Search results for: bio-impedance measuring

Authors: Avani Jain, S. Shelley, M. Indirani, Shilpa Kalal, Jaykanth Amalachandran

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Aim: To evaluate the prevalence of gall bladder dysfunction in patients with dyspepsia using In-House fatty meal cholescintigraphy. Materials & Methods: This study is a prospective cohort study. 59 healthy volunteers with no dyspeptic complaints and negative ultrasound and endoscopy were recruited in study. 61 patients having complaint of dyspepsia for duration of more than 6 months were included. All of them underwent 99mTc-Mebrofenin fatty meal cholescintigraphy following a standard protocol. Dynamic acquisitions were acquired for 120 minutes with an In-House fatty meal being given at 45th minute. Gall bladder emptying kinetics was determined with gall bladder ejection fractions (GBEF) calculated at 30minutes, 45minutes and at 60 minutes (30min, 45min & 60 min). Standardization of fatty meal was done for volunteers. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used assess the diagnostic accuracy of 3 time points (30min, 45min & 60 min) used for measuring gall bladder emptying. On the basis of cut off derived from volunteers, the patients were assessed for gall bladder dysfunction. Results: In volunteers, the GBEF at 30 min was 74.42±8.26 % (mean ±SD), at 45 min was 82.61 ± 6.5 % and at 60 min was 89.37±4.48%, compared to patients where at 30min it was 33.73±22.87%, at 45 min it was 43.03±26.97% and at 60 min it was 51.85±29.60%. The lower limit of GBEF in volunteers at 30 min was 60%, 45 min was 69% and at 60 min was 81%. ROC analysis showed that area under curve was largest for 30 min GBEF (0.952; 95% CI = 0.914-0.989) and that all the 3 measures were statistically significant (p < 0.005). Majority of the volunteers had 74% of gall bladder emptying by 30 minutes; hence it was taken as an optimum cutoff time to assess gall bladder contraction. > 60% GBEF at 30 min post fatty meal was considered as normal and < 60% GBEF as indicative of gall bladder dysfunction. In patients, various causes for dyspepsia were identified: GB dysfunction (63.93%), Peptic ulcer (8.19 %), Gastroesophageal reflux disease (8.19%), Gastritis (4.91%). In 18.03% of cases GB dysfunction coexisted with other gastrointestinal conditions. The diagnosis of functional dyspepsia was made in 14.75% of cases. Conclusions: Gall bladder dysfunction contributes significantly to the causation of dyspepsia. It could coexist with various other gastrointestinal diseases. Fatty meal was well tolerated and devoid of any side effects. Many patients who are labeled as functional dyspeptics could actually have gall bladder dysfunction. Hence as an adjunct to ultrasound and endoscopy, fatty meal cholescintigraphy can also be used as a screening modality in characterization of dyspepsia.

Keywords: in-house fatty meal, choescintigraphy, dyspepsia, gall bladder ejection fraction, functional dyspepsia

Procedia PDF Downloads 488

Authors: Mokgophana Ramasobana

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Background: At the core of the demand to utilize evidence-based approaches in the policy-making cycle, prioritization of limited financial resources and results driven initiatives is the urgency to develop a cohort of competent Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) practitioners and public servants. The ongoing strides in the evaluation capacity building (ECB) initiatives are a direct response to produce the highly-sought after M&E skills. Notwithstanding the rapid growth of M&E short courses, participants perceived value and expectation of M&E short courses as a panacea for ECB have not been empirically quantified or measured. The objective of this article is to explicitly illustrate the importance of measuring ECB interventions and understanding what works in ECB and why it works. Objectives: This article illustrates the importance of establishing empirical ECB measurement tools to evaluate ECB interventions in order to ascertain its contribution to the broader evaluation practice. Method: The study was primarily a desktop review of existing literature, juxtaposed by a survey of the participants across the African continent based on the 43 M&E short courses hosted by the Centre for Learning on Evaluation and Results Anglophone Africa (CLEAR-AA) in collaboration with the Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) Results: The article established that participants perceive short course training as a panacea to improve their M&E practical skill critical to executing their organizational duties. In tandem, participants are likely to demand customized training as opposed to general topics in Evaluation. However, the organizational environments constrain the application of the newly acquired skills. Conclusion: This article aims to contribute to the 'how to' measure ECB interventions discourse and contribute towards the improvement to evaluate ECB interventions. The study finds that participants prefer training courses with longer duration to cover more topics. At the same time, whilst organizations call for customization of programmes, the study found that individual participants demand knowledge of generic and popular evaluation topics.

Keywords: evaluation capacity building, effectiveness and training, monitoring and evaluation (M&E) short course training, perceptions and expectations

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Authors: Jeremy Bost, Matthew Brett, Jacob Flynn, Weihui Li

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One response during anaphylaxis is reduced blood pressure due to blood vessels relaxing and dilating. Epinephrine causes the blood vessels to constrict, which raises blood pressure to counteract the symptoms. When going through an allergic reaction, an Epinephrine injector is used to administer a shot of epinephrine intramuscularly. Epinephrine injectors have become an integral part of day-to-day life for people with allergies. Current Epinephrine injectors (EpiPen) are completely mechanical and have no sensors to monitor the vital signs of patients or give suggestions the optimal time for the shot. The EpiPens are also large and inconvenient to carry daily. The current price of an EpiPen is roughly 600$ for a pack of two. This makes carrying an EpiPen very expensive, especially when they need to be switched out when the epinephrine expires. This new design is in the form of a bracelet, which has the ability to inject epinephrine. The bracelet will be equipped with vital signs monitors that can aid the patient to sense the allergic reaction. The vital signs that would be of interest are blood pressure, heart rate and Electrodermal activity (EDA). The heart rate of the patient will be tracked by a photoplethysmograph (PPG) that is incorporated into the sensors. The heart rate is expected to increase during anaphylaxis. Blood pressure will be monitored through a radar sensor, which monitors the phase changes in electromagnetic waves as they reflect off of the blood vessel. EDA is under autonomic control. Allergen-induced anaphylaxis is caused by a release of chemical mediators from mast cells and basophils, thus changes the autonomic activity of the patient. So by measuring EDA, it will give the wearer an alert on how their autonomic nervous system is reacting. After the vital signs are collected, they will be sent to an application on a smartphone to be analyzed, which can then alert an emergency contact if the epinephrine injector on the bracelet is activated. Overall, this design creates a safer system by aiding the user in keeping track of their epinephrine injector, while making it easier to track their vital signs. Also, our design will be more affordable and more convenient to replace. Rather than replacing the entire product, only the needle and drug will be switched out and not the entire design.

