Search results for: In the present research

Authors: Mahera Abdulrahman, Satish Chandrasekhar Nair

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Growing demand for human health research in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has prompted the need to develop a robust research ethics oversight, particularly given the large unskilled-worker immigrant population and the elderly citizens utilizing health services. Examination of the structure, function, practices and outcomes of the human research ethics committees (HREC) was conducted using two survey instruments, reliable and validated. Results indicate that in the absence of a national ethics regulatory body, the individual emirate’s governed 21 HRECs covering health facilities and academic institutions in the UAE. Among the HRECs, 86% followed International Council for Harmonization-Good Clinical Practice guidelines, 57% have been in operation for more than five years, 81% reviewed proposals within eight weeks, 48% reviewed for clinical and scientific merit apart from ethics, and 43% handled more than 50 research proposals per year. However, researcher recognition, funding transparency, adverse event reporting systems were widespread in less than one-third of all HRECs. Surprisingly, intellectual property right was not included as a research output. Research was incorporated into the vision and mission statements of many (62%) organizations and, mechanisms such as research publications, collaborations, and recognitions were employed as key performance indicators to measure research output. In spite, resources to generate research output such as dedicated budget (19%), support staff (19%) and continuous training and mentoring program for medical residents and HREC members were somehow lacking. HREC structure and operations in the UAE are similar to other regions of the world, resources allocation for efficient, quality monitoring, continuous training, and the creation of a clinical research network are needed to strengthen the clinical research enterprise to scale up for the future. It is anticipated that the results of this study will benefit investigators, regulators, pharmaceutical sponsors and the policy makers in the region.

Keywords: institutional review board, ethics committee, human research ethics, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

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Authors: Peter Kress, Alexander Pflaum, Ulrich Loewen

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The number of Internet-of-Things (IoT) platforms is steadily increasing across various industries, especially for smart factories, smart homes and smart mobility. Also in the manufacturing industry, the number of Industrial-IoT platforms is growing. Both IT players, start-ups and increasingly also established industry players and small-and-medium-enterprises introduce offerings for the connection of industrial equipment on platforms, enabled by advanced information and communication technology. Beside the offered functionalities, the established ecosystem of partners around a platform is one of the key differentiators to generate a competitive advantage. The key question is how platform operators design the business model around their platform to attract a high number of customers and partners to co-create value for the entire ecosystem. The present research tries to answer this question by determining the key characteristics of business models of successful platforms in the manufacturing industry. To achieve that, the authors selected an explorative qualitative research approach and created an inductive comparative case study. The authors generated valuable descriptive insights of the business model elements (e.g., value proposition, pricing model or partnering model) of various established platforms. Furthermore, patterns across the various cases were identified to derive propositions for the successful design of business models of platforms in the manufacturing industry.

Keywords: industrial-internet-of-things, business models, platforms, ecosystems, case study

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Authors: David Glew, Felix Thomas, Matthew Brooke-Peat

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Improving the thermal performance of homes is seen as an essential step in achieving climate change, fuel security, fuel poverty targets. One of the most effective thermal retrofits is to insulate solid walls. However, it has been observed that applying insulation to the internal face of solid walls reduces the surface temperature of the inner wall leaf, which may introduce condensation risk and may interrupt seasonal moisture accumulation and dissipation. This research quantifies the extent to which the risk of condensation and moisture accumulation in the wall increases (which can increase the risk of timber rot) following the installation of six different types of internal wall insulation. In so doing, it compares how risk is affected by both the thermal resistance, thickness, and breathability of the insulation. Thermal bridging, surface temperatures, condensation risk, and moisture accumulation are evaluated using hygrothermal simulation software before and after the thermal upgrades. The research finds that installing internal wall insulation will always introduce some risk of condensation and moisture. However, it identifies that risks were present prior to insulation and that breathable materials and insulation with lower resistance have lower risks than alternative insulation options. The implications of this may be that building standards that encourage the enhanced thermal performance of solid walls may be introducing moisture risks into homes.

Keywords: condensation risk, hygrothermal simulation, internal wall insulation, thermal bridging

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Authors: Monica Hoeldtke Pietruchinski, Andrey Ricardo Pimentel

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The teaching of computer programming for beginners has been presented to the community as a not simple or trivial task. Several methodologies and research tools have been developed; however, the problem still remains. This paper aims to present multi-agent system architecture to be incorporated to the educational collaborative game software for teaching programming that monitors, evaluates and encourages collaboration by the participants. A literature review has been made on the concepts of Collaborative Learning, Multi-agents systems, collaborative games and techniques to teach programming using these concepts simultaneously.

