Search results for: risk factor prevention paradigm

Authors: A. R. Shakura, A. B. Elistina, M. S. Aini, S. Norhasmah, A. Fakhru’l-Razi

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Tsunami 2004 was an unforeseeable event that caught Malaysia of guard resulting with 68 losses of lives and with an estimated economic loss of about 55.15billion US dollar. Scientists predict that if the earthquake epicentre originates from the Andaman-Nicobar region, the coastal population of Penang will have about 30 minutes to evacuate to safety. Thus, a study was conducted to enhance resiliency of Penang community as the area was the worst affected region during 2004 tsunami disaster. This paper is intended to examine the factors that influence intention to prepare for future tsunami among the coastal residence in Penang. The differences in the level of intention to prepare were also examined between those who experience and did not experience the 2004 tsunami. This study utilized a cross-sectional research design using a survey method. A total of 503 respondents were chosen systematically and data gathered were analysed using SPSS. Both genders, male and female were equally represented with a mean age of 44 years. Data indicated that the level of intention to prepare for tsunami disaster was moderate (M=3.72) with no significant difference in intention to prepare between those who had experienced or had not experienced the 2004 tsunami. Subsequently, results from a multiple regression analysis found that sense of community to be the most influential factor followed by subjective norm, trust, positive outcome expectancy and risk perception, explaining the 57% variance in intention to prepare. These factors reflect the influence of the collectivistic culture in Malaysia whereby households plus communities have a central role in encouraging each other. Therefore, the findings highlights the potential of adopting a community based disaster risk management as recommended by the United Nations International Strategy Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) which encompasses the cooperation between the local community and relevant stakeholders in preparing for future tsunami disaster.

Keywords: disaster management, experience, intention to prepare, tsunami

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Authors: Kazi Ashief Mahmood

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Geographically Bangladesh is located in a natural hazard prone area. Compared to the rest of the areas, the coastal sub-districts are more vulnerable to climate variability and change. However, the hydro-geophysical reality of the sub-districts predominantly determines their contexts of vulnerability and its nature differs accordingly. Intriguingly enough, the poorest of the areas appear to be the most cornered among the different vulnerable sectors. Among of these deprived segments; however, the women, the persons with disability and the minorities are generally more vulnerable and they face a high risk of marginalized. The most threatening hydro-geophysical climate vulnerability have been created by prolonged dry season as observed at Koyra Upazilla in Khulna districts and Shyamnagar in Satkhira districts. The prolonged dry season creates severe surface salinity by which farmers cannot produce or use their to cultivate. The absence of land-based production and employment in the area has led to severe food insecurity. As a result, farmers tend to change their livelihood option and many of them are forced to migrate to the other areas of the country in search of livelihood. Besides salinity intrusion, water logging, drought and different climate change induced hazards are endangering safe drinking water sources and putting small-holders out of agriculture-based livelihoods in the Koyra and Shyamnagar Upazilla. A sizeable fraction of small-holders are still trying to hold on to their small scale shrimp production, despite being under pressure to sell off their cultivating lands to their influential shrimp merchants. While their desperate effort to take advantage of the increasing salinity is somewhat successful, their families still face a greater risk of health hazards owing to the lack of safe drinking water. Unless the issues of salinity in drinking water cannot be redressed, the state of the affected people will be in great jeopardy. Most of the inhabitants of oKyra and Shyamnagar Upazilla are living under the poverty line. Thus, poverty is a major factor that intensifies the vulnerability caused by hydro-geophysical climatic conditions. The government and different NGOs are trying to improve the present scenario by implementing different disaster risk reduction projects along with poverty reduction for community empowerment.

Keywords: assessment, climate change, climate induced hazards, coastal zone

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Authors: Karla Hrbackova, Irena Balaban Cakirpaloglu

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This paper is a report on self-regulation in socially rejected pupils. A certain form of social rejection can be found in almost every class within the school environment. Research shows that due to social rejection mechanisms supporting the individual´s effort of reintegration into the group are not triggered. Paradoxically the opposite tendency arises, i.e., an increase in selfish and defeating behaviour. The link between peer exposure and self-regulation is likely to vary as a function of a type and quality of peer interaction (e.g., rejection or acceptance). The paper aims to clarify the level of self-regulation related to interpersonal cognitive problem-solving within the process of social rejection in a school class. The research was done on a sample of 1,133 upper-primary school pupils using the Means-Ends Problem Solving technique (MEPS) and peer sociometric nomination. The results showed that the level of self-regulated skills is related to the status of social rejection. Socially rejected pupils achieve lower levels of self-regulation than other classmates. We found deficiency in the regulation of behaviour, emotions and the regulation of will in the peer rejected pupils with the exception of cognitive regulation in which no differences were detected between socially rejected pupils and other classmates. The results have implications for early prevention and intervention efforts to foster adaptive self-regulation and reduce the risk of later social rejection.