Keywords: allergy, anaphylaxis, epinephrine, injector, vital signs monitor

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Esam Jassim

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Industries using conventional fossil fuels have an interest in better understanding the mechanism of particulate formation during combustion since such is responsible for emission of undesired inorganic elements that directly impact the atmospheric pollution level. Fine and ultrafine particulates have tendency to escape the flue gas cleaning devices to the atmosphere. They also preferentially collect on surfaces in power systems resulting in ascending in corrosion inclination, descending in the heat transfer thermal unit, and severe impact on human health. This adverseness manifests particularly in the regions of world where coal is the dominated source of energy for consumption. This study highlights the behavior of calcium transformation as mineral grains verses organically associated inorganic components during pulverized coal combustion. The influence of existing type of calcium on the coarse, fine and ultrafine mode formation mechanisms is also presented. The impact of two sub-bituminous coals on particle size and calcium composition evolution during combustion is to be assessed. Three mixed blends named Blends 1, 2, and 3 are selected according to the ration of coal A to coal B by weight. Calcium percentage in original coal increases as going from Blend 1 to 3. A mathematical model and a new approach of describing constituent distribution are proposed. Analysis of experiments of calcium distribution in ash is also modeled using Poisson distribution. A novel parameter, called elemental index λ, is introduced as a measuring factor of element distribution. Results show that calcium in ash that originally in coal as mineral grains has index of 17, whereas organically associated calcium transformed to fly ash shown to be best described when elemental index λ is 7. As an alkaline-earth element, calcium is considered the fundamental element responsible for boiler deficiency since it is the major player in the mechanism of ash slagging process. The mechanism of particle size distribution and mineral species of ash particles are presented using CCSEM and size-segregated ash characteristics. Conclusions are drawn from the analysis of pulverized coal ash generated from a utility-scale boiler.

Keywords: coal combustion, inorganic element, calcium evolution, fluid dynamics

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Authors: T. Almutairi, K. Naudi, N. Nairn, X. Ju, B. Eng, J. Whitters, A. Ayoub

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Purpose: At present Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) imaging does not record dental morphology accurately due to the scattering produced by metallic restorations and the reported magnification. The aim of this pilot study is the development and validation of a new method for the replacement of the distorted dentition of CBCT scans with the dental image captured by the digital intraoral camera. Materials and Method: Six dried skulls with orthodontics brackets on the teeth were used in this study. Three intra-oral markers made of dental stone were constructed which were attached to orthodontics brackets. The skulls were CBCT scanned, and occlusal surface was captured using TRIOS® 3D intraoral scanner. Marker based and surface based registrations were performed to fuse the digital intra-oral scan(IOS) into the CBCT models. This produced a new composite digital model of the skull and dentition. The skulls were scanned again using the commercially accurate Laser Faro® arm to produce the 'gold standard' model for the assessment of the accuracy of the developed method. The accuracy of the method was assessed by measuring the distance between the occlusal surfaces of the new composite model and the 'gold standard' 3D model of the skull and teeth. The procedure was repeated a week apart to measure the reproducibility of the method. Results: The results showed no statistically significant difference between the measurements on the first and second occasions. The absolute mean distance between the new composite model and the laser model ranged between 0.11 mm to 0.20 mm. Conclusion: The dentition of the CBCT can be accurately replaced with the dental image captured by the intra-oral scanner to create a composite model. This method will improve the accuracy of orthognathic surgical prediction planning, with the final goal of the fabrication of a physical occlusal wafer without to guide orthognathic surgery and eliminate the need for dental impression.

Keywords: orthognathic surgery, superimposition, models, cone beam computed tomography

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Authors: E. Samain, T. Aussenac, D. van Tuinen, S. Selim

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Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria are known as potential biofertilizers and plant resistance inducers. The present work aims to study the durability of the resistance induced as a response to wheat seeds inoculation with PB2 and its influence by Z. tritici strains. The internal and external roots colonization have been determined in vitro, seven days post inoculation, by measuring the colony forming unit (CFU). In planta experimentations were done under controlled conditions included four wheat cultivars with different levels of resistance against Septoria Leaf Blotch (SLB) and four Z. tritici strains with high aggressiveness and resistance levels to fungicides. Plantlets were inoculated with PB2 at sowing and infected with Z. tritici at 3 leaves or tillering growth stages. The infection level with SLB was evaluated at 17 days post inoculation using real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results showed that PB2 has a high potential of wheat root external colonization (> 10⁶ CFU/g of root). However, the internal colonization seems to be cultivar dependent. Indeed, PB2 has not been observed as endophytic for one cultivar but has a high level of internal colonization with more than 104 CFU/g of root concerning the three others. Two wheat cultivars (susceptible and moderated resistant) were used to investigate PB2-induced resistance (PB2-IR). After the first infection with Z. tritici, results showed that PB2-IR has conferred a high protection efficiency (40-90%) against SLB in the two tested cultivars. Whereas the PB2-IR was effective against all tested strains with the moderate resistant cultivar, it was higher with the susceptible cultivar (> 64%) but against three of the four tested strains. Concerning the durability of the PB2-IR, after the second infection timing, it has been observed a significant decrease (10-59%) depending strains in the moderate resistant cultivar. Contrarily, the susceptible cultivar showed a stable and high protection level (76-84%) but against three of the four tested strains and interestingly, the strain that overcame PB2-IR was not the same as that of the first infection timing. To conclude, PB2 induces a high and durable resistance against Z. tritici. The PB2-IR is pathogen strain, plant growth stage and genotype dependent. These results may explain the loss of the induced resistance effectiveness under field conditions.

Keywords: induced resistance, Paenibacillus sp. strain B2, wheat genotypes, Zymoseptoria tritici

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Authors: Rayhana Begum, Manju Sharma

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Careya arborea Roxb. belongs to the Lecythidaceae family, is traditionally used in tumors, anthelmintic, bronchitis, epileptic fits, astringents, inflammation, an antidote to snake-venom, skin disease, diarrhea, dysentery with bloody stools, dyspepsia, ulcer, toothache, and ear pain. The present study was focused on investigating the anti-arthritic effect of coumaroyl lupendioic acid, a new lupane-type triterpene from Careya arborea stem bark in the chronic inflammatory model and further assessing its possible mechanism on the modulation of inflammatory biomarkers. Arthritis was induced by injecting 0.1 ml of Complete Freund’s Adjuvant (5 mg/ml of heat killed Mycobacterium tuberculosis) into the subplantar region of the left hind paw. Treatment with coumaroyl lupendioic acid (10 and 20 mg/kg, p.o.) and reference drugs (indomethacin and dexamethasone at the dose of 5 mg/kg, p.o.) were started on the day of induction and continued up to 28 days. The progression of arthritis was evaluated by measuring paw volume, tibio tarsal joint diameters, and arthritic index. The effect of coumaroyl lupendioic acid (CLA) on the production PGE₂, NO, MPO, NF-κB, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 on serum level as well as inflamed paw tissue were also assessed. In addition, ankle joints and spleen were collected and prepared for histological examination. CLA in inflamed rats resulted in significant amelioration of paw edema, tibio-tarsal joint swelling and arthritic score as compared to CFA control group. The results indicated that CLA treated groups markedly decreased the levels of inflammatory mediators (PGE₂, NO, MPO and NF-κB levels) and down-regulated the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6) in paw tissue homogenates as well as in serum. However, the more pronounced effect was observed in the inflamed paw tissue homogenates. CLA also revealed a protective effect to the tibio-tarsal joint cartilage and spleen. These results suggest that coumaroyl lupendioic acid inhibits inflammation may be through the suppression of the cascade of proinflammatory mediators via the down-regulation of NF-ҡB.

