nursing is significantly influenced by the society which it serves and it also affects it. Social structure affects attitudes of nurses, nursing practice, society's attitudes towards nursing and those who have chosen nursing as a profession. People who choose nursing schools take the views of the society’s they live in on nursing to nursing school. Until the 1960s, many nursing schools had not accepted men as students and women had received nursing education and profession had been carried out by women. In our country, in 2007 an amendment to article eight of Nursing Law was passed and with these changes men also began to be able to choose the nursing as a profession. In Turkish, nurse means 'sister'. Hence, in this study to determine the problems that male nursing students likely encounter at the clinic, non-clinical environment and in their private life regarding the title of nurse, among qualitative research methods phenomenological research design was used. Using purpose sampling method, a total of 18 voluntary male students-13 in third grade and 5 in fourth grade at nursing school- were taken to the study. Data were collected through interviews and by the ethical principles much attention was paid to ensure the confidentiality and to protect participants’ identity. During the interviews lasting 30-40 minutes on average, nine pre-configured standard questions were asked and when necessary free questions were also used in order to ensure the clarity of the responses. With pre- configured standard questions, the reasons why students chose the profession, the problems they had in clinical and non-clinical environment and the potential problems they might encounter in their private lives regarding the title of nurse were questioned. Content analysis was performed on data collected and three main themes were obtained. According to the findings of the evaluation of data, it was found that almost all the students preferred the profession due to possible work opportunities, there were students who did not bother nurse title as well as the ones who did bother and as the most important problem they might encounter in their private lives was to feel worried if their kids had to answer "What does your father" question as "my dad is a nurse" and being ridiculed afterwards. The results of this study show that studies should be done to change the social judgment stemmed from the recognition of nursing as a female profession and take advantage of media through creating public spotlight to accomplish this.

Keywords: choice of profession, the title of the profession, title problems, nursing

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Authors: Ginger Egberts, Fred Vermolen, Paul van Zuijlen

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One of the common complications in post-burn scars is contractions. Depending on the extent of contraction and the wound dimensions, the contracture can cause a limited range-of-motion of joints. A one-dimensional morphoelastic continuum hypothesis-based model describing post-burn scar contractions is considered. The beauty of the one-dimensional model is the speed; hence it quickly yields new results and, therefore, insight. This model describes the movement of the skin and the development of the strain present. Besides these mechanical components, the model also contains chemical components that play a major role in the wound healing process. These components are fibroblasts, myofibroblasts, the so-called signaling molecules, and collagen. The dermal layer is modeled as an isotropic morphoelastic solid, and pulling forces are generated by myofibroblasts. The solution to the model equations is approximated by the finite-element method using linear basis functions. One of the major challenges in biomechanical modeling is the estimation of parameter values. Therefore, this study provides a comprehensive description of skin mechanical parameter values and a sensitivity analysis. Further, since skin mechanical properties change with aging, it is important that the model is feasible for predicting the development of contraction in burn patients of different ages, and hence this study provides a feasibility study. The variability in the solutions is caused by varying the values for some parameters simultaneously over the domain of computation, for which the results of the sensitivity analysis are used. The sensitivity analysis shows that the most sensitive parameters are the equilibrium concentration of collagen, the apoptosis rate of fibroblasts and myofibroblasts, and the secretion rate of signaling molecules. This suggests that most of the variability in the evolution of contraction in burns in patients of different ages might be caused mostly by the decreasing equilibrium of collagen concentration. As expected, the feasibility study shows this model can be used to show distinct extents of contractions in burns in patients of different ages. Nevertheless, contraction formation in children differs from contraction formation in adults because of the growth. This factor has not been incorporated in the model yet, and therefore the feasibility results for children differ from what is seen in the clinic.

