Search results for: negative parts

Authors: Saravanan Govindaraju, Kyusik Yun

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The purpose of this study is to develop the chitosan doped curcumin gold cluster nanofiber for wound healing and skin cancer drug delivery applications. Chitosan is a typical marine polysaccharide composed of glucosamine and n-acetyl glucosamine biodegradable and biocompatible polymer. Curcumin is a natural bioactive molecule obtained from Curcuma longo, it mostly occurs in some Asian countries like India and China. It has naturally antioxidant, antimicrobial, wound healing and anticancer property. Due to this advantage, we prepared a combination of natural polymer chitosan with Curcumin and gold nanocluster nanofiber (CH-CUR-AuNCs nanofibers). The prepared nanofiber was characterized by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Antibacterial studies were performed with E.coli and S.aureus. Antioxidant assay, drug release test, and cytotoxicity will be evaluated. Prepared nanofiber emits low intensity of red fluorescent. The FTIR confirm the presence of chitosan and Curcumin in the nanofiber. In vitro study clearly shows the antibacterial activity against the gram negative and gram positive bacteria. Particularly, synthesised nanofibers provide better antibacterial activity against gram negative than gram positive. Cytotoxicity study also provides better killing rate in cancer cell, biocompatible with normal cell. Prepared CH-CUR-AuNCs nanofibers provide the better killing rate to bacterial strains and cancer cells. Finally, prepared nanofiber can be possible to use for wound healing dressing, patch for skin cancer and other biomedical applications.

Keywords: curcumin, chitosan, gold clusters, nanofibers

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Authors: Rosy Chaudhary, Pushpa Parajuli

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Background and Objectives: Informational support to family members has a significant potential for reducing this distress related to hospitalization of their patient into the critical care unit, enabling them to cope better and support the patient. The objective of the study is to assess family members’ perception of informational support, anxiety, satisfaction with care and to reveal the association with selected socio-demographic variables and to investigate the correlation between informational support, anxiety and satisfaction with care. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 39 family caregivers of patients admitted in critical care unit of BPKIHS(B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences). Consecutive sampling technique was used wherein data was collected over duration of one month using interview schedule. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 34.97 ± 10.64 and two third (66.70%) were male. Mean score for informational support was 25.72(SD = 5.66; theoretical range of 10 - 40). Mean anxiety was 10.41 (SD = 5.02; theoretical range of 7 - 21). Mean score for satisfaction with care was 40.77 (SD = 6.77; theoretical range of 14 - 64). A moderate positive correlation was found between informational support and satisfaction with care (r = 0.551, p < .001) and a moderate negative correlation was found between anxiety and satisfaction with care (r = -0.590; p = 0.000). No relationship was noted between informational support and anxiety. Conclusion: The informational support and satisfaction of the family caregivers with the care provided to their patients was satisfactory. More than three fourth of the family caregivers had anxiety; the factors associated being educational status of the caregivers, the family income and duration of visiting hours. There was positive correlation between informational support and satisfaction with care provided justifying the need for comprehensive information to the family caregivers by the health personnel. There was negative correlation between anxiety and satisfaction with care.

Keywords: anxiety, caregivers, critical care unit, informational support, family

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Authors: Tesfay Gidey Bezabeh, Tânia Sofia Oliveira, Josep Crous-Duran, João H. N. Palma

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Ethiopia's economy depends strongly on Coffea arabica production. Coffee, like many other crops, is sensitive to climate change. An urgent development and application of strategies against the negative impacts of climate change on coffee production is important. Agroforestry-based system is one of the strategies that may ensure sustainable coffee production amidst the likelihood of future impacts of climate change. This system involves the combination of trees in buffer extremes, thereby modifying microclimate conditions. This paper assessed coffee production under 1) coffee monoculture and 2) coffee grown using an agroforestry system, under a) current climate and b) two different future climate change scenarios. The study focused on two representative coffee-growing regions of Ethiopia under different soil, climate, and elevation conditions. A process-based growth model (Yield-SAFE) was used to simulate coffee production for a time horizon of 40 years. Climate change scenarios considered were representative concentration pathways (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5. The results revealed that in monoculture systems, the current coffee yields are between 1200-1250 kg ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹, with an expected decrease between 4-38% and 20-60% in scenarios RCP 4.5 and 8.5, respectively. However, in agroforestry systems, the current yields are between 1600-2200 kg ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹; the decrease was lower, ranging between 4-13% and 16-25% in RCP 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios, respectively. From the results, it can be concluded that coffee production under agroforestry systems has a higher level of resilience when facing future climate change and reinforces the idea of using this type of management in the near future for adapting climate change's negative impacts on coffee production.

Keywords: Albizia gummifera, CORDEX, Ethiopia, HADCM3 model, process-based model

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Authors: Ali Taheri Mirghaed, Sara Ahani, Ashkan Zargar, Seyyed Morteza Hoseini

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Diseases are the major challenges in intensive aquaculture that cause significant annual losses. Antibiotic-therapy is a common way to control bacterial disease in fish, and oxytetracycline (OTC) is the only oral antibiotic in aquaculture approved FDA. OTC has been found to have negative effects on fish, such as oxidative stress and immune-suppression, thus, it is necessary to mitigate such effects. Medicinal herbs have various benefits on fish, including antioxidant, immunostimulant, and anti-microbial effects. Therefore, we hypothesized if dietary ginger meal (GM) interacts with dietary OTC by monitoring plasma protein fractions in rainbow trout. The study was conducted as a 2 × 2 factorial design, including diets containing 0 and 1% GM and 0 and 1.66 % OTC (corresponding to 100 mg/kg fish biomass per day). After ten days treating the fish (60 g individual weight) with these feeds, blood samples were taken from al treatments (n =3). Plasma was separated by centrifugation, and protein fractions were determined by electrophoresis. The results showed that OTC and GM had interaction effects on total protein (P<0.001), albumin (P<0.001), alpha-1 fraction (P=0.010), alpha-2 fraction (P=0.001), beta-2 fraction (P=0.014), and gamma fraction (P<0.001). Beta-1 fraction was significantly (P=0.030) affected by dietary GM. GM decreased plasma total protein, albumin, and beta-2 but increased beta-1 fraction. OTC significantly decreased total protein (P<0.001), albumin (P=0.001), alpha-2 fraction (P<0.001), beta-2 fraction (P=0.004), and gamma fraction (P<0.001) but had no significant effects on alpha-1 and beta-1 fractions. Dietary GM inhibited/suppressed the effects of dietary OTC on the plasma total protein and protein fractions. In conclusion, adding 1% GM to diet can mitigate the negative effects of dietary OTC on plasma proteins. Thus, GM may boost health of rainbow trout during the period of medication with OTC.

