Search results for: data mining applications and discovery

Authors: A. Kourou, A. Ioakeimidou, E. Pelli, M. Panoutsopoulou, V. Abramea

Abstract:

Worldwide there is a growing recognition that education is a critical component of any disaster impacts reduction effort and a great challenge too. Given this challenge, a broad range of awareness raising projects at all levels are implemented and are continuously evaluated by Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (EPPO). This paper presents an overview of EPPO educational initiative (seminars, lectures, workshops, campaigns and educational material) and its evaluation results. The abovementioned initiative is focused to aware the public, train teachers and civil protection staff, inform students and educate people with disabilities on subjects related to earthquake reduction issues. The better understating of how human activity can link to disaster and what can be done at the individual, family or workplace level to contribute to seismic reduction are the main issues of EPPO projects. Survey results revealed that a high percentage of teachers (included the ones of special schools) from all over the country have taken the appropriate preparedness measures at schools. On the other hand, the implementation of earthquake preparedness measures at various workplaces (kindergartens, banks, utilities etc.) has still significant room for improvement. Results show that the employees in banks and public utilities have substantially higher rates in preventive and preparedness actions in their workplaces than workers in kindergartens and other workplaces. One of the EPPO educational priorities is to enhance earthquake preparedness of people with disabilities. Booklets, posters and applications have been created with the financial support of the Council of Europe, addressed to people who have mobility impairments, learning difficulties or cognitive disability (ή intellectual disabilities). Part of the educational material was developed using the «easy-to-read» method and Makaton language program with the collaboration of experts on special needs education and teams of people with cognitive disability. Furthermore, earthquake safety seminars and earthquake drills have been implemented in order to develop children’s, parents’ and teachers abilities and skills on earthquake impacts reduction. To enhance the abovementioned efforts, EPPO is a partner at prevention and preparedness projects supported by EU Civil Protection Financial Instrument. One of them is E-PreS’ project (Monitoring and Evaluation of Natural Hazard Preparedness at School Environment). The main objectives of E-PreS project are: 1) to create smart tools which define, simulate and evaluate drills procedure at schools, centers of vocational training of people with disabilities or other workplaces, and 2) to involve students or adults with disabilities in the E-PreS system evacuation procedure in case of earthquake, flood, or volcanic occurrence. Two other EU projects (RACCE educational kit and EVANDE educational platform) are also with the aim of contributing to raising awareness among people with disabilities, students, teachers, volunteers etc. It is worth mentioning that even though in Greece many efforts have been done till now to build awareness towards earthquakes and establish preparedness status for prospective earthquakes, there are still actions to be taken.

Keywords: earthquake, emergency plans, E-PreS project, people with disabilities, special needs education

Procedia PDF Downloads 259

Authors: Salam Alrekabi, A. B. Cundy, Mohammed Haloob Al-Majidi

Abstract:

Novel multiscale hybrid reinforced cementitious composites based on carbon nanotubes (MHRCC-CNT), and carbon nanofibers (MHRCC-CNF) are new types of cement-based material fabricated with micro steel fibers and nanofilaments, featuring superior strain hardening, ductility, and energy absorption. This study focused on established models to predict the compressive strength, and direct and splitting tensile strengths of the produced cementitious composites. The analysis was carried out based on the experimental data presented by the previous author’s study, regression analysis, and the established models that available in the literature. The obtained models showed small differences in the predictions and target values with experimental verification indicated that the estimation of the mechanical properties could be achieved with good accuracy.

Keywords: multiscale hybrid reinforced cementitious composites, carbon nanotubes, carbon nanofibers, mechanical strength prediction

Procedia PDF Downloads 156

Authors: Cristina Galván-Fernández, Elena Barberà, Jingjing Zhang

Abstract:

In recent years, MOOCs have been in the spotlight for its high drop-out rates, which potentially impact on the quality of the learning experience. This study attempts to explore how learning support can be used to keep student retention, and in turn to improve the quality of learning in MOOCs. In this study, the patterns of learning support were identified from a total of 4202592 units of video sessions, clickstream data of 25600 students, and 382 threads generated in 10 forums (optional and mandatory) in five different types of MOOCs (e.g. conventional MOOCs, professional MOOCs, and informal MOOCs). The results of this study have shown a clear correlation between the types of MOOCs, the design framework of the MOOCs, and the learning support. The patterns of tutor-peer interaction are identified, and are found to be highly correlated with student retention in all five types of MOOCs. In addition, different patterns of ‘good’ students were identified, which could potentially inform the instruction design of MOOCs.

Keywords: higher education, learning support, MOOC, retention

Procedia PDF Downloads 328

Authors: Wan Nur'ashiqin Wan Mohamad, Zarina Othman, Mohd Azman Abas, Azizah Ya'acob, Rozmel Abdul Latiff

Abstract:

Effective doctor-patient interaction is vital to both doctor and patient relationship. It is the cornerstone of good practice and an integral quality of a healthcare institution. This paper presented the hierarchy of the communication elements in doctor-patient interaction during medical consultations in a medical centre in Malaysia. This study adapted The Picker Patient Experience Questionnaire (2002) to obtain the information from patients. The questionnaire survey was responded by 100 patients between the ages of 20 and 50. Data collected were analysed using Rasch Measurement Model to yield the hierarchy of the communication elements in doctor-patient interaction. The findings showed that the three highest ranking on the doctor-patient interaction were doctor’s treatment, important information delivery and patient satisfaction of doctor’s responses. The results are valuable in developing the framework for communication ethics of doctors.

