Search results for: photovoltaic sites

Authors: Helena Park

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For the last three decades, Seoul has experienced an exponential increase in population and concomitant rapid urbanization. With such development, Korea adopted a predominantly Western style of architecture but still based the structures on Korea’s traditionalism and Confucian precepts of pung su (feng shui). While Korean urban planning is focusing on balancing out the modernism and traditionalism in its city architecture, particularly in and landmark sites like The Seoul N Tower and Gyeongbok Palace, the accessibility and convenience concerns of minorities in social groups like the disabled are habitually disregarded. With the implementations of ramps and elevators, the welfare of all citizens seemed to improve. According to the dictates of traditional Korean culture, it was crucial for those construed as “disabled” or “underprivileged” to feel natural in the city of Seoul, which is planned and built with the background aesthetic theory of being harmonized with nature. It was interesting and also alarming to see the extent to which Korean landmarks were lacking facilities for the disabled throughout the city. Standards set by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Seoul Metropolitan City insist that buildings accommodate the needs of the disabled as well as the non-disabled equally, but it was hard to find buildings in Seoul - old or new - that fulfilled all the requirements. If fulfilled, some of the facilities were hard to find or not well maintained. There is thus a serious concern for planning reform in connection with Seoul’s 2030 Urban Plan. This paper argues that alternative planning could better integrate Korea’s traditionalist architecture and concepts of pung su rather than insist on the necessity of Western-style modernism as the sole modality for achieving accessibility for the disabled in Korea.

Keywords: accessibility, architecture of Seoul , Pung Su (Feng Shui), traditionalism, modernism in Seoul

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Authors: Cetin Arslan, Senol Tayan

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Social media is one of the most important and effective means of social interaction among people in which they create, share and exchange their ideas via photos, videos or voice messages. Although there are lots of communication tools, social media sites are the most prominent ones that allows the users articulate themselves in a matter of seconds all around the world with almost any expenses and thus, they became very popular and widespread after its emergence. As the usage of social media increases, it becomes an effective instrument in social matters. While it is possible to use social media to emphasize basic human rights and protest some failures of any government as in “Arab Spring”, it is also possible to spread propaganda and misinformation just to cause long lasting insurgency, upheaval, turmoil or disorder as an instrument of intervention to internal affairs and state sovereignty by some hostile groups or countries. It is certain that “social media” has positive effects on democracies letting people have chance to express themselves and to organize, but it is also obvious that the misuse of it, is very common that even a five-minute-long video can cause to wage a campaign against a country. Although it looks anti-democratic, when you consider the catastrophic effects of misuse of social media, it is a kind of area that serious precautions are to be taken without limiting democratic rights while allowing constant and perpetual share but preventing the criminal events. This article begins with the current developments in social media and gives some examples on misuse of it. Second part tries to put emphasize on the legal basis that can prevent criminal activities and the upheavals and insurgencies against state security. Last part makes comparison between democratic countries and international organizations’’ actions against such activities and proposes some further actions that are compatible with democratic norms.

Keywords: democracy, disorder, security, Social Media

Procedia PDF Downloads 346

Authors: Wendy Flory, Kazi Czarnecki, Matthijs Mercy, Mark Joswiak, Mary Beth Seasholtz

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Polyurethane Materials are present in a wide range of industrial segments such as Furniture, Building and Construction, Composites, Automotive, Electronics, and more. Dow is one of the leaders for the manufacture of the two main raw materials, Isocyanates and Polyols used to produce polyurethane products. Dow is also a key player for the manufacture of Polyurethane Systems/Formulations designed for targeted applications. In 1990, the first analytical chemometric models were developed and deployed for use in the Dow QC labs of the polyols business for the quantification of OH, water, cloud point, and viscosity. Over the years many models have been added; there are now over 140 models for quantification and hundreds for product identification, too many to be reasonable for support. There are 29 global models alone for the quantification of OH across > 70 products at many sites. An attempt was made to consolidate these into a single model. While the consolidated model proved good statistics across the entire range of OH, several products had a bias by ASTM E1655 with individual product validation. This project summary will show the strategy for global model updates for OH, to reduce the number of models for quantification from over 140 to 5 or less using chemometric methods. In order to gain an understanding of the best product groupings, we identify clusters by reducing spectra to a few dimensions via Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Uniform Manifold Approximation and Projection (UMAP). Results from these cluster analyses and a separate validation set allowed dow to reduce the number of models for predicting OH from 29 to 3 without loss of accuracy.

Keywords: hydroxyl, global model, model maintenance, near infrared, polyol

Procedia PDF Downloads 117

Authors: Foluke E. Sola-Ojo, Ibraheem A. Abubakar, Semiu F. Bello, Isiaka H. Fatima, Sule Bisola, Adesina M. Olusegun, Adeniyi C. Adeola

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The domesticated pigeon, Columba livia domestica, has many valuable characteristics, including high nutritional value and fast growth rate. There is a lack of information on its genetic diversity in Nigeria; thus, the genetic variability in mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) sequences of 150 domestic pigeons from four different locations was examined. Three haplotypes (HT) were identified in Nigerian populations; the most common haplotype, HT1, was shared with wild and domestic pigeons from Europe, America, and Asia, while HT2 and HT3 were unique to Nigeria. The overall haplotype diversity was 0.052± 0.025, and nucleotide diversity was 0.026± 0.068 across the four investigated populations. The phylogenetic tree showed significant clustering and genetic relationship of Nigerian domestic pigeons with other global pigeons. The median-joining network showed a star-like pattern suggesting population expansion. AMOVA results indicated that genetic variations in Nigerian pigeons mainly occurred within populations (99.93%), while the Neutrality tests results suggested that the Nigerian domestic pigeons’ population experienced recent expansion. This study showed a low genetic diversity and population differentiation among Nigerian domestic pigeons consistent with a relatively conservative COI sequence with few polymorphic sites. Furthermore, the COI gene could serve as a candidate molecular marker to investigate the genetic diversity and origin of pigeon species. The current data is insufficient for further conclusions; therefore, more research evidence from multiple molecular markers is required.

