Search results for: virtual mobility

Authors: Sujing Wang, Song Wang, Jian Zhang, Qiang Xu

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Flaring emissions during abnormal operating conditions such as plant start-ups, shut-downs, and upsets in chemical process industries (CPI) are usually significant. Flare minimization can help to save raw material and energy for CPI plants, and to improve local environmental sustainability. In this paper, a systematic methodology based on plant-wide dynamic simulation is presented for CPI plant flare minimizations under abnormal operating conditions. Since off-specification emission sources are inevitable during abnormal operating conditions, to significantly reduce flaring emission in a CPI plant, they must be either recycled to the upstream process for online reuse, or stored somewhere temporarily for future reprocessing, when the CPI plant manufacturing returns to stable operation. Thus, the off-spec products could be reused instead of being flared. This can be achieved through the identification of viable design and operational strategies during normal and abnormal operations through plant-wide dynamic scheduling, simulation, and optimization. The proposed study includes three stages of simulation works: (i) developing and validating a steady-state model of a CPI plant; (ii) transiting the obtained steady-state plant model to the dynamic modeling environment; and refining and validating the plant dynamic model; and (iii) developing flare minimization strategies for abnormal operating conditions of a CPI plant via a validated plant-wide dynamic model. This cost-effective methodology has two main merits: (i) employing large-scale dynamic modeling and simulations for industrial flare minimization, which involves various unit models for modeling hundreds of CPI plant facilities; (ii) dealing with critical abnormal operating conditions of CPI plants such as plant start-up and shut-down. Two virtual case studies on flare minimizations for start-up operation (over 50% of emission savings) and shut-down operation (over 70% of emission savings) of an ethylene plant have been employed to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed study.

Keywords: flare minimization, large-scale modeling and simulation, plant shut-down, plant start-up

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Authors: Mahnaz Jafari, Parisa Izadpanahi, Francesco Mancini, Muhammad Qureshi

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The advancement in Information Technology (IT) has been an intrinsic element in the developments of the 21st century bringing benefits such as increased economic productivity. However, its widespread application has also been associated with inadvertent negative impacts on society and the environment necessitating selective interventions to mitigate these impacts. This study responded to this need by developing a Green IT Rating Tool (GIRT) for higher education institutions (HEI) in Australia to evaluate the sustainability of IT-related practices from an environmental, social, and economic perspective. Each dimension must be considered equally to achieve sustainability. The development of the GIRT was informed by the views of interviewed IT professionals whose opinions formed the basis of a framework listing Green IT initiatives in order of their importance as perceived by the interviewed professionals. This framework formed the base of the GIRT, which identified Green IT initiatives (such as videoconferencing as a substitute for long-distance travel) and the associated weighting of each practice. The proposed sustainable Green IT model could be integrated into existing IT systems, leading to significant reductions in carbon emissions and e-waste and improvements in energy efficiency. The development of the GIRT and the findings of this study have the potential to inspire other organizations to adopt sustainable IT practices, positively impact the environment, and be used as a reference by IT professionals and decision-makers to evaluate IT-related sustainability practices. The GIRT could also serve as a benchmark for HEIs to compare their performance with other institutions and to track their progress over time. Additionally, the study's results suggest that virtual and cloud-based technologies could reduce e-waste and energy consumption in the higher education sector. Overall, this study highlights the importance of incorporating Green IT practices into the IT systems of HEI to contribute to a more sustainable future.

Keywords: green information technology, international higher-educational institution, sustainable solutions, environmentally friendly IT systems

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Authors: Darshini Mahadevia, Kanika Gounder, Saumya Lathia

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Cities, an outcome of natural growth and migration, are ever-expanding due to urban sprawl. In the Global South, urban areas are experiencing a switch from public transport to private vehicles, coupled with intensified urban agglomeration, leading to frequent longer commutes by automobiles. This increase in travel distance and motorized vehicle kilometres lead to unsustainable cities. To achieve the nationally pledged GHG emission mitigation goal, the government is prioritizing a modal shift to low-carbon transport modes like mass transit and paratransit. Mixed land-use and urban densification are crucial for the economic viability of these projects. Informed by desktop assessment of mobility plans and in-person primary surveys, the paper explores the challenges around urban densification and travel patterns in two Indian cities of contrasting nature- Surat, a metropolitan industrial city with a 5.9 million population and a very compact urban form, and Udaipur, a heritage city attracting large international tourists’ footfall, with limited scope for further densification. Dense, mixed-use urban areas often improve access to basic services and economic opportunities by reducing distances and enabling people who don't own personal vehicles to reach them on foot/ cycle. But residents travelling on different modes end up contributing to similar trip lengths, highlighting the non-uniform distribution of land-uses and lack of planned transport infrastructure in the city and the urban-peri urban networks. Additionally, it is imperative to manage these densities to reduce negative externalities like congestion, air/noise pollution, lack of public spaces, loss of livelihood, etc. The study presents a comparison of the relationship between transport systems with the built form in both cities. The paper concludes with recommendations for managing densities in urban areas along with promoting low-carbon transport choices like improved non-motorized transport and public transport infrastructure and minimizing personal vehicle usage in the Global South.

Keywords: India, low-carbon transport, travel behaviour, trip length, urban densification

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Authors: Ayat Ayman Abdelaziz Ibrahim Amayem, Hassan Abdel-Salam, Zeyad El-Sayad

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Nowadays, ICTs have spread extensively in everyday life in an unprecedented way. A great attention is paid to the ICTs while ignoring the social aspect. With the immersive invasion of internet as well as smart phones’ applications and digital social networking, people become more socially connected through virtual spaces instead of meeting in physical public spaces. Thus, this paper aims to find the ways of implementing ICTs in public spaces to regain their status as attractive places for people, incite meetings in real life and create sustainable lively city centers. One selected example of urban space in the city center of Alexandria is selected for the study. Alexandria represents a large metropolitan city subjected to rapid transformation. Improving the quality of its public spaces will have great effects on the whole well-being of the city. The major roles that ICTs can play in the public space are: culture and art, education, planning and design, games and entertainment, and information and communication. Based on this classification various examples and proposals of ICTs interventions in public spaces are presented and analyzed to encourage good old fashioned social interaction by creating the New Social Public Place of this Digital Era. The paper will adopt methods such as questionnaire for evaluating the people’s willingness to accept the idea of using ICTs in public spaces, their needs and their proposals for an attractive place; the technique of observation to understand the people behavior and their movement through the space and finally will present an experimental design proposal for the selected urban space. Accordingly, this study will help to find design principles that can be adopted in the design of future public spaces to meet the needs of the digital era’s users with the new concepts of social life respecting the rules of place-making.

