Search results for: cost management

Authors: Nicholas Agyepong, Paul Gyan

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Inappropriate prescribing of antibiotic is a common healthcare concern globally resulted in an increased risk of adverse reactions and the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. The wrong antibiotic prescribing habits may lead to ineffective and unsafe treatment, worsening of disease condition, and thus increase in health care costs. The study was to examine the antibiotic prescribing pattern and associated risk factors at Regional Hospital in the Bono region of Ghana. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted to describe the current prescribing practices at the Hospital from January 2014 to December, 2021. A systematic random sampling method was used to select the participants for the study. STATA version 16 software was used for data management and analysis. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis were used to analyze the data. Statistical significance set at p<0.05. Antibiotic consumption was equivalent to 11 per 1000 inhabitants consuming 1 DDD per day. Most common prescribed antibiotic was amoxicillin/clavulanic acid (14.39%) followed by erythromycin (11.44%), and ciprofloxacin (11.36%). Antibiotics prescription have been steadily increased over the past eight years (2014: n=59,280 to 2021: n=190,320). Prescribers above the age of 35 were more likely to prescribe antibiotics than those between the ages of 20 and 25 (COR=21.00; 95% CI: 1.78 – 48.10; p=0.016). Prescribers with at least 6 years of experience were also significantly more likely to prescribe antibiotics than those with at most 5 years of experience (COR=14.17; 95% CI: 2.39 – 84.07; p=0.004). Thus, the establishment of an antibiotic stewardship program in the hospitals is imperative, and further studies need to be conducted in other facilities to establish the national antibiotic prescription guideline.

Keywords: antibiotic, antimicrobial resistance, prescription, prescribers

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Authors: Nathaniel Carpenter

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Web-enabled systems for supporting youth mental health management in Australia are pioneering in their field; however, with their success, these systems are experiencing exponential growth in demand which is straining an already stretched service. Supporting youth mental is critical as the lack of support is associated with significant and lasting negative consequences. To meet this growing demand, and provide critical support, investigations are needed on evaluating and improving existing online support services. Improvements should focus on developing frameworks capable of augmenting and scaling service provisions. There are few investigations informing best-practice frameworks when implementing e-mental health support systems for youth mental health; there are fewer which implement machine learning or artificially intelligent systems to facilitate the delivering of services. This investigation will use a case study methodology to highlight the design features which are important for systems to enable young people to self-manage their mental health. The investigation will also highlight the current information system challenges, to include challenges associated with service quality, provisioning, and scaling. This work will propose methods of meeting these challenges through improved design, service augmentation and automation, service quality, and through artificially intelligent inspired solutions. The results of this study will inform a framework for supporting youth mental health with intelligent and scalable web-enabled technologies to support an ever-growing user base.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, information systems, machine learning, youth mental health

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Authors: Fernanda F. Zimmermann, Beverley Burrell, Jennifer Jordan

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Introduction: Supportive care for people affected by cancer is recognised as a priority for research but yet there is little solid evidence of the effectiveness of psychological treatments for those with advanced cancer. The literature suggests that mindfulness-based interventions may be acceptable and beneficial for this population. This study aims to develop a mindfulness intervention to provide emotional support for advanced cancer population. The treatment package includes mindfulness meditation, developing an acceptance attitude and reflections on meaning in life. Methods: This study design is a one-group pre-post test with a mixed methods approach. Participants are recruited through public and private hospitals in Christchurch, NZ. Quantitative measures are the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, Mindful Coping Scale and, the Meaning in Life Questionnaire. Qualitative semi-structured interviews enquire about emotional support before and after the diagnosis, participants’ thoughts about meaning in life, expectations and reflections on the mindfulness training. Qualitative data will be analysed using thematic analysis. Treatment consists of one to one 30 minutes session weekly for 4 weeks using a pre-recorded CD/podcast of the mindfulness training. This research is part of the presenter’s PhD study. Findings: This project is currently underway. The presenter will provide preliminary data on the acceptability of the mindfulness training package being delivered to participants along with the recruitment strategies. We anticipate that this novel treatment used as a self-management tool will reduce psychological distress and enable better coping for patients with advanced cancer.

Keywords: acceptance, cancer, meaning in life, mindfulness

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Authors: Adele Pierre, Nadia Amoroso

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Changing climate patterns are resulting in increased in storm severity, challenging traditional methods of managing stormwater runoff. This research compares a system of bioswales to existing curb and gutter infrastructure in a post-industrial streetscape of Hamilton, Ontario. Using the geodesign process, including rule-based set parameters and an integrated approach combining geospatial information with stakeholder input, a section of Ottawa St. North was modelled to show how green infrastructure can ease the burden on aging, combined sewer systems. Qualitative data was gathered from residents of the neighbourhood through field notes, and quantitative geospatial data through GIS and site analysis. Parametric modelling was used to generate multiple design scenarios, each visualizing resulting impacts on stormwater runoff along with their calculations. The selected design scenarios offered both an aesthetically pleasing urban bioswale street-scape system while minimizing and controlling stormwater runoff. Interactive maps, videos and the 3D model were presented for stakeholder comment via ESRI’s (Environmental System Research Institute) web-scene. The results of the study demonstrate powerful tools that can assist landscape architects in designing, collaborating and communicating stormwater strategies.

Keywords: bioswale, geodesign, data-driven and rule-based design, geodesign, GIS, stormwater management

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Authors: Molly Gerrish

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This work explores the physical, emotional, social, and cognitive risks and benefits related to nature-based teaching and highlights the importance of promoting a sustainable workforce within early childhood programs. Assessing and managing risks can help programs reimagine their approach to teaching, learning, recruitment, family connectivity, and staff motivation. The importance of staff sustainability and motivation/engagement related to social justice and the environment will be discussed. We will explore ways to manage fears and limitations faced by early childhood programs regarding nature experiences and risky play in a variety of locations using a lens of place-based learning. We will also examine the alignment of sustainability and social-emotional development, mental health supports, social awareness, and risk assessment. The work will discuss the varied perceptions of risk in diverse areas and the impact on the early childhood workforce. Motivational theory and compassion resiliency are hallmarks of both recruiting and retaining high-quality early childhood educators; the work will discuss how to balance programmatic constraints and healthy motivation for students and teachers while empowering individuals to advocate for their mental health and well-being. Finally, the work will highlight the positive impact of nature-based teaching practices and the overall benefit to young children and their educators.