Keywords: architecture of multi-agent systems, collaborative evaluation, collaboration assessment, gamifying educational software

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Authors: Ken Hampshire, Thomas Mazzuchi, Shahram Sarkani

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As a subset of metaheuristics, nature-inspired optimization algorithms such as particle swarm optimization (PSO) have shown promise both in solving intractable problems and in their extensibility to novel problem formulations due to their general approach requiring few assumptions. Unfortunately, single instantiations of algorithms require detailed tuning of parameters and cannot be proven to be best suited to a particular illustrative problem on account of the “no free lunch” (NFL) theorem. Using these algorithms in real-world problems requires exquisite knowledge of the many techniques and is not conducive to reconciling the various approaches to given classes of problems. This research aims to present a unified view of PSO-based approaches from the perspective of relevant systems engineering problems, with the express purpose of then eliciting the best solution for any problem formulation in an ensemble learning bucket of models approach. The central hypothesis of the research is that extending the PSO algorithms found in the literature to real-world optimization problems requires a general ensemble-based method for all problem formulations but a specific implementation and solution for any instance. The main results are a problem-based literature survey and a general method to find more globally optimal solutions for any systems engineering optimization problem.

Keywords: particle swarm optimization, nature-inspired optimization, metaheuristics, systems engineering, ensemble learning

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Authors: Noraizah Abu Bakar, Norhayati Alais, Nurdiana Azizan, Fatimah Alwi, Muhammad Zaky Razaly

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This is a concise research module with the Islamic values concept proposed to a group of researches, potential researchers, PhD and Master Scholars to prepare themselves for their studies. The intention of designing this module is to help and guide Malaysian citizens to undergone their postgraduate’s studies. This is aligned with the 10th Malaysian plan- MyBrain 15. MyBrain 15 is a financial aid to Malaysian citizens to pursue PhD and Master programs. The program becomes one of Ministry of Education Strategic Plan to ensure by year 2013, there will be 60,000 PhD scholars in Malaysia. This module is suitable for the social science researchers; however it can be useful tool for science technology researchers such as Engineering and Information Technology disciplines too. The module consists of eight (8) series that provides a proper flow of information in doing research with the Islamic Value Application provided in each of the series. This module is designed to produce future researchers with a comprehensive knowledge of humankind and the hereafter. The uniqueness about this research module is designed based on Islamic values concept. Researchers were able to understand the proper research process and simultaneously be able to open their minds to understand Islam more closely. Application of Islamic values in each series could trigger a broader idea for researchers to examine in greater depth of knowledge related to humanities.

Keywords: Eight Series Research Module, Islamic Values concept, Teaching Methodology, Flow of Information, Epistemology of research

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Authors: Aabha Chaubey, Bani Bhattacharya

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Evaluation of the quality of teaching in engineering education in India needs to be conducted on a continuous basis to achieve the best teaching quality in technical education. Quality teaching is an influential factor in technical education which impacts largely on learning outcomes of the students. Present study is not exclusively theory-driven, but it draws on various specific concepts and constructs in the domain of technical education. These include teaching and learning in higher education, teacher effectiveness, and teacher evaluation and performance management in higher education. Student Evaluation of Education Quality (SEEQ) was proposed as one of the evaluation instruments of the quality teaching in engineering education. SEEQ is one of the popular and standard instrument widely utilized all over the world and bears the validity and reliability in educational world. The present study was designed to evaluate the teaching quality through SEEQ in the context of technical education in India, including its validity and reliability based on the collected data. The multiple dimensionality of SEEQ that is present in every teaching and learning process made it quite suitable to collect the feedback of students regarding the quality of instructions and instructor. The SEEQ comprises of 9 original constructs i.e.; learning value, teacher enthusiasm, organization, group interaction, and individual rapport, breadth of coverage, assessment, assignments and overall rating of particular course and instructor with total of 33 items. In the present study, a total of 350 samples comprising first year undergraduate students from Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur (IIT, Kharagpur, India) were included for the evaluation of the importance of SEEQ. They belonged to four different courses of different streams of engineering studies. The above studies depicted the validity and reliability of SEEQ was based upon the collected data. This further needs Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Analysis of Moment structure (AMOS) for various scaled instrument like SEEQ Cronbach’s alpha which are associated with SPSS for the examination of the internal consistency. The evaluation of the effectiveness of SEEQ in CFA is implemented on the basis of fit indices such as CMIN/df, CFI, GFI, AGFI and RMSEA readings. The major findings of this study showed the fitness indices such as ChiSq = 993.664,df = 390,ChiSq/df = 2.548,GFI = 0.782,AGFI = 0.736,CFI = 0.848,RMSEA = 0.062,TLI = 0.945,RMR = 0.029,PCLOSE = 0.006. The final analysis of the fit indices presented positive construct validity and stability, on the other hand a higher reliability was also depicted which indicated towards internal consistency. Thus, the study suggests the effectivity of SEEQ as the indicator of the quality evaluation instrument in teaching-learning process in engineering education in India. Therefore, it is expected that with the continuation of this research in engineering education there remains a possibility towards the betterment of the quality of the technical education in India. It is also expected that this study will provide an empirical and theoretical logic towards locating a construct or factor related to teaching, which has the greatest impact on teaching and learning process in a particular course or stream in engineering education.