Keywords: communication elements, doctor-patient interaction, hierarchy, Rasch measurement model

Procedia PDF Downloads 157

Authors: Alessandra Swiny, Yiorgos Hadjichristou

Abstract:

There exists an on-going geographical scar creating a division through the Island of Cyprus and its capital, Nicosia. The currently amputated city center is accessed legally by the United Nations convoys, infiltrated only by Turkish and Greek Cypriot army scouts and illegal traders and scavengers. On Christmas day 1963 in Nicosia, Captain M. Hobden of the British Army took a green chinagraph pencil and on a large scale Joint Army-RAF map ‘marked’ the division. From then on this ‘buffer zone’ was called the ‘green line.' This once dividing form, separating the main communities of Greek and Turkish Cypriots from one another, has now been fully reclaimed by an autonomous intruder. It's currently most captivating inhabitant is nature. She keeps taking over, for the past fifty years indigenous and introduced fauna and flora thrive; trees emerge from rooftops and plants, bushes and flowers grow randomly through the once bustling market streets, allowing this ‘no man’s land’ to teem with wildlife. And where are its limits? The idea of fluidity is ever present; it encroaches into the urban and built environment that surrounds it, and notions of ownership and permanence are questioned. Its qualities have contributed significantly in the search for new ‘identities,' expressed in the emergence of new living conditions, be they real or surreal. Without being physically reachable, it can be glimpsed at through punctured peepholes, military bunker windows that act as enticing portals into an emotional and conceptual level of inhabitation. The zone is mystical and simultaneously suspended in time, it triggers people’s imagination, not just that of the two prevailing communities but also of immigrants, refugees, and visitors; it mesmerizes all who come within its proximity. The paper opens a discussion on the issues and the binary questions raised. What is natural and artificial; what is private and public; what is ephemeral and permanent? The ‘green line’ exists in a central fringe condition and can serve in mixing generations and groups of people; mingling functions of living with work and social interaction; merging nature and the human being in a new-found synergy of human hope and survival, allowing thus for new notions of place to be introduced. Questions seek to be answered, such as, “Is the impossibility of dwelling made possible, by interweaving these ‘in-between conditions’ into eloquently traced spaces?” The methodologies pursued are developed through academic research, professional practice projects, and students’ research/design work. Realized projects, case studies and other examples cited both nationally and internationally hold global and local applications. Both paths of the research deal with the explorative understanding of the impossibility of dwelling, testing the limits of its autonomy. The expected outcome of the experience evokes in the user a sense of a new urban landscape, created from human topographies that echo the voice of an emerging identity.

Keywords: urban wildlife, human topographies, buffer zone, no man’s land

Procedia PDF Downloads 189

Authors: Saman Kumara, Duminda Guruge, Krishani Jayasinghe

Abstract:

Introduction: Nutrition strongly influences good health and development in early life. This study, based on a health promotion approach, used a community-based intervention to improve child nutrition. The approach provides the community with control of interventions, thereby building its capacity and empowering individuals and communities. The aim of this research was to reduce stunting, low birth weight and underweight in communities from Anuradhapura District in Sri Lanka, by identifying and addressing the underlying determinants of under-nutrition and strengthening families and communities to address them. Methods: A health promotion intervention was designed and implemented-based on a logical framework developed in collaboration with members of targeted community. Community members’ implements action, so they fully own the process. Members of the community identify and address the most crucial determinants of health including child health and development and monitor the initial results of their action and modify action to optimize outcomes as well as future goals. Group Discussion, group activities, awareness programs, cluster meetings, community tools and sharing success stories were major activities to address determinants. Continuous data collection was planned at different levels. Priority was given to strengthening the ability of families and groups or communities to collect meaningful data and analyze these themselves. Results: Enthusiasm and interest of the mother, happiness of the child/ family, dietary habits, money management, tobacco and alcohol use of fathers, media influences, illnesses in the child or others, hygiene and sanitary practices, community sensitiveness and domestic violence were the major perceived determinants elicited from the study. There were around 1000 well-functioning mothers groups in this district. ‘Happiness calendar’, ‘brain calendar’, ‘money tool’ and ‘stimulation books’ were created by the community members, to address determinants and measure the process. Evaluation of the process has shown positive early results, such as improvement of feeding habits among mothers, innovative ways of providing early stimulation and responsive care, greater involvement of fathers in childcare and responsive feeding. There is a positive movement of communities around child well-being through interactive play areas. Family functioning and community functioning improved. Use of alcohol and tobacco declined. Community money management improved. Underweight was reduced by 40%. Stunting and low birth weight among under-fives also declined within one year. Conclusion: The health promotion intervention was effective in changing the determinants of under-nutrition in early childhood. Addressing the underlying determinants of under-nutrition in early childhood can be recommended for similar contexts.