Keywords: interpersonal cognitive problem-solving, self-regulation, socially rejected pupils, upper-primary school pupils

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Authors: Frederic Jumelle, Kelvin So, Didan Deng

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A method and system for neuropsychological performance test, comprising a mobile terminal, used to interact with a cloud server which stores user information and is logged into by the user through the terminal device; the user information is directly accessed through the terminal device and is processed by artificial neural network, and the user information comprises user facial emotions information, performance test answers information and user chronometrics. This assessment is used to evaluate the cognitive performance and emotional response of the subject to a series of dichotomous questions describing various situations of daily life and challenging the users' knowledge, values, ethics, and principles. In industrial applications, the timing of this assessment will depend on the users' need to obtain a service from a provider, such as opening a bank account, getting a mortgage or an insurance policy, authenticating clearance at work, or securing online payments.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, neurofinance, neuropsychology, risk management

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Authors: Godwin Chigozie Okpara

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This paper using standard GARCH, EGARCH, and TARCH models on day of the week return series (of 246 days) from the Nigerian Stock market estimated the model variants’ VaR. An asymmetric return distribution and fat-tail phenomenon in financial time series were considered by estimating the models with normal, student t and generalized error distributions. The analysis based on Akaike Information Criterion suggests that the EGARCH model with student t innovation distribution can furnish more accurate estimate of VaR. In the light of this, we apply the likelihood ratio tests of proportional failure rates to VaR derived from EGARCH model in order to determine the short and long positions VaR performances. The result shows that as alpha ranges from 0.05 to 0.005 for short positions, the failure rate significantly exceeds the prescribed quintiles while it however shows no significant difference between the failure rate and the prescribed quantiles for long positions. This suggests that investors and portfolio managers in the Nigeria stock market have long trading position or can buy assets with concern on when the asset prices will fall. Precisely, the VaR estimates for the long position range from -4.7% for 95 percent confidence level to -10.3% for 99.5 percent confidence level.

Keywords: downside risk, value-at-risk, failure rate, kupiec LR tests, GARCH models

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Authors: Malik Abdul Jabbar Zen, Wiwik Misaco Yuniarti, Azisya Amalia Karimasari, Novita Priandini

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Zoonos is as an infectiontransmitted froma nimals to human sand vice versa currently having increased in the last 20 years. The experts/scientists predict that zoonosis will be a threat to the community in the future since it leads on 70% emerging infectious diseases (EID) and the high mortality of 50%-90%. The zoonosis’ spread from animal to human is caused by contaminated food known as foodborne disease. One World One Health, as the conceptual prevention toward zoonosis, requires the crossed disciplines cooperation to accelerate and streamlinethe handling ofanimal-based disease. E-Vet Smart Rapid System is an integrated innovation in the veterinary expertise application is able to facilitate the prevention, treatment, and educationagainst pandemic diseases and zoonosis. This system is constructed by Decision Support System (DSS) method provides a database of knowledge that is expected to facilitate the identification of disease rapidly, precisely, and accurately as well as to identify the deduction. The testingis conducted through a black box test case and questionnaire (N=30) by validity and reliability approach. Based on the black box test case reveals that E-Vet Rapid System is able to deliver the results in accordance with system design, and questionnaire shows that this system is valid (r > 0.361) and has a reliability (α > 0.3610).

Keywords: diagnosis, disease, expert systems, livestock, zoonosis

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Authors: Pongsawee Supanonth

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This study aims to investigate the consumer behavior and marketing mixed factor affect on consumer decision making for independent movies presented in Lido cinema. The research method will use quantitative research, data was collected by questionnaires distributed to the audience in the Lido cinema for 400 sample by accidental sampling technique. Data was analyzed by descriptive statistic including percentage, mean, standard deviation and inferential statistic including independent t-test for hypothesis testing. The results showed that marketing mixed factors affecting consumer decision-making for Independent movies presented in Lido cinema by gender as different as less than the 0.05 significance level, it was found that the kind of movie ,quality of theater ,price of ticket, facility of watching movies, staff services and promotion of Lido cinema respectively had a vital influence on their attention and response which makes the advertisement more attractive is in harmony with the research hypotheses also.

Keywords: consumer behavior, marketing mixed factor, resonance, consumer decision making, Lido cinema

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Authors: Mostafa Kazemi, Zahra N. Farkhani

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This paper proposes an integrated Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) model for measuring the technical efficiency of decision making units. The model is validated using a set of 69% sales representatives’ dairy products. The analysis is done in two stages, in the first stage, VIF technique is used to distinguish independent effective factors of resellers, and in the second stage we used DEA for measuring efficiency for both constant and variable return to scales status. Further DEA is used to examine the utilization of environmental factors on efficiency. Results of this paper indicated an average managerial efficiency of 83% in the whole sales representatives’ dairy products. In addition, technical and scale efficiency were counted 96% and 80% respectively. 38% of sales representative have the technical efficiency of 100% and 72% of the sales representative in terms of managerial efficiency are quite efficient.High levels of relative efficiency indicate a good condition for sales representative efficiency.