Keywords: Alexandria sustainable city center, digital place-making, ICTs, social interaction, social networking, urban places

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Authors: Thomas Louis, Irina Primac, Florent Morfoisse, Tania Durre, Silvia Blacher, Agnes Noel

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In vitro and in vivo lymphangiogenesis assays are essential for the identification of potential lymphangiogenic agents and the screening of pharmacological inhibitors. In the present study, we analyse three biological models: in vitro lymphatic endothelial cell spheroids, in vivo ear sponge assay, and in vivo lymph node colonisation by tumour cells. These assays provide suitable 3D models to test pro- and anti-lymphangiogenic factors or drugs. 3D images were acquired by confocal laser scanning and light sheet fluorescence microscopy. Virtual scan microscopy followed by 3D reconstruction by image aligning methods was also used to obtain 3D images of whole large sponge and ganglion samples. 3D reconstruction, image segmentation, skeletonisation, and other image processing algorithms are described. Fixed and time-lapse imaging techniques are used to analyse lymphatic endothelial cell spheroids behaviour. The study of cell spatial distribution in spheroid models enables to detect interactions between cells and to identify invasion hierarchy and guidance patterns. Global measurements such as volume, length, and density of lymphatic vessels are measured in both in vivo models. Branching density and tortuosity evaluation are also proposed to determine structure complexity. Those properties combined with vessel spatial distribution are evaluated in order to determine lymphangiogenesis extent. Lymphatic endothelial cell invasion and lymphangiogenesis were evaluated under various experimental conditions. The comparison of these conditions enables to identify lymphangiogenic agents and to better comprehend their roles in the lymphangiogenesis process. The proposed methodology is validated by its application on the three presented models.

Keywords: 3D image segmentation, 3D image skeletonisation, cell invasion, confocal microscopy, ear sponges, light sheet microscopy, lymph nodes, lymphangiogenesis, spheroids

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Authors: Saroj Pandey

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COVID-19, declared by the World Health Organization a pandemic (WHO,2020), has created an unprecedented crisis world over endangering the human survival itself. Corona induced lockdowns forced approximately 140 million students of 190 countries at various levels of education from preprimary to higher education to remain confined to their homes. In India, approximately 360 million students were affected by the forced shut down of schools due to the countrywide lockdown in March 2020 and resultant disruption of education. After the initial shock and anxiety the Indian polity and education system bounced back with a number of initiatives, and online education came as a major rescuer for the education system of the country. The distance and online mode of learning that was treated as the poor cousin of conventional mode and often criticized for its quality became the major crusader overnight changing the entire ecosystem of traditional teaching -leaning towards the virtual mode. Teachers who were averse to technology were forced to remodel their educational pedagogies and reorient themselves overnight to use various online platforms such as Zoom, Google meet, and other such platforms to reach the learners. This metamorphosis through ensured students was meaningfully engaged in their studies during the lockdown period but it has its own set of challenges. This paper deals with the government initiatives, and teachers' self-efforts to keep the channel of teaching learning on providing academic and socio emotional support to students during the most difficult period of their life as well as the digital divide between the rich and poor, rural and urban, and boys and girls in India and resultant challenges. It also provides an overview of few significant self-initiatives of teachers to reach their students during the crisis period, who did not have internet and smartphone facilities as well as the initiatives being taken at the government level to address the learning needs and mitigate the learning gaps of learners, bridge the digital divide, strategic planning and upskilling of teachers to overcome the effect of COVID-19 crisis.

Keywords: COVID-19, online education, initiatives, challenges

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Authors: Reyhan Tekin Sitrava

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Teachers should have robust and comprehensive content knowledge for effective mathematics teaching. It was explained that content knowledge includes knowing the facts, truths, and concepts; explaining the reasons behind these facts, truths and concepts, and making relationship between the concepts and other disciplines. By virtue of its importance, it will be significant to explore teachers and prospective teachers’ content knowledge related to variety of topics in mathematics. From this point of view, the purpose of this study was to investigate prospective mathematics teachers’ content knowledge. Particularly, it was aimed to reveal the prospective teachers’ knowledge regarding the definition of limit and derivate. To achieve the purpose and to get in-depth understanding, a qualitative case study method was used. The data was collected from 34 prospective mathematics teachers through a questionnaire containing 2 questions. The first question required the prospective teachers to define the limit and the second one required to define the derivative. The data was analyzed using content analysis method. Based on the analysis of the data, although half of the prospective teachers (50%) could write the definition of the limit, nine prospective teachers (26.5%) could not define limit. However, eight prospective teachers’ definition was regarded as partially correct. On the other hand, twenty-seven prospective teachers (79.5%) could define derivative, but seven of them (20.5%) defined it partially. According to the findings, most of the prospective teachers have robust content knowledge on limit and derivative. This result is important because definitions have a virtual role in learning and teaching of mathematics. More specifically, definition is starting point to understand the meaning of a concept. From this point of view, prospective teachers should know the definitions of the concepts to be able to teach them correctly to the students. In addition, they should have knowledge about the relationship between limit and derivative so that they can explain these concepts conceptually. Otherwise, students may memorize the rules of calculating the derivative and the limit. In conclusion, the present study showed that most of the prospective mathematics teachers had enough knowledge about the definition of derivative and limit. However, the rest of them should learn their definition conceptually. The examples of correct, partially correct, and incorrect definition of both concepts will be presented and discussed based on participants’ statements. This study has some implications for instructors. Instructors should be careful about whether students learn the definition of these concepts or not. In order to this, the instructors may give prospective teachers opportunities to discuss the definition of these concepts and the relationship between the concepts.

Keywords: content knowledge, derivative, limit, prospective mathematics teachers

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Authors: Yskak Nabi, Onolkan Umankulova, Ilyas Seitov

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Tempus project about “Central Asian network for quality assurance – CANQA” had been implemented in 2009-2012. As the result of the project, two accreditation agencies were established: the agency for quality assurance in the field of education, “EdNet” in Kyrgyzstan, center of progressive technologies in Tajikistan. The importance of the research studies of the project is supported by the idea that the creation of Central-Asian network for quality assurance in education is still relevant, and results of the International forum “Global in regional: Kazakhstan in Bologna process and EU projects,” that was held in Nur-Sultan in October 2020, proves this. At the same time, the previous experience of the partnership between accreditation agencies of Central Asia shows that recommendations elaborated within the CANQA project were not theoretically justified. But there are a number of facts and arguments that prove the practical appliance of these recommendations. In this respect, joint activities of accreditation agencies of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan are representative. For example, independent Kazakh agency of accreditation and rating successfully conducts accreditation of Kyrgyz universities; based on the memorandum about joint activity between the agency for quality assurance in the field of education “EdNet” (Kyrgyzstan) and Astana accreditation agency (Kazakhstan), the last one provides its experts for accreditation procedures in EdNet. Exchange of experience among the agencies shows an effective approach towards adaptation of European standards to the reality of education systems of Central Asia with consideration of not only a legal framework but also from the point of European practices view. Therefore, the relevance of the research is identified as there is a practical partnership between accreditation agencies of Central Asian countries, but the absence of theoretical justification of integrational processes in the accreditation field. As a result, the following hypothesis was put forward: “if to develop theoretical aspects for harmonization of accreditation standards, then integrational processes would be improved since the implementation of Bologna process principles would be supported with wider possibilities, and particularly, students and academic mobility would be improved.” Indeed, for example, in Kazakhstan, the total share of foreign students was 5,04% in 2020, and most of them are coming from Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, and if integrational processes will be improved, then this share can increase.

