Search results for: quality systems and models

Authors: Simona Lucakova, Irena Branyikova

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Eutrophication, a condition when water becomes over-enriched with nutrients (P, N), can lead to undesirable excessive growth of phytoplankton, so-called algal bloom. This process results in the accumulation of toxin-producing cyanobacteria and oxygen depletion, both possibly leading to the collapse of the whole ecosystem. In real conditions, the limiting nutrient, which determines the possible growth of harmful algal bloom, is usually phosphorus. Algicides or flocculants have been applied in the eutrophicated waterbody in order to reduce the phytoplankton growth, which leads to the introduction of toxic chemicals into the water. In our laboratory, the idea of the prevention of harmful phytoplankton growth by the intentional cultivation of non-toxic cyanobacteria Tolypothrix tenuis in semi-open floating photobioreactors directly on the surface of phosphorus-rich waterbody is examined. During the process of cultivation, redundant phosphorus is incorporated into cyanobacterial biomass, which can be subsequently used for the production of biofuels, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, or biostimulants for agricultural use. To determine the ability of phosphorus incorporation, batch-cultivation of Tolypothrix biomass in media simulating eutrophic water (10% BG medium) and in effluent from municipal wastewater treatment plant, both with the initial phosphorus concentration in the range 0.5-1.0 mgP/L was performed in laboratory-scale models of floating photobioreactors. After few hours of cultivation, the phosphorus content was decreased below the target limit of 0.035 mgP/L, which was given as a borderline for the algal bloom formation. Under laboratory conditions, the effect of several parameters on the rate of phosphorus decrease was tested (illumination, temperature, stirring speed/aeration gas flow, biomass to medium ratio). Based on the obtained results, a bench-scale floating photobioreactor was designed and will be tested for Tolypothrix growth in real conditions. It was proved that intentional cultivation of cyanobacteria Tolypothrix could be a suitable approach for extracting redundant phosphorus from eutrophic waters as prevention of algal bloom formation.

Keywords: cyanobacteria, eutrophication, floating photobioreactor, Tolypothrix

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Authors: Jaejun Jong

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Fake news has recently become a serious international problem. Therefore, researchers and policymakers worldwide have sought to understand fake news and develop strategies to combat it. This study consists of two primary parts: (1) a literature review of how surveys were used to understand fake news and identify problems caused by fake news, and (2) a discussion of how surveys were used to fight back against fake news in educational settings. This second section specifically analyzes surveys used to evaluate a South Korean elementary school program designed to improve students’ metacognition and critical thinking. This section seeks to identify potential problems that may occur in the elementary school setting. The literature review shows that surveys can help people to understand fake news based on its traits rather than its definition due to the lack of agreement on the definition of fake news. The literature review also shows that people are not good at identifying fake news or evaluating their own ability to identify fake news; indeed, they are more likely to share information that aligns with their previous beliefs. In addition, the elementary school survey data shows that there may be substantial errors in the program evaluation process, likely caused by processing errors or the survey procedure, though the exact cause is not specified. Such a significant error in evaluating the effects of the educational program prevents teachers from making proper decisions and accurately evaluating the program. Therefore, identifying the source of such errors would improve the overall quality of education, which would benefit both teachers and students.

Keywords: critical thinking, elementary education, program evaluation, survey

Procedia PDF Downloads 103

Authors: Sung-Won Seo, Jang-Young Choi

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The rare earth magnets used in synchronous generators offer many advantages, including high efficiency, greatly reduced the size, and weight. The permanent magnet linear synchronous generator (PMLSG) allows for direct drive without the need for a mechanical device. Therefore, the PMLSG is well suited to translational applications, such as wave energy converters and free piston energy converters. This manuscript compares the effects of different magnetization patterns on the characteristics of double-sided PMLSGs in slotless stator structures. The Halbach array has a higher flux density in air-gap than the Vertical array, and the advantages of its performance and efficiency are widely known. To verify the advantage of Halbach array, we apply a finite element method (FEM) and analytical method. In general, a FEM and an analytical method are used in the electromagnetic analysis for determining model characteristics, and the FEM is preferable to magnetic field analysis. However, the FEM is often slow and inflexible. On the other hand, the analytical method requires little time and produces accurate analysis of the magnetic field. Therefore, the flux density in air-gap and the Back-EMF can be obtained by FEM. In addition, the results from the analytical method correspond well with the FEM results. The model of the Halbach array reveals less copper loss than the model of the Vertical array, because of the Halbach array’s high output power density. The model of the Vertical array is lower core loss than the model of Halbach array, because of the lower flux density in air-gap. Therefore, the current density in the Vertical model is higher for identical power output. The completed manuscript will include the magnetic field characteristics and structural features of both models, comparing various results, and specific comparative analysis will be presented for the determination of the best model for application in a wave energy converting system.