Keywords: data envelopment analysis (DEA), relative efficiency, sales representatives’ dairy products, variance inflation factor (VIF)

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Authors: Muhammad Saleem

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Background: Inattentive food choices and engagement in excessive physical activities by male athletes can potentially lead to adverse health consequences. Objective: The aim was to ascertain the occurrence of risk factors associated with the Male Athlete Triad among young elite athletes in Pakistan. Methodology: In 2018, a cross-sectional study based on questionnaires was conducted at the Pakistan Sports Board. The study aimed to explore the risk factors related to the Male Athlete Triad in young elite athletes who were part of national training camps in major metropolitan areas. The study included proficient male elite athletes aged 18 to 25 years, capable of understanding the English questionnaire. The athletes completed a survey encompassing aspects like demographic information, educational background, Body Mass Index (BMI), sports involvement, and hours of participation. Additionally, they filled out the Eating Attitude Test-26 (EAT-26) and questionnaires assessing risks of amenorrhea and low bone mineral density. The prevalence of risk factors for each of the three components was individually evaluated. The collected data underwent analysis using SPSS-20, with descriptive statistics being applied. Results: The study comprised a sample of 90 elite athletes (mean age: 23.57 ± 2.37 years, mean BMI: 21.97 ± 1.90) engaged in various sports. The EAT-26 results indicated that 50% of athletes were at risk of developing an eating disorder. Moreover, 83.3% exhibited disordered eating behaviors that necessitated referral. Risks for amenorrhea were observed in 15% of the participants, and regarding low bone mineral density, notable risks were absent except for the consumption of caffeinated beverages, which was noted in 51.7% of participants. Conclusion: The study identified a significant prevalence of disordered eating risk among male elite athletes in Pakistan. However, the risks associated with amenorrhea and low bone mineral density were not a major concern in this particular group.

Keywords: Pakistan, osteoporosis, female athlete triad, bone mineral density, athlete, amenorrhea, eating disorders

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Authors: Waode Nurmayani, Nikmatul Riswanda

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Broilers are chickens which are kept with the most efficient time and hoped get a good body weight. All things are done, for example with the improvement of feed and use antibiotics. Feed cost is the most cost to be spent. Nearly 80% of the cost is spent just for buy feed. Earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) is a good choice to reduce the cost of feed protein source. The Earthworm has a high crude protein content of about 48.5%-61.9%, rich with proline amino acid about 15% of the 62 amino acids. Not only about protein, this earthworm also has a role in disease prevention. Prevention of disease in livestock usual with use feed supplement. Earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) is one of the natural materials used as feed. In addition, several types of earthworms that have been known to contain active substances about antibacterial pathogens namely Lumbricus rubellus. The earthworm could be used as an antibiotic because it contain the antibody of Lumbricine active substance. So that, this animal feed from Lumbricus rubellus could improve the performance of broilers. Bioactive of anti-bacterial is called Lumbricine able to inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria in the intestinal wall so that the population of pathogenic bacteria is reduced. The method of write in this scientific writing is divided into 3 techniques, namely data completion, data analysis, and thinking pan from various literature about earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) as broiler feed. It is expected that innovation of feed material of earthworm (Lumbricus rubellus) could reduce the cost of protein feed and the use of chemical antibiotics.

Keywords: earthworm, broiler, protein, antibiotic

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Authors: Cheng-Cao Sun, Shu-Jun Li, De-Jia Li

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Long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) X inactivate-specific transcript (XIST) has been verified as an oncogenic gene in several human malignant tumors, and its dysregulation was closed associated with tumor initiation, development and progression. Nevertheless, whether the aberrant expression of XIST in human nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is corrected with malignancy, metastasis or prognosis has not been elaborated. Here, we discovered that XIST was up-regulated in NPC tissues and higher expression of XIST contributed to a markedly poorer survival time. In addition, multivariate analysis demonstrated XIST was an independent risk factor for prognosis. XIST over-expression enhanced, while XIST silencing hampered the cell growth in NPC. Additionally, mechanistic analysis revealed that XIST up-regulated the expression of miR-34a-5p targeted gene E2F3 through acting as a competitive ‘sponge’ of miR-34a-5p. Taking all into account, we concluded that XIST functioned as an oncogene in NPC through up-regulating E2F3 in part through ‘spongeing’ miR-34a-5p.

Keywords: X inactivate-specific transcript; hsa-miRNA-34a-5p, miR-34a-5p; E2F3, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, tumorigenesis

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Authors: S. M. Anisuzzaman, Sariah Abang, Awang Bono, D. Krishnaiah, N. M. Ismail, G. B. Sandrison

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Wax and asphaltene are high molecular weighted compounds that contribute to the stability of crude oil at a dispersed state. Transportation of crude oil along pipelines from the oil rig to the refineries causes fluctuation of temperature which will lead to the coagulation of wax and flocculation of asphaltenes. This paper focuses on the prevention of wax and asphaltene precipitate deposition on the inner surface of the pipelines by using a wax inhibitor and an asphaltene dispersant. The novelty of this prevention method is the combination of three substances; a wax inhibitor dissolved in a wax inhibitor solvent and an asphaltene solvent, namely, ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) copolymer dissolved in methylcyclohexane (MCH) and toluene (TOL) to inhibit the precipitation and deposition of wax and asphaltene. The objective of this paper was to optimize the percentage composition of each component in this inhibitor which can maximize the viscosity reduction of crude oil. The optimization was divided into two stages which are the laboratory experimental stage in which the viscosity of crude oil samples containing inhibitor of different component compositions is tested at decreasing temperatures and the data optimization stage using response surface methodology (RSM) to design an optimizing model. The results of experiment proved that the combination of 50% EVA + 25% MCH + 25% TOL gave a maximum viscosity reduction of 67% while the RSM model proved that the combination of 57% EVA + 20.5% MCH + 22.5% TOL gave a maximum viscosity reduction of up to 61%.