Keywords: biomechanics, burns, feasibility, fibroblasts, morphoelasticity, sensitivity analysis, skin mechanics, wound contraction

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Authors: Hancy Issac, Gerben Keijzers, Ian Yang, Clint Moloney, Jackie Lea, Melissa Taylor

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Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease guideline non-adherence is associated with a reduction in health-related quality of life in patients (HRQoL). Improving guideline adherence has the potential to mitigate fragmented care thereby sustaining pulmonary function, preventing acute exacerbations, reducing economic health burdens, and enhancing HRQoL. The development of an electronic proforma stemming from expert consensus, including digital guideline resources and direct interdisciplinary referrals is hypothesised to improve guideline adherence and patient outcomes for emergency department (ED) patients with COPD. Aim: The aim of this study was to develop consensus among ED and respiratory staff for the correct composition of a COPD electronic proforma that aids in guideline adherence and management in the ED. Methods: This study adopted a mixed-method design to develop the most important indicators of care in the ED. The study involved three phases: (1) a systematic literature review and qualitative interdisciplinary staff interviews to assess barriers and solutions for guideline adherence and qualitative interdisciplinary staff interviews, (2) a modified Delphi panel to select interventions for the proforma, and (3) a consensus process through three rounds of scoring through a quantitative survey (ED and Respiratory consensus) and qualitative thematic analysis on each indicator. Results: The electronic proforma achieved acceptable and good internal consistency through all iterations from national emergency department and respiratory department interdisciplinary experts. Cronbach’s alpha score for internal consistency (α) in iteration 1 emergency department cohort (EDC) (α = 0.80 [CI = 0.89%]), respiratory department cohort (RDC) (α = 0.95 [CI = 0.98%]). Iteration 2 reported EDC (α = 0.85 [CI = 0.97%]) and RDC (α = 0.86 [CI = 0.97%]). Iteration 3 revealed EDC (α = 0.73 [CI = 0.91%]) and RDC (α = 0.86 [CI = 0.95%]), respectively. Conclusion: Electronic proformas have the potential to facilitate direct referrals from the ED leading to reduced hospital admissions, reduced length of hospital stays, holistic care, improved health care and quality of life and improved interdisciplinary guideline adherence.

Keywords: COPD, electronic proforma, modified delphi study, interdisciplinary, guideline adherence, COPD-X plan

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Authors: Nassima Noufail, Sara Bouhali

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In this work, we develop a semi-supervised solution for the purpose of action detection in videos and propose an efficient algorithm for video segmentation. The approach is divided into video segmentation, feature extraction, and classification. In the first part, a video is segmented into clips, and we used the K-means algorithm for this segmentation; our goal is to find groups based on similarity in the video. The application of k-means clustering into all the frames is time-consuming; therefore, we started by the identification of transition frames where the scene in the video changes significantly, and then we applied K-means clustering into these transition frames. We used two image filters, the gaussian filter and the Laplacian of Gaussian. Each filter extracts a set of features from the frames. The Gaussian filter blurs the image and omits the higher frequencies, and the Laplacian of gaussian detects regions of rapid intensity changes; we then used this vector of filter responses as an input to our k-means algorithm. The output is a set of cluster centers. Each video frame pixel is then mapped to the nearest cluster center and painted with a corresponding color to form a visual map. The resulting visual map had similar pixels grouped. We then computed a cluster score indicating how clusters are near each other and plotted a signal representing frame number vs. clustering score. Our hypothesis was that the evolution of the signal would not change if semantically related events were happening in the scene. We marked the breakpoints at which the root mean square level of the signal changes significantly, and each breakpoint is an indication of the beginning of a new video segment. In the second part, for each segment from part 1, we randomly selected a 16-frame clip, then we extracted spatiotemporal features using convolutional 3D network C3D for every 16 frames using a pre-trained model. The C3D final output is a 512-feature vector dimension; hence we used principal component analysis (PCA) for dimensionality reduction. The final part is the classification. The C3D feature vectors are used as input to a multi-class linear support vector machine (SVM) for the training model, and we used a multi-classifier to detect the action. We evaluated our experiment on the UCF101 dataset, which consists of 101 human action categories, and we achieved an accuracy that outperforms the state of art by 1.2%.