Keywords: wave energy converter, permanent magnet linear synchronous generator, finite element method, analytical method

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Authors: Bercem Kiran-Yildirim, Volker Gaukel

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Ice recrystallization (IR) which occurs especially during frozen storage is an undesired process due to the possible influence on the quality of products. As a result of recrystallization, the total volume of ice remains constant, but the size, number, and shape of ice crystals change. For instance, as indicated in the literature, the size of ice crystals in ice cream increases due to recrystallization. This results in texture deterioration. Therefore, the inhibition of ice recrystallization is of great importance, not only for food industry but also for several other areas where sensitive products are stored frozen, like pharmaceutical products or organs and blood in medicine. Ice-binding proteins (IBPs) have the unique ability to inhibit ice growth and in consequence inhibit recrystallization. This effect is based on their ice binding affinity. In the presence of IBP in a solution, ice crystal growth is inhibited during temperature decrease until a certain temperature is reached. The melting during temperature increase is not influenced. The gap between melting and freezing points is known as thermal hysteresis (TH). In literature, the TH activity is usually investigated under laboratory conditions in IBP buffer solutions. In product applications (e.g., food) there are many other solutes present which may influence the TH activity. In this study, a subset of IBPs, so-called antifreeze proteins (AFPs), is used for the investigation of the influence of sucrose solution concentration on the TH activity. For the investigation, a polarization microscope (Nikon Eclipse LV100ND) equipped with a digital camera (Nikon DS-Ri1) and a cold stage (Linkam LTS420) was used. In a first step, the equipment was established and validated concerning the accuracy of TH measurements based on literature data.

Keywords: ice binding proteins, ice crystals, sucrose solution, thermal hysteresis

Procedia PDF Downloads 184

Authors: M. Barański

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This paper presents a several diagnostic methods designed to electrical machines especially for permanent magnets (PM) machines. Those machines are commonly used in small wind and water systems and vehicles drives. Those methods are preferred by the author in periodic diagnostic of electrical machines. The special attention should be paid to diagnostic method of turn-to-turn insulation and vibrations. Both of those methods were created in Institute of Electrical Drives and Machines Komel. The vibration diagnostic method is the main thesis of author’s doctoral dissertation. This is method of determination the technical condition of PM electrical machine basing on its own signals is the subject of patent application No P.405669. Specific structural properties of machines excited by permanent magnets are used in this method - electromotive force (EMF) generated due to vibrations. There was analysed number of publications which describe vibration diagnostic methods and tests of electrical machines with permanent magnets and there was no method found to determine the technical condition of such machine basing on their own signals.

Keywords: electrical vehicle, generator, main insulation, permanent magnet, thermography, turn-to-traction drive, turn insulation, vibrations

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Authors: Abdul G. Miah, Hirotada Tsujii, Ummay Salma, Iwao Takeda

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The study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary Selenium-enriched radish sprouts (Se-RS), Vitamin E (Vit E) and Rhodobacter capsulatus (RC) on broiler's immunity, cholesterol concentration and fatty acid composition in broiler meat. A total of 100 two-week-old male broiler chicks were randomly assigned into 5 dietary groups, such as i) Control; ii) Se-RS (5 μg/kg Se-RS); iii) Se-RS+RC (5 μg/kg Se-RS + 0.2 g/kg RC); iv) Se-RS+Vit E (5 μg/kg Se-RS + 50 mg/kg Vit E) and v) Se-RS+RC+Vit E (5 μg/kg Se-RS + 0.2 g/kg RC + 50 mg/kg Vit E). The broilers were offered ad libitum specific diets and clean drinking water. After the end of 3-wk of feeding period, serum cholesterol and triglycerides concentrations were decreased (p<0.05) specially, in the broilers fed Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplemented diet compared to the broilers fed control diet. At the end of the 6-wk feeding period, Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplemented diet significantly (p<0.05) reduced cholesterol and triglycerides concentrations, and improved the ratio of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) to saturated fatty acids (SFA) in broiler meat. The highest (p<0.05) number of leukocytes was observed in the broilers fed Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplemented diet than that of the broilers fed control diet. Spleen, bursa and thymus weight were significantly (p<0.05) increased by Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplemented diet than the control diet. Compared to the control diet, Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplemented diet significantly (p<0.05) increased foot web index. Moreover, there was no mortality in all groups of broilers during the experimental period. Therefore, the study may conclude that there are dual benefits of Se-RS+RC+Vit E supplementation in broiler diet improved immunity and meat quality for health conscious consumers.

Keywords: hypocholesterolemia, immunity of broiler, rhodobacter capsulatus, selenium-enriched radish sprouts, vitamin E

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Authors: Adi A. Maaita, Hamza A. A. Al Sewadi

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One of the crucial parameters of digital cryptographic systems is the selection of the keys used and their distribution. The randomness of the keys has a strong impact on the system’s security strength being difficult to be predicted, guessed, reproduced or discovered by a cryptanalyst. Therefore, adequate key randomness generation is still sought for the benefit of stronger cryptosystems. This paper suggests an algorithm designed to generate and test pseudo random number sequences intended for cryptographic applications. This algorithm is based on mathematically manipulating a publically agreed upon information between sender and receiver over a public channel. This information is used as a seed for performing some mathematical functions in order to generate a sequence of pseudorandom numbers that will be used for encryption/decryption purposes. This manipulation involves permutations and substitutions that fulfills Shannon’s principle of “confusion and diffusion”. ASCII code characters wereutilized in the generation process instead of using bit strings initially, which adds more flexibility in testing different seed values. Finally, the obtained results would indicate sound difficulty of guessing keys by attackers.

Keywords: cryptosystems, information security agreement, key distribution, random numbers

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Authors: Munnujahan Ara

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In this paper, we investigate the effect of friendly jamming power allocation strategies on the achievable average secrecy rate over a bank of parallel fading wiretap channels. We investigate the achievable average secrecy rate in parallel fading wiretap channels subject to Rayleigh and Rician fading. The achievable average secrecy rate, due to the presence of a line-of-sight component in the jammer channel is also evaluated. Moreover, we study the detrimental effect of correlation across the parallel sub-channels, and evaluate the corresponding decrease in the achievable average secrecy rate for the various fading configurations. We also investigate the tradeoff between the transmission power and the jamming power for a fixed total power budget. Our results, which are applicable to current orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) communications systems, shed further light on the achievable average secrecy rates over a bank of parallel fading channels in the presence of friendly jammers.

