Search results for: quantum probability

Authors: Jérôme de Reffye, Marc Antoni

Abstract:

Following the development of the ERTMS system, we think it is interesting to develop another software-based track circuit system which would fit secondary railway lines with an easy-to-work implementation and a low sensitivity to rail-wheel impedance variations. We called this track circuit 'Track Railway by Automatic Circuits.' To be internationally implemented, this system must not have any mechanical component and must be compatible with existing track circuit systems. For example, the system is independent from the French 'Joints Isolants Collés' that isolate track sections from one another, and it is equally independent from component used in Germany called 'Counting Axles,' in French 'compteur d’essieux.' This track circuit is fully interoperable. Such universality is obtained by replacing the train detection mechanical system with a space-time filtering of train position. The various track sections are defined by the frequency of a continuous signal. The set of frequencies related to the track sections is a set of orthogonal functions in a Hilbert Space. Thus the failure probability of track sections separation is precisely calculated on the basis of signal-to-noise ratio. SNR is a function of the level of traction current conducted by rails. This is the reason why we developed a very powerful algorithm to reject noise and jamming to obtain an SNR compatible with the precision required for the track circuit and SIL 4 level. The SIL 4 level is thus reachable by an adjustment of the set of orthogonal functions. Our major contributions to railway engineering signalling science are i) Train space localization is precisely defined by a calibration system. The operation bypasses the GSM-R radio system of the ERTMS system. Moreover, the track circuit is naturally protected against radio-type jammers. After the calibration operation, the track circuit is autonomous. ii) A mathematical topology adapted to train space localization by following the train through a linear time filtering of the received signal. Track sections are numerically defined and can be modified with a software update. The system was numerically simulated, and results were beyond our expectations. We achieved a precision of one meter. Rail-ground and rail-wheel impedance sensitivity analysis gave excellent results. Results are now complete and ready to be published. This work was initialised as a research project of the French Railways developed by the Pi-Ramses Company under SNCF contract and required five years to obtain the results. This track circuit is already at Level 3 of the ERTMS system, and it will be much cheaper to implement and to work. The traffic regulation is based on variable length track sections. As the traffic growths, the maximum speed is reduced, and the track section lengths are decreasing. It is possible if the elementary track section is correctly defined for the minimum speed and if every track section is able to emit with variable frequencies.

Keywords: track section, track circuits, space-time crossing, adaptive track section, automatic railway signalling

Procedia PDF Downloads 309

Authors: O. Sauperl, L. Fras Zemljic

Abstract:

The textile industry is gaining increasing importance in the field of medical materials. Therefore, presented research is focused on textile materials for external (out-of-body) use. Such materials could be various hygienic textile products (diapers, tampons, sanitary napkins, incontinence products, etc.), protective textiles and various hospital linens (surgical covers, masks, gowns, cloths, bed linens, etc.) wound pillows, bandages, orthopedic socks, etc. Function of tampons and sanitary napkins is not only to provide protection during the menstrual cycle, but their function can be also to take care of physiological or pathological vaginal discharge. In general, women's intimate areas are against infection protected by a low pH value of the vaginal flora. High pH inhibits the development of harmful microorganisms, as it is difficult to be reproduced in an acidic environment. The normal vaginal flora in healthy women is highly colonized by lactobacilli. The lactic acid produced by these organisms maintains the constant acidity of the vagina. If the balance of natural protection breaks, infections can occur. In the market, there exist probiotic tampons as a medical product supplying the vagina with beneficial probiotic lactobacilli. But, many users have concerns about the use of tampons due to the possible dry-out of the vagina as well as the possible toxic shock syndrome, which is the reason that they use mainly sanitary napkins during the menstrual cycle. Functionalization of sanitary napkins with probiotics is, therefore, interesting in regard to maintain a healthy vaginal flora and to offer to users added value of the sanitary napkins in the sense of health- and environmentally-friendly products. For this reason, the presented research is oriented in functionalization of the sanitary napkins with the probiotic paste in order to activate the lactic acid bacteria presented in the core of the functionalized sanitary napkin at the time of the contact with the menstrual fluid. In this way, lactobacilli could penetrate into vagina and by maintaining healthy vaginal flora to reduce the risk of vaginal disorders. In regard to the targeted research problem, the influence of probiotic paste applied onto cotton hygienic napkins on selected properties was studied. The aim of the research was to determine whether the sanitary napkins with the applied probiotic paste may assure suitable vaginal pH to maintain a healthy vaginal flora during the use of this product. Together with this, sorption properties of probiotic functionalized sanitary napkins were evaluated and compared to the untreated one. The research itself was carried out on the basis of tracking and controlling the input parameters, currently defined by Slovenian producer (Tosama d.o.o.) as the most important. Successful functionalization of sanitary pads with the probiotic paste was confirmed by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Results of the methods used within the presented research show that the absorption of the pads treated with probiotic paste deteriorates compared to non-treated ones. The coating shows a 6-month stability. Functionalization of sanitary pads with probiotic paste is believed to have a commercial potential for lowering the probability of infection during the menstrual cycle.

Keywords: functionalization, probiotic paste, sanitary pads, textile materials

Procedia PDF Downloads 165

Authors: Cinthia G. P. Calou, Franz J. Antezana, Ana I. O. Nicolau, Eveliny S. Martins, Paula R. A. L. Soares, Glauberto S. Quirino, Dayanne R. Oliveira, Priscila S. Aquino, Régia C. M. B. Castro, Ana K. B. Pinheiro

Abstract:

Introduction: As an integral part of the health-disease process, gestation is a period in which the social insertion of women can influence, in a positive or negative way, the course of the pregnancy-puerperal cycle. Thus, evaluating the quality of life of this population can redirect the implementation of innovative practices in the quest to make them more effective and real for the promotion of a more humanized care. This study explores the associations between the obstetric factors with affected areas of health-related quality of life of pregnant women with habitual risk. Methods: This is a cross-sectional, quantitative study conducted in three public facilities and a private service that provides prenatal care in the city of Fortaleza, Ceara, Brazil. The sample consisted of 261 pregnant women who underwent low-risk prenatal care and were interviewed from September to November 2014. The collection instruments were a questionnaire containing socio-demographic and obstetric variables, in addition to the Brazilian version of the Mother scale Generated Index (MGI) characterized by being a specific and objective instrument, consisting of a single sheet and subdivided into three stages. It allows identifying the areas of life of the pregnant woman that are most affected, which could go unnoticed by the pre-formulated measurement instruments. The obstetric data, as well as the data concerning the application of the MGI scale, were compiled and analyzed through the statistical program Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 20.0. After the compilation, a descriptive analysis was carried out. Then, associations were made between some variables. The tests applied were the Pearson Chi-Square and the Fisher's exact test. The odds ratio was also calculated. These associations were considered statistically significant when the p (probability) value was less than or equal to a level of 5% (α = 0.05) in the tests performed. Results: The variables that negatively reflected the quality of life of the pregnant women and presented a significant association with the polaciuria were: gestational age (p = 0.022) and parity (p = 0.048). Episodes of nausea and vomiting also showed significant with gestational age correlation (p = 0.0001). Evaluating the crossing of stress, we observed a significant association with parity (p = 0.0001). In turn, emotional lability revealed dependence on the variable type of delivery (p = 0.009). Conclusion: The health professionals involved in the assistance to the pregnant woman can understand how the process of gestation is experienced, considering all its peculiar transformations; to meet their individual needs, stimulating their autonomy and their power of choice, envisaging the achievement of a better quality of life related to health in the perspective of health promotion.

Keywords: health-related quality of life, obstetric nursing, pregnant women, prenatal care

Procedia PDF Downloads 264

Authors: Sanari Chalin Moriri, Kwabena Kingsley Ayisi, Alina Mofokeng

Abstract:

Dryland smallholder farmers in South Africa are vulnerable to all kinds of risks, and it negatively affects crop productivity and profit. Pigeonpea is a leguminous and multipurpose crop that provides food, fodder, and wood for smallholder farmers. The majority of these farmers are still growing pigeonpea from traditional unimproved seeds, which comprise a mixture of genotypes. The objectives of the study were to identify the key risk factors that affect pigeonpea productivity and to develop management strategies on how to alleviate the risk factors in pigeonpea production. The study was conducted in two provinces (Limpopo and Mpumalanga) of South Africa in six municipalities during the 2020/2021 growing seasons. The non-probability sampling method using purposive and snowball sampling techniques were used to collect data from the farmers through a structured questionnaire. A total of 114 pigeonpea producers were interviewed individually using a questionnaire. Key stakeholders in each municipality were also identified, invited, and interviewed to verify the information given by farmers. Data collected were subjected to SPSS statistical software 25 version. The findings of the study were that majority of farmers affected by risk factors were women, subsistence, and old farmers resulted in low food production. Drought, unavailability of improved pigeonpea seeds for planting, access to information, and processing equipment were found to be the main risk factors contributing to low crop productivity in farmer’s fields. Above 80% of farmers lack knowledge on the improvement of the crop and also on the processing techniques to secure high prices during the crop off-season. Market availability, pricing, and incidence of pests and diseases were found to be minor risk factors which were triggered by the major risk factors. The minor risk factors can be corrected only if the major risk factors are first given the necessary attention. About 10% of the farmers found to use the crop as a mulch to reduce soil temperatures and to improve soil fertility. The study revealed that most of the farmers were unaware of its utilisation as fodder, much, medicinal, nitrogen fixation, and many more. The risk of frequent drought in dry areas of South Africa where farmers solely depend on rainfall poses a serious threat to crop productivity. The majority of these risk factors are caused by climate change due to unrealistic, low rainfall with extreme temperatures poses a threat to food security, water, and the environment. The use of drought-tolerant, multipurpose legume crops such as pigeonpea, access to new information, provision of processing equipment, and support from all stakeholders will help in addressing food security for smallholder farmers. Policies should be revisited to address the prevailing risk factors faced by farmers and involve them in addressing the risk factors. Awareness should be prioritized in promoting the crop to improve its production and commercialization in the dryland farming system of South Africa.