Keywords: video segmentation, action detection, classification, Kmeans, C3D

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Authors: Zakaria Kharbouch, Mustapha Bouchaara, F. Elkouihen, A. Habbal, A. Ratnani, A. Faik

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Solid-state lithium-ion batteries have garnered increasing interest in modern energy research due to their potential for safer, more efficient, and sustainable energy storage systems. Among the critical components of these batteries, the electrolyte plays a pivotal role, with LLZO garnet-based electrolytes showing significant promise. Garnet materials offer intrinsic advantages such as high Li-ion conductivity, wide electrochemical stability, and excellent compatibility with lithium metal anodes. However, optimizing ionic conductivity in garnet structures poses a complex challenge, primarily due to the multitude of potential dopants that can be incorporated into the LLZO crystal lattice. The complexity of material design, influenced by numerous dopant options, requires a systematic method to find the most effective combinations. This study highlights the utility of machine learning (ML) techniques in the materials discovery process to navigate the complex range of factors in garnet-based electrolytes. Collaborators from the materials science and ML fields worked with a comprehensive dataset previously employed in a similar study and collected from various literature sources. This dataset served as the foundation for an extensive data refinement phase, where meticulous error identification, correction, outlier removal, and garnet-specific feature engineering were conducted. This rigorous process substantially improved the dataset's quality, ensuring it accurately captured the underlying physical and chemical principles governing garnet ionic conductivity. The data refinement effort resulted in a significant improvement in the predictive performance of the machine learning model. Originally starting at an accuracy of 0.32, the model underwent substantial refinement, ultimately achieving an accuracy of 0.88. This enhancement highlights the effectiveness of the interdisciplinary approach and underscores the substantial potential of machine learning techniques in materials science research.

Keywords: lithium batteries, all-solid-state batteries, machine learning, solid state electrolytes

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Authors: Selinda England, Ben Bodnaryk

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With an unprecedented increase in provincial immigration and government support for greater international and culturally diverse learners, a trade/applied learning-focused polytechnic with four campuses within one Canadian province saw the need for intercultural awareness and an intercultural teaching competence strategy for faculty training. An institution-wide pre-assessment needs survey was conducted in 2018, in which 87% of faculty professed to have some/no training when working with international and/or culturally diverse learners. After researching fellow Polytechnics in Canada and seeing very little in the way of faculty support for intercultural competence, an institutional project team comprised of members from all facets of the Polytechnic was created and included: Indigenous experts, Academic Chairs, Directors, Human Resource Managers, and international/settlement subject matter experts. The project team was organized to develop and implement a new academic model focused on enriching intercultural competence among faculty. Utilizing a competency based model, the project team incorporated inclusive terminology into competency indicators and devised a four-phase proposal for implementing intercultural teacher training: a series of workshops focused on the needs of international and culturally diverse learners, including teaching strategies based on current TESOL methodologies, literature and online resources for quick access when planning lessons, faculty assessment examples and models of interculturally proficient instructors, and future job descriptions - all which promote and encourage development of specific intercultural skills. Results from a post-assessment survey (to be conducted in Spring 2020) and caveats regarding improvements and next steps will be shared. The project team believes its intercultural and inclusive teaching competency-based model is one of the first, institution-wide faculty supported initiatives within the Canadian college and Polytechnic post-secondary educational environment; it aims to become a leader in both the province and nation regarding intercultural competency training for trades, industry, and business minded community colleges and applied learning institutions.

Keywords: cultural diversity and education, diversity training teacher training, teaching and learning, teacher training