Keywords: accreditation standards in education, Central Asian countries, pedagogical theory, model

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Authors: Warnakulasuriya Arachichige Malisha Ann Rosary Fernando, Udalamatta Gamage Omila Chalanka Jinadasa, Bihini Pabasara Amandi Amarasinghe, Manul Thisuraka Mandalawatta, Uthpala Samarakoon, Manori Gamage

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The surge in sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) has become a critical public health crisis demanding urgent attention and action. Like many other nations, Sri Lanka is grappling with a significant increase in STDs due to a lack of education and awareness regarding their dangers. Presently, the available applications for tracking and managing STDs cover only a limited number of easily detectable infections, resulting in a significant gap in effectively controlling their spread. To address this gap and combat the rising STD rates, it is essential to leverage technology and data. Employing technology to enhance the tracking and management of STDs is vital to prevent their further propagation and to enable early intervention and treatment. This requires adopting a comprehensive approach that involves raising public awareness about the perils of STDs, improving access to affordable healthcare services for early detection and treatment, and utilizing advanced technology and data analysis. The proposed mobile application aims to cater to a broad range of users, including STD patients, recovered individuals, and those unaware of their STD status. By harnessing cutting-edge technologies like image detection, symptom-based identification, prevention methods, doctor and clinic recommendations, and virtual counselor chat, the application offers a holistic approach to STD management. In conclusion, the escalating STD rates in Sri Lanka and across the globe require immediate action. The integration of technology-driven solutions, along with comprehensive education and healthcare accessibility, is the key to curbing the spread of STDs and promoting better overall public health.

Keywords: STD, machine learning, NLP, artificial intelligence

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Authors: Rasha Ali Dheyab

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In today's increasingly interconnected and technologically-driven world, communication has evolved beyond traditional verbal exchanges. This paper delves into the fascinating realm of multimodal communication, a dynamic field at the intersection of linguistics, gesture studies, and technology. The study of how humans convey meaning through a combination of spoken language, gestures, facial expressions, and digital platforms has gained prominence as our modes of interaction continue to diversify. This exploration begins by examining the foundational theories in linguistics and gesture studies, tracing their historical development and mutual influences. It further investigates the role of nonverbal cues, such as gestures and facial expressions, in augmenting and sometimes even altering the meanings conveyed by spoken language. Additionally, the paper delves into the modern technological landscape, where emojis, GIFs, and other digital symbols have emerged as new linguistic tools, reshaping the ways in which we communicate and express emotions. The interaction between traditional and digital modes of communication is a central focus of this study. The paper investigates how technology has not only introduced new modes of expression but has also influenced the adaptation of existing linguistic and gestural patterns in online discourse. The emergence of virtual reality and augmented reality environments introduces yet another layer of complexity to multimodal communication, offering new avenues for studying how humans navigate and negotiate meaning in immersive digital spaces. Through a combination of literature review, case studies, and theoretical analysis, this paper seeks to shed light on the intricate interplay between language, gesture, and technology in the realm of multimodal communication. By understanding how these diverse modes of expression intersect and interact, we gain valuable insights into the ever-evolving nature of human communication and its implications for fields ranging from linguistics and psychology to human-computer interaction and digital anthropology.

Keywords: multimodal communication, linguistics ., gesture studies., emojis., verbal communication., digital

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Authors: Esmeralda Chávez Vargas, M. de la L. Olvera, A. Maldonado

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The doping it is believed as follows, at high concentration fluorine in ZnO: F films is incorporated to the lattice by substitution of O-2 ions by F-1 ions; at middle fluorine concentrations, F ions may form interstitials, whereas for low concentrations it is increased the carriers and mobility could be explained by the surface passivation effect of fluorine. ZnO:F thin films were deposited on sodocalcic glass substratesat 425 °C , 450°C, 475 during 8, 12, 15 min from a 0.2 M solution. Doping concentration in the starting solutions was varied, namely, [F]/[F+Zn] = 0, 5, 15, 30, 45, 60, and 90 at. %; solvent composition was varied as well, 100:100; 50:50; 100:50(acetic acid: water: methanol ratios, in volume). In this work it is reported the characterization results of fluorine doped zinc oxide (ZnO:F) thin films deposited by the ultrasonic spray pyrolysis technique, using zinc acetate and ammonium fluorine as Zn an F precursors, respectively. The effect of varying the fluorine concentration in the starting solutions, the solvent composition, and the ageing time of the starting solutions, on the electrical resistivity, optical transmittance, structure and surface morphology was analyzed. In order to have a quantitative evaluation of the ZnO:F thin films for its application as transparent electrodes, the Figure of Merit was estimated from the Haacke´s formula. After a thoroughly study, it can be found that optimal conditions for the deposition of transparent and conductive ZnO:F thin films on sodocalcic substrates, were as follows; substrate temperature: solution molar concentration 0.2, doping concentration in the starting solution of [F]/[Zn]= 60 at. %, (water content)/(acetic acid) in starting solution: [H2O/ CH3OH]= 50:50, substrate temperature: 450 °C. The effects of aging of the starting solution has also been analyzed thoroughly and it has been found a dramatic effect on the electric resistivity of the material, aged by 40 days, show an electrical resitivity as low as 120 Ω/□, with a transmittance around 80% in the visible range. X-ray diffraction spectra show a polycrystalline of ZnO (wurtzite structure) where the amount of fluorine doping affects to preferential orientation (002 plane). Therefore, F introduction in lattice is by the substitution of O-2 ions by F-1 ions. The results show that ZnO:F thin films are potentially adequate for application as transparent conductive oxide in thin film solar cells.