Keywords: ginger, plasma protein electrophoresis, dietary additive, rainbow trout

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Authors: Ercan Karadogan, Fatih Usta

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Auxetic materials have a negative Poisson’s ratio (NPR), which is not often found in nature. They are metamaterials that have potential applications in many engineering fields. Mechanical metamaterials are synthetically designed structures with unusual mechanical properties. These mechanical properties are dependent on the properties of the matrix structure. They have the following special characteristics, i.e., improved shear modulus, increased energy absorption, and intensive fracture toughness. Non-auxetic materials compress transversely when they are stretched. The system naturally is inclined to keep its density constant. The transversal compression increases the density to balance the loss in the longitudinal direction. This study proposes to improve the crushing performance of hybrid auxetic materials. The re-entrant honeycomb structure has been combined with a star honeycomb, an S-shaped unit cell, a double arrowhead, and a structurally hexagonal re-entrant honeycomb by 9 X 9 cells, i.e., the number of cells is 9 in the lateral direction and 9 in the vertical direction. The Finite Element (FE) and experimental methods have been used to determine the compression behavior of the developed hybrid auxetic structures. The FE models have been developed by using Abaqus software. The specimens made of polymer plastic materials have been 3D printed and subjected to compression loading. The results are compared in terms of specific energy absorption and strength. This paper describes the quasi-static crushing behavior of two types of hybrid lattice structures (auxetic + auxetic and auxetic + non-auxetic). The results show that the developed hybrid structures can be useful to control collapse mechanisms and present larger energy absorption compared to conventional re-entrant auxetic structures.

Keywords: auxetic materials, compressive behavior, metamaterials, negative Poisson’s ratio

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Authors: A. Uludağ, F. G. Tufekci, N. Ceviz

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Aim: The research has been carried out in order to evaluate caregiver burden, life satisfaction and received social support level of the parents whose children have congenital heart disease; to examine the relationship between the social supports received by them and caregiver burden and life satisfaction. Material and Method: The research which is descriptive and which is searching a relationship has been carried out between the dates June 7, 2012- June 30, 2014, in Erzurum Ataturk University Research and Application Hospital, Department of Pediatrics and Children Cardiology Polyclinic. In the research, it was collaborated with the parents (N = 157) who accepted to participate in, of children who were between the ages of 3 months- 12 years. While gathering the data, a questionnaire, Zarit Caregiver Burden, Life Satisfaction and Social Support Scales have been used. The statistics of the data acquired has been produced by using percentage distribution, mean, and variance and correlation analysis. Ethical principles are followed in the research. Results: In the research, caregiver burden, life satisfaction and social support level received from family (p < 0.05), have been determined higher in the parents whose children have serious congenital heart disease than that of parents whose children have slight disease and social support received from friends has been found lower. It has been determined that there is a strong relation (p < 0.001) through negative direction between both social support levels and caregiver burden of parents; and that there is a strong relation (p < 0.001) through positive direction between both support levels and life satisfaction. Conclusion: That Social Support is in a strong relation with Caregiver Burden through a negative direction and a strong relation with Life Satisfaction through positive direction in parents of all the children who have congenital heart disease requires social support systems to be reinforced. Parents can be led or guided so as to prompt social support systems more.

Keywords: congenital heart disease, child, parents, caregiver burden, life satisfaction, social support

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Authors: Ali Faisal Saleem, Farheen Quadri, Mach Ondrej, Anita Zaidi

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Purpose: Pakistan is the final frontier for a polio-free world. Chronic malnutrition is associated with lack of effective gut immunity, and possibly associated with poliomyelitis in children received multiple OPV. We evaluate IPV dose administered together with OPV results in higher immunogenicity and mucosal immunity compared to OPV alone in chronically malnourished infants. Methods AND Materials: A community-based, unblinded-randomized-trial, conducted in 5 peri-urban, low-middle-income households of Karachi, in infants 9-12 months. Two study groups were non-malnourished (HAZ= -2 or more) and chronic malnourished (HAZ <-2SD), with 2-arms each i) OPV and ii) OPV and IPV. Two blood specimens (2ml) at baseline and at day 28 and two stool specimens (6 gm.) at day 29 and after 7 days. All infants received a bOPV challenge dose after first stool specimen. Calculates sample size was 210 in each arm. Serological (baseline compared to 28 days post-vaccine) and mucosal immunity after one week of bOPV challenge dose were study outcomes. Results: Baseline seroprevalence in malnourished infants were low compared to non-malnourished (P1, P2 and P3 (p=<0.001). There is significant rise in antibody titer and P1 seroprevalence in Mal A and B after receiving study vaccine; much higher in Mal B. Infants randomized to bOPV + IPV study vaccine showed incremental immune response against P1 (Mal B, 92.2%; Nor B, 98.4%), P2 (Mal B, 90.4%; Nor B, 94.7%), and P3 (Mal B, 85.6% and Nor B, 93.5%) was observed. A significant proportion of infants in malnourished (P1, 13%; P2, 24%; P3, 26%) and normally nourished group (P1, 5%; P2, 11%; P3, 14%) were found to be seronegative at baseline. Infants who received BOPV + IPV as their study vaccine showed a very high seroconversion response after vaccine (p=<0.001 for P1, P2 and P3). Majority of the specimens were negative at baseline (Mal A, 2%, Mal B, 1%; Nor A, 2%; Nor B, 1%), and remains negative after bOPV challenge dose (Mal A, 8%, Mal B, 6%; Nor A, 11%; Nor B, 10%). Conclusion: Malnourished-infants have low poliovirus-seroprevalence that increased remarkably after IPV. There is less viral shedding after IPV in infants.