Keywords: fading parallel channels, wire-tap channel, OFDM, secrecy capacity, power allocation

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Authors: Michal Bialy, Marcin Szlachetka, Mateusz Paszko

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This paper discusses the CFD results of heat transfer in water channels in the engine body. The research engine was a newly designed Diesel combustion engine. The engine has three cylinders with three pairs of opposed pistons inside. The engine will be able to generate 100 kW mechanical power at a crankshaft speed of 3,800-4,000 rpm. The water channels are in the engine body along the axis of the three cylinders. These channels are around the three combustion chambers. The water channels transfer combustion heat that occurs the cylinders to the external radiator. This CFD research was based on the ANSYS Fluent software and aimed to optimize the geometry of the water channels. These channels should have a maximum flow of heat from the combustion chamber or the external radiator. Based on the parallel simulation research, the boundary and initial conditions enabled us to specify average values of key parameters for our numerical analysis. Our simulation used the average momentum equations and turbulence model k-epsilon double equation. There was also used a real k-epsilon model with a function of a standard wall. The turbulence intensity factor was 10%. The working fluid mass flow rate was calculated for a single typical value, specified in line with the research into the flow rate of automotive engine cooling pumps used in engines of similar power. The research uses a series of geometric models which differ, for instance, in the shape of the cross-section of the channel along the axis of the cylinder. The results are presented as colourful distribution maps of temperature, speed fields and heat flow through the cylinder walls. Due to limitations of space, our paper presents the results on the most representative geometric model only. Acknowledgement: This work has been realized in the cooperation with The Construction Office of WSK ‘PZL-KALISZ’ S.A. and is part of Grant Agreement No. POIR.01.02.00-00-0002/15 financed by the Polish National Centre for Research and Development.

Keywords: Ansys fluent, combustion engine, computational fluid dynamics CFD, cooling system

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Authors: Sarah Al-Lumai, Fatima Al-Attar, Nour Jamal, Badria Al-Dabbous, Manal Abdulla

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Today, many commonly used Industrial Engineering tools and techniques are being used in hospitals around the world for the goal of producing a more efficient and effective healthcare system. A common quality improvement methodology known as Lean Six-Sigma has been successful in manufacturing industries and recently in healthcare. The objective of our project is to use the Lean Six-Sigma methodology to reduce waiting time in the Emergency Department (ED), in a local private hospital. Furthermore, a comprehensive literature review was conducted to evaluate the success of Lean Six-Sigma in the ED. According to the study conducted by Ibn Sina Hospital, in Morocco, the most common problem that patients complain about is waiting time. To ensure patient satisfaction many hospitals such as North Shore University Hospital were able to reduce waiting time up to 37% by using Lean Six-Sigma. Other hospitals, such as John Hopkins’s medical center used Lean Six-Sigma successfully to enhance the overall patient flow that ultimately decreased waiting time. Furthermore, it was found that capacity constraints, such as staff shortages and lack of beds were one of the main reasons behind long waiting time. With the use of Lean Six-Sigma and bed management, hospitals like Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital were able to reduce patient delays. Moreover, in order to successfully implement Lean Six-Sigma in our project, two common methodologies were considered, DMAIC and DMADV. After the assessment of both methodologies, it was found that DMAIC was a more suitable approach to our project because it is more concerned with improving an already existing process. With many of its successes, Lean Six-Sigma has its limitation especially in healthcare; but limitations can be minimized if properly approached.

Keywords: lean six sigma, DMAIC, hospital, methodology

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Authors: Dharamvir Mangal

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Supply chain management has increasingly become an inevitable challenge to most companies to continuously survive and prosper in the global chain-based competitive environment. The current challenges of the Indian automotive world, their implications on supply chain are summarized and analyzed in this paper. In this competitive era of ‘LPG’ i.e. Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization, modern marketing systems, introduction of products with short life cycles, and the discriminating expectations of customers have enforced business enterprises to invest in and focus attention on their Supply Chains (SCs) in order to meet out the level of customer’s satisfaction and to survive in the competitive market. In fact, many of trends in the auto industry are reinforcing the need to redefine supply chain strategies layouts, and operations etc. Many manufacturing operations are designed to maximize throughput and lower costs with modest considerations for the crash on inventory levels and distribution capabilities. To improve profitability and efficiency, automotive players are seeking ways to achieve operational excellence, reduce operating cost and enhance customer service through efficient supply chain management.