Keywords: Nigeria pigeon, COI, genetic diversity, genetic variation, conservation

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Authors: Sophy Ann Xavier, Lakshmi A

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Gentrification is the process of altering a neighborhood's character through the influx of wealthier people and establishments. This idea has subsequently been expanded to encompass brand-new, high-status construction projects that involve regenerating brownfield sites or demolishing and rebuilding residential neighborhoods. Inequality is made worse by Gentrification in ways that go beyond socioeconomic position. The elderly, members of racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and mental health all suffer disproportionately when they are displaced. Cities must cultivate openness, diversity, and inclusion in their collaborations, as well as cooperation on objectives and results. The papers compiled in this issue concentrate on the new gentrification discussions, the rising residential allure of central cities, and the indices to measure this process according to its various varieties. The study makes an effort to fill the research gap in the area of gentrification studies, which is the absence of a set of indices for measuring Gentrification in a specific area. Studies on Gentrification that contain maps of historical change highlight trends that will aid in the production of displacement risk maps, which will guide future interventions by allowing residents and policymakers to extrapolate into the future. Additionally, these maps give locals a glimpse into the future of their communities and serve as a political call to action in areas where residents are expected to be displaced. This study intends to pinpoint metrics and approaches for measuring Gentrification that can then be applied to create a spatiotemporal map of a region and tactics for its inclusive planning. An understanding of various approaches will enable planners and policymakers to select the best approach and create the appropriate plans.

Keywords: gentrification, indices, methods, quantification

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Authors: V. V. Lakshmi, Y. V. S. Annapurna

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Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common infectious diseases seen in the community. Susceptible individuals experience multiple episodes, and progress to acute pyelonephritis or uro-sepsis or develop asymptomatic bacteriuria (ABU). Ability to cause extraintestinal infections depends on several virulence factors required for survival at extraintestinal sites. Presence of virulence phenotypes enhances the pathogenicity of these otherwise commensal organisms and thus augments its ability to cause extraintestinal infections, the most frequent in urinary tract infections(UTI). The present study focuses on detection of the virulence characters exhibited by the uropathogenic organism and most common factors exhibited in the local pathogens. A total of 700 isolates of E.coli and Klebsiella spp were included in the study.These were isolated from patients from local hospitals reported to be suffering with UTI over a period of three years. Isolation and identification was done based on Gram character and IMVIC reactions. Antibiotic sensitivity profile was carried out by disc diffusion method and multi drug resistant strains with MAR index of 0.7 were further selected. Virulence features examined included their ability to produce exopolysaccharides, protease- gelatinase production, hemolysin production, haemagglutination and hydrophobicity test. Exopolysaccharide production was most predominant virulence feature among the isolates when checked by congo red method. The biofilms production examined by microtitre plates using ELISA reader confirmed that this is the major factor contributing to virulencity of the pathogens followed by hemolysin production.

Keywords: Escherichia coli, Klebsiella spp, Uropathogens, virulence features

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Authors: A. Nicknam, N. Eftekhari, A. Mazarei, M. Ganjvar

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This article presents an alternative collapse capacity intensity measure in the three elements form which is influenced by the spectral ordinates at periods longer than that of the first mode period at near and far source sites. A parameter, denoted by β, is defined by which the spectral ordinate effects, up to the effective period (2T_1), on the intensity measure are taken into account. The methodology permits to meet the hazard-levelled target extreme event in the probabilistic and deterministic forms. A MATLAB code is developed involving OpenSees to calculate the collapse capacities of the 8 archetype RC structures having 2 to 20 stories for regression process. The incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) method is used to calculate the structure’s collapse values accounting for the element stiffness and strength deterioration. The general near field set presented by FEMA is used in a series of performing nonlinear analyses. 8 linear relationships are developed for the 8structutres leading to the correlation coefficient up to 0.93. A collapse capacity near field prediction equation is developed taking into account the results of regression processes obtained from the 8 structures. The proposed prediction equation is validated against a set of actual near field records leading to a good agreement. Implementation of the proposed equation to the four archetype RC structures demonstrated different collapse capacities at near field site compared to those of FEMA. The reasons of differences are believed to be due to accounting for the spectral shape effects.

Keywords: collapse capacity, fragility analysis, spectral shape effects, IDA method

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Authors: Denise C. I. Maior-Barron

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This conference presentation proposes to discuss the Japanese tourist perception of Marie Antoinette, at the heritage site which represents the home par excellence of the last Queen of France: Petit Trianon, Versailles. The underpinning analysis has a two-fold aim of firstly identifying the elements that contributed at the said perception and secondly of placing this in the wider context of tabi (travel) culture. The contribution of the presentation lies in its relevance to the analysis of postmodern trends of Japanese travel culture in relation to the consumption of European cultural heritage, through an insight into Japanese contemporary perception of heritage sites and their associated historical figures subject to controversy. Based upon the author’s doctoral studies field research at Petit Trianon - survey led in situ between 2010-2012, applied with the questionnaire method on a total of 307 respondents out of which 53 Japanese nationals - the media sources that were revealed to have had a direct influence on these nationals’ perception of Marie Antoinette, were Riyoko Ikeda’s shōjo manga La Rose de Versailles (1972) and Sofia Coppola’s film Marie-Antoinette (2006). The interpretation of the survey results through an assessment of visitor discourse determined the research methodology to be qualitative as opposed to quantitative, thus what confirmed the empirical hypothesis of the survey was a pattern of perception instead of percentages. Consequently, the interpretation focused on the answers to the questions relating to the image of Marie Antoinette in relation to historical knowledge, cultural background and last but not least media influences.