Keywords: chronic malnutrition, infants, IPV, OPV

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Authors: Vivek Bhat, Rohini Kelkar, Sanjay Biswas

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Introduction: Cancer patients are at increased risk of bacterial infections. This may due to the disease process itself, the effect of chemotherapeutic drugs or invasive procedures such as catheterization. A wide variety of bacteria including some emerging pathogens are increasingly being reported from these patients. The incidence of multidrug-resistant organisms particularly in the Gram negative group is also increasing, with higher resistance rates seen to cephalosporins, β-lactam/β-lactam inhibitor combinations, and the carbapenems. This study documents the bacteriological spectrum of infections and their resistance patterns in cancer patients. Methods: This study includes all bacterial isolates recovered from infections cancer patients over a period of 18 months. Samples included Blood cultures, Pus/wound swabs, urine, tissue biopsies, body fluids, catheter tips and respiratory specimens such as sputum and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). All samples were processed in the microbiology laboratory as per standard laboratory protocols. Organisms were identified to species level and antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed manually by the disc diffusion technique or in the Vitek-2 (Biomereux, France) instrument. Interpretations were as per Clinical laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. Results: A total of 1150 bacterial isolates were cultured from 884 test samples during the study period. Of these 227 were Gram-positive and 923 were Gram-negative organisms. Staphylococcus aureus (99 isolates) was the commonest Gram-positive isolate followed by Enterococcus (79) and Gr A Streptococcus (30). Among the Gram negatives, E. coli (304), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (201) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (190) were the most common. Of the Staphylococcus aureus isolates 27.2% were methicillin resistant. Only 5.06% enterococci were vancomycin resistant. High rates of resistance to cefotaxime and ciprofloxacin were seen amongst E. coli (84.8% & 83.55%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (71 & 62.1%) respectively. Resistance to carbapenems (meropenem) was high at 70% in Acinetobacter spp.; however all isolates were sensitive to colistin. Among the aminoglycosides, amikacin retained good efficacy against Escherichia coli (82.9%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (78.1%). Occasional isolates of emerging pathogens such as Chryseobacterium indologens, Roseomonas, and Achromobacter xyloxidans were also recovered. Conclusion: The common infections in cancer patients include respiratory, wound, tract infections and sepsis. The commonest isolates include Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococci, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. There is a high level of resistance to the commonly used antibiotics among Gram-negative organisms.

Keywords: bacteria, resistance, infection, cancer

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Authors: Afees Adebayo Salam

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This paper attempts an in-depth analysis of the economic impact of Ogbomoso migrant community in the Jos metropolis. It discusses the factors that motivated a sizeable number of Ogbomoso people (from southwestern Nigeria) to leave their hometown for a new place/space in Jos (northern Nigeria). It examines the historical antecedent of Ogbomoso migrants in northern Nigeria with emphasis on Jos metropolis. The movement of Ogbomoso migrants to Jos was dictated by the economic and social challenges of colonial and post-colonial periods. The political crisis of the 1960s was a contributory factor to the process of Ogbomoso migration to other parts of Nigeria. In the aftermath, many people migrated from Ogbomoso to different parts of the country and beyond to seek for better economic opportunities. The establishment of Ogbomoso migrant community in Jos was dated back to the colonial era when taxation was introduced by the British. Many people could not pay these taxes from their peasant farming activities, while some embarked on migration to places such as Jos, Kaduna, Kano, Keffi and Bauchi due to the harsh economic situation at home. Their settlement in Jos brought about success in several spheres of human endeavours. Ogbomoso migrants dominated both paid jobs and private business sector such as textile merchants, food stuff sellers, herbalists, printers, transporters, and religious missionaries, as well as clerical officers in the government establishments. Their remittances were invested in different sectors of Ogbomoso economy. The migrants had in one way or the other contributed to the socio-economic development of their host community in Jos as entrepreneurs. Branches of such industries were located in their hometown of Ogbomoso as a clear demonstration of community development. The remittance pattern of the migrants has transformed Ogbomoso to enviable position. Moreover, the economic success of Ogbomoso migrants over the period under review indicates the process of nation building due to peaceful nature of inter-ethnic engagements between Ogbomoso migrants and their host community in Jos. Therefore, the paper makes use of oral, archival and secondary sources to analyse the processes of migration and its economic impact. Oral interviews were conducted in Ogbomoso town with veteran migrants and their family members. Interviews were also conducted in Jos with the indigenous host community as well as other urban residents. Archival materials were obtained from Arewa House Archives and the National Archives, Kaduna and the National Archives, Ibadan.

