Search results for: direct and inverse kinematics
2692 Metformin Protects Cardiac Muscle against the Pro-Apoptotic Effects of Hyperglycaemia, Elevated Fatty Acid and Nicotine
Authors: Christopher R. Triggle, Hong Ding, Khaled Machaca, Gnanapragasam Arunachalam
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The antidiabetic drug, metformin, has been in clinical use for over 50 years and remains the first choice drug for the treatment of type two diabetes. In addition to its effectiveness as an oral anti-hyperglycaemic drug metformin also possesses vasculoprotective effects that are assumed to be secondary to its ability to reduce insulin resistance and control glycated hemoglobin levels; however, recent data from our laboratory indicate that metformin also has direct vasoprotective effects that are mediated, at least in part, via the anti-ageing gene, SIRT1. Diabetes is a major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and it is also well established that tobacco use further enhances the risk of CVD; however, it is not known whether treatment with metformin can offset the negative effects of diabetes and tobacco use on cardiac function. The current study was therefore designed to investigate 1: the effects of hyperglycaemia (HG) either alone or in the presence of elevated fatty acids (palmitate) and nicotine on the protein expression levels of the deacetylase sirtuin 1 (the protein product of SIRT1), anti-apoptotic Bcl-2, pro-apoptotic BIM and the pro-apoptotic, tumour suppressor protein, acetylated p53 in cardiomyocytes. 2: the ability of metformin to prevent the detrimental effects of HG, palmitate and nicotine on cardiomyocyte survival. Cell culture protocols were designed using a rat cardiomyocyte cell line, H9c2, either under normal glycaemic (NG) conditions of 5.5mM glucose, or hyperglycaemic conditions (HG) of 25mM glucose with, or without, added palmitate (250μM) or nicotine (1.0mM) for 24h. Immuno-blotting was used to detect the expression of sirtuin 1, Bcl-2, BIM, acetylated (Ac)-p53, p53 with β-actin used as the reference protein. Exposure to HG, palmitate, or nicotine alone significantly reduced expression of sirtuin1, Bcl-2 and raised the expression levels of acetylated p53 and BIM; however, the combination of HG, palmitate and nicotine had a synergistic effect to significantly suppress the expression levels of sirtuin 1 and Bcl-2, but further enhanced the expression of Ac-p53, and BIM. The inclusion of 1000μM, but not 50μM, metformin in the H9c2 cell culture protocol prevented the effects of HG, palmitate and nicotine on the pro-apoptotic pathways. Collectively these data indicate that metformin, in addition to its anti-hyperglycaemic and vasculoprotective properties, also has direct cardioprotective actions that offset the negative effects of hyerglycaemia, elevated free fatty acids and nicotine on cardiac cell survival. These data are of particular significance for the treatment of patients with diabetes who are also smokers as the inclusion of metformin in their therapeutic treatment plan should help reduce cardiac-related morbidity and mortality.Keywords: apoptosis, cardiac muscle, diabetes, metformin, nicotine
Procedia PDF Downloads 3162691 In situ Ortho-Quinone Methide Reactions for Construction of Flavonoids with Fused Ring Systems
Authors: Vidia A. Nuraini, Eugene M. H. Yee, Mohan Bhadbhade, David StC. Black, Naresh Kumar
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Flavonoids are naturally occurring compounds that have been shown to exhibit a wide range of biological properties including anticancer and anti-inflammatory activities. However, flavonoids suffer from low bioavailability, which limits their overall utility for therapeutic applications. One of the methods to overcome this limitation is through structural modification of natural flavonoids. In this study, flavanone, isoflavanone, and isoflavene, were structurally modified through the introduction of additional fused-ring systems via ortho-quinone methide intermediates (o-QMs). These intermediates can readily undergo a [4+2] cycloaddition through an inverse-electron-demand Diels–Alder reaction with electron-rich dienophiles. A regioselective Mannich reaction using bis-(N,N-dimethylamino)methane was employed to generate the o-QM precursors of flavanone, isoflavanone, and isoflavene. The o-QM intermediates were subsequently generated in situ through thermal elimination of the dimethylamine functionality and reacted with a variety of dienophiles to produce novel flavonoids with fused-ring systems. A total of 21 novel flavonoid analogs were successfully synthesized. The X-ray crystal structure of cycloaddition adducts, particularly those derived from 3,4-dihydro-2H-pyran and p-methoxystyrene revealed a special case of enantiomeric disorder, where two enantiomers in equal amounts superpose with one another, with the exception for atoms that have opposite configuration. The anticancer properties of fused-ring systems derived from isoflavene were evaluated against the neuroblastoma SKN-BE(2)C, the triple negative breast cancer MDA-MB-231, and the glioblastoma U87 cancer cell lines. One of these cycloaddition adducts had displayed improved anti-proliferative activity against MDA-MB-231 and U87 cancer cell lines as compared to the parent compound. Further anticancer and anti-inflammatory activities of the flavanone and isoflavanone analogs are currently being investigated.Keywords: Diels-Alder reaction, flavonoids, Mannich reaction, ortho-quinone methide.