Keywords: cultural heritage, manga, film, tabi

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Authors: Debolina Chatterjee, Suhita Chopra Chatterjee

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Imprisonment is an expansive concept, as it is regulated by laws under criminal justice system of the state. The state sets principles of punishment to control offenders and also puts limits to excess punitive control. One significant way through which it exercises control is through rules governing healthcare of imprisoned population. Prisons signify specialized settings which accommodate both medical and legal concerns. The provision of care operates within the institutional paradigm of punishment. This requires the state to negotiate adequately between goals of punishment and fulfilment of basic human rights of offenders. The present study is based on a critical analysis of prison healthcare standards in India, which include government policies and guidelines. It also demonstrates how healthcare is delivered by drawing insights from a primary study conducted in a correctional home in the state of West Bengal, India, which houses both male and female inmates. Forty women were interviewed through semi-structured interviews, followed by focus group discussions. Doctors and administrative personnel were also interviewed. Findings show how institutional practices control women through subversion of the role of doctors to prison administration. Also, poor healthcare infrastructure, unavailability of specialized services, hierarchies between personnel and inmates make prisons unlikely sites for therapeutic intervention. The paper further discusses how institutional practices foster gender-based discriminatory practices.

Keywords: imprisonment, Indian prisons, prison healthcare, punishment

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Authors: Ayda Youssef, Mohammed Ali Khalaf, Tarek Rafaat

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Background: Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) is a rare multi-systemic disease that shows an abnormal proliferation of these kinds of cells associated with a granular infiltration that affects different structures of the human body, including the lung, liver, spleen, lymph nodes, brain, mucocutaneous, soft tissue (head and neck), and salivary glands. Evaluation of the extent of disease is one of the major predictors of patient outcome. Objectives: To recognize the pathogenesis of Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH), describe the radiologic criteria that are suggestive of LCH in different organs rather than the bones and to illustrate the appropriate differential diagnoses for LCH in each of the common extra-osseous sites. Material and methods: A retrospective study was done on 150 biopsy-proven LCH patients from 2007 to 2012. All patients underwent imaging studies, mostly US, CT, and MRI. These patients were reviewed to assess the extra-skeletal manifestations of LCH. Results: In 150 patients with biopsy-proven LCH, There were 33 patients with liver affection, 5 patients with splenic lesions, 55 patients with enlarged lymph nodes, 9 patient with CNS disease and 11 patients with lung involvement. Conclusions: Because of the frequent LCH children and evaluation of the extent of disease is one of the major predictors of patient outcome. Radiologist need to be familiar with its presentation in different organs and regions of body outside the commonest site of affection (bones). A high-index suspicion should be raised a biopsy is recommended in the presence of radiological suspicion. Chemotherapy is the preferred therapeutic modality.

Keywords: langerhans cell histiocytosis, extra-skeletal, pediatrics, radiology

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Authors: Majid Samiee Zenoozian

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The Persian Gulf is a bordering sea with an normal depth of 35 m and a supreme depth of 100 m near its narrow appearance. Its lengthen bathymetric axis divorces two main geological shires — the steady Arabian Foreland and the unbalanced Iranian Fold Belt — which are imitated in the conflicting shore and bathymetric morphologies of Arabia and Iran. The sediments were experimented with from 72 offshore positions through an oceanographic cruise in the winter of 2018. Throughout the observation era, several storms and river discharge actions happened, as well as the major flood on record since 1982. Suspended-sediment focus at all three sites varied in reaction to both wave resuspension and advection of river-derived sediments. We used hydrological models to evaluation and associate the wave height and inundation distance required to carriage the rocks inland. Our results establish that no known or possible storm happening on the Makran coast is accomplished of detaching and transporting the boulders. The fluid mud consequently is conveyed seaward due to gravitational forcing. The measured sediment focus and velocity profiles on the shelf provide a strong indication to provision this assumption. The sediment model is joined with a 3D hydrodynamic module in the Environmental Fluid Dynamics Code (EFDC) model that offers data on estuarine rotation and salinity transport under normal temperature conditions. 3-D sediment transport from model simulations specify dynamic sediment resuspension and transport near zones of highly industrious oyster beds.

Keywords: sediment transport, storm, coast, fluid dynamics

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Authors: Mukul R. Gupta, Rajkumar Gandhi, Rajitha Sachan, Naveen K. Khare

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The field of glycoscience has burgeoned in the last several decades, leading to the identification of many glycosides which could serve critical roles in a wide range of biological processes. This has prompted a resurgence in synthetic interest, with a particular focus on new approaches to construct the selective glycosidic bond. Despite the numerous elegant strategies and methods developed for the formation of glycosidic bonds, stereoselective construction of glycosides remains challenging. Here, we have recently developed the novel Hexafluoroisopropanol (HFIP) catalyzed stereoselective glycosylation methods by using KDN imidate glycosyl donor and a variety of alcohols in excellent yield. This method is broadly applicable to a wide range of substrates and with excellent selectivity of glycoside. Also, herein we are reporting the functionalization of the unbiased side of newly formed glycosides by dual-catalytic transition metal systems (Ru- or Fe-). We are using the innovative Reverse & Catalyst strategy, i.e., a reversible activation reaction by one catalyst with a functionalization reaction by another catalyst, together with enabling functionalization of substrates at their inherently unreactive sites. As well, we are targeting the diSia derivative synthesis by Wittig reaction. This synthetic method is applicable in mild conditions, functional group tolerance of the dual-catalytic systems and also highlights the potential of the multicatalytic approach to address challenging transformations to avoid multistep procedures in carbohydrate synthesis.