Keywords: management strategies, pigeonpea, risk factors, smallholder farmers

Procedia PDF Downloads 185

Authors: Álvaro Turriago-Hoyos

Abstract:

Most research tends to see innovation as an explanatory factor in achieving high levels of competitiveness and productivity. More recent studies have begun to analyze the determinants of innovation in the services sector as opposed to the much-discussed industrial sector of a country’s economy. This research paper focuses on the services sector in Colombia, one of Latin America’s fastest growing and biggest economies. Over the past decade, much of Colombia’s economic expansion has relied on commodity exports (mainly oil and coffee) whilst the industrial sector has performed relatively poorly. Such developments highlight the potential of the innovative role played by the services sector of the Colombian economy and its future growth prospects. This research paper analyzes the relationship between inputs, which at the same time are internal sources of innovation (such as R&D activities), and external sources that are improved by technology acquisition. The outputs are basically the four kinds of innovation that the OECD Oslo Manual recognizes: product, process, marketing and organizational innovations. The instrument used to measure this input-output relationship is based on Knowledge Production Function approaches. We run Probit models in order to identify the existing relationships between the above inputs and outputs, but also to identify spill-overs derived from interactions of the components of the value chain of the services firms analyzed: customers, suppliers, competitors, and complementary firms. Data are obtained from the Colombian National Administrative Department of Statistics for the period 2008 to 2013 published in the II and III Colombian National Innovation Survey. A short summary of the results obtained lead to conclude that firm size and a firm’s level of technological development turn out to be important discriminating factors for the description of the innovative process at the firm level. The model’s outcomes show a positive impact on the probability of introducing any kind of innovation both on R&D and Technology Acquisition investment. Also, cooperation agreements with customers, research institutes, competitors, and the suppliers are significant. Belonging to a particular industrial group is an important determinant but only to product and organizational innovation. It is possible to establish that Health Services, Education, Computer, Wholesale trade, and Financial Intermediation are the ISIC sectors, which report the highest number of frequencies of the considered set of firms. Those five sectors of the sixteen considered, in all cases, explained more than half of the total of all kinds of innovations. Product Innovation, which is followed by Marketing Innovation, gets the highest results. Displaying the same set of firms distinguishing by size, and belonging to high and low tech services sector shows that the larger the firms the larger a number of innovations, but also that always high-tech firms show a better innovation performance.

Keywords: Colombia, determinants of innovation, innovation, services sector

Procedia PDF Downloads 245

Authors: Maria Fontenele, Claude-Gilles Dussap, Vincent Dumouilla, Baptiste Boit

Abstract:

Roquette Frères is a producer of plant-based ingredients that employs many processes to extract relevant molecules and often transforms them through chemical and physical processes to create desired ingredients with specific functionalities. In this context, Roquette encounters numerous multi-component complex systems in their processes, including fibers, proteins, and carbohydrates, in an aqueous environment. To develop, control, and optimize both new and old processes, Roquette aims to develop new in silico tools. Currently, Roquette uses process modelling tools which include specific thermodynamic models and is willing to develop computational methodologies such as molecular dynamics simulations to gain insights into the complex interactions in such complex media, and especially hydrogen bonding interactions. The issue at hand concerns aqueous mixtures of polyols with high dry matter content. The polyols mannitol and sorbitol molecules are diastereoisomers that have nearly identical chemical structures but very different physicochemical properties: for example, the solubility of sorbitol in water is 2.5 kg/kg of water, while mannitol has a solubility of 0.25 kg/kg of water at 25°C. Therefore, predicting liquid-solid equilibrium properties in this case requires sophisticated solution models that cannot be based solely on chemical group contributions, knowing that for mannitol and sorbitol, the chemical constitutive groups are the same. Recognizing the significance of solvation phenomena in polyols, the GePEB (Chemical Engineering, Applied Thermodynamics, and Biosystems) team at Institut Pascal has developed the COSMO-UCA model, which has the structural advantage of using quantum mechanics tools to predict formation and phase equilibrium properties. In this work, we use molecular dynamics simulations to elucidate the behavior of polyols in aqueous solution. Specifically, we employ simulations to compute essential metrics such as radial distribution functions and hydrogen bond autocorrelation functions. Our findings illuminate a fundamental contrast: sorbitol and mannitol exhibit disparate hydrogen bond lifetimes within aqueous environments. This observation serves as a cornerstone in elucidating the divergent physicochemical properties inherent to each compound, shedding light on the nuanced interplay between their molecular structures and water interactions. We also present a methodology to predict the physicochemical properties of complex solutions, taking as sole input the three-dimensional structure of the molecules in the medium. Finally, by developing knowledge models, we represent some physicochemical properties of aqueous solutions of sorbitol and mannitol.

Keywords: COSMO models, hydrogen bond, molecular dynamics, thermodynamics

Procedia PDF Downloads 15

Authors: Seung Ah Lee, Sunghyun Cho, Kyong Mee Chung

Abstract:

Rapid population aging became a worldwide demographic phenomenon due to rising life expectancy and declining fertility rates. Considering the current increasing rate of population aging, it is assumed that Korean society enters into a ‘super-aged’ society in 10 years, in which people aged 65 years or older account for more than 20% of entire population. In line with this trend, ICT services aimed to help elderly people to improve the quality of life have been suggested. However, existing ICT services mainly focus on supporting health or nursing care and are somewhat limited to meet a variety of specialized needs and challenges of this population. It is pointed out that the majority of services have been driven by technology-push policies. Given that the usage of ICT services greatly vary on individuals’ socio-economic status (SES), physical and psychosocial needs, this study systematically categorized elderly population into sub-groups and identified their needs and characteristics related to ICT usage in detail. First, three assessment criteria (demographic variables including SES, cognitive functioning level, and emotional functioning level) were identified based on previous literature, experts’ opinions, and focus group interview. Second, survey questions for needs assessment were developed based on the criteria and administered to 600 respondents from a national probability sample. The questionnaire consisted of 67 items concerning demographic information, experience on ICT services and information technology (IT) devices, quality of life and cognitive functioning, etc. As the result of survey, age (60s, 70s, 80s), education level (college graduates or more, middle and high school, less than primary school) and cognitive functioning level (above the cut-off, below the cut-off) were considered the most relevant factors for categorization and 18 sub-groups were identified. Finally, 18 sub-groups were clustered into 3 groups according to following similarities; computer usage rate, difficulties in using ICT, and familiarity with current or previous job. Group 1 (‘active users’) included those who with high cognitive function and educational level in their 60s and 70s. They showed favorable and familiar attitudes toward ICT services and used the services for ‘joyful life’, ‘intelligent living’ and ‘relationship management’. Group 2 (‘potential users’), ranged from age of 60s to 80s with high level of cognitive function and mostly middle to high school graduates, reported some difficulties in using ICT and their expectations were lower than in group 1 despite they were similar to group 1 in areas of needs. Group 3 (‘limited users’) consisted of people with the lowest education level or cognitive function, and 90% of group reported difficulties in using ICT. However, group 3 did not differ from group 2 regarding the level of expectation for ICT services and their main purpose of using ICT was ‘safe living’. This study developed a systematic needs assessment tool and identified three sub-groups of elderly ICT users based on multi-criteria. It is implied that current cognitive function plays an important role in using ICT and determining needs among the elderly population. Implications and limitations were further discussed.

Keywords: elderly population, ICT, needs assessment, population aging

Procedia PDF Downloads 122

Authors: Ayesha M. Facey

Abstract:

The evaluation sought to determine the factors associated with the high failure rate among students taking a first-year introductory statistics course. By utilizing Tyler’s Objective Based Model, the main objectives were: to assess the effectiveness of the lecturer’s teaching strategies; to determine the proportion of students who attends lectures and tutorials frequently and to determine the impact of infrequent attendance on performance; to determine how the assigned activities assisted in students understanding of the course content; to ascertain the possible issues being faced by students in understanding the course material and obtain possible solutions to the challenges and to determine whether the learning outcomes have been achieved based on an assessment of the second in-course examination. A quantitative survey research strategy was employed and the study population was students enrolled in semester one of the academic year 2015/2016. A convenience sampling approach was employed resulting in a sample of 98 students. Primary data was collected using self-administered questionnaires over a one-week period. Secondary data was obtained from the results of the second in-course examination. Data were entered and analyzed in SPSS version 22 and both univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted on the information obtained from the questionnaires. Univariate analyses provided description of the sample through means, standard deviations and percentages while bivariate analyses were done using Spearman’s Rho correlation coefficient and Chi-square analyses. For secondary data, an item analysis was performed to obtain the reliability of the examination questions, difficulty index and discriminant index. The examination results also provided information on the weak areas of the students and highlighted the learning outcomes that were not achieved. Findings revealed that students were more likely to participate in lectures than tutorials and that attendance was high for both lectures and tutorials. There was a significant relationship between participation in lectures and performance on examination. However, a high proportion of students has been absent from three or more tutorials as well as lectures. A higher proportion of students indicated that they completed the assignments obtained from the lectures sometimes while they rarely completed tutorial worksheets. Students who were more likely to complete their assignments were significantly more likely to perform well on their examination. Additionally, students faced a number of challenges in understanding the course content and the topics of probability, binomial distribution and normal distribution were the most challenging. The item analysis also highlighted these topics as problem areas. Problems doing mathematics and application and analyses were their major challenges faced by students and most students indicated that some of the challenges could be alleviated if additional examples were worked in lectures and they were given more time to solve questions. Analysis of the examination results showed that a number of learning outcomes were not achieved for a number of topics. Based on the findings recommendations were made that suggested adjustments to grade allocations, delivery of lectures and methods of assessment.