Keywords: child’s rights, inclusion, nature-based education, risk assessment

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Authors: Linung Kresno Adikusumo, Ivan Ramos Sampe Immanuel, Liston Sitanggang

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An excellent, well work program in the oil and gas industry can have numerous positive business impacts, contributing to operational efficiency, increased production, enhanced safety, and improved financial performance. In summary, an excellent, well work program not only ensures the immediate success of specific projects but also has a broader positive impact on the overall business performance and reputation of the oil and gas company. It positions the company for long-term success in a competitive and dynamic industry. Nevertheless, a number of challenges were encountered when developing a good work program, such as the poor quality and lack of integration of well documentation, the incompleteness of the well history, and the low accessibility of well documentation. As a result, the well work program was delivered less accurately, plus well damage was managed slowly. Our solution implementing digital technology by developing a web-based database and application not only solves those issues but also provides an easy-to-access report and user-friendly display for management as well as engineers to analyze the report’s content. This application aims to revolutionize the documentation of well history in the field of oil and gas exploration and production. The current lack of a streamlined and comprehensive system for capturing, organizing, and accessing well-related data presents challenges in maintaining accurate and up-to-date records. Our innovative solution introduces a user-friendly and efficient platform designed to capture well history documentation seamlessly.

Keywords: digital, drilling, well work, application

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Authors: Heba Hozyen, Ragab Mohamed, Amal Abd El Hameed, Amal Abo El-Maaty

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This study aimed to investigate the effect of CIDR and ovsynch (Gonadotropin-prostaglandine-gonadotropin GPG) protocols for synchronization of follicular waves of dromedary camels on ovarian hormones, oxidative stress and conception during breeding season. Twelve dark colored dromedary camels were divided into two equal groups. The first group was subjected to CIDR insertion for 7 days and blood samples were collected each other day from the day of CIDR insertion (day 0) till day 21. The other group was subjected to GPG system (Ovsynch) and blood samples were collected daily for 11 days. Progesterone (P4) and estradiol were assayed using commercial ELISA diagnostic EIA kits. Catalase (CAT), total antioxidants capacity (TAC), glutathione reduced (GHD), lipid peroxide product (malondialdehyde, MDA) and nitric oxide (NO) were measured colorimetrically using spectrophotometer. Results revealed that CIDR treated camels had significantly high P4 (P= 0.0001), estradiol (P= 0.0001), CAT (P= 0.034), NO (P= 0.016) and TAC (P= 0.04) but significantly low MDA (P= 0.001) and GHD (P= 0.003) compared to GPG treated ones. Camels inserted with CIDR had higher conception rate (66.7%) compared to those treated with GPG (33%). In conclusion, camels treated with CIDR had higher hormonal response and antioxidant capacity than those synchronized with GPG which positively reflected on their conception rate. The better response of camels to CIDR and the higher conception compared to GPG protocol recommends its use for future reproductive management in camels.

Keywords: antioxidants, camel, CIDR, season, steroid hormones

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Authors: Adel. M. Sharaf, Foad H. Gandoman

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Nowadays, Photovoltaic-PV Farms/ Parks and large PV-Smart Grid Interface Schemes are emerging and commonly utilized in Renewable Energy distributed generation. However, PV-hybrid-Dc-Ac Schemes using interface power electronic converters usually has negative impact on power quality and stabilization of modern electrical network under load excursions and network fault conditions in smart grid. Consequently, robust FACTS based interface schemes are required to ensure efficient energy utilization and stabilization of bus voltages as well as limiting switching/fault onrush current condition. FACTS devices are also used in smart grid-Battery Interface and Storage Schemes with PV-Battery Storage hybrid systems as an elegant alternative to renewable energy utilization with backup battery storage for electric utility energy and demand side management to provide needed energy and power capacity under heavy load conditions. The paper presents a robust interface PV-Li-Ion Battery Storage Interface Scheme for Distribution/Utilization Low Voltage Interface using FACTS stabilization enhancement and dynamic maximum PV power tracking controllers. Digital simulation and validation of the proposed scheme is done using MATLAB/Simulink software environment for Low Voltage- Distribution/Utilization system feeding a hybrid Linear-Motorized inrush and nonlinear type loads from a DC-AC Interface VSC-6-pulse Inverter Fed from the PV Park/Farm with a back-up Li-Ion Storage Battery.

Keywords: AC FACTS, smart grid, stabilization, PV-battery storage, Switched Filter-Compensation (SFC)

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Authors: Prem K. Mony, Bharadwaj Amrutur, Prashanth Thankachan, Swarnarekha Bhat, Suman Rao, Maryann Washington, Annamma Thomas, N. Sheela, Hiteshwar Rao, Sumi Antony