Keywords: automotive industry, supply chain, challenges, market potential

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Authors: Palanisamy Sivanandy, Tan Tyng Wei, Tan Wee Loon, Lim Chong Yee

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Background: Patient safety has become a major concern over recent years with elevated medication errors; particularly prescribing and dispensing errors. Meticulous prescription screening and diligent drug dispensing is therefore important to prevent drug-related adverse events from inflicting harm to patients. Hence, pharmacists play a significant role in this scenario. The evaluation of patient safety in a pharmacy setup is crucial to contemplate current practices, attitude and perception of pharmacists towards patient safety. Method: The questionnaire for Pharmacy Survey on Patient Safety Culture developed by the Agency for Healthcare and Research Quality (AHRQ) was used to assess patient safety. Main objectives of the study was to evaluate the attitude and perception of pharmacists towards patient safety in retail pharmacies setup in Malaysia. Results: 417 questionnaire were distributed via convenience sampling in three different states of Malaysia, where 390 participants were responded and the response rate was 93.52%. The overall positive response rate (PRR) was ranged from 31.20% to 87.43% and the average PRR was found to be 67%. The overall patient safety grade for our pharmacies was appreciable and it ranges from good to very good. The study found a significant difference in the perception of senior and junior pharmacists towards patient safety. The internal consistency of the questionnaire contents /dimensions was satisfactory (Cronbach’s alpha - 0.92). Conclusion: Our results reflect that there was positive attitude and perception of retail pharmacists towards patient safety. Despite this, various efforts can be implemented in the future to amplify patient safety in retail pharmacies setup.

Keywords: patient safety, attitude, perception, positive response rate, medication errors

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Authors: Revant Nayar

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In this work, we recast the equations describing large scale structure, and by extension all nonlinear fluids, in the path integral formalism. We first calculate the well known two and three point functions using Schwinger Keldysh formalism used commonly to perturbatively solve path integrals in non- equilibrium systems. Then we include EFT corrections due to pressure, viscosity, and noise as effects on the time-dependent propagator. We are able to express results for arbitrary two and three point correlation functions in LSS in terms of differential operators acting on a triple K master intergral. We also, for the first time, get analytical results for more general initial conditions deviating from the usual power law P∝kⁿ by introducing a mass scale in the initial conditions. This robust field theoretic formalism empowers us with tools from strongly coupled QFT to study the strongly non-linear regime of LSS and turbulent fluid dynamics such as OPE and holographic duals. These could be used to capture fully the strongly non-linear dynamics of fluids and move towards solving the open problem of classical turbulence.

Keywords: quantum field theory, cosmology, effective field theory, renormallisation

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Authors: Djoudi Ali

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In this article, we shall expose some of the more interesting interactions of philosophy and cybernetics, some philosophical issues arising in cybernetic systems, and some questions in philosophy of our daily life related to the artificial intelligence. Many of these are fruitfully explored in the article..This article will shed light also on the importance of science and technology in our life and what are the main problems of misusing the latest technologies known under artificial intelligence and cybernatics acoording to Bertrand Russell’s point of view; then to analyse his project of reforms inculding science progress risks , the article show also the whole aspect of the impact of technology on peace , nature and on individual daily behavior, we shall discuss all issues and defies imposing by this new era , The article will invest in showing what Russell will suggest to eliminate or to slow down the dangers of these changes and what are the main solutions to protect the indiviual’s rights and responsiblities In this article, We followed a different methodology, like analysis method and sometimes the historical or descriptive method, without forgetting criticizing some conclusions when it is logically needed In the end, we mentioned what is supposed to be solutions suggested by Bertrand Russell that should be taken into considerations during the next decades and how to protect our ennvironement and the human being of any risk of disappearing

Keywords: artificial intelligence, technology, cybernetics, sience

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Authors: Carla Silva

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Recent development of information and communication technology enables us to acquire, collect, analyse data in various fields of socioeconomic – technological systems. Along with the increase of economic globalization and the evolution of information technology, data mining has become an important approach for economic data analysis. As a result, there has been a critical need for automated approaches to effective and efficient usage of massive amount of educational data, in order to support institutions to a strategic planning and investment decision-making. In this article, we will address data from several different perspectives and define the applied data to sciences. Many believe that 'big data' will transform business, government, and other aspects of the economy. We discuss how new data may impact educational policy and educational research. Large scale administrative data sets and proprietary private sector data can greatly improve the way we measure, track, and describe educational activity and educational impact. We also consider whether the big data predictive modeling tools that have emerged in statistics and computer science may prove useful in educational and furthermore in economics. Finally, we highlight a number of challenges and opportunities for future research.

Keywords: data mining, research analysis, investment decision-making, educational research

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Authors: Francis Padi, Solomon Nunoo, John Kojo Annan

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The paper "Survey on Fiber Optic Deployment for Telecommunications Operators in Ghana: Coverage Gap, Recommendations and Research Directions" presents a comprehensive survey on the deployment of fiber optic networks for telecommunications operators in Ghana. It addresses the challenges encountered by operators using microwave transmission systems for backhauling traffic and emphasizes the advantages of deploying fiber optic networks. The study delves into the coverage gap, provides recommendations, and outlines research directions to enhance the telecommunications infrastructure in Ghana. Additionally, it evaluates next-generation optical access technologies and architectures tailored to operators' needs. The paper also investigates current technological solutions and regulatory, technical, and economical dimensions related to sharing mobile telecommunication networks in emerging countries. Overall, this paper offers valuable insights into fiber optic network deployment for telecommunications operators in Ghana and suggests strategies to meet the increasing demand for data and mobile applications.