Procedia PDF Downloads 2492690 Marketing Factors Influencing the Decision to Choose Low Cost Airlines
Authors: Noppadol Sritragool
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The objectives of this research were to investigate the decision of passengers who choose to fry with low cost airlines and to study marketing factors which have the influence to the decision to choose each low cost airlines. This paper was a quantitative research technique. A total of 400 low cost airlines’ passengers were interviewed via English questionnaire to collect the respondents’ opinions. The findings revealed that respondents were male and female at a similar proportion. The majority had at least an undergraduate degree, have a lower management level jobs, and had income in the range of 25,000 -35,000 baht per month.. In addition, the findings also revealed that the first three marketing factors influencing the decision of the respondents to choose low-cost airlines were low price, direct flight, and online system.Keywords: decision to choose, marketing factors, low-cost airlines
Procedia PDF Downloads 4252689 A Comparison of TLD Measurements to MIRD Estimates of the Dose to the Ovaries and Uterus from Tc-99m in Liver
Authors: Karim Adinehvand, Bakhtiar Azadbakht, Amin Sahebnasagh
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Relation to high absorption fraction of Tc SESTAMIBI by internal organs in heart scan, and these organs are near to generation organs (Ovaries and uterus). In this study, Liver is specified as source organ. Method: we have set amount of absorbed fraction radiopharmaceutical in position of Liver in RANDO-phantom in form of elliptical surfaces, then absorbed dose to ovaries and uterus measured by TLD-100 that had set at position of these organs in RANDO-phantom. Calculation had done by MIRD method. Results from direct measurement and MIRD method are too similar. The absorbed dose to uterus and ovaries for Rest are 26.05µGyMBq-1, 17.23µGyMBq-1 and for Stress are 2.04µGyMBq-1, 1.35µGyMBq-1 respectively.Keywords: absorbed dose, TLD, MIRD, RANDO-phantom, Tc-99m
Procedia PDF Downloads 5632688 Experimental Study of the Fan Electric Drive Based on a Two-Speed Motor in Dynamic Modes
Authors: Makhsud Bobojanov, Dauletbek Rismukhamedov, Furkat Tuychiev, Khusniddin Shamsutdionov
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The article presents the results of experimental study of a two-speed asynchronous motor 4A80B6/4U3 with pole-changing winding on a fan drive VSUN 160x74-0.55-4 in static and dynamic modes. A prototype of a pole-changing Motor was made based on the results of the calculation and the performance and mechanical characteristics of the Motor were removed at the experimental stand, as well as useful capacities and other parameters from both poles were determined. In dynamic mode, the curves of changes of torque and current of the stator were removed by direct start, constant speed operation, by switching of speeds and stopping.Keywords: two speed motor, pole-changing motor, electric drive of fan, dynamic modes
Procedia PDF Downloads 1332687 The Impact of Market Orientation on the Adoption of E-Marketing and Value Co-Creation
Authors: Shu-Hui Chuang, Shao-Chun Chiu, Shu-Hsin Chuang
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While the marketing management literature is regarding the direct benefits of market orientation (MO) on firm value, the impact of such MO-based value co-creation remains largely an unexplored area of research. Thus, the primary objective of this study is to provide some new perspectives in examining how MO can enhance value co-creation for customers and sellers. In particular, drawing from the relational view of the firm and IT literature, we propose that the chain of MO-based co-creation of value and how adopt e-marketing systems between partners can facilitate this chain. Using data on use of the e-marketing system, we empirically validate that the sellers’ integrated MO is critical in increasing the e-marketing adoption, which in turn helps to creation co-creation value for both parties.Keywords: market orientation, value co-creation, e-marketing system, relational view of the firm
Procedia PDF Downloads 5252686 ISIS Resurgence in the Era of COVID-19
Authors: Stacey Pollard, Henry Baraket, Girish Ganesan, Natalie Kim
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One year after U.S.-led coalition operations liberated ISIS-held territories in Iraq and Syria and killed ISIS core leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ISIS is resurging. Taking a page from its old playbook, the organization is capitalizing on social unrest and a rapidly deteriorating security environment—exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic—to reconstitute in permissive areas of Iraq and Syria. This Short examines ISIS’s pandemic-era ground and information operations through the lens of its state- and nation-making efforts to help analysts and decisionmakers better understand the imminence and scope of the threat. ISIS is rapidly overcoming U.S.-supported counterterrorism gains and, without direct pressure to reverse these advances, is poised for recovery.Keywords: Terrorism, COVID-19, Islamic State, Instability, Iraq, Syria, Global, Resurgence
Procedia PDF Downloads 712685 Association between Maternal Personality and Postnatal Mother-to-Infant Bonding
Authors: Tessa Sellis, Marike A. Wierda, Elke Tichelman, Mirjam T. Van Lohuizen, Marjolein Berger, François Schellevis, Claudi Bockting, Lilian Peters, Huib Burger
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Introduction: Most women develop a healthy bond with their children, however, adequate mother-to-infant bonding cannot be taken for granted. Mother-to-infant bonding refers to the feelings and emotions experienced by the mother towards her child. It is an ongoing process that starts during pregnancy and develops during the first year postpartum and likely throughout early childhood. The prevalence of inadequate bonding ranges from 7 to 11% in the first weeks postpartum. An impaired mother-to-infant bond can cause long-term complications for both mother and child. Very little research has been conducted on the direct relationship between the personality of the mother and mother-to-infant bonding. This study explores the associations between maternal personality and postnatal mother-to-infant bonding. The main hypothesis is that there is a relationship between neuroticism and mother-to-infant bonding. Methods: Data for this study were used from the Pregnancy Anxiety and Depression Study (2010-2014), which examined symptoms of and risk factors for anxiety or depression during pregnancy and the first year postpartum of 6220 pregnant women who received primary, secondary or tertiary care in the Netherlands. The study was expanded in 2015 to investigate postnatal mother-to-infant bonding. For the current research 3836 participants were included. During the first trimester of gestation, baseline characteristics, as well as personality, were measured through online questionnaires. Personality was measured by the NEO Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI), which covers the big five of personality (neuroticism, extraversion, openness, altruism and conscientiousness). Mother-to-infant bonding was measured postpartum by the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire (PBQ). Univariate linear regression analysis was performed to estimate the associations. Results: 5% of the PBQ-respondents reported impaired bonding. A statistically significant association was found between neuroticism and mother-to-infant bonding (p < .001): mothers scoring higher on neuroticism, reported a lower score on mother-to-infant bonding. In addition, a positive correlation was found between the personality traits extraversion (b: -.081), openness (b: -.014), altruism (b: -.067), conscientiousness (b: -.060) and mother-to-infant bonding. Discussion: This study is one of the first to demonstrate a direct association between the personality of the mother and mother-to-infant bonding. A statistically significant relationship has been found between neuroticism and mother-to-infant bonding, however, the percentage of variance predictable by a personality dimension is very small. This study has examined one part of the multi-factorial topic of mother-to-infant bonding and offers more insight into the rarely investigated and complex matter of mother-to-infant bonding. For midwives, it is important recognize the risks for impaired bonding and subsequently improve policy for women at risk.Keywords: mother-to-infant bonding, personality, postpartum, pregnancy
Procedia PDF Downloads 3622684 Data Analysis Tool for Predicting Water Scarcity in Industry
Authors: Tassadit Issaadi Hamitouche, Nicolas Gillard, Jean Petit, Valerie Lavaste, Celine Mayousse
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Water is a fundamental resource for the industry. It is taken from the environment either from municipal distribution networks or from various natural water sources such as the sea, ocean, rivers, aquifers, etc. Once used, water is discharged into the environment, reprocessed at the plant or treatment plants. These withdrawals and discharges have a direct impact on natural water resources. These impacts can apply to the quantity of water available, the quality of the water used, or to impacts that are more complex to measure and less direct, such as the health of the population downstream from the watercourse, for example. Based on the analysis of data (meteorological, river characteristics, physicochemical substances), we wish to predict water stress episodes and anticipate prefectoral decrees, which can impact the performance of plants and propose improvement solutions, help industrialists in their choice of location for a new plant, visualize possible interactions between companies to optimize exchanges and encourage the pooling of water treatment solutions, and set up circular economies around the issue of water. The development of a system for the collection, processing, and use of data related to water resources requires the functional constraints specific to the latter to be made explicit. Thus the system will have to be able to store a large amount of data from sensors (which is the main type of data in plants and their environment). In addition, manufacturers need to have 'near-real-time' processing of information in order to be able to make the best decisions (to be rapidly notified of an event that would have a significant impact on water resources). Finally, the visualization of data must be adapted to its temporal and geographical dimensions. In this study, we set up an infrastructure centered on the TICK application stack (for Telegraf, InfluxDB, Chronograf, and Kapacitor), which is a set of loosely coupled but tightly integrated open source projects designed to manage huge amounts of time-stamped information. The software architecture is coupled with the cross-industry standard process for data mining (CRISP-DM) data mining methodology. The robust architecture and the methodology used have demonstrated their effectiveness on the study case of learning the level of a river with a 7-day horizon. The management of water and the activities within the plants -which depend on this resource- should be considerably improved thanks, on the one hand, to the learning that allows the anticipation of periods of water stress, and on the other hand, to the information system that is able to warn decision-makers with alerts created from the formalization of prefectoral decrees.Keywords: data mining, industry, machine Learning, shortage, water resources
Procedia PDF Downloads 1212683 International Trends in Sustainability Reporting Using Global Reporting Initiatives
Authors: Ramona Zharfpeykan
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This study analyses the trend and nature of sustainability key performance indicators (KPIs) reporting in firms globally. It presents both trend and panel data of sustainability reports of 798 firms in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) database from 2010 to 2014. The results show some fluctuations in the frequency of sustainability KPI reporting globally across the time while the major focus of reports in firms stayed almost the same. It made us further analyse this trend and found that there are some indicators, such as 'environmental protect expenses' and 'number of grievances', that was barely reported over this period along with some highly popular ones such as 'direct economic value' and 'employment rate'. We could not find any statistical correlation between the KPI reporting percentage and the firms’ industries generally and neither if they belong to environmentally sensitive industries.Keywords: global reporting initiatives, sustainability reporting, sustainability KPI, trends of sustainability reporting
Procedia PDF Downloads 1402682 Assessing Pain Using Morbid Motion Monitor System in the Pain Management of Nurse Practitioner
Authors: Mohammad Reza Dawoudi
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With the increasing rate of patients suffering from chronic pain, several methods for evaluating of chronic pain are suggested. Motion of morbid has been defined as the rate of pine and it is linked with various co-morbid conditions. This study provides a summary of procedure useful to statistics performing direct behavioral observation in hospital settings. We describe the need for and usefulness of comprehensive “morbid motions” observations; provide a primer on the identification, definition, and assessment of morbid behaviors; and outline and discuss specific statistical procedures, including formulating referral motions, describing and conducting the observation. We also provide practical devices for observing and analyzing the obtained information into a report that guides clinical intervention.Keywords: assessing pain, DNA modeling, image matching technique, pain scale
Procedia PDF Downloads 4052681 Combined PV Cooling and Nighttime Power Generation through Smart Thermal Management of Photovoltaic–Thermoelectric Hybrid Systems
Authors: Abdulrahman M. Alajlan, Saichao Dang, Qiaoqiang Gan
