Search results for: gap type

Authors: H. Aljabiry, L. Bailey, S. Young

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Qatar is a desert with an average temperature 37⁰C, reaching over 40⁰C during summer. Precipitation is uncommon and mostly in winter. Qatar depends on desalination for drinking water and on groundwater and recycled water for irrigation. Water consumption and network leakage per capita in Qatar are amongst the highest in the world; re-use of treated wastewater is extremely limited with only 14% of treated wastewater being used for irrigation. This has led to the country disposing of unwanted water from various sources in lagoons situated around the country, causing concern over the possibility of environmental pollution. Accordingly, our hypothesis underpinning this research is that the quality and quantity of water in lagoons is having an impact on the groundwater reservoirs in Qatar. Lagoons (n = 14) and wells (n = 55) were sampled for both summer and winter in 2018 (summer and winter). Water, adjoining soil and plant samples were analysed for multiple elements by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. Organic and inorganic carbon were measured (CN analyser) and the major anions were determined by ion chromatography. Salinization in both the lagoon and the wells was seen with good correlations between Cl⁻, Na⁺, Li, SO₄, S, Sr, Ca, Ti (p-value < 0.05). Association of heavy metals was observed of Ni, Cu, Ag, and V, Cr, Mo, Cd which is due to contamination from anthropological activities such as wastewater disposal or spread of contaminated dust. However, looking at each elements none of them exceeds the Qatari regulation. Moreover, gypsum saturation in the system was observed in both the lagoon and wells water samples. Lagoons and the water of the well are found to be of a saline type as well as Ca²⁺, Cl⁻, SO₄²⁻ type evidencing both gypsum dissolution and salinization in the system. Moreover, Maps produced by Inverse distance weighting showed an increasing level of Nitrate in the groundwater in winter, and decrease chloride and sulphate level, indicating recharge effect after winter rain events. While E. coli and faecal bacteria were found in most of the lagoons, biological analysis for wells needs to be conducted to understand the biological contamination from lagoon water infiltration. As a conclusion, while both the lagoon and the well showed the same results, more sampling is needed to understand the impact of the lagoons on the groundwater.

Keywords: groundwater quality, lagoon, treated wastewater, water management, wastewater treatment, wetlands

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Authors: Mohammed Alnuwairan, Mahmoud Abdelrahman

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Based on the sustainability concept, this paper explores the current situation of construction and demolition waste (C&D) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) from the source of production to final destinations. The issues that hindered the investment of recycling C&D in the context will be studied in order to identify the challenges and opportunities to improve this sector and put forward a strategic framework to reduce, reuse, recycle and minimize the disposal of this type of waste. The research, which is exploratory in nature, identified four types of organizations that were appropriate case studies. These organizations were drawn from the municipalities, city council, recyclers and manufacturers. Secondary data collection, direct observation, and elite interviewing methods were used in the case studies to facilitate comparisons with existing literature to explore opportunities to improve sustainability practices in the buildings sector. Implementation of C&D waste management and recycling in KSA is in the early stages. Resistance of virgin building material manufacturers, free usage of landfill, culture, surpluses of natural raw material, availability of land and the cost of recycling this material compared with virgin material hinders the adoption of recycled buildings martial. Although the metal material is collected and recycled but it has the lowest percentage of C&D waste in Saudi. The findings indicate that government and industry need to collaborate more closely in order to successfully implement best practices. Economic and environmental benefits can be achieved, particularly through improvements to infrastructure and legislation. Feasible solution framework and recommendations for managing C&D waste under current situation are provided. The findings can be used to extend this framework and to enable it to be applicable in other context with emerging economies similar to that found in KSA. No study of this type has been previously carried out in KSA. The findings should prove useful in creating a future research agenda for C&D waste in KSA and, possibly, other emerging countries within a similar context.

Keywords: construction and demolition waste, recycling, reuse, sustainability

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Authors: Ziyan Zhang

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Although the Synthetic Control Method (SCM) is now widely applied, its most commonly- used inference method, placebo test, is often problematic, especially when the treatment is not uniquely assigned. This paper discusses the problems with the placebo test under the multivariate treatment case. And, to improve the power of inferences, I further propose an Andrews-type procedure as it potentially solves some drawbacks of the placebo test. Simulations are conducted to show the Andrews’ test is often valid and powerful, compared with the placebo test.

Keywords: Synthetic Control Method, Multiple treatments, Andrews' test, placebo test

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Authors: Teresa Rushe, Nicole Devlin, Tara O Neill