Keywords: survey on fiber optic deployment, coverage gap, recommendations, research directions

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Authors: Oksana Mykytyuk

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Chronic desynchronosis is an important factor of progression of osteoarthritis in shift workers. 80 patients with primary osteoarthritis (female:male ratio = 3:1, average age: 57.6 years, average disease duration: 6.4 years, radiological stage: II-III) were examined, 42% reported systematic night shift-work for more than two years. Full clinical examination was performed, all patients filled in SF-36, WOMAC questonnaries, marked visual analog scales for estimation of pain intensity and general well-being. Patients who had been exposed to night work had significantly worse clinical course of osteoarthritis marked by more (27.5%, p < 0.05) extensive pain syndrome, especially at night hours, (10.00 pm-2.00 am period) and estimated life quality as poorer comparing those working at day time. Osteoarthritis initiation occurred at earlier age in them comparing those who worked in non-shifted regimen. They showed a trend to generalized affliction of bigger quantity of joint groups, higher frequency of synovitis as well. Shift-workers administered higher doses of non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and estimated their effect as lower (39.6% average daily relief vs 62.5% in non-shift workers after 10 days of regular application of therapy). Frequency of chronic NSAID-induced gastropathy was 25% higher among night-workers. Shift-workers are predisposed to worse course of osteoarthritis with marked clinical symptoms, requiring higher doses on NSAIDs and with inclination towards bigger frequency of complication. That should be kept in mind while developing individual treatment and secondary prophylaxis strategy.

Keywords: desynchronosis, osteoarthritis, questionnaries, shift-work

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Raihan Zahirah Mauludy Ridwan, Frisca Devi Choirina

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Indonesia is an agrarian country endowed by fertile soil, supportive weather, and natural resources which can support agricultural activities. There are commodities which produced by local farmers. Even though Indonesia had commodities, it still imports stocks of staple food. To reduce the dependency on imported staple food, President Joko Widodo wants to generate more locally-produced staple food by giving 69.000 tractors, free seeds, and fertilizers to the local farmers. In Indonesia, the problem revolves around the amount of food production especially rice derived from farmers who cannot afford technologies which can support the agricultural activities. Moreover, they cannot afford seeds and fertilizers which can make the production of commodities more effective and have high quality. Therefore, the paper would like to answer how agriculture equipment assistance during President Joko Widodo era can give significant impact towards food security. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of agriculture equipment assistance and its impact towards Indonesia’s food security. This paper uses Boserup and Ruthenberg theory of agricultural intensification to link agriculture equipment and intensification of production which in the end will have impact towards food security through case study method. The paper affirms that the role of agricultural equipment assistance toward food security in Indonesia is significant toward Indonesia’s food production and security.

Keywords: agricultural equipment, agricultural intensification, Boserup, Indonesia, Joko Widodo, Ruthenberg

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Authors: Sugeng Rianto, P.W. Arinto Yudi, Soemarno Muhammad Nurhuda

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A computation of a 3D compressible fluid flow for virtual environment with haptic interaction can be a non-trivial issue. This is especially how to reach good performances and balancing between visualization, tactile feedback interaction, and computations. In this paper, we describe our approach of computation methods based on parallel programming on a GPU. The 3D fluid flow solvers have been developed for smoke dispersion simulation by using combinations of the cubic interpolated propagation (CIP) based fluid flow solvers and the advantages of the parallelism and programmability of the GPU. The fluid flow solver is generated in the GPU-CPU message passing scheme to get rapid development of haptic feedback modes for fluid dynamic data. A rapid solution in fluid flow solvers is developed by applying cubic interpolated propagation (CIP) fluid flow solvers. From this scheme, multiphase fluid flow equations can be solved simultaneously. To get more acceleration in the computation, the Navier-Stoke Equations (NSEs) is packed into channels of texel, where computation models are performed on pixels that can be considered to be a grid of cells. Therefore, despite of the complexity of the obstacle geometry, processing on multiple vertices and pixels can be done simultaneously in parallel. The data are also shared in global memory for CPU to control the haptic in providing kinaesthetic interaction and felling. The results show that GPU based parallel computation approaches provide effective simulation of compressible fluid flow model for real-time interaction in 3D computer graphic for PC platform. This report has shown the feasibility of a new approach of solving the compressible fluid flow equations on the GPU. The experimental tests proved that the compressible fluid flowing on various obstacles with haptic interactions on the few model obstacles can be effectively and efficiently simulated on the reasonable frame rate with a realistic visualization. These results confirm that good performances and balancing between visualization, tactile feedback interaction, and computations can be applied successfully.

Keywords: CIP, compressible fluid, GPU programming, parallel computation, real-time visualisation

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Authors: Merkouche Wassila, Marchand Alain, Renaud Stéphane

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Organizations are facing competitive pressures constraining them to modify their practices and change initial work conditions of employees, however, these modifications have to sustain initial quality of work and engagements toward the workforce. We focus on the importance of promises in the perspective of psychological contract. According to this perspective, employees perceiving a breach of the expected obligations from the employer may become unsatisfied at work and develop organizational withdrawal behaviors. These are negative counterproductive behaviours aiming to damage the organisation according to the principle of reciprocity and social exchange. We present an integrative model of the determinants and manifestations of organizational withdrawal (OW), a set of behaviors allowing the employee to leave his job or avoid his assigned work. OW contains two main components often studied in silos: work withdrawal (delays, absenteeism and other adverse behaviors) and job withdrawal (turnover). We use the systemic micro, meso and macro sociological approach designing the individual at the heart of a system containing individual, organizational, and environmental determinants. Under the influence of these different factors, the individual assesses the type of behavior to adopt. We provide better lighting for understanding OW using both psychological contract approach through the perception of its respect by the organization and job embeddedness approach which explains why the employee does not leave the organization and then remains in his post while practicing negative and counterproductive behaviors such as OW. We study specifically cynicism as a type of OW as it is a dimension of burnout. We focus on the antecedents of cynicism to try to prevent it in the workplace.