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The disease burden among mothers and newborns is caused mostly by a handful of avoidable conditions occurring around the time of childbirth and within the first month following delivery. Real-time monitoring of vital parameters of mothers and neonates offers a potential opportunity to impact access as well as the quality of care in vulnerable populations. We describe the design, development and testing of an innovative wearable device for remote biomonitoring (RBM) of body temperatures in mothers and neonates in a hospital in southern India. The architecture consists of: [1] a low-cost, wearable sensor tag; [2] a gateway device for ‘real-time’ communication link; [3] piggy-backing on a commercial GSM communication network; and [4] an algorithm-based data analytics system. Requirements for the device were: long battery-life upto 28 days (with sampling frequency 5/hr); robustness; IP 68 hermetic sealing; and human-centric design. We undertook pre-clinical laboratory testing followed by clinical trial phases I & IIa for evaluation of safety and efficacy in the following sequence: seven healthy adult volunteers; 18 healthy mothers; and three sets of babies – 3 healthy babies; 10 stable babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) and 1 baby with hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy (HIE). The 3-coin thickness, pebble-design sensor weighing about 8 gms was secured onto the abdomen for the baby and over the upper arm for adults. In the laboratory setting, the response-time of the sensor device to attain thermal equilibrium with the surroundings was 4 minutes vis-a-vis 3 minutes observed with a precision-grade digital thermometer used as a reference standard. The accuracy was ±0.1°C of the reference standard within the temperature range of 25-40°C. The adult volunteers, aged 20 to 45 years, contributed a total of 345 hours of readings over a 7-day period and the postnatal mothers provided a total of 403 paired readings. The mean skin temperatures measured in the adults by the sensor were about 2°C lower than the axillary temperature readings (sensor =34.1 vs digital = 36.1); this difference was statistically significant (t-test=13.8; p<0.001). The healthy neonates provided a total of 39 paired readings; the mean difference in temperature was 0.13°C (sensor =36.9 vs digital = 36.7; p=0.2). The neonates in the NICU provided a total of 130 paired readings. Their mean skin temperature measured by the sensor was 0.6°C lower than that measured by the radiant warmer probe (sensor =35.9 vs warmer probe = 36.5; p < 0.001). The neonate with HIE provided a total of 25 paired readings with the mean sensor reading being not different from the radian warmer probe reading (sensor =33.5 vs warmer probe = 33.5; p=0.8). No major adverse events were noted in both the adults and neonates; four adult volunteers reported mild sweating under the device/arm band and one volunteer developed mild skin allergy. This proof-of-concept study shows that real-time monitoring of temperatures is technically feasible and that this innovation appears to be promising in terms of both safety and accuracy (with appropriate calibration) for improved maternal and neonatal health.

Keywords: public health, remote biomonitoring, temperature surveillance, wearable sensors, mothers and newborns

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Authors: Sonny Nyeko, Moses Niwe

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Purpose: This research paper examined the mediation effect of organization culture in the relationship between information technology (IT) competence and IT governance effectiveness in Ugandan public universities. The purpose of the research paper is to examine the role of organizational culture in the relationship between IT competence and IT governance effectiveness. Design/methodology/approach: The paper adopted the MedGraph program, Sobel tests and Kenny and Baron Approach for testing the mediation effects. Findings: It is impeccable that IT competence and organization culture are true drivers of IT governance effectiveness in Ugandan public universities. However, organizational culture reveals partial mediation in the IT competence and IT governance effectiveness relationship. Research limitations/implications: The empirical investigation in this research depends profoundly on public universities. Future research in Ugandan private universities could be undertaken to compare results. Practical implications: To effectively achieve IT governance effectiveness, it means senior management requires IT knowledge which is a vital ingredient of IT competence. Moreover, organizations today ought to adopt cultures that are intended to have them competitive in their businesses, with IT operations not in isolation. Originality/value: Spending thousands of dollars on IT resources in advanced institutes of learning necessitates IT control. Preliminary studies in Ugandan public universities have revealed the ineffective utilization of IT resources. Besides, IT governance issues with IT competence and organization culture remain outstanding. Thus, it’s a new study testing the mediating outcome of organization culture in the association between IT competence and IT governance effectiveness in the Ugandan universities.

Keywords: organization culture, IT competence, IT governance, effectiveness, mediating effect, universities, Uganda

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Authors: Kashima Arora, Monika Tomar, Vinay Gupta

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Biosensors have found potential applications ranging from environmental testing and biowarfare agent detection to clinical testing, health care, and cell analysis. This is driven in part by the desire to decrease the cost of health care and to obtain precise information more quickly about the health status of patient by the development of various biosensors, which has become increasingly prevalent in clinical testing and point of care testing for a wide range of biological elements. Uric acid is an important byproduct in human body and a number of pathological disorders are related to its high concentration in human body. In past few years, rapid growth in the development of new materials and improvements in sensing techniques have led to the evolution of advanced biosensors. In this context, metal oxide thin film based matrices due to their bio compatible nature, strong adsorption ability, high isoelectric point (IEP) and abundance in nature have become the materials of choice for recent technological advances in biotechnology. In the past few years, wide band-gap metal oxide semiconductors including ZnO, SnO₂ and CeO₂ have gained much attention as a matrix for immobilization of various biomolecules. Tin oxide (SnO₂), wide band gap semiconductor (Eg =3.87 eV), despite having multifunctional properties for broad range of applications including transparent electronics, gas sensors, acoustic devices, UV photodetectors, etc., it has not been explored much for biosensing purpose. To realize a high performance miniaturized biomolecular electronic device, rf sputtering technique is considered to be the most promising for the reproducible growth of good quality thin films, controlled surface morphology and desired film crystallization with improved electron transfer property. Recently, iron oxide and its composites have been widely used as matrix for biosensing application which exploits the electron communication feature of Fe, for the detection of various analytes using urea, hemoglobin, glucose, phenol, L-lactate, H₂O₂, etc. However, to the authors’ knowledge, no work is being reported on modifying the electronic properties of SnO₂ by implanting with suitable metal (Fe) to induce the redox couple in it and utilizing it for reagentless detection of uric acid. In present study, Fe implanted SnO₂ based matrix has been utilized for reagentless uric acid biosensor. Implantation of Fe into SnO₂ matrix is confirmed by energy-dispersive X-Ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. Electrochemical techniques have been used to study the response characteristics of Fe modified SnO₂ matrix before and after uricase immobilization. The developed uric acid biosensor exhibits a high sensitivity to about 0.21 mA/mM and a linear variation in current response over concentration range from 0.05 to 1.0 mM of uric acid besides high shelf life (~20 weeks). The Michaelis-Menten kinetic parameter (Km) is found to be relatively very low (0.23 mM), which indicates high affinity of the fabricated bioelectrode towards uric acid (analyte). Also, the presence of other interferents present in human serum has negligible effect on the performance of biosensor. Hence, obtained results highlight the importance of implanted Fe:SnO₂ thin film as an attractive matrix for realization of reagentless biosensors towards uric acid.