Keywords: TCOs, transparent electrodes, ultrasonic spray pyrolysis, zinc oxide, ZnO:F

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Authors: Laura Simmer, Maria Kalt, Oliver Schauer

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Freight transport is growing fast, but many vehicles are empty or just partially loaded. The vision and concepts of the Physical Internet (PI) proposes to eliminate these inefficiencies. Aiming for a radical sustainability improvement, the PI – inspired by the Digital Internet – is a hyperconnected global logistic system, enabling seamless asset sharing and flow consolidation. The implementation of a PI in its full expression will be a huge challenge: the industry needs innovation and implementation support including change management approaches, awareness creation and good practices diffusion, legislative actions to remove antitrust and international commerce barriers, standardization and public incentives policies. In order to take a step closer to this future the project ‘Atropine - Fast Track to the Physical Internet’ funded under the Strategic Economic and Research Program ‘Innovative Upper Austria 2020’ was set up. The two-year research project unites several research partners in this field, but also industrial partners and logistics service providers. With Atropine, the consortium wants to actively shape the mobility landscape in Upper Austria and make an innovative contribution to an energy-efficient, environmentally sound and sustainable development in the transport area. This paper should, on the one hand, clarify the questions what the project Atropine is about and, on the other hand, how a proof of concept will be reached. Awareness building plays an important role in the project as the PI requires a reorganization of the supply chain and the design of completely new forms of inter-company co-operation. New business models have to be developed and should be verified by simulation. After the simulation process one of these business models will be chosen and tested in real life with the partner companies. The developed results - simulation model and demonstrator - are used to determine how the concept of the PI can be applied in Upper Austria. Atropine shall pave the way for a full-scale development of the PI vision in the next few decades and provide the basis for pushing the industry toward a new level of co-operation with more shared resources and increased standardization.

Keywords: Atropine, inter-company co-operation, Physical Internet, shared resources, sustainable logistics

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Authors: Yaghoubi N., Moore Z., Van Der Veen S. M., Pidcoe P. E., Thomas J. S., Dexheimer B.

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Optoelectronic 3D motion capture systems, such as the Vicon kinematic system, are widely utilized in biomedical research to track joint motion. These systems are considered powerful and accurate measurement tools with <2 mm average error. However, these systems are costly and may be difficult to implement and utilize in a clinical setting. 3D virtual reality (VR) is gaining popularity as an affordable and accessible tool to investigate motor control and perception in a controlled, immersive environment. The HTC Vive VR system includes puck-style trackers that seamlessly integrate into its VR environments. These affordable, wireless, lightweight trackers may be more feasible for clinical kinematic data collection. However, the accuracy of HTC Vive Trackers (3.0), when compared to optoelectronic 3D motion capture systems, remains unclear. In this preliminary study, we compared the HTC Vive Tracker system to a Vicon kinematic system in a simulated lumbar flexion task. A 6-DOF robot arm (SCORBOT ER VII, Eshed Robotec/RoboGroup, Rosh Ha’Ayin, Israel) completed various reaching movements to mimic increasing levels of hip flexion (15°, 30°, 45°). Light reflective markers, along with one HTC Vive Tracker (3.0), were placed on the rigid segment separating the elbow and shoulder of the robot. We compared position measures simultaneously collected from both systems. Our preliminary analysis shows no significant differences between the Vicon motion capture system and the HTC Vive tracker in the Z axis, regardless of hip flexion. In the X axis, we found no significant differences between the two systems at 15 degrees of hip flexion but minimal differences at 30 and 45 degrees, ranging from .047 cm ± .02 SE (p = .03) at 30 degrees hip flexion to .194 cm ± .024 SE (p < .0001) at 45 degrees of hip flexion. In the Y axis, we found a minimal difference for 15 degrees of hip flexion only (.743 cm ± .275 SE; p = .007). This preliminary analysis shows that the HTC Vive Tracker may be an appropriate, affordable option for gross motor motion capture when the Vicon system is not available, such as in clinical settings. Further research is needed to compare these two motion capture systems in different body poses and for different body segments.

Keywords: lumbar, vivetracker, viconsystem, 3dmotion, ROM

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Authors: Oris Tom-Lawyer, Michael Thomas

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This paper seeks to analyse the hegemony of the English language in Western Africa through the lens of educational policies and the socio-economic functions of the language. It is based on the premise that there is a positive link between the English language and development contexts. The study aims to fill a gap in the research literature by examining the usefulness of hegemony as a concept to explain the role of English language in the region, thus countering the negative connotations that often accompany it. The study identified four main research questions: i. What are the socio-economic functions of English in Francophone/lusophone countries? ii. What factors promote the hegemony of English in anglophone countries? iii. To what extent is the hegemony of English in West Africa? iv. What are the implications of the non-hegemony of English in Western Africa? Based on a meta-analysis of the research literature between 2003 and 2018, the findings of the study revealed that in francophone/lusophone countries, English functions in the following socio-economic domains; they are peace keeping missions, regional organisations, commercial and industrial sectors, as an unofficial international language and as a foreign language. The factors that promote linguistic hegemony of English in anglophone countries are English as an official language, a medium of instruction, lingua franca, cultural language, language of politics, language of commerce, channel of development and English for media and entertainment. In addition, the extent of the hegemony of English in West Africa can be viewed from the factors that contribute to the non-hegemony of English in the region; they are French language, Portuguese language, the French culture, neo-colonialism, level of poverty, and economic ties of French to its former colonies. Finally, the implications of the non-hegemony of English language in West Africa are industrial backwardness, poverty rate, lack of social mobility, drop out of school rate, growing interest in English, access to limited internet information and lack of extensive career opportunities. The paper concludes that the hegemony of English has resulted in the development of anglophone countries in Western Africa, while in the francophone/lusophone regions of the continent, industrial backwardness and low literacy rates have been consequences of English language marginalisation. In conclusion, the paper makes several recommendations, including the need for the early introduction of English into French curricula as part of a potential solution.

Keywords: developmental tool, English language, linguistic hegemony, West Africa

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Authors: Francesca Spagnoli, Shenja van der Graaf, Pieter Ballon

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Humans do not behave rationally. We are emotional, easily influenced by others, as well as by our context. The study of human behaviour became a supreme endeavour within many academic disciplines, including economics, sociology, and clinical and social psychology. Understanding what motivates humans and triggers them to perform certain activities, and what it takes to change their behaviour, is central both for researchers and companies, as well as policy makers to implement efficient public policies. While numerous theoretical approaches for diverse domains such as health, retail, environment have been developed, the methodological models guiding the evaluation of such research have reached for a long time their limits. Within this context, digitisation, the Information and communication technologies (ICT) and wearable, the Internet of Things (IoT) connecting networks of devices, and new possibilities to collect and analyse massive amounts of data made it possible to study behaviour from a realistic perspective, as never before. Digital technologies make it possible to (1) capture data in real-life settings, (2) regain control over data by capturing the context of behaviour, and (3) analyse huge set of information through continuous measurement. Within this complex context, this paper describes a new framework for initiating behavioural change, capitalising on the digital developments in applied research projects and applicable both to academia, enterprises and policy makers. By applying this model, behavioural research can be conducted to address the issues of different domains, such as mobility, environment, health or media. The Modular Behavioural Analysis Approach (MBAA) is here described and firstly validated through a concrete use case within the domain of health. The results gathered have proven that disclosing information about health in connection with the use of digital apps for health, can be a leverage for changing behaviour, but it is only a first component requiring further follow-up actions. To this end, a clear definition of different 'behavioural profiles', towards which addressing several typologies of interventions, it is essential to effectively enable behavioural change. In the refined version of the MBAA a strong focus will rely on defining a methodology for shaping 'behavioural profiles' and related interventions, as well as the evaluation of side-effects on the creation of new business models and sustainability plans.