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Authors: Sanaa Riaz

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Spirits occupy a world that simultaneously dwells between the divine and the earthly binary while speaking to all forces of nature, marginality, and extremity in between. This paper examines the conceptualizations, interactions with, and experience of spiritual beings in relation to the concept of self and social agency, defined as a continuum of cooperation leaving those involved with an enhanced or diminished perception of self-agency. To do justice to the diverse mythological and popular interpretations of spirit entities, ethnographic examples from Africa, in particular, will be used. An examination of the nature and role of spirits in Africa allows one to understand the ways in which colonial influences brought by Catholicism and Islam added to the pre-colonial repertoire and syncretic imaginations of spirits. A comprehensive framework to analyze spirits requires situating them as a cognitive configuration of humans to communicate with other humans and forces of nature to receive knowledge about the normative in social roles, conduct, and action. Understanding spirits also requires a rethinking of the concept of self as not one encapsulated in the individual but one representing positionalities in collective negotiations, adversity, and alliances. To use the postmodern understanding of identity as a far from a coherent collection of selves fluidly moving between and dialoguing with gravitational and contradictory social forces, benevolent and maleficent spirit forces represent how people make sense of their origin, physiological and ecological changes, subsistence, and political environment and social relations. A discussion on spirits requires examining the rituals and mediational forces and their performance that allow participants to tackle adversity, voicelessness and continue to work safely and morally for the collective good. Moreover, it is important to see the conceptualization of spirits in unison with sorcery and spirit possession, central to voodoo practices, also because they speak volumes about the experiences of slavery and marginalization. This paper has two motives: It presents a critical literature review of ethnographic accounts of spirit entities in African spiritual experiences to examine the ways in which spirits become mediums through which the self is conceptualized and asserted. Second, the paper highlights the ways in which spirits become a medium to represent political and sociocultural ambiguities and desires along a spectrum of social agencies, including joint agency, vicarious agency, and interfered agency.

Keywords: spirits, social agency, self, ethnographic case studies

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Authors: Matt Stallwood, Michael Spearpoint

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In 2020, the UK government announced that sales of new petrol and diesel cars would end in 2030, and battery-powered cars made up 1 in 8 new cars sold in 2021 – more than the total from the previous five years. The guidance across the UK for the fire safety design of covered car parks is changing in response to the projected rapid growth in electric vehicle (EV) use. This paper discusses the current knowledge on the fire safety concerns posed by EVs, in particular those powered by lithium-ion batteries, when considering the likelihood of vehicle ignition, fire severity and spread of fire to other vehicles. The paper builds on previous work that has investigated the frequency of fires starting in cars powered by internal combustion engines (ICE), the hazard posed by such fires in covered car parks and the potential for neighboring vehicles to become involved in an incident. Historical data has been used to determine the ignition frequency of ICE car fires, whereas such data is scarce when it comes to EV fires. Should a fire occur, then the fire development has conventionally been assessed to match a ‘medium’ growth rate and to have a 95th percentile peak heat release of 9 MW. The paper examines recent literature in which researchers have measured the burning characteristics of EVs to assess whether these values need to be changed. These findings are used to assess the risk posed by EVs when compared to ICE vehicles. The paper examines what new design guidance is being issued by various organizations across the UK, such as fire and rescue services, insurers, local government bodies and regulators and discusses the impact these are having on the arrangement of parking bays, particularly in residential and mixed-use buildings. For example, the paper illustrates how updated guidance published by the Fire Protection Association (FPA) on the installation of sprinkler systems has increased the hazard classification of parking buildings that can have a considerable impact on the feasibility of a building to meet all its design intents when specifying water supply tanks. Another guidance on the provision of smoke ventilation systems and structural fire resistance is also presented. The paper points to where further research is needed on the fire safety risks posed by EVs in covered car parks. This will ensure that any guidance is commensurate with the need to provide an adequate level of life and property safety in the built environment.

Keywords: covered car parks, electric vehicles, fire safety, risk

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Authors: Martin Kleynhans, Margot Soler, Gavin Quibell