Keywords: confirmatory factor analysis, engineering education, SEEQ, teaching and learning process

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Authors: Pieter De Vries, Renate Klaassen, Maria Ioannides

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This paper is about an explorative research into the use of emerging technologies for teaching and learning in higher engineering education. The assumption is that these technologies and applications, which are not yet widely adopted, will help to improve education and as such actively work on the ability to better deal with the mismatch of skills bothering our industries. Technologies such as 3D printing, the Internet of Things, Virtual Reality, and others, are in a dynamic state of development which makes it difficult to grasp the value for education. Also, the instruments in current educational research seem not appropriate to assess the value of such technologies. This explorative research aims to foster an approach to better deal with this new complexity. The need to find out is urgent, because these technologies will be dominantly present in the near future in all aspects of life, including education. The methodology used in this research comprised an inventory of emerging technologies and tools that potentially give way to innovation and are used or about to be used in technical universities. The inventory was based on both a literature review and a review of reports and web resources like blogs and others and included a series of interviews with stakeholders in engineering education and at representative industries. In addition, a number of small experiments were executed with the aim to analyze the requirements for the use of in this case Virtual Reality and the Internet of Things to better understanding the opportunities and limitations in the day-today learning environment. The major findings indicate that it is rather difficult to decide about the value of these technologies for education due to the dynamic state of change and therefor unpredictability and the lack of a coherent policy at the institutions. Most decisions are being made by teachers on an individual basis, who in their micro-environment are not equipped to select, test and ultimately decide about the use of these technologies. Most experiences are being made in the industry knowing that the skills to handle these technologies are in high demand. The industry though is worried about the inclination and the capability of education to help bridge the skills gap related to the emergence of new technologies. Due to the complexity, the diversity, the speed of development and the decay, education is challenged to develop an approach that can make these technologies work in an integrated fashion. For education to fully profit from the opportunities, these technologies offer it is eminent to develop a pro-active strategy and a sustainable approach to frame the emerging technologies development.

Keywords: emerging technologies, internet of things, pro-active strategy, virtual reality

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Authors: John Battersby, Rhys Ball

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After the 15 March 2019 Mosque attacks in Christchurch, the New Zealand security sector has had to address its training and preparedness levels for dealing with contemporary terrorist threats as well as potential future manifestations of terrorism. From time to time, members of the academic community from Australia and New Zealand have been asked to assist agencies in this endeavour. In the course of 2018, New Zealand security sector professionals working in the counter-terrorism area were interviewed about how they regarded academic contributions to understanding terrorism and counter-terrorism. Responses were mixed, ranging from anti-intellectualism, a belief that the inability to access classified material rendered academic work practically useless - to some genuine interest and desire for broad based academic studies on issues practitioners did not have the time to look at. Twelve months later, researchers have revisited those spoken to prior to the Brenton Tarrant 15 March shooting to establish if there has been a change in the way academic research is perceived, viewed and valued, and what key factors have contributed to this shift in thinking. This paper takes this data, combined with a consideration of the literature on higher education within professional police and intelligence forces, and on the general perception of academics by practitioners, to present a series of findings that will contribute to a more proactive and effective set of engagements, between two distinct but important security sectors, that reflect more closely with international practice.

Keywords: academic, counter terrorism, intelligence, practitioner, research, security

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Authors: Mahsaossadat Pourrahmati Khelejan

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The purpose of this research was to identify and prioritize the sustainable development of sports venues using new and degradable energies with using the AHP Hierarchical Analysis approach. The research method is a descriptive strategy with regard to the direction of implementation and is a hierarchical research with a practical purpose. In this study, 30 experts (physical education faculty members, geography professors, accredited sports venues managers, and renewable energy engineers) were selected using purposeful sampling method as the research population. The research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire on the factors affecting the sustainable development of sports venues by using new technologies and degradable energy. Finally, the research questionnaire was designed with four components and 21 items. All steps were performed by using Expert Choice software. The importance of indicators that influence the sustainable development of sports venues is highlighted by the use of clean and degradable energy, for example: 1. Economic factor, weighing 0.420 2. Environmental index, weighing 0. 320 3. Physical index, weighing 0.148 4. Social index, weighing 0.122.

Keywords: Sports Venues, Sustainable Development, Degradable Energies, Prioritize

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Authors: Hui-Tzu Lin, Wen-Ying Lin, Jenn-Wu Wang

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The purpose of present research is to investigate whether the global coherence of moral thinking is increased by age. The author utilized two kinds of moral situations to evaluate the subjects’ responses to two contradictive arguments concerning behavior of stealing, cheating in an exam, each with two stories. The two stories will be focused on the main lead and provided two contradictory moral evaluations. Participants were 596 primary schoolchildren in Taiwan. The three age groups were 201 in grade two, 183 in grade three, and 212 in grade six. The result showed that sixth graders’ moral judgment is more coherent than third graders’. The coherence of moral thinking is increased by age which support the implication by Piaget and Kohlberg’s theoretical hypothesis. This indicates that people higher ability to detect contradiction may be involved in the development of the coherence of moral thinking.

Keywords: moral thinking, coherence, local coherence, contradiction, global coherence, cognitive development

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Authors: Aya Rezgui, Lasaad Ajam, Belgacem Jalleli

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The Tunis soft soils present a difficult challenge as construction sites and for Geotechnical works. Currently, different techniques are used to improve such soil properties taking into account the environmental considerations. One of the recent methods is involving plastic wastes as a reinforcing materials. The present study pertains to the development of a numerical model for predicting the behavior of Tunis Soft soil (TSS) improved with recycled Monobloc chair wastes.3D numerical models for unreinforced TSS and reinforced TSS aims to evaluate settlement reduction and the values of consolidation times in oedometer conditions.