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In this study, we sought to examine associations between childhood experiences of community and collective violence and psychological functioning in young people who grew up in post-conflict Northern Ireland. We hypothesized that those who grew up with such experiences would demonstrate internalizing and externalizing difficulties in early adulthood and, furthermore, that these difficulties would be mediated by adverse childhood experiences occurring within the home environment. As part of the Northern Ireland Childhood Adversity Study, we recruited 213 young people aged 18-25 years (108 males) who grew up in the post-conflict society of Northern Ireland using purposive sampling. Participants completed a digital questionnaire to measure adverse childhood experiences as well as aspects of psychological functioning. We employed the Adverse Childhood Experience -International Questionnaire (ACE-IQ¬) adaptation of the original Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire (ACE) as it additionally measured aspects of witnessing community violence (e.g., seeing someone being beaten/killed, fights) and experiences of collective violence (e.g., war, terrorism, police, or gangs’ battles exposure) during the first 18 years of life. 51% of our sample reported experiences of community and/or collective violence (N=108). Compared to young people with no such experiences (N=105), they also reported significantly more adverse experiences indicative of household dysfunction (e.g., family substance misuse, mental illness or domestic violence in the family, incarceration of a family member) but not more experiences of abuse or neglect. As expected, young people who grew up with the community and/or collective violence reported significantly higher anxiety and depression scores and were more likely to engage in acts of deliberate self-harm (internalizing symptoms). They also started drinking and taking drugs at a younger age and were significantly more likely to have been in trouble with the police (externalizing symptoms). When the type of violence exposure was separated by whether the violence was witnessed (community violence) or more directly experienced (collective violence), we found community and collective violence to have similar effects on externalizing symptoms, but for internalizing symptoms, we found evidence of a differential effect. Collective violence was associated with depressive symptoms, whereas witnessing community violence was associated with anxiety-type symptoms and deliberate self-harm. However, when experiences of household dysfunction were entered into the models predicting anxiety, depression, and deliberate self-harm, none of the main effects remained significant. This suggests internalizing type symptoms are mediated by immediate family-level experiences. By contrast, significant community and collective violence effects on externalizing behaviours: younger initiation of alcohol use, younger initiation of drug use, and getting into trouble with the police persisted after controlling for family-level factors and thus are directly associated with growing up with the community and collective violence. Given the cross-sectional nature of our study, we cannot comment on the direction of the effect. However, post-hoc correlational analyses revealed associations between externalising behaviours and personal factors, including greater risk-taking and young age at puberty. The implications of the findings will be discussed in relation to interventions for young people and families living with the community and collective violence.

Keywords: community and collective violence, adverse childhood experiences, youth, psychological wellbeing

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Authors: Young Ah Kim, Hyunsoo Kim, Eun-Jeong Yoon, Young Hee Seo, Kyungwon Lee

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Extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli from food animals are considered as a reservoir for transmission of ESBL genes to human. The aim of this study is to assess the prevalence and molecular epidemiology of ESBL-producing E. coli colonization in pigs, farm workers, and farm environments to elucidate the transmission of multidrug-resistant clones from animal to human. Nineteen pig farms were enrolled across the country in Korea from August to December 2017. ESBL-producing E. coli isolates were detected in 190 pigs, 38 farm workers, and 112 sites of farm environments using ChromID ESBL (bioMerieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France), directly (stool or perirectal swab) or after enrichment (sewage). Antimicrobial susceptibility tests were done with disk diffusion methods and blaTEM, blaSHV, and blaCTX-M were detected with PCR and sequencing. The genomes of the four CTX-M-55-producing E. coli isolates from various sources in one farm were entirely sequenced to assess the relatedness of the strains. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was performed with PacBio RS II system (Pacific Biosciences, Menlo Park, CA, USA). ESBL genotypes were 85 CTX-M-1 group (one CTX-M-3, 23 CTX-M-15, one CTX-M-28, 59 CTX-M-55, one CTX-M-69) and 60 CTX-M-9 group (41 CTX-M-14, one CTX-M-17, one CTX-M-27, 13 CTX-M-65, 4 CTX-M-102) in total 145 isolates. The rectal colonization rates were 53.2% (101/190) in pigs and 39.5% (15/38) in farm workers. In WGS, sequence types (STs) were determined as ST69 (E. coli PJFH115 isolate from a human carrier), ST457 (two E. coli isolates PJFE101 recovered from a fence and PJFA1104 from a pig) and ST5899 (E. coli PJFA173 isolate from the other pig). The four plasmids encoding CTX-M-55 (88,456 to 149, 674 base pair), whether it belonged to IncFIB or IncFIC-IncFIB type, shared IncF backbone furnishing the conjugal elements, suggesting of genes originated from same ancestor. In conclusion, the prevalence of ESBL-producing E. coli in swine farms was surprisingly high, and many of them shared common ESBL genotypes of clinical isolates such as CTX-M-14, 15, and 55 in Korea. It could spread by horizontal transfer between isolates from different reservoirs (human-animal-environment).

Keywords: Escherichia coli, extended-spectrum β-lactamase, prevalence, whole genome sequencing

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Authors: Yi-Ting Wang, Wen-Shu Lai

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The subject of this paper is the photography in the 1983 film Paris, Texas, directed by Wim Wenders. Wenders is well known as a film director as well as a photographer. We have found that photography is shown as a photographic element in many of his films. Some of these photographs serve as details within the films, while others play important roles that are relevant to the story. This paper aims to consider photographs in film as a specific type of text, which is the output of both still photography and the film itself. In the film Paris, Texas, three sets of important photographs appear whose symbolic meanings are as dialectical as their text types. The relationship between the existence of these photos and the storyline is both dependent and isolated. The film’s images fly by and progress into other images, while the photos in the film serve a unique narrative function by stopping the continuously flowing images thus provide the viewer a space for imagination and contemplation. They are more than just artistic forms; they also contained multiple meanings. The photographs in Paris, Texas play the role of both presence and absence according to their shifting meanings. There are references to their presence: photographs exist between film time and narrative time, so in terms of the interaction between the characters in the film, photographs are a common symbol of the beginning and end of the characters’ journeys. In terms of the audience, the film’s photographs are a link in the viewing frame structure, through which the creative motivation of the film director can be explored. Photographs also point to the absence of certain objects: the scenes in the photos represent an imaginary map of emotion. The town of Paris, Texas is therefore isolated from the physical presence of the photograph, and is far more abstract than the reality in the film. This paper embraces the ambiguous nature of photography and demonstrates its presence and absence in film with regard to the meaning of text. However, it is worth reflecting that the temporary nature of the interpretation of the film’s photographs is far greater than any other type of photographic text: the characteristics of the text cause the interpretation results to change along with the variations in the interpretation process, which makes their meaning a dynamic process. The photographs’ presence or absence in the context of Paris, Texas also demonstrates the presence and absence of the creator, time, the truth, and the imagination. The film becomes more complete as a result of the revelation of the photographs, while the intertextual connection between these two forms simultaneously provides multiple possibilities for the interpretation of the photographs in the film.