Keywords: asphaltene, ethylene-vinyl acetate, methylcyclohexane, toluene, wax

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Authors: Muhammad Saleem Ullah Khan Sumbal, Eric Tsui, Ricky Cheong, Eric See To

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Organizations are posed to a threat of valuable knowledge loss when employees leave either due to retirement, resignation, job change or because of disabilities e.g. death, etc. Due to changing economic conditions, globalization, and aging workforce, organizations are facing challenges regarding retention of valuable knowledge. On the one hand, large number of employees are going to retire in the organizations whereas on the other hand, younger generation does not want to work in a company for a long time and there is an increasing trend of frequent job change among the new generation. Because of these factors, organizations need to make sure that they capture the knowledge of employee before (s)he walks out of the door. The first step in this process is to know what type of knowledge employee possesses and whether this knowledge is important for the organization. Researchers reveal in the literature that despite the serious consequences of knowledge loss in terms of organizational productivity and competitive advantage, there has not been much work done in the area of knowledge loss assessment of departing employees. An important step in the knowledge retention process is to determine the critical ‘at risk’ knowledge. Thus, knowledge loss risk assessment is a process by which organizations can gauge the importance of knowledge of the departing employee. The purpose of this study is to explore this topic of knowledge loss risk assessment by conducting a qualitative study in oil and gas sector. By engaging in dialogues with managers and executives of the organizations through in-depth interviews and adopting a grounded methodology approach, the research will explore; i) Are there any measures adopted by organizations to assess the risk of knowledge loss from departing employees? ii) Which factors are crucial for knowledge loss assessment in the organizations? iii) How can we prioritize the employees for knowledge retention according to their criticality? Grounded theory approach is used when there is not much knowledge available in the area under research and thus new knowledge is generated about the topic through an in-depth exploration of the topic by using methods such as interviews and using a systematic approach to analyze the data. The outcome of the study will generate a model for the risk of knowledge loss through factors such as the likelihood of knowledge loss, the consequence/impact of knowledge loss and quality of the knowledge loss of departing employees. Initial results show that knowledge loss assessment is quite crucial for the organizations and it helps in determining what types of knowledge employees possess e.g. organizations knowledge, subject matter expertise or relationships knowledge. Based on that, it can be assessed which employee is more important for the organizations and how to prioritize the knowledge retention process for departing employees.

Keywords: knowledge loss, risk assessment, departing employees, Hong Kong organizations

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Authors: Khaled R. Khater

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The weight of the SPT hammer is standard (0.623kN). The locally manufacturer drilling rigs use hammers, sometimes deviating off the standard weight. This affects the field measured blow counts (Nf) consequentially, affecting most of correlations previously obtained, as they were obtained based on standard hammer weight. The literature presents energy corrections factor (η2) to be applied to the SPT total input energy. This research investigates the effect of the hammer weight variation, as a single parameter, on the field measured blow counts (Nf). The outcome is a correction factor (ηk), equation, and correction chart. They are recommended to adjust back the measured misleading (Nf) to the standard one as if the standard hammer is used. This correction is very important to be done in such cases where a non-standard hammer is being used because the bore logs in any geotechnical report should contain true and representative values (Nf), let alone the long records of correlations, already in hand. The study here-in is achieved by using laboratory physical model to simulate the SPT dripping hammer mechanism. It is designed to allow different hammer weights to be used. Also, it is manufactured to avoid and eliminate the energy loss sources. This produces a transmitted efficiency up to 100%.

Keywords: correction factors, hammer weight, physical model, standard penetration test

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Authors: V. Sulakatko, F. U. Vogdt, I. Lill

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Construction technology and on-site construction activities have a direct influence on the life cycle costs of energy efficiently renovated apartment buildings. The systematic inadequacies of the External Thermal Insulation Composite System (ETICS) which occur during the construction phase increase the risk for all stakeholders, reduce mechanical durability and increase the life cycle costs of the building. The economic effect of these shortcomings can be minimised if the risk of the most significant on-site activities is recognised. The objective of the presented ETICS economic assessment concept is to evaluate the economic influence of on-site shortcomings and reveal their significance to the foreseeable future repair costs. The model assembles repair techniques, discusses their direct cost calculation methods, argues over the proper usage of net present value over the life cycle of the building, and proposes a simulation tool to evaluate the risk of on-site activities. As the technique is dependent on the selected real interest rate, a sensitivity analysis is anticipated to determine the validity of the recommendations. After the verification of the model on the sample buildings by the industry, it is expected to increase economic rationality of resource allocation and reduce high-risk systematic shortcomings during the construction process of ETICS.