Keywords: behavioural change, framework, health, nudging, sustainability

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Authors: Catherine Mary Abou-Zaid

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This quantitative study discusses the concerns with the self-directed learning (SDL) skills of the undergraduate nursing students in a medical university in Bahrain. The nursing undergraduate student SDL study was conducted taking all 4 years and compiling data collected from the students themselves by survey questionnaire. The aim of the study is to understand and change the attitudes of self-directed learning among the undergraduate students. The SDL of the undergraduate student nurses has been noticed to be lacking and motivation to actually perform without supervision while out-with classrooms are very low. Their use of the resources available on the virtual learning environment and also within the university is not as good as it should be for a university student at this level. They do not use them to their own advantage. They are not prepared for the transition from high school to an academic environment such as a university or college. For some students it is the first time in their academic lives that they have faced sharing a classroom with the opposite sex. For some this is a major issue and we as academics need to be aware of all issues that they come to higher education with. Design Methodology: The design methodology that was chosen was a quantitative design using convenience sampling of the students who would be asked to complete survey questionnaire. This sampling method was chosen because of the time constraint. This was completed by the undergraduate students themselves while in class. The questionnaire was analyzed by the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS), the results interpreted by the researcher and the findings published in the paper. The analyzed data will also be reported on and from this information we as educators will be able to see the student’s weaknesses regarding self-directed learning. The aims and objectives of the research will be used as recommendations for the improvement of resources for the students to improve their SDL skills. Conclusion: The results will be able to give the educators an insight to how we can change the self-directed learning techniques of the students and enable them to embrace the skills and to focus more on being self-directed in their studies rather than having to be put on to a SDL pathway from the educators themselves. This evidence will come from the analysis of the statistical data. It may even change the way in which the students are selected for the nursing programme. These recommendations will be reported to the head of school and also to the nursing faculty.

Keywords: self-directed learning, undergraduate students, transition, statistical package for social sciences (SPSS), higher education

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Authors: Scott Hollier, Ruchi Permvattana

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The purpose of this abstract is to share the findings of a recently completed disability-related Internet of Things (IoT) project undertaken at Curtin University in Australia. The project focused on identifying how IoT could support people with disabilities with their educational outcomes. To achieve this, the research consisted of an analysis of current literature and interviews conducted with students with vision, hearing, mobility and print disabilities. While the research acknowledged the ability to collect data with IoT is now a fairly common occurrence, its benefits and applicability still need to be grounded back into real-world applications. Furthermore, it is important to consider if there are sections of our society that may benefit from these developments and if those benefits are being fully realised in a rush by large companies to achieve IoT dominance for their particular product or digital ecosystem. In this context, it is important to consider a group which, to our knowledge, has had little specific mainstream focus in the IoT area –people with disabilities. For people with disabilities, the ability for every device to interact with us and with each other has the potential to yield significant benefits. In terms of engagement, the arrival of smart appliances is already offering benefits such as the ability for a person in a wheelchair to give verbal commands to an IoT-enabled washing machine if the buttons are out of reach, or for a blind person to receive a notification on a smartphone when dinner has finished cooking in an IoT-enabled microwave. With clear benefits of IoT being identified for people with disabilities, it is important to also identify what implications there are for education. With higher education being a critical pathway for many people with disabilities in finding employment, the question as to whether such technologies can support the educational outcomes of people with disabilities was what ultimately led to this research project. This research will discuss several significant findings that have emerged from the research in relation to how consumer-based IoT can be used in the classroom to support the learning needs of students with disabilities, how industrial-based IoT sensors and actuators can be used to monitor and improve the real-time learning outcomes for the delivery of lectures and student engagement, and a proposed method for students to gain more control over their learning environment. The findings shared in this presentation are likely to have significant implications for the use of IoT in the classroom through the implementation of affordable and accessible IoT solutions and will provide guidance as to how policies can be developed as the implications of both benefits and risks continue to be considered by educators.

Keywords: disability, higher education, internet of things, students

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

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

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

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Authors: Chyuan Haur Kao, Hsiang Chen, Yu Sheng Tsai, Chen Hao Hung, Yu Shan Lee

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Dielectric electrolyte-insulator-semiconductor sensing membranes-based biosensors have been intensively investigated because of their simple fabrication, low cost, and fast response. However, to enhance their sensing performance, it is worthwhile to explore alternative materials, distinct processes, and novel treatments. An ISFET can be viewed as a variation of MOSFET with the dielectric oxide layer as the sensing membrane. Then, modulation on the work function of the gate caused by electrolytes in various ion concentrations could be used to calculate the ion concentrations. Recently, owing to the advancement of CMOS technology, some high dielectric materials substrates as the sensing membranes of electrolyte-insulator-semiconductor (EIS) structures. The EIS with a stacked-layer of SiO₂ layer between the sensing membrane and the silicon substrate exhibited a high pH sensitivity and good long-term stability. IGZO is a wide-bandgap (~3.15eV) semiconductor of the III-VI semiconductor group with several preferable properties, including good transparency, high electron mobility, wide band gap, and comparable with CMOS technology. IGZO was sputtered by reactive radio frequency (RF) on a p-type silicon wafer with various gas ratios of Ar:O₂ and was treated with rapid thermal annealing in O₂ ambient. The sensing performance, including sensitivity, hysteresis, and drift rate was measured and XRD, XPS, and AFM analyses were also used to study the material properties of the IGZO membrane. Moreover, IGZO was used as a sensing membrane in dielectric EIS bio-sensor structures. In addition to traditional pH sensing capability, detection for concentrations of Na+, K+, urea, glucose, and creatinine was performed. Moreover, post rapid thermal annealing (RTA) treatment was confirmed to improve the material properties and enhance the multi-analyte sensing capability for various ions or chemicals in solutions. In this study, the IGZO sensing membrane with annealing in O₂ ambient exhibited a higher sensitivity, higher linearity, higher H+ selectivity, lower hysteresis voltage and lower drift rate. Results indicate that the IGZO dielectric sensing membrane on the EIS structure is promising for future bio-medical device applications.