Keywords: complete Freund’s adjuvant , Coumaroyl lupendioic acid, pro-inflammatory cytokines, prostaglandin E2

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Authors: Dhouibi Mohamed, Stirbu Bogdan, Chabotier André, Pirlot Marc

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Effects of erosion and wear on the performance of small caliber guns have been analyzed throughout numerical and experimental studies. Mainly, qualitative observations were performed. Correlations between the volume change of the chamber and the maximum pressure are limited. This paper focuses on the development of a numerical model to predict the maximum pressure evolution when the interior shape of the chamber changes in the different weapon’s life phases. To fulfill this goal, an experimental campaign, followed by a numerical simulation study, is carried out. Two test barrels, « 5.56x45mm NATO » and « 7.62x51mm NATO,» are considered. First, a Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) with a contact scanning probe is used to measure the interior profile of the barrels after each 300-shots cycle until their worn out. Simultaneously, the EPVAT (Electronic Pressure Velocity and Action Time) method with a special WEIBEL radar are used to measure: (i) the chamber pressure, (ii) the action time, (iii) and the bullet velocity in each barrel. Second, a numerical simulation study is carried out. Thus, a coupled interior ballistic model is developed using the dynamic finite element program LS-DYNA. In this work, two different models are elaborated: (i) coupled Eularien Lagrangian method using fluid-structure interaction (FSI) techniques and a coupled thermo-mechanical finite element using a lumped parameter model (LPM) as a subroutine. Those numerical models are validated and checked through three experimental results, such as (i) the muzzle velocity, (ii) the chamber pressure, and (iii) the surface morphology of fired projectiles. Results show a good agreement between experiments and numerical simulations. Next, a comparison between the two models is conducted. The projectile motions, the dynamic engraving resistances and the maximum pressures are compared and analyzed. Finally, using this obtained database, a statistical correlation between the muzzle velocity, the maximum pressure and the chamber volume is established.

Keywords: engraving process, finite element analysis, gun barrel erosion, interior ballistics, statistical correlation

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Authors: Merzak Laribi, Abdelmadjid Kasser

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Thermal spraying processes are widely used to produce coatings on original constructions as well as in repair and maintenance of long standing structures. A lot of efforts forwarding to develop thermal spray coatings technology have been focused on improving mechanical characteristics, minimizing residual stress level and reducing porosity of the coatings. The specific aim of this paper is to determine either residual stresses distribution or wear resistance of stainless steel coating thermally sprayed on a carbon steel substrate. Internal stresses determination was performed using an extensometric method in combination with a simultaneous progressive electrolytic polishing. The procedure consists of measuring micro-deformations using a bi-directional extensometric gauges glued on the substrate side of the materials. Very thin layers of the deposits are removed by electrochemical polishing across the sample surface. Micro-deformations are instantaneously measured, leading to residual stresses calculation after each removal. Wear resistance of the coating has been determined using a ball-on-plate tribometer. Friction coefficient is instantaneously measured during the tribological test. Attention was particularly focused on the influence of a post-annealing at 850 °C for one hour in vacuum either on the residual stresses distribution or on the wear resistance behavior under specific wear and lubrication conditions. The obtained results showed that the microstructure of the obtained arc sprayed stainless steel coating is classical. It is homogeneous and contains un-melted particles, metallic oxides and also pores and micro-cracks. The internal stresses are in compression in the coating. They are more or less scattered between -50 and -270 MPa on the surface and decreased more at the interface. The value at the surface of the substrate is about –700 MPa, partially due to the molten particles impact with the substrate. The post annealing has reduced the residual stresses in both coating and surface of the steel substrate so that the hole material becomes more relaxed. Friction coefficient has an average value of 0.3 and 0.4 respectively for non annealed and annealed specimen. It is rather oil lubrication which is really benefit so that friction coefficient is decreased to about 0.06.

Keywords: residual stresses, wear resistance, stainless steel, coating, thermal spraying, annealing, lubrication

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Authors: Razieh Zarei, Hassan zm, Abolghasem Ajami, Darush Moslemi, Narges Afsary, Amrollah Mostafa-zade

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Introduction: IL-23 is responsible for the differentiation and expansion of Th17/ThIL-17 cells from naive CD4+ T cells. Therefore, may be IL-23/IL17 axis involve in a variety of allergic and autoimmune diseases, such as RA, MS, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), and asthma. TGF-β is also share for the differentiation Th17 producing IL-17 and CD4+CD25+Foxp3hiT regulatory cells from naïve CD4+ T cells which are involved in the regulation of immune response, maintaining immunological self-tolerance and immune homeostasis ,and the control of autoimmunity and cancer surveillance. Therefore, T regulatory cells play a key role in autoimmunity, allergy, cancer, infectious disease, and the induction of transplantation tolerance. Vitamin A and it's derivatives (retinoids) inhibit or reverse the carcinogenic process in some types of cancers in oral cavity,head and neck, breast, skin, liver, and blood cells. Shark is a murine organism and its cartilage has antitumor peptides to prevent angiogenesis, in vitro. Our purpose is whether simultaneous oral treatment vitamin A and shark cartilage can modulate IL-23/IL-17 and CD4CD25Foxp3 T regulatory cell/TGF-β pathways and Th1/Th2 immunity in patients with gastric cancer. Materials and Methods: First investigated an imbalanced supernatant of cytokines exist in patients with gastric cancer by ELISA. Associated with cytokines measuring such as IL-23,IL-17,TGF-β,IL-4 and γ-IFN, then flow cytometry was employed to determine whether the peripheral blood mononuclear cells such as CD4+CD25+Foxp3highT regulatory cells in patients with gastric cancer were changed correspondingly. Results: An imbalance between IL-17 secretion and TGF-β/Foxp3 t regulatory cell pathway and so, Th1 immunity (γ-IFN production) and TH2 immunity (IL-4 secretion) was not seen in patients with gastric cancer treated by vitamin A and shark cartilage. But, the simultaneously presented down-regulation of IL-23 indicated, at least cytokine level. Conclusion: Il-23, as a pro-angiogenesis cytokine, probably, help to tumor growth. Hence, suggested that down-regulation of IL-23, at least cytokine level, is useful for anti-tumor immune responses in patients with gastric cancer.

Keywords: IL-23/IL17 axis, TGF-β/CD4CD25Foxp3 T regulatory pathway, γ-IFN, IL-4, shark cartilage and gastric cancer

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Authors: Miroslav Hyza, Petr Rulik, Vojtech Bednar, Jan Sury

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An early and reliable detection of an increased radioactivity level in the atmosphere is one of the key aspects of atmospheric radiological monitoring. Although the standard laboratory procedures provide detection limits as low as few µBq/m³, their major drawback is the delayed result reporting: typically a few days. This issue is the main objective of the HAMRAD project, which gave rise to a prototype of an autonomous monitoring device. It is based on the idea of sequential aerosol sampling using a carrousel sample changer combined with a gamma-ray spectrometer. In our hardware configuration, the air is drawn through a filter positioned on the carrousel so that it could be rotated into the measuring position after a preset sampling interval. Filter analysis is performed via a 50% HPGe detector inside an 8.5cm lead shielding. The spectrometer output signal is then analyzed using DSP electronics and Gamwin software with preset nuclide libraries and other analysis parameters. After the counting, the filter is placed into a storage bin with a capacity of 250 filters so that the device can run autonomously for several months depending on the preset sampling frequency. The device is connected to a central server via GPRS/GSM where the user can view monitoring data including raw spectra and technological data describing the state of the device. All operating parameters can be remotely adjusted through a simple GUI. The flow rate is continuously adjustable up to 10 m³/h. The main challenge in spectrum analysis is the natural background subtraction. As detection limits are heavily influenced by the deposited activity of radon decay products and the measurement time is fixed, there must exist an optimal sample decay time (delayed spectrum acquisition). To solve this problem, we adopted a simple procedure based on sequential spectrum acquisition and optimal partial spectral sum with respect to the detection limits for a particular radionuclide. The prototyped device proved to be able to detect atmospheric contamination at the level of mBq/m³ per an 8h sampling.