Keywords: evaluation, item analysis, Tyler’s objective based model, university statistics

Procedia PDF Downloads 170

Authors: Bangkit Adhi Nugraha, Bambang Suripto

Abstract:

On September 2016 Bank Indonesia (BI) release regulation no.18/18/PBI/2016 that permit bank clients for using the FX option call spread USD/IDR. Basically, this product is a combination between clients buy FX call option (pay premium) and sell FX call option (receive premium) to protect against currency depreciation while also capping the potential upside with cheap premium cost. BI classifies this product as a structured product. The structured product is combination at least two financial instruments, either derivative or non-derivative instruments. The call spread is the first structured product against IDR permitted by BI since 2009 as response the demand increase from Indonesia firms on FX hedging through derivative for protecting market risk their foreign currency asset or liability. The composition of hedging products on Indonesian FX market increase from 35% on 2015 to 40% on 2016, the majority on swap product (FX forward, FX swap, cross currency swap). Swap is formulated by interest rate difference of the two currency pairs. The cost of swap product is 7% for USD/IDR with one year USD/IDR volatility 13%. That cost level makes swap products seem expensive for hedging buyers. Because call spread cost (around 1.5-3%) cheaper than swap, the most Indonesian firms are using NDF FX call spread USD/IDR on offshore with outstanding amount around 10 billion USD. The cheaper cost of call spread is the main advantage for hedging buyers. The problem arises because BI regulation requires the call spread buyer doing the dynamic hedging. That means, if call spread buyer choose strike price 1 and strike price 2 and volatility USD/IDR exchange rate surpass strike price 2, then the call spread buyer must buy another call spread with strike price 1’ (strike price 1’ = strike price 2) and strike price 2’ (strike price 2’ > strike price 1‘). It could make the premium cost of call spread doubled or even more and dismiss the purpose of hedging buyer to find the cheapest hedging cost. It is very crucial for the buyer to choose best optimum strike price before entering into the transaction. To help hedging buyer find the optimum strike price and avoid expensive multiple premium cost, we observe ten years 2005-2015 historical data of USD/IDR volatility to be compared with the price movement of the call spread USD/IDR using Garman–Kohlhagen Model (as a common formula on FX option pricing). We use statistical tools to analysis data correlation, understand nature of call spread price movement over ten years, and determine factors affecting price movement. We select some range of strike price and tenor and calculate the probability of dynamic hedging to occur and how much it’s cost. We found USD/IDR currency pairs is too uncertain and make dynamic hedging riskier and more expensive. We validated this result using one year data and shown small RMS. The study result could be used to understand nature of FX call spread and determine optimum strike price for hedging plan.

Keywords: FX call spread USD/IDR, USD/IDR volatility statistical analysis, Garman–Kohlhagen Model on FX Option USD/IDR, Bank Indonesia Regulation no.18/18/PBI/2016

Procedia PDF Downloads 359

Authors: Francesca Marsili

Abstract:

The reliability assessment of existing structures with probabilistic methods is becoming an increasingly important and frequent engineering task. However probabilistic reliability methods are based on an exhaustive knowledge of the stochastic modeling of the variables involved in the assessment; at the moment standards for the modeling of variables are absent, representing an obstacle to the dissemination of probabilistic methods. The framework according to probability distribution functions (PDFs) are established is represented by the Bayesian statistics, which uses Bayes Theorem: a prior PDF for the considered parameter is established based on information derived from the design stage and qualitative judgments based on the engineer past experience; then, the prior model is updated with the results of investigation carried out on the considered structure, such as material testing, determination of action and structural properties. The application of Bayesian statistics arises two different kind of problems: 1. The results of the updating depend on the engineer previous experience; 2. The updating of the prior PDF can be performed only if the structure has been tested, and quantitative data that can be statistically manipulated have been collected; performing tests is always an expensive and time consuming operation; furthermore, if the considered structure is an ancient building, destructive tests could compromise its cultural value and therefore should be avoided. In order to solve those problems, an interesting research path is represented by investigating Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques that can be useful for the automation of the modeling of variables and for the updating of material parameters without performing destructive tests. Among the others, one that raises particular attention in relation to the object of this study is constituted by Case-Based Reasoning (CBR). In this application, cases will be represented by existing buildings where material tests have already been carried out and an updated PDFs for the material mechanical parameters has been computed through a Bayesian analysis. Then each case will be composed by a qualitative description of the material under assessment and the posterior PDFs that describe its material properties. The problem that will be solved is the definition of PDFs for material parameters involved in the reliability assessment of the considered structure. A CBR system represent a good candi¬date in automating the modelling of variables because: 1. Engineers already draw an estimation of the material properties based on the experience collected during the assessment of similar structures, or based on similar cases collected in literature or in data-bases; 2. Material tests carried out on structure can be easily collected from laboratory database or from literature; 3. The system will provide the user of a reliable probabilistic description of the variables involved in the assessment that will also serve as a tool in support of the engineer’s qualitative judgments. Automated modeling of variables can help in spreading probabilistic reliability assessment of existing buildings in the common engineering practice, and target at the best intervention and further tests on the structure; CBR represents a technique which may help to achieve this.

Keywords: reliability assessment of existing buildings, Bayesian analysis, case-based reasoning, historical structures

Procedia PDF Downloads 317

Authors: Yadira Tejeda, Wynette Whitegoat, Dylan Jones, Brett Drake

Abstract:

Background and Purpose: Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) families impacted by child protective services (CPS) continue to be a population in literature where little is known. There is less known about the fathers of these children and the safety or risk factors attributed to child maltreatment and case outcomes. However, it is known that involving fathers in children’s lives is needed for healthy development, academic achievement, and cognitive development. The few articles that have studied the impacts of engaging fathers in the CPS have found that children in general experience shorter times in foster care, are likely to reunify with their biological family, and overall have better case outcomes. The purpose of this study is to determine whether perpetrators identified as the mother, father, or both impact foster care placement in Hispanic and AI/AN families in CPS. Methods: Using NCANDS Child File data, the selected reports submitted in FY2017 with at least one substantiated allegation, i.e. those with perpetrator information. Reports were categorized into one of three categories: mom-perpetrator-only, father-perpetrator-only, and both. Reports that did not fall into any one of these three categorizations were omitted (<18%). Lastly, only reports where the mother and father self-identified as Hispanic or AI/AN were kept. Foster care placement was measured if any child in the report was placed within three months of the report date. Multilevel Logistic Regression models (random intercepts at the state and county) were used to model the relationship between report-parent type and foster care placement. Controls included Maltreatment types, number of children, any prior reports, and age of the youngest child. Results: For AI/AN reports, 64% were mom-perpetrator-only, 20% were father-perpetrator-only, and 16% both. Father-perpetrator-only reports had 60% lower odds of placement than mom-perpetrator-only, and both had 35% greater odds than mom-only. For Hispanics, 51% were mom-perpetrator-only, 30% father-perpetrator-only, and 19% both. Father-perpetrator-only reports had 74% lower odds than mom-perpetrator-only, and both had 55% greater odds than mom-perpetrator-only. Conclusion and Implications: Fatherhood research focused on prevention and intervention services should include Hispanic and AI/AN fathers to create culturally relevant and tailored services for both groups. By identifying differences in children’s CPS trajectories conditional on fathers’ involvement as a perpetrator, this analysis helps to inform where and how prevention efforts should be focused when considering variation in parental involvement for both populations. The findings indicate that the father’s involvement predicts substantial differences in the probability of future placement, with the direction depending on the mother’s joint involvement. Future research should investigate mediating pathways of these relationships while accounting for the unique experiences of AI/AN and Hispanic families. Each of these racial groups faces unique and differing challenges related to CPS, yet both groups have a shared understanding of the importance of fatherhood in the lives of children. Developing a better understanding of what is happening with Hispanic and AI/AN fathers as it relates to children's CPS experiences may result in new tools to reduce child maltreatment rates in these communities.