Keywords: dielectric sensing membrane, IGZO, hydrogen ion, plasma, rapid thermal annealing

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Authors: D. M. Rey, V. Delgado, J. Zambrano Nájera

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Increases in urbanization during XX century, has produced changes in natural dynamics of the basins, which has resulted in increases in runoff volumes, peak flows and flow velocities, that in turn increases flood risk. Higher runoff volumes decrease sewerage networks hydraulic capacity and can cause its failure. This in turn generates increasingly recurrent floods causing mobility problems and general economic detriment in the cities. In Latin America, especially Colombia, this is a major problem because urban population at late XX century was more than 70% is in urban areas increasing approximately in 790% in 1940-1990 period. Besides, high slopes product of Andean topography and high precipitation typical of tropical climates increases velocities and volumes even more, causing stopping of cities during storms. Thus, it becomes very important to know hydrological behavior of Andean Urban Watersheds. This research aims to determine the impact of urbanization in high sloped urban watersheds in its hydrology. To this end, it will be used as study area experimental urban watershed named Palogrande-San Luis watershed, located in the city of Manizales, Colombia. Manizales is a city in central western Colombia, located in Colombian Central Mountain Range (part of Los Andes Mountains) with an abrupt topography (average altitude is 2.153 m). The climate in Manizales is quite uniform, but due to its high altitude it presents high precipitations (1.545 mm/year average) with high humidity (83% average). It was applied HEC-HMS Hydrologic model on the watershed. The inputs to the model were derived from Geographic Information Systems (GIS) theme layers of the Instituto de Estudios Ambientales –IDEA of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Manizales (Institute of Environmental Studies) and aerial photography taken for the research in conjunction with available literature and look up tables. Rainfall data from a network of 4 rain gages and historical stream flow data were used to calibrate and validate runoff depth using the hydrologic model. Manual calibration was made, and the simulation results show that the model selected is able to characterize the runoff response of the watershed due to land use for urbanization in high mountain watersheds.

Keywords: Andean watersheds modelling, high mountain urban hydrology, urban planning, hydrologic modelling

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Authors: Rashid Azeem

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Introduction: Eosinophilia, which can be categorized as mild, moderate, and severe form on the basis of increasing eosinophil counts, might be responsible for a wide range of cardiac manifestations, varying from a simple myocarditis to a severe state like endomyocardial fibrosis. Eosinophils are involved in the pathogenesis of a variety of cardiovascular disorder like Loffler endocarditis, eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangitis (EGPH), and hyper eosinophilic (HES). Among them HES carries and incidence rate b/w 48% and 75% and is the main causes of cardiac motility and mobility due to eosinophilia involvement. Aims and objectives: The aim of this study is to determine the frequency of eosinophilia in cardiac patients and to ascertain the evidence of endomyocardial diseases in eosinophilic patients in a cardiology institution Material and Methods: This cross sectional analytical study was conducted in hematology Department of Peshawar institute of Cardiology after approval from hospital ethical and research committee. All 70 patients were subjected to detailed history and clinical examination. Investigation like CBC, Chest X-ray, ECG, Echo, Angiography findings were used to monitor patient’s clinical status. Data is analyzed using SPSS version 25 and MS Excel. Results: Out of 70 patients in our study, a total of 66 patients(94 %) shows evidence of cardiac manifestations. In our study, we have observed a number of abnormal ECG patterns in cardiac patients presenting with eosinophilia, like T wave changes, loss of R wave, sinus bradycardia with LVH strain, and ST wave abnormality. abnormal echocardiographic findings were observed in our patients, like valvular abnormalities (in 45.7%), RWMA abnormalities (in 2.8%), isolated ventricular dysfunction (in 21.4%), and in 10% patients, normal echocardiography. We further noted abnormal coronary angiography findings in cardiac patients with eosinophilia ranging from single vessel to multi vessel occlusions. Conclusions: Eosinophils are involved in the pathogenesis of a variety of cardiovascular disorders which can be detected by various diagnostic means, and the severity of the disease increases with time and with increasing eosinophil count ranging from simple myocarditis to a fatal condition like endomyocardial fibrosis. Thus, increased eosinophilic count as a laboratory parameter in cardiac patients may be a sign of endomyocardial damage which will further help cardiologist to intervene more aggressively then routine approach to a cardiac patient.

Keywords: eosinophilia, endomyocardial fibrosis, cardiac, hypereosinophilic syndrome

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Authors: Anum Javed

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This study identifies the dynamical image of human body that continues its metamorphosis in the virtual field of reality. It calls attention to the ways where humans start co-evolving with other life forms; technology in particular and are striving to establish a realm outside the physical framework of matter. The problem exceeds the area of technological ethics by explicably and explanatorily entering the space of literary texts and criticism. Textual analysis of Geek Love (1989) by Katherine Dunn is adjoined with posthumanist perspectives of Pramod K. Nayar to beget psycho-somatic changes in man’s nature of being. It uncovers the meaning people give to their experiences in this budding social and cultural phenomena of material representation tied up with personal practices and technological innovations. It also observes an ethical, physical and psychological reassessment of man within the context of technological evolutions. The study indicates the elements that have rendered morphological freedom and new materialism in man’s consciousness. Moreover this work is inquisitive of what it means to be a human in this time of accelerating change where surgeries, implants, extensions, cloning and robotics have shaped a new sense of being. It attempts to go beyond individual’s body image and explores how objectifying media and culture have influenced people’s judgement of others on new material grounds. It further argues a decentring of the glorified image of man as an independent entity because of his energetic partnership with intelligent machines and external agents. The history of the future progress of technology is also mentioned. The methodology adopted is posthumanist techno-ethical textual analysis. This work necessitates a negotiating relationship between man and technology in order to achieve harmonic and balanced interconnected existence. The study concludes by recommending a call for an ethical set of codes to be cultivated for the techno-human habituation. Posthumanism ushers a strong need of adopting new ethics within the terminology of neo-materialist humanism.

Keywords: corporeality, dematerialism, human ethos, posthumanism

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Authors: Cindy Davis

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Higher education is changing globally and there is increasing pressure from professional social work accreditation bodies for academic programs to demonstrate how students have successfully met mandatory graduate competencies. As professional accreditation organizations increase their demand for evidence of graduate competencies, strategies to document and recording learning outcomes becomes increasingly challenging for academics and students. Studies in higher education have found support for the pedagogical value of ePortfolios, a flexible personal learning space that is owned by the student and include opportunity for assessment, feedback and reflection as well as a virtual space to store evidence of demonstration of professional competencies and graduate attributes. Examples of institutional uses of ePortfolios include e-administration of a diverse student population, assessment of student learning, and the demonstration of graduate attributes attained and future student career preparation. The current paper presents a case study on the introduction of ePortfolios for social work graduates in Australia as part of an institutional approach to technology-enhanced learning and e-learning. Social work graduates were required to submit an ePortfolio hosted on PebblePad. The PebblePad platform was selected because it places the student at the center of their learning whilst providing powerful tools for staff to structure, guide and assess that learning. The ePortofolio included documentation and evidence of how the student met each graduate competency as set out by the social work accreditation body in Australia (AASW). This digital resource played a key role in the process of external professional accreditation by clearly documenting and evidencing how students met required graduate competencies. In addition, student feedback revealed a positive outcome on how this resource provided them with a consolidation of their learning experiences and assisted them in obtaining employment post-graduation. There were also significant institutional factors that were key to successful implementation such as investment in the digital technology, capacity building amongst academics, and technical support for staff and students.