Keywords: Fe implanted tin oxide, reagentless uric acid biosensor, rf sputtering, thin film

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Authors: Shreya Mishra, Manosi Chaudhuri, Ajoy K. Dey

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Workplace bullying is a social phenomenon which has proved to be hazardous not only for employees’ well-being but also organizations. Despite being prevalent across geographical boundaries, Indian organizations have failed to acknowledge its vices. This paper aims to understand targets’ perception on what makes bullying nurture in organizations. The paper suggests that person-led Indian work settings give birth to bullying behavior as it lacks professional acumen and systems. An analysis of 13 in-depth interviews of employees from the organized sector suggests that organizations, where decision making lies with single individual, may be a hub of hostile behavior due to the culture which promotes ‘yesmanship’, ‘authoritarianism’ and/or blind belief of leaders on certain set of employees. The study used constructivist grounded theory approach, and the data was analyzed using R Based Qualitative Data Analysis (RQDA) software. Respondents reported that bullying behavior is taken lightly by the management with 'just ignore it' attitude. According to the respondents, the behavior prolong as the perpetrator have a direct approach to the top authority. The study concludes that person-led organizations may create a family-like environment which is favored by employees; however, authoritative leaders are unable to gain the trust of employees. Also, employees who are close to the leader may either be a perpetrator or a target of bullying. It is recommended that leaders in such organizations need to acknowledge the presence of bullying which affects an employees’ commitment towards their job and/or organization. They need to have an assertive check on individuals who hide behind ‘yesman’ attitude. This may help employees feel safe in such work settings.

Keywords: constructivist grounded theory, person-led organization, RQDA, workplace bullying

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Authors: M. Panidou, F. Kilipiris, E. Christou, K. Alexandris

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This study intends to investigate the travel preferences of Generation Z (born between 1996 and 2012), focusing on their inclination towards unique and unconventional travel experiences, prioritization of authentic cultural immersion and local experiences over traditional tourist attractions, and their value for flexibility and spontaneity in travel plans. By examining these aspects, the research aims to provide insights into the preferences and behaviors of Generation Z travelers, contributing to a better understanding of their travel choices and informing the tourism industry in catering to their needs and desires. Secondary data was gathered from academic literature and industry reports to offer a thorough study of the topic. A quantitative method was used, and primary data was collected through an online questionnaire. One hundred Greek people between the ages of eighteen and twenty-seven were the study's sample. SPSS software was used to assist in the analysis of the data. The findings of the research showed that Gen Z is attracted to unusual and distinctive travel experiences, prioritizing genuine cultural immersion over typical tourist attractions, and they highly value flexibility in their travel decision-making. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of how Gen Z travelers are reshaping the travel industry. Travel companies, marketers, and destination management organizations will find the findings useful in adjusting their products to suit this influential demographic's changing demands and preferences. Considering the limitations of the sample size, future studies could expand the sample size to include individuals from different cultural backgrounds for a more comprehensive understanding.

Keywords: cultural immersion, flexibility, generation Z, travel preferences, unique experiences

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Authors: Popoola Sulaimon Akorede, Muinat A. Agbabiaka-Mustapha

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The Quranic / piazza school where the rudiments of Islam are being imparted from the teaching of Arabic/ Quranic alphabets which later metamorphosized to higher fundamental principles of Islam is the major determinant of the existence of Islam in any part of south western Nigeria. In other words, one can successfully say that where there is a few or non-existence of such schools in that part of the country, the practice of the religion of Islam would be either very low or not existing at all. However, it has been discovered in the modern worlds that several challenges are militating against the development of these schools and among these challenges are poor admission policy, inadequate facilities such as learning environment and instructional materials, curriculum inadequacy and the management and the administration of the schools which failed to change in order to meet the modern contemporary Educational challenges. The focus of this paper therefore is to improve the conditions of these basic Islamic schools through the introduction of quality assurance and integrating accreditation Exercise to improve their status in order to enhance economic empowerment and to further their educational career in the future so that they will be able to compete favourably among the graduates of conventional universities. The scope of this study is limited to only seven (7) states of yorubaland and with only three (3) proprietors/ schools from each state which are Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Ekiti, Ondo and parts of Kwara State. The study revealed that quality assurance as well as accreditation exercise are lacking in all the local Arabic/Quranic schools. Suggestions are proffered towards correcting the anomalies in these schools so that they can meet the modern Educational standard.

Keywords: accreditation, quality assurance, Quranic schools, South-western Nigeria

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Authors: Daniel Ihemtuge Akim, Micheal O. Ikeanumba

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This research focused on team teaching; students perception, challenges, and remedies for effective implementation, a case study of the department of Biology, Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri Imo State, Nigeria. It seeks to address the misconception by students on the use of team teaching as a methodology for learning. Five purposes and five research questions guided this study. Descriptive survey design was used in the study. The students of biology department enrolled in both Bachelor degree and National Certificate in Education in Alvan Ikoku Federal College of Education, Owerri, formed the population size. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the sampled students and 20% of whole lecturers were selected out of the whole given sample size of three hundred and forty (340). The instrument used for data collection was structured 4 point Likert scale questionnaire and analysis was made using mean method. The result revealed that poor time management by lectures, lack of lecture venues, manpower are some of the challenges hindering the effective implementation of team teaching. It was also observed that students perform better in academic when team teaching approach is used than single teaching approach. Finally, recommendations made suggested that teachers involved in team teaching should work together with their teaching strategies and within the time frame to achieve the stated objectives.