Keywords: film, Paris, Texas, photography, Wim Wenders

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Authors: David Sarpong, Waleed Khursheed, Ernest Danquah, Erin Murphy

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Shigella is a pathogenic bacterium responsible for shigellosis, a severe diarrheal disease that claims the lives of immunocompromised individuals worldwide. To develop therapeutics against this disease, an understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathogen’s physiology is crucial. Small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs) have emerged as important regulators of bacterial physiology, including as components of toxin-antitoxin systems. In this study, we investigated the role of RyfA in S. flexneri physiology and virulence. RyfA, originally identified as an sRNA in Escherichia coli, is conserved within the Enterobacteriaceae family, including Shigella. Whereas two copies of ryfA are present in S. dysenteriae, all other Shigella species contain only one copy of the gene. Additionally, we identified a putative open reading frame within the RyfA transcript, suggesting that it may be a dual-functioning gene encoding a small protein in addition to its sRNA function. To study ryfA in vitro, we cloned the gene into an inducible plasmid and observed the effect on bacterial growth. Here, we report that RyfA production inhibits the growth of S. flexneri, and this inhibition is dependent on the contained open reading frame. In-silico analyses have revealed the presence of two divergently transcribed sRNAs, RyfB1 and RyfB2, which share nucleotide complementarity with RyfA and thus are predicted to function as anti-toxins. Our data demonstrate that RyfB2 has a stronger antitoxin effect than RyfB1. This regulatory pattern suggests a novel form of a toxin-antitoxin system in which the activity of a single toxin is inhibited to varying degrees by two sRNA antitoxins. Studies are ongoing to investigate the regulatory mechanism(s) of the antitoxin genes, as well as the downstream targets and mechanism of growth inhibition by the RyfA toxin. This study offers distinct insights into the regulatory mechanisms underlying Shigella physiology and may inform the development of new anti-Shigella therapeutics.

Keywords: sRNA, shigella, toxin-antitoxin, Type 1 toxin antitoxin

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Authors: Julia V. F. Cortes, Maria E. V. Amarante, Carolina L. Cerdeira, Roberta B. V. Silva

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Nonmelanoma skin cancer is more commonly diagnosed than all other malignancies combined. In that group, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma stands out for having the highest probability of metastasis and recurrence after treatment, in addition to being the second most prevalent form of skin cancer. Its main risk factors include exposure to carcinogens, such as ultraviolet radiation related to sunlight exposure, smoking, alcohol consumption, and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. Considering the increased risk of skin cancer in the Brazilian population, caused by the high incidence of solar radiation, and the importance of identifying risk phenotypes for the accomplishment of public health actions, an epidemiological study was conducted in a city with a tropical climate located in southeastern Brazil, aiming to identify the target population and assist in primary and secondary prevention. This study describes the profile of patients with cutaneous squamous cell cancer, correlating the variables, sex, age, and differentiation. The study used as primary data source the results of anatomopathological exams delivered from January 2015 to December 2019 for patients registered at one pathology service, which analyzes the results of biopsies, Thus, 66 patients with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma were analyzed. The most affected age group was 60 years or older (78.79%), emphasizing that moderately differentiated (79.49%) and well-differentiated forms (66.67%) are prevalent in this age group, resulting in a difference of 12.82 percentage points between them. In addition, the predominant sex was male (58%), and it was found that half of the women and 65.79% of men had a moderately differentiated type, whereas the well-differentiated type was slightly more frequent in women. It is worth noting that the moderately differentiated subtype has a 59.20% prevalence among all cases. Thus, it was concluded that the most affected age group was 60 years or older and that men were more affected. As for the subtype, the moderately differentiated one, which is recognized for presenting the second-highest risk for metastasis, was prevalent in this study, affecting 6.6% more men and predominating in the elderly.

Keywords: cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, epidemiology, skin cancer, spinal cell cancer

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Authors: Gürkan Şakar, Akgün Alsaran, Emrah E. Özbaldan

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In this study, lateral buckling analysis of composite beams with particle additive was carried out experimentally and numerically. The effects of particle type, particle addition ratio on buckling loads of composite beams were determined. The numerical studies were performed with ANSYS package. In the analyses, clamped-free boundary condition was assumed. The load carrying capabilities of composite beams were influenced by different particle types and particle addition ratios.