Keywords: KDN, stereoselective glycosylation, dual-catalytic functionalization, Wittig reaction

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Authors: Boudjahem Ibtissem, Aouati Amel

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Thaumetopoea pityocampa is one of the major insect pests of pine forests in Algeria, the Mediterranean region, and central Europe. This pest is responsible for several natural and human damages these last years. The caterpillar can feed itself during the larval stage on several species of pine or cedar. The forests attack by the insect can reduce their resistance against other forest enemies, fires, or drought conditions. In this case, the tree becomes more vulnerable to other pests. To understand the eating behavior of the insect in its ecological conditions, and its nutritional preference, we realized a study of the abundance of winter nests of the pine processionary caterpillar in four different forests: Pinus halepensis; Pinus pinaster; Pinus pinea, and Cedrus atlantica. A count of the sites affected by the processionary caterpillar was carried out on a hundred trees from the forests in different regions in Algeria; Alkala region, Mila region, Annaba region, and Blida region; the total rate and average abundance are calculated for each forest. Ecological parameters are also estimated for each infestation. The results indicated a higher rate of infestation in Pinus halepensis trees (85%) followed by Cedrus atlantica (66%) and Pinus pinaster (50%) trees. The Pinus pinea forest is the least attacked region by the pine processionary caterpillar (23%). The abundance of the pine processionary caterpillar can be influenced by the height of the trees, the climate of the region, the age of the forest but also the quality of needles.

Keywords: Thaumetopoea pityocampa, Pinus halepensis, needles, winter nests

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Authors: Mosab Aljeri, Ali Abdulraheem

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The water quality of five water types at Al-Wuhaib farm, Al-Wafra area, was studies through onsite field measurements, including pH, temperature, electrical conductivity (EC), and dissolved oxygen (DO), for four different water types. Biweekly samples were collected and analyzed for two months to obtain data of chemicals, nutrients, organics, and heavy metals. The field and laboratory results were compared with irrigation standards of Kuwait Environmental Public Authority (KEPA). The pH values of the five samples sites were within the maximum and minimum limits of KEPA standards. Based on EC values, two groups of water types were observed. The first group represents freshwater quality originated from freshwater Ministry of Electricity & Water & Renewable Energy (MEWRE) line or from freshwater tanks or treated wastewater. The second group represents brackish water type originated from groundwater or treated water mixed with groundwater. The study indicated that all nitrogen forms (ammonia, Total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), Total nitrogen (TN)), total phosphate concentrations and all tested heavy metals for the five water types were below KEPA standards. These macro and micro nutrients are essential for plant growth and can be used as fertilizers. The study suggest that the groundwater should be treated and disinfected in the farming area. Also, these type of studies shall be carried out routinely to all farm areas to ensure safe water use and safe agricultural produce.

Keywords: salinity, heavy metals, ammonia, phosphate

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Authors: Tagore Sai Priya Nunna, Ankhi Banerjee

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The rapid growth of the tourism industry in India in the last few years after the economic crisis in 2009 has been one of the significant causes that led to the Land Use Land Cover change (LULC) of most tourism destinations. The tourist regions are subjected to significant increase in built-up due to increased construction activities for developing accommodation facilities further boosting tourism demand. This research attempts to analyse the changing LULC and the growth pattern of the built-up area within tourist destinations. Four popular tourist destinations, which promises various types of tourism activity and which are significantly dependent on tourism for economic growth, are selected for the study. The study uses remotely sensed data for analysis of land use change through supervised segmentation into five broad classes. Further, the landuse map is reclassified into binary classes to extract the built-up area. The growth patterns of the built-up are analysed in terms of size, shape, direction and form of growth, through a set of spatial metrics. Additionally, a detailed analysis of the existing development pattern corresponding to planned development zones was performed to identify unplanned growth spots in the study regions. The findings of the study provide insights into how tourism has contributed to significant changes in LULC around tourist sites. Also, the study highlights the growth pattern of built-up areas with respect to the type of tourism activity and geographical characteristics. The research attempts to address the need of integrating spatial metrics for the development of sustainable tourism plans as part of the goals of sustainable development.

Keywords: built-up, growth, patterns, tourism, sustainable

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Authors: Arpan Bera, Rini Ganguly, Raja Chakraborty, Amlan J. Pal

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To deal with the increasing demands for the high-density non-volatile memory devices, we need nano-sites with efficient and stable charge storage capabilities. We prepared nanocrystals (NCs) of inorganic perovskite, CsPbCl₃ coated with Cs₄PbCl₆, by colloidal synthesis. Due to the type-I band alignment at the junction, this core-shell composite is expected to behave as a charge trapping site. Using Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy (STS), we investigated voltage-controlled resistive switching in this heterostructure by tracking the change in its current-voltage (I-V) characteristics. By applying voltage pulse of appropriate magnitude on the NCs through this non-invasive method, different resistive states of this system were systematically accessed. For suitable pulse-magnitude, the response jumped to a branch with enhanced current indicating a high-resistance state (HRS) to low-resistance state (LRS) switching in the core-shell NCs. We could reverse this process by using a pulse of opposite polarity. These two distinct resistive states can be considered as two logic states, 0 and 1, which are accessible by varying voltage magnitude and polarity. STS being a local probe in space enabled us to capture this switching at individual NC site. Hence, we claim a bright prospect of these core-shell NCs made of inorganic halide perovskites in future high density memory application.