Keywords: challenges, implementation, perception, team teaching

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Authors: Do Thi Ha, Khanitta Nuntaboot

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Background: Competency of nurses is vital to safe nursing practice as well as essential component to drive quality of nursing services. There exists little up to date information concerning actual competency among Vietnamese nurses. Purposes: The purpose of this study is to identify the actual nursing competency among nurses in clinical settings in Vietnam. Methods: A qualitative study, ethnographic method, comprised of the participant-observation, in-depth interview, and focus group discussion with multidisciplinary groups of nurses employing in Cho Ray hospital, Vietnam, managers/administrators, nurse teachers, medical doctors, other health care providers, patients and family members which derived from purposeful sampling technique. Content analysis was used for data analysis. Results: Five essential themes of nursing competencies among nurses were identified include (1) knowledge, (2) skills, (3) attitude and value-based nursing practice, (4) legal and ethical competencies, and (5) transcultural competencies. Basic and advanced knowledge were identified as further two dimensions of knowledge. There were five sub themes identified as further dimensions of skills include technical skills, communication skills, organizing and management skills, teamwork and interrelationship, and critical thinking skills. Conclusions: The findings from this study provide valuable information and understanding of the actual competency among nurses in clinical settings in Vietnam. It is expected that this understanding would assist in developing a guide to nursing education and training, nursing practice and relevant policy regulation used for promoting nursing competency among nurses.

Keywords: ethnographic method, nursing competency, qualitative design, Vietnam

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Authors: Thembelihle Portia Lubisi, Malusi Ntandoyenkosi Mkhize, Jonas Kalebe Johakimu

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Fertilizers play an important role in maintaining the productivity and quality of plants. Inorganic fertilizers (containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) are largely used in South Africa as they are considered inexpensive and highly productive. When applied, a portion of the excess fertilizer will be retained in the soil, a portion enters water streams due to surface runoff or the irrigation system adopted. Excess nutrient from the fertilizers entering the water stream eventually results harmful algal blooms (HABs) in freshwater systems, which not only disrupt wildlife but can also produce toxins harmful to humans. Use of agro-chemicals such as pesticides and herbicides has been associated with increased antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans as the plants are consumed by humans. This resistance of bacterial poses a threat as it prevents the Health sector from being able to treat infectious disease. Archaeological studies have found that pyrolysis liquids were already used in the time of the Neanderthal as a biocide and plant protection product. Pyrolysis is thermal degradation process of plant biomass or organic material under anaerobic conditions leading to production of char, bio-oils and syn gases. Bio-oil constituents can be categorized as water soluble (wood vinegar) and water insoluble fractions (tar and light oils). Wood vinegar (pyro-ligneous acid) is said to contain contains highly oxygenated compounds including acids, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, phenols, esters, furans, and other multifunctional compounds with various molecular weights and compositions depending on the biomass material derived from and pyrolysis operating conditions. Various researchers have found the wood vinegar to be efficient in the eradication of termites, effective in plant protection and plant growth, has antibacterial characteristics and was found effective in inhibiting the micro-organisms such as candida yeast, E-coli, etc. This study investigated characterisation of South African forestry product processing waste with intention of evaluating the potential of using the respective biomass waste as feedstock for boil oil production via pyrolysis process. Ability to use biomass waste materials in production of wood-vinegar has advantages that it does not only allows for reduction of environmental pollution and landfill requirement, but it also does not negatively affect food security. The biomass wastes investigated were from the popular tree types in KZN, which are, pine saw dust (PSD), pine bark (PB), eucalyptus saw dust (ESD) and eucalyptus bark (EB). Furthermore, the research investigates the possibility of mixing the different wastes with an aim to lessen the cost of raw material separation prior to feeding into pyrolysis process and mixing also increases the amount of biomass material available for beneficiation. A 50/50 mixture of PSD and ESD (EPSD) and mixture containing pine saw dust; eucalyptus saw dust, pine bark and eucalyptus bark (EPSDB). Characterisation of the biomass waste will look at analysis such as proximate (volatiles, ash, fixed carbon), ultimate (carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, sulphur), high heating value, structural (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin) and thermogravimetric analysis.

Keywords: characterisation, biomass waste, saw dust, wood waste

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Authors: Amadou Fall Dia, Maurras Ulbricht Togbe, Aliou Boly, Zakia Kazi Aoul, Elisabeth Metais

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Existing RDF (Resource Description Framework) Stream Processing (RSP) systems allow continuous processing of RDF data issued from different application domains such as weather station measuring phenomena, geolocation, IoT applications, drinking water distribution management, and so on. However, processing window phase often expires before finishing the entire session and RSP systems immediately delete data streams after each processed window. Such mechanism does not allow optimized exploitation of the RDF data streams as the most relevant and pertinent information of the data is often not used in a due time and almost impossible to be exploited for further analyzes. It should be better to keep the most informative part of data within streams while minimizing the memory storage space. In this work, we propose an RDF graph summarization system based on an explicit and implicit expressed needs through three main approaches: (1) an approach for user queries (SPARQL) in order to extract their needs and group them into a more global query, (2) an extension of the closeness centrality measure issued from Social Network Analysis (SNA) to determine the most informative parts of the graph and (3) an RDF graph summarization technique combining extracted user query needs and the extended centrality measure. Experiments and evaluations show efficient results in terms of memory space storage and the most expected approximate query results on summarized graphs compared to the source ones.

Keywords: centrality measures, RDF graphs summary, RDF graphs stream, SPARQL query

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Authors: Damith Tennakoon, Mojgan Jadidi, Seyedreza Razavialavi