Keywords: lateral buckling, nanoparticle, composite beam, numeric analysis

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Authors: Natsuko D'Aprile

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The construction of Nation-States is a historical process that produces a type of national identity and culture that States nowadays mobilise for global outreach. National culture, as a set of norms and values influencing individuals’ actions and decisions, produces a type of policy making of various strategies that impact how a Nation is promoted overseas. The 1990s were marked by a resurgence of the debates on national identity. This period is believed to have paved the way for nationalism and witnessed increased attention to analytical approaches to identity. Public diplomacy is a concrete example of how national culture is mobilised to project a favourable image of a Nation abroad, especially in the narratives on national identity mobilised by diplomatic actors. Public diplomacy is understood as providing tools for States to build and project strategic narratives that represent events and identities in an attempt to influence domestic and foreign audiences, be they domestic or foreign. France and Japan received little attention on the matter. This research hence aims to investigate how France and Japan have mobilised narratives on national identity since the 1990s in the context of their public diplomacy. To understand how identities are framed, qualitative and quantitative discourse analysis has been performed on a corpus of various speeches held by French and Japanese political actors in which they present their diplomacy goals, as well as official documents provided by both Ministries of Foreign Affairs. This analysis showed that the French discourse integrates a narrative on France’s universal vocation, relying on the expression of a Nation whose model is worldly applicable and has the legitimacy to influence international decisions. The Japanese discourse does not concretely emphasise Japanese or Asian values, except for some narratives integrating Confucian and Shintō values. It rather revolves around the need for Japan to ensure its citizens’ security and prosperity, hence the need for the Government to contribute to peace in the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

Keywords: comparative politics, culture, discourse analysis, narratives, public diplomacy

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Authors: Chen Chuanzhi, Guo Yunyun

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The large linear array feeding parabolic cylindrical antenna of the satellite has the ability of large-area line focusing, multi-directional beam clusters simultaneously in a certain azimuth plane and elevation plane, corresponding quickly to different orientations and different directions in a wide frequency range, dual aiming of frequency and direction, and combining space power. Therefore, the large-diameter parabolic cylindrical antenna has become one of the new development directions of spaceborne antennas. Limited by the size of the rocked fairing, the large-diameter spaceborne antenna is required to be small mass and have a deployment function. After being orbited, the antenna can be deployed by expanding and be stabilized. However, few types of structures can be used to construct large cylindrical shell structures in existing structures, which greatly limits the development and application of such antennas. Aiming at high structural efficiency, the geometrical characteristics of parabolic cylinders and mechanism topological mapping law to the expandable truss are studied, and the basic configuration of deployable truss with cylindrical shell is structured. Then a modular truss parabolic cylindrical antenna is designed in this paper. The antenna has the characteristics of stable structure, high precision of reflecting surface formation, controllable motion process, high storage rate, and lightweight, etc. On the basis of the overall configuration comprehensive theory and optimization method, the structural stiffness of the modular truss parabolic cylindrical antenna is improved. And the bearing density and impact resistance of support structure are improved based on the internal tension optimal distribution method of reflector forming. Finally, a truss-type cylindrical deployable support structure with high constriction-deployment ratio, high stiffness, controllable deployment, and low mass is successfully developed, laying the foundation for the application of large-diameter parabolic cylindrical antennas in satellite antennas.

Keywords: linear array feed antenna, truss type, parabolic cylindrical antenna, spaceborne antenna

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Authors: Njabulo Ncube, Elena Kulinskaya, Nicholas Steel, Dmitry Pshezhetskiy

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Life expectancy in the United Kingdom (UK) has been near constant since 2010, particularly for the individuals of 65 years and older. This trend has been also noted in several other countries. This slowdown in the increase of life expectancy was concurrent with the increase in the number of deaths caused by non-communicable diseases. Of particular concern is the world-wide exponential increase in the number of diabetes related deaths. Previous studies have reported increased mortality hazards among diabetics compared to non-diabetics, and on the differing effects of antidiabetic drugs on mortality hazards. This study aimed to estimate the all-cause mortality hazards and related life expectancies among type 2 diabetes (T2DM) patients in the UK using the time-variant Gompertz-Cox model with frailty. The study also aimed to understand the major causes of the change in life expectancy growth in the last decade. A total of 221 182 (30.8% T2DM, 57.6% Males) individuals aged 50 years and above, born between 1930 and 1960, inclusive, and diagnosed between 2000 and 2016, were selected from The Health Improvement Network (THIN) database of the UK primary care data and followed up to 31 December 2016. About 13.4% of participants died during the follow-up period. The overall all-cause mortality hazard ratio of T2DM compared to non-diabetic controls was 1.467 (1.381-1.558) and 1.38 (1.307-1.457) when diagnosed between 50 to 59 years and 60 to 74 years, respectively. The estimated life expectancies among T2DM individuals without further comorbidities diagnosed at the age of 60 years were 2.43 (1930-1939 birth cohort), 2.53 (1940-1949 birth cohort) and 3.28 (1950-1960 birth cohort) years less than those of non-diabetic controls. However, the 1950-1960 birth cohort had a steeper hazard function compared to the 1940-1949 birth cohort for both T2DM and non-diabetic individuals. In conclusion, mortality hazards for people with T2DM continue to be higher than for non-diabetics. The steeper mortality hazard slope for the 1950-1960 birth cohort might indicate the sub-population contributing to a slowdown in the growth of the life expectancy.