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Malawi is one of the world’s poorest nations and consequently, the design of flood risk management infrastructure comes with a different set of challenges. There is a lack of good quality hydromet data, both in spatial terms and in the quality thereof and the challenge in the design of flood risk management infrastructure is compounded by the fact that maintenance is almost completely non-existent and that solutions have to be simple to be effective. Solutions should not require any further resources to remain functional after completion, and they should be resilient. They also have to be cost effective. The Lower Shire Valley of Malawi suffers from frequent flood events. Various flood risk management interventions have been designed across the valley during the course of the Shire River Basin Management Project – Phase I, and due to the data poor environment, indigenous knowledge was relied upon to a great extent for hydrological and hydraulic model calibration and verification. However, indigenous knowledge comes with the caveat that it is ‘fuzzy’ and that it can be manipulated for political reasons. The experience in the Lower Shire valley suggests that indigenous knowledge is unlikely to invent a problem where none exists, but that flood depths and extents may be exaggerated to secure prioritization of the intervention. Indigenous knowledge relies on the memory of a community and cannot foresee events that exceed past experience, that could occur differently to those that have occurred in the past, or where flood management interventions change the flow regime. This complicates communication of planned interventions to local inhabitants. Indigenous knowledge is, for the most part, intuitive, but flooding can sometimes be counter intuitive, and the rural poor may have a lower trust of technology. Due to a near complete lack of maintenance of infrastructure, infrastructure has to be designed with no moving parts and no requirement for energy inputs. This precludes pumps, valves, flap gates and sophisticated warning systems. Designs of dykes during this project included ‘flood warning spillways’, that double up as pedestrian and animal crossing points, which provide warning of impending dangerous water levels behind dykes to residents before water levels that could cause a possible dyke failure are reached. Locally available materials and erosion protection using vegetation were used wherever possible to keep costs down.

Keywords: design of dykes in low-income countries, flood warning spillways, indigenous knowledge, Malawi

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Authors: Akanksha Singh, Mahesh Kumar, Shailesh N. Sharma

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Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) such as CdSe, CdS, InP, etc. have gained significant interest in the recent years due to its application in various fields such as LEDs, solar cells, lasers, biological markers, etc. The interesting feature of the QDs is their tunable band gap. The size of the QDs can be easily varied by varying the synthesis parameters which change the band gap. One of the limitations with II-VI semiconductor QDs is their biological application. The use of cadmium makes them unsuitable for biological applications. III-V QD such as InP overcomes this problem as they are structurally robust because of the covalent bonds which do not allow the ions to leak. Also, InP QDs has large Bohr radii which increase the window for the quantum confinement effect. The synthesis of InP QDs is difficult and time consuming. Authors have synthesized InP using a novel, quick synthesis method which utilizes trioctylphosphine as a source of phosphorus. In this work, authors have made InP composites with P3HT(Poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl))polymer(organic-inorganic hybrid material) and gold nanoparticles(metal-semiconductor composites). InP-P3HT shows FRET phenomenon whereas InP-Au shows charge transfer mechanism. The synthesized InP QDs has an absorption band at 397 nm and PL peak position at 491 nm. The band gap of the InP QDs is 2.46 eV as compared to the bulk band gap of InP i.e. 1.35 eV. The average size of the QDs is around 3-4 nm. In order to protect the InP core, a shell of wide band gap material i.e. ZnS is coated on the top of InP core. InP-P3HT composites were made in order to study the charge transfer/energy transfer phenomenon between them. On adding aliquots of P3HT to InP QDs solution, the P3HT PL increases which can be attributed to the dominance of Förster energy transfer between InP QDs (donor) P3HT polymer (acceptor). There is a significant spectral overlap between the PL spectra of InP QDs and absorbance spectra of P3HT. But in the case of InP-Au nanocomposites, significant charge transfer was seen from InP QDs to Au NPs. When aliquots of Au NPs were added to InP QDs, a decrease in the PL of the InP QDs was observed. This is due to the charge transfer from the InP QDs to the Au NPs. In the case of metal semiconductor composites, the enhancement and quenching of QDs depend on the size of the QD and the distance between the QD and the metal NP. These two composites have different phenomenon between donor and acceptor and hence can be utilized for two different applications. The InP-P3HT composite can be utilized for LED devices due to enhancement in the PL emission (FRET). The InP-Au can be utilized efficiently for photovoltaic application owing to the successful charge transfer between InP-Au NPs.

Keywords: charge transfer, FRET, gold nanoparticles, InP quantum dots

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