Keywords: Tunis soft soil, settlement, plastic wastes, finte -difference, FLAC3D modeling

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Authors: R. Vishnu, K. S. Reddy, Amrendra Kumar

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The present guideline for the construction of flexible pavement in India, IRC 37: 2012 recommends to use viscous grade VG 40 bitumen in both wearing and binder bituminous layers. However, most of the bitumen production plants in India are unable to produce the air-blown VG40 grade bitumen. This requires plant’s air-blowing technique modification, and often the manufactures finds it as uneconomical. In this context, stiffer grade bitumen can be produced if bitumen is modified. Gilsonite, which is naturally occurring asphalt have been found to be used for increasing the stiffness of binders. The present study evaluates the physical, rheological characteristics of Gilsonite modified binders and the performance characteristics of these binders when used in the mix.

Keywords: bitumen, gilsonite, stiffness, laboratory evaluation

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Authors: Mohammad Saber Eslamlou, Manouchehr Tabibian, Mahta Mirmoghtadaei

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The history of urban development and the increasing complexities of urban life have long been intertwined with different natural and man-made disasters. Sometimes, these unpleasant events have destroyed the cities forever. The growth of the urban population and the increase of social and economic resources in the cities increased the importance of developing a holistic approach to dealing with unknown urban disasters. As a result, the interest in resilience has increased in most of the scientific fields, and the urban planning literature has been enriched with the studies of the social, economic, infrastructural, and physical abilities of the cities. In this regard, different conceptual frameworks and patterns have been developed focusing on dimensions of resilience and different kinds of disasters. As the most frequent and likely natural disaster in Iran is flooding, the present study aims to develop a cause-effect model of urban resilience against flood in Karaj City. In this theoretical study, desk research and documentary studies were used to find the elements and dimensions of urban resilience. In this regard, 6 dimensions and 32 elements were found for urban resilience and a questionnaire was made by considering the requirements of TOPSIS techniques (pairwise comparison). The sample of the research consisted of 10 participants who were faculty members, academicians, board members of research centers, managers of the Ministry of Road and Urban Development, board members of New Towns Development Company, experts, and practitioners of consulting companies who had scientific and research backgrounds. The gathered data in this survey were analyzed using TOPSIS and Shannon Entropy techniques. The results show that Infrastructure/Physical, Social, Organizational/ Institutional, Structural/Physical, Economic, and Environmental dimensions are the most effective factors in urban resilience against floods in Karaj, respectively. Finally, a comprehensive model and a systematic framework of factors that affect the urban resilience of Karaj against floods was developed. This cause – effect model shows how different factors are related and influence each other, based on their connected structure and preferences.

Keywords: urban resilience, TOPSIS, Shannon entropy, cause-effect model of resilience, flood

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Authors: Katarzyna Wyka, Dana Sylvan, JoAnn Difede

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Background and significance: The following disaster, population-based screening programs are routinely established to assess physical and psychological consequences of exposure. These data sets are highly skewed as only a small percentage of trauma-exposed individuals develop health issues. Commonly used statistical methodology in post-disaster mental health generally involves population-averaged models. Such models aim to capture the overall response to the disaster and its aftermath; however, they may not be sensitive enough to accommodate population heterogeneity in symptomatology, such as post-traumatic stress or depressive symptoms. Methods: We use an archival longitudinal data set from Weill-Cornell 9/11 Mental Health Screening Program established following the World Trade Center (WTC) terrorist attacks in New York in 2001. Participants are rescue and recovery workers who participated in the site cleanup and restoration (n=2960). The main outcome is the post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSD) severity score assessed via clinician interviews (CAPS). For a detailed understanding of response to the disaster and its aftermath, we are adapting quantile regression methodology with particular focus on predictors of extreme distress and resilience to trauma. Results: The response variable was defined as the quantile of the CAPS score for each individual under two different scenarios specifying the unconditional quantiles based on: 1) clinically meaningful CAPS cutoff values and 2) CAPS distribution in the population. We present graphical summaries of the differential effects. For instance, we found that the effect of the WTC exposures, namely seeing bodies and feeling that life was in danger during rescue/recovery work was associated with very high PTSD symptoms. A similar effect was apparent in individuals with prior psychiatric history. Differential effects were also present for age and education level of the individuals. Conclusion: We evaluate the utility of quantile regression in disaster research in contrast to the commonly used population-averaged models. We focused on assessing the distribution of risk factors for post-traumatic stress symptoms across quantiles. This innovative approach provides a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between dependent and independent variables and could be used for developing tailored training programs and response plans for different vulnerability groups.