Keywords: aerosols, atmosphere, atmospheric radioactivity monitoring, autonomous sampler

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Authors: Ali Al-Yaaribi, Maria Kavussanu

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Prosocial and antisocial behavior occurs in sport. Prosocial behavior is voluntary behavior intended to help or benefit another individual, while antisocial behavior is behavior intended to harm or disadvantage another individual. Previous sport morality research has investigated primarily antecedents of prosocial and antisocial behavior. However, the potential consequences of these behaviors remain unexplored. The aims of this study were to examine whether: (a) perceived prosocial and antisocial teammate behavior predicts task cohesion and burnout; (b) affect mediate these relationships; and (c) motivational climate moderates any of these effects. Participants were male (n = 96) and female (n = 176) teams sport players (Mage = 21.86, SD = 4.36), who completed questionnaires measuring the aforementioned variables. Mediation analysis (Hayes, 2013) indicated that prosocial teammate behavior positively predicted task cohesion and negatively predicted burnout; these effects were mediated by positive affect. Also, mastery climate moderated the positive effect of prosocial teammate behavior on task cohesion: The effect of antisocial teammate behavior on task cohesion was stronger for players who perceived a higher mastery climate created by their coaches. Performance climate moderated the negative effect of prosocial teammate behavior on burnout: This effect was only significant for players who perceived moderate or low levels of performance team climate. Antisocial teammate behavior negatively predicted task cohesion and positively predicted burnout, and these effects were mediated by negative affect. Also, performance climate moderated the positive effect of antisocial teammate behavior on burnout, such that the effect of antisocial teammate behavior on burnout was stronger for players who perceived a lower performance climate. The research findings shed some light on the potential role of prosocial and antisocial teammate behaviors as well as coach-created motivational climate on influencing players’ affect, task cohesion, and burnout. Coaches should focus on creating a mastery motivational climate and rewarding prosocial behavior while at the same time trying to deter antisocial behavior among teammates in order to enhance positive affect, task cohesion, and prevent experience of negative affect and burnout.

Keywords: mediation, moderation, morality, teams sport

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Authors: Sang Wook Park, Jun Su Park, Byung Kwan Oh, Yousok Kim, Hyo Seon Park

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This study suggests the estimation method of stress distribution for the beam structures based on TLS (Terrestrial Laser Scanning). The main components of method are the creation of the lattices of raw data from TLS to satisfy the suitable condition and application of CSSI (Cubic Smoothing Spline Interpolation) for estimating stress distribution. Estimation of stress distribution for the structural member or the whole structure is one of the important factors for safety evaluation of the structure. Existing sensors which include ESG (Electric strain gauge) and LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) can be categorized as contact type sensor which should be installed on the structural members and also there are various limitations such as the need of separate space where the network cables are installed and the difficulty of access for sensor installation in real buildings. To overcome these problems inherent in the contact type sensors, TLS system of LiDAR (light detection and ranging), which can measure the displacement of a target in a long range without the influence of surrounding environment and also get the whole shape of the structure, has been applied to the field of structural health monitoring. The important characteristic of TLS measuring is a formation of point clouds which has many points including the local coordinate. Point clouds is not linear distribution but dispersed shape. Thus, to analyze point clouds, the interpolation is needed vitally. Through formation of averaged lattices and CSSI for the raw data, the method which can estimate the displacement of simple beam was developed. Also, the developed method can be extended to calculate the strain and finally applicable to estimate a stress distribution of a structural member. To verify the validity of the method, the loading test on a simple beam was conducted and TLS measured it. Through a comparison of the estimated stress and reference stress, the validity of the method is confirmed.

Keywords: structural healthcare monitoring, terrestrial laser scanning, estimation of stress distribution, coordinate transformation, cubic smoothing spline interpolation

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Authors: Andrea Gion Saluz, Tal Hertig, Axel Heinrich, Stefan Stevanovic

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Higher temperatures, seasonal changes in precipitation, and extreme weather events are increasingly affecting trees. To counteract the increasing challenges of urban trees, strategies are increasingly being sought to preserve existing tree populations on the one hand and to prepare for the coming years on the other. One such strategy lies in strategic climate tree species selection. The search is on for species or varieties that can cope with the new climatic conditions. Many efforts in German-speaking countries deal with this in detail, such as the tree lists of the German Conference of Garden Authorities (GALK), the project Stadtgrün 2021, or the instruments of the Climate Species Matrix by Prof. Dr. Roloff. In this context, different methods for a correct species selection are offered. One possibility is to select certain physiological attributes that indicate the climate resilience of a species. To calculate the dissimilarity of the present climate of different geographic regions in relation to the future climate of any city, a weighted (standardized) Euclidean distance (SED) for seasonal climate values is calculated for each region of the Earth. The calculation was performed in the QGIS geographic information system, using global raster datasets on monthly climate values in the 1981-2010 standard period. Data from a European forest inventory were used to identify tree species growing in the calculated analogue climate regions. The inventory used is the compilation of georeferenced point data at a 1 km grid resolution on the occurrence of tree species in 21 European countries. In this project, the results of the methodological application are shown for the city of Zurich for the year 2060. In the first step, analog climate regions based on projected climate values for the measuring station Kirche Fluntern (ZH) were searched for. In a further step, the methods mentioned above were applied to generate tree species lists for the city of Zurich. These lists were then qualitatively evaluated with respect to the suitability of the different tree species for the Zurich area to generate a cleaned and thus usable list of possible future tree species.

Keywords: climate change, climate region, climate tree, urban tree

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Authors: Ademola A. Ladele, Peace I. Aburime

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Fake and substandard agricultural inputs pose a serious stumbling block to farm productivity and subsequently improved livelihood. There is, therefore, a need to pave ways for sustainable agriculture and self-sufficiency in food production by proffering solutions to this challenge. Maize farmers' perception of sharp practices among agro-input dealers in Ibadan/Ibarapa agricultural zone in Oyo state was therefore investigated. A multi-stage random sampling technique was used to select registered maize farmers in the Ibadan/Ibarapa agricultural zone of the Oyo State Agricultural Development Programme (OYSADEP). A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on the perception of sharp practices and the effects of sharp practices. A total of seventy-five maize farmers were interviewed. A focus group discussion was organized to identify ways of curbing sharp practices to complement the survey. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square, and Pearson Product Moment Correlation (PPMC). Forms of sharp practices indicated were sales of expired fertilizers, expired pesticides, expired herbicides, underweight fertilizers, adulterated fertilizers, adulterated herbicides, packs containing broken seeds, infested seeds, lack of truth in labeling/wrong labels, manipulation of measuring scales, and false declaration of hecterages covered by tractor operators. The majority had unfavorable perception of agro-input dealers on sharp practices. A significant relationship was observed between respondents’ level of education and their perception of sharp practices. There were no significant relationships between respondents’ sex, marital status and religion, and their perception of sharp practices. A significant correlation exists between the forms of sharp practices and the perceived effect on agricultural production. It is concluded that the perceived effect of sharp practices was critical and the endemic culture of sharp practices prevailed in agro-input in Ibadan/Ibarapa agricultural zone. A standard regulatory system that will certify and monitor the quality of inputs should be put in place.