Keywords: child Abuse, child maltreatment, NDACAN, latino, native American

Procedia PDF Downloads 12

Authors: Motaz Alsolaim

Abstract:

Nowadays, the challenges of running a start-up can be very complex and are perhaps more difficult than at any other time in the past. Changes in technology, manufacturing innovation, and product development, combined with intense competition and market regulations are factors that have put pressure on classic ways of managing firms, thereby forcing change. As a result, the rate of closure, exit or discontinuation of start-ups and young businesses is very high. Despite the essential role of small firms in an economy, they still tend to face obstacles that exert a negative influence on their performance and rate of survival. In fact, it is not easy to determine with any certainty the reasons why small firms fail. For this reason, failure itself is not clearly defined, and its exact causes are hard to diagnose. In this current study, therefore, the barriers to survival will be covered more broadly, especially personal/entrepreneurial, enterprise and environmental factors with regard to various possible reasons for this failure, in order to determine the best solutions and make appropriate recommendations. Methodology: It could be argued that mixed methods might help to improve entrepreneurship research addressing challenges emphasis in previous studies and to achieve the triangulation. Calls for the combined use of quantitative and qualitative research were also made in the entrepreneurship field since entrepreneurship is a multi-faceted area of research. Therefore, explanatory sequential mixed method was used, using questionnaire online survey for entrepreneurs, followed by semi-structure interview. Collecting over 750 surveys and accepting 296 valid surveys, after that 13 interviews from government official seniors, businessmen successful entrepreneurs, and non-successful entrepreneurs. Findings: The first phase findings ( quantitative) shows the obstacles to survive; starting from the personal/ entrepreneurial factors such as; past work experience, lack of skills and interest, are positive factors, while; gender, age and education level of the owner are negative factors. Internal factors such as lack of marketing research and weak business planning are positive. The environmental factors; in economic perspectives; difficulty to find labors, in socio-cultural perspectives; Social restriction and traditions found to be a negative factors. In other hand, from the political perspective; cost of compliance and insufficient government plans found to be a positive factors for small business failure. From infrastructure perspective; lack of skills labor, high level of bureaucracy and lack of information are positive factors. Conclusion: This paper serves to enrich the understanding of failure factors in MENA region more precisely in SA, by minimizing the probability of failure in small-micro entrepreneurial start-up in SA, in the light of the Saudi government’s Vision 2030 plan.

Keywords: small business barriers, start-up business, entrepreneurship, Saudi Arabia

Procedia PDF Downloads 164

Authors: Kai Warsoenke, Maik Mackiewicz

Abstract:

To achieve a high quality of assembled car body structures, tolerancing is used to ensure a geometric accuracy of the single car body parts. There are two main techniques to determine the required tolerances. The first is tolerance analysis which describes the influence of individually tolerated input values on a required target value. Second is tolerance synthesis to determine the location of individual tolerances to achieve a target value. Both techniques are based on classical statistical methods, which assume certain probability distributions. To ensure competitiveness in both saturated and dynamic markets, production processes in vehicle manufacturing must be flexible and efficient. The dimensional specifications selected for the individual body components and the resulting assemblies have a major influence of the quality of the process. For example, in the manufacturing of forming tools as operating equipment or in the higher level of car body assembly. As part of the metrological process monitoring, manufactured individual parts and assemblies are recorded and the measurement results are stored in databases. They serve as information for the temporary adjustment of the production processes and are interpreted by experts in order to derive suitable adjustments measures. In the production of forming tools, this means that time-consuming and costly changes of the tool surface have to be made, while in the body shop, uncertainties that are difficult to control result in cost-intensive rework. The stored measurement results are not used to intelligently design tolerances in future processes or to support temporary decisions based on real-world geometric data. They offer potential to extend the tolerancing methods through data analysis and machine learning models. The purpose of this paper is to examine real-world measurement data from individual car body components, as well as assemblies, in order to develop an approach for using the data in short-term actions and future projects. For this reason, the measurement data will be analyzed descriptively in the first step in order to characterize their behavior and to determine possible correlations. In the following, a database is created that is suitable for developing machine learning models. The objective is to create an intelligent way to determine the position and number of measurement points as well as the local tolerance range. For this a number of different model types are compared and evaluated. The models with the best result are used to optimize equally distributed measuring points on unknown car body part geometries and to assign tolerance ranges to them. The current results of this investigation are still in progress. However, there are areas of the car body parts which behave more sensitively compared to the overall part and indicate that intelligent tolerancing is useful here in order to design and control preceding and succeeding processes more efficiently.

Keywords: automotive production, machine learning, process optimization, smart tolerancing

Procedia PDF Downloads 90

Authors: Ramalan Musa Yerima

Abstract:

The paper titled “loading by number” explained a strategy developed recently by Zonal Commanding Officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps of Nigeria, covering Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States of Northern Nigeria. The strategy is aimed at reducing competition, which will invariably leads to the reduction in speed, reduction in dangerous driving, reduction in crash rate, reduction in injuries, reduction in property damages and reduction in death through road traffic crashes (RTC). This research paper presents a study focused on enhancing the safety of commercial vehicles. The background of this study highlights the alarming statistics related to commercial vehicle crashes in Nigeria with focus on Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States, which often result in significant damage to property, loss of lives, and economic costs. The significance and aims is to investigate and propose effective strategy to enhance the safety of commercial vehicles. The study recognizes the pressing need for heightened safety measures in commercial transportation, as it impacts not only the well-being of drivers and passengers but also the overall public safety. To achieve the objectives, an examination of accident data, including causes and contributing factors, was performed to identify critical areas for improvement. The major finding of the study reveals that when competition comes into play within the realm of commercial driving, it has detrimental effects on road safety and resource management. Commercial drivers are pushed to complete their routes quickly, deliver goods on time or they pushed themselves to arrive quickly for more passengers and new contracts. This competitive environment, fuelled by internal and external pressures such as tight deadlines, poverty and greed, often leads to sad endings. The study recommend that if a strategy called loading by number is integrated with other multiple safety measures such as driver training programs, regulatory enforcement, and infrastructure improvements, commercial vehicle safety can be significantly enhanced. "Loading by Number” approach is design to ensure that the sequence of departure of drivers from motor park ‘A’ would be communicated to motor park officials of park ‘B’, which would be considered sequentially when giving them returning passengers, regardless of the first to arrive. In conclusion, this paper underscores the significance of improving the safety measures of commercial vehicles, as they are often larger and heavier than other vehicles on the road. Whenever they are involved in accidents, the consequences can be more severe. Commercial vehicles are also frequently involved in long-haul or interstate transportation, which means they cover longer distances and spend more time on the road. This increased exposure to driving conditions increases the probability of accidents occurring. By implementing the suggested measures, policymakers, transportation authorities, and industry stakeholders can work collectively towards ensuring a safer commercial transportation system.

Keywords: commercial, safety, strategy, transportation

Procedia PDF Downloads 38

Authors: Ramalan Musa Yerima

Abstract:

The paper titled “Loading by number” explained a strategy developed recently by the Zonal Commanding Officer of the Federal Road Safety Corps of Nigeria, covering Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States of Northern Nigeria. The strategy is aimed at reducing competition, which will invariably lead to a reduction in speed, reduction in dangerous driving, reduction in crash rate, reduction in injuries, reduction in property damages and reduction in death through road traffic crashes (RTC). This research paper presents a study focused on enhancing the safety of commercial vehicles. The background of this study highlights the alarming statistics related to commercial vehicle crashes in Nigeria with a focus on Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara States, which often result in significant damage to property, loss of lives, and economic costs. The significance and aims is to investigate and propose an effective strategy to enhance the safety of commercial vehicles. The study recognizes the pressing need for heightened safety measures in commercial transportation, as it impacts not only the well-being of drivers and passengers but also the overall public safety. To achieve the objectives, an examination of accident data, including causes and contributing factors, was performed to identify critical areas for improvement. The major finding of the study reveals that when competition comes into play within the realm of commercial driving, it has detrimental effects on road safety and resource management. Commercial drivers are pushed to complete their routes quickly and deliver goods on time, or they push themselves to arrive quickly for more passengers and new contracts. This competitive environment, fuelled by internal and external pressures such as tight deadlines, poverty and greed, often leads to sad endings. The study recommends that if a strategy called loading by number is integrated with other multiple safety measures, such as driver training programs, regulatory enforcement, and infrastructure improvements, commercial vehicle safety can be significantly enhanced. "Loading by Number” approach is designed to ensure that the sequence of departure of drivers from the motor park ‘A’ would be communicated to motor park officials of park ‘B’, which would be considered sequentially when giving them returning passengers, regardless of the first to arrive. In conclusion, this paper underscores the significance of improving the safety measures of commercial vehicles, as they are often larger and heavier than other vehicles on the road. Whenever they are involved in accidents, the consequences can be more severe. Commercial vehicles are also frequently involved in long-haul or interstate transportation, which means they cover longer distances and spend more time on the road. This increased exposure to driving conditions increases the probability of accidents occurring. By implementing the suggested measures, policymakers, transportation authorities, and industry stakeholders can work collectively toward ensuring a safer commercial transportation system.