Keywords: Core-shell perovskite, CsPbCl₃-Cs₄PbCl₆, resistive switching, Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy

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Authors: Hariyadi, Rili Windiasih

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Halal tourism is a recent global phenomenon that emerged out of the needs of Muslim tourists. However, works on halal tourism rarely discuss the connection of it to the rising religiosity in Indonesia since halal tourism has been mostly studied in the sphere of tourism, business, and management studies. A few works on the increase of Islamic expressions in Indonesia do mention the recent booming of non-mandatory pilgrimage to Mecca and the emergence of sharia compliant accommodation, yet they do not go into details on the issue. To our best knowledge, there is a lack of more critical, cultural political studies on halal tourism in which the paper attempts to fill in. The paper is a result of fieldwork research in Central Java, Indonesia. The study focuses on sacred sites for pilgrimage and sharia-compliant hotels. It combines in-depth interviews and participatory observation methods to gather the data. It is important for us to take a look at the network of halal tourism actors (businessperson, local government, clerics, etc.) in Central Java, how they conceive halal tourism, and how their networking shape halal tourism discourses, policies, and practices. Despite having numerous Islamic pilgrimage places and being designated by the Ministry of Tourism as one of 12 Muslim friendly tourist destinations, the province is not yet widely recognised as the main destination for halal tourism as it is known as the place for more secular, nationalist groups rather than for more Islamic oriented ones. However, in some of its municipalities, there is increasingly more attention to develop halal tourism. In this study, we found out that the development of halal tourism in Central Java connected to dynamics of Islamisation and ideological competition as well as the influence of the more pragmatist businesspersons in a 'nationalist province' in Indonesia.

Keywords: actor networking, halal tourism, Islamisation, Indonesia

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Authors: Adedoyin Opeyemi Osokoya

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The study assesses the influence of social media on perceived learning outcome of agricultural science students in tertiary institutions in Oyo state, Nigeria. The four-stage sampling procedure was used to select participants. All students in the seven tertiary institutions that offer agriculture science as a course of study in Oyo State was the population. A university, a college of agriculture and a college of education were sampled, and a department from each was randomly selected. Twenty percent of the students’ population in the respective selected department gave a sample size of 165. Questionnaire was used to collect information on respondents’ personal characteristics and information related to access to social media. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square, correlation, and multiple regression at the 0.05 confidence level. Age and household size were 21.13 ± 2.64 years and 6 ± 2.1 persons respectively. All respondents had access to social media, majority (86.1%) owned Android phone, 57.6% and 52.7% use social media for course work and entertainment respectively, while the commonly visited sites were WhatsApp, Facebook, Google, Opera mini. Over half (53.9%) had an unfavourable attitude towards the use of social media for learning; benefits of the use of social media for learning was high (56.4%). Removal of information barrier created by distance (x̄=1.58) was the most derived benefit, while inadequate power supply (x̄=2.36), was the most severe constraints. Age (β=0.23), sex (β=0.37), ownership of Android phone (β=-1.29), attitude (β=0.37), constraints (β =-0.26) and use of social media (β=0.23) were significant predictors of influence on perceived learning outcomes.

Keywords: use of social media, agricultural science students, undergraduates of tertiary institutions, Oyo State of Nigeria

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Authors: Zeinab Mirabulqasemi, Gholamali Hatam

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This article discusses the significance of mural paintings in Iranian culture, particularly within the context of religious tombs known as Imamzadehs. These tombs, dedicated to Shiite imams and other revered religious figures, serve as important religious and communal spaces. The tradition of tomb construction evolved from early Islamic practices, gradually transforming burial sites into places of worship. In the Gilan region of Iran, these tombs hold a revered status, serving as focal points for religious observances and social gatherings. The murals adorning these tombs often depict religious motifs, with a particular emphasis on events like the Day of Judgment and the martyrdom of the Imams, notably the saga of Ashura. These paintings also reflect the community's social perspectives and historical allegiances. Various architectural styles are employed in constructing these tombs, including Islamic, traditional, local, and aesthetic architecture. However, the region's climate poses challenges to the preservation of these structures and their murals. Despite these challenges, efforts are made to document and preserve these artworks to ensure their accessibility for future generations. This research also studies tomb paintings by adopting a multifaceted approach, including library research, image analysis, and field research. Finally, it examines the portrayal of significant figures such as the Shiite imams, prophets, and Imamzadehs within these murals, highlighting their thematic significance and cultural importance.

Keywords: cultural ritual, Shiite imams, mural, belief foundations, religious paintings

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Authors: Chul Lee, Seoae Cho, Erich D. Jarvis, Heebal Kim

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Vocal learning, the ability to imitate vocalizations based on auditory experience, is a homoplastic character state observed in different independent lineages of animals such as songbirds, parrots, hummingbirds and human. It has now become possible to perform genome-wide molecular analyses across vocal learners and vocal non-learners with the recent expansion of avian genome data. It was analyzed the whole genomes of human and 48 avian species including those belonging to the three avian vocal learning lineages, to determine if behavior and neural convergence are associated with molecular convergence in divergent species of vocal learners. Analyses of 8295 orthologous genes across bird species revealed 141 genes with amino acid substitutions specific to vocal learners. Out of these, 25 genes have vocal learner specific genetic homoplasies, and their functions were enriched for learning. Several sites in these genes are estimated under convergent evolution and positive selection. A potential role for a subset of these genes in vocal learning was supported by associations with gene expression profiles in vocal learning brain regions of songbirds and human disease that cause language dysfunctions. The key candidate gene with multiple independent lines of the evidences specific to vocal learners was DRD5. Our findings suggest cAMP-based learning pathway in avian vocal learners, indicating molecular homoplastic changes associated with a complex behavioral trait, vocal learning.