Keywords: activity-based cost estimating, cost estimation, ETICS, life cycle costing

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Authors: Bassey Odiong Akan

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In recent decades potentially significant changes have taken place in the world of work and these have led to the emergence of new challenges in occupational safety and health. The working environment is now not only wroth with concerns about physical, biological and chemical risks but also emerging risks which are completely new risks that have never been seen before or previously known risks that are evolving in unexpected ways with unanticipated consequences. Psychosocial risk factors and its attendant hazards happen to be one of them and can impact health directly or indirectly, mediated by work-related stress. These risks are related to the way work is designed, organised and managed, as well as the economic and social contexts of work. It has become necessary to identify, explore and anticipate the dynamics of these risks factors and hazards with regards to how it affects women. This presentation is a review of information gathered from books of distinguished authors, research work and scientific/professional journals on the psychosocial work environment intended as a guide to stimulate discussion, raise awareness and encourage research and action at different levels.

Keywords: emerging risks, psychosocial hazards, psychosocial risk factors, work related stress

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Authors: Pontus Backstrom

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In the educational literature on peer effects, attention has been brought to the fact that the mechanisms creating peer effects are still to a large extent hidden in obscurity. The hypothesis in this study is that the Frame Factor Theory can be used to explain these mechanisms. At heart of the theory is the concept of “time needed” for students to learn a certain curricula unit. The relations between class-aggregated time needed and the actual time available, steers and hinders the actions possible for the teacher. Further, the theory predicts that the timing and pacing of the teachers’ instruction is governed by a “criterion steering group” (CSG), namely the pupils in the 10th-25th percentile of the aptitude distribution in class. The class composition hereby set the possibilities and limitations for instruction, creating peer effects on individual outcomes. To test if the theory can be applied to the issue of peer effects, the study employs multilevel structural equation modelling (M-SEM) on Swedish TIMSS 2015-data (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study; students N=4090, teachers N=200). Using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the SEM-framework in MPLUS, latent variables are specified according to the theory, such as “limitations of instruction” from TIMSS survey items. The results indicate a good model fit to data of the measurement model. Research is still in progress, but preliminary results from initial M-SEM-models verify a strong relation between the mean level of the CSG and the latent variable of limitations on instruction, a variable which in turn have a great impact on individual students’ test results. Further analysis is required, but so far the analysis indicates a confirmation of the predictions derived from the frame factor theory and reveals that one of the important mechanisms creating peer effects in student outcomes is the effect the class composition has upon the teachers’ instruction in class.

Keywords: compositional effects, frame factor theory, peer effects, structural equation modelling

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Authors: Retno A. Vinarti, Lucy M. Hederman

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This research describes a knowledge model for a system which give personalized alert to users about infectious disease risks in the context of weather, location and time. The knowledge model is based on established epidemiological concepts augmented by information gleaned from infection-related data repositories. The existing disease risk prediction research has more focuses on utilizing raw historical data and yield seasonal patterns of infectious disease risk emergence. This research incorporates both data and epidemiological concepts gathered from Atlas of Human Infectious Disease (AHID) and Centre of Disease Control (CDC) as basic reasoning of infectious disease risk prediction. Using CommonKADS methodology, the disease risk prediction task is an assignment synthetic task, starting from knowledge identification through specification, refinement to implementation. First, knowledge is gathered from AHID primarily from the epidemiology and risk group chapters for each infectious disease. The result of this stage is five major elements (Person, Infectious Disease, Weather, Location and Time) and their properties. At the knowledge specification stage, the initial tree model of each element and detailed relationships are produced. This research also includes a validation step as part of knowledge refinement: on the basis that the best model is formed using the most common features, Frequency-based Selection (FBS) is applied. The portion of the Infectious Disease risk model relating to Person comes out strongest, with Location next, and Weather weaker. For Person attribute, Age is the strongest, Activity and Habits are moderate, and Blood type is weakest. At the Location attribute, General category (e.g. continents, region, country, and island) results much stronger than Specific category (i.e. terrain feature). For Weather attribute, Less Precise category (i.e. season) comes out stronger than Precise category (i.e. exact temperature or humidity interval). However, given that some infectious diseases are significantly more serious than others, a frequency based metric may not be appropriate. Future work will incorporate epidemiological measurements of disease seriousness (e.g. odds ratio, hazard ratio and fatality rate) into the validation metrics. This research is limited to modelling existing knowledge about epidemiology and chain of infection concepts. Further step, verification in knowledge refinement stage, might cause some minor changes on the shape of tree.

Keywords: epidemiology, knowledge modelling, infectious disease, prediction, risk

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Authors: Desta Gebretekle Shiferaw, Balakrishna Kalluraya

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Triazoles are basic five-membered ring heterocycles with an unsaturated, six-delocalized electron ring system. Since the dawn of click chemistry, triazoles have represented a functional heterocyclic core that has been the foundation of medicinal chemistry. The compounds with 1,2,3-triazole rings can be used in several fields, including medicine, organic synthesis, polymer chemistry, fluorescent imaging, horticulture, and industries, to name a few. Besides that, they found it to have health applications in the prevention and reduction of the risk of diseases, such as anti-cancer, antimicrobial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory properties. Here, we present the synthesis of twelve 1,2,3-triazolyl chalcone derivatives (4a–l), which were produced in high yields by coupling substituted aldehydes and triazolyl acetophenone (3a–d) in ethanol. The title products were characterized by physicochemical, infrared, nuclear magnetic resonance, and mass spectral methods. The in vitro tests were used to evaluate the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of each of the prepared molecules. The preliminary assessment and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl activity of the title compounds showed significantly higher antibacterial activity and moderate-to-good antifungal and antioxidant activities compared to their standards. This work presents the synthesis of triazolyl chalcone derivatives and their biological activity. Based on the findings, these compounds could be used as lead compounds in antimicrobial and antioxidant research in the future.