Keywords: birth-weight, community, determinants, stunting, underweight

Procedia PDF Downloads 140

Authors: John Doe

Abstract:

This paper presents the research project “Escape Through Culture”, which is co-funded by the European Union and national resources through the Operational Programme “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation” 2014-2020 and the Single RTDI State Aid Action "RESEARCH - CREATE - INNOVATE". The project implementation is assumed by three partners, (1) the Computer Technology Institute and Press "Diophantus" (CTI), experienced with the design and implementation of serious games, natural language processing and ICT in education, (2) the Laboratory of Environmental Communication and Audiovisual Documentation (LECAD), part of the University of Thessaly, Department of Architecture, which is experienced with the study of creative transformation and reframing of the urban and environmental multimodal experiences through the use of AR and VR technologies, and (3) “Apoplou”, an IT Company with experience in the implementation of interactive digital applications. The research project proposes the design of innovative infrastructure of digital educational escape games for mobile devices and computers, with the use of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality for the promotion of Greek cultural heritage in Greece and abroad. In particular, the project advocates the combination of Greek cultural heritage and literature, digital technologies advancements and the implementation of innovative gamifying practices. The cultural experience of the players will take place in 3 layers: (1) In space: the digital games produced are going to utilize the dual character of the space as a cultural landscape (the real space - landscape but also the space - landscape as presented with the technologies of augmented reality and virtual reality). (2) In literary texts: the selected texts of Greek writers will support the sense of place and the multi-sensory involvement of the user, through the context of space-time, language and cultural characteristics. (3) In the philosophy of the "escape game" tool: whether played in a computer environment, indoors or outdoors, the spatial experience is one of the key components of escape games. The innovation of the project lies both in the junction of Augmented/Virtual Reality with the promotion of cultural points of interest, as well as in the interactive, gamified practices of literary texts. The digital escape game infrastructure will be highly interactive, integrating the projection of Greek landscape cultural elements and digital literary text analysis, supporting the creation of escape games, establishing and highlighting new playful ways of experiencing iconic cultural places, such as Elefsina, Skiathos etc. The literary texts’ content will relate to specific elements of the Greek cultural heritage depicted by prominent Greek writers and poets. The majority of the texts will originate from Greek educational content available in digital libraries and repositories developed and maintained by CTI. The escape games produced will be available for use during educational field trips, thematic tourism holidays, etc. In this paper, the methodology adopted for infrastructure development will be presented. The research is based on theories of place, gamification, gaming development, making use of corpus linguistics concepts and digital humanities practices for the compilation and the analysis of literary texts.

Keywords: escape games, cultural landscapes, gamification, digital humanities, literature

Procedia PDF Downloads 230

Authors: Yu Zhang, Jie Wu, Li Dong

Abstract:

Rural tourism is the service industry which regards the agricultural production, rural life, rural nature and cultural landscape as the tourist attraction. It aims to meet the needs of the city tourists such as country sightseeing, vacation, and leisure. According to the difference of the tourist resources, the rural settlements can be divided into different types: The type of tourism resources, scenic spot, and peri-urban. In the past ten years, the rural tourism has promoted the industrial transformation and economic growth in rural areas of China. And it is conducive to the coordinated development of urban and rural areas and has greatly improved the ecological environment and the standard of living for farmers in rural areas. At the same time, a large number of buildings and sites are built in the countryside in order to enhance the tourist attraction and the ability of tourist reception and also to increase the travel comfort and convenience, which has significant influence on the spatial evolution of the village settlement. This article takes the XiangYing Subdistrict, which is in JinPu District of Dalian in China as the exemplification and uses the technology of Remote Sensing (RS), Geographic Information System (GIS) and the technology of Landscape Spatial Analysis to study the influence of the rural tourism development in the rural settlement spaces in four steps. First, acquiring the remote sensing image data at different times of 8 administrative villages in the XiangYing Subdistrict, by using the remote sensing application EDRAS8.6; second, vectoring basic maps of XiangYing Subdistrict including its land-use map with the application of ArcGIS 9.3, associating with social and economic attribute data of rural settlements and analyzing on the rural evolution visually; third, quantifying the comparison of these patches in rural settlements by using the landscape spatial calculation application Fragstats 3.3 and analyzing on the evolution of the spatial structure of settlement in macro and medium scale; finally, summarizing the evolution characteristics and internal reasons of tourism-oriented rural settlements. The main findings of this article include: first of all, there is difference in the evolution of the spatial structure between the developing rural settlements and undeveloped rural settlements among the eight administrative villages; secondly, the villages relying on the surrounding tourist attractions, the villages developing agricultural ecological garden and the villages with natural or historical and cultural resources have different laws of development; then, the rural settlements whose tourism development in germination period, development period and mature period have different characteristics of spatial evolution; finally, the different evolution modes of the tourism-oriented rural settlement space have different influences on the protection and inheritance of the village scene. The development of tourism has a significant impact on the spatial evolution of rural settlement. The intensive use of rural land and natural resources is the fundamental principle to protect the rural cultural landscape and ecological environment as well as the critical way to improve the attraction of rural tourism and promote the sustainable development of countryside.

Keywords: landscape pattern, rural settlement, spatial evolution, tourism-oriented, Xiangying Subdistrict

Procedia PDF Downloads 279

Authors: Eddy K. Mukadi

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to provide contributing elements to improve the management of the asthma crisis in the intensive care unit of the General Reference Hospital of Kinshasa. This was a descriptive study of all patients in the intensive care unit presenting with the asthma attack during the period from February 5, 2013 to February 5, 2014. The main data were obtained from consultation registry and medical records. A total of 35 patients, 21 of whom were male (majority) compared to 14 female. Average age of patients was 46.48 plus or minus 16.98 with extremes ranging from 21-75 years. The clinic was dominated by dyspnea in 100% of cases, followed by rales with 91.4% of cases. In spite of the control of the crisis obtained after the treatment with B2 mimetic by inhalation was introduced A 91.5%; 88% corticosteroids; 80% oxygen, the therapeutic principle recommended for the management of asthma attacks was not respected in the majority of cases. This is why we suggest that improving the quality of care to be administered to patients will yield more adequate results.