Keywords: Ogbomoso migrants, Jos metropolis, community development, economic impact

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Authors: Okpala Charles Chikwendu, Ezeanyim Okechukwu Chiedu, Onukwuli Somto Kenneth

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The demand for lightweight and fuel-efficient automobiles has led to the use of fiber-reinforced polymer composites in place of traditional metal parts. Coir, a natural fiber, offers qualities such as low cost, good tensile strength, and biodegradability, making it a potential filler material for automotive components. However, poor interfacial adhesion between coir and polymeric matrices has been a challenge. To address poor interfacial adhesion with polymeric matrices due to their moisture content and method of preparation, the extracted coir was chemically treated using NaOH. To develop a side view mirror encasement by investigating the mechanical effect of fiber percentage composition, fiber length and percentage composition of Epoxy in a coir fiber reinforced composite, polyester was adopted as the resin for the mold, while that of the product is Epoxy. Coir served as the filler material for the product. Specimens with varied compositions of fiber loading (15, 30 and 45) %, length (10, 15, 20, 30 and 45) mm, and (55, 70, 85) % weight of epoxy resin were fabricated using hand lay-up technique, while those specimens were later subjected to mechanical tests (Tensile, Flexural and Impact test). The results of the mechanical test showed that the optimal solution for the input factors is coir at 45%, epoxy at 54.543%, and 45mm coir length, which was used for the development of a vehicle’s side view mirror encasement. The optimal solutions for the response parameters are 49.333 Mpa for tensile strength, flexural for 57.118 Mpa, impact strength for 34.787 KJ/M2, young modulus for 4.788 GPa, stress for 4.534 KN, and 20.483 mm for strain. The models that were developed using Design Expert software revealed that the input factors can achieve the response parameters in the system with 94% desirability. The study showed that coir is quite durable for filler material in an epoxy composite for automobile applications and that fiber loading and length have a significant effect on the mechanical behavior of coir fiber-reinforced epoxy composites. The coir's low density, considerable tensile strength, and bio-degradability contribute to its eco-friendliness and potential for reducing the environmental hazards of synthetic automotive components.

Keywords: coir, composite, coir fiber, coconut husk, polymer, automobile, mechanical test

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Authors: Peni Rizki

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This article presents decomposition on Aqua logo design 2013 as well as exploration on the meanings denoting marketing resolution. In the analysis, it is described decomposition details on Aqua logo design 2013, a semiotics implementation on marketing enterprise. 2013’s design is different in parts from its first establishment in 1973. Upon that, design elements such as pictures and colors are examined in semiotic theories of sign utilized as directives to the meaning constructed. Each part of the design is analyzed based on its significations that generate denotation and connotation as well as myth. At the end will be concluded the converses of Aqua logo design 2013 in reflection to its initiated marketing creativity; what pictures and colors do in it.

Keywords: design, aqua, semiotics, signification

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Authors: Bruna Goncalves, Jennifer Henck, Romulo Uliana, Eliana Kamimura, Carlos Oliveira, Carlos Corassin

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Studies have shown evidence of human exposure to aflatoxin M1 due to the consumption of contaminated milk and dairy products (mainly cheeses). This poses a great risk to public health, since milk and milk products are frequently consumed by a portion of the population considered immunosuppressed, children and the elderly. Knowledge of the negative impacts of aflatoxins on health and economics has led to investigations of strategies to prevent their formation in food, as well as to eliminate, inactivate or reduce the bioavailability of these toxins in contaminated products This study evaluated the effect of microbiological methods using lactic acid bacteria on aflatoxin M1 (AFM1) reduction in Minas Frescal cheese (typical Brazilian product, being among the most consumed cheeses in Brazil) spiked with 1 µg/L AFM1. Inactivated lactic acid bacteria (0,5%, v/v de L. rhamnosus e L. lactis) were added during the cheese production process. Nine cheeses were produced, divided into three treatments: negative controls (without AFM1 or lactic acid bacteria), positive controls (AFM1 only), and lactic acid bacteria + AFM1. Samples of cheese were collected on days 2, 10, 20 and 30 after the date of production and submitted to composition analyses and determination of AFM1 by high-performance liquid chromatography. The reductions of AFM1 in cheese by lactic acid bacteria at the end of the trial indicate a potential application of inactivated lactic acid bacteria in reducing the bioavailability of AFM1 in Minas frescal cheese without physical-chemical and microbiological modifications during the 30-day experimental period. The authors would like to thank São Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP (grants #2017/20081-6 and #2017/19683-1).

Keywords: aflatoxin, milk, minas frescal cheese, decontamination

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Authors: Amin Osama Amin Mohamed Elbaramawy

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In the last period of time, about ten years ago, wars caused violations of human rights in many places, and despite international condemnations, they did not stop, and the truth is that international law was unable to stop them. The global wars and conflicts that the world has been witnessing for more than ten years have caused the displacement of millions of people in all parts of the earth, causing a violation of the human rights of those people. Despite international condemnations of these conflicts, these conflicts have not stopped and have not been resolved until now. Therefore, I call for international law and international courts to be more effective and not just in words, taking into account the speed in this due to the increase in those wars and conflicts every day and new violations every day.

Keywords: war, freedom, human rights, international law

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Authors: Sang-Ju Yu

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This paper examines the changing essences and effects of ‘affective atmosphere’ during the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, which have been facilitated and shaped the ‘affective governance’ in Taiwan. Due to long-term uncertainty and unpredictability, the COVID-19 pandemic not only caused unprecedented global crisis but triggered the public’s negative emotional responses. This paper unravels how the shortage of Personal Protective Equipment and the proliferating fake news heightened people’s fear and anxiety and how specific affective atmospheres can be provoked and manipulated to harness emotional appeals of citizens strategically in Taiwan. Through the in-depth interviews with diverse stakeholders involved, it unfolds the dynamics and strategies of affective governance, wherein public emotions and concerns are now given significant consideration in both policy measures and the affective expression of leadership, spatial arrangement, service delivery, and the interaction with citizens. Addressing psychosocial and emotional needs has become the core of crisis response mechanisms suited to dynamic affective atmospheres and pandemic situation. This paper also demonstrates that epidemic prevention and control is not merely the production of neutral or rational policy-making processes, as it is dominated by multiple emotions resulted from unexpected and salient events at different moments. It provides explicit insight into how different prevention scenarios operated effectively through political and affective mobilisation to strengthen emotional bonding and collective identity which energises collective action. Basically, successful affective governance calls for both negative and positive emotions, for both scientific and political decision-making, for both community and bureaucracy, and both quality and efficiency of private–public collaboration.