Keywords: commercial, safety, strategy, transport

Procedia PDF Downloads 42

Authors: Katarzyna Drela, Miroslaw Wielgos, Mikolaj Wrobel, Barbara Lukomska

Abstract:

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have a great potential in regenerative medicine. Since the initial number of isolated MSCs is limited, in vitro propagation is often required to reach sufficient numbers of cells for therapeutic applications. During long-term culture MSCs may undergo genetic or epigenetic alterations that subsequently increase the probability of spontaneous malignant transformation. Thus, factors that influence genomic stability of MSCs following long-term expansions need to be clarified before cultured MSCs are employed for clinical application. The aim of our study was to investigate the potential for spontaneous transformation of human neonatal cord blood (HUCB-MSCs) and adult bone marrow (BM-MSCs) derived MSCs. Materials and Methods: HUCB-MSCs and BM-MSCs were isolated by standard Ficoll gradient centrifugations method. Isolated cells were initially plated in high density 106 cells per cm2. After 48 h medium were changed and non-adherent cells were removed. The malignant transformation of MSCs in vitro was evaluated by morphological changes, proliferation rate, ability to enter cell senescence, the telomerase expression and chromosomal abnormality. Proliferation of MSCs was analyzed with WST-1 reduction method and population doubling time (PDT) was calculated at different culture stages. Then the expression pattern of genes characteristic for mesenchymal or epithelial cells, as well as transcriptions factors were examined by RT-PCR. Concomitantly, immunocytochemical analysis of gene-related proteins was employed. Results: Our studies showed that MSCs from all bone marrow isolations ultimately entered senescence and did not undergo spontaneous malignant transformation. However, HUCB-MSCs from one of the 15 donors displayed an increased proliferation rate, failed to enter senescence, and exhibited an altered cell morphology. In this sample we observed two different cell phenotypes: one mesenchymal-like exhibited spindle shaped morphology and express specific mesenchymal surface markers (CD73, CD90, CD105, CD166) with low proliferation rate, and the second one with round, densely package epithelial-like cells with significantly increased proliferation rate. The PDT of epithelial-like populations was around 1day and 100% of cells were positive for proliferation marker Ki-67. Moreover, HUCB-MSCs showed a positive expression of human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT), cMYC and exhibit increased number of CFU during the long-term culture in vitro. Furthermore, karyotype analysis revealed chromosomal abnormalities including duplications. Conclusions: Our studies demonstrate that HUCB-MSCs are susceptible to spontaneous malignant transformation during long-term culture. Spontaneous malignant transformation process following in vitro culture has enormous effect on the biosafety issues of future cell-based therapies and regenerative medicine regimens.

Keywords: mesenchymal stem cells, spontaneous, transformation, long-term culture

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Jana Andzane, Gunta Kunakova, Margarita Baitimirova, Mikelis Marnauza, Floriana Lombardi, Donats Erts

Abstract:

Bismuth selenide (Bi₂Se₃) is known as a narrow band gap semiconductor with pronounced thermoelectric (TE) and topological insulator (TI) properties. Unique TI properties offer exciting possibilities for fundamental research as observing the exciton condensate and Majorana fermions, as well as practical application in spintronic and quantum information. In turn, TE properties of this material can be applied for wide range of thermoelectric applications, as well as for broadband photodetectors and near-infrared sensors. Nanostructuring of this material results in improvement of TI properties due to suppression of the bulk conductivity, and enhancement of TE properties because of increased phonon scattering at the nanoscale grains and interfaces. Regarding TE properties, crystallographic growth direction, as well as orientation of the nanostructures relative to the growth substrate, play significant role in improvement of TE performance of nanostructured material. For instance, Bi₂Se₃ layers consisting of randomly oriented nanostructures and/or of combination of them with planar nanostructures show significantly enhanced in comparison with bulk and only planar Bi₂Se₃ nanostructures TE properties. In this work, a catalyst-free vapour-solid deposition technique was applied for controlled obtaining of different types of Bi₂Se₃ nanostructures and continuous nanostructured layers for targeted applications. For example, separated Bi₂Se₃ nanoplates, nanobelts and nanowires can be used for investigations of TI properties; consisting from merged planar and/or randomly oriented nanostructures Bi₂Se₃ layers are useful for applications in heat-to-power conversion devices and infrared detectors. The vapour-solid deposition was carried out using quartz tube furnace (MTI Corp), equipped with an inert gas supply and pressure/temperature control system. Bi₂Se₃ nanostructures/nanostructured layers of desired type were obtained by adjustment of synthesis parameters (process temperature, deposition time, pressure, carrier gas flow) and selection of deposition substrate (glass, quartz, mica, indium-tin-oxide, graphene and carbon nanotubes). Morphology, structure and composition of obtained Bi₂Se₃ nanostructures and nanostructured layers were inspected using SEM, AFM, EDX and HRTEM techniques, as well as home-build experimental setup for thermoelectric measurements. It was found that introducing of temporary carrier gas flow into the process tube during the synthesis and deposition substrate choice significantly influence nanostructures formation mechanism. Electrical, thermoelectric, and topological insulator properties of different types of deposited Bi₂Se₃ nanostructures and nanostructured coatings are characterized as a function of thickness and discussed.

Keywords: bismuth seleinde, nanostructures, topological insulator, vapour-solid deposition

Procedia PDF Downloads 208

Authors: Brad Fox

Abstract:

Between something and nothing, a bit of both, neither/nor, a figment of the imagination, the womb of the universe - questions of what matter is, where it exists and what it means continue to surge up from the bottom of our concepts and theories. This paper looks at divergences and convergences, intimations and mistranslations, in a lineage of thought that begins with Plato’s Timaeus, travels through Arabic Spain and Syria, finally to end up in the language of science. Up to the 13th century, philosophers in Christian France based such inquiries on a questionable and fragmented translation of the Timaeus by Calcidius, with a commentary that conflated the Platonic concept of khora (‘space’ or ‘void’) with Aristotle’s hyle (‘primal matter’ as derived from ‘wood’ as a building material). Both terms were translated by Calcidius as silva. For 700 years, this was the only source for philosophers of matter in the Latin-speaking world. Bernard Silvestris, in his Cosmographia, exemplifies the concepts developed before new translations from Arabic began to pour into the Latin world from such centers as the court of Toledo. Unlike their counterparts across the Pyrenees, 13th century philosophers in Muslim Spain had access to a broad vocabulary for notions of primal matter. The prolific and visionary theologian, philosopher, and poet Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi could draw on the Ikhwan Al-Safa’s 10th Century renderings of Aristotle, which translated the Greek hyle as the everyday Arabic word maddah, still used for building materials today. He also often used the simple transliteration of hyle as hayula, probably taken from Ibn Sina. The prophet’s son-in-law Ali talked of dust in the air, invisible until it is struck by sunlight. Ibn Arabi adopted this dust - haba - as an expression for an original metaphysical substance, nonexistent but susceptible to manifesting forms. Ibn Arabi compares the dust to a phoenix, because we have heard about it and can conceive of it, but it has no existence unto itself and can be described only in similes. Elsewhere he refers to it as quwwa wa salahiyya - pure potentiality and readiness. The final portion of the paper will compare Bernard and Ibn Arabi’s notions of matter to the recent ontology developed by theoretical physicist and philosopher Karen Barad. Looking at Barad’s work with the work of Nils Bohr, it will argue that there is a rich resonance between Ibn Arabi’s paradoxical conceptions of matter and the quantum vacuum fluctuations verified by recent lab experiments. The inseparability of matter and meaning in Barad recall Ibn Arabi’s original response to Ibn Rushd’s question: Does revelation offer the same knowledge as rationality? ‘Yes and No,’ Ibn Arabi said, ‘and between the yes and no spirit is divided from matter and heads are separated from bodies.’ Ibn Arabi’s double affirmation continues to offer insight into our relationship to momentary experience at its most fundamental level.

Keywords: Karen Barad, Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi, primal matter, Bernard Silvestris

Procedia PDF Downloads 402

Authors: Elena Collino, Dario A. Ronzio, Goffredo Decimi, Maurizio Riva

Abstract:

The rapid increase of renewable energy in Italy is led by wind and solar installations. The 2017 Italian energy strategy foresees a further development of these sustainable technologies, especially solar. This fact has resulted in new opportunities, challenges, and different problems to deal with. The growth of renewables allows to meet the European requirements regarding energy and environmental policy, but these types of sources are difficult to manage because they are intermittent and non-programmable. Operationally, these characteristics can lead to instability on the voltage profile and increasing uncertainty on energy reserve scheduling. The increasing renewable production must be considered with more and more attention especially by the Transmission System Operator (TSO). The TSO, in fact, every day provides orders on energy dispatch, once the market outcome has been determined, on extended areas, defined mainly on the basis of power transmission limitations. In Italy, six market zone are defined: Northern-Italy, Central-Northern Italy, Central-Southern Italy, Southern Italy, Sardinia, and Sicily. An accurate hourly renewable power forecasting for the day-ahead on these extended areas brings an improvement both in terms of dispatching and reserve management. In this study, an operational forecasting tool of the hourly solar output for the six Italian market zones is presented, and the performance is analysed. The implementation is carried out by means of a numerical weather prediction model, coupled with a statistical post-processing in order to derive the power forecast on the basis of the meteorological projection. The weather forecast is obtained from the limited area model RAMS on the Italian territory, initialized with IFS-ECMWF boundary conditions. The post-processing calculates the solar power production with the Analog Ensemble technique (AN). This statistical approach forecasts the production using a probability distribution of the measured production registered in the past when the weather scenario looked very similar to the forecasted one. The similarity is evaluated for the components of the solar radiation: global (GHI), diffuse (DIF) and direct normal (DNI) irradiation, together with the corresponding azimuth and zenith solar angles. These are, in fact, the main factors that affect the solar production. Considering that the AN performance is strictly related to the length and quality of the historical data a training period of more than one year has been used. The training set is made by historical Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) forecasts at 12 UTC for the GHI, DIF and DNI variables over the Italian territory together with corresponding hourly measured production for each of the six zones. The AN technique makes it possible to estimate the aggregate solar production in the area, without information about the technologic characteristics of the all solar parks present in each area. Besides, this information is often only partially available. Every day, the hourly solar power forecast for the six Italian market zones is made publicly available through a website.