Keywords: agricultural productivity, agro-input dealers, maize farmers, sharp practices

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Authors: Sungpil Ha, Ju Yong Kang, Sangbaek Park, Seung-Ju Lee, Soo-Won Chae

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The growing number of obese patients in aging societies has led to an increase in the number of patients with knee medial osteoarthritis (OA). Artificial joint insertion is the most common treatment for knee medial OA. Surgery is effective for patients with serious arthritic symptoms, but it is costly and dangerous. It is also inappropriate way to prevent a disease as an early stage. Therefore Non-operative treatments such as toe-in gait are proposed recently. Toe-in gait is one of non-surgical interventions, which restrain the progression of arthritis and relieves pain by reducing knee adduction moment (KAM) to facilitate lateral distribution of load on to knee medial cartilage. Numerous studies have measured KAM in various foot progression angle (FPA), and KAM data could be obtained by motion analysis. However, variations in stress at knee cartilage could not be directly observed or evaluated by these experiments of measuring KAM. Therefore, this study applied motion analysis to major gait points (1st peak, mid –stance, 2nd peak) with regard to FPA, and to evaluate the effects of FPA on the human lower extremity, the finite element (FE) method was employed. Three types of gait analysis (toe-in, toe-out, baseline gait) were performed with markers placed at the lower extremity. Ground reaction forces (GRF) were obtained by the force plates. The forces associated with the major muscles were computed using GRF and marker trajectory data. MRI data provided by the Visible Human Project were used to develop a human lower extremity FE model. FE analyses for three types of gait simulations were performed based on the calculated muscle force and GRF. We observed the maximum stress point during toe-in gait was lower than the other types, by comparing the results of FE analyses at the 1st peak across gait types. This is the same as the trend exhibited by KAM, measured through motion analysis in other papers. This indicates that the progression of knee medial OA could be suppressed by adopting toe-in gait. This study integrated motion analysis with FE analysis. One advantage of this method is that re-modeling is not required even with changes in posture. Therefore another type of gait simulation or various motions of lower extremity can be easily analyzed using this method.

Keywords: finite element analysis, gait analysis, human model, motion capture

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Authors: Joanna Estkowska

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Sensory integration methods are very useful and improve daily functioning autistic and mentally disabled children. Autism is a neurobiological disorder that impairs one's ability to communicate with and relate to others as well as their sensory system. Children with autism, even highly functioning kids, can find it difficult to process language with surrounding noise or smells. They are hypersensitive to things we can ignore such as sight, sounds and touch. Adolescents with highly functioning autism or Asperger Syndrome can study Science and Math but the social aspect is difficult for them. Nature science is an area of study that attracts many of these kids. It is a systematic field in which the children can focus on a small aspect. If you follow these rules you can come up with an expected result. Sensory integration program and systematic classroom observation are quantitative methods of measuring classroom functioning and behaviors from direct observations. These methods specify both the events and behaviors that are to be observed and how they are to be recorded. Our students with and without autism attended the lessons in the classroom of nature science in the school and in the laboratory of University of Science and Technology in Bydgoszcz. The aim of this study is investigation the effects of sensory integration methods in teaching to students with autism. They were observed during experimental lessons in the classroom and in the laboratory. Their physical characteristics, sensory dysfunction, and behavior in class were taken into consideration by comparing their similarities and differences. In the chemistry classroom, every autistic student is paired with a mentor from their school. In the laboratory, the children are expected to wear goggles, gloves and a lab coat. The chemistry classes in the laboratory were held for four hours with a lunch break, and according to the assistants, the children were engaged the whole time. In classroom of nature science, the students are encouraged to use the interactive exhibition of chemical, physical and mathematical models constructed by the author of this paper. Our students with and without autism attended the lessons in those laboratories. The teacher's goals are: to assist the child in inhibiting and modulating sensory information and support the child in processing a response to sensory stimulation.

Keywords: autism spectrum disorder, science education, sensory integration techniques, student with special educational needs

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Authors: Z. Mazrouei-Sebdani, A. Khoddami, H. Hadadzadeh, M. Zarrebini

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Silica aerogels are well-known meso-porous materials with high specific surface area (500–1000 m2/g), high porosity (80–99.8%), and low density (0.003–0.8 g/cm3). However, the silica aerogels generally are highly brittle due to their nanoporous nature. Physical and mechanical properties of the silica aerogels can be enhanced by compounding with the fibers. Although some reports presented incorporation of the fibers into the sol, followed by further modification and drying stages, no information regarding the aerogel powders as filler in the polymeric fibers is available. In this research, waterglass based aerogel powder was prepared in the following steps: sol–gel process to prepare a gel, followed by subsequent washing with propan-2-ol, n-Hexane, and TMCS, then ambient pressure drying, and ball milling. Inspired by limited dust releasing, aerogel powder was introduced to the PET electrospinning solution in an attempt to create required bulk and surface structure for the nano fibers to improve their hydrophobic and insulation properties. The samples evaluation was carried out by measuring density, porosity, contact angle, sliding angle, heat transfer, FTIR, BET and SEM. According to the results, porous silica aerogel powder was fabricated with mean pore diameter of 24 nm and contact angle of 145.9º. The results indicated the usefulness of the aerogel powder confined into nano fibers to control surface roughness for manipulating superhydrophobic nanowebs with sliding angle of 5˚ and water contact angle of 147º. It can be due to a multi-scale surface roughness which was created by nanowebs structure itself and nano fibers surface irregularity in presence of the aerogels while a laye of fluorocarbon created low surface energy. The wettability of a solid substrate is an important property that is controlled by both the chemical composition and geometry of the surface. Also, a decreasing trend in the heat transfer was observed from 22% for the nano fibers without any aerogel powder to 8% for the nano fibers with 4% aerogel powder. The development of thermal insulating materials has become increasingly more important than ever in view of the fossil energy depletion and global warming that call for more demanding energy-saving practices.

Keywords: Superhydrophobicity, Insulation, Sol-gel, Surface energy, Roughness.

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Authors: Rawa Delshada, Sanaa G. Hamab, Rastee D. Koyeec

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Eighty patients with suspected ischemic heart disease were enrolled in the present study. They were classified into two groups: patients with positive exercise stress test results (n=40) and control group with negative exercise stress test results (n=40). Serum concentration of troponin I, Heart-type Fatty Acid Binding Protein (H-FABP) and Ischemia Modified Albumin (IMA) were measured one hour after performing stress test. Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay was used to measure both troponin I, H-FABP levels, while IMA levels were measured by albumin cobalt binding test. There was no statistically significant difference in the mean concentration of troponin I between two groups (0.75±0.55ng/ml) for patients with positive test result vs. (0.71±0.55ng/ml) for negative test result group with P>0.05. Contrary to our expectation, mean IMA level was slightly higher among control group (70.88±39.76U/ml) compared to (62.7±51.9U/ml) in positive test result group, but still with no statistically significant difference (P>0.05). Median H-FABP level was also higher among negative exercise stress testing group compared the positive one (2ng/ml vs. 1.9ng/ml respectively), but failed to reach statistically significant difference (P>0.05). When quartiles model used to explore the possible association between each study biomarkers with the others; serum H-FABP level was lowest (1.7ng/ml) in highest quartile of IMA and lowest H-FABP (1.8ng/ml) in highest quartile of troponin I but with no statistically significant association (P>0.05). Myocardial ischemia, more likely occurred after exercise stress test, is not capable of causing troponin I release. Furthermore, an increase in H-FABP and IMA levels after stress test are not reflecting myocardial ischemia. Moreover, the combination of troponin I, H-FABP and IMA after measuring their post exercise levels does not improve the diagnostic utility of exercise stress test enormously.