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Photovoltaic (PV) cells, while pivotal for solar energy harnessing, confront a challenge due to the presence of persistent residual heat. This thermal energy poses significant obstacles to the performance and longevity of PV cells. Mitigating this thermal issue is imperative, particularly in tropical regions where solar abundance coexists with elevated ambient temperatures. In response, a sustainable and economically viable solution has been devised, incorporating water-passive cooling within a Photovoltaic-Thermoelectric (PV-TEG) hybrid system to address PV cell overheating. The implemented system has significantly reduced the operating temperatures of PV cells, achieving a notable reduction of up to 15 °C below the temperature observed in standalone PV systems. In addition, a thermoelectric generator (TEG) integrated into the system significantly enhances power generation, particularly during nighttime operation. The developed hybrid system demonstrates its capability to generate power at a density of 0.5 Wm⁻² during nighttime, which is sufficient to concurrently power multiple light-emitting diodes, demonstrating practical applications for nighttime power generation. Key findings from this research include a consistent temperature reduction exceeding 10 °C for PV cells, translating to a 5% average enhancement in PV output power compared to standalone PV systems. Experimental demonstrations underscore nighttime power generation of 0.5 Wm⁻², with the potential to achieve 0.8 Wm⁻² through simple geometric optimizations. The optimal cooling of PV cells is determined by the volume of water in the heat storage unit, exhibiting an inverse relationship with the optimal performance for nighttime power generation. Furthermore, the TEG output effectively powers a lighting system with up to 5 LEDs during the night. This research not only proposes a practical solution for maximizing solar radiation utilization but also charts a course for future advancements in energy harvesting technologies.Keywords: photovoltaic-thermoelectric systems, nighttime power generation, PV thermal management, PV cooling
Procedia PDF Downloads 832680 Environmental and Socioeconomic Determinants of Climate Change Resilience in Rural Nigeria: Empirical Evidence towards Resilience Building
Authors: Ignatius Madu
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The study aims at assessing the environmental and socioeconomic determinants of climate change resilience in rural Nigeria. This is necessary because researches and development efforts on building climate change resilience of rural areas in developing countries are usually made without the knowledge of the impacts of the inherent rural characteristics that determine resilient capacities of the households. This has, in many cases, led to costly mistakes, delayed responses, inaccurate outcomes, and other difficulties. Consequently, this assessment becomes crucial not only to policymakers and people living in risk-prone environments in rural areas but also to fill the research gap. To achieve the aim, secondary data were obtained from the Annual Abstract of Statistics 2017, LSMS-Integrated Surveys on Agriculture and General Household Survey Panel 2015/2016, and National Agriculture Sample Survey (NASS), 2010/2011.Resilience was calculated by weighting and adding the adaptive, absorptive and anticipatory measures of households variables aggregated at state levels and then regressed against rural environmental and socioeconomic characteristics influencing it. From the regression, the coefficients of the variables were used to compute the impacts of the variables using the Stochastic Regression of Impacts on Population, Affluence and Technology (STIRPAT) Model. The results showed that the northern States are generally low in resilient indices and are impacted less by the development indicators. The major determining factors are percentage of non-poor, environmental protection, road transport development, landholding, agricultural input, population density, dependency ratio (inverse), household asserts, education and maternal care. The paper concludes that any effort to a successful resilient building in rural areas of the country should first address these key factors that enhance rural development and wellbeing since it is better to take action before shocks take place.Keywords: climate change resilience; spatial impacts; STIRPAT model; Nigeria
Procedia PDF Downloads 1482679 Coffee Consumption and Glucose Metabolism: a Systematic Review of Clinical Trials
Authors: Caio E. G. Reis, Jose G. Dórea, Teresa H. M. da Costa
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Objective: Epidemiological data shows an inverse association of coffee consumption with risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus. However, the clinical effects of coffee consumption on the glucose metabolism biomarkers remain controversial. Thus, this paper reviews clinical trials that evaluated the effects of coffee consumption on glucose metabolism. Research Design and Methods: We identified studies published until December 2014 by searching electronic databases and reference lists. We included randomized clinical trials which the intervention group received caffeinated and/or decaffeinated coffee and the control group received water or placebo treatments and measured biomarkers of glucose metabolism. The Jadad Score was applied to evaluate the quality of the studies whereas studies that scored ≥ 3 points were considered for the analyses. Results: Seven clinical trials (total of 237 subjects) were analyzed involving adult healthy, overweight and diabetic subjects. The studies were divided in short-term (1 to 3h) and long-term (2 to 16 weeks) duration. The results for short-term studies showed that caffeinated coffee consumption may increase the area under the curve for glucose response, while for long-term studies caffeinated coffee may improve the glycemic metabolism by reducing the glucose curve and increasing insulin response. These results seem to show that the benefits of coffee consumption occur in the long-term as has been shown in the reduction of type 2 diabetes mellitus risk in epidemiological studies. Nevertheless, until the relationship between long-term coffee consumption and type 2 diabetes mellitus is better understood and any mechanism involved identified, it is premature to make claims about coffee preventing type 2 diabetes mellitus. Conclusion: The findings suggest that caffeinated coffee may impairs glucose metabolism in short-term but in the long-term the studies indicate reduction of type 2 diabetes mellitus risk. More clinical trials with comparable methodology are needed to unravel this paradox.Keywords: coffee, diabetes mellitus type 2, glucose, insulin
Procedia PDF Downloads 4642678 Transgenerational Impact of Intrauterine Hyperglycaemia to F2 Offspring without Pre-Diabetic Exposure on F1 Male Offspring
Authors: Jun Ren, Zhen-Hua Ming, He-Feng Huang, Jian-Zhong Sheng
