Search results for: dispersion and non-linearity interaction

Authors: M. Pomianek, M. Piszczek, M. Maciejewski

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The binocular eye tracking technology is increasingly being used in industry, entertainment and marketing analysis. In the case of virtual reality, eye tracking systems are already the basis for user interaction with the environment. In such systems, the high accuracy of determining the user's eye fixation point is very important due to the specificity of the virtual reality head-mounted display (HMD). Often, however, there are unknown errors occurring in the used eye tracking technology, as well as those resulting from the positioning of the devices in relation to the user's eyes. However, can the virtual environment itself influence estimation errors? The paper presents mathematical analyses and empirical studies of the determination of the fixation point and errors resulting from the change in the size of the pupil in response to the intensity of the displayed scene. The article contains both static laboratory tests as well as on the real user. Based on the research results, optimization solutions were proposed that would reduce the errors of gaze estimation errors. Studies show that errors in estimating the fixation point of vision can be minimized both by improving the pupil positioning algorithm in the video image and by using more precise methods to calibrate the eye tracking system in three-dimensional space.

Keywords: eye tracking, fixation point, pupil size, virtual reality

Procedia PDF Downloads 136

Authors: Marina Passero, Tianhua Zhai, Zuyi (Jacky) Huang

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Alzheimer’s disease has become a major public health issue, as indicated by the increasing populations of Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease. After decades of extensive research in Alzheimer’s disease, only seven drugs have been approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat Alzheimer’s disease. Five of these drugs were designed to treat the dementia symptoms, and only two drugs (i.e., Aducanumab and Lecanemab) target the progression of Alzheimer’s disease, especially the accumulation of amyloid-b plaques. However, controversial comments were raised for the accelerated approvals of either Aducanumab or Lecanemab, especially with concerns on safety and side effects of these two drugs. There is still an urgent need for further drug discovery to target the biological processes involved in the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Excessive cholesterol has been found to accumulate in the brain of those with Alzheimer’s disease. Cholesterol can be synthesized in both the blood and the brain, but the majority of biosynthesis in the adult brain takes place in astrocytes and is then transported to the neurons via ApoE. The blood brain barrier separates cholesterol metabolism in the brain from the rest of the body. Various proteins contribute to the metabolism of cholesterol in the brain, which offer potential targets for Alzheimer’s treatment. In the astrocytes, SREBP cleavage-activating protein (SCAP) binds to Sterol Regulatory Element-binding Protein 2 (SREBP2) in order to transport the complex from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi apparatus. Cholesterol is secreted out of the astrocytes by ATP-Binding Cassette A1 (ABCA1) transporter. Lipoprotein receptors such as triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) internalize cholesterol into the microglia, while lipoprotein receptors such as Low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) internalize cholesterol into the neuron. Cytochrome P450 Family 46 Subfamily A Member 1 (CYP46A1) converts excess cholesterol to 24S-hydroxycholesterol (24S-OHC). Cholesterol has been approved for its direct effect on the production of amyloid-beta and tau proteins. The addition of cholesterol to the brain promotes the activity of beta-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme 1 (BACE1), secretase, and amyloid precursor protein (APP), which all aid in amyloid-beta production. The reduction of cholesterol esters in the brain have been found to reduce phosphorylated tau levels in mice. In this work, a computational pipeline was developed to identify the protein targets involved in cholesterol regulation in brain and further to identify chemical compounds as the inhibitors of a selected protein target. Since extensive evidence shows the strong correlation between brain cholesterol regulation and Alzheimer’s disease, a detailed literature review on genes or pathways related to the brain cholesterol synthesis and regulation was first conducted in this work. An interaction network was then built for those genes so that the top gene targets were identified. The involvement of these genes in Alzheimer’s disease progression was discussed, which was followed by the investigation of existing clinical trials for those targets. A ligand-protein docking program was finally developed to screen 1.5 million chemical compounds for the selected protein target. A machine learning program was developed to evaluate and predict the binding interaction between chemical compounds and the protein target. The results from this work pave the way for further drug discovery to regulate brain cholesterol to combat Alzheimer’s disease.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, drug discovery, ligand-protein docking, gene-network analysis, cholesterol regulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Neziha Jaouedi, Noureddine Boujnah, Mohamed Salim Bouhlel

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In the framework of human machine interaction systems enhancement, we focus throw this paper on human behavior analysis and action recognition. Human behavior is characterized by actions and reactions duality (movements, psychological modification, verbal and emotional expression). It’s worth noting that many information is hidden behind gesture, sudden motion points trajectories and speeds, many research works reconstructed an information retrieval issues. In our work we will focus on motion extraction, tracking and action recognition using wavelet network approaches. Our contribution uses an analysis of human subtraction by Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) and body movement through trajectory models of motion constructed from kalman filter. These models allow to remove the noise using the extraction of the main motion features and constitute a stable base to identify the evolutions of human activity. Each modality is used to recognize a human action using wavelets of derived beta distributions approach. The proposed approach has been validated successfully on a subset of KTH and UCF sports database.

Keywords: feautures extraction, human action classifier, wavelet neural network, beta wavelet

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Authors: X. Wang, T. J. Craft, H. Iacovides

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When handling the near-