Keywords: accreditation, social work, teaching, technology

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Authors: Nahela Nowshin, Rafia Sultana, Farzana Misha, Sabina F. Rashid

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Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are currently an area of neglect for males (aged 15-24 years) in Bangladesh. The lack of focus on the male youth population has consequences not only for their own health and wellbeing, but the patriarchal structure of Bangladeshi society and socio-cultural norms mean that the male population’s SRH behavior can severely impact the lives of their female counterparts. A majority of sexual and reproductive health and rights-related research and interventions in the country are female-centric. Although the Government of Bangladesh has taken many initiatives to improve the SRHR of the general population, the male youth segment has not been prioritized in most of these interventions. There is an urgent need for male-youth-focused SRHR interventions in Bangladesh, but due to a lack of evidence-based research on this issue, there exist data gaps on how such interventions could be better designed and implemented. Therefore, to ascertain strategies for better program design and smoother implementation of male-youth-focused sexual and reproductive health and rights interventions, we carried out 25 key informant interviews with experts as well as focal persons involved in more than 20 ongoing and recently-ended SRHR-related interventions of national and international non-government organizations in which male youth were targeted or engaged. The results show that program implementers face several challenges at the field, organizational and policy levels. Some of the most common field challenges include high sensitivity to SRHR topics due to cultural reasons, difficulties in acquiring access to boys and young men due to their high mobility and engagement in labor for commercial purposes, as well as accessing them in hard-to-reach areas due to transportation and communication issues. Common organizational-level challenges include a lack of skilled manpower. Policy-level challenges include the prohibition of SRH service provision to unmarried adolescents and youth and lack of readiness of local governments to implement existing action plans. Some ways in which male-youth-focused SRHR interventions can be made more effective are through sensitization of service providers, awareness-raising at the community level to engage parents, advocacy to increase donor interest, and generating data on SRHR of male youth.

Keywords: Bangladesh, intervention, male, SRHR

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Authors: Rui Fonseca-Pinto, Emanuel Silva, Rui Rijo, Ricardo Martinho, Bruno Carreira

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The sedentary lifestyle is associated to the development of chronic noncommunicable diseases (obesity, hypertension, Diabetes Mellitus Type 2) and the World Health Organization, given the evidence that physical activity is determinant for individual and collective health, defined the Physical Activity Level (PAL) as a vital signal. Strategies for increasing the practice of physical activity in all age groups have emerged from the various social organizations (municipalities, universities, health organizations, companies, social groups) by increasingly developing innovative strategies to promote motivation strategies and conditions to the practice of physical activity. The adaptation of cities to the new paradigms of sustainable mobility has provided the adaptation of urban training circles and mobilized citizens to combat sedentarism. This adaptation has accompanied the technological evolution and makes possible the use of mobile technology to monitor outdoor training programs and also, through the network connection (IoT), use the training data to make personalized recommendations. This work presents a physical activity counseling platform to be used in the physical maintenance circuits of urban centers, the MOVIDA.polis. The platform consists of a back office for the management of circuits and training stations, and for a mobile application for monitoring the user performance during workouts. Using a QRcode, each training station is recognized by the App and based on the individual performance records (effort perception, heart rate variation) artificial intelligence algorithms are used to make a new personalized recommendation. The results presented in this work were obtained during the proof of concept phase, which was carried out in the PolisLeiria training circuit in the city of Leiria (Portugal). It was possible to verify the increase in adherence to the practice of physical activity, as well as to decrease the interval between training days. Moreover, the AI-based recommendation acts as a partner in the training and an additional challenging factor. The platform is ready to be used by other municipalities in order to reduce the levels of sedentarism and approach the weekly goal of 150 minutes of moderate physical activity. Acknowledgments: This work was supported by Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia FCT- Portugal and CENTRO2020 under the scope of MOVIDA project: 02/SAICT/2016 – 23878.

Keywords: physical activity, mHealth, urban training circuits, health promotion

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Authors: Clare Maxwell, Lorna Porcellato, Valerie Fleming, Kate Fleming

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A review of global online forums and social media reveals large numbers of mothers experiencing bottle refusal by their breastfed baby. It is difficult to determine precise numbers due to a lack of data, however, established virtual communities illustrate thousands of posts in relation to the issue. Mothers report various negative consequences of bottle refusal including delaying their return to work, time and financial outlay spent on methods to overcome it and experiencing stress, anxiety, and resentment of breastfeeding. A search of the literature revealed no studies being identified, and due to a lack of epidemiological data, a study investigating mother’s experiences of bottle refusal by their breastfed baby was undertaken. The aim of the study was to investigate UK mothers’ experiences of bottle refusal by their breastfed baby. Data were collected using an online questionnaire collecting quantitative and qualitative data. 841 UK mothers who had experienced or were experiencing bottle refusal by their breastfed baby completed the questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and non-parametric testing. The results showed 61% (516/840) of mothers reported their breastfed baby was still refusing/had never accepted a bottle, with 39% (324/840) reporting their baby had eventually accepted. The most frequently reported reason to introduce a bottle was so partner/family could feed the baby 59% (499/839). 75% (634/841) of mothers intended their baby to feed on a bottle ‘occasionally’. Babies who accepted a bottle were more likely to be older at 1st attempt to introduce one than those babies who refused (Mdn = 12 weeks v 8 weeks, n = 286) (p = <0.001). Length of time taken to acceptance was 9 weeks (Mdn = 9, IQR = 18, R = 103.9, n = 306) with the older the baby was at 1st attempt to introduce a bottle being associated with a shorter length of time to acceptance (p = < 0.002). 60% (500/841) of mothers stated that none of the methods they used had worked. 26% (222/841) of mothers reported bottle refusal had had a negative impact upon their overall breastfeeding experience. 47% (303/604) reported they would have tried to introduce a bottle earlier to prevent refusal. This study provides a unique insight into the scenario of bottle refusal by breastfed babies. It highlights that bottle refusal by breastfed babies is a significant issue, which requires recognition from those communicating breastfeeding information to mothers.