Keywords: affective atmospheres, affective governance, COVID-19 pandemic, private-public collaboration

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Authors: Xiaoqian Cheng, Jon Kleppe, Ole Torsæter

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The properties of rocks have effects on efficiency of surfactant. One objective of this study is to analyze the effects of rock properties (permeability, porosity, initial water saturation) on surfactant spontaneous imbibition at laboratory scale. The other objective is to evaluate existing upscaling methods and establish a modified upscaling method. A core is put in a container that is full of surfactant solution. Assume there is no space between the bottom of the core and the container. The core is modelled as a cuboid matrix with a length of 3.5 cm, a width of 3.5 cm, and a height of 5 cm. The initial matrix, brine and oil properties are set as the properties of Ekofisk Field. The simulation results of matrix permeability show that the oil recovery rate has a strong positive linear relationship with matrix permeability. Higher oil recovery is obtained from the matrix with higher permeability. One existing upscaling method is verified by this model. The study on matrix porosity shows that the relationship between oil recovery rate and matrix porosity is a negative power function. However, the relationship between ultimate oil recovery and matrix porosity is a positive power function. The initial water saturation of matrix has negative linear relationships with ultimate oil recovery and enhanced oil recovery. However, the relationship between oil recovery and initial water saturation is more complicated with the imbibition time because of the transition of dominating force from capillary force to gravity force. Modified upscaling methods are established. The work here could be used as a reference for the surfactant application in fractured reservoirs. And the description of the relationships between properties of matrix and the oil recovery rate and ultimate oil recovery helps to improve upscaling methods.

Keywords: initial water saturation, permeability, porosity, surfactant EOR

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Authors: Feng-Hisang Lai

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CFD(Computational Fluid Dynamics) is conducted to numerically study the flow and heat transfer features of a two-pole, 6,080HP, 60Hz, 3,150V open drip-proof (ODP) motor. The stator and rotor cores in this high voltage induction motor are segmented with the use of spacers for cooling purposes, which leads to difficulties in meshing when the entire system is to be simulated. The system is divided into 4 parts, meshed separately and then combined using interfaces. The deviation between the CFD and experimental results in temperature and flow rate is less than 10%. The internal flow is further examined and a final design is proposed to reduce the winding temperature by 10 degrees.

Keywords: CFD, open drip proof, induction motor, cooling

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Authors: Ahmed Auda, Manjree Agarwala, Giles Hardya, Yonglin Rena

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Botrytis cinerea is a major pest for many plants. It can attack a wide range of plant parts. It can attack buds, flowers, and leaves, stems, and fruit. However, B. cinerea can be mixed with other diseases that cause the same damage. There are many species of botrytis and more than one different strains of each. Botrytis might infect the foliage of nursery stock stored through winter in damp conditions. There are no known resistant plants. Botrytis must have nutrients or food source before it infests the plant. Nutrients leaking from wounded plant parts or dying tissue like old flower petals give the required nutrients. From this food, the fungus becomes more attackers and invades healthy tissue. Dark to light brown rot forms in the ill tissue. High humidity conditions support the growth of this fungus. However, we suppose that selection pressure can act on the morphological and neurophysiologic filter properties of the receiver and on both the biochemical and the physiological regulation of the signal. Communication is implied when signal and receiver evolves toward more and more specific matching, culminating. In other hand, receivers respond to portions of a body odor bouquet which is released to the environment not as an (intentional) signal but as an unavoidable consequence of metabolic activity or tissue damage. Each year Botrytis species can cause considerable economic losses to plant crops. Even with the application of strict quarantine and control measures, these fungi can still find their way into crops and cause the imposition of onerous restrictions on exports. Blueberry fruit mould caused by a fungal infection usually results in major losses during post-harvest storage. Therefore, the management of infection in early stages of disease development is necessary to minimize losses. The overall purpose of this study will develop sensitive, cheap, quick and robust diagnostic techniques for the detection of B. cinerea in blueberry. The specific aim was designed to investigate the performance of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the detection and discrimination of blueberry fruits infected by fungal pathogens with an emphasis on Botrytis in the early storage stage of post-harvest.

Keywords: botrytis cinerea, blueberry, GC/MS, VOCs

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Authors: Derrouazin Mohammed Redhouane, Souakri Mohammed Lotfi, Henini Ghania

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This work consists, first of all, of mastering one of the powerful process simulation tools currently used in the industrial processes, which is the HYSYS sizing software, and second, of simulating a petroleum distillation column. This study is divided into two parts; where the first one consists of a dimensioning of the column with a fast approximating method using state equations, iterative calculations, and then a precise simulation method with the HYSYS software. The second part of this study is a hydrodynamic study in order to verify by obtained results the proper functioning of the plates.

Keywords: industry process engineering, water distillation, environment, HYSYS simulation tool

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Authors: Ali Alhajeri, Tarig Makki, Mosa Almutahhar, Mohammed Ahmed, Usman Ali

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Metal powder is the raw material used for laser powder-bed fusion (LPBF) additive manufacturing (AM). There are many metal materials that can be used in LPBF. The properties of these materials are varied between each other, which can affect the building part. The objective of this paper is to do an overview of the titanium powders available in LBPF. Comparison between different literature works will lead us to study the similarities and differences between the powder properties such as size, shape, and chemical composition. Furthermore, the results of this paper will point out the significant titanium powder properties in order to clearly illustrate their effect on the build parts.