Keywords: asthma crisis, intensive care, general hospital, Kinshasa

Procedia PDF Downloads 223

Authors: Ali Aghazadegan, Ali Shokri, Julia Mullarney

Abstract:

River confluences are areas where there is a lot of mixing, which is often caused by the formation of shear layers and helical motions. The hydrodynamics of secondary circulation at river confluences with low flow discharge ratios and a 90° junction angle are investigated in this study. The analysis is based on Delft 3D modelling, which includes a three-dimensional time-averaged velocity field, turbulence, and water surface levels that have been validated using laboratory data. Confluence structure was characterized by shear layer, secondary circulation, and mixing at the junction and post confluence channel. This study analysis formation of the shear layer by generation of secondary circulations in variation discharge ratios. The values of streamwise, cross-wise, and vertical components are used to estimate the secondary circulation observed within and downstream of the tributary mouth. These variables are estimated for three horizontal planes at Z = [0.14; 0.07; 0.02] and for eight cross-sections at X = [-0.1; 0.00; 0.10; 0.2; 0.30; 0.4; 0.5; 0.6] within a range of 0.05 Y 0.30.

Keywords: river confluence, shear layer, secondary circulation, hydrodynamics

Procedia PDF Downloads 92

Authors: Miroslav Popelka, Jakub Nožička

Abstract:

In this paper we deal with using Lego Mindstorms in simulation of robotic systems with respect to cost reduction. Lego Mindstorms kit contains broad variety of hardware components which are required to simulate, program and test the robotics systems in practice. Algorithm programming went in development environment supplied together with Lego kit as in programming language C# as well. Algorithm following the line, which we dealt with in this paper, uses theoretical findings from area of controlling circuits. PID controller has been chosen as controlling circuit whose individual components were experimentally adjusted for optimal motion of robot tracking the line. Data which are determined to process by algorithm are collected by sensors which scan the interface between black and white surfaces followed by robot. Based on discovered facts Lego Mindstorms can be considered for low-cost and capable kit to simulate real robotics systems.

Keywords: LEGO Mindstorms, PID controller, low-cost robotics systems, line follower, sensors, programming language C#, EV3 Home Edition Software

Procedia PDF Downloads 367

Authors: Vijay Vir Singh

Abstract:

In this paper, we focus on the reliability and performance analysis of Computer Centre (CC) at Yobe State University, Damaturu, Nigeria. The CC consists of three servers: one database mail server, one redundant and one for sharing with the client computers in the CC (called as local server). Observing the different possibilities of functioning of the CC, analysis has been done to evaluate the various reliability characteristics of the system. The system can completely fail due to failure of router, redundant server before repairing the mail server, and switch failure. The system can also partially fail when local server fails. The system can also fail completely due to a cooling failure, electricity failure or some natural calamity like earthquake, fire etc. All the failure rates are assumed to be constant while repair follows two types of distributions: general and Gumbel-Hougaard family copula.

Keywords: reliability, availability Gumbel-Hougaard family copula, MTTF, internet data centre

Procedia PDF Downloads 454

Authors: Ghazwan Al-Haji

Abstract:

Most accidents occur in urban areas, and the most related casualties are vulnerable road users (pedestrians and cyclists). The traffic calming measures (TCMs) are widely used and considered to be successful in reducing speed and traffic volume. However, TCMs create unwanted effects include: noise, emissions, energy consumption, vehicle delays and emergency response time (ERT). Different vertical and horizontal TCMs have been already applied nationally (Sweden) and internationally with different impacts. It is a big challenge among traffic engineers, planners, and policy-makers to choose and priorities the best TCMs to be implemented. This study will assess the existing guidelines for TCMs in relation to safety and ERT with focus on data from Norrkoping city in Sweden. The expected results will save lives, time, and money on particularly Swedish Roads. The study will also review newly technologies and how they can improve safety and reduce ERT.

Keywords: traffic calming measures, traffic safety, delay time, vulnerable road users

Procedia PDF Downloads 135

Authors: A. Matiushkina, A. Bazhenova, I. Litvinov, E. Kornilova, A. Dubavik, A. Orlova

Abstract:

Magnetic-luminescent complexes based on superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) and semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have been recognized as a new class of materials that have high potential in modern medicine. These materials can serve for theranostics of oncological diseases, and also as a target agent for drug delivery. They combine the qualities characteristic of magnetic nanoparticles, that is, magneto-controllability and the ability to local heating under the influence of an external magnetic field, as well as phosphors, due to luminescence of which, for example, early tumor imaging is possible. The complexity of creating complexes is the energy transfer between particles, which quenches the luminescence of QDs in complexes with SPIONs. In this regard, a relatively new type of alloyed (CdₓZn₁₋ₓSeᵧS₁₋ᵧ)-ZnS QDs is used in our work. The presence of a sufficiently thick gradient semiconductor shell in alloyed QDs makes it possible to reduce the probability of energy transfer from QDs to SPIONs in complexes. At the same time, Forster Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET) is a perfect instrument to confirm the formation of complexes based on QDs and different-type energy acceptors. The formation of complexes in the aprotic bipolar solvent dimethyl sulfoxide is ensured by the coordination of the carboxyl group of the stabilizing QD molecule (L-cysteine) on the surface iron atoms of the SPIONs. An analysis of the photoluminescence (PL) spectra has shown that a sequential increase in the SPIONs concentration in the samples is accompanied by effective quenching of the luminescence of QDs. However, it has not confirmed the formation of complexes yet, because of a decrease in the PL intensity of QDs due to reabsorption of light by SPIONs. Therefore, a study of the PL kinetics of QDs at different SPIONs concentrations was made, which demonstrates that an increase in the SPIONs concentration is accompanied by a symbatic reduction in all characteristic PL decay times. It confirms the FRET from QDs to SPIONs, which indicates the QDs/SPIONs complex formation, rather than a spontaneous aggregation of QDs, which is usually accompanied by a sharp increase in the percentage of the QD fraction with the shortest characteristic PL decay time. The complexes have been studied by the magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectroscopy that allows one to estimate the response of magnetic material to the applied magnetic field and also can be useful to check SPIONs aggregation. An analysis of the MCD spectra has shown that the complexes have zero residual magnetization, which is an important factor for using in biomedical applications, and don't contain SPIONs aggregates. Cell penetration, biocompatibility, and stability of QDs/SPIONs complexes in cancer cells have been studied using HeLa cell line. We have found that the complexes penetrate in HeLa cell and don't demonstrate cytotoxic effect up to 25 nM concentration. Our results clearly demonstrate that alloyed (CdₓZn₁₋ₓSeᵧS₁₋ᵧ)-ZnS QDs can be successfully used in complexes with SPIONs reached new hybrid nanostructures, which combine bright luminescence for tumor imaging and magnetic properties for targeted drug delivery and magnetic hyperthermia of tumors. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Russian Federation, goszadanie no. 2019-1080 and was financially supported by Government of Russian Federation, Grant 08-08.

Keywords: alloyed quantum dots, magnetic circular dichroism, magneto-luminescent complexes, superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles

Procedia PDF Downloads 107

Authors: Azazhu Wassie

Abstract:

This study tried to analyze the impact of the hydrologic and hydraulic parameters (catchment area, rainfall intensity, and runoff coefficient) on the referenced study area. The study was conducted in June 2023. The Aremenie River Dam has 30 years of record, which is reasonably sufficient data. It is a matter of common experience that, due to the failure of an instrument or the absence of a gauged river, the rainfall record at quite a number of stations is incomplete. From the analysis, the 50-year return period design flood is 62.685 m³/s at 1.2 hr peak time. This implies that for this watershed, the peak flood rate per km² area of the watershed is about this value, which ensures that high rainfall in the area can generate a higher rate of runoff per km² of the generating catchment. The Aremenie Rivers carry a large amount of sediment along with water. These sediments are deposited in the reservoir upstream of the dam because of the reduction in velocity. Sediment reduces the available capacity of the reservoir with continuous sedimentation; the useful life of the reservoir goes on decreasing.

Keywords: dam design, peak flood, rainfall, reservoir capacity, runoff

Procedia PDF Downloads 20

Authors: Juan Du

Abstract:

Climate change is one of the most crucial issues of this era, with contentious debates on it among scholars. But there are sparse studies on climate change discourse in China. Including China in the study of climate change is essential for a sociological understanding of climate change. China -- as a developing country and an essential player in tackling climate change -- offers an ideal case for studying climate change for scholars moving beyond developed countries and enriching their understandings of climate change by including diverse social settings. This project contrasts the macro- and micro-level understandings of climate change in China, which helps scholars move beyond a focus on climate skepticism and denialism and enriches sociology of climate change knowledge. The macro-level understanding of climate change is obtained by analyzing over 4,000 newspaper articles from various official outlets in China. State-controlled newspapers play an essential role in transmitting essential and high-quality information and promoting broader public understanding of climate change and its anthropogenic nature. Thus, newspaper articles can be seen as tools employed by governments to mobilize the public in terms of supporting the development of a strategy shift from economy-growth to an ecological civilization. However, media is just one of the significant factors influencing an individual’s climate change concern. Extreme weather events, access to accurate scientific information, elite cues, and movement/countermovement advocacy influence an individual’s perceptions of climate change. Hence, there are differences in the ways that both newspaper articles and the public frame the issues. The online forum is an informative channel for scholars to understand the public’s opinion. The micro-level data comes from Zhihu, which is China’s equivalence of Quora. Users can propose, answer, and comment on questions. This project analyzes the questions related to climate change which have over 20 answers. By open-coding both the macro- and micro-level data, this project will depict the differences between ideology as presented in government-controlled newspapers and how people talk and act with respect to climate change in cyberspace, which may provide an idea about any existing disconnect in public behavior and their willingness to change daily activities to facilitate a greener society. The contemporary Yellow Vest protests in France illustrate that the large gap between governmental policies of climate change mitigation and the public’s understanding may lead to social movement activity and social instability. Effective environmental policy is impossible without the public’s support. Finding existing gaps in understanding may help policy-makers develop effective ways of framing climate change and obtain more supporters of climate change related policies. Overall, this qualitative project provides answers to the following research questions: 1) How do different state-controlled newspapers transmit their ideology on climate change to the public and in what ways? 2) How do individuals frame climate change online? 3) What are the differences between newspapers’ framing and individual’s framing?