Keywords: amino acid substitutions, convergent evolution, positive selection, vocal learning

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Authors: Huong Nguyen Thi Thanh, Van Mai Thi Khanh

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For around the world, payments for environmental services have been implemented since the late 1970s in Europe and North America; then, it was spread to Latin America, Asia, Africa, and finally Oceania in 2008. In Vietnam, payments for environmental services are an interesting issue recently with the forest as the main focus and therefore known as the program on payment for forest environmental services (PFES). PFES was piloted in Lam Dong and Son La in 2008 and has been widely applied in many provinces after 2010. PFES is in the orientation for the socialization of national forest protection in Vietnam and has made great strides in the last decade. By using the primary data and secondary data simultaneously, the paper clarifies two cases of implementing PFES in the Vietnam North Central area with the different mechanisms of payment. In the first case at Phu Loc district (Thua Thien Hue province), PFES is an indirect method by a water supply company via the Forest Protection and Development Fund. In the second one at Phong Nha – Ke Bang National Park (Quang Binh Province), tourism companies are the direct payers to forest owners. The paper describes the PFES implementation process at each site, clarifies the payment mechanism, and models the relationship between stakeholders in PFES implementation. Based on the current status of PFES sites, the paper compares and analyzes the advantages and disadvantages of the two payment methods. Finally, the paper proposes recommendations to improve the existing shortcomings in each payment mechanism.

Keywords: advantages and disadvantages, forest environmental services, forest protection, payment mechanism

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Authors: Havisha Banda

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Recent advancements in technology have facilitated commerce around the globe. The online medium of commerce has provided and will continue to provide great opportunities for consumers and businesses. Advancements in technology enable apparel stores, for instance, to improve their online services by using personalized virtual models allowing consumers to visualize the product on the model to determine correct sizing and fit. In addition to many advantages in online shopping the consumers will also have to undergo many types of switching costs in this process of buying apparel online. This study is to identify such switching costs and switching benefits from traditional shopping to online shopping and to understand what the consumers value the most. The scope of this study is to understand the types of switching costs and the factors that actually allow the consumers to shift from brick and mortar to online shopping and also to understand why a certain set of customers consider to purchase offline. Hence this study helps to understand the perceived cost and perceived benefit relation that the consumer draws in purchasing the garments online. This will help the upcoming e-commerce sites and brick and mortar store to understand the various factors and formulate new policies and implement strategies in their own ways to attract the customers and to retain them. A sample of 35 is considered for the process of laddered interviews. In the era of e-commerce there are people who feel comfortable to shop in a retail store rather than online purchase. Few respondents who shop online do not prefer to shop apparel online. Few respondents said that they shop online only for apparels. Most of the variables match in terms of switching costs and also in regard to benefits.

Keywords: e-commerce, switching costs, switching benefits, apparel shopping

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Authors: M. Cherki, I. Taouam, A. Amiri, F. Hmimid, T. Ould Bellahcen

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The Moroccan coasts represent an important wealth of red algae which have an economic interest. Among these algae, the Gelidium sesquipedale, which is exploited industrially for its richness in agar. The aim of this study is to establish a general overview of the macronutrient composition of Gelidium sesquipedale and to compare this composition according to three factors: the harvest site (El Jadida, Casablanca and Mohammadia), the harvest depth (coast and depth) and the drying process (open air and oven). Proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates are measured by different methods. The analysis of results show that the protein concentrations of the El Jadida and Mohammadia samples are significantly higher than that of Casablanca (0.026 ± 0.0007 µg/µg DW 0.024 ± 0.001 µg/µg DW and 0.006 ± 0.0007 µg/µg DW, p < 0.05 respectively). However, Casablanca samples are significantly richer in total sugars (0.023 ± 0.002 µg/µg DW, p < 0.05) and less rich in reducing sugars (0.0001 ± 0.00001 µg/µg DW, p < 0.05) compared to other samples. The lipid concentrations of the samples from the three harvest sites do not show any significant difference. With respect to depth, only total protein and total sugar concentrations were significantly higher in the coast versus depth samples (0.035 ± 0.004 µg/µg DW vs. 0.026 ± 0.0007 µg/µg DW and 0.035 ± 0.006 µg/µg DW vs. 0.012 ± 0.005 µg/µg DW p < 0.05 respectively). For the drying process, protein, total sugars and lipid concentrations were significantly higher in open air samples compared to oven samples (0.006 ± 0.0007 µg/µg DW). vs 0.004 ± 0.0003 µg/µg DW, 0.023 ± 0.002 µg/µg DW vs 0.007 ± 0.002 µg/µg DW and 8% vs 4% p < 0.05 respectively). Our results demonstrate that the chemical composition of Gelidium sesquipedale varies according to the harvest region. In addition, samples harvested on the coast and dried in the open air are the richest in macronutrients.