Keywords: cardiac biomarkers, ischemic heart disease, troponin I, ischemia modified albumin, heart-type fatty acid binding protein, exercise stress testing

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Authors: Henda J Thomas, Cornelia PJ Harmse, Cecile Schultz

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Wearables are one of the technologies that will flourish within the fourth industrial revolution and digital transformation arenas, allowing employers to integrate collected data into organisational information systems. The study aimed to investigate whether wearable technology readiness can predict employees’ acceptance to wear wearables in the workplace. The factors of technology readiness predisposition that predict acceptance and positive attitudes towards wearable use in the workplace were examined. A quantitative research approach was used. The population consisted of 8 081 South African Department of Employment and Labour employees (DEL). Census sampling was used, and questionnaires to collect data were sent electronically to all 8 081 employees, 351 questionnaires were received back. The measuring instrument called the Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model (TRAM) was used in this study. Four hypotheses were formulated to investigate the relationship between readiness and acceptance of wearables in the workplace. The results found consistent predictions of technology acceptance (TA) by eagerness, optimism, and discomfort in the technology readiness (TR) scales. The TR scales of optimism and eagerness were consistent positive predictors of the TA scales, while discomfort proved to be a negative predictor for two of the three TA scales. Insecurity was found not to be a predictor of TA. It was recommended that the digital transformation policy of the DEL should be revised. Wearables in the workplace should be embraced from the viewpoint of convenience, automation, and seamless integration with the DEL information systems. The empirical contribution of this study can be seen in the fact that positive attitude emerged as a factor that extends the TRAM. In this study, positive attitude is identified as a new dimension to the TRAM not found in the original TA model and subsequent studies of the TRAM. Furthermore, this study found that Perceived Usefulness (PU) and Behavioural Intention to Use and (BIU) could not be separated but formed one factor. The methodological contribution of this study can lead to the development of a Wearable Readiness and Acceptance Model (WRAM). To the best of our knowledge, no author has yet introduced the WRAM into the body of knowledge.

Keywords: technology acceptance model, technology readiness index, technology readiness and acceptance model, wearable devices, wearable technology, fourth industrial revolution

Procedia PDF Downloads 69

Authors: Duangduen L. Bhanthumnavin, Duchduen E. Bhanthumnavin

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Widening gap between new academic knowledge in all areas and habit of exploring and exploiting this precious information by students causes an alarm and need for urgent prevention. At present, all advanced nations are committed to WHO’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which require some objective achievements by the year 2030 and further. The responsibility has been enforced on university lecturers, in addition to the higher education learning outcomes (HELO). The two groups of goals (SDGs and HELO) can be realized if most university instructors are capable of inculcating some important psychological characteristics and behavioral change in the new generations. Thus, this study aimed at pinpointing the significant factors for additional teaching skills of instructors regardless of the area of study. University lecturers from various parts of Thailand, with the total of 540 persons, participated in this cross-sectional study. Based on interactionism model of behavior antecedents, it covers psychological situational factors, as well as their interaction. Most measuring instruments were summated rating with 10 or more items, each accompanied by a six-point rating scale. All these measures were constructed with acceptable standards. Most of the respondents were volunteers who gave their written responses in a meeting room or conference hall. By applying Multiple Regression Analysis in the total sample as well as in the subsamples of these university instructors, about 70 to 73 predictive percentages with 4 to 6 significant predictors were found. The major dependent variable was instructor’s teaching behavior for inculcating the psycho-moral strength for academic exploration and knowledge application. By performing ANOVA, the less-active instructors were identified as the ones with lower education (Master’s level or lower), the minimal research producers, and the ones with less in-service trainings. The preventive factors for these three groups of instructors were intention to increase the students’ psychological development as well as moral development in their regular teaching classes. In addition, social support from their supervisors and coworkers was also necessary. Recommendations for further research and training are offered and welcomed.

Keywords: psychological inculcation, at-risk instructors, preventive measures, undergraduate teaching

Procedia PDF Downloads 47

Authors: Hannah Rosenqvist, Fanny Guay

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Critical infrastructure protection has been an important topic for several years. Programmes such as the European Programme for Critical Infrastructure Protection (EPCIP), Critical Infrastructure Warning Information Network (CIWIN) and the European Reference Network for Critical Infrastructure Protection (ENR-CIP) have been the pillars to the work done since 2006. However, measuring critical infrastructure resilience has not been an easy task. This has to do with the fact that the concept of resilience has several definitions and is applied in different domains such as engineering and social sciences. Since June 2015, the EU project IMPROVER has been focusing on developing a methodology for implementing a combination of societal, organizational and technological resilience concepts, in the hope to increase critical infrastructure resilience. For this paper, we performed research on how to include societal resilience as a form of measurement of the context of critical infrastructure resilience. Because one of the main purposes of critical infrastructure (CI) is to deliver services to the society, we believe that societal resilience is an important factor that should be considered when assessing the overall CI resilience. We found that existing methods for CI resilience assessment focus mainly on technical aspects and therefore that is was necessary to develop a resilience model that take social factors into account. The model developed within the project IMPROVER aims to include the community’s expectations of infrastructure operators as well as information sharing with the public and planning processes. By considering such aspects, the IMPROVER framework not only helps operators to increase the resilience of their infrastructures on the technical or organizational side, but aims to strengthen community resilience as a whole. This will further be achieved by taking interdependencies between critical infrastructures into consideration. The knowledge gained during this project will enrich current European policies and practices for improved disaster risk management. The framework for societal resilience analysis is based on three dimensions for societal resilience; coping capacity, adaptive capacity and transformative capacity which are capacities that have been recognized throughout a widespread literature review in the field. A set of indicators have been defined that describe a community’s maturity within these resilience dimensions. Further, the indicators are categorized into six community assets that need to be accessible and utilized in such a way that they allow responding to changes and unforeseen circumstances. We conclude that the societal resilience model developed within the project IMPROVER can give a good indication of the level of societal resilience to critical infrastructure operators.