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Adverse intrauterine stimulus during critical or sensitive periods in early life, may lead to health risk not only in later life span, but also further generations. Intrauterine hyperglycaemia, as a major feature of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), is a typical adverse environment for both F1 fetus and F1 gamete cells development. However, there is scare information of phenotypic difference of metabolic memory between somatic cells and germ cells exposed by intrauterine hyperglycaemia. The direct transmission effect of intrauterine hyperglycaemia per se has not been assessed either. In this study, we built a GDM mice model and selected male GDM offspring without pre-diabetic phenotype as our founders, to exclude postnatal diabetic influence on gametes, thereby investigate the direct transmission effect of intrauterine hyperglycaemia exposure on F2 offspring, and we further compared the metabolic difference of affected F1-GDM male offspring and F2 offspring. A GDM mouse model of intrauterine hyperglycemia was established by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin after pregnancy. Pups of GDM mother were fostered by normal control mothers. All the mice were fed with standard food. Male GDM offspring without metabolic dysfunction phenotype were crossed with normal female mice to obtain F2 offspring. Body weight, glucose tolerance test, insulin tolerance test and homeostasis model of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) index were measured in both generations at 8 week of age. Some of F1-GDM male mice showed impaired glucose tolerance (p < 0.001), none of F1-GDM male mice showed impaired insulin sensitivity. Body weight of F1-GDM mice showed no significance with control mice. Some of F2-GDM offspring exhibited impaired glucose tolerance (p < 0.001), all the F2-GDM offspring exhibited higher HOMA-IR index (p < 0.01 of normal glucose tolerance individuals vs. control, p < 0.05 of glucose intolerance individuals vs. control). All the F2-GDM offspring exhibited higher ITT curve than control (p < 0.001 of normal glucose tolerance individuals, p < 0.05 of glucose intolerance individuals, vs. control). F2-GDM offspring had higher body weight than control mice (p < 0.001 of normal glucose tolerance individuals, p < 0.001 of glucose intolerance individuals, vs. control). While glucose intolerance is the only phenotype that F1-GDM male mice may exhibit, F2 male generation of healthy F1-GDM father showed insulin resistance, increased body weight and/or impaired glucose tolerance. These findings imply that intrauterine hyperglycaemia exposure affects germ cells and somatic cells differently, thus F1 and F2 offspring demonstrated distinct metabolic dysfunction phenotypes. And intrauterine hyperglycaemia exposure per se has a strong influence on F2 generation, independent of postnatal metabolic dysfunction exposure.Keywords: inheritance, insulin resistance, intrauterine hyperglycaemia, offspring
Procedia PDF Downloads 2362677 Spatial Direct Numerical Simulation of Instability Waves in Hypersonic Boundary Layers
Authors: Jayahar Sivasubramanian
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Understanding laminar-turbulent transition process in hyper-sonic boundary layers is crucial for designing viable high speed flight vehicles. The study of transition becomes particularly important in the high speed regime due to the effect of transition on aerodynamic performance and heat transfer. However, even after many years of research, the transition process in hyper-sonic boundary layers is still not understood. This lack of understanding of the physics of the transition process is a major impediment to the development of reliable transition prediction methods. Towards this end, spatial Direct Numerical Simulations are conducted to investigate the instability waves generated by a localized disturbance in a hyper-sonic flat plate boundary layer. In order to model a natural transition scenario, the boundary layer was forced by a short duration (localized) pulse through a hole on the surface of the flat plate. The pulse disturbance developed into a three-dimensional instability wave packet which consisted of a wide range of disturbance frequencies and wave numbers. First, the linear development of the wave packet was studied by forcing the flow with low amplitude (0.001% of the free-stream velocity). The dominant waves within the resulting wave packet were identified as two-dimensional second mode disturbance waves. Hence the wall-pressure disturbance spectrum exhibited a maximum at the span wise mode number k = 0. The spectrum broadened in downstream direction and the lower frequency first mode oblique waves were also identified in the spectrum. However, the peak amplitude remained at k = 0 which shifted to lower frequencies in the downstream direction. In order to investigate the nonlinear transition regime, the flow was forced with a higher amplitude disturbance (5% of the free-stream velocity). The developing wave packet grows linearly at first before reaching the nonlinear regime. The wall pressure disturbance spectrum confirmed that the wave packet developed linearly at first. The response of the flow to the high amplitude pulse disturbance indicated the presence of a fundamental resonance mechanism. Lower amplitude secondary peaks were also identified in the disturbance wave spectrum at approximately half the frequency of the high amplitude frequency band, which would be an indication of a sub-harmonic resonance mechanism. The disturbance spectrum indicates, however, that fundamental resonance is much stronger than sub-harmonic resonance.Keywords: boundary layer, DNS, hyper sonic flow, instability waves, wave packet
Procedia PDF Downloads 1822676 Uncommon Case of Falx Subdural Hematoma
Authors: Thu Nguyen, Jane Daugherty-Luck
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Falx subdural hematoma is a life-threatening condition associated with high mortality. We present a patient case who had fallen with no head injury or loss of conspicuousness. She had tenderness along cervical and thoracic lumbar spine. CT head revealed falx subdural hematoma. The patient was managed medically. The pathophysiology of falx subdural hematoma is linked to laceration of bridging veins provoked by frontal or occipital impact. Posttraumatic subdural hematoma is commonly caused by inertia instead of facture or cerebral contusion resulting from direct impact. The theory is consistent with the lack of fracture in most cases in the literature. Our patient had neither contusion nor fracture.Keywords: falx subdural hematoma, traumatic head injury, CT head scan, bridging veins, inertia
Procedia PDF Downloads 1382675 Death Anxiety and Well-being in Doctors during COVID-19: The Explanatory and Boosting Roles of Depression and Work Locality
Authors: Mamoona Mushtaq, Komal Meher
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The COVID-19 pandemic, a global public health crisis, has triggered anxiety and fear of death in the public, particularly among health professionals. This study aimed to assess the direct and mediated associations between death anxiety, sleep quality, and subjective well-being in doctors working during the pandemic. Another aim was tested to analyze the interactive role of workplace locality in these associations. An indirect-effect model was tested on a sample of 244 doctors working during the pandemic. Findings revealed that the association between death anxiety and subjective well-being was mediated through depression. The theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.Keywords: death anxiety, depression, subjective well-being, working locality