Keywords: antibacterial activity, antifungal activity, antioxidant activity, chalcone, 1, 2, 3-triazole

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Authors: Julian Sandoval, Philipp Schober

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Lahar sand (lahars) is a material that originates from volcanic debris flows. During and after a volcano eruption, the lahars can move at speeds up to 22 meters per hour or more, so they can easily cover extensive areas and destroy any structure in their path. Mount Pinatubo eruption (1991) brought lahars to its vicinities, and its use has been a matter of research ever since. Lahars are often disposed of for land reclamation projects in the Manila Bay, Philippines. After reclamation, some deep loss deposits may still present and they are prone to liquefaction. To mitigate the risk of liquefaction of such deposits, Vibro compaction has been proposed and used as a ground improvement technique. Cone penetration testing (CPT) campaigns are usually initiated to monitor the effectiveness of the ground improvement works by vibro compaction. The CPT cone resistance is used to analyses the in-situ relative density of the reclaimed sand before and after compaction. Available correlations between the CPT cone resistance and the relative density are only valid for non-crushable sands. Due to the partially crushable nature of lahars, the CPT data requires to be adjusted to allow for a correct interpretation of the CPT data. The objective of this paper is to characterize the chemical and mechanical properties of the lahar sands used for an ongoing project in the Port of Manila, which comprises reclamation activities using lahars from the east of Mount Pinatubo, it investigates their effect in the proposed correction factor. Additionally, numerous CPTs were carried out in a test trial and during the execution of the project. Based on this data, the influence of the grid spacing, compaction steps and the holding time on the compaction results are analyzed. Moreover, the so-called “aging effect” of the lahars is studied by comparing the results of the CPT testing campaign at different times after the vibro compaction activities. A considerable increase in the tip resistance of the CPT was observed over time.

Keywords: vibro compaction, CPT, lahar sands, correction factor, chemical composition

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Authors: Veronika Sharok

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Research relevance on psychological determinants of risky behaviors is caused by high prevalence of such behaviors, particularly among youth. Risky sexual behavior, including unprotected and casual sex, frequent change of sexual partners, drug and alcohol use lead to negative social consequences and contribute to the spread of HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases. Data were obtained from 302 respondents aged 15-35 which were divided into 3 empirical groups: persons prone to risky sexual behavior, drug users and alcohol users; and 3 control groups: the individuals who are not prone to risky sexual behavior, persons who do not use drugs and the respondents who do not use alcohol. For processing, we used the following methods: Qualitative method for nominative data (Chi-squared test) and quantitative methods for metric data (student's t-test, Fisher's F-test, Pearson's r correlation test). Statistical processing was performed using Statistica 6.0 software. The study identifies two groups of factors that prevent risky behaviors. Internal factors, which include the moral and value attitudes; significance of existential values: love, life, self-actualization and search for the meaning of life; understanding independence as a responsibility for the freedom and ability to get attached to someone or something up to a point when this relationship starts restricting the freedom and becomes vital; awareness of risky behaviors as dangerous for the person and for others; self-acknowledgement. External factors (prevent risky behaviors in case of absence of the internal ones): absence of risky behaviors among friends and relatives; socio-demographic characteristics (middle class, marital status); awareness about the negative consequences of risky behaviors; inaccessibility to psychoactive substances. These factors are common for proneness to each type of risky behavior, because it usually caused by the same reasons. It should be noted that if prevention of risky behavior is based only on elimination of external factors, it is not as effective as it may be if we pay more attention to internal factors. The results obtained in the study can be used to develop training programs and activities for prevention of risky behaviors, for using values preventing such behaviors and promoting healthy lifestyle.

Keywords: existential values, prevention, psychological features, risky behavior

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Authors: A. Kourou, A. Ioakeimidou, V. Avramea

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Planning for natural disasters and emergencies is something every school or educational institution must consider, regardless of its size or location. Preparedness is the key to save lives if a disaster strikes. School disaster management mirrors individual and family disaster prevention, and wider community disaster prevention efforts. This paper presents the usage of E-PreS System as a helpful, managerial tool during the school earthquake drill, in order to support schools in developing effective disaster and emergency plans specific to their local needs. The project comes up with a holistic methodology using real-time evaluation involving different categories of actors, districts, steps and metrics. The main outcomes of E-PreS project are the development of E-PreS web platform that host the needed data of school emergency planning; the development of E-PreS System; the implementation of disaster drills using E-PreS System in educational premises and local schools; and the evaluation of E-PreS System. Taking into consideration that every disaster drill aims to test and valid school plan and procedures; clarify and train personnel in roles and responsibilities; improve interagency coordination; identify gaps in resources; improve individual performance; and identify opportunities for improvement, E-PreS Project was submitted and approved by the European Commission (EC).