Keywords: community resilience, critical infrastructure protection, critical infrastructure resilience, societal resilience

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Authors: Khimmatali Nomozovich Juraev

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Silicon carbide is one of the promising materials with potential applications in electronic devices using high power, high frequency and high electric field. Currently, silicon carbide is used to manufacture high power and frequency diodes, transistors, radiation detectors, light emitting diodes (LEDs) and other functional devices. In this work, the effects of magnetic field on p-n junctions based on 4H-SiC were experimentally studied. As a research material, monocrystalline silicon carbide wafers (Cree Research, Inc., USA) with relatively few growth defects grown by physical vapor transport (PVT) method were used: Nd dislocations 104 cm², Nm micropipes ~ 10–10² cm-², thickness ~ 300-600 μm, surface ~ 0.25 cm², resistivity ~ 3.6–20 Ωcm, the concentration of background impurities Nd − Na ~ (0.5–1.0)×1017cm-³. The initial parameters of the samples were determined on a Hall Effect Measurement System HMS-7000 (Ecopia) measuring device. Diffusing Ni nickel atoms were covered to the silicon surface of silicon carbide in a Universal Vacuum Post device at a vacuum of 10-⁵ -10-⁶ Torr by thermal sputtering and kept at a temperature of 600-650°C for 30 minutes. Then Ni atoms were diffused into the silicon carbide 4H-SiC sample at a temperature of 1150-1300°C by low temperature diffusion method in an air atmosphere, and the effects of the magnetic field on the I-V characteristics of the samples were studied. I-V characteristics of silicon carbide 4H-SiC p-n junction sample were measured in the magnetic field and in the absence of a magnetic field. The measurements were carried out under conditions where the magnitude of the magnetic field induction vector was 0.5 T. In the state, the direction of the current flowing through the diode is perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field. From the obtained results, it can be seen that the magnetic field significantly affects the I-V characteristics of the p-n junction in the magnetic field when it is measured in the forward direction. Under the influence of the magnetic field, the change of the magnetic resistance of the sample of silicon carbide 4H-SiC p-n junction was determined. It was found that changing the magnetic field poles increases the direct forward current of the p-n junction or decreases it when the field direction changes. These unique electrical properties of the 4H-SiC p-n junction sample of silicon carbide, that is, the change of the sample's electrical properties in a magnetic field, makes it possible to fabricate magnetic field sensing devices based on silicon carbide to use at harsh environments in future. So far, the productions of silicon carbide magnetic detectors are not available in the industry.

Keywords: 4H-SiC, diffusion Ni, effects of magnetic field, I-V characteristics

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Authors: I. Diamant, R. Srouji

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Applicant perceptions are attitudes, feelings, and cognitions which individuals have about selection procedures and have been mostly studied in the context of personnel selection. The main aim of the present study is to expand the understanding of applicant perceptions, using the framework of Organizational Justice Theory, in the domain of selection for higher education. The secondary aim is to explore the relationships between individual differences in social anxiety and applicants’ perceptions. The selection process is an accept/reject situation; it was hypothesized that applicants with higher social anxiety would experience negative perceptions and a lower success estimation, especially when subjected to social interaction elements in the process (interview and group simulation). Also, the effects of prior preparation and post-process explanations offered at the end of the selection process were explored. One hundred sixty psychology M.A. program applicants participated in this research, and following the selection process completed questionnaires measuring social anxiety, social exclusion, ratings on several justice dimensions for each of the methods in the selection process, feelings of success, and self-estimation of compatibility. About half of the applicants also received explanations regarding the significance and the aims of the selection process. Results provided support for most of our hypotheses: applicants with higher social anxiety experienced an increased level of social exclusion in the selection process, perceived the selection as less fair and ended with a lower feeling of success relative to those applicants without social anxiety. These relationships were especially salient in the selection procedures which included social interaction. Additionally, preparation for the selection process was positively related to the favorable perception of fairness in the selection process. Finally, contrary to our hypothesis, it was found that explanations did not affect the applicant’s perceptions. The results enhance our understanding of which factors affect applicant perceptions in applicants to higher education studies and contribute uniquely to the understanding of the effect of social anxiety on different aspects of selection experienced by applicants. The findings clearly show that some individuals may be predisposed to react unfavorably to certain selection situations. In an age of increasing awareness towards fairness in evaluation and selection and hiring procedures, these findings may be of relevance and may contribute to the design of future personnel selection methods in general and of higher education selection in particular.

Keywords: applicant perceptions, selection and assessment, organizational justice theory, social anxiety

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: Zhaoyang Liu

Abstract:

It has been highly desired to develop a high-performance membrane for separating oil/water emulsions with the combined features of high water flux, high oil separation efficiency, and high mechanical stability. Here, we demonstrated a design for high-performance membranes constructed with ultra-long titanate nanofibers (over 30 µm in length)/cellulose microfibers. An integrated network membrane was achieved with these ultra-long nano/microfibers, contrast to the non-integrated membrane constructed with carbon nanotubes (5 µm in length)/cellulose microfibers. The morphological properties of the prepared membranes were characterized by A FEI Quanta 400 (Hillsboro, OR, United States) environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM). The hydrophilicity, underwater oleophobicity and oil adhesion property of the membranes were examined using an advanced goniometer (Rame-hart model 500, Succasunna, NJ, USA). More specifically, the hydrophilicity of membranes was investigated by analyzing the spreading process of water into membranes. A filtration device (Nalgene 300-4050, Rochester, NY, USA) with an effective membrane area of 11.3 cm² was used for evaluating the separation properties of the fabricated membranes. The prepared oil-in-water emulsions were poured into the filtration device. The separation process was driven under vacuum with a constant pressure of 5 kPa. The filtrate was collected, and the oil content in water was detected by a Shimadzu total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer (Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan) to examine the separation efficiency. Water flux (J) of the membrane was calculated by measuring the time needed to collect some volume of permeate. This network membrane demonstrated good mechanical flexibility and robustness, which are critical for practical applications. This network membrane also showed high separation efficiency (99.9%) for oil/water emulsions with oil droplet size down to 3 µm, and meanwhile, has high water permeation flux (6.8 × 10³ L m⁻² h⁻¹ bar⁻¹) at low operation pressure. The high water flux is attributed to the interconnected scaffold-like structure throughout the whole membrane, while the high oil separation efficiency is attributed to the nanofiber-made nanoporous selective layer. Moreover, the economic materials and low-cost fabrication process of this membrane indicate its great potential for large-scale industrial applications.

Keywords: membrane, inorganic nanofibers, oil/water separation, emulsions

Procedia PDF Downloads 150

Authors: Chi-Wai Kan, Kam-Hong Chau, Ho-Shing Law

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Wicking property is important for textile finishing and wears comfort. Good wicking properties can ensure uniformity and efficiency of the textiles treatment. In view of wear comfort, quick wicking fabrics facilitate the evaporation of sweat. Therefore, the wetness sensation of the skin is minimised to prevent discomfort. The testing method for vertical wicking was standardised by the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) in 2011. The traditional vertical wicking test involves human error to observe fast changing and/or unclear wicking height. This study introduces optoelectronic devices to achieve an automatic Vertical Wicking Tester (VWT) and reduce human error. The VWT can record the wicking time and wicking height of samples. By reducing the difficulties of manual judgment, the reliability of the vertical wicking experiment is highly increased. Furthermore, labour is greatly decreased by using the VWT. The automatic measurement of the VWT has optoelectronic devices to trace the liquid wicking with a simple operation procedure. The optoelectronic devices detect the colour difference between dry and wet samples. This allows high sensitivity to a difference in irradiance down to 10 μW/cm². Therefore, the VWT is capable of testing dark fabric. The VWT gives a wicking distance (wicking height) of 1 mm resolution and a wicking time of one-second resolution. Acknowledgment: This is a research project of HKRITA funded by Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) with title “Development of an Automatic Measuring System for Vertical Wicking” (ITP/055/20TP). Author would like to thank the financial support by ITF. Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material/event (or by members of the project team) do not reflect the views of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the Innovation and Technology Commission or the Panel of Assessors for the Innovation and Technology Support Programme of the Innovation and Technology Fund and the Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel. Also, we would like to thank the support and sponsorship from Lai Tak Enterprises Limited, Kingis Development Limited and Wing Yue Textile Company Limited.