Keywords: biochemical composition, drying, depth, Gelidium sesquipedale, red algae, region

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Authors: Christobel Gondwe, Yongtao Lu, Claudia Mazzà, Xinshan Li

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Skeletal muscle plays an important role in the human body system and function by generating voluntary forces and facilitating body motion. However, The mechanical properties and behaviour of skeletal muscle are still not comprehensively known yet. As such, various robust engineering techniques have been applied to better elucidate the mechanical behaviour of skeletal muscle. It is considered that muscle mechanics are highly governed by the architecture of the fibre orientations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of different fibre orientations on the mechanical behaviour of skeletal muscle.In this study, a continuum mechanics approach–finite element (FE) analysis was applied to the left bicep femoris long head to determine the contractile mechanism of the muscle using Hill’s three-element model. The geometry of the muscle was segmented from the magnetic resonance images. The muscle was modelled as a quasi-incompressible hyperelastic (Mooney-Rivlin) material. Two types of fibre orientations were implemented: one with the idealised fibre arrangement, i.e. parallel single-direction fibres going from the muscle origin to insertion sites, and the other with curved fibre arrangement which is aligned with the muscle shape.The second fibre arrangement was implemented through the finite element method; non-uniform rational B-spline (FEM-NURBs) technique by means of user material (UMAT) subroutines. The stress-strain behaviour of the muscle was investigated under idealised exercise conditions, and will be further analysed under physiological conditions. The results of the two different FE models have been outputted and qualitatively compared.

Keywords: FEM-NURBS, finite element analysis, Mooney-Rivlin hyperelastic, muscle architecture

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Authors: A. Al Hinai, H. Jayasuriya, H. Kotagama

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Most Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries with oil-based economy like Oman are looking for other potential revenue generation options as the crude oil price is regularly fluctuating due to changing geopolitical environment. Oman has advantage of possessing world-heritage nature tourism hotspots around the country and the government is making investments and strategies to uplift the tourism industry following Oman Vision 2040 strategies. Oman’s agriculture is not significantly contributing to the economy, but possesses specific and diversified arid cropping systems. Oman has modern farms; nevertheless some of the agricultural production activities are done with cultural practices and styles that would be attractive to tourists. The aim of this paper is to investigate the potentials for promoting agritourism industry in Oman; recognize potential sites, commodities and activities, and predict potential revenue generation as a projection from that of the tourism sector. Moreover, the study enables to foresee possible auxiliary advantages of agritourism such as, empowerment of women and youth, enhancement in the value-addition industry for agricultural produce through technology transfer and capacity building, and producing export quality products. Agritourism could increase employability, empowerment of women and youth, improve value-addition industry and export-oriented agribusiness. These efforts including provision of necessary technology-transfer and capacity-building should be rendered by the collaboration of academic institutions, relevant ministries and other public and private sector stakeholders.

Keywords: agritourism, nature-based tourism, potentials, revenue generation, value addition

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Authors: E. Kalcheva, A. Taki, Y. Hadi

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High-rises and placemaking is an understudied combination which receives more and more interest with the proliferation of this typology in many British cities. The reason for studying three major cities in England: London, Birmingham and Manchester, is to learn from the latest advances in urban design in well-developed and prominent urban environment. The analysis of several high-rise sites reveals the weaknesses in urban design of contemporary British cities and presents an opportunity to study from the implemented examples. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to analyze design approaches towards creating a sustainable and varied urban environment when high-rises are involved. The research questions raised by the study are: what is the quality of high-rises and their surroundings; what facilities and features are deployed in the research area; what is the role of the high-rise buildings in the placemaking process; what urban design principles are applicable in this context. The methodology utilizes observation of the researched area by structured questions, developed by the author to evaluate the outdoor qualities of the high-rise surroundings. In this context, the paper argues that the quality of the public realm around the high-rises is quite low, missing basic but vital elements such as plazas, public art, and seating, along with landscaping and pocket parks. There is lack of coherence, the rhythm of the streets is often disrupted, and even though the high-rises are very aesthetically appealing, they fail to create a sense of place on their own. The implications of the study are that future planning can take into consideration the critique in this article and provide more opportunities for urban design interventions around high-rise buildings in the British cities.

Keywords: high-rises, placemaking, urban design, townscape

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Authors: Ranjit A. Patil, Yung Liou, Yuan-Ron Ma

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It has been observed that when the size of metals such as, Au, Zn, Ag, Cu, Te, and metal oxides is reduced to several nano-meters, it starts to show further interesting properties. These new properties boost the use of nano-structures to produce attractive functional materials or used as promising building blocks in electronic devices. Present work describes the synthesis of bismuth (Bi) nanoparticles (NP’s) having uniform morphology, high crystallinity, and single phase purity by the temperature assisted pulsed laser deposition (TAPLD). Pulsed Laser deposition (PLD) technique is one of the promising methods to synthesize nano-structures. It can provide the stable nucleation sites in orders of magnitudes higher than for MBE and sputtering deposition. The desired size of purely metallic Bi NP’s of can be easily controlled by adjusting the temperature of the substrate varying from 1000 C to 250 0C. When the temperatures of the substrate raised step wise the average size of Bi NP’s appeared to be increased by maintaining the uniform distribution of NP’s on the Si surfaces. The diameter range of NP’s is ~33-84 nm shows size distribution constrained in the limited range. The EDS results show that the 0D Bi NP’s synthesized at high temperature (250 0C) at a high vacuum still remained in a metallic phase. Moreover, XRD, TEM and SAED results showed that these Bi NP’s are hexagonal in crystalline in a space group R -3 m and no traces of bismuth oxide, confirming that Bi NP’s synthesized at wide range of temperatures persisted of the pure Bi-metallic phase.