Procedia PDF Downloads 1392674 Landfill Leachate: A Promising Substrate for Microbial Fuel Cells
Authors: Jayesh M. Sonawane, Prakash C. Ghosh
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Landfill leachate emerges as a promising feedstock for microbial fuel cells (MFCs). In the present investigation, direct air-breathing cathode-based MFCs are fabricated to investigate the potential of landfill leachate. Three MFCs that have different cathode areas are fabricated and investigated for 17 days under open circuit conditions. The maximum open circuit voltage (OCV) is observed to be as high as 1.29 V. The maximum cathode area specific power density achieved in the reactor is 1513 mW m-2. Further studies are under progress to understand the origin of high OCV obtained from landfill leachate-based MFCs.Keywords: microbial fuel cells, landfill leachate, air-breathing cathode, performance study
Procedia PDF Downloads 3072673 The Factors Affecting Pupil Psychological Well-Being in Mainstream Schools: A Systematic Review
Authors: Chantelle Francis, Karen McKenzie, Charlotte Emmerson
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In the context of the rise in mental health difficulties amongst pupils, this review explores the factors that have been indicated as affecting psychological well-being in mainstream school contexts. Search terms relating to school-based psychological well-being were entered into five databases, and twenty-two studies were included in the review. The results suggested that pupil psychological well-being is affected by both direct and indirect factors. The former included a sense of belonging and inclusion, relationships with teachers, and academic attainment. The latter included family socioeconomic status, whole-school approaches, and individual differences factors, such as gender and Special Educational Needs. The implications for policymakers and practitioners are discussed.Keywords: psychological wellbeing, mainstream schools, special educational needs, school-based wellbeing
Procedia PDF Downloads 1152672 Dark Gravity Confronted with Supernovae, Baryonic Oscillations and Cosmic Microwave Background Data
Authors: Frederic Henry-Couannier
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Dark Gravity is a natural extension of general relativity in presence of a flat non dynamical background. Matter and radiation fields from its dark sector, as soon as their gravity dominates over our side fields gravity, produce a constant acceleration law of the scale factor. After a brief reminder of the Dark Gravity theory foundations, the confrontation with the main cosmological probes is carried out. We show that, amazingly, the sudden transition between the usual matter dominated decelerated expansion law a(t) ∝ t²/³ and this accelerated expansion law a(t) ∝ t² predicted by the theory should be able to fit the main cosmological probes (SN, BAO, CMB and age of the oldest stars data) but also direct H₀ measurements with two free parameters only: H₀ and the transition redshift.Keywords: anti-gravity, negative energies, time reversal, field discontinuities, dark energy theory
Procedia PDF Downloads 542671 A Summary-Based Text Classification Model for Graph Attention Networks
Authors: Shuo Liu
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In Chinese text classification tasks, redundant words and phrases can interfere with the formation of extracted and analyzed text information, leading to a decrease in the accuracy of the classification model. To reduce irrelevant elements, extract and utilize text content information more efficiently and improve the accuracy of text classification models. In this paper, the text in the corpus is first extracted using the TextRank algorithm for abstraction, the words in the abstract are used as nodes to construct a text graph, and then the graph attention network (GAT) is used to complete the task of classifying the text. Testing on a Chinese dataset from the network, the classification accuracy was improved over the direct method of generating graph structures using text.Keywords: Chinese natural language processing, text classification, abstract extraction, graph attention network
Procedia PDF Downloads 992670 The Treatment of Nitrate Polluted Groundwater Using Bio-electrochemical Systems Inoculated with Local Groundwater Sediments
Authors: Danish Laidin, Peter Gostomski, Aaron Marshall, Carlo Carere
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Groundwater contamination of nitrate (NO3-) is becoming more prevalent in regions of intensive and extensive agricultural activities. Household nitrate removal involves using ion exchange membranes and reverse osmosis (RO) systems, whereas industrial nitrate removal may use organic carbon substrates (e.g. methanol) for heterotrophic microbial denitrification. However, these approaches both require high capital investment and operating costs. In this study, denitrification was demonstrated using bio-electrochemical systems (BESs) inoculated from sediments and microbial enrichment cultures. The BES reactors were operated continuously as microbial electrolytic cells (MECs) with a poised potential of -0.7V and -1.1V vs Ag/AgCl. Three parallel MECs were inoculated using hydrogen-driven denitrifying enrichments, stream sediments, and biofilm harvested from a denitrifying biotrickling filter, respectively. These reactors were continuously operated for over a year as various operating conditions were investigated to determine the optimal conditions for electroactive denitrification. The mass loading rate of nitrate was varied between 10 – 70 mg NO3-/d, and the maximum observed nitrate removal rate was 22 mg NO3- /(cm2∙d) with a current of 2.1 mA. For volumetric load experiments, the dilution rate of 1 mM NO3- feed was varied between 0.01 – 0.1 hr-1 to achieve a nitrate loading rate similar to the mass loading rate experiments. Under these conditions, the maximum rate of denitrification observed was 15.8 mg NO3- /(cm2∙d) with a current of 1.7mA. Hydrogen (H2) was supplied intermittently to investigate the hydrogenotrophic potential of the denitrifying biofilm electrodes. H2 supplementation at 0.1 mL/min resulted in an increase of nitrate removal from 0.3 mg NO3- /(cm2∙d) to 3.4 mg NO3- /(cm2∙d) in the hydrogenotrophically subcultured reactor but had no impact on the reactors which exhibited direct electron transfer properties. Results from this study depict the denitrification performance of the immobilized biofilm electrodes, either by direct electron transfer or hydrogen-driven denitrification, and the contribution of the planktonic cells present in the growth medium. Other results will include the microbial community analysis via 16s rDNA amplicon sequencing, varying the effect of poising cathodic potential from 0.7V to 1.3V vs Ag/AgCl, investigating the potential of using in-situ electrochemically produced hydrogen for autotrophic denitrification and adjusting the conductivity of the feed solution to mimic groundwater conditions. These findings highlight the overall performance of sediment inoculated MECs in removing nitrate and will be used for the future development of sustainable solutions for the treatment of nitrate polluted groundwater.Keywords: bio-electrochemical systems, groundwater, electroactive denitrification, microbial electrolytic cell