Keywords: analog ensemble, electricity market, PV forecast, solar energy

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Emir Sunguroglu, Merve Sunguroglu, Yesim Aliefendioglu, Harun Tanrivermis

Abstract:

Basic human needs range from physiological needs such as food, water and shelter to safety needs such as security, protection from natural disasters and even urban terrorism which are extant and not fulfilled even in urban areas where people live civilly in large communities. These basic needs when arose in urban life lead to a different kind of crime set defined as urban crimes. Urban crimes mostly result from differences between socioeconomic conditions in society. Income inequality increases tendency towards urban crimes. Especially in slum areas and suburbs, urban crimes not only threaten public security but they also affect deliverance of public services. It is highlighted that, construction of urban security against problems caused by urban crimes is not only achieved by involvement of urban security in security of the community but also comprises juridical development and staying above a level of legal standards concurrently. The idea of urban transformation emerged as interventions to demolishment and rebuilding of built environment to solve the unhealthy urban environment, inadequate infrastructure and socioeconomic problems came up during the industrialization process. Considering the probability of urbanization process driving citizens to commit crimes, The United Nations Commission on Human Security’s focus on this theme is conferred to be a proper approach. In this study, the analysis and change in security before, through and after urban transformation, which is one of the tools related to urbanization process, is strived to be discussed through the case of Sincan County Saraycik District. The study also aims to suggest improvements to current legislation on public safety, urban resilience, and urban transformation. In spite of Saraycik District residing in a developing County in Ankara, Turkey, from urbanization perspective as well as socioeconomic and demographic indicators the District exhibits a negative view throughout the County and the country. When related to the county, rates of intentional harm reports, burglary reports, the offense of libel and threat reports and narcotic crime reports are higher. The District is defined as ‘crime hotspot’. Interviews with residents of Saraycik claim that the greatest issue of the neighborhood is Public Order and Security (82.44 %). The District becomes prominent with negative aspects, especially with the presence of unlicensed constructions, occurrence of important social issues such as crime and insecurity and complicated lives of inhabitants from poverty and low standard conditions of living. Additionally, the social structure and demographic properties and crime and insecurity of the field have been addressed in this study. Consequently, it is claimed that urban crime rates were related to level of education, employment and household income, poverty trap, physical condition of housing and structuration, accessibility of public services, security, migration, safety in terms of disasters and emphasized that urban transformation is one of the most important tools in order to provide urban security.

Keywords: urban security, urban crimes, urban transformation, Saraycik district

Procedia PDF Downloads 277

Authors: Salwa Mohamed Salah Eldin, Howida Kamal Ibrahim

Abstract:

Introduction: Major depressive disorder affects high proportion of the world’s population presenting cost load in health care. Extended release venlafaxine is more convenient and could reduce discontinuation syndrome. The once daily dosing also reduces the potential for adverse events such as nausea due to reduced Cmax. Venlafaxine is an effective first-line agent in the treatment of depression. A once daily formulation was designed to enhance patient compliance. Complexing with a resin was suggested to improve loading of the water soluble drug. The formulated systems were thoroughly evaluated in vitro to prove superiority to previous trials and were compared to the commercial extended release product in experimental animals. Materials and Methods: Venlafaxine-resinates were prepared using Dowex®50WX4-400 and Dowex®50WX8-100 at drug to resin weight ratio of 1: 1. The prepared resinates were evaluated for their drug content, particle shape and surface properties and in vitro release profile in gradient pH. The release kinetics and mechanism were evaluated. Venlafaxine-Dowex® resinates were encapsulated using O/W solvent evaporation technique. Poly-ε-caprolactone, Poly(D, L-lactide-co-glycolide) ester, Poly(D, L-lactide) ester and Eudragit®RS100 were used as coating polymers alone and in combination. Drug-resinate microcapsules were evaluated for morphology, entrapment efficiency and in-vitro release profile. The selected formula was tested in rabbits using a randomized, single-dose, 2-way crossover study against Effexor-XR tablets under fasting condition. Results and Discussion: The equilibrium time was 30 min for Dowex®50WX4-400 and 90 min for Dowex®50WX8-100. The percentage drug loaded was 93.96 and 83.56% for both resins, respectively. Both drug-Dowex® resintes were efficient in sustaining venlafaxine release in comparison to the free drug (up to 8h.). Dowex®50WX4-400 based venlafaxine-resinate was selected for further encapsulation to optimize the release profile for once daily dosing and to lower the burst effect. The selected formula (coated with a mixture of Eudragit RS and PLGA in a ratio of 50/50) was chosen by applying a group of mathematical equations according to targeted values. It recorded the minimum burst effect, the maximum MDT (Mean dissolution time) and a Q24h (percentage drug released after 24 hours) between 95 and 100%. The 90% confidence intervals for the test/reference mean ratio of the log-transformed data of AUC0–24 and AUC0−∞ are within (0.8–1.25), which satisfies the bioequivalence criteria. Conclusion: The optimized formula could be a promising extended release form of the water soluble, short half lived venlafaxine. Being a multiple unit formulation, it lowers the probability of dose dumping and reduces the inter-subject variability in absorption.

Keywords: biodegradable polymers, cation-exchange resin, microencapsulation, venlafaxine hcl

Procedia PDF Downloads 375

Authors: Anna V. Zaporozhchenko, Dmytro Kutnyakhov, Katherina Medjanik, Christian Tusche, Hans-Joachim Elmers, Olena Fedchenko, Sergey Chernov, Martin Ellguth, Sergej A. Nepijko, Gerd Schoenhense

Abstract:

Graphene reveals a unique electronic structure that predetermines many intriguing properties such as massless charge carriers, optical transparency and high velocity of fermions at the Fermi level, opening a wide horizon of future applications. Hence, a detailed investigation of the electronic structure of graphene is crucial. The method of choice is angular resolved photoelectron spectroscopy ARPES. Here we present experiments using time-of-flight (ToF) momentum microscopy, being an alternative way of ARPES using full-field imaging of the whole Brillouin zone (BZ) and simultaneous acquisition of up to several 100 energy slices. Unlike conventional ARPES, k-microscopy is not limited in simultaneous k-space access. We have recorded the whole first BZ of graphene on Ir(111) including all six Dirac cones. As excitation source we used synchrotron radiation from BESSY II (Berlin) at the U125-2 NIM, providing linearly polarized (both polarizations p- and s-) VUV radiation. The instrument uses a delay-line detector for single-particle detection up the 5 Mcps range and parallel energy detection via ToF recording. In this way, we gather a 3D data stack I(E,kx,ky) of the full valence electronic structure in approx. 20 mins. Band dispersion stacks were measured in the energy range of 14 eV up to 23 eV with steps of 1 eV. The linearly-dispersing graphene bands for all six K and K’ points were simultaneously recorded. We find clear features of hybridization with the substrate, in particular in the linear dichroism in the angular distribution (LDAD). Recording of the whole Brillouin zone of graphene/Ir(111) revealed new features. First, the intensity differences (i.e. the LDAD) are very sensitive to the interaction of graphene bands with substrate bands. Second, the dark corridors are investigated in detail for both, p- and s- polarized radiation. They appear as local distortions of photoelectron current distribution and are induced by quantum mechanical interference of graphene sublattices. The dark corridors are located in different areas of the 6 Dirac cones and show chirality behaviour with a mirror plane along vertical axis. Moreover, two out of six show an oval shape while the rest are more circular. It clearly indicates orientation dependence with respect to E vector of incident light. Third, a pattern of faint but very sharp lines is visible at energies around 22eV that strongly remind on Kikuchi lines in diffraction. In conclusion, the simultaneous study of all six Dirac cones is crucial for a complete understanding of dichroism phenomena and the dark corridor.

Keywords: band structure, graphene, momentum microscopy, LDAD

Procedia PDF Downloads 311

Authors: Tesfaldet Mekonnen Estifanos, Chen Hui, Afewerki Weldezgi

Abstract:

Background: Youth in general and young females in particular, remain at the center of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Sexual risk-taking among young unmarried women is relatively high and are the most vulnerable and highly exposed to HIV/AIDS. Improvements in the status of HIV/AIDS knowledge and acceptance attitude towards people living with HIV (PLWHIV) plays a great role in averting the incidence of HIV/AIDS. Thus, the aim of the study was to explore the level and correlates of HIV/AIDS knowledge and accepting attitude toward PLWHIV. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Uganda Demographic Health Survey 2016 (UDHS-2016). National level representative household surveys using a multistage cluster probability sampling method, face to face interviews with standard questionnaires were performed. Unmarried women aged 15-24 years with a sample size of 2019 were selected from the total sample of 8674 women aged 15-49 years and were analyzed using SPSS version 23. Independent variables such as age, religion, educational level, residence, and wealth index were included. Two binary outcome variables (comprehensive HIV/AIDS knowledge and acceptance attitude toward PLWHIV) were utilized. We used the chi-square test as well as multivariate regression analysis to explore correlations of explanatory variables with the outcome variables. The results were reported by odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI), taking a p-value less than 0.05 as significant. Results: Almost all (99.3%) of the unmarried women aged 15-24 years were aware of HIV/AIDS, but only 51.2% had adequate comprehensive knowledge on HIV/AIDS. Only 69.4% knew both methods: using a condom every time had sex, and having only one faithful uninfected partner can prevent HIV/AIDS transmission. About 66.6% of the unmarried women reject at least two common local misconceptions about HIV/AIDS. Moreover, an alarmingly few (20.3%) of the respondents had a positive acceptance attitude to PLWHIV. On multivariate analysis, age (20-24 years), living in urban, being educated and wealthier, were predictors of having adequate comprehensive HIV/AIDS knowledge. On the other hand, research participants with adequate comprehensive knowledge about HIV/AIDS were highly likely (OR, 1.94 95% CI, 1.52-2.46) to have a positive acceptance attitude to PLWHIV than those with inadequate knowledge. Respondents with no education, Muslim, and Pentecostal religion were emerged less likely to have a positive acceptance attitude to PLWHIV. Conclusion: This study found out the highly accepted level of awareness, but the knowledge and positive acceptance attitude are not encouraging. Thus, expanding access to comprehensive sexuality and strengthening educational campaigns on HIV/AIDS in communities, health facilities, and schools is needed with a greater focus on disadvantaged women having low educational level, poor socioeconomic status, and those residing in rural areas. Sexual risk behaviors among the most affected people - young women have also a role in the spread of HIV/AIDS. Hence, further research assessing the significant contributing factors for sexual risk-taking might have a positive impact on the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Keywords: acceptance attitude, HIV/AIDS, knowledge, unmarried women