Keywords: T2DM, Gompetz-Cox model with frailty, all-cause mortality, life expectancy

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Authors: M. H. M. Rashid

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A Banach space operator T obeys property (gm) if the isolated points of the spectrum σ(T) of T which are eigenvalues are exactly those points λ of the spectrum for which T − λI is a left Drazin invertible. In this article, we study the stability of property (gm), for a bounded operator acting on a Banach space, under perturbation by finite rank operators, by nilpotent operators, by quasi-nilpotent operators, or more generally by algebraic operators commuting with T.

Keywords: Weyl's Theorem, Weyl Spectrum, Polaroid operators, property (gm)

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Authors: Jyoti Yadav, Rini Singh, Anoop M.D, Nisha Yadav, N. Srinivasa Rao, Fouran Singh, Takayuki Ichikawa, Ankur Jain, Kamlendra Awasthi, Manoj Kumar

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Nanocrystalline films exhibit defects and strain induced by its grain boundaries. Defects and strain affect the physical as well as topological insulating properties of the Bi2Te3 thin films by changing their electronic structure. In the present studies, the effect of Ni7+ ion irradiation on the physical and electrical properties of Bi2Te3 thin films was studied. The films were irradiated at five different fluences (5x1011, 1x1012, 3x1012, 5x1012, 1x1013 ions/cm2). Thin films synthesized using the e-beam technique possess a rhombohedral crystal structure with the R-3m space group. The average crystallite size, as determined by x-ray diffraction (XRD) peak broadening, was found to be 18.5 ± 5 (nm). It was also observed that irradiation increases the induced strain. Raman Spectra of the films demonstrate the splitting of A_1u^1 modes originating from the vibrations along the c-axis. This is by the variation in the lattice parameter ‘c,’ as observed through XRD. The atomic force microscopy study indicates the decrease in surface roughness up to the fluence of 3x1012 ions/cm2 and further increasing the fluence increases the roughness. The decrease in roughness may be due to the growth of smaller nano-crystallites on the surface of thin films due to irradiation-induced annealing. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy studies reveal the composition to be in close agreement to the nominal values i.e. Bi2Te3. The resistivity v/s temperature measurements revealed an increase in resistivity up to the fluence 3x1012 ions/cm2 and a decrease on further increasing the fluence. The variation in electrical resistivity is corroborated with the change in the carrier concentration as studied through low-temperature Hall measurements. A crossover from the n-type to p-type carriers was achieved in the irradiated films. Interestingly, tuning of the Fermi level by compensating the bulk carriers using ion-irradiation could be achieved.

Keywords: Annealing, Irradiation, Fermi level, Tuning

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Authors: Assiya Madenovna Borsynbayeva, Kairat Altynbekovich Turgenbayev, Nikolay Petrovich Ivanov

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In this article presents the results of rapid diagnostics of tuberculosis in comparison with classical bacteriological method. The proposed method of rapid diagnosis of tuberculosis than bacteriological method allows shortening the time of diagnosis to 7 days, to visualize the growth of mycobacteria in the semi-liquid medium and differentiate the type of mycobacterium. Fast definition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and its derivatives in the culture medium is a new and promising direction in the diagnosis of tuberculosis.

Keywords: animal diagnosis of tuberculosis, bacteriological diagnostics, antigen, specific antibodies, immunological reaction

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Authors: Katarina Rogulj, Ivana Racetin, Jelena Kilic

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In this study, the fuzzy logic approach (FLA) was developed for construction project management (CPM) under uncertainty and duality. The focus was on decision making in selecting the type of the glass facade for a residential-commercial building in the main design. The adoption of fuzzy sets was capable of reflecting construction managers’ reliability level over subjective judgments, and thus the robustness of the system can be achieved. An α-cuts method was utilized for discretizing the fuzzy sets in FLA. This method can communicate all uncertain information in the optimization process, taking into account the values of this information. Furthermore, FLA provides in-depth analyses of diverse policy scenarios that are related to various levels of economic aspects when it comes to the construction projects' valid decision making. The developed approach is applied to CPM to demonstrate its applicability. Analyzing the materials of glass facades, variants were defined. The development of the FLA for the CPM included relevant construction projec'ts stakeholders that were involved in the criteria definition to evaluate each variant. Using fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory Method (DEMATEL) comparison of the glass facade was conducted. This way, a rank, according to the priorities for inclusion into the main design, of variants is obtained. The concept was tested on a residential-commercial building in the city of Rijeka, Croatia. The newly developed methodology was then compared with the existing one. The aim of the research was to define an approach that will improve current judgments and decisions when it comes to the material selection of buildings facade as one of the most important architectural and engineering tasks in the main design. The advantage of the new methodology compared to the old one is that it includes the subjective side of the managers’ decisions, as an inevitable factor in each decision making. The proposed approach can help construction projects managers to identify the desired type of glass facade according to their preference and practical conditions, as well as facilitate in-depth analyses of tradeoffs between economic efficiency and architectural design.