Procedia PDF Downloads 652669 The Determinants of Co-Production for Value Co-Creation: Quadratic Effects
Authors: Li-Wei Wu, Chung-Yu Wang
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Recently, interest has been generated in the search for a new reference framework for value creation that is centered on the co-creation process. Co-creation implies cooperative value creation between service firms and customers and requires the building of experiences as well as the resolution of problems through the combined effort of the parties in the relationship. For customers, values are always co-created through their participation in services. Customers can ultimately determine the value of the service in use. This new approach emphasizes that a customer’s participation in the service process is considered indispensable to value co-creation. An important feature of service in the context of exchange is co-production, which implies that a certain amount of participation is needed from customers to co-produce a service and hence co-create value. Co-production no doubt helps customers better understand and take charge of their own roles in the service process. Thus, this proposal is to encourage co-production, thus facilitating value co-creation of that is reflected in both customers and service firms. Four determinants of co-production are identified in this study, namely, commitment, trust, asset specificity, and decision-making uncertainty. Commitment is an essential dimension that directly results in successful cooperative behaviors. Trust helps establish a relational environment that is fundamental to cross-border cooperation. Asset specificity motivates co-production because this determinant may enhance return on asset investment. Decision-making uncertainty prompts customers to collaborate with service firms in making decisions. In other words, customers adjust their roles and are increasingly engaged in co-production when commitment, trust, asset specificity, and decision-making uncertainty are enhanced. Although studies have examined the preceding effects, to our best knowledge, none has empirically examined the simultaneous effects of all the curvilinear relationships in a single study. When these determinants are excessive, however, customers will not engage in co-production process. In brief, we suggest that the relationships of commitment, trust, asset specificity, and decision-making uncertainty with co-production are curvilinear or are inverse U-shaped. These new forms of curvilinear relationships have not been identified in existing literature on co-production; therefore, they complement extant linear approaches. Most importantly, we aim to consider both the bright and the dark sides of the determinants of co-production.Keywords: co-production, commitment, trust, asset specificity, decision-making uncertainty
Procedia PDF Downloads 1872668 The Different Learning Path Analysis of Students with Different Learning Attitudes and Styles in Arts Creation
Authors: Tracy Ho, Huann-Shyang Lin, Mina Lin
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This study investigated the different learning path of students with different learning attitude and learning styles in Arts Creation. Based on direct instruction, guided-discovery learning, and discovery learning theories, a tablet app including the following three learning areas were developed for students: (1) replication and remix practice area, (2) guided creation area, and (3) free creation area. Thirty. students with different learning attitude and learning styles were invited to use this app. Students’ learning behaviors were categorized and defined. The results will provide both educators and researchers with insights that can form a useful foundation for designing different content and strategy with the application of new technologies in school teaching. It also sheds light on how an educational App can be designed to enhance Arts Creation.Keywords: App, arts creation, learning attitude, learning style, tablet
Procedia PDF Downloads 2752667 Synergism in the Inquiry Lab: An Analysis of Time Targets and Achievement
Authors: John M. Basey, Clinton D. Francis, Maxwell B. Joseph
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After gathering data from experimental procedures, inquiry-oriented-science labs often allow students the freedom to stay and complete the write up in class or leave lab early and complete the write up later. Teachers must decide whether to allow students this freedom to self-regulate this time. Student interviews have indicated four time-target strategies that may influence how students utilize this time: grade-target-A, grade-target-C, time-limited, and proficiency. The hypothesis tested was that variability in class composition relative to the four grade-target strategies has an impact on when students leave class, which in turn may influence their overall learning as exemplified by grades. Students were divided into the four indicated groups with a survey. Class composition and the GTA teaching the class had significant impacts on how long students stayed in class with class composition having the greatest impact. A factor analysis identified two factors. Factor 1 included classes with percentages of grade-target students opposite time-limited/proficiency students and explained 43% of the variance. Factor 2 included classes with percentages of grade-target-A/proficiency students opposite grade-target-C students and explained 33% of the variance. Students who stayed longer received significantly higher grades (P = 0.008) with no significant relationships between grade and Factor 1 or Factor 2 (P > 0.05). The time students stayed in class was significantly positively related to Factor 1 (P = 0.006) and significantly negatively related to Factor 2 (P = 0.008). These results support the hypothesis and indicate that teachers may want to know the composition of student-target strategies before deciding on how to have students allocate study time at the end of inquiry-oriented labs. According to these results, ideal classes for self-regulation have a high proportion of proficiency and time-limited students and a low proportion of grade-target students, or a high proportion of grade-target-A and proficiency students and a low proportion of grade-target-C students. Non-ideal classes for self-regulation were comprised of the inverse proportions.Keywords: grades, inquiry lab design, synergism in student motivation, class composition
Procedia PDF Downloads 1272666 Service Life Prediction of Tunnel Structures Subjected to Water Seepage
Authors: Hassan Baji, Chun-Qing Li, Wei Yang