Procedia PDF Downloads 121

Authors: Collen Tebogo Masilo, Erik Schmikl

Abstract:

The demand for the DataMiner product by customers has presented a great challenge for the vendor in Skyline Communications in deploying its limited resources in the form of human resources, financial resources, and office space, to achieve high organisational performance in all its international operations. The rapid growth of the organisation has been unable to efficiently support its existing customers across the globe, and provide services to new customers, due to the limited number of approximately one hundred employees in its employ. The combined descriptive and explanatory case study research methods were selected as research design, making use of a survey questionnaire which was distributed to a sample of 100 respondents. A sample return of 89 respondents was achieved. The sampling method employed was non-probability sampling, using the convenient sampling method. Frequency analysis and correlation between the subscales (the four themes) were used for statistical analysis to interpret the data. The investigation was conducted into mechanisms that can be deployed to balance the high demand for products and the limited production capacity of the company’s Belgian operations across four aspects: demand management strategies, capacity management strategies, communication methods that can be used to align a sales management department, and reward systems in use to improve employee performance. The conclusions derived from the theme ‘demand management strategies’ are that the company is fully aware of the future market demand for its products. However, there seems to be no evidence that there is proper demand forecasting conducted within the organisation. The conclusions derived from the theme 'capacity management strategies' are that employees always have a lot of work to complete during office hours, and, also, employees seem to need help from colleagues with urgent tasks. This indicates that employees often work on unplanned tasks and multiple projects. Conclusions derived from the theme 'communication methods used to align sales management department with operations' are that communication is not good throughout the organisation. This means that information often stays with management, and does not reach non-management employees. This also means that there is a lack of smooth synergy as expected and a lack of good communication between the sales department and the projects office. This has a direct impact on the delivery of projects to customers by the operations department. The conclusions derived from the theme ‘employee reward systems’ are that employees are motivated, and feel that they add value in their current functions. There are currently no measures in place to identify unhappy employees, and there are also no proper reward systems in place which are linked to a performance management system. The research has made a contribution to the body of research by exploring the impact of the four sub-variables and their interaction on the challenges of organisational productivity, in particular where an organisation experiences a capacity problem during its growth stage during tough economic conditions. Recommendations were made which, if implemented by management, could further enhance the organisation’s sustained competitive operations.

Keywords: high demand for products, high organisational performance, limited production capacity, limited resources

Procedia PDF Downloads 121

Authors: Kotaro Sasai, Daijiro Mizutani, Kiyoyuki Kaito

Abstract:

Expressways in Japan have been built in an accelerating manner since the 1960s with the aid of rapid economic growth. About 40 percent in length of expressways in Japan is now 30 years and older and has become superannuated. Time-related deterioration has therefore reached to a degree that administrators, from a standpoint of operation and maintenance, are forced to take prompt measures on a large scale aiming at repairing inner damage deep in pavements. These measures have already been performed for bridge management in Japan and are also expected to be embodied for pavement management. Thus, planning methods for the measures are increasingly demanded. Deterioration of layers around road surface such as surface course and binder course is brought about at the early stages of whole pavement deterioration process, around 10 to 30 years after construction. These layers have been repaired primarily because inner damage usually becomes significant after outer damage, and because surveys for measuring inner damage such as Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) survey and open-cut survey are costly and time-consuming process, which has made it difficult for administrators to focus on inner damage as much as they have been supposed to. As expressways today have serious time-related deterioration within them deriving from the long time span since they started to be used, it is obvious the idea of repairing layers deep in pavements such as base course and subgrade must be taken into consideration when planning maintenance on a large scale. This sort of maintenance requires precisely predicting degrees of deterioration as well as grasping the present situations of pavements. Methods for predicting deterioration are determined to be either mechanical or statistical. While few mechanical models have been presented, as far as the authors know of, previous studies have presented statistical methods for predicting deterioration in pavements. One describes deterioration process by estimating Markov deterioration hazard model, while another study illustrates it by estimating Proportional deterioration hazard model. Both of the studies analyze deflection data obtained from FWD surveys and present statistical methods for predicting deterioration process of layers around road surface. However, layers of base course and subgrade remain unanalyzed. In this study, data collected from FWD surveys are analyzed to predict deterioration process of layers deep in pavements in addition to surface layers by a means of estimating a deterioration hazard model using continuous indexes. This model can prevent the loss of information of data when setting rating categories in Markov deterioration hazard model when evaluating degrees of deterioration in roadbeds and subgrades. As a result of portraying continuous indexes, the model can predict deterioration in each layer of pavements and evaluate it quantitatively. Additionally, as the model can also depict probability distribution of the indexes at an arbitrary point and establish a risk control level arbitrarily, it is expected that this study will provide knowledge like life cycle cost and informative content during decision making process referring to where to do maintenance on as well as when.

Keywords: deterioration hazard model, falling weight deflectometer, inner damage, load bearing capacity, pavement

Procedia PDF Downloads 357

Authors: Ayon Mukherjee

Abstract:

Covariate-adjusted response-adaptive (CARA) designs use the available responses to skew the treatment allocation in a clinical trial in towards treatment found at an interim stage to be best for a given patient's covariate profile. Extensive research has been done on various aspects of CARA designs with the patient responses assumed to follow a parametric model. However, ranges of application for such designs are limited in real-life clinical trials where the responses infrequently fit a certain parametric form. On the other hand, robust estimates for the covariate-adjusted treatment effects are obtained from the parametric assumption. To balance these two requirements, designs are developed which are free from distributional assumptions about the survival responses, relying only on the assumption of proportional hazards for the two treatment arms. The proposed designs are developed by deriving two types of optimum allocation designs, and also by using a distribution function to link the past allocation, covariate and response histories to the present allocation. The optimal designs are based on biased coin procedures, with a bias towards the better treatment arm. These are the doubly-adaptive biased coin design (DBCD) and the efficient randomized adaptive design (ERADE). The treatment allocation proportions for these designs converge to the expected target values, which are functions of the Cox regression coefficients that are estimated sequentially. These expected target values are derived based on constrained optimization problems and are updated as information accrues with sequential arrival of patients. The design based on the link function is derived using the distribution function of a probit model whose parameters are adjusted based on the covariate profile of the incoming patient. To apply such designs, the treatment allocation probabilities are sequentially modified based on the treatment allocation history, response history, previous patients’ covariates and also the covariates of the incoming patient. Given these information, an expression is obtained for the conditional probability of a patient allocation to a treatment arm. Based on simulation studies, it is found that the ERADE is preferable to the DBCD when the main aim is to minimize the variance of the observed allocation proportion and to maximize the power of the Wald test for a treatment difference. However, the former procedure being discrete tends to be slower in converging towards the expected target allocation proportion. The link function based design achieves the highest skewness of patient allocation to the best treatment arm and thus ethically is the best design. Other comparative merits of the proposed designs have been highlighted and their preferred areas of application are discussed. It is concluded that the proposed CARA designs can be considered as suitable alternatives to the traditional balanced randomization designs in survival trials in terms of the power of the Wald test, provided that response data are available during the recruitment phase of the trial to enable adaptations to the designs. Moreover, the proposed designs enable more patients to get treated with the better treatment during the trial thus making the designs more ethically attractive to the patients. An existing clinical trial has been redesigned using these methods.