Keywords: disaster drills, earthquake preparedness, E-PreS System, school emergency plans

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Authors: Farnoush Haghanipour

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Objective: Father loss as one of the major stress factor, can causethe mental imbalances in children. It's clear that children's family condition of lacking a father is very clearly different from the condition of having a father. The goal of this research is to examine mental imbalances comparative checking in complete form and in five subsidiary categories as aggression, stress and depression, social incompatibility, anti-social behavior, and attention deficit imbalances (wackiness) do between children without father and normal ones. Method: This research is in descriptive and analytical method that reimburse to checking mental imbalances from 50 children that are student in one zone of Rasht’s education and nurture office. Material of this research is RATER behavior questionnaire (teacher form) and data analyses were did by SPSS software. Results: The results showed that there are clear different in relation with behavior imbalances between have father children and children without father and in children without a father behavior imbalance is more. Also showed that there is clearly a difference in aggression, stress, and depression and social incompatibility between children without and without fathers, and in children without a father the proportion increases. However, in antisocial behaviours and attention deficit imbalances there are not a clear difference between them. Conclusion: With upper amount of imbalance behaviour detection in children without fathers compared with children with fathers, it is essential that practitioners of society hygienic and remedy put efforts in order to primary and secondary prevention, for mental health of this group of society.

Keywords: child, behave imbalances, children without father, mental imbalances

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Authors: Saeedeh Salimi, Farzaneh Farajian- Mashhadi, Ehsan Tabatabaei, Mahnaz Shahrakipoor, Minoo Yaghmaei, Mojgan Mokhtari

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Purpose: Estrogen receptor-α (ERα) plays an essential role in the adaptation of increased uterine blood flow during gestation. Therefore ERα gene could be a possible candidate for preeclampsia(PE) susceptibility. In the current study, we aimed to investigate the association of the ERα gene polymorphisms and PE in an Iranian population. Methods: One hundred ninety-two pregnant women with PE and 186 normotensive women were genotyped for ERα gene (PvuII and XbaI) polymorphisms by PCR-RFLP method. Results: The frequency of alleles and genotypes of ERα PvuII and XbaI polymorphisms were not different between PE and normotensive control women. However, higher frequency of GG genotype was observed in women with severe PE compared to mild PE (OR, 1.8 [95% CI, 1.1 to 3]; P = 0.02) and in severe PE compared to normotensive women [OR= 1.8(1.1-3), P=0.02] after adjusting for age, ethnicity and primiparity. Conclusions: The GG genotype of ERα XbaI polymorphism could be a genetic risk factor for PE predisposition.

Keywords: estrogen receptor-α, polymorphism, gene, preeclampsia

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Authors: Jingwen Shi, Qi Wu

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We study the role played interest rate risk in carry trade return in order to understand the forward premium puzzle. In this study, our goal is to investigate to what extent carry trade return is indeed due to compensation for risk taking and, more important, to reveal the nature of these risks. Using option data not only on exchange rates but also on interest rate swaps (swaptions), our first finding is that, besides the consensus currency risks, interest rate risks also contribute a non-negligible portion to the carry trade return. What strikes us is our second finding. We find that large downside risks of future exchange rate movements are, in fact, priced significantly in option market on interest rates. The role played by interest rate risk differs structurally from the currency risk. There is a unique premium associated with interest rate risk, though seemingly small in size, which compensates the tail risks, the left tail to be precise. On the technical front, our study relies on accurately retrieving implied distributions from currency options and interest rate swaptions simultaneously, especially the tail components of the two. For this purpose, our major modeling work is to build a new international asset pricing model where we use an orthogonal setup for pricing kernels and specify non-Gaussian dynamics in order to capture three sets of option skew accurately and consistently across currency options and interest rate swaptions, domestic and foreign, within one model. Our results open a door for studying forward premium anomaly through implied information from interest rate derivative market.

Keywords: carry trade, forward premium anomaly, FX option, interest rate swaption, implied volatility skew, uncovered interest rate parity

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Authors: Daniella Hirwa

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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is associated with several risk-taking behaviors, including drug use and smoking. Such risk-taking behaviors are often a result of an attempt to self-manage symptoms associated with ADHD. The present review investigates the effects of nicotine on symptoms associated with ADHD. This systematic literature review was conducted for 2017-2024 using keywords associated with ADHD, smoking, and nicotine. The results indicate that individuals with ADHD start smoking earlier than those without ADHD, and it is believed that this prevalence and the higher rates of smoking are due to improvements in cognitive and executive function, attention, and impulsivity due to the effect that nicotine has on dopamine release. Longitudinal studies with larger sample sizes and comprehensive health history and cognitive testing are required to gain more insight into the ways that nicotine affects ADHD symptoms and the context by which smoking is used as a method of self-treatment to help aid the development of nicotine-based treatment options that do not pose the same health risks as smoking.