Keywords: disaster workers, post traumatic stress, PTSD, quantile regression

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Authors: Beazidou Eleftheria

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Roma children face discrimination in schools where they are the minority. On the other hand, teachers do not identify the specific needs of Roma students for educational and social inclusion and generally use a very restricted repertoire of insufficient strategies for helping them. Modern classrooms can and should look different. Therefore, engaging in transformational learning with young children is a deliberate choice. Transformation implies a different way of thinking and acting. This requires new knowledge that incorporates multiple perspectives and actions in order to generate experiences for further learning. In this way, we build knowledge based on empirical examples, and we share what works efficiently. The present research aims at assisting the participating teachers to improve their teaching inclusive practice, thus ultimately benefiting their students. To increase the impact of transformative efforts with a ‘new’ teaching approach, we implemented a classroom-based action research program for over six months in five kindergarten classrooms with Roma and non-Roma students. More specifically, we explore a) information about participants’ experience of the program and b) if the program is successful in helping participants to change their teaching practice. Action research is, by definition, a form of inquiry that is intended to have both action and research outcomes. The action research process that we followed included five phases: 1. Defining the problem: As teachers said, the Roma students are often the most excluded group in schools (Low social interaction and participation in classroom activities) 2. Developing a plan to address the problem: We decided to address the problem by improving/transforming the inclusive practices that teachers implemented in their classrooms. 3. Acting: implementing the plan: We incorporated new activities for all students with the goals: a) All students being passionate about their learning, b) Teachers must investigate issues in the educational context that are personal and meaningful to children's growth, c) Establishment of a new module for values and skills for all students, d) Raising awareness in culture of Roma, e) Teaching students to reflect. 4. Observing: We explore the potential for transformation in the action research program that involves observations of students’ participation in classroom activities and peer interaction. – thus, generated evidence from data. 5. Reflecting and acting: After analyzing and evaluating the outcomes from data and considering the obstacles during the program’s implementation, we established new goals for the next steps of the program. These are centered in: a) the literacy skills of Roma students and b) the transformation of teacher’s perceptions and believes, which have a powerful impact on their willingness to adopt new teaching strategies. The final evaluation of the program showed a significant achievement of the transformative goals, which were related to the active participation of the Roma students in classroom activities and peer interaction, while the activities which were related to literacy skills did not have the expected results. In conclusion, children were equipped with relevant knowledge and skills to raise their potential and contribute to wider societal development as well as teachers improved their teaching inclusive practice.

Keywords: action research, inclusive practices, kindergarten, transformation

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Authors: Baohua Yu

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In line with wider tends in the expansion of international student mobility, the number of international higher degree research students has grown at a significant rate in recent years. In particular, Australia has become a hub for attracting international higher degree research students from around the world. However, research has identified that international higher degree research students often encounter a wide range of academic and socio-cultural challenges in adapting to their new environment. Moreover, this can have a significant bearing on their levels of satisfaction with their studies. This paper outlines the findings of a mixed method study exploring the experiences and perceptions of international higher degree research students in Australia. Findings revealed that IRHD students’ overall and academic satisfaction in Australia were highly related to each other, and they were strongly influenced by their learning and research, moderately influenced by co-national support and intercultural contact ability. Socio-cultural satisfaction seemed to belong to a different domain from academic satisfaction because it was explained by a different set of variables such as living and adaptation and intercultural contact ability. In addition, the most important issues in terms of satisfaction were not directly related to academic studies. Instead, factors such as integration into the community, interacting with other students, relationships with supervisors, and the provision of adequate desk space were often given the greatest weight. Implications for how university policy can better support international doctoral students are discussed.

Keywords: international higher degree research students, academic adaptation, socio-cultural adaptation, student satisfaction

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Authors: Fatemeh Norouzi

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Today, financial performance has become one of the important issues in accounting and auditing that companies and their managers have paid attention to this issue and for this reason to the variables that are influential in this field. One of the things that can affect financial performance is corporate governance, which is examined in this research, although some things such as issues related to auditing can also moderate this relationship; Therefore, this research has been conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between corporate governance and financial performance with regard to the moderating role of feedback and internal control weakness. The research is practical in terms of purpose, and in terms of method, it has been done in a post-event descriptive manner, in which the data has been analyzed using stock market data. Data collection has been done by using stock exchange data which has been extracted from the website of the Iraqi Stock Exchange, the statistical population of this research is all the companies admitted to the Iraqi Stock Exchange. . The statistical sample in this research is considered from 2014 to 2021, which includes 34 companies. Four different models have been considered for the research hypotheses, which are eight hypotheses, in this research, the analysis has been done using EXCEL and STATA15 software. In this article, collinearity test, integration test ,determination of fixed effects and correlation matrix results, have been used. The research results showed that the first four hypotheses were rejected and the second four hypotheses were confirmed.

Keywords: size of the board of directors, duality of the CEO, financial performance, internal control weakness

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Authors: Salomé Elizabeth Scholtz

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Reviewers are the gatekeepers of knowledge dissemination and promote the scientific validity of the research. However, the literature indicates that authors often receive questionable feedback on qualitative manuscripts. Thus, this qualitative descriptive study sought to explore the qualitative knowledge and experiences of reviewers of psychology journals. A purposive and snowball sample (n=27) of psychology journal reviewers completed an online questionnaire, and data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Reviewers felt their postgraduate education, reading, and the process of reviewing qualitative articles equipped them to review qualitative manuscripts. Less than half of the reviewer’s published articles were qualitative and male reviewers published more than females. Despite not expecting authors to have the same level of research skills, reviewers still experienced authors as unskilled and biased, creating difficulty in accepting and reviewing qualitative articles. The applicability of the qualitative method and recommendations in preparing qualitative manuscripts for reviewing are reported.