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With recent advancements of automation in robotics, from self-driving cars to autonomous 4-legged quadrupeds, one industry that has been stagnant is the construction industry. The methodologies used in a modern-day construction site consist of arduous physical labor and the use of heavy machinery, which has not changed over the past few decades. The dangers of a modern-day construction site affect the health and safety of the workers due to performing tasks such as lifting and moving heavy objects and having to maintain unhealthy posture to complete repetitive tasks such as painting, installing drywall, and laying bricks. Further, training for heavy machinery is costly and requires a lot of time due to their complex control inputs. The main focus of this research is using immersive wearable technology and robotic arms to perform the complex and intricate skills of modern-day construction workers while alleviating the physical labor requirements to perform their day-to-day tasks. The methodology consists of mounting a stereo vision camera, the ZED Mini by Stereolabs, onto the end effector of an industrial grade robotic arm, streaming the video feed into the Virtual Reality (VR) Meta Quest 2 (Quest 2) head-mounted display (HMD). Due to the nature of stereo vision, and the similar field-of-views between the stereo camera and the Quest 2, human-vision can be replicated on the HMD. The main advantage this type of camera provides over a traditional monocular camera is it gives the user wearing the HMD a sense of the depth of the camera scene, specifically, a first-person view of the robotic arm’s end effector. Utilizing the built-in cameras of the Quest 2 HMD, open-source hand-tracking libraries from OpenXR can be implemented to track the user’s hands in real-time. A mixed-reality (XR) Unity application can be developed to localize the operator's physical hand motions with the end-effector of the robotic arm. Implementing gesture controls will enable the user to move the robotic arm and control its end-effector by moving the operator’s arm and providing gesture inputs from a distant location. Given that the end effector of the robotic arm is a gripper tool, gripping and opening the operator’s hand will translate to the gripper of the robot arm grabbing or releasing an object. This human-robot interaction approach provides many benefits within the construction industry. First, the operator’s safety will be increased substantially as they can be away from the site-location while still being able perform complex tasks such as moving heavy objects from place to place or performing repetitive tasks such as painting walls and laying bricks. The immersive interface enables precision robotic arm control and requires minimal training and knowledge of robotic arm manipulation, which lowers the cost for operator training. This human-robot interface can be extended to many applications, such as handling nuclear accident/waste cleanup, underwater repairs, deep space missions, and manufacturing and fabrication within factories. Further, the robotic arm can be mounted onto existing mobile robots to provide access to hazardous environments, including power plants, burning buildings, and high-altitude repair sites.

Keywords: construction automation, human-robot interaction, hand-tracking, mixed reality

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Authors: Massimo Zucchetti

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In the US, the SPARC-ARC projects of compact tokamaks are being developed: both are aimed at the technological demonstration of fusion power reactors with cutting-edge technology but following different design approaches. However, they show more similarities than differences in the fuel cycle, safety, radiation protection, environmental, waste and decommissioning aspects: all reactors, either experimental or demonstration ones, have to fulfill certain "essential" requirements to pass from virtual to real machines, to be built in the real world. The paper will discuss these "essential" requirements. Some of the relevant activities in these fields, carried out by our research group (ESSENTIAL group), will be briefly reported, with the aim of showing some methodology aspects that have been developed and might be of wider interest. Also, a non-competitive comparison between our results for different projects will be included when useful. The question of advanced D-He3 fuel cycles to be used for those machines will be addressed briefly. In the past, the IGNITOR project of a compact high-magnetic field D-T ignition experiment was found to be able to sustain limited D-He3 plasmas, while the Candor project was a more decisive step toward D-He3 fusion reactors. The following topics will be treated: Waste management and radioactive safety studies for advanced fusion power plants; development of compact high-field advanced fusion reactors; behavior of nuclear materials under irradiation: neutron-induced radioactivity due to side DT reactions, radiation damage; accident analysis; reactor siting.

Keywords: advanced fuel fusion reactors, deuterium-helium3, high-field tokamaks, fusion safety

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Authors: Moustafa Osman Mohammed

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This paper will explore formation of HCl aerosol at atmospheric boundary layers and encourages the uptake of environmental modeling systems (EMSs) as a practice evaluation of gaseous emissions (“framework measures”) from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The conceptual model predicts greenhouse gas emissions to ecological points beyond landfill site operations. It focuses on incorporation traditional knowledge into baseline information for both measurement data and the mathematical results, regarding parameters influence model variable inputs. The paper has simplified parameters of aerosol processes based on the more complex aerosol process computations. The simple model can be implemented to both Gaussian and Eulerian rural dispersion models. Aerosol processes considered in this study were (i) the coagulation of particles, (ii) the condensation and evaporation of organic vapors, and (iii) dry deposition. The chemical transformation of gas-phase compounds is taken into account photochemical formulation with exposure effects according to HCl concentrations as starting point of risk assessment. The discussion set out distinctly aspect of sustainability in reflection inputs, outputs, and modes of impact on the environment. Thereby, models incorporate abiotic and biotic species to broaden the scope of integration for both quantification impact and assessment risks. The later environmental obligations suggest either a recommendation or a decision of what is a legislative should be achieved for mitigation measures of landfill gas (LFG) ultimately.

Keywords: air pollution, landfill emission, environmental management, monitoring/methods and impact assessment

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Authors: Doug Specht

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This research project sought to explore the links between digital media, PGIS and social movement organisations in Tolima, Colombia. The primary aim of the research was to examine how knowledge is created and disseminated through digital media and GIS in the region, and whether there exists the infrastructure to allow for this. The second strand was to ascertain if this has had a significant impact on the way grassroots movements work and produce collective actions. The third element is a hypothesis about how digital media and PGIS could play a larger role in activist activities, particularly in reference to the extractive industries. Three theoretical strands have been brought together to provide a basis for this research, namely (a) the politics of knowledge, (b) spatial management and inclusion, and (c) digital media and political engagement. Quantitative data relating to digital media and mobile internet use was collated alongside qualitative data relating to the likelihood of using digital media in activist campaigns, with particular attention being given to grassroots movements working against extractive industries in the Tolima region of Colombia. Through interviews, surveys and GIS analysis it has been possible to build a picture of online activism and the role of PPGIS within protest movement in the region of Tolima, Colombia. Results show a gap between the desires of social movements to use digital media and the skills and finances required to implement programs that utilise it. Maps and GIS are generally reserved for legal cases rather than for informing the lay person. However, it became apparent that the combination of digital/social media and PPGIS could play a significant role in supporting the work of grassroots movements.