Keywords: AATCC method, comfort, textile measurement, wetness sensation

Procedia PDF Downloads 78

Authors: Andrea Catorci, Federico Maria Tardella, Alessandro Brica, Muhammad Umair

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Climate change models predict for the Mediterranean region a strong increase of intensity and frequency of drought events, with an expected effect on grassland biodiversity and functioning. The research aim was to understand how the grassland species modulate their resource acquisition and conservation strategies to short-term variation of the pattern of summer water supply. The study area is mountain meadows located in the ‘‘Montagna di Torricchio’’ (1130 m a.s.l.) a Nature Reserve in central Italy. In 2017 we started a manipulative experiment for 2 year (2017-2018), and we defined two treatments, one with increasing water (watering condition) and the other with less water (drought condition). Then, we investigated how species change their resource strategies at different amount of water availability by measuring the specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf area (LA). We used ANOVAs to test the effect of treatment over time on leaf area and specific leaf area, considering all the species together and also separately according to their growth form (forb, grass, legume). Our results showed that species may respond differently depending on their growth form and that using all the species together may cover more detailed variation. Overall, resource retaining strategies (lower SLA, LA) are resulted by increase of drought condition, while increase in water amount and number of watering events fosters acquisitive strategies (higher SLA, LA). However, this pattern is not constant for all growth form. Grass species are able to maintain their strategies to variation of the pattern of water availability. Forb and legume species on the other side have shown decreasing trend of SLA, LA values with increasing drought condition, a pattern more marked for the latter growth form. These variations suggest not only an increase of slow-growing strategies for both growth form, but also a decrease of their nutrient pastoral values since their leaves are supposed to become harder. Local farmers should consider the effect of climate change on grassland and adapt their management practices to guarantee the cattle welfare.

Keywords: function strategies, grasslands, climate change, sub Mediterranean region

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Authors: Bahareh Sarmadi, Paul A. Kilmartin, Leandro D. Araújo, Brandt P. Bastow

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Aim: Sauvignon blanc is the most substantial variety cultivated in almost 62% of all producing vineyards of New Zealand. The popularity of New Zealand Sauvignon blanc is due to its unique taste. It is the most famous wine characterized by its aroma profile derived from mercaptans. 3-mercaptohexan-1-ol (3MH) and 3-mercaptohexyl acetate (3MHA) are two of the most important volatile mercaptans found in Sauvignon blanc wines. “Viticultural” and “Enological” factors such as machine-harvesting, the most common harvesting practice used in New Zealand, can be among the reasons for this distinct flavor. Elemental sulfur is commonly sprayed in the fields to protect berries against powdery mildew. Although it is not the only source of sulfur, this practice creates a source of elemental sulfur that can be transferred into the must and eventually into wines. Despite the clear effects of residual elemental sulfur present in the must on the quality and aroma of the final wines, its measurement before harvest or fermentation is not a regular practice in the wineries. This can be due to the lack of accessible and applicable methods for the equipment at most commercial wineries. This study aims to establish a relationship between the number and frequency of elemental sulfur applications and the concentration of polyfunctional mercaptans in the final wines. Methods: An apparatus was designed to reduce elemental sulfur to sulfide, then an ion-selective electrode to measure sulfide concentration. During harvest 2022, we explored a wider range of residual elemental sulfur levels than what typically applies in the vineyards. This has been done through later manual elemental sulfur applications in the vineyard. Additional sulfur applications were made 20, 10 and 5 days prior to harvesting the treated grapes, covering long and short pre-harvest intervals (PHI). The grapes were processed into juice and fermented into wine; then, they were analyzed to find the correlation between polyfunctional mercaptans concentrations in the wines and residual elemental sulfur in the juice samples. Results: The research showed that higher 3MH/3MHA was formed when elemental sulfur was applied more frequent in the vineyards and supported the proposed pathway in which elemental sulfur is a source of 3MH formation in wines.

Keywords: sauvignon blanc, elemental sulfur, polyfunctional mercaptans, varietal thiols

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Authors: Mohaammad Ahmadpanah, Amineh Akhondi, Mohammad Haghighi, Ali Ghaleiha, Leila Jahangard, Elham Salari

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Background: Working memory includes the capability to keep and manipulate information in a short period of time. This capability is the basis of complicated judgments and has been attended to as the specific and constant character of individuals. Children with attention deficit and hyperactivity are among the people suffering from deficiency in the active memory, and this deficiency has been attributed to the problem of frontal lobe. This study utilizes a new approach with suitable tasks and methods for training active memory and assessment of the effects of the trainings. Participants: The children participating in this study were of 7-15 year age, who were diagnosed by the psychiatrist and psychologist as hyperactive and attention deficit based on DSM-IV criteria. The intervention group was consisted of 8 boys and 6 girls with the average age of 11 years and standard deviation of 2, and the control group was consisted of 2 girls and 5 boys with an average age of 11.4 and standard deviation of 3. Three children in the test group and two in the control group were under medicinal therapy. Results: Working memory training meaningfully improved the performance in not-trained areas as visual-spatial working memory as well as the performance in Raven progressive tests which are a perfect example of non-verbal, complicated reasoning tasks. In addition, motional activities – measured based on the number of head movements during computerized measuring program – was meaningfully reduced in the medication group. The results of the second test showed that training similar exercise to teenagers and adults results in the improvement of cognition functions, as in hyperactive people. Discussion: The results of this study showed that the performance of working memory is improved through training, and these trainings are extended and generalized in other areas of cognition functions not receiving any training. Trainings resulted in the improvement of performance in the tasks related to prefrontal. They had also a positive and meaningful impact on the moving activities of hyperactive children.

Keywords: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, working memory, non-medical treatment, children

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Authors: Covadonga Rodrigo, Felipe Alvarez Arrieta, Ana Garcia Serrano

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Mobile augmented reality technologies have become very popular in the last years in the educational field. Researchers have studied how these technologies improve the engagement of the student and better understanding of the process of learning. But few studies have been made regarding the accessibility of these new technologies applied to digital humanities. The goal of our research is to develop an accessible mobile application with embedded augmented reality main characters of the art work and gamification events accompanied by multi-sensorial activities. The mobile app conducts a learning itinerary around the artistic work, driving the user experience in and out the museum. The learning design follows the inquiry-based methodology and social learning conducted through interaction with social networks. As for the software application, it’s being user-centered designed, following the universal design for learning (UDL) principles to assure the best level of accessibility for all. The mobile augmented reality application starts recognizing a marker from a masterpiece of a museum using the camera of the mobile device. The augmented reality information (history, author, 3D images, audio, quizzes) is shown through virtual main characters that come out from the art work. To comply with the UDL principles, we use a version of the technology acceptance model (TAM) to study the easiness of use and perception of usefulness, extended by the authors with specific indicators for measuring accessibility issues. Following a rapid prototype method for development, the first app has been recently produced, fulfilling the EN 301549 standard and W3C accessibility guidelines for mobile development. A TAM-based web questionnaire with 214 participants with different kinds of disabilities was previously conducted to gather information and feedback on user preferences from the artistic work on the Museo del Prado, the level of acceptance of technology innovations and the easiness of use of mobile elements. Preliminary results show that people with disabilities felt very comfortable while using mobile apps and internet connection. The augmented reality elements seem to offer an added value highly engaging and motivating for the students.

Keywords: H.5.1 (multimedia information systems), artificial, augmented and virtual realities, evaluation/methodology

Procedia PDF Downloads 115