Keywords: LPBF, titanium, Ti-6Al-4V, Ti-5553, metal powder, AM

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Authors: Mariam Matiashvili

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Argumentation is an integral part of our daily communications - formal or informal. Argumentative reasoning, techniques, and language tools are used both in personal conversations and in the business environment. Verbalization of the opinions requires the use of extraordinary syntactic-pragmatic structural quantities - arguments that add credibility to the statement. The study of argumentative structures allows us to identify the linguistic features that make the text argumentative. Knowing what elements make up an argumentative text in a particular language helps the users of that language improve their skills. Also, natural language processing (NLP) has become especially relevant recently. In this context, one of the main emphases is on the computational processing of argumentative texts, which will enable the automatic recognition and analysis of large volumes of textual data. The research deals with the linguistic analysis of the argumentative structures of Georgian political speeches - particularly the linguistic structure, characteristics, and functions of the parts of the argumentative text - claims, support, and attack statements. The research aims to describe the linguistic cues that give the sentence a judgmental/controversial character and helps to identify reasoning parts of the argumentative text. The empirical data comes from the Georgian Political Corpus, particularly TV debates. Consequently, the texts are of a dialogical nature, representing a discussion between two or more people (most often between a journalist and a politician). The research uses the following approaches to identify and analyze the argumentative structures Lexical Classification & Analysis - Identify lexical items that are relevant in argumentative texts creating process - Creating the lexicon of argumentation (presents groups of words gathered from a semantic point of view); Grammatical Analysis and Classification - means grammatical analysis of the words and phrases identified based on the arguing lexicon. Argumentation Schemas - Describe and identify the Argumentation Schemes that are most likely used in Georgian Political Speeches. As a final step, we analyzed the relations between the above mentioned components. For example, If an identified argument scheme is “Argument from Analogy”, identified lexical items semantically express analogy too, and they are most likely adverbs in Georgian. As a result, we created the lexicon with the words that play a significant role in creating Georgian argumentative structures. Linguistic analysis has shown that verbs play a crucial role in creating argumentative structures.

Keywords: georgian, argumentation schemas, argumentation structures, argumentation lexicon

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Authors: Malgorzata Sekulowicz, Krystyna Boron-Krupinska, Paulina Morga, Blazej Cieslik

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Burnout is highly prevalent in health care employees, especially in physicians. It significantly reduces the efficiency of these employees, which can have negative consequences for both physicians and patients. Resilience and mindfulness enhancing positive emotions, leading to sustainable development and personal commitment, can have a significant impact on burnout. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the relationship between burnout symptoms and mindfulness and resilience among physicians. The authors conducted a cross-sectional survey study among seventy-four polish physicians. Participants filled out the following psychometric tools: the Maslach Burnout Inventory - Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), Areas of Work-Life Survey (AWS), International Personality Item Pool (IPIP), the Resilience Assessment Scale (SPP-25) and the Mini-COPE Inventory. The relationship between burnout and resilience and mindfulness was assessed with path analysis. Analyzing the relationship between MBI-HSS components and mindfulness, a significant negative correlation of the FFMQ score with emotional exhaustion (-0.50, p < 0.05) and depersonalization (-0.43, p < 0.05) and a positive correlation with personal accomplishment (0.50, p < 0.05) was demonstrated. Analyzing resilience, a statistically significant relationship of SPP-25 with all tested components of MBI-HSS was demonstrated: emotional exhaustion (-0.54, p < 0.05), depersonalization (-0.31, p < 0.05) and personal accomplishment (0.35, p < 0.05). In the group of medical doctors, the higher the level of mindfulness and resilience, the lower the risk of burnout. Furthermore, the more frequently used active coping strategies (planning, acceptance), the lower the risk of burnout, while the use of passive, evasive strategies increases the risk of burnout. It may be worth considering implementing mindfulness intervention to effectively manage burnout symptoms in this group.

Keywords: burnout, medical doctors, mindfulness, physicians, resilience

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Authors: Joel S. Akintayo, Ramat T. Salman

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The stakeholders’ pressure on corporate managers to maintain firm’s profitability has created economic incentives for management to engage in earnings management practices. Therefore, this study examines the effects of audit quality and corporate governance on earnings management of quoted deposit money banks (DMBs) in Nigeria. This study specifically investigates the influence of audit tenure, audit fee, board independence, and board size on earnings management of DMBs. Explanatory research design was employed in carrying out the study while secondary data were sourced from the annual reports and accounts of all the 15 quoted DMBs in Nigerian Stock Exchange as at December 31, 2015 for a period of 10 years covering from 2006 to 2015. The data obtained for the study were analyzed using panel regression analysis approach. The findings reveal that board independence has a negative significant effect on earnings management at a 5% level of significance (p=0.002), while audit fee has a positive significant effect on earnings management at a 5% level of significance (p=0.013) and audit tenure has a negative significant effect on earnings management of DMBs at a 5% level of significance (p=0.003). Surprisingly, board size was statistically not significant at a 5% level of significance (p=0.086). The study concludes that high audit quality and sound corporate governance could improve the earnings quality of DMBs. Hence, the study recommends that the authorities saddled with the responsibility of banking supervision in Nigeria such the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CBN to advise the National Assembly in Nigeria to pass into law the three years professional requirement for audit tenure.

Keywords: audit quality, audit tenure, audit fee, board independence, corporate governance, earnings management

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Authors: Dhriti Kirpalani

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The survey aims to explore the impact of Instagram on the perception of lifestyle aspirations (such as social life, fitness, trends followed in fashion, etc.) and perception of self in relation to an idealized lifestyle: Amidst today's media-saturated environment, university students are constantly exposed to idealized portrayals of lifestyles, often leading to unrealistic expectations and dissatisfaction with their own lives. This study investigates the impact of media on university students' perceptions of their own lifestyle, the discrepancy between their self-perception and idealized lifestyle, and their mental health. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the study combines quantitative and qualitative data collection methods to understand the issue comprehensively. A literature review was conducted in order to determine the effects of idealized lifestyle portrayal on Instagram; however, less attention has been received in the Indian setting. The researchers wish to employ a convenience sampling method among undergraduate students from India. The surveys that would be employed for quantitative analysis are Negative Social Media Comparison (NSMCS), Lifestyle Satisfaction Scale (LSS), Psychological Well-being Scale (PWB), and Self-Perception Profile for Adolescents (SPPA). The qualitative aspect would include in-depth interviews to provide deeper insights into participants' experiences and the mechanisms by which media influences their lifestyle aspirations and mental health. With the aim of being an exploratory study, the basis of the idea is found in the social comparison theory described by Leon Festinger. The findings aim to inform interventions to promote realistic expectations about lifestyle, reduce the negative effects of media on university students, and improve their mental health and well-being.