Keywords: PGIS, GIS, social media, digital media, mining, colombia, social movements, protest

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Authors: Tao Zhang, Nan Yan

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In recent years, the Chaoshan area, a special place located in the southeast of Guangdong province in China, actively protects religious heritage and is developing religious tourism, which is attracting many expatriate Chinese who are coming back for travel and to worship. This paper discussed three questions. Firstly, what is the current situation about the different social background of tourists’ motivation, satisfaction and behavioral intention? Secondly, is there a relationship between the motivation, satisfaction and behavioral intention and the different social backgrounds of tourists? Thirdly, what is the relationship between religious tourists’ motivation, satisfaction and behavioral intention? The research methods use a combination of qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis. Qualitative analysis uses the method of observation and interviews. Convenient sampling technique was used for quantitative analysis. The study showed that the different social backgrounds of tourists’ forms diverse cognition and experiences about religious tourism, and their motivations, satisfaction and behavioral intention as tourists vary. Tourists’ motivation and satisfaction has a positive phase relation. Tourists’ motivation with satisfaction as the intervening variable also has a positive phase effect on tourists’ behavior intention. The result shows that religious tourists’ motivations include experiencing a religious atmosphere, and having a rest and recreation. The result also shows that religious tourists want to travel with their family members and friends. While traveling, religious tourists like to talk with Buddhist monks or nuns. Compared to other tourism types, religious tourists have higher expectations about temple environment, traveling experience, peripheral service and temple management.

Keywords: behavioral intension, motivation, religious tourism, satisfaction

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Authors: Nien-Ming Hong, Kuei-Fang Huang

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Climate change is an important issue in future, which seriously affects water resources for a long term planning and management. Flood assessment is highly related with climate and land use. Increasing rainfall and urbanization will induce the inundated area in future. For adapting the impacts of climate change, a land use planning is a good strategy for reducing flood damage. The study is to build a trade-off process with different land use types. The Ta-Liao watershed is the study area with three types of land uses that are build-up, farm and forest. The build-up area is concentrated in the downstream of the watershed. Different rainfall amounts are applied for assessing the land use in 1996, 2005 and 2013. The adapted strategies are based on retarding the development of urban and a trade-off process. When a land changes from farm area to built-up area in downstream, this study is to search for a farm area and change it to forest/grass area or building a retention area in the upstream. For assessing the effects of the strategy, the inundation area is simulated by the Flo-2D model with different rainfall conditions and land uses. The results show inundation maps of several cases with land use change planning. The results also show the trade-off strategies and retention areas can decrease the inundated area and divide the inundated area, which are better than retarding urban development. The land use change is usually non-reverse and the planning should be constructed before the climate change.

Keywords: climate change, land use change, flood risk assessment, land use planning

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Authors: Nadeem Hassan, Farooq Ahmad

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The quality of education has a direct impact on individual, family, society, economy in general and the mankind as a whole. Because of that thousands of research papers and articles are written on the quality of education, billions of dollars are spent and continuously being spent on research and enhancing the quality of education. Academic programs accredited agencies define the various criterion of quality of education; academic institutions obtain accreditation from these agencies to ensure degree programs offered at their institution are of international standards. This R&D aims to build a web based analytical tool (OptiBaha) that finds the gaps in AlBaha University education system by taking input from stakeholders, including students, faculty, staff and management. The input/online-data collected by this tool will be analyzed on core areas of education as proposed by accredited agencies, CAC of ABET and NCAAA of KSA, including student background, language, culture, motivation, curriculum, teaching methodology, assessment and evaluation, performance and progress, facilities, availability of teaching materials, faculty qualification, monitoring, policies and procedures, and more. Based on different analytical reports, gaps will be highlighted, and remedial actions will be proposed. If the tool is implemented and made available through a continuous process the quality of education at AlBaha University can be enhanced, it will also help in fulfilling criterion of accreditation agencies. The tool will be generic in nature and ultimately can be used by any academic institution.

Keywords: academic quality, accreditation agencies, higher education, policies and procedures

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Authors: Sarah A. Tobin

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Social justice outcomes, derived from customer satisfaction, serve as a main pathway and conduit for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) because they prompt democratizing and socially-inclusive effects that are consistent with Islamic economic values. This paper argues that achieving higher levels of social justice and the SGDs is possible only through the realization of Islamic banking and finance customer satisfaction that aligns with Islamic values in the tradition of the Shari`a (or Islamic law). Through this key manifestation of Shari`a in the banks, social justice aims of achieving SDGs become possible. This paper utilizes a case study of a large-scale survey (N=127) comparing customer satisfaction between a conventional and an Islamic bank in Amman, Jordan. Based on a series of linear regressions, the statistically-significant findings suggest that when overall customer satisfaction is high, customers are more likely to become empowered citizens demanding inclusive, quality services and corruption-free management, as well as attribute their experiences to the Islamic nature of the financial endeavors. Social justice interests and expectations increase (and SDGs are more likely met) when a customer has high levels of satisfaction. The paper concludes with policy recommendations for Islamic financial institutions that enhance customer service experiences for better achieving the social justice aims of the Islamic economy and SDGs, including transparency in transactions, exemplary customer service and follow up, and attending to Islamic values in the aesthetics of bank.

Keywords: customer satisfaction, Islamic economy, social justice, sustainable development goals

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Authors: Mohd Iz'aan Paiz Bin Zamri, Anis Salwa Mohd Khairuddin, Norrima Mokhtar, Rubiyah Yusof

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Effective statistical feature extraction and classification are important in image-based automatic inspection and analysis. An automatic wood species recognition system is designed to perform wood inspection at custom checkpoints to avoid mislabeling of timber which will results to loss of income to the timber industry. The system focuses on analyzing the statistical pores properties of the wood images. This paper proposed a fuzzy-based feature extractor which mimics the experts’ knowledge on wood texture to extract the properties of pores distribution from the wood surface texture. The proposed feature extractor consists of two steps namely pores extraction and fuzzy pores management. The total number of statistical features extracted from each wood image is 38 features. Then, a backpropagation neural network is used to classify the wood species based on the statistical features. A comprehensive set of experiments on a database composed of 5200 macroscopic images from 52 tropical wood species was used to evaluate the performance of the proposed feature extractor. The advantage of the proposed feature extraction technique is that it mimics the experts’ interpretation on wood texture which allows human involvement when analyzing the wood texture. Experimental results show the efficiency of the proposed method.