Keywords: journal reviewers, psychology, qualitative research, research method, research skills

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Authors: Jawharah Alasmari

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In verb inflection, tense marks past/present/future action, and aspect marks progressive/continues perfect/completed actions. This usage and meaning of tense and aspect differ in Arabic and English. In this research, we applied data mining methods to test the predictive function of candidate features by using our dataset of Arabic verbs in-context, and their 7 translations. Weka machine learning classifiers is used in this experiment in order to examine the key features that can be used to provide guidance to enable a translator’s appropriate English translation of the Arabic verb tense and aspect.

Keywords: Arabic verb, English translations, mining methods, Weka software

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Authors: Talar Agopian

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Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) is a common practice in many Lebanese schools. However, ESL teaching is done in traditional ways. Methods such as constructivism are seldom used, especially in villages. Here lies the significance of this research which joins constructivism and Piaget’s theory of cognitive development in ESL classes in Lebanese villages. The purpose of the present study is to explore the effects of applying constructivist student-centered strategies in teaching grammar, reading comprehension, and poetry on students in elementary ESL classes in two villages in Lebanon, Zefta in South Lebanon and Boqaata in Mount Lebanon. 20 English teachers participated in a training titled “Teaching English with Fun”, which focused on strategies that create a student-centered class where active learning takes place and there is increased learner engagement and autonomy. The training covered three main areas in teaching English: grammar, reading comprehension, and poetry. After participating in the training, the teachers applied the new strategies and methods in their ESL classes. The methodology comprised two phases: in phase one, practice-based research was conducted as the teachers attended the training and applied the constructivist strategies in their respective ESL classes. Phase two included the reflections of the teachers on the effects of the application of constructivist strategies. The results revealed the educational benefits of constructivist student-centered strategies; the students of teachers who applied these strategies showed improved engagement, positive attitudes towards poetry, increased motivation, and a better sense of autonomy. Future research is required in applying constructivist methods in the areas of writing, spelling, and vocabulary in ESL classrooms of Lebanese villages.

Keywords: active learning, constructivism, learner engagement, student-centered strategies

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Authors: Prittesh Patel, Rushabh Shah, Krishnamurthy Ramar, Vakulbhushan Bhaskar

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The present research work aims at finding genetic differences in the genomes of sugarcane red rot isolates Colletotrichum falcatum Went using Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and interspersed simple sequence repeat (ISSR) molecular markers. Ten isolates of C. falcatum isolated from different red rot infected sugarcane cultivars stalk were used in present study. The amplified bands were scored across the lanes obtained in 15 RAPD primes and 21 ISSR primes successfully. The data were analysed using NTSYSpc 2.2 software. The results showed 80.6% and 68.07% polymorphism in RPAD and ISSR analysis respectively. Based on the RAPD analysis, ten genotypes were grouped into two major clusters at a cut-off value of 0.75. Geographically distant C. falcatum isolate cfGAN from south Gujarat had a level of similarity with Coimbatore isolate cf8436 presented on separate clade of bootstrapped dendrograms. First and second cluster consisted of five and three isolates respectively, indicating the close relation among them. The 21 ISSR primers produced 119 distinct and scorable loci in that 38 were monomorphic. The number of scorable loci for each primer varied from 2 (ISSR822) to 8 (ISSR807, ISSR823 and ISSR15) with an average of 5.66 loci per primer. Primer ISSR835 amplified the highest number of bands (57), while only 16 bands were obtained by primers ISSR822. Four primers namely ISSR830, ISSR845, ISSR4 and ISSR15 showed the highest value of percentage of polymorphism (100%). The results indicated that both of the marker systems RAPD and ISSR, individually can be effectively used in determination of genetic relationship among C falcatum accessions collected from different parts of south Gujarat.

Keywords: Colletotrichum falcatum, ISSR, RAPD, Red Rot

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Authors: Kunyanuth Kularbphettong, Kunnika Tenprakhon, Pattarapan Roonrakwit

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In this paper, we present a recommendation library application on Android system. The objective of this system is to support and advice user to use library resources based on mobile application. We describe the design approaches and functional components of this system. The system was developed based on under association rules, Apriori algorithm. In this project, it was divided the result by the research purposes into 2 parts: developing the Mobile application for online library service and testing and evaluating the system. Questionnaires were used to measure user satisfaction with system usability by specialists and users. The results were satisfactory both specialists and users.