Keywords: climate change, China, framing theory, media, public’s climate change concern

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Asimina Paparrigopoulou, John Pavlopoulos, Maria Konstantinidou

Abstract:

Dating papyri accurately is crucial not only to editing their texts but also for our understanding of palaeography and the history of writing, ancient scholarship, material culture, networks in antiquity, etc. Most ancient manuscripts offer little evidence regarding the time of their production, forcing papyrologists to date them on palaeographical grounds, a method often criticized for its subjectivity. By experimenting with data obtained from the Collaborative Database of Dateable Greek Bookhands and the PapPal online collections of objectively dated Greek papyri, this study shows that deep learning dating models, pre-trained on generic images, can achieve accurate chronological estimates for a test subset (67,97% accuracy for book hands and 55,25% for documents). To compare the estimates of these models with those of humans, experts were asked to complete a questionnaire with samples of literary and documentary hands that had to be sorted chronologically by century. The same samples were dated by the models in question. The results are presented and analysed.

Keywords: image classification, papyri images, dating

Procedia PDF Downloads 73

Authors: Murada Alholy, Mengshi Lin, Omar Alhaj, Mahmoud Abugoush

Abstract:

Alicyclobacillus is a causative agent of spoilage in pasteurized and heat-treated apple juice products. Differentiating between this genus and the closely related Bacillus is crucially important. In this study, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was used to identify and discriminate between four Alicyclobacillus strains and four Bacillus isolates inoculated individually into apple juice. Loading plots over the range of 1350 and 1700 cm-1 reflected the most distinctive biochemical features of Bacillus and Alicyclobacillus. Multivariate statistical methods (e.g. principal component analysis (PCA) and soft independent modeling of class analogy (SIMCA)) were used to analyze the spectral data. Distinctive separation of spectral samples was observed. This study demonstrates that FT-IR spectroscopy in combination with multivariate analysis could serve as a rapid and effective tool for fruit juice industry to differentiate between Bacillus and Alicyclobacillus and to distinguish between species belonging to these two genera.

Keywords: alicyclobacillus, bacillus, FT-IR, spectroscopy, PCA

Procedia PDF Downloads 478

Authors: Jessica Arthur, Duke Amegah, Kingsley Akenten Wiafe

Abstract:

Background: Vanilla planifolia is the only edible fruit of the orchid family (Orchidaceae) among the over 35,000 Orchidaceae species found worldwide. In Ghana, Vanilla was discovered in the wild, but it is underutilized for commercial production, most likely due to a lack of knowledge on the best NAA and BAP combinations for in vitro propagation to promote successfully regenerated plant acclimatization. The growing interest and global demand for elite Vanilla planifolia plants and natural vanilla flavour emphasize the need for an effective industrial-scale micropropagation protocol. Tissue culture systems are increasingly used to grow disease-free plants and reliable in vitro methods can also produce plantlets with typically modest proliferation rates. This study sought to develop an efficient protocol for in vitro propagation of vanilla using nodal explants by testing different concentrations of NAA and BAP, for the proliferation of the entire plant. Methods: Nodal explants with dormant axillary buds were obtained from year-old laboratory-grown Vanilla planifolia plants. MS media was prepared with a nutrient stock solution (containing macronutrients, micronutrients, iron solution and vitamins) and semi-solidified using phytagel. It was supplemented with different concentrations of NAA and BAP to induce multiple shoots and roots (0.5mg/L BAP with NAA at 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2.0mg/L and vice-versa). The explants were sterilized, cultured in labelled test tubes and incubated at 26°C ± 2°C with 16/8 hours light/dark cycle. Data on shoot and root growth, leaf number, node number, and survival percentage were collected over three consecutive two-week periods. The data were square root transformed and subjected to ANOVA and LSD at a 5% significance level using the R statistical package. Results: Shoots emerged at 8 days and roots at 12 days after inoculation with 94% survival rate. It was discovered that for the NAA treatments, MS media supplemented with 2.00 mg/l NAA resulted in the highest shoot length (10.45cm), maximum root number (1.51), maximum shoot number (1.47) and the highest number of leaves (1.29). MS medium containing 1.00 mg/l NAA produced the highest number of nodes (1.62) and root length (14.27cm). Also, a similar growth pattern for the BAP treatments was observed. MS medium supplemented with 1.50 mg/l BAP resulted in the highest shoot length (14.98 cm), the highest number of nodes (4.60), the highest number of leaves (1.75) and the maximum shoot number (1.57). MS medium containing 0.50 mg/l BAP and 1.0 mg/l BAP generated a maximum root number (1.44) and the highest root length (13.25cm), respectively. However, the best concentration combination for maximizing shoot and root was media containing 1.5mg/l BAP combined with 0.5mg/l NAA, and 1.0mg/l NAA combined with 0.5mg/l of BAP respectively. These concentrations were optimum for in vitro growth and production of Vanilla planifolia. Significance: This study presents a standardized protocol for labs to produce clean vanilla plantlets, enhancing cultivation in Ghana and beyond. It provides insights into Vanilla planifolia's growth patterns and hormone responses, aiding future research and cultivation.