Keywords: burnout, cynicism, job embeddedness, organizational withdrawal, psychological contract

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Authors: Huajuan Shi

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Background: The biopsy of the preimplantation embryo may increase the potential risk and concern of embryo viability. Clinically discarded spent embryo medium (SEM) has entered the view of researchers, sparking an interest in noninvasive embryo screening. However, one of the major restrictions is the extremelty low quantity of cf-RNA, which is difficult to efficiently and unbiased amplify cf-RNA using traditional methods. Hence, there is urgently need to an efficient and low bias amplification method which can comprehensively and accurately obtain cf-RNA information to truly reveal the state of SEM cf-RNA. Result: In this present study, we established an agarose PCR amplification system, and has significantly improved the amplification sensitivity and efficiency by ~90 fold and 9.29 %, respectively. We applied agarose to sequencing library preparation (named AG-seq) to quantify and characterize cf-RNA in SEM. The number of detected cf-RNAs (3533 vs 598) and coverage of 3' end were significantly increased, and the noise of low abundance gene detection was reduced. The increasing percentage 5' end adenine and alternative splicing (AS) events of short fragments (< 400 bp) were discovered by AG-seq. Further, the profiles and characterizations of cf-RNA in spent cleavage medium (SCM) and spent blastocyst medium (SBM) indicated that 4‐mer end motifs of cf-RNA fragments could remarkably differentiate different embryo development stages. Significance: This study established an efficient and low-cost SEM amplification and library preparation method. Not only that, we successfully described the characterizations of SEM cf-RNA of preimplantation embryo by using AG-seq, including abundance features fragment lengths. AG-seq facilitates the study of cf-RNA as a noninvasive embryo screening biomarker and opens up potential clinical utilities of trace samples.

Keywords: cell-free RNA, agarose, spent embryo medium, RNA sequencing, non-invasive detection

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Authors: Eun Gyeong Lee, Ji Young Park, Hyun Ae Woo

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Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production is involved in ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury in kidney of mice. Oxidative stress develops from an imbalance between ROS production and reduced antioxidant defenses. Many enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidant systems including peroxiredoxins (Prxs) are present in kidney to maintain an appropriate level of ROS and prevent oxidative damage. Prxs are a family of peroxidases that reduce peroxides, with a conserved cysteine residue serving as the site of oxidation by peroxides. In this study, we examined the protective role of Prx V against I/R-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) using Prx V wild type (WT) and knockout (KO) mice. We compared the response of Prx V WT and KO mice in mice model of I/R injury. Renal structure, functions, oxidative stress markers, protein levels of oxidative damage marker were worse in Prx V KO mice. Ablation of Prx V enhanced susceptibility to I/R-induced oxidative stress. Prx V KO mice were seen to have more severe renal damage than Prx V WT mice in mice model of I/R injury. Our results demonstrate that Prx V is protective against I/R-induced AKI.

Keywords: peroxiredoxin, ischemia/reperfusion, kidney, oxidative stress

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Authors: Francesca Gullo, Paola Palmero, Massimo Messori

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Transparent wood is considered a promising structural material for the development of environmentally friendly, energy-efficient engineered components. To obtain transparent wood from natural wood materials two approaches can be used: i) bottom-up and ii) top-down. Through the second method, the color of natural wood samples is lightened through a chemical bleaching process that acts on chromophore groups of lignin, such as the benzene ring, quinonoid, vinyl, phenolics, and carbonyl groups. These chromophoric units form complex conjugate systems responsible for the brown color of wood. There are two strategies to remove color and increase the whiteness of wood: i) lignin removal and ii) lignin bleaching. In the lignin removal strategy, strong chemicals containing chlorine (chlorine, hypochlorite, and chlorine dioxide) and oxidizers (oxygen, ozone, and peroxide) are used to completely destroy and dissolve the lignin. In lignin bleaching methods, a moderate reductive (hydrosulfite) or oxidative (hydrogen peroxide) is commonly used to alter or remove the groups and chromophore systems of lignin, selectively discoloring the lignin while keeping the macrostructure intact. It is, therefore, essential to manipulate nanostructured wood by precisely controlling the nanopores in the cell walls by monitoring both chemical treatments and process conditions, for instance, the treatment time, the concentration of chemical solutions, the pH value, and the temperature. The elimination of wood light scattering is the second step in the fabrication of transparent wood materials, which can be achieved through two-step approaches: i) the polymer impregnation method and ii) the densification method. For the polymer impregnation method, the wood scaffold is treated with polymers having a corresponding refractive index (e.g., PMMA and epoxy resins) under vacuum to obtain the transparent composite material, which can finally be pressed to align the cellulose fibers and reduce interfacial defects in order to have a finished product with high transmittance (>90%) and excellent light-guiding. However, both the solution-based bleaching and the impregnation processes used to produce transparent wood generally consume large amounts of energy and chemicals, including some toxic or pollutant agents, and are difficult to scale up industrially. Here, we report a method to produce optically transparent wood by modifying the lignin structure with a chemical reaction at room temperature using small amounts of hydrogen peroxide in an alkaline environment. This method preserves the lignin, which results only deconjugated and acts as a binder, providing both a strong wood scaffold and suitable porosity for infiltration of biobased polymers while reducing chemical consumption, the toxicity of the reagents used, polluting waste, petroleum by-products, energy and processing time. The resulting transparent wood demonstrates high transmittance and low thermal conductivity. Through the combination of process efficiency and scalability, the obtained materials are promising candidates for application in the field of construction for modern energy-efficient buildings.