Keywords: online library, Apriori algorithm, Android application, black box

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Authors: Farhad Farahvash, Parya Mobaseri

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Weeds control based on their critical period leads to less production costs and risks of wide chemical application of weeds control methods. The present study considered effect of weeds control time (weeds interference after 20, 40 and 60 days, weeds full control, weeds interference and weeds control after 20, 40 and 60 days) on growth and yield of forage maize 454. The experiment based on full-randomized blocks design with three replications was conducted at research farm of Islamic Azad University of Tabriz located at 15th km of East Tabriz in 2013. According to the results, weeds interference after 40 and 60 days as well as weeds control after 20 days prevented from decrease of maize biomass resulted from weeds presence while weeds interference after 20 days, weeds interference and weeds control after 40 and 60 days led respectively to 41.2%, 35%, 25% and 32.5% decrease of forage maize biomass. The weeds-influenced decrease was manifested at different parts of the plant depending on presence period of weeds. Decrease of fresh weight of ear and fresh weight of leaf and stem was observed due to weeds interference after 20 days and weeds interference. If weeds are controlled after 60 days, decrease of ear weight and fresh weight of stem will lead to biomass decrease. Also, if weeds are controlled after 40 days, decrease of fresh weight of maize stems will result in biomass decrease. Ear traits were affected by weeds control treatment. Being affected by treatments of weeds interference after 20 days, weeds non-interference, weeds control after 40 and 60 days, ear length was shortened 29.9 %, 41.4 %, 27.6 % and 37.2 %, respectively. The stem diameter demonstrated a significant decrease although it was only affected by treatments of weeds interference and weeds control after 60 days. Considering results of the present study, generally, it is suggested to control weeds during initial 20-60 days of maize growth in order to prevent undesirable effect of weeds on growth, production and production biomass of maize and decrease of production costs.

Keywords: maize, competition, weed, biomass

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Authors: Clement Yeboah, Eva Laryea

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A pretest-posttest within subjects experimental design was employed to examine the effects of a computerized basic statistics learning game on achievement and statistics-related anxiety of students enrolled in introductory graduate statistics course. Participants (N = 34) were graduate students in a variety of programs at state-funded research university in the Southeast United States. We analyzed pre-test posttest differences using paired samples t-tests for achievement and for statistics anxiety. The results of the t-test for knowledge in statistics were found to be statistically significant, indicating significant mean gains for statistical knowledge as a function of the game-based intervention. Likewise, the results of the t-test for statistics-related anxiety were also statistically significant, indicating a decrease in anxiety from pretest to posttest. The implications of the present study are significant for both teachers and students. For teachers, using computer games developed by the researchers can help to create a more dynamic and engaging classroom environment, as well as improve student learning outcomes. For students, playing these educational games can help to develop important skills such as problem solving, critical thinking, and collaboration. Students can develop an interest in the subject matter and spend quality time to learn the course as they play the game without knowing that they are even learning the presupposed hard course. The future directions of the present study are promising as technology continues to advance and become more widely available. Some potential future developments include the integration of virtual and augmented reality into educational games, the use of machine learning and artificial intelligence to create personalized learning experiences, and the development of new and innovative game-based assessment tools. It is also important to consider the ethical implications of computer game-based pedagogy, such as the potential for games to perpetuate harmful stereotypes and biases. As the field continues to evolve, it will be crucial to address these issues and work towards creating inclusive and equitable learning experiences for all students. This study has the potential to revolutionize the way basic statistics graduate students learn and offers exciting opportunities for future development and research. It is an important area of inquiry for educators, researchers, and policymakers and will continue to be a dynamic and rapidly evolving field for years to come.

Keywords: pretest-posttest within subjects, computer game-based learning, statistics achievement, statistics anxiety

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Authors: Mengdi Zhang, Xufeng Liu, Zhenji Gao, Ying Li, Zhu Rao, Yi Huang

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As an open system, the earth is constantly undergoing the transformation and release of matter and energy. Fault zones are relatively discontinuous and fragile geological structures, and the release of material and energy inside the Earth is strongest in relatively weak fault zones. Earthquake events frequently occur in fault zones and are closely related to tectonic activity in these zones. In earthquake precursor observation, monitoring the spatiotemporal changes in the release of related gases near fault zones (such as radon gas, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, helium), and analyzing earthquake precursor anomalies, can be effective means to forecast the occurrence of earthquake events. Radon gas, as an inert radioactive gas generated during the decay of uranium and thorium, is not only a indicator for monitoring tectonic and seismic activity, but also an important topic for ecological and environmental health, playing a crucial role in uranium exploration. At present, research on soil radon gas mainly focuses on the measurement of soil gas concentration and flux in fault zone profiles, while research on the correlation between spatiotemporal concentration changes in the same region and its geological background is relatively little. In this paper, Tangshan area in north China is chosen as research area. An analysis was conducted on the seismic geological background of Tangshan area firstly. Then based on quantitative analysis and comparison of measurement radon concentrations of 2023 and 2010, combined with the study of seismic activity and environmental changes during the time period, the spatiotemporal distribution characteristics and influencing factors were explored, in order to analyze the gas emission characteristics of the Tangshan fault zone and its relationship with fault activity, which aimed to be useful for the future work in earthquake monitor of Tangshan area.

Keywords: radon, Northern China, soil gas, earthquake

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Authors: Daniyal Neupane

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Establishment of community forestry in Nepal is a successful step in the conservation of forests. Community forestry programme through the local forest users group has shown its positive impacts in the society. This paper discusses an overview of the present scenario of the community forestry in Nepal. It describes the brief historical background, some important forest legislations, and organization of forest. The paper also describes the internal conflicts between forest users and district forest offices, and possible resolution. It also suggests some of the aspects of community forestry in which the research needs to be focused for the better management of the forests in Nepal.