Keywords: declined self-perception, idealized lifestyle, Instagram, Indian university students, social comparison

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Authors: Ahmed Samy Elnoby

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Ailanthus altissima native to Asia which belongs to the family Simaroubaceae was subjected to phytochemical screening and biological investigations. Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of carbohydrates, tannins, sterols, flavonoids and traces of saponins. In addition, quantitative determination of phenolics and flavonoid content were performed. The antimicrobial activity of methanolic extract of the leaves was determined against gram-positive, gram-negative bacteria in addition to fungi using a modified Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method that was compared with standard discs ampicillin which acts as an antibacterial agent and amphotericin B which acts as an antifungal agent. A high potency was observed against gram-positive bacteria mainly staphylococcus aureus, gram-negative bacteria mainly Escherichia coli and showed no potency against fungi mainly Aspergillus flavus and candida albicans. On the other hand, the antioxidant activity of the extract was determined by 1, 1-diphenyl-2- diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazil (DPPH). A very low potency was shown by using DPPH for the antioxidant effect so IC50 = 0 ug/ml, IC90 =0 ug /ml and remark gave 47.2 % at 100 ug/ml which is very weak. Cytotoxic activity was determined by using MTT assay (3-4, 5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5-Diphenyltetrazolium Bromide) against MCF7 (Human Caucasian breast adenocarcinoma) cell line. A moderate potency was shown by using MCF7 cell line for cytotoxic effect so LC50= 90.2 ug/ml, LC90=139.9 ug/ml and the remark gave 55.2% at 100 ug/ml which is of moderate activity so, Ailanthus altissima can be considered to be a promising antimicrobial agent from natural origin.

Keywords: Ailanthus altissima, TLC, HPLC, anti-microbial activity, antifungal activity, antioxidant, cytotoxic activity

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Authors: Francielle A. Vargas, Thiago A. S. Pardo

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According to the standard philosophical definition, lying is saying something that you believe to be false with the intent to deceive. For deception detection, the FBI trains its agents in a technique named statement analysis, which attempts to detect deception based on parts of speech (i.e., linguistics style). This method is employed in interrogations, where the suspects are first asked to make a written statement. In this poster, we model false statements using linguistics style. In order to achieve this, we methodically analyze linguistic features in a corpus of fake news in the Portuguese language. The results show that they present substantial lexical, syntactic and semantic variations, as well as punctuation and emotion distinctions.

Keywords: deception detection, linguistics style, computational linguistics, natural language processing

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Authors: El Kolli Meriem, Laouer Hocine, Sahli Farida, Akkal Salah, El Kolli Hayet

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The aerial parts of Daucus gracilis (Apiaceae) were subjected to hydrodistillation by a Clevenger apparatus to obtain the essential oil (EO) which has been analyzed by Gas Chromatography (GC) and GC coupled with mass spectrometry. The antioxidant properties of this EO and D. gracilis methanolic extract were studied by both of the free diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging and the reducing power techniques. The dominant constituents of the EO were the elemicin (35.3 %) and the geranyl acetate (26.8 %). Both of EO and methanolic extract showed important antioxidant properties with respectively IC50 of 0,002 mg/ml and 0.06 mg/ml. They showed also a reducing power dose-dependent.

Keywords: daucus gracilis, apiaceae, essential oil, antioxidant activity

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Authors: Howaida I. Abd-Alla, Amal Z. Hassan, Maha Soltan, Atef G. Hanna, Mounir M. El-Safty

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Acokanthera oblongifolia (Apocynaceae) is used for treatment of several infection diseases and is a well-known cardiac glycoside-containing plant. The infusion of their leaves is gargled to treat tonsillitis and is used medicinally to treat snakebites. The total cardiac glycosides content in the leaves was determined by referring to gitoxigenin as a reference compound. Two triterpenes, lup-20(29)-en-3β-ol (1) and oleanolic acid (2); two cardenolides, acovenoside A (3) and acobioside A (4) were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract. Their structures were determined on the basis of spectral analysis. Major constituents isolated from this species were evaluated for cytotoxicity against normal lung cell line (Wi38) and antimicrobial activities against Gram-positive (two strains) and Gram-negative bacteria (four strains), yeast-like fungi (two strains) and fungi (five strains). The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the compounds was determined using broth microdilution method. Their viral inhibitory effects against avian influenza virus type A (AI-H5N1) and Newcastle disease virus (NDV) in specific pathogen free (SPF) embryonated chicken eggs (ECE), chicken embryo fibroblasts (CEF) and Vero cells were evaluated. The cardenolide (3) showed viral inhibitory effects against AI-H5N1 and NDV in SPF ECE. The two cardenolides isolated have shown potent cytotoxicity against Vero cells. Compound (3) showed potent anti-Gram-negative bacteria activity. These results suggested that acovenoside A might be promising for future antiviral and antimicrobial drug design.