Keywords: bleached wood, energy-efficient components, hydrogen peroxide, transparent wood, wood composites

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Authors: Adebayo A. Abimbola, Anifowose O. Joseph, Olanrewaju S. Taiwo

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Green building (GB) practices have the potential to save energy, save money, and improve the quality of human habitat. They can also contribute to water conservation, more efficient use of raw materials, and ecosystem health around the globe. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) singled out the building sector as having the most cost-effective opportunities for reducing carbon emissions—in fact, many building-related opportunities are cost-neutral, or even cost-positive, to the building owner. These benefits have made green building practices the fastest-growing trend in the building industry, but they still represent only a fraction of new construction, and the enormous stock of existing buildings has barely been touched at all. To effectively deliver the kind of (GB) that can become a force for positive change at global, regional and local scales, all workforce sectors need new skills that are both technical and interpersonal in nature. A prominent bottleneck is seen to be education and training. This paper investigates the major gaps in current GB education and training offerings in Nigeria. A questionnaire survey was developed to capture the perception of construction professionals and academics in relevant professions regarding the significance of the identified gaps as it affects GB education and training. Based on Likert scale ranking, research result shows that perception of training in specific technical fields and financial benefits and evaluation are identified as the top gaps in GB training and education offerings. The paper concludes with suggestions and actions that can enhance capabilities of the GB workforce in Nigeria.

Keywords: education and training, gaps, green building, workforce

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Authors: Yunwei Zhang, Qiaochu Tang, Yao Zhang, Jiabin Wang, Ulrich Stimming, Alpha Lee

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Forecasting the state of health and remaining useful life of Li-ion batteries is an unsolved challenge that limits technologies such as consumer electronics and electric vehicles. Here we build an accurate battery forecasting system by combining electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) -- a real-time, non-invasive and information-rich measurement that is hitherto underused in battery diagnosis -- with Gaussian process machine learning. We collect over 20,000 EIS spectra of commercial Li-ion batteries at different states of health, states of charge and temperatures -- the largest dataset to our knowledge of its kind. Our Gaussian process model takes the entire spectrum as input, without further feature engineering, and automatically determines which spectral features predict degradation. Our model accurately predicts the remaining useful life, even without complete knowledge of past operating conditions of the battery. Our results demonstrate the value of EIS signals in battery management systems.

Keywords: battery degradation, machine learning method, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, battery diagnosis

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Authors: Mohamad Farhat, Bal Virdee

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This paper present a compact Microstrip Bandpass filter exhibiting a very wide stop band and high selectivity. The filter comprises of asymmetric resonator structures, which are interconnected by an inter-digital capacitor to enable the realization of a wide bandwidth with high rejection level. High selectivity is obtained by optimizing the parameters of the interdigital capacitor. The filter has high out-of-band rejection (> 30 dB), less than 0.6 dB of insertion-loss, up to 5.5 GHz spurii free, and about 18 dB of return-loss. Full-wave electromagnetic simulator ADSTM (Mom) is used to analyze and optimize the prototype bandpass filter. The proposed technique was verified practically to validate the design methodology. The experimental results of the prototype circuit are presented and a good agreement was obtained comparing with the simulation results. The dimensions of the proposed filter are 32 x 24 mm2.The filter’s characteristics and compact size make it suitable for wireless communication systems.

Keywords: asymmetric resonator, bandpass filter, microstrip, spurious suppression, ultra-wide stop band

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Authors: Sunidhi Syal, Rasangi Tennakoon, Patrick O'Donoghue

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Polyglutamine (polyQ) diseases are a group of diseases related to neurodegeneration caused by repeats of the amino acid glutamine (Q) in the DNA, which translates into an elongated polyQ tract in the protein. The pathological explanation is that the polyQ tract forms cytotoxic aggregates in the neurons, leading to their degeneration. There are no cures or preventative efforts established for these diseases as of today, although the symptoms of these diseases can be relieved. This study specifically focuses on Huntington's disease, which is a type of polyQ disease in which aggregation is caused by the extended cytosine, adenine, guanine (CUG) codon repeats in the huntingtin (HTT) gene, which encodes for the huntingtin protein. Using this principle, we attempted to create six models, which included mutating wildtype tRNA alanine variant tRNA-AGC-8-1 to have glutamine anticodons CUG and UUG so serine is incorporated at glutamine sites in poly Q tracts. In the process, we were successful in obtaining tAla-8-1 CUG mutant clones in the HTTexon1 plasmids with a polyQ tract of 23Q (non-pathogenic model) and 74Q (disease model). These plasmids were transfected into mouse neuroblastoma cells to characterize protein synthesis and aggregation in normal and mistranslating cells and to investigate the effects of glutamines replaced with alanines on the disease phenotype. Notably, we observed no noteworthy differences in mean fluorescence between the CUG mutants for 23Q or 74Q; however, the Triton X-100 assay revealed a significant reduction in insoluble 74Q aggregates. We were unable to create a tAla-8-1 UUG mutant clone, and determining the difference in the effects of the two glutamine anticodons may enrich our understanding of the disease phenotype. In conclusion, by generating structural disruption with the amino acid alanine, it may be possible to find ways to minimize the toxicity of Huntington's disease caused by these polyQ aggregates. Further research is needed to advance knowledge in this field by identifying the cellular and biochemical impact of specific tRNA variants found naturally in human genomes.