Keywords: metal nano particles, bismuth, pulsed laser deposition (PLD), nano particles, temperature assisted growth

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Authors: Ann Vibert, Heather Hemming

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This paper presentation summarizes the findings and implications of research on the plight and practices of women educational leaders in public school systems and in one university. The authors, both women university administrators, are also scholars and researchers of education. The research project on which this paper presentation is based proposed to examine how women educational leaders imagined, experienced, and carried out their leadership roles in the context of a growing local and global accountability-based performativity discourse which is reshaping educational work especially for women, we argue, in both public school and post-secondary sites. The research employed critical ethnographic interviews with 20 women educational leaders in P-12 school systems and three women university level educational leaders. Data were collected on women educational leaders’ perceptions of the effects of accountability and performativity discourses on the nature of their work. Specifically, leaders were asked to speak to whether they experienced a growth in managerial work as a consequence of increased accountability demands; how they experienced their work changing as a consequence of accountability and performativity demands; how these changes impacted the central values they enacted in their work as women educational leaders changes; and how they responded to/negotiated/accommodated changes in the nature of their work developing as a consequence of accountability and performativity frameworks. Findings from the research data and analyses confirm and extend recent scholarly work on the gendered nature of performativity and accountability discourses and frameworks, and their differential effects across differing genders. The oral presentation we propose here focusses on those findings in terms of similarities for women educational leaders across different educational contexts.

Keywords: women in educational leadership, gender and educational performativity, accountability and women leaders, gender and educational leadership

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Authors: Betül Garda

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Technological developments have diversified marketing activities of the tourism sector and it has increased tourism opportunities to compete on a global scale for tourism businesses. Tourism businesses have been forced to use its core skills and knowledge effectively with the increase in effectiveness of the technology in the global competitive environment. Tourism businesses have been reached beyond the traditional boundaries because of their commercial activities, so, the boundaries of the national market either eliminated or blurred. Therefore, the internet is the alternative promotion tool and distribution channel to providing unlimited facilities for tourism suppliers. For example, the internet provides an opportunity to reach customers on a global scale with direct email marketing, advertising, customer service, promotion, sales, and marketing. Tourism businesses have improved themselves with the continuous information flows and also they have provided the permanence of the changes. Especially in terms of tourism businesses, social media is emerging as an extremely important tool in the use of knowledge effectively. This research paper investigates the impact of social media on the tourism businesses. A social networking site is a type of social media that provides a platform for business and people to connect with each other. Social media is so flexible that it can be used for both leisure and business purposes. In the tourism industry, social networking sites are one of the essential tools that play an important and beneficial role. The topic that will be discussed in this research paper are consumer behavior, connection with consumers, effectiveness in terms of time and cost, creating brand awareness and building the image of the company, promoting company, targeting consumers in a conceptual frame.

Keywords: branding, promoting, social media in tourism, tourism marketing tools

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Authors: Chrislaura Carmo, Luca Deiana, Mafalda Laranjo, Abilio Sobral, Armando Cordova

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Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is currently used for the treatment of malignancies and premalignant tumors. It is based on the capture of a photosensitizing molecule (PS) which, when excited by light at a certain wavelength, reacts with oxygen and generates oxidizing species (radicals, singlet oxygen, triplet species) in target tissues, leading to cell death. BODIPY (4,4-difluoro-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indaceno) derivatives are emerging as important candidates for photosensitizer in photodynamic therapy of cancer cells due to their high triplet quantum yield. Today these dyes are relevant molecules in photovoltaic materials and fluorescent sensors. In this study, it will be demonstrated the possibility that BODIPY can be covalently linked to thioglycolic acid through the click reaction. Thiol−ene click chemistry has become a powerful synthesis method in materials science and surface modification. The design of biobased allyl-terminated precursors with high renewable carbon content for the construction of the thiol-ene polymer networks is essential for sustainable development and green chemistry. The work aims to synthesize the BODIPY (10-(4-(allyloxy) phenyl)-2,8-diethyl-5,5-difluoro-1,3,7,9-tetramethyl-5H-dipyrrolo[1,2-c:2',1'-f] [1,3,2] diazaborinin-4-ium-5-uide) and to click reaction with Thioglycolic acid. BODIPY was synthesized by the condensation reaction between aldehyde and pyrrole in dichloromethane, followed by in situ complexation with BF3·OEt2 in the presence of the base. Then it was functionalized with allyl bromide to achieve the double bond and thus be able to carry out the click reaction. The thiol−ene click was performed using DMPA (2,2-Dimethoxy-2-phenylacetophenone) as a photo-initiator in the presence of UV light (320–500 nm) in DMF at room temperature for 24 hours. Compounds were characterized by standard analytical techniques, including UV-Vis Spectroscopy, 1H, 13C, 19F NMR and mass spectroscopy. The results of this study will be important to link BODIPY to polymers through the thiol group offering a diversity of applications and functionalization. This new molecule can be tested as third-generation photosensitizers, in which the dye is targeted by antibodies or nanocarriers by cells, mainly in cancer cells, PDT and Photodynamic Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (PACT). According to our studies, it was possible to visualize a click reaction between allyl BODIPY and thioglycolic acid. Our team will also test the reaction with other thiol groups for comparison. Further, we will do the click reaction of BODIPY with a natural polymer linked with a thiol group. The results of the above compounds will be tested in PDT assays on various lung cancer cell lines.

Keywords: bodipy, click reaction, thioglycolic acid, allyl, thiol-ene click

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