Keywords: Acokanthera, AI-H5N1, Cardenolides, NDV, SPF-ECE, VERO, Wi38 , Microbe

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Authors: Diana Vieira Figueiredo, Rita Ramos Miguel, Maria do Céu Salvador, Luiza Nobre-Lima, Daniel RIjo, Paula Vagos

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Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) is characterized by a marked and persistent fear of social and/or performance situations in which one may be exposed to the scrutiny of others.  SAD has its usual onset and is highly prevalent during adolescence; if left untreated, it often has a chronic and unremitting course. So, it seems important to understand the psychological processes that might predict the development of SAD. One of these processes may be self-compassion, which has been found to be associated with social anxiety in both adults and adolescents. Self-compassion involves three main components, each with a positive (compassionate behavior) and negative (uncompassionate behavior) pole – self-kindness versus self-judgment, common humanity versus isolation, and mindfulness versus over-identification. The negative indicators of self-compassion (self-judgement, isolation, and over-identification) were found to be more strongly linked to mental health problems than the positive indicators (self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness). Additionally, negative associations were found between the positive indicators of self-compassion (self-kindness, common humanity, mindfulness) and psychopathology. The current study aimed to investigate the role of self-kindness, self-judgment, common humanity, isolation, mindfulness, and over-identification in the likelihood of an adolescent presenting SAD by comparing groups of normative and socially anxious adolescents. The sample consisted of 32 adolescents (Mage = 15.88, SD = .833) of which 23 were girls. Adolescents were assessed through a clinical structured interview that led 17 to be assigned to the clinical group (presenting a primary diagnosis of SAD) and 15 to be assigned to the non-clinical group (presenting no clinical diagnosis). Variables under study were measured through the Self-Compassion Scale for adolescents (SCS-A), which assesses the six indicators of self-compassion presented above. Six separate models were tested, each with one of the subscales of the SCS-A as the independent variable and with the group (clinical versus non-clinical) as the dependent variable. The models considering isolation, over-identification, self-judgement, and self-kindness fitted the data and accurately predicted group belonging for between 75% to 84.4% of cases. Results indicated that the log of the odds of an adolescent presenting SAD was positively related to isolation, over-identification, and self-judgement and negatively associated with self-kindness. Findings provide support for the idea that decreased self-compassion may place adolescents at increased risk for experiencing clinical levels of social anxiety: on the one hand, adolescents with higher levels of isolation, over-identification, and self-judgement seem to be more prone to the development of psychopathological levels of social anxiety; on the other hand, self-kindness may play a protective role in the development of SAD in this developmental phase. So, if focusing on social feared consequences and perceiving to be different from others may be distinctive features of SAD, developing self-kindness may be the antidote to promote diminished levels of social anxiety and more.

Keywords: adolescents, social anxiety disorder, self-compassion, diagnosis odds-ration

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Authors: Roberta Facchinetti, Sara Corrizzato, Silvia Cavalieri

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Increasing interconnection between data digitalization and linguistic investigation has given rise to unprecedented potentialities and challenges for corpus linguists, who need to master IT tools for data analysis and text processing, as well as to develop techniques for efficient and reliable annotation in specific mark-up languages that encode documents in a format that is both human and machine-readable. In the present paper, the challenges emerging from the compilation of a linguistic corpus will be taken into consideration, focusing on the English language in particular. To do so, the case study of the InterDiplo corpus will be illustrated. The corpus, currently under development at the University of Verona (Italy), represents a novelty in terms both of the data included and of the tag set used for its annotation. The corpus covers media interviews and debates with diplomats and international operators conversing in English with journalists who do not share the same lingua-cultural background as their interviewees. To date, this appears to be the first tagged corpus of international institutional spoken discourse and will be an important database not only for linguists interested in corpus analysis but also for experts operating in international relations. In the present paper, special attention will be dedicated to the structural mark-up, parts of speech annotation, and tagging of discursive traits, that are the innovational parts of the project being the result of a thorough study to find the best solution to suit the analytical needs of the data. Several aspects will be addressed, with special attention to the tagging of the speakers’ identity, the communicative events, and anthropophagic. Prominence will be given to the annotation of question/answer exchanges to investigate the interlocutors’ choices and how such choices impact communication. Indeed, the automated identification of questions, in relation to the expected answers, is functional to understand how interviewers elicit information as well as how interviewees provide their answers to fulfill their respective communicative aims. A detailed description of the aforementioned elements will be given using the InterDiplo-Covid19 pilot corpus. The data yielded by our preliminary analysis of the data will highlight the viable solutions found in the construction of the corpus in terms of XML conversion, metadata definition, tagging system, and discursive-pragmatic annotation to be included via Oxygen.

Keywords: spoken corpus, diplomats’ interviews, tagging system, discursive-pragmatic annotation, english linguistics

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Authors: Angalabiri-Owei E. Bekekeme, Brambaifa Nelson

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In view of the peculiar environment of the Niger Delta, access to modern health care is limited, hence the inhabitants especially those in the swampy areas resorts to sourcing for alternatives cure for their ailments using plants commonly found in this area without scientific evaluation. Rhizophora racemosa, G. F. Meyer (Rhizophoraceae) is the most abundant mangrove plant in the Niger Delta Area of Nigeria. The plant has been observed to be used for relief of a toothache and dysmenorrhoea among some Ijaw communities in the region. This work has revealed the likely potential of the plant in drug discovery and development. The crude methanol extract at doses of 300 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg (intraperitoneal) were tested for analgesic effect using fresh egg albumin induced inflammatory pain and Randall–Sellito method to assess the pain threshold. The anti-inflammatory effect was also evaluated with the extract at doses of 300 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg (intraperitoneal) using acute inflammatory model; fresh egg albumin induced paw oedema and assessed using Plethysmometer in rats. The methanol extracts 300 mg/kg and 600 mg/kg exhibited a significant (P < 0.001) and dose-dependent analgesic activity compared with the negative control and a standard drug diclofenac using ANOVA with Least Significant Difference post hoc test as evidenced by increased pain threshold. Also, the extract significantly (P < 0.001) reduced the rat paw oedema induced by the sub plantar injection of fresh egg albumin when compared with the negative control and a standard diclofenac using above statistical methods. This study revealed that the plant possesses analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities hence provide scientific bases for use as medicine.

Keywords: analgesic, anti-inflammatory, plethysmometer, Rhizophora racemosa

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