Keywords: classification, feature extraction, fuzzy, inspection system, image analysis, macroscopic images

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Authors: Adriana Muñoz-Talavera, Ana Rosa Rincón-Sánchez, Abraham Escobedo-Moratilla, María Cristina Islas-Carbajal, Miguel Ángel Gómez-Lim

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The highest rates of diabetes incidence and prevalence worldwide will increase the number of diabetic patients requiring insulin or insulin analogues. Then, current production systems would not be sufficient to meet the future market demands. Therefore, developing efficient expression systems for insulin and insulin analogues are needed. In addition, insulin analogues with better pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics properties and without mitogenic potential will be required. SCI-57 (single chain insulin-57) is an insulin analogue having 10 times greater affinity to the insulin receptor, higher resistance to thermal degradation than insulin, native mitogenicity and biological effect. Plants as expression platforms have been used to produce recombinant proteins because of their advantages such as cost-effectiveness, posttranslational modifications, absence of human pathogens and high quality. Immunoglobulin production with a yield of 50% has been achieved by transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana (Nb). The aim of this study is to produce SCI-57 by transient expression in Nb. Methodology: DNA sequence encoding SCI-57 was cloned in pICH31070. This construction was introduced into Agrobacterium tumefaciens by electroporation. The resulting strain was used to infiltrate leaves of Nb. In order to isolate SCI-57, leaves from transformed plants were incubated 3 hours with the extraction buffer therefore filtrated to remove solid material. The resultant protein solution was subjected to anion exchange chromatography on an FPLC system and ultrafiltration to purify SCI-57. Detection of SCI-57 was made by electrophoresis pattern (SDS-PAGE). Protein band was digested with trypsin and the peptides were analyzed by Liquid chromatography tandem-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). A purified protein sample (20µM) was analyzed by ESI-Q-TOF-MS to obtain the ionization pattern and the exact molecular weight determination. Chromatography pattern and impurities detection were performed using RP-HPLC using recombinant insulin as standard. The identity of the SCI-57 was confirmed by anti-insulin ELISA. The total soluble protein concentration was quantified by Bradford assay. Results: The expression cassette was verified by restriction mapping (5393 bp fragment). The SDS-PAGE of crude leaf extract (CLE) of transformed plants, revealed a protein of about 6.4 kDa, non-present in CLE of untransformed plants. The LC-MS/MS results displayed one peptide with a high score that matches SCI-57 amino acid sequence in the sample, confirming the identity of SCI-57. From the purified SCI-57 sample (PSCI-57) the most intense charge state was 1069 m/z (+6) on the displayed ionization pattern corresponding to the molecular weight of SCI-57 (6412.6554 Da). The RP-HPLC of the PSCI-57 shows the presence of a peak with similar retention time (rt) and UV spectroscopic profile to the insulin standard (SCI-57 rt=12.96 and insulin rt=12.70 min). The collected SCI-57 peak had ELISA signal. The total protein amount in CLE from transformed plants was higher compared to untransformed plants. Conclusions: Our results suggest the feasibility to produce insulin analogue SCI-57 by transient expression in Nicotiana benthamiana. Further work is being undertaken to evaluate the biological activity by glucose uptake by insulin-sensitive and insulin-resistant murine and human cultured adipocytes.

Keywords: insulin analogue, mass spectrometry, Nicotiana benthamiana, transient expression

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Authors: Haneen Alrawashdeh, Naciye Kunt

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Intercultural communicative competence or (ICC), is an extension of communicative competence that takes into account the intercultural aspect of learning a foreign language. Accordingly, this study aimed at investigating the intercultural interaction impact on English as a foreign language learners' academic achievement of language as a scholastic subject and their motivation towards learning it. To achieve the aim of the study, a qualitative research approach was implemented by means of semi-structured interviews. Interview sessions were conducted with eight teachers of English as well as ten English language learners who work in the tourism industry in a variety of career paths, such as selling antiques and traditional costumes. An analysis of learners' grades of English subjects from 2014 to 2019 academic years was performed by using the Open Education Management Information System Database in Jordan to support the findings of the study. The results illustrated that due to the fact that they work in the tourism sector, students gain skills and knowledge that assist them in better academic achievement in the subject of English by practicing intercultural communication with different nationalities on a daily basis; intercultural communication enhances students speaking skills, lexicon, and fluency; however, despite that their grades showed increasing, from teachers perspectives, intercultural communicative competence reduces their linguistic accuracy and ability to perform English academic writing in academic contexts such as exams.

Keywords: intercultural communicative competence, Jordan, language learning motivation, language academic achievement

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Authors: Busra Nur Ozguler Aktel

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This research aims to understand the factors that affect the ways in which tribes perceive and respond to violent conflicts in fragile states, given that tribes are essential stakeholders in many conflict-ridden fragile states, whether Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Somalia, Nigeria, or Yemen. It explores the primary questions of why some tribes align with extremist groups while others align with states during civil wars and why some tribes switch alignments. It argues that tribes form and switch alignments based on their perception of threats to their traditional tribal structure (internal dynamics) and clientelist relationships (external dynamics). Put differently; threat perceptions lead them to choose either the state or extremist groups that will more likely secure their traditional structure and patronage networks. This study focuses on Iraqi tribes as a case study. It builds a theory of tribal alignment formation based on ethnographic fieldwork in the Middle East, with a particular focus on Iraqi Sunni tribes living in the Kurdish region of Iraq and Jordan. As a result of the interviews with tribal leaders and members, local journalists, researchers, and politicians, it concludes that complex (re)alignments of tribes can determine the course and outcome of the conflicts, either mitigating or escalating violence. This study contributes to the larger body of conflict management and peacebuilding literature by introducing tribes as non-state actors and exploring their interactions with other actors in civil wars.

Keywords: civil wars, tribes, alignment formation, side-switching, Iraq

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