Keywords: Vanilla planifolia, In vitro propagation, plant hormones, MS media

Procedia PDF Downloads 52

Authors: Rungnapa Chantra

Abstract:

As health care rapidly changes, the nursing profession is also evolving to improve quality of care while maintaining competency in their practice. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors of disaster nurse competencies and investigate the predictable variables in disaster nurse competencies in Suratthani Province, Thailand. The sample consisted of 305 nurses who were recruited by simple random sampling. The development questionnaires from ICN Framework and research contains Pre/Mitigation, Preparedness, Response and Recovery/Rehabilitation Competencies (α=0.87). The data were analyzed using Principle Components Extraction and Orthogonal Rotation with Varimax Method. The findings were as follows; four significant factors of disaster nurse competencies in Suratthani Province, Thailand were identified. These factors were described by 62 variables that accounted for 50.01% of the total variance. The results of this study could be for agencies that are responsible for the development of nursing competencies and should be aware of the development of knowledge and skills in disaster management.

Keywords: disaster nursing competency of nurses, nursing informatics, health science, medical

Procedia PDF Downloads 361

Authors: Chinlun Lai, Lunjyh Jiang

Abstract:

Due to the heavy burden and pressure of caring for infants, an integrated automatic baby watching system based on IoT smart sensing and deep learning machine vision techniques is proposed in this paper. By monitoring infant body conditions such as heartbeat, breathing, body temperature, sleeping posture, as well as the surrounding conditions such as dangerous/sharp objects, light, noise, humidity and temperature, the proposed system can analyze and predict the obvious/potential dangerous conditions according to observed data and then adopt suitable actions in real time to protect the infant from harm. Thus, reducing the burden of the caregiver and improving safety efficiency of the caring work. The experimental results show that the proposed system works successfully for the infant care work and thus can be implemented in various life fields practically.

Keywords: baby care system, Internet of Things, deep learning, machine vision

Procedia PDF Downloads 222

Authors: Rajaian Hoonejani Mohammad, Eshraghi Pegah, Zomorodian Zahra Sadat, Tahsildoost Mohammad

Abstract:

Over the past decade, energy consumption in educational buildings has steadily increased. The purpose of this research is to provide a method to quickly predict the energy consumption of buildings using separate evaluation of zones and decomposing the building to eliminate the complexity of geometry at the early design stage. To produce this framework, machine learning algorithms such as Support vector regression (SVR) and Artificial neural network (ANN) are used to predict energy consumption and thermal comfort metrics in a school as a case. The database consists of more than 55000 samples in three climates of Iran. Cross-validation evaluation and unseen data have been used for validation. In a specific label, cooling energy, it can be said the accuracy of prediction is at least 84% and 89% in SVR and ANN, respectively. The results show that the SVR performed much better than the ANN.

Keywords: early stage of design, energy, thermal comfort, validation, machine learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 60

Authors: Ali Akbar Jabbari

Abstract:

This study investigates the role of the prior acquired languages, Persian and English, concerning the acquisition of the third language (L3) French and German at the initial stages. The data were collected from two groups of L3 learners: 28 learners of L3 French and 21 learners of L3 German, in order to test the placement of the attributive adjectives and the noun adjuncts through a grammaticality judgment task and an element rearrangement task. The aim of the study was to investigate whether any of the models proposed in the L3 acquisition could account for the case of the present study. The results of the analysis revealed that the learners of L3 German and French were both affected by the typological similarity of the previous languages. The outperformance of the German learners is an indication of the facilitative effect of L2 English (which is typologically more similar to the German than that of French). English had also a non-facilitative role in the acquisition of French and this is proved in the lower performance of the French learners. This study provided evidence for the TPM as the most accepted model of L3 acquisition.

Keywords: cross-linguistic influence, multilingualism, third language acquisition, transfer

Procedia PDF Downloads 173

Authors: Ramon Hernán, Maria Teresa Corzo

Abstract:

This study examines the impact and contribution of the main journals in the discipline of behavioral finance to determine the state of the art of the discipline and the growth lines and concepts studied to date. This is a unique and novel study given that a review of the discipline has not been carried out through the keywords of the articles that allows visualizing through this component of the research, which are the main topics of discussion and the relationships that arise between the concepts discussed. To carry out this study, 3,876 articles have been taken as a reference, which includes 15,859 keywords from the main journals responsible for the growth of the discipline.; Journal of Behavioral Finance, Review of Behavioral Finance, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics, Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics and Review of Behavioral Finance. The results indicate which are the topics most covered in the discipline throughout the period from 2000 to 2020, how these concepts have been dealt with on a recurring basis along with others throughout the aforementioned period and how the different concepts have been grouped based on the keywords established by the authors for the classification of their articles with a network diagram to complete the analysis.

Keywords: behavioral finance, keywords, co-words, top journals, data visualization

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Rehab Abdulmajed, Amr Hamada, Ahmed Elsaid, Hisashi Hayakawa, Ayman Mahrous

Abstract:

Solar emissions have a high impact on the Earth’s magnetic field, and the prediction of solar events is of high interest. Various techniques have been used in the prediction of solar wind using mathematical models, MHD models, and neural network (NN) models. This study investigates the coronal hole (CH) derived high-speed streams (HSSs) and their correlation to the CH area and create a neural network model to predict the HSSs. Two different algorithms were used to compare different models to find a model that best simulates the HSSs. A dataset of CH synoptic maps through Carrington rotations 1601 to 2185 along with Omni-data set solar wind speed averaged over the Carrington rotations is used, which covers Solar cycles (sc) 21, 22, 23, and most of 24.