Keywords: construction projects management, DEMATEL, fuzzy logic approach, glass façade selection

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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: Kumar Gular, Viswanathan S., Mastour Saeed Alshahrani, Ravi Shankar Reddy, Jaya Shanker Tedla, Snehil Dixit, Ajay Prasad Gautam, Venkata Nagaraj Kakaraparthi, Devika Rani Sangadala

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Background: Despite trunk control’s significant contribution to improving various functional activity components, the independent effect of trunk performance on quality of life is yet to be estimated in stroke survivors. Ascertaining the correlation between trunk control and self-reported quality of life while evaluating the effect of demographic and clinical characteristics on their relationship will guide concerned healthcare professionals in designing ideal rehabilitation protocols during the late sub-acute stroke stage of recovery. The aims of the present research were to (1) investigate the associations of trunk performance with self-rated quality of life and (2) evaluate if age, body mass index (BMI), and clinical characteristics mediate the relationship between trunk motor performance and perceived quality of life in the sub-acute stroke population. Methods: Trunk motor functions and quality of life among the late sub-acute stroke population aged 57.53 ± 6.42 years were evaluated through the trunk Impairment Scale (TIS) and Stroke specific quality of life (SSQOL) questionnaire, respectively. Pearson correlation coefficients and mediation analysis were performed to elucidate the relationship of trunk motor function with quality of life and determine the mediation impact of demographic and clinical characteristics on their association, respectively. Results: The current study observed significant correlations between trunk motor functions (TIS) and quality of life (SSQOL) with r=0.68 (p<0.001). Age, BMI, and type of stroke were detected as potential mediating factors in the association between trunk performance and quality of life. Conclusion: Validated associations between trunk motor functions and perceived quality of life among the late sub-acute stroke population emphasize the importance of comprehensive evaluation of trunk control. Rehabilitation specialists should focus on appropriate strategies to enhance trunk performance anticipating the potential effects of age, BMI, and type of stroke to improve health-related quality of life in stroke survivors.

Keywords: sub-acute stroke, quality of life, functional independence, trunk control

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Authors: Marwa Ben Khalifa, Zeineb Ben Salem, Wissem Frikha

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The purpose of the present work is to study the consolidation behavior of highly compressible Tunis soft soil “TSS” by means of prefabricated vertical drains (PVD’s) associated to preloading based on laboratory and field investigations. In the first hand, the field performance of PVD’s on the layer of Tunis soft soil was analysed based on the case study of the construction of embankments of “Radès la Goulette” bridge project. PVD’s Geosynthetics drains types were installed with triangular grid pattern until 10 m depth associated with step-by-step surcharge. The monitoring of the soil settlement during preloading stage for Radès La Goulette Bridge project was provided by an instrumentation composed by various type of tassometer installed in the soil. The distribution of water pressure was monitored through piezocone penetration. In the second hand, a laboratory reduced tests are performed on TSS subjected also to preloading and improved with PVD's Mebradrain 88 (Mb88) type. A specific test apparatus was designed and manufactured to study the consolidation. Two series of consolidation tests were performed on TSS specimens. The first series included consolidation tests for soil improved by one central drain. In thesecond series, a triangular mesh of three geodrains was used. The evolution of degree of consolidation and measured settlements versus time derived from laboratory tests and field data were presented and discussed. The obtained results have shown that PVD’s have considerably accelerated the consolidation of Tunis soft soil by shortening the drainage path. The model with mesh of three drains gives results more comparative to field one. A longer consolidation time is observed for the cell improved by a single central drain. A comparison with theoretical analysis, basically that of Barron (1948) and Carillo (1942), was presented. It’s found that these theories overestimate the degree of consolidation in the presence of PVD.

Keywords: tunis soft soil, prefabricated vertical drains, acceleration of consolidation, dissipation of excess pore water pressures, radès bridge project, barron and carillo’s theories

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Authors: Antoaneta Stefanova, Rositsa Gencheva, Pavlin Groudev

Abstract:

This paper presents an application of the ASTEC V2r3p3 computer code for simulation of QUENCH-12 experiment. The test has been performed to investigate the behavior of VVER type of fuel assemblies during severe accident conditions. In the performed analyses it has been assessed the mass of generated hydrogen during the experiment flooding of overheated core. The comparison of ASTECv2r3p3 calculated results with measured test data shows good agreement.

Keywords: hydrogen production, VVER, QUENCH facility, severe accident, reactor core

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Authors: Sadeq Al Yaari, Ayman Al Yaari, Adham Al Yaari, Montaha Al Yaari, Aayah Al Yaari, Sajedah Al Yaari

Abstract:

Objective: The study aims to summarize the most important books in psychoneurolinguistics. Method: It is a survey study that listed the most important resouces and references in the field of psychoneurolinguistics for the researchers to benefit from them. Results Reliability and Validity of the books on psychoneurolinguistic research are based upon what type of topics and issues are addressed and the importance of these topics for researchers.Other standards are no more than peripheral criteria that include: Author, publishing house, edition, etc.

Keywords: books, resources, psychoneurolinguistics, scientific reserach, references

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Authors: S. W. Chen, W. K. Lin, J. R. Wang, C. Shih, H. T. Lin, H. C. Chang, W. Y. Li

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Kuosheng nuclear power plant (NPP) is a BWR/6 type NPP and located on the northern coast of Taiwan. First, Kuosheng NPP TRACE model were developed in this research. In order to assess the system response of Kuosheng NPP TRACE model, startup tests data were used to evaluate Kuosheng NPP TRACE model. Second, the over pressurization transient analysis of Kuosheng NPP TRACE model was performed. Besides, in order to confirm the mechanical property and integrity of fuel rods, FRAPTRAN analysis was also performed in this study.