Keywords: ADHD, nicotine, risk-taking behaviors, smoking

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Authors: Shu-Pin Huang, Pai-Chi Teng, Hao-Han Chang, Chia-Hsin Liu, Yung-Lun Lin, Shu-Chi Wang, Hsin-Chih Yeh, Chih-Pin Chuu, Jiun-Hung Geng, Li-Hsin Chang, Wei-Chung Cheng, Chia-Yang Li

Abstract:

The emergence of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) targeting proteins like PD-1 and PD-L1 has changed the treatment paradigm of bladder cancer. However, not all patients benefit from ICIs, with some experiencing early death. There's a significant need for biomarkers associated with the PD-1 pathway in bladder cancer. Current biomarkers focus on tumor PD-L1 expression, but a more comprehensive understanding of PD-1-related biology is needed. Our study has developed a seven-gene risk score panel, employing a comprehensive bioinformatics strategy, which could serve as a potential prognostic and predictive biomarker for bladder cancer. This panel incorporates the FYN, GRAP2, TRIB3, MAP3K8, AKT3, CD274, and CD80 genes. Additionally, we examined the relationship between this panel and immune cell function, utilizing validated tools such as ESTIMATE, TIDE, and CIBERSORT. Our seven-genes panel has been found to be significantly associated with bladder cancer survival in two independent cohorts. The panel was also significantly correlated with tumor infiltration lymphocytes, immune scores, and tumor purity. These factors have been previously reported to have clinical implications on ICIs. The findings suggest the potential of a PD-1 pathway-based transcriptomic panel as a prognostic and predictive biomarker in bladder cancer, which could help optimize treatment strategies and improve patient outcomes.

Keywords: bladder cancer, programmed cell death protein 1, prognostic biomarker, immune checkpoint inhibitors, predictive biomarker

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Authors: Kartik Thakore, Anna-Roza Tamas, Adam Cole

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The world health organization (WHO) reports that by 2030 more than 23.7 million deaths annually will be caused by Cardiovascular Diseases (CVDs); with a 2008 economic impact of $3.76 T. Metabolic syndrome is a disorder of multiple metabolic risk factors strongly indicated in the development of cardiovascular diseases. Guided lifestyle intervention driven by live coaching has been shown to have a positive impact on metabolic risk factors. Individuals’ path to improved (decreased) metabolic risk factors are driven by personal motivation and personalized messages delivered by coaches and augmented by technology. Using interactions captured between 400 individuals and 3 coaches over a program period of 500 days, a preliminary model was designed. A novel real time event tracking system was created to track and classify clients based on their genetic profile, baseline questionnaires and usage of a mobile application with live coaching sessions. Classification of clients and coaches was done using a support vector machines application build on Apache Spark, Stanford Natural Language Processing Library (SNLPL) and decision-modeling.

Keywords: guided lifestyle intervention, metabolic risk factors, personal coaching, support vector machines application, Apache Spark, natural language processing

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Authors: Abhijith Asok

Abstract:

This paper presents a generalized approach for the simple linear data transformation, Y=bX, through an integration of multidimensional coordinate geometry, vector space theory and polygonal geometry. The scaling is performed by adding an additional ’Dummy Dimension’ to the n-dimensional data, which helps plot two dimensional component-wise straight lines on pairs of dimensions. The end result is a set of scaled extensions of observations in any of the 2n spatial divisions, where n is the total number of applicable dimensions/dataset variables, created by shifting the n-dimensional plane along the ’Dummy Axis’. The derived scaling factor was found to be dependent on the coordinates of the common point of origin for diverging straight lines and the plane of extension, chosen on and perpendicular to the ’Dummy Axis’, respectively. This result indicates the geometrical interpretation of a linear data transformation and hence, opportunities for a more informed choice of the factor ’b’, based on a better choice of these coordinate values. The paper follows on to identify the effect of this transformation on certain popular distance metrics, wherein for many, the distance metric retained the same scaling factor as that of the features.

Keywords: data transformation, dummy dimension, linear transformation, scaling

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Authors: J. K. Visser, H. T. Malan

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A need exists to identify the sources of risks associated with the process automation systems within petrochemical companies or similar energy related industries. These companies use many different process automation technologies in its value chain. A crucial part of the process automation system is the information technology component featuring in the supervisory control layer. The ever-changing technology within the process automation layers and the rate at which it advances pose a risk to safe and predictable automation system performance. The age of the automation equipment also provides challenges to the operations and maintenance managers of the plant due to obsolescence and unavailability of spare parts. The main objective of this research was to determine the risk sources associated with the equipment that is part of the process automation systems. A secondary objective was to establish whether technology managers and technicians were aware of the risks and share the same viewpoint on the importance of the risks associated with automation systems. A conceptual model for risk sources of automation systems was formulated from models and frameworks in literature. This model comprised six categories of risk which forms the basis for identifying specific risks. This model was used to develop a questionnaire that was sent to 172 instrument technicians and technology managers in the company to obtain primary data. 75 completed and useful responses were received. These responses were analyzed statistically to determine the highest risk sources and to determine whether there was difference in opinion between technology managers and technicians. The most important risks that were revealed in this study are: 1) the lack of skilled technicians, 2) integration capability of third-party system software, 3) reliability of the process automation hardware, 4) excessive costs pertaining to performing maintenance and migrations on process automation systems, and 5) requirements of having third-party communication interfacing compatibility as well as real-time communication networks.

Keywords: distributed control system, identification of risks, information technology, process automation system

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