Keywords: censored response, Cox regression, efficiency, ethics, optimal allocation, power, variability

Procedia PDF Downloads 138

Authors: Subhojyoti Chatterjee, Peter J. Mahon, Feng Wang

Abstract:

Resveratrol (RvL), a phenolic compound, is a key ingredient in wine and tomatoes that has been studied over the years because of its important bioactivities such as anti-oxidant, anti-aging and antimicrobial properties. Out of the two isomeric forms of resveratrol i.e. trans and cis, the health benefit is primarily associated with the trans form. Thus, studying the structural properties of the isomers will not only provide an insight into understanding the RvL isomers, but will also help in designing parameters for differentiation in order to achieve 99.9% purity of trans-RvL. In the present study, density function theory (DFT) study is conducted, using the B3LYP/6-311++G** model to explore the through bond and through space intramolecular interactions. Properties such as vibrational spectroscopy (IR and Raman), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra, excess orbital energy spectrum (EOES), energy based decomposition analyses (EDA) and Fukui function are calculated. It is discovered that the structure of trans-RvL, although it is C1 non-planar, the backbone non-H atoms are nearly in the same plane; whereas the cis-RvL consists of two major planes of R1 and R2 that are not in the same plane. The absence of planarity gives rise to a H-bond of 2.67Å in cis-RvL. Rotation of the C(5)-C(8) single bond in trans-RvL produces higher energy barriers since it may break the (planar) entire conjugated structure; while such rotation in cis-RvL produces multiple minima and maxima depending on the positions of the rings. The calculated FT-IR spectrum shows very different spectral features for trans and cis-RvL in the region 900 – 1500 cm-1, where the spectral peaks at 1138-1158 cm-1 are split in cis-RvL compared to a single peak at 1165 cm-1 in trans-RvL. In the Raman spectra, there is significant enhancement of cis-RvL in the region above 3000cm-1. Further, the carbon chemical environment (13C NMR) of the RvL molecule exhibit a larger chemical shift for cis-RvL compared to trans-RvL (Δδ = 8.18 ppm) for the carbon atom C(11), indicating that the chemical environment of the C group in cis-RvL is more diverse than its other isomer. The energy gap between highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest occupied molecular orbital (LUMO) is 3.95 eV for trans and 4.35 eV for cis-RvL. A more detailed inspection using the recently developed EOES revealed that most of the large energy differences i.e. Δεcis-trans > ±0.30 eV, in their orbitals are contributed from the outer valence shell. They are MO60 (HOMO), MO52-55 and MO46. The active sites that has been captured by Fukui function (f + > 0.08) are associated with the stilbene C=C bond of RvL and cis-RvL is more active at these sites than in trans-RvL, as cis orientation breaks the large conjugation of trans-RvL so that the hydroxyl oxygen’s are more active in cis-RvL. Finally, EDA highlights the interaction energy (ΔEInt) of the phenolic compound, where trans is preferred over the cis-RvL (ΔΔEi = -4.35 kcal.mol-1) isomer. Thus, these quantum mechanics results could help in unwinding the diversified beneficial activities associated with resveratrol.

Keywords: resveratrol, FT-IR, Raman, NMR, excess orbital energy spectrum, energy decomposition analysis, Fukui function

Procedia PDF Downloads 174

Authors: Vikas Kumar, Kailash Chandra, Kaomud Tyagi

Abstract:

The insect order Thysanoptera includes small insects commonly called thrips. As insect vectors, only thrips are capable of Tospoviruses transmission (genus Tospovirus, family Bunyaviridae) affecting various crops. Currently, fifteen species of subfamily Thripinae (Thripidae) have been reported as vectors for tospoviruses. Frankliniella schultzei, which is reported as act as a vector for at least five tospovirses, have been suspected to be a species complex with more than one species. It is one of the historical unresolved issues where, two species namely, F. schultzei Trybom and F. sulphurea Schmutz were erected from South Africa and Srilanaka respectively. These two species were considered to be valid until 1968 when sulphurea was treated as colour morph (pale form) and synonymised under schultzei (dark form) However, these two have been considered as valid species by some of the thrips workers. Parallel studies have indicated that brown form of schultzei is a vector for tospoviruses while yellow form is a non-vector. However, recent studies have shown that yellow populations have also been documented as vectors. In view of all these facts, it is highly important to have a clear understanding whether these colour forms represent true species or merely different populations with different vector carrying capacities and whether there is some hidden diversity in 'Frankliniella schultzei species complex'. In this study, we aim to study the 'Frankliniella schultzei species complex' with molecular spectacles with DNA data from India and Australia and Africa. A total of fifty-five specimens was collected from diverse locations in India and Australia. We generated molecular data using partial fragments of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I gene (mtCOI) and 28S rRNA gene. For COI dataset, there were seventy-four sequences, out of which data on fifty-five was generated in the current study and others were retrieved from NCBI. All the four different tree construction methods: neighbor-joining, maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian analysis, yielded the same tree topology and produced five cryptic species with high genetic divergence. For, rDNA, there were forty-five sequences, out of which data on thirty-nine was generated in the current study and others were retrieved from NCBI. The four tree building methods yielded four cryptic species with high bootstrap support value/posterior probability. Here we could not retrieve one cryptic species from South Africa as we could not generate data on rDNA from South Africa and sequence for rDNA from African region were not available in the database. The results of multiple species delimitation methods (barcode index numbers, automatic barcode gap discovery, general mixed Yule-coalescent, and Poisson-tree-processes) also supported the phylogenetic data and produced 5 and 4 Molecular Operational Taxonomic Units (MOTUs) for mtCOI and 28S dataset respectively. These results of our study indicate the likelihood that F. sulphurea may be a valid species, however, more morphological and molecular data is required on specimens from type localities of these two species and comparison with type specimens.

Keywords: DNA barcoding, species complex, thrips, species delimitation

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: Rachid Belhachemi, Pierre Rostan, Alexandra Rostan

Abstract:

This paper develops a discrete-time option pricing model for index options. The model consists of two key ingredients. First, daily stock return innovations are driven by a continuous hidden threshold mixed skew-normal (HTSN) distribution which generates conditional non-normality that is needed to fit daily index return. The most important feature of the HTSN is the inclusion of a latent state variable with a continuum of states, unlike the traditional mixture distributions where the state variable is discrete with little number of states. The HTSN distribution belongs to the class of univariate probability distributions where parameters of the distribution capture the dependence between the variable of interest and the continuous latent state variable (the regime). The distribution has an interpretation in terms of a mixture distribution with time-varying mixing probabilities. It has been shown empirically that this distribution outperforms its main competitor, the mixed normal (MN) distribution, in terms of capturing the stylized facts known for stock returns, namely, volatility clustering, leverage effect, skewness, kurtosis and regime dependence. Second, heteroscedasticity in the model is captured by a threeexogenous-factor GARCH model (GARCHX), where the factors are taken from the principal components analysis of various world indices and presents an application to option pricing. The factors of the GARCHX model are extracted from a matrix of world indices applying principal component analysis (PCA). The empirically determined factors are uncorrelated and represent truly different common components driving the returns. Both factors and the eight parameters inherent to the HTSN distribution aim at capturing the impact of the state of the economy on price levels since distribution parameters have economic interpretations in terms of conditional volatilities and correlations of the returns with the hidden continuous state. The PCA identifies statistically independent factors affecting the random evolution of a given pool of assets -in our paper a pool of international stock indices- and sorting them by order of relative importance. The PCA computes a historical cross asset covariance matrix and identifies principal components representing independent factors. In our paper, factors are used to calibrate the HTSN-GARCHX model and are ultimately responsible for the nature of the distribution of random variables being generated. We benchmark our model to the MN-GARCHX model following the same PCA methodology and the standard Black-Scholes model. We show that our model outperforms the benchmark in terms of RMSE in dollar losses for put and call options, which in turn outperforms the analytical Black-Scholes by capturing the stylized facts known for index returns, namely, volatility clustering, leverage effect, skewness, kurtosis and regime dependence.

Keywords: continuous hidden threshold, factor models, GARCHX models, option pricing, risk-premium

Procedia PDF Downloads 279

Authors: Ruairi J. McMillan

Abstract:

Introduction: This critical analysis aims to ascertain how well neuroanatomical aetiologies are communicated within 20 case reports of aphasia. Neuroanatomical visualisations based on dissected brain specimens were produced and combined with white matter tract and vascular taxonomies of function in order to address the most consistently underreported features found within the aphasic case study reports. Together, these approaches are intended to integrate aphasiological knowledge from the past 20 years with aphasiological diagnostics, and to act as prototypal resources for both researchers and clinical professionals. The medico-legal precedent for aphasia diagnostics under Canadian, US and UK case law and the neuroimaging/neurological diagnostics relative to the functional capacity of aphasic patients are discussed in relation to the major findings of the literary analysis, neuroimaging protocols in clinical use today, and the neuroanatomical aetiologies of different aphasias. Basic Methodology: Literature searches of relevant scientific databases (e.g, OVID medline) were carried out using search terms such as aphasia case study (year) & stroke induced aphasia case study. A series of 7 diagnostic reporting criteria were formulated, and the resulting case studies were scored / 7 alongside clinical stroke criteria. In order to focus on the diagnostic assessment of the patient’s condition, only the case report proper (not the discussion) was used to quantify results. Statistical testing established if specific reporting criteria were associated with higher overall scores and potentially inferable increases in quality of reporting. Statistical testing of whether criteria scores were associated with an unclear/adjusted diagnosis were also tested, as well as the probability of a given criterion deviating from an expected estimate. Major Findings: The quantitative analysis of neuroanatomically driven diagnostics in case studies of aphasia revealed particularly low scores in the connection of neuroanatomical functions to aphasiological assessment (10%), and in the inclusion of white matter tracts within neuroimaging or assessment diagnostics (30%). Case studies which included clinical mention of white matter tracts within the report itself were distributed among higher scoring cases, as were case studies which (as clinically indicated) related the affected vascular region to the brain parenchyma of the language network. Concluding Statement: These findings indicate that certain neuroanatomical functions are integrated less often within the patient report than others, despite a precedent for well-integrated neuroanatomical aphasiology also being found among the case studies sampled, and despite these functions being clinically essential in diagnostic neuroimaging and aphasiological assessment. Therefore, ultimately the integration and specificity of aetiological neuroanatomy may contribute positively to the capacity and autonomy of aphasic patients as well as their clinicians. The integration of a full aetiological neuroanatomy within the reporting of aphasias may improve patient outcomes and sustain autonomy in the event of medico-ethical investigation.

Keywords: aphasia, language network, functional neuroanatomy, aphasiological diagnostics, medico-legal ethics

Procedia PDF Downloads 37