Keywords: TRACE, safety analysis, BWR/6, FRAPTRA

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Authors: Muhammad Faisal Khilji, Rana Shoaib Hamid, Asim Qureshi

Abstract:

A fifty years old female presented in the emergency department of a tertiary care hospital with complaints of migraine type headache for the last few months. Her last episode of headache was severe, increasing in intensity, associated with nausea but no fever, lasting more than 24 hours and not resolving with analgesics. On examination there was no neurological deficit. CT scan of brain showed a large Pedunculated, non-expansible, non-aggressive bony lesion in the clivus with its sharp fragment impinging into the pons. Findings were further confirmed with MRI brain. Trans-sphenoidal excision biopsy was done and histopathology proved the lesion to be osteochondroma of clivus.

Keywords: osteochondroma, clivus, headache, CT scan

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Authors: Hager Elsheikh, Juliane Glaubitz, Frank Ulrich Weiss, Matthias Sendler

Abstract:

Aim: Acute pancreatitis (AP) and chronic pancreatitis (CP) are both accompanied by a prominent immune response which influences the course of disease. Whereas during AP the pro-inflammatory immune response dominates, during CP a fibroinflammatory response regulates organ remodeling. The transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 6 (STAT6) is a crucial part of the Type 2 immune response. Here we investigate the role of STAT6 in a mouse model of AP and CP. Material and Methods: AP was induced by hourly repetitive i.p. injections of caerulein (50µg/kg/bodyweight) in C57Bl/6 J and STAT6-/- mice. CP was induced by repetitive caerulein injections 6 times a day, 3 days a week over 4 weeks. Disease severity was evaluated by serum amylase/lipase measurement, H&E staining of pancreas. Pancreatic infiltrate was characterized by immunofluorescent labeling of CD68, CD206, CCR2, CD4 and CD8. Pancreas fibrosis was evaluated by Azan blue staining. qRT-PCR was performed of Arg1, Nos2, Il6, Il1b, Col3a, Socs3 and Ym1. Affymetrix chip array analyses were done to illustrate the IL4/IL13/STAT6 signaling in bone marrow derived macrophages. Results: AP severity is mitigated in STAT6-/- mice, as shown by decreased serum amylase and lipase, as well as histological damage. CP mice surprisingly showed only slightly reduced fibrosis of the pancreas. Also staining of CD206 a classical marker of alternatively activated macrophages showed no decrease of M2-like polarization in the absence of STAT6. In contrast, transcription profile analysis in BMDM showed complete blockade of the IL4/IL13 pathway in STAT6-/- animals. Conclusion: STAT6 signaling pathway is protective during AP and mitigates the pancreatic damage. During chronic pancreatitis the IL4/IL13 – STAT6 axisis involved in organ fibrogenesis. Notably, fibrosis is not dependent on a single signaling pathway, and alternative macrophage activation is also complex and involves different subclasses (M2a, M2b, M2c and M2d) which could be independent of the IL4/IL13 STAT6 axis.

Keywords: chronic pancreatitis, macrophages, IL4/IL13, Type immune response

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

Abstract:

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

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Mohammad Tarek Al Muallim, Ozhan Duzenli, Ceyhun Ilguy

Abstract:

Harbor protection systems are so important. The need for automatic protection systems has increased over the last years. Diver detection active sonar has great significance. It used to detect underwater threats such as divers and autonomous underwater vehicle. To automatically detect such threats the sonar image is processed by algorithms. These algorithms used to detect, track and classify of underwater objects. In this work, divers tracking and classification algorithm is improved be proposing a robust wake detection method. To detect objects the sonar images is normalized then segmented based on fixed threshold. Next, the centroids of the segments are found and clustered based on distance metric. Then to track the objects linear Kalman filter is applied. To reduce effect of noise and creation of false tracks, the Kalman tracker is fine tuned. The tuning is done based on our active sonar specifications. After the tracks are initialed and updated they are subjected to a filtering stage to eliminate the noisy and unstable tracks. Also to eliminate object with a speed out of the diver speed range such as buoys and fast boats. Afterwards the result tracks are subjected to a classification stage to deiced the type of the object been tracked. Here the classification stage is to deice wither if the tracked object is an open circuit diver or a close circuit diver. At the classification stage, a small area around the object is extracted and a novel wake detection method is applied. The morphological features of the object with his wake is extracted. We used support vector machine to find the best classifier. The sonar training images and the test images are collected by ARMELSAN Defense Technologies Company using the portable diver detection sonar ARAS-2023. After applying the algorithm to the test sonar data, we get fine and stable tracks of the divers. The total classification accuracy achieved with the diver type is 97%.

