Search results for: study process

Authors: Taghried I. M. Abdel-Magid, Gheida T. A. Al-Khelifa, Ahmed O. Adam, Esra G. A. Mohamed, Saeed M. S. Saeed

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The use of pozzolanic materials in concrete industry is facing challenges due to unpredictable behavior of natural materials. Corncob ash (CCA) is considered to be one of the promising plant-based materials that possess cementitious properties. Corn is one of the major planted crops in Sudan. Corncob is considered as waste and normally thrown away or burnt. The main purpose of this research was to test the hypothesis that CCA can sufficiently replace cement in a concrete mixture or a cement mortar. In this study, CCA was used to replace cement in mortar in three percentages: 0, 20, and 25%. The effect of this replacement was found to be positive in terms of long-term compressive strength, while not as such in short-term compressive strength. In the concrete mix, the introduction of CCA was found to have a positive impact on the slump test characteristics, whereas the early and late compressive strengths deteriorated by approximately 30%. More research is needed in this area to upgrade the efficient use of CCA in cement mortar and concrete properties.

Keywords: cementitious materials, compressive strength, corncob ash, pozzolanic materials

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Authors: Shubham Mandliya, Pooja Pandey, H. N. Mishra

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Amla (Phyllanthus emblica), a plant of Euphorbiaceous is widely distributed in subtropical and tropical areas of China, India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Amla is very high in vitamin C content. Spray drying of fruit juices represents another alternative way to improve the physicochemical stability and increase their shelf life. Samples of amla powder were produced using the spray drying method to investigate the effect of inlet temperatures and maltodextrin levels. The spray dryer model used was a laboratory scale dryer and samples were run at different temperatures and concentrations. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used to optimize the spray-drying process for the development of amla powder. The resultant powders were then analyzed for vitamin C, moisture, solubility and dispersibility. The spray dried amla powder contains higher amounts of vitamin C when compared to commercial fruit juice powders. SEM analysis revealed that lower maltodextrin levels and higher inlet air temperatures resulted in smaller but smoother particles. At lower temperature, vitamin C content is high as compared to higher temperature. Spray drying is an effective as well as an economic method which can be commercially used for making powder rather than by tray or solar drying as more fraction is retained with less cost.

Keywords: Amla powder, physiochemical properties, response surface methodology, spray drying

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Authors: Mohammad Karimi Moridani, Mohammad Abdi Zadeh, Zahra Shahiazar Mazraeh

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In recent years, the use of intelligent systems in biomedical engineering has increased dramatically, especially in the diagnosis of various diseases. Also, due to the relatively simple recording of the electrocardiogram signal (ECG), this signal is a good tool to show the function of the heart and diseases associated with it. The aim of this paper is to design an intelligent system for automatically detecting a normal electrocardiogram signal from abnormal one. Using this diagnostic system, it is possible to identify a person's heart condition in a very short time and with high accuracy. The data used in this article are from the Physionet database, available in 2016 for use by researchers to provide the best method for detecting normal signals from abnormalities. Data is of both genders and the data recording time varies between several seconds to several minutes. All data is also labeled normal or abnormal. Due to the low positional accuracy and ECG signal time limit and the similarity of the signal in some diseases with the normal signal, the heart rate variability (HRV) signal was used. Measuring and analyzing the heart rate variability with time to evaluate the activity of the heart and differentiating different types of heart failure from one another is of interest to the experts. In the preprocessing stage, after noise cancelation by the adaptive Kalman filter and extracting the R wave by the Pan and Tampkinz algorithm, R-R intervals were extracted and the HRV signal was generated. In the process of processing this paper, a new idea was presented that, in addition to using the statistical characteristics of the signal to create a return map and extraction of nonlinear characteristics of the HRV signal due to the nonlinear nature of the signal. Finally, the artificial neural networks widely used in the field of ECG signal processing as well as distinctive features were used to classify the normal signals from abnormal ones. To evaluate the efficiency of proposed classifiers in this paper, the area under curve ROC was used. The results of the simulation in the MATLAB environment showed that the AUC of the MLP and SVM neural network was 0.893 and 0.947, respectively. As well as, the results of the proposed algorithm in this paper indicated that the more use of nonlinear characteristics in normal signal classification of the patient showed better performance. Today, research is aimed at quantitatively analyzing the linear and non-linear or descriptive and random nature of the heart rate variability signal, because it has been shown that the amount of these properties can be used to indicate the health status of the individual's heart. The study of nonlinear behavior and dynamics of the heart's neural control system in the short and long-term provides new information on how the cardiovascular system functions, and has led to the development of research in this field. Given that the ECG signal contains important information and is one of the common tools used by physicians to diagnose heart disease, but due to the limited accuracy of time and the fact that some information about this signal is hidden from the viewpoint of physicians, the design of the intelligent system proposed in this paper can help physicians with greater speed and accuracy in the diagnosis of normal and patient individuals and can be used as a complementary system in the treatment centers.

Keywords: neart rate variability, signal processing, linear and non-linear features, classification methods, ROC Curve

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Authors: Naziru Suleiman

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The ever increasing cases of financial frauds and corporate accounting scandals in recent years have raised more concern on the operation of internal control mechanisms and performance of the internal audit departments in organizations. In most cases the seeming presence of both the internal control system and internal audit in organizations do not prove useful as frauds errors and irregularities are being perpetuated. The aim of this study, therefore, is to assess the role of internal audit in achieving the objectives of internal control system of federal hospitals in Kano State from the perception of the respondents. The study used survey research design and generated data from primary source by means of questionnaire. A total number of 100 copies of questionnaire were administered out of which 68 were duly completed and returned. Cronbach’s alpha was used to test the internal validity of the various items in the constructs. Descriptive statistics, chi-square test, Mann Whitney U test and Kruskal Wallis ANOVA were employed for the analysis of data. The study finds that from the perception of the respondents, internal audit departments in Federal Hospitals in Kano State are effective and that they contribute positively to the overall attainment of the objectives of internal control system of these hospitals. There is no significant difference found on the views of the respondents from the three hospitals. Hence, the study concludes that strong and functional internal audit department is a basic requirement for effectiveness of operations of the internal control system. In the light of the findings, it is recommended that internal audit should continue to ensure that the objectives of internal control system of these hospitals are achieved through proper and adequate evaluation and review of the system.

Keywords: internal audit, internal control, federal hospitals, financial frauds

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Authors: Aimeurnadjette, Hammoudi Abd Erahmen, Bordjibaouahiba

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For many years, the pesticides used in agriculture have been responsible for environmental degradation, particularly noticeable in the areas of intensive agriculture, particularly through contamination of surface and groundwater. Our study was conducted to isolate and identify the microflora of water polluted by pesticides in an area with an agricultural vocation (Ben M'Hidi) subject to the pesticide effect for several years. Isolated fungal strains were identified based on the morphology of their vegetative and reproductive apparatus. The micromycètes were obtained; they belong mainly to the genera Aspergillus, Penicillium and Trichoderma. Furthermore, most bacterial strains characterized in this work, are that of the genus Aeromonas, Pseudomonas that are widely represented in the study of the biodegradation of pesticides.

Keywords: isolated, strains, polluted, pesticides

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Authors: Amokrane Boufares, Elise Provost, Veronique Osswald, Pascal Clain, Anthony Delahaye, Laurence Fournaison, Didier Dalmazzone

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Gas hydrates have long been considered as problematic for flow assurance in natural gas and oil transportation. On the other hand, they are now seen as future promising materials for various applications (i.e. desalination of seawater, natural gas and hydrogen storage, gas sequestration, gas combustion separation and cold storage and transport). Nonetheless, a better understanding of the crystallization mechanism of gas hydrate and of their formation kinetics is still needed for a better comprehension and control of the process. To that purpose, measuring the real-time evolution of the dissolved gas concentration in the aqueous phase during hydrate formation is required. In this work, CO₂ hydrates were formed in a stirred reactor equipped with an Attenuated Total Reflection (ATR) probe coupled to a Fourier Transform InfraRed (FTIR) spectroscopy analyzer. A method was first developed to continuously measure in-situ the CO₂ concentration in the liquid phase during solubilization, supersaturation, hydrate crystallization and dissociation steps. Thereafter, the measured concentration data were compared with those of equilibrium concentrations. It was observed that the equilibrium is instantly reached in the liquid phase due to the fast consumption of dissolved gas by the hydrate crystallization. Consequently, it was shown that hydrate crystallization kinetics is limited by the gas transfer at the gas-liquid interface. Finally, we noticed that the liquid-hydrate equilibrium during the hydrate crystallization is governed by the temperature of the experiment under the tested conditions.

Keywords: gas hydrate, dissolved gas, crystallization, infrared spectroscopy

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Authors: Pouriya Darabiyan, Kourosh Zarea, Saeed Ghanbari, Aseya Temori, Shokreya Ehsani

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Introduction: Diabetes is one of the most common metabolic disorders and is one of the top 10 leading causes of death in adults. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate the epidemiological prevalence of diabetes in Afghanistan between 2015 and 2019. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed using the information of diabetics registered in the system related to the Ministry of Health of Afghanistan from 2015 to 2019. Eventually, people's information, including age, gender, and place of residence, was entered into STATA software version 12 and analyzed using descriptive statistics tests. Results: The study, which was performed on 49,339 people with diabetes in 34 provinces and 8 regions of Afghanistan, found that most of the women studied were 55.2% (272,311) women and had the highest and lowest prevalence in the region. The order is related to South East and South. The average prevalence of diabetes per 10,000 people is about 62.13. Conclusions: The prevalence of diabetes in Afghanistan over a five-year period in men and women is on the rise, requiring more attention from relevant authorities to improve public health and prevent, control and treat chronic diseases such as diabetes. Keywords: Diabetes, Prevalence, Afghanistan, Epidemiology

Keywords: diabetes, prevalence, Afghanistan, epidemiology

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Authors: Dina Alnefaie

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This poster presents a study of a Discord private server with thirteen multilingual gamers, aiming to explore the elements that construct a multilingual online gaming community. The study focuses on the communication practices of four Saudi female and male gamers, using various data collection methods, including online observations through recorded videos and screenshots, interviews, and informal conversations for one year. The primary findings show that translanguaging was a prominent feature of their verbal and textual communication practices. Besides, these practices that mostly accompany cultural ones were used to facilitate communication and express their identities in an intercultural context.

Keywords: online community construction, perceptions, multilingualism, digital identity

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Authors: Maha M. Eissa, Safia M. Ali, Sonia R. Allam, Ezzat A. Badawy, Nahid M. Baddour

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The obligate follicle mite Demodex folliculorum (Df) has been demonstrated in increased numbers in patients with rosacea. The significance of this finding is still not completely understood, because many people free of skin disease may also have mites. So, the aim of this work was to study the possible role of Df in patients with rosacea. Facial punch biopsy specimens were taken from patients with rosacea (either telangiectatic, papulopustular, squamous, granulomatous form or with rhinophyma) and age and sex matched healthy subjects. Results of this study showed that 63.3% of the rosacea patients were harbouring the mite with higher incidence in patients with papulopustular form.

Keywords: Demodex folliculorum, rosacea, papulopustular, punch biopsy

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Authors: M. Sazali Said, Rahim Jamian, Shahrizan Yusoff, Shahruzaman Sulaiman, Jum'Azulhisham Abdul Shukor

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This case study focuses on the role of Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Spanish Institute (UniKL MSI) to produce technologist in order to reduce the shortage of skilled workers especially in the automotive industry. The purpose of the study therefore seeks to examine the effectiveness of Technical Education and Vocational Training (TEVT) curriculum of UniKL MSI to produce graduates that could immediately be productively employed by the automotive industry. The approach used in this study is through performance evaluation of students attending the Industrial Training Attachment (INTRA). The sample of study comprises of 37 students, 16 university supervisors and 26 industrial supervisors. The research methodology involves the use of quantitative and qualitative methods of data collections through the triangulation approach. The quantitative data was gathered from the students, university supervisors and industrial supervisors through the use of questionnaire. Meanwhile, the qualitative data was obtained from the students and university supervisors through the use of interview and observation. Both types of data have been processed and analyzed in order to summarize the results in terms of frequency and percentage by using a computerized spread sheet. The result shows that industrial supervisors were satisfied with the students’ performance. Meanwhile, university supervisors rated moderate effectiveness of the UniKL MSI curriculum in producing graduates with appropriate skills and in meeting the industrial needs. During the period of study, several weaknesses in the curriculum have been identified for further continuous improvements. Recommendations and suggestions for curriculum improvement also include the enhancement of technical skills and competences of students towards fulfilling the needs and demand of the automotive industries.

Keywords: technical education and vocational training (TEVT), industrial training attachment (INTRA), curriculum improvement, automotive industry

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Authors: Jocelyn Li, Xiangyang Li

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We have employed THINC-it® to study the acute effects of Spravato on the cognitive function of patients with severe major depression disorder (MDD). The scores of the four tasks (Spotter, Symbol Check, Code Breaker, Trails) found in THINC-it® were used to measure cognitive function throughout treatment. The patients who participated in this study have tried more than 3 antidepressants without significant improvement before they began Spravato treatment. All patients received 3 doses of 28 mg Spravato 5 minutes apart (84 mg total per treatment) during this study with THINC-it®. The data were collected before the first Spravato administration (T0), 1 hour after the first Spravato administration (T1), and 2 hours after the first Spravato administration (T2) during each treatment. The following data were from 13 patients, with a total of 226 trials in a 2-3 month period. Spravato at 84 mg reduced the scores of Trails, Code Breaker, Symbol Check, and Spotter at T1 by 10-20% in all patients with one exception for a minority of patients in Spotter. At T2, the scores of Trails, Symbol Check, and Spotter were back to 97% of T0 while the score of Code Breaker was back to 92%. Interestingly, we found that the score of Spotter was consistently increased by 17% at T1 in the same 30% of patients in each treatment. We called this change reverse response while the pattern of the other patients, a decline (T1) and then recovery (T2), was called non-reverse response. We also compared the scores at T0 between the first visit and the fifth visit. The T0 scores of all four tasks were improved at visit 5 when compared to visit 1. The scores of Trails, Code Breaker, and Symbol Check at T0 were increased by 14%, 33%, and 14% respectively at visit 5. The score of Code Breaker, which had two trends, improved by 9% in reverse response patients compared to a 27% improvement in non-reverse response patients. To our knowledge, this is the first study done on the impact of Spravato on cognitive function change in major depression patients at this time frame. Whether we can predict future responses to Spravato with THINC-it® merits further study.

Keywords: Spravato, THINC-it, major depressive disorder, cognitive function

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Authors: Mahdi PourAsghar, Abbas Mas'udzadeh, Abdulhakim Tirgari, Saeed Dabiri Roushan, Hooman Rashidi, Fariba Salehi

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Objective: One of the major objectives in sports areas is to achieve maximum athletic performance. Physical and psychological preparations are the basic factors for achieving maximum performance in athletes. Unfortunately, in the field of physical preparation, we can see maximum attention and planning of trainers and sports officials. But despite the importance of psychological preparation of athletes and its serious and profound effect on athletic performance, the results of sports competitions show that less attention is paid to this topic, and it is less under the control of counselors and psychologists in different areas of our sport. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the attitude of athletes and coaches to sport psychology. Materials and methods: A descriptive study with a sample size of 234 elite athletes and 216 skilled coaches was conducted in different areas of sports, in Sari, Mazandaran in 2015.The instrument was a questionnaire consisting of two parts of demographic data and Martin questionnaire, assessing the attitude to sport psychology. The data from this study were analyzed using Spss version 18, descriptive statistics tests, and Chi-square test. Results: In this study, positive attitudes of participants in need and confidence towards sport psychology consultation in athletes and coaches group were 55/1 and 56/5 percent, respectively. The positive attitude of female athletes in belief to psychology consultation was more than male athletes. Athletes with higher education had more positive attitude towards the presence of psychologists and psychiatrists in fields of sports. Conclusion: According to the findings based on the need to the psychology consultation in different areas of sports, it is recommended that through training of specialists in the field of sport psychology and review of sports programs in different fields of sports, the presence of these counselors to maintain the psychological preparation of athletes to achieve maximum athletic performance and reduce anxiety and stress be used.

Keywords: Keywords: Athletes, Eliteathletes, Coaches, Attitude, Sport psychology.

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Authors: Patricia Chinyere Oranefo

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This study examined the effect of sustainability accounting disclosure on financial performance of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. The dearth of empirical evidence and literature on “governance disclosure” as one of the explanatory variables of sustainability accounting reporting were the major motivation for this study. The main objective was to ascertain the effect of sustainability accounting disclosure on financial performance of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. An ex–post facto research design approach was adopted for the study. The population of this study comprises of five (5) Brewery firms quoted on the floor of the Nigeria exchange group (NSX) and the sample size of four (4) listed firms was drawn using purposive sampling method. Secondary data were carefully sourced from the financial statement/annual reports and sustainability reports from 2012 to 2021 of the Brewery firms quoted on the Nigeria exchange group (NSX). Panel regression analysis by aid of E-views 10.0 software was used to test for statistical significance of the effect of sustainability accounting disclosure on financial performance of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. The results showed that economic sustainability disclosure indexes do not significantly affect return on asset of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. The findings further revealed that environmental sustainability disclosure indexes do not significantly affect return on equity of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. More so, results showed that Social Sustainability disclosure indexes significantly affect Net Profit Margin of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. Finally, the result established also that governance sustainability disclosure indexes do not significantly affect Earnings per share of listed Brewery firms in Nigeria. Consequent upon the findings, this study recommended among others; that managers of Brewers in Nigeria should improve and sustain full disclosure practices on economic, environmental, social and governance disclosures following the guidelines of the Global Reporting Index (GRI) as they are capable of exerting significant effect on financial performance of firms in Nigeria.

Keywords: sustainability, accounting, disclosure, financial performance

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Authors: Mounia El Hafyani, Khalid El Himdi

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Precipitation is one of the key variables in water resource planning. The importance of modeling wet and dry durations is a crucial pointer in engineering hydrology. The objective of this study is to model and analyze the distribution of wet and dry durations. For this purpose, the daily rainfall data from 1967 to 2017 of the Moroccan city of Kenitra’s station are used. Three models are implemented for the distribution of wet and dry durations, namely the first-order Markov chain, the second-order Markov chain, and the truncated negative binomial law. The adherence of the data to the proposed models is evaluated using Chi-square and Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests. The Akaike information criterion is applied to assess the most effective model distribution. We go further and study the law of the number of wet and dry days among k consecutive days. The calculation of this law is done through an algorithm that we have implemented based on conditional laws. We complete our work by comparing the observed moments of the numbers of wet/dry days among k consecutive days to the calculated moment of the three estimated models. The study shows the effectiveness of our approach in modeling wet and dry durations of daily precipitation.

Keywords: Markov chain, rainfall, truncated negative binomial law, wet and dry durations

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Authors: Sajjad Hussain

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Technology has revolutionized the way of communication around the globe. Its use and users are multiplying with every passing minute. The current study reveals the effect of SMS on the formal writing of the students. Students are the regular users of this service and have become addict to short language. This short language is understandable to a particular community and not to the whole as it does not adhere to the Standard English writing practices. Data has been collected from quiz, assignments text and through questionaries’ which supports this postulate that students are frequently practicing it in their formal writing. Certain corrosive measures needs to be taken to address the issue. Second language learners have been found it practicing to greater extent.

Keywords: information technology, SMS, messaging, communication, social media, internet, language

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Authors: Mandisi Matyana

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Although the South African local government is doing all the best in ensuring improved service delivery for the citizens, service delivery disparity still remains the real challenge for other municipalities. The unequal distribution of services within municipal wards is causing unequal happiness among the citizens; hence others do enjoy different provided municipal services, while others do not. It is acknowledged that less access to municipal services infringes one’s rights, such as the right to human dignity and the right to life. Some of the municipal services are basic services and they are the mainstay of human survival, such as water, housing, etc. It is quite evident that the service delivery disparity could be caused by the various factors within the local municipality affairs, including both administrative and political factors. Therefore, this study is undertaken to check and evaluate the main foundations of service delivery disparity in ensuring equal development of the state, particularly for local communities. The study used the qualitative method to collect the data from the citizens of Winnie Madikizela Mandela Local Municipality. An extensive literature was also conducted in understanding the causes of service delivery disparity. Study findings prove that the service delivery disparity could be caused by factors such as political interference in administration, corruption and fraud, elevated unemployment levels, inadequate institutional capacity, etc. Therefore, the study recommends strong community participation and constant external supervision in the local government so as to encourage openness in local government to ensure fair administration towards services to be provided.

Keywords: administration, development, municipal services, service delivery disparity, Winnie Madikizela Mandela local municipality

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Authors: Dewi Selvia Fardhyanti, Astrilia Damayanti

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Coal tar is a liquid by-product of coal pyrolysis processes. This liquid oil mixture contains various kind of useful compounds such as benzoic aromatic compounds and phenolic compounds. These compounds are widely used as raw material for insecticides, dyes, medicines, perfumes, coloring matters, and many others. The coal tar was collected by pyrolysis process of coal obtained from PT Kaltim Prima Coal and Arutmin-Kalimantan. The experiments typically occurred at the atmospheric pressure in a laboratory furnace at temperatures ranging from 300 to 550oC with a heating rate of 10oC/min and a holding time of 1 hour at the pyrolysis temperature. Nitrogen gas has been used to obtain the inert condition and to carry the gaseous pyrolysis products. The pyrolysis transformed organic materials into gaseous components, small quantities of liquid, and a solid residue (coke) containing fixed amount of carbon and ash. The composition of gas which is produced from the pyrolysis is carbon monoxide, hydrogen, methane, and other hydrocarbon compounds. The gas was condensed and the liquid containing oil/tar and water was obtained. The Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) was used to analyze the coal tar components. The obtained coal tar has the viscosity of 3.12 cp, the density of 2.78 g/cm3, the calorific value of 11,048.44 cal/g, and the molecular weight of 222.67. The analysis result showed that the coal tar contained more than 78 chemical compounds such as benzene, cresol, phenol, xylene, naphtalene, etc. The total phenolic compounds contained in coal tar is 33.25% (PT KPC) and 17.58% (Arutmin-Kalimantan). The total naphtalene compounds contained in coal tar is 14.15% (PT KPC) and 17.13% (Arutmin-Kalimantan).

Keywords: coal tar, pyrolysis, gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy

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Authors: Abir Dey, Shams Noman

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Introduction: Offshore Island is the remote and isolated area from the terrestrial mainland. They are deprived of their needs. The children from an offshore island are usually underserved in the case of health care because it is a remote area where the health care systems are quite poor compared to mainland. So, the proper information is required for appropriate planning to reduce underlying causes behind visual deprivation among the surviving children of the Offshore Island. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine ocular morbidities, knowledge, and barriers of eye care services among children in an Offshore Island. Methods: The study team visited, and all data were collected from different rural communities at Sandwip Upazila, Chittagong district for screening the children aged 5-16 years old by doing spot examination. The whole study was conducted in both qualitative and quantitative methods. To determine ocular status of children, examinations were done under skilled Ophthalmologists and Optometrists. A focus group discussion was held. The sample size was 490. It was a community based descriptive study and the sampling method was purposive sampling. Results: In total 490 children, about 56.90% were female and 43.10% were male. Among them 456 were school-going children (93.1%) and 34 were non-school going children (6.9%). In this study the most common ocular morbidity was Allergic Conjunctivitis (35.2%). Other mentionable ocular morbidities were Refractive error (27.7%), Blepharitis (13.8%), Meibomian Gland Dysfunction (7.5%), Strabismus (6.3%) and Amblyopia (6.3%). Most of the non-school going children were involved in different types of domestic work like farming, fishing, etc. About 90.04% children who had different ocular abnormalities could not attend to the doctor due to various reasons. Conclusions: The ocular morbidity was high in rate on the offshore island. Eye health care facility was also not well established there. Awareness should be raised about necessity of maintaining hygiene and eye healthcare among the island people. Timely intervention through available eye care facilities and management can reduce the ocular morbidity rate in that area.

Keywords: morbidities, screening, barriers, offshore island, knowledge

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Authors: Nikfarid Lida, Maryam Rassouli, Leili Borimnejad, Hamid Alavi Majd

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Purpose: Chronic sorrow is experienced by mothers of children with cancer. It is a multidimensional concept and is experienced by mothers in different ways depends on their various contexts. Little is known about the concept of chronic sorrow in mothers of children with cancer living in Iran. This study aimed to clarify the concept and explain lived experiences of chronic sorrow in Iranian mothers of children with cancer. Methods: In this hermeneutic phenomenological study, 8 mothers of children with cancer participated in semi structured in-depth interviews about their experiences of chronic sorrow. Interviews continued until data saturation was reached. All interviews were recorded, transcribed, analyzed, and interpreted using 7 steps of the Dickelman et al’s phenomenological approach. Results: Three main themes emerged from mothers’ experiences of chronic sorrow related to child’s cancer. These main themes were ‘climbing up shaky rocks,’ ‘fear and hope,’ and ‘continuous role changing.’ Each of these themes consisted of several subthemes. Conclusion: There are similarities in experiencing chronic sorrow by mothers of children with chronic diseases in different societies. However some experiences are unique in Iranian mothers of children with cancer.

Keywords: cancer, children, mothers, Iran, phenomenology

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Authors: Munir Kassa, Mengistu Hailemariam, Meghan Obermeyer, Kefelegn Baruda, Yonas Getachew, Asnakech Dessie

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Improving the quality of sexual and reproductive health services that women receive is expected to have an impact on women’s satisfaction with the services, on their continued use and, ultimately, on their ability to achieve their fertility goals or reproductive intentions. Surprisingly, however, there is little empirical evidence of either whether this expectation is correct, or how best to improve service quality within sexual and reproductive health programs so that these impacts can be achieved. The Recent focus on quality has prompted more physicians to do quality improvement work, but often without the needed skill sets, which results in poorly conceived and ultimately unsuccessful improvement initiatives. As this renders the work unpublishable, it further impedes progress in the field of health care improvement and widens the quality chasm. Moreover, since 2014, the Center for International Reproductive Health Training (CIRHT) has worked diligently with 11 teaching hospitals across Ethiopia to increase access to contraception and abortion care services. This work has included improving pre-service training through education and curriculum development, expanding hands-on training to better learn critical techniques and counseling skills, and fostering a “team science” approach to research by encouraging scientific exploration. This is the first time this systematic approach has been applied and documented to improve access to high-quality services in Ethiopia. The purpose of this article is to report initiatives undertaken, and findings concluded by the clinical service team at CIRHT in an effort to provide a pragmatic approach to quality improvement projects. An audit containing nearly 300 questions about several aspects of patient care, including structure, process, and outcome indicators was completed by each teaching hospital’s quality improvement team. This baseline audit assisted in identifying major gaps and barriers, and each team was responsible for determining specific quality improvement aims and tasks to support change interventions using Shewart’s Cycle for Learning and Improvement (the Plan-Do-Study-Act model). To measure progress over time, quality improvement teams met biweekly and compiled monthly data for review. Also, site visits to each hospital were completed by the clinical service team to ensure monitoring and support. The results indicate that applying an evidence-based, participatory approach to quality improvement has the potential to increase the accessibility and quality of services in a short amount of time. In addition, continued ownership and on-site support are vital in promoting sustainability. This approach could be adapted and applied in similar contexts, particularly in other African countries.

Keywords: abortion, contraception, quality improvement, service provision

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Authors: Lina Psarra, Manogj Sundaresan, Purjeet Sutar

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In response to the global imperative for sustainable solutions, this article proposes the development of a comprehensive circularity index applicable to a wide range of products across various industries. The absence of a consensus on using a universal metric to assess circularity performance presents a significant challenge in prioritizing and effectively managing sustainable initiatives. This circularity index serves as a quantitative measure to evaluate the adherence of products, processes, and systems to the principles of a circular economy. Unlike traditional distinct metrics such as recycling rates or material efficiency, this index considers the entire lifecycle of a product in one single metric, also incorporating additional factors such as reusability, scarcity of materials, reparability, and recyclability. Through a systematic approach and by reviewing existing metrics and past methodologies, this work aims to address this gap by formulating a circularity index that can be applied to diverse product portfolio and assist in comparing the circularity of products on a scale of 0%-100%. Project objectives include developing a formula, designing and implementing a pilot tool based on the developed Product Circularity Index (PCI), evaluating the effectiveness of the formula and tool using real product data, and assessing the feasibility of integration into various sustainability initiatives. The research methodology involves an iterative process of comprehensive research, analysis, and refinement where key steps include defining circularity parameters, collecting relevant product data, applying the developed formula, and testing the tool in a pilot phase to gather insights and make necessary adjustments. Major findings of the study indicate that the PCI provides a robust framework for evaluating product circularity across various dimensions. The Excel-based pilot tool demonstrated high accuracy and reliability in measuring circularity, and the database proved instrumental in supporting comprehensive assessments. The PCI facilitated the identification of key areas for improvement, enabling more informed decision-making towards circularity and benchmarking across different products, essentially assisting towards better resource management. In conclusion, the development of the Product Circularity Index represents a significant advancement in global sustainability efforts. By providing a standardized metric, the PCI empowers companies and stakeholders to systematically assess product circularity, track progress, identify improvement areas, and make informed decisions about resource management. This project contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable development by offering a practical approach to enhance circularity within industrial systems, thus paving the way towards a more resilient and sustainable future.

Keywords: circular economy, circular metrics, circularity assessment, circularity tool, sustainable product design, product circularity index

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Authors: J. Hajnys, M. Pagac, J. Petru, P. Stefek, J. Mesicek, J. Kratochvil

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The new progressive method of 3D metal printing SLM (Selective Laser Melting) is increasingly expanded into the normal operation. As a result, greater demands are placed on the surface quality of the parts produced in this way. The article deals with research of selected finishing methods (tumbling, face milling, sandblasting, shot peening and brushing) and their impact on the final surface roughness. The 20 x 20 x 7 mm produced specimens using SLM additive technology on the Renishaw AM400 were subjected to testing of these finishing methods by adjusting various parameters. Surface parameters of roughness Sa, Sz were chosen as the evaluation criteria and profile parameters Ra, Rz were used as additional measurements. Optical measurement of surface roughness was performed on Alicona Infinite Focus 5. An experiment conducted to optimize the surface roughness revealed, as expected, that the best roughness parameters were achieved through a face milling operation. Tumbling is particularly suitable for 3D printing components, as tumbling media are able to reach even complex shapes and, after changing to polishing bodies, achieve a high surface gloss. Surface quality after tumbling depends on the process time. Other methods with satisfactory results are shot peening and tumbling, which should be the focus of further research.

Keywords: additive manufacturing, selective laser melting, SLM, surface roughness, stainless steel

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Authors: Okhee Woo, Hye Seon Shin

Abstract:

Purpose: To investigate the diagnostic power of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) in evaluation of breast microcalcifications and usefulness as a pre-procedural study for stereotactic biopsy in comparison with full-field digital mammogram (FFDM) and FFDM plus magnification image (FFDM+MAG). Methods and Materials: An IRB approved retrospective observer performance study on DBT, FFDM, and FFDM+MAG was done. Image quality was rated in 5-point scoring system for lesion clarity (1, very indistinct; 2, indistinct; 3, fair; 4, clear; 5, very clear) and compared by Wilcoxon test. Diagnostic power was compared by diagnostic values and AUC with 95% confidence interval. Additionally, procedural report of biopsy was analysed for patient positioning and adequacy of instruments. Results: DBT showed higher lesion clarity (median 5, interquartile range 4-5) than FFDM (3, 2-4, p-value < 0.0001), and no statistically significant difference to FFDM+MAG (4, 4-5, p-value=0.3345). Diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of DBT were 86.4% and 92.5%; FFDM 70.4% and 66.7%; FFDM+MAG 93.8% and 89.6%. The AUCs of DBT (0.88) and FFDM+MAG (0.89) were larger than FFDM (0.59, p-values < 0.0001) but there was no statistically significant difference between DBT and FFDM+MAG (p-value=0.878). In 2 cases with DBT, petit needle could be appropriately prepared; and other 3 without DBT, patient repositioning was needed. Conclusion: DBT showed better image quality and diagnostic values than FFDM and equivalent to FFDM+MAG in the evaluation of breast microcalcifications. Evaluation with DBT as a pre-procedural study for breast stereotactic biopsy can lead to more accurate localization and successful biopsy and also waive the need for additional magnification images.

Keywords: DBT, breast cancer, stereotactic biopsy, mammography

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Authors: M. Boudjerda, B. Touaibia, M. K. Mihoubi

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In Algeria agricultural irrigation is the primary water consuming sector followed by the domestic and industrial sectors. Economic development in the last decade has weighed heavily on water resources which are relatively limited and gradually decreasing to the detriment of agriculture. The research presented in this paper focuses on the optimization of irrigation water demand. Dynamic Programming-Neural Network (DPNN) method is applied to investigate reservoir optimization. The optimal operation rule is formulated to minimize the gap between water release and water irrigation demand. As a case study, Foum El-Gherza dam’s reservoir system in south of Algeria has been selected to examine our proposed optimization model. The application of DPNN method allowed increasing the satisfaction rate (SR) from 12.32% to 55%. In addition, the operation rule generated showed more reliable and resilience operation for the examined case study.

Keywords: water management, agricultural demand, dam and reservoir operation, Foum el-Gherza dam, dynamic programming, artificial neural network

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Authors: Nancy Bartekian, Kaelan Vazquez, Christine Reyna

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Immigrants coming into the United States of America may justify the American system (political, economic, healthcare, criminal justice) and see it as functional. This may be explained because they may come from countries that are even more unstable than the U.S. and/or come here to benefit from the promise of the “American dream” -a narrative that they might be more likely to believe in if they were willing to undergo the costly and sometimes dangerous process to immigrate. Conversely, native-born Americans, as well as immigrants who may have lived in America for a longer period of time, would have more experiences with the various broken systems in America that are dysfunctional, fail to provide adequate services equitably, and/or are steeped in systemic racism and other biases that disadvantage lower-status groups. Thus, our research expects that system justification would decrease, and condemnation would increase with more time spent in the U.S. for immigrant groups. We predict that a) those not born in the U.S. will be more likely to justify the system, b) they will also be less likely to condemn the system, and c) the longer an immigrant has been in the U.S. the less likely they will to justify, and more they will to condemn the system. We will use a mixed-model multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) and control for race, income, and education. We will also run linear regression models to test if there is a relationship between the length of time in the United States and a decrease in system justification, and length of time and an increase in system condemnation for those not born in the U.S. We will also conduct exploratory analyses to see if the predicted patterns are more likely within certain systems over other systems (political, economic, healthcare, criminal justice).

Keywords: immigration, system justification, system condemnation, system qualification

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Authors: Luc Conti, Dimitry Dumont-Fillon, Harald van Lintel, Eric Chappel

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Flow control valves comprise a silicon flexible membrane that deflects against a substrate, usually made of glass, containing pillars, an outlet hole, and anti-stiction features. However, there is a strong interest in using silicon instead of glass as substrate material, as it would simplify the process flow by allowing the use of well controlled anisotropic etching. Moreover, specific devices demanding a bending of the substrate would also benefit from the inherent outstanding mechanical strength of monocrystalline silicon. Unfortunately, direct Si-Si bonding is not easily achieved with highly structured wafers since residual stress may prevent the good adhesion between wafers. Using a thermoplastic polymer, such as parylene, as intermediate layer is not well adapted to this design as the wafer-to-wafer alignment is critical. An alternative anodic bonding method using an intermediate borosilicate layer has been successfully tested. This layer has been deposited onto the silicon substrate. The bonding recipe has been adapted to account for the presence of the SOI buried oxide and intermediate glass layer in order not to exceed the breakdown voltage. Flow control valves dedicated to infusion of viscous fluids at very high pressure have been made and characterized. The results are compared to previous data obtained using the standard anodic bonding method.

Keywords: anodic bonding, evaporated glass, flow control valve, drug delivery

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Authors: Arburim Iseni, Afrim Aliti, Nagri Rexhepi

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This paper focuses mainly on an important aspect of student-linguistic errors. It aims to explore the nature of Albanian intermediate level or B1 students’ language errors and mistakes and attempts to trace the possible sources or causes by classifying the error samples into both inter lingual and intra lingual errors. The hypothesis that intra lingua errors may be determined or induced somehow by the native language influence seems to be confirmed by the significant number of errors found in Albanian EFL students in the Study Program of the English Language and Literature at the State University of Tetova. Findings of this study have revealed that L1 interference first and then ignorance of the English Language grammar rules constitute the main sources or causes of errors, even though carelessness cannot be ruled out. Although we have conducted our study with 300 students of intermediate or B1 level, we believe that this hypothesis would need to be confirmed by further research, maybe with a larger number of students with different levels in order to draw more steady and accurate conclusions. The analysis of the questionnaires was done according to quantitative and qualitative research methods. This study was also conducted by taking written samples on different topics from our students and then distributing them with comments to the students and University teachers as well. These questionnaires were designed to gather information among 300 students and 48 EFL teachers, all of whom teach in the Study Program of English Language and Literature at the State University of Tetova. From the analyzed written samples of the students and face-to-face interviews, we could get useful insights into some important aspects of students’ error-making and error-correction. These different research methodologies were used in order to comprise a holistic research and the findings of the questionnaires helped us to come up with some more steady solutions in order to minimize the potential gap between students and teachers.

Keywords: L1 & L2, Linguistics, Applied linguistics, SLA, Albanian EFL students and teachers, Errors and Mistakes, Students’ Assessment and Self-Assessment

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Authors: Kamila Irena Szpunar

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The central idea of the study is considered from two perspectives. The first perspective includes the interpersonal relationships formed by coach and athlete. Another perspective is connected with motivational environment which is created by the coach in team. This study will show the interplay between the perceived motivational climate created by the coach and the interpersonal dynamics between coaches and athletes. It is important because it will supply knowledge of the interpersonal conditions that can foster adaptive or maladaptive behavior in sport conditions. It also ensures implications for understanding how the perceived motivational atmosphere in a team is manifested at the level of coach – athlete relationship and interactions. The primary purpose of the study was to identify the association between coach-athlete relationship and athletes' perception of the motivational climate in team sports. The secondary purposes examined the differences between female and male athletes in perceiving of the motivational climate and the coach athlete-relationship. To check coach-athlete relationship Polish translation of The Coach-Athlete Relationship Questionnaire will be used. It measures athletes' perceptions of coach- athlete relationship defined by 3+1 Cs conceptual model of the coach-athlete relationship. From this model were used three constructs such as closeness (feelings of trust, respect etc.), commitment (thoughts about the future of the relationship), and complementarity (co-operative interactions during practice sessions). To check perceived motivational climate will be used Polish translation of The Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2 (PMCSQ-2). PMCSQ-2 was created to assess athletes' perceptions of the motivational climates in their teams. The questionnaire includes two general dimensions, the perceived task-involving climate and the perceived ego-involving climate; each contains three subscales. To check the associations between elements the motivational climate and coach-athlete relationship was used canonical correlation analysis. Student's t-test was used to check gender differences in athletes' perceptions of the motivational climate and the coach-athlete relationship. The findings suggest that in Polish athletes' perceptions of the coach-athlete relationship have motivational significance and that there are gender differences between female and male athletes in both variables – coach-athlete relationship and kind of motivational climate. According to the author's knowledge, such kind of study has not been conducted in Polish conditions before and is the first study on the subject of the motivational climate and the coach-athlete relationship in Poland. Information from this study can be useful for the development of interventions for enhancing the quality of coach- athlete relationship and its associated outcomes connected with motivational climate.

Keywords: coach-athlete relationship, ego-involving climate, motivational climate, task-involving climate

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Authors: Mahnaz Motamedi, Mohammad Shahbazi, Shahrzad Rahimi-Naghani, Mehrdad Salehi

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Introduction and Aim: This study assessed sexual behaviours among men and women aged 15 to 49 years in Tehran. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted on 755 men and women aged 15 to 49 years who were residents of Tehran. To select the participants, a multistage, cluster, random sampling method was used and included different regions of Tehran. The data were collected using the WHO-endorsed Questionnaire of Sexual and Reproductive Health. Descriptive, bivariate, and multivariate analyses were conducted using SPSS version 20. Sexual and reproductive health (SRH) behaviours was a scale variable that was constructed from items of six sections: sexual experiences, characteristics of the first sexual partner, characteristics of the first intercourse, next sexual contact and the consequences of the first sexual contact, homosexual experiences and the causes of sexual abstinence. Results: The mean age at the time of sexual intercourse with penetration (vaginal, anal) was 19.88 in men and 21.82 in women. Multivariate analysis using linear regression showed that by controlling for other variables, gender had a significant relationship with having sexual experience, mean age of first sexual intercourse, and being multi-partner. Thus, women with sexual experience were 0.158 units less than men. The mean age of first intercourse in women was 1.57 units higher than men and being a multi-partner in women was 0.247 less than men (P < 0.001). Sexual experience in very religious and relatively religious individuals was 0.332 and 0.218 units less than those for whom religion did not matter (P < 0.001). 25.6% of men and 40.7% of women who did not have sexual experience at the time of the study stated that their reason for abstinence was their unwillingness to have sex (P < 0.05). 35.9% of men and 16.5% of women stated that the reason for abstinence was not providing a suitable opportunity (P < 0.001). 4.7% of men and 1.7% of women had sexual attraction to the same sex. The difference between men and women was significant (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Sexual relation is also present in singles and younger groups and is not limited to married or final marriage candidates. Therefore, more evaluation should be done in national research and interventions for sexual and reproductive health services should be done at the macro level of policy making.

Keywords: sexual behaviours, Iranian men and women, Iran, cross-sectional study

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Authors: Francesco Paolone

Abstract:

This paper investigates the role of Operating Cash Flow (OCF) and accruals in firm valuation analyzing financial statement information from the largest European companies and evaluating their relation to firm market value. Using a dataset of 500 largest European companies in 2018, the study investigates the relative value-relevance of equity, net income and operating cash flow (OCF). Findings show that the cash flow measure has the same explanatory power and intensity as equity and earnings to explain the market value. This study contributes to the debate on the value relevance of OCF incremental to book value and earnings. It also extends the literature, showing that OCF has information content (value relevance) superior to earnings and book value in the main European markets (Bepari et al., 2013). Finally, the study provides a support that accounting method choice may confuse investors, who have reduced confidence in accounting earnings and book value; in other words, nowadays European investors rely more on cash flows instead of accruals numbers.

Keywords: Cash Flow Statement, Value Relevance, Accounting, Financial Statement Analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 118