Keywords: artificial neural network, coronal hole area, feed-forward neural network models, solar high speed streams

Procedia PDF Downloads 81

Authors: Sadiq Habiba Alhaji

Abstract:

This is a descriptive survey design intended to determine the level of usage of the learner centred methods by student teachers of Federal College of Education Kontagora, Niger State, Nigeria. The study was guided by two null hypotheses formulated by the researcher. The population of the study are students of Federal College of Education, Kontagora. The Target Population consisted of one hundred Teaching practice students drawn from sciences, Arts, and humanities who were posted to various schools practicing different teaching methods. The student teachers were supervised using the checklist designed by the researcher to determine their level of usage of learner centred methods. Data collected was analysed using t test of independent variables. It was recommended that pre service and in service teachers should be equipped with the skills of using learner centred methods.

Keywords: assessment, usage, learner centred, methods, student teachers

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Boughedaoui Rachid, Belaidi Idir, Ouali Mohamed

Abstract:

The formatting by removal of material remains an indispensable means for obtaining different forms of pieces. The objective of this work is to study the influence of parameters of the vibratory regime of the system PTM 'Piece-Tool-Machine, in the case of the machining of the thin pieces on the surface finish. As a first step, an analytical study of essential dynamic models 2D slice will be presented. The stability lobes will be thus obtained. In a second step, a characterization of PTM system will be realized. This system will be instrumented with accelerometric sensors but also a laser vibrometer so as to have the information closer to the cutting area. Dynamometers three components will be used for the analysis of cutting forces. Surface states will be measured and the condition of the cutting edge will be visualized thanks to a binocular microscope coupled to a data acquisition system. This information will allow quantifying the influence of chatter on the dimensional quality of the parts. From lobes stabilities previously determined experimental validation allow for the development a method for detecting of the phenomenon of chatter and so an approach will be proposed.

Keywords: chatter, dynamic, milling, lobe stability

Procedia PDF Downloads 351

Authors: Rami Al Jafar, Paul Elliott, Konstantinos K. Tsilidis, Abbas Dehghan

Abstract:

Although Ramadan fasting is a ritual that is practiced every year by millions of Muslims, studies on Ramadan fasting are still scarce. To the best of our knowledge, none of the previous studies comprehensively explored the effect on the metabolic profile. In London Ramadan Fasting Study, blood samples were collected from 81 participants before and 10-14 days after Ramadan. Blood samples were analysed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy which covers 249 metabolites. Mixed-effects models were used to analyse collected data and assess the effect of Ramadan fasting on the metabolic profile. Our observational study involved 85 individuals with a mean age of 45.2 years, and 53.1% of them were males. After Ramadan, forty metabolites were affected significantly by Ramadan fasting. Most of these metabolites were metabolites ratios (24), and the rest were three Glycolysis, three ketone bodies, nine Lipoprotein subclasses and one inflammation marker. This study suggests that Ramadan fasting is significantly associated with changes in the metabolic profile. However, the changes are assumed to be temporary, and the long-term effect of these changes is unknown.

Keywords: metabolic profile, Ramadan fasting, metabolites, intermittent fasting

Procedia PDF Downloads 161

Authors: Cem Ozatalay, Senem Ornek

Abstract:

The Artprice Contemporary Art Market Annual Report 2014 notices that Istanbul, with its art market volume of $3.6 million has become the first city of the Middle East and North Africa region and the 14th city of the World. Indeed, the period 2004–2014 has been significant in terms of the growth of the art market, during which the majority of contemporary art galleries and museums in Istanbul was inaugurated. This boom means that with the joining of new agents, the structure of the art market has dramatically changed. To use Nathalie Heinich’s terminology, in the current art field, three art genres – namely classical art, modern art and contemporary art – coexist, but in the case of Istanbul, such as many art cities in the world, the latter genre has become increasingly dominant. This presentation aims to show how the power shifts away from the classical art agents to contemporary art agents, and the effects produced by the conflicts between the old and new agents of current art field. Based on the data obtained from an ongoing field research in Istanbul among the art market agents such as art dealers, curators, art critics and artists, it will be shown that even if the agents of different art genres are in conflict with each other, there is, at the same time, a continuum between the three art worlds.

Keywords: contemporary art market, economic sociology of art, Istanbul art market, structure of the art field in Istanbul

Procedia PDF Downloads 245

Authors: Vishal Jaunky, Jonas Grafström

Abstract:

The development of the European Union’s (EU) single economic market and rapid technological change has resulted in major structural changes in EU’s member states economies. The general liberalization process that the countries has undergone together has convinced the governments of the member states of need to upgrade their economic and training systems in order to be able to face the economic globalization. Several signs of economic convergence have been found but less is known about the knowledge production. This paper addresses the convergence pattern of technological innovation in 13 European Union (EU) states over the time period 1990-2011 by means of parametric and non-parametric techniques. Parametric approaches revolve around the neoclassical convergence theories. This paper reveals divergence of both the β and σ types. Further, we found evidence of stochastic divergence and non-parametric convergence approach such as distribution dynamics shows a tendency towards divergence. This result is supported with the occurrence of γ-divergence. The policies of the EU to reduce technological gap among its member states seem to be missing its target, something that can have negative long run consequences for the market.

Keywords: convergence, patents, panel data, European union

Procedia PDF Downloads 281