Keywords: community forest, conservation of forest, local forest users group, better management, Nepal

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Authors: Bhavna Malik

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The study is build on a theoretical framework that links characteristics of job, key attitudes and intention to leave, why faculty may be disengaging from institutional service. The literature indicates that job characteristics, key attitudes and intention to leave are very important for effective organizational functioning. In general, the literature showed that some job characteristics might be the antecedents of job satisfaction and the aggregate variable job scope was positively associated with organizational commitment, and these key attitudes predicted intention to leave negatively. The present study attempted to propose a new integrative model of the relationships among job characteristics, key attitudes, and intention to leave. The main purpose of the present study is to examine the effects of job characteristics on intention to leave. While examining the role of job characteristics, the mediating roles of key attitudes were taken into account in order to better understand how job characteristics affect the exhibition of intention to leave. The secondary purpose is to investigate the effects of job characteristics on key attitudes, and the effects of key attitudes on intention to leave. Job characteristics of remuneration, resource for professional activities, career opportunities were positively associated with the work attitude of job satisfaction. The aggregate job scope was positively associated with the work attitude of organizational commitment although no single job characteristic was significantly associated with organizational commitment. Commitment, however, did not significantly affect time spent on institutional service. Two job characteristics—time spent on research and time spent on teaching—were negatively associated with this behavior. In general, the literature showed that some job characteristics might be the antecedents of job satisfaction and the aggregate variable job scope was positively associated with organizational commitment, and these key attiudes predicted intention to leave negatively. In turn, job satisfaction and organizational commitment were negatively associated with the intention to leave. In addition to these, organizational commitment was negatively associated with the intention to leave. However, no significant direct association was found between job characteristics and intention to leave.

Keywords: Job Characteristics Model, job satisfaction, organizational commitment, intention to leave

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Authors: Geetanjali Singh, R. J. Choudhary, Anjana Dogra

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Here we report the effects of anti-site disorder, present in the sample, on the magnetic properties of Sm₂NiMnO₆ (SNMO) thin films. To our best knowledge, there are no studies available on the thin films of SNMO. Thin films were grown using pulsed laser deposition technique on SrTiO₃ (STO) substrate under oxygen pressure of 800 mTorr. X-ray diffraction (XRD) profiles show that the film grown is epitaxial. Field cooled (FC) and zero field cooled (ZFC) magnetization curve increase as we decrease the temperature till ~135K. A broad dip was observed in both the curves below this temperature which is more dominating in ZFC curve. An additional sharp cusplike shape was observed at low temperature (~20 K) which is due to the re-entrant spin-glass like properties present in the sample. Super-exchange interaction between Ni²⁺-O-Mn⁴⁺ is attributed to the FM ordering in these samples. The spin-glass feature is due to anti-site disorder within the homogeneous sample which was stated to be due to the mixed valence states Ni³⁺ and Mn³⁺ present in the sample. Anti-site disorder was found to play very crucial role in different magnetic phases of the sample.

Keywords: double perovskite, pulsed laser deposition, spin-glass, magnetization

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Authors: Kever Bruno Paradelo Gomes, Rosana Carvalho Cristo Martins

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Payment for Environmental Services (PSA) has been a strategy used since the late 1990s by Latin American countries to finance environmental conservation. Payment for Environmental Services has been absorbing a growing amount of time in the discussions around environmentally sustainable development strategies in the world. In Brazil, this theme has permeated the discussions since the publication of the new Forest Code. The objective of this work was to verify the perception of the resident farmers in the region of Ponte Alta, Gama, Federal District, Brazil, on environmental legislation and Payments for Environmental Services. The work was carried out in 99 rural properties of the family farmers of the Rural Nucleus Ponte Alta, Administrative Region of Gama, in the city of Brasília, Federal District, Brazil. The present research is characterized methodologically as a quantitative, exploratory, and descriptive nature. The data treatment was performed through descriptive statistical analysis and hypothesis testing. The perceptions about environmental legislation in the rural area of Ponte Alta, Gama, DF respondents were positive. Although most of the family farmers interviewed have some knowledge about environmental legislation, it is perceived that in practice, the environmental adequacy of property is ineffective given the current situation of sustainable rural development; there is an abyss between what is envisaged by legislation and reality in the field. Thus, as in the reports of other researchers, it is verified that the majority of respondents are not aware of PSA (62.62%). Among those interviewed who were aware of the subject, two learned through the course, three through the university, two through TV and five through other people. The planting of native forest species on the rural property was the most informed practice by farmers if they received some Environmental Service Payment (PSA). Reflections on the environment allow us to infer that the effectiveness and fulfillment of the incentives and rewards in the scope of public policies to encourage the maintenance of environmental services, already existing in all spheres of government, are of great relevance to the process of environmental sustainability of rural properties. The relevance of the present research is an important tool to promote the discussion and formulation of public policies focused on sustainable rural development, especially on payments for environmental services; it is a space of great interest for the strengthening of the social group dedicated to production. Public policies that are efficient and accessible to the small rural producers become decisive elements for the promotion of changes in behavior in the field, be it economic, social, or environmental.

Keywords: forest code, public policy, rural development, sustainable agriculture

Procedia PDF Downloads 128