Keywords: harbor protection, diver detection, active sonar, wake detection, diver classification

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Authors: Zdzislaw Kaminski, Zbigniew Czyz

Abstract:

The paper discusses the results of the research into a wind turbine with a vertical axis of rotation which was performed with the open return wind tunnel, Gunt HM 170, at the laboratory of the Department of Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics and Propulsion Aviation Systems of Lublin University of Technology. Wind tunnel experiments are a necessary step to construct any new type of wind turbine, to validate design assumptions and numerical results. This research focused on the rotor with the blades capable of modifying their working surfaces, i.e. absorbing wind kinetic energy. The operation of this rotor is based on adjusting angular aperture α of the top and bottom parts of the blades mounted on an axis. If this angle α increases, the working surface which absorbs wind kinetic energy also increases. The study was performed on scaled and geometrically similar models with the criteria of similarity relevant for the type of research preserved. The rotors with varied angular apertures of their blades were printed for the research with a powder 3D printer, ZPrinter® 450. This paper presents the research results for the selected flow speed of 6.5 m/s for the three angular apertures of the rotor blades, i.e. 30°, 60°, 90° at varied speeds. The test stand enables the turbine rotor to be braked to achieve the required speed and airflow speed and torque to be recorded. Accordingly, the torque and power as a function of airflow were plotted. The rotor with its adjustable blades enables turbine power to be adjusted within a wide range of wind speeds. A variable angular aperture of blade working surfaces α in a wind turbine enables us to control the speed of the turbine and consequently its output power. Reducing the angular aperture of working surfaces results in reduced speed, and if a special current generator applied, electrical output power is reduced, too. Speed adjusted by changing angle α enables the maximum load acting on rotor blades to be controlled. The solution under study is a kind of safety against a damage of a turbine due to possible high wind speed.

Keywords: drive torque, renewable energy, power, wind turbine, wind tunnel

Procedia PDF Downloads 241

Authors: R. Rezaeipour, A. R. Mehrabi

Abstract:

Recent increase of the DGs and microgrids in distribution systems, disturbs the tradition structure of the system. Coordination between protection devices in such a system becomes the concern of the network operators. This paper presents a new method for fault location detection in the active distribution networks, independent of the fault type or its resistance. The method uses synchronized voltage and current measurements at the interconnection of DG units and is able to adapt to changes in the topology of the system. The method has been tested on a 38-bus distribution system, with very encouraging results.

Keywords: fault location detection, active distribution system, micro grids, network operators

Procedia PDF Downloads 768

Authors: Racim Rifaat Ferdjani, Zineddine Chetoui

Abstract:

The goal of our work is to provide a tool that helps control and ensures a global view of the means of firefighting (MLCI) in a food production plant (for example Hamoud Boualem plant). We divided the site into 4 zones, then we identified the firefighting means (MLCI) present in each zone, taking into account their type, weight, location, and fire class as well as their compliance with respect to the regulations in force while assigning them an alphanumeric reference which makes it possible to deduce everything. Thus, the use of a tool in the form of an Excel table was made concrete, and an average compliance rate of 45% was therefore obtained.

Keywords: MLCI, firefighting means, Hamoud, Boualem

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: Chaoge Wang, Xiquan Weng, Yan Meng, Wentao Lin

Abstract:

Objective: Cold exposure and exercise serve as two physiological stimuli to glycolipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity. So far, it remains to be elucidated whether exercise plus cold exposure can produce an addictive effect on promoting glycolipid metabolism and insulin sensitivity. Methods: 64 SD rats were subjected to high-fat and high-sugar diets for 9-week and sucessfully to establish an obesity model. They were randomly divided into 8 groups: normal control group (NC), normal exercise group (NE), continuous cold control group (CC), continuous cold exercise group (CE), acute clod control group (AC), acute cold exercise group (AE), intermittent cold control group (IC) and intermittent cold exercise group (IE). For continuous cold exposure, the rats stayed in a cold environment all day; for acute cold exposure, the rats were exposed to cold for only 4h before the end of the experiment; for intermittent cold exposure, the rats were exposed to cold for 4h per day. The protocol for treadmill runnings were as follows: 25m/min (speed), 0°C (slope), 30 mins each time, an interval for 10 mins between two runnings, twice/two days, lasting for 5 weeks. Sampling were conducted on the 5th weekend. Blood lipids, free fatty acids, blood glucose (FBG), and serum insulin (FINS) were examined, and the insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR = FBG (mmol/L)×FINS(mIU/L)/22.5) was calculated. SPSS 22.0 was used for statistical analysis of the experimental results, and the ANOVA analysis was performed between groups (p < 0.05 was significant). Results: (1) Compared with the NC group, the FBG of the rats was significantly declined in the NE, CE, AC, AE, and IE groups (p < 0.05), the FINS of the rats was significantly declined in the AE group (p < 0.05), the HOMA-IR of the rats was significantly declined in the NE, CE, AC, AE and IE groups (p < 0.05). Compared with the NE group, the FBG of the rats was significantly declined in the CE, AE, and IE groups (p < 0.05), the FINS and HOMA-IR of the rats were significantly declined in the AE group (p < 0.05). (2) Compared with the NC group, the CHO, TG, LDL-C, and FFA of the rats were significantly declined in CE and IE groups (p < 0.05), the HDL-C of the rats was significantly higher in NE, CC, CE, AE, and IE groups (p < 0.05). Compared with the NE group, the HDL-C of the rats was significantly higher in the CE and IE groups (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Sedentariness or exercise in the acute cold doesn't make sense in the treatment of type 2 diabetes, which led to one-off increases of the body's insulin sensitivity. Exercise in the continuous and intermittent cold can effectively decline the FBG, TC, TG, LDL-C, and FFA levels and increase the HDL-C level and insulin sensitivity in obese rats. These results can impact the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Keywords: cold, exercise, insulin sensitivity, obesity

Procedia PDF Downloads 128