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Water seepage is one of the most common causes of damage in tunnel structures, which can cause direct and indirect e.g. reinforcement corrosion and calcium leaching damages. Estimation of water seepage or inflow is one of the main challenges in probabilistic assessment of tunnels. The methodology proposed in this study is an attempt for mathematically modeling the water seepage in tunnel structures and further predicting its service life. Using the time-dependent reliability, water seepage is formulated as a failure mode, which can be used for prediction of service life. Application of the formulated seepage failure mode to a case study tunnel is presented.Keywords: water seepage, tunnels, time-dependent reliability, service life
Procedia PDF Downloads 4802665 Knowledge Transfer through Entrepreneurship: From Research at the University to the Consolidation of a Spin-off Company
Authors: Milica Lilic, Marina Rosales Martínez
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Academic research cannot be oblivious to social problems and needs, so projects that have the capacity for transformation and impact should have the opportunity to go beyond the University circles and bring benefit to society. Apart from patents and R&D research contracts, this opportunity can be achieved through entrepreneurship as one of the most direct tools to turn knowledge into a tangible product. Thus, as an example of good practices, it is intended to analyze the case of an institutional entrepreneurship program carried out at the University of Seville, aimed at researchers interested in assessing the business opportunity of their research and expanding their knowledge on procedures for the commercialization of technologies used at academic projects. The program is based on three pillars: training, teamwork sessions and networking. The training includes aspects such as product-client fit, technical-scientific and economic-financial feasibility of a spin-off, institutional organization and decision making, public and private fundraising, and making the spin-off visible in the business world (social networks, key contacts, corporate image and ethical principles). On the other hand, the teamwork sessions are guided by a mentor and aimed at identifying research results with potential, clarifying financial needs and procedures to obtain the necessary resources for the consolidation of the spin-off. This part of the program is considered to be crucial in order for the participants to convert their academic findings into a business model. Finally, the networking part is oriented to workshops about the digital transformation of a project, the accurate communication of the product or service a spin-off offers to society and the development of transferable skills necessary for managing a business. This blended program results in the final stage where each team, through an elevator pitch format, presents their research turned into a business model to an experienced jury. The awarded teams get a starting capital for their enterprise and enjoy the opportunity of formally consolidating their spin-off company at the University. Studying the results of the program, it has been shown that many researchers have basic or no knowledge of entrepreneurship skills and different ways to turn their research results into a business model with a direct impact on society. Therefore, the described program has been used as an example to highlight the importance of knowledge transfer at the University and the role that this institution should have in providing the tools to promote entrepreneurship within it. Keeping in mind that the University is defined by three main activities (teaching, research and knowledge transfer), it is safe to conclude that the latter, and the entrepreneurship as an expression of it, is crucial in order for the other two to comply with their purpose.Keywords: good practice, knowledge transfer, a spin-off company, university
Procedia PDF Downloads 1452664 3D Writing on Photosensitive Glass-Ceramics
Authors: C. Busuioc, S. Jinga, E. Pavel
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Optical lithography is a key technique in the development of sub-5 nm patterns for the semiconductor industry. We have already reported that the best results obtained with respect to direct laser writing process on active media, such as glass-ceramics, are achieved only when the energy of the laser radiation is absorbed in discrete quantities. Further, we need to clarify the role of active centers concentration in silver nanocrystals natural generation, as well as in fluorescent rare-earth nanostructures formation. As a consequence, samples with different compositions were prepared. SEM, AFM, TEM and STEM investigations were employed in order to demonstrate that few nm width lines can be written on fluorescent photosensitive glass-ceramics, these being efficient absorbers. Moreover, we believe that the experimental data will lead to the best choice in terms of active centers amount, laser power and glass-ceramic matrix.Keywords: glass-ceramics, 3D laser writing, optical disks, data storage
Procedia PDF Downloads 2952663 Polymer-Layered Gold Nanoparticles: Preparation, Properties and Uses of a New Class of Materials
Authors: S. M. Chabane sari S. Zargou, A.R. Senoudi, F. Benmouna
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Immobilization of nano particles (NPs) is the subject of numerous studies pertaining to the design of polymer nano composites, supported catalysts, bioactive colloidal crystals, inverse opals for novel optical materials, latex templated-hollow inorganic capsules, immunodiagnostic assays; “Pickering” emulsion polymerization for making latex particles and film-forming composites or Janus particles; chemo- and biosensors, tunable plasmonic nano structures, hybrid porous monoliths for separation science and technology, biocidal polymer/metal nano particle composite coatings, and so on. Particularly, in the recent years, the literature has witnessed an impressive progress of investigations on polymer coatings, grafts and particles as supports for anchoring nano particles. This is actually due to several factors: polymer chains are flexible and may contain a variety of functional groups that are able to efficiently immobilize nano particles and their precursors by dispersive or van der Waals, electrostatic, hydrogen or covalent bonds. We review methods to prepare polymer-immobilized nano particles through a plethora of strategies in view of developing systems for separation, sensing, extraction and catalysis. The emphasis is on methods to provide (i) polymer brushes and grafts; (ii) monoliths and porous polymer systems; (iii) natural polymers and (iv) conjugated polymers as platforms for anchoring nano particles. The latter range from soft bio macromolecular species (proteins, DNA) to metallic, C60, semiconductor and oxide nano particles; they can be attached through electrostatic interactions or covalent bonding. It is very clear that physicochemical properties of polymers (e.g. sensing and separation) are enhanced by anchored nano particles, while polymers provide excellent platforms for dispersing nano particles for e.g. high catalytic performances. We thus anticipate that the synergetic role of polymeric supports and anchored particles will increasingly be exploited in view of designing unique hybrid systems with unprecedented properties.Keywords: gold, layer, polymer, macromolecular
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