Keywords: bottle feeding, bottle refusal, breastfeeding, infant feeding

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Authors: Erin M. Durke, Monica L. McEntee, Meilu He, Suresh Dhaniyala

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Aerosols are one of the most important and significant surfaces in the atmosphere. They can influence weather, absorption, and reflection of light, and reactivity of atmospheric constituents. A notable feature of aerosol particles is the presence of a surface charge, a characteristic imparted via the aerosolization process. The existence of charge can complicate the interrogation of aerosol particles, so many researchers remove or neutralize aerosol particles before characterization. However, the charge is present in real-world samples, and likely has an effect on the physical and chemical properties of an aerosolized material. In our studies, we aerosolized different materials in an attempt to characterize the charge imparted via the aerosolization process and determine what impact it has on the aerosolized materials’ properties. The metal oxides, TiO₂ and SiO₂, were aerosolized expulsively and then characterized, using several different techniques, in an effort to determine the surface charge imparted upon the particles via the aerosolization process. Particle charge distribution measurements were conducted via the employment of a custom scanning mobility particle sizer. The results of the charge distribution measurements indicated that expulsive generation of 0.2 µm SiO₂ particles produced aerosols with upwards of 30+ charges on the surface of the particle. Determination of the degree of surface charging led to the use of non-traditional techniques to explore the impact of additional surface charge on the overall reactivity of the metal oxides, specifically TiO₂. TiO₂ was aerosolized, again expulsively, onto a gold-coated tungsten mesh, which was then evaluated with transmission infrared spectroscopy in an ultra-high vacuum environment. The TiO₂ aerosols were exposed to O₂, H₂, and CO, respectively. Exposure to O₂ resulted in a decrease in the overall baseline of the aerosol spectrum, suggesting O₂ removed some of the surface charge imparted during aerosolization. Upon exposure to H₂, there was no observable rise in the baseline of the IR spectrum, as is typically seen for TiO₂, due to the population of electrons into the shallow trapped states and subsequent promotion of the electrons into the conduction band. This result suggests that the additional charge imparted via aerosolization fills the trapped states, therefore no rise is seen upon exposure to H₂. Dosing the TiO₂ aerosols with CO showed no adsorption of CO on the surface, even at lower temperatures (~100 K), indicating the additional charge on the aerosol surface prevents the CO molecules from adsorbing to the TiO₂ surface. The results observed during exposure suggest that the additional charge imparted via aerosolization impacts the interaction with each probe gas.

Keywords: aerosols, charge, reactivity, infrared

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Authors: Medha Talpade, Salil Talpade

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The intent of this quantitative project was to compare the values and perceptions of students from a predominantly white college (PWI) to those from a historically black college (HBCU) about culturally relevant teaching and learning practices in the academic realm. The reason for interrelating student culture with teaching practices is to enable a pedagogical response to the low retention rates of African American students and first generation Caucasian students in high schools, colleges, and their low rates of social mobility and educational achievement. Culturally relevant pedagogy, according to related research, is deemed rewarding to students, teachers, the local and national community. Critical race theory (CRT) is the main framework used in this project to explain the ubiquity of a culturally relevant pedagogy. The purpose of this quantitative study was to test the critical race theory that relates the presence of the factors associated with culturally relevant teaching strategies with perceived relevance. The culturally relevant teaching strategies were identified based on the recommendations and findings of past research. Participants in this study included approximately 145 students from a HBCU and 55 students from the PWI. A survey consisting of 37 items related to culturally relevant pedagogy was administered. The themes used to construct the items were: Use of culturally-specific examples in class whenever possible; use of culturally-specific presentational models, use of relational reinforcers, and active engagement. All the items had a likert-type response scale. Participants reported their degree of agreement (5-point scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree) and importance (3-point scale ranging from not at all important to very important) with each survey item. A new variable, Relevance was formed based on the multiplicative function of importance and presence of a teaching and learning strategy. A set of six demographic questions were included in the survey. A consent form based on NIH and APA ethical standards was distributed prior to survey administration to the volunteers. Results of a Factor Analyses on the data from the PWI and the HBCU, and a ANOVA indicated significant differences on ‘Relevance’ related to specific themes. Results of this study are expected to inform educational practices and improve teaching and learning outcomes.

Keywords: culturally relevant pedagogy, college students, cross-cultural, applied psychology

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Authors: Swati Swati, Yuhang Chen, Robert Reuben

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Coronary stents are devices resembling the shape of a tube which are placed in coronary arteries, to keep the arteries open in the treatment of coronary arterial diseases. Coronary stents are routinely deployed to clear atheromatous plaque. The stent essentially applies an internal pressure to the artery because its structure is cylindrically symmetrical and this may introduce some abnormalities in final arterial shape. The goal of the project is to develop segmented circumferential arterial compliance measuring devices which can be deployed (eventually) in vivo. The segmentation of the device will allow the mechanical asymmetry of any stenosis to be assessed. The purpose will be to assess the quality of arterial tissue for applications in tailored stents and in the assessment of aortic aneurism. Arterial distensibility measurement is of utmost importance to diagnose cardiovascular diseases and for prediction of future cardiac events or coronary artery diseases. In order to arrive at some generic outcomes, a preliminary experimental set-up has been devised to establish the measurement principles for the device at macro-scale. The measurement methodology consists of a strain gauge system monitored by LABVIEW software in a real-time fashion. This virtual instrument employs a balloon within a gelatine model contained in a split cylinder with strain gauges fixed on it. The instrument allows automated measurement of the effect of air-pressure on gelatine and measurement of strain with respect to time and pressure during inflation. Compliance simple creep model has been applied to the results for the purpose of extracting some measures of arterial compliance. The results obtained from the experiments have been used to study the effect of air pressure on strain at varying time intervals. The results clearly demonstrate that with decrease in arterial volume and increase in arterial pressure, arterial strain increases thereby decreasing the arterial compliance. The measurement system could lead to development of portable, inexpensive and small equipment and could prove to be an efficient automated compliance measurement device.

Keywords: arterial compliance, atheromatous plaque, mechanical symmetry, strain measurement

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Authors: Aikaterini Tavoulari, Michael Proulx, Karin Petrini

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Objective: This study aims to explore the unique challenges faced by young individuals with vision impairment (VI) during key life transitions, utilizing a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach to identify limitations and positive aspects of existing support systems, with a focus on accessibility and diversity. Design: The study employs a qualitative CBPR design, engaging young participants with VI through online and in-person working groups over six months, prioritizing their active involvement and diverse perspectives. Methods: Twenty-one young individuals with VI from across the UK and with different VI conditions were recruited to participate in the study via a climbing and virtual reality event and stakeholders’ support. Data collection methods included open discussions, forum exchanges, and qualitative questionnaires. The data were analyzed with NVivo using inductive thematic analysis to identify key themes and patterns related to the challenges and experiences of life transitions for this diverse population. Results: The analysis revealed barriers to accessibility, such as assumptions about what a person with VI can do, inaccessibility to material, noisy environments, and insufficient training with assistive technologies. Enablers included guidance from diverse professionals and peers, multisensory approaches (beyond tactile), and peer collaborations. This study underscores the need for developing accessible and tailored strategies together with these young people to address the specific needs of this diverse population during critical life transitions (e.g., to independent living, employment and higher education). Conclusion: Engaging and co-designing effective approaches and tools with young people with VI is key to tackling the specific accessibility barriers they encounter. These approaches should be targeted at different transitional periods of their life journey, promoting diversity and inclusion.

Keywords: vision impairement, life transitions, qualitative research, community-based participatory design, accessibility

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