Keywords: Huntington's disease, polyQ, tRNA, anticodon, clone, overlap PCR

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Authors: Supriya Gupta, Paresh Chokshi

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Polymer-particle interactions can be effectively utilized to produce composites that possess physicochemical properties superior to that of neat polymer. The incorporation of fillers with dimensions comparable to polymer chain size produces composites with extra-ordinary properties owing to very high surface to volume ratio. The dispersion of nanoparticles is achieved by inducing steric repulsion realized by grafting particles with polymeric chains. A comprehensive understanding of the interparticle interaction between these functionalized nanoparticles plays an important role in the synthesis of a stable polymer nanocomposite. With the focus on incorporation of clay sheets in a polymer matrix, we theoretically construct the polymer mediated interparticle potential for two nanosheets grafted with polymeric chains. The self-consistent field theory (SCFT) is employed to obtain the inhomogeneous composition field under equilibrium. Unlike the continuum models, SCFT is built from the microscopic description taking in to account the molecular interactions contributed by both intra- and inter-chain potentials. We present the results of SCFT calculations of the interaction potential curve for two grafted nanosheets immersed in the matrix of polymeric chains of dissimilar chemistry to that of the grafted chains. The interaction potential is repulsive at short separation and shows depletion attraction for moderate separations induced by high grafting density. It is found that the strength of attraction well can be tuned by altering the compatibility between the grafted and the mobile chains. Further, we construct the interaction potential between two nanosheets grafted with diblock copolymers with one of the blocks being chemically identical to the free polymeric chains. The interplay between the enthalpic interaction between the dissimilar species and the entropy of the free chains gives rise to a rich behavior in interaction potential curve obtained for two separate cases of free chains being chemically similar to either the grafted block or the free block of the grafted diblock chains.

Keywords: clay nanosheets, polymer brush, polymer nanocomposites, self-consistent field theory

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Authors: Lars Andersen

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The development of design and engineering in large construction projects are characterized by an increased degree of flattening out of formal structures, extended use of parallel and integrated processes (‘Integrated Concurrent Engineering’) and an increased number of expert disciplines. The integration process is based on ongoing collaborations, dialogues, intercommunication and comments on each other’s work (iterations). This process based on reciprocal communication between actors and disciplines triggers value creation. However, communication between equals is not in itself sufficient to create effective decision making. The complexity of the process and time pressure contribute to an increased risk of a deficit of decisions and loss of process control. The paper refers to a study that aims at developing a resilient decision-making system that does not come in conflict with communication processes based on equality between the disciplines in the process. The study includes the construction of a hospital, following the phases design, engineering and physical building. The Research method is a combination of formative process research, process tracking and phenomenological analyses. The study tracked challenges and problems in the building process to the projection substrates (drawing and models) and further to the organization of the engineering and design phase. A comparative analysis of traditional and new ways of organizing the projecting made it possible to uncover an implicit material order or structure in the process. This uncovering implied a development of a material process perspective. According to this perspective the complexity of the process is rooted in material-functional differentiation. This differentiation presupposes a structuring material (the skeleton of the building) that coordinates the other types of material. Each expert discipline´s competence is related to one or a set of materials. The architect, consulting engineer construction etc. have their competencies related to structuring material, and inherent in this; coordination competence. When dialogues between the disciplines concerning the coordination between them do not result in agreement, the disciplines with responsibility for the structuring material decide the interface issues. Based on these premises, this paper develops a self-organized expert-driven interdisciplinary decision-making system.

Keywords: collaboration, complexity, design, engineering, materiality

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Authors: Mohamed A. Hammad, Dzul Azri Mohamed Noor, Syed Azhar Syed Sulaiman, Majed Ahmed Al-Mansoub, Muhammad Qamar

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There is a progressive increase in the prevalence of early onset Type 2 diabetes mellitus. Early detection of Type 2 diabetes enhances the length and/or quality of life which might result from a reduction in the severity, frequency or prevent or delay of its long-term complications. The study aims to determine the onset age for the first diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes mellitus. A retrospective study conducted in the endocrine clinic at Hospital Pulau Pinang in Penang, Malaysia, January- December 2016. Records of 519 patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus were screened to collect demographic data and determine the age of first-time diabetes mellitus diagnosis. Patients classified according to the age of diagnosis, gender, and ethnicity. The study included 519 patients with age (55.6±13.7) years, female 265 (51.1%) and male 254 (48.9%). The ethnicity distribution was Malay 191 (36.8%), Chinese 189 (36.4%) and Indian 139 (26.8%). The age of Type 2 diabetes diagnosis was (42±14.8) years. The female onset of diabetes mellitus was at age (41.5±13.7) years, while male (42.6±13.7) years. Distribution of diabetic onset by ethnicity was Malay at age (40.7±13.7) years, Chinese (43.2±13.7) years and Indian (42.3±13.7) years. Diabetic onset was classified by age as follow; ≤20 years’ cohort was 33 (6.4%) cases. Group >20- ≤40 years was 190 (36.6%) patients, and category >40- ≤60 years was 270 (52%) subjects. On the other hand, the group >60 years was 22 (4.2%) patients. The range of diagnosis was between 10 and 73 years old. Conclusion: Malay and female have an earlier onset of diabetes than Indian, Chinese and male. More than half of the patients had diabetes between 40 and 60 years old. Diabetes mellitus is becoming more common in younger age <40 years. The age at diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes mellitus has decreased with time.

Keywords: age of onset, diabetes diagnosis, diabetes mellitus, Malaysia, outpatients, type 2 diabetes, retrospective study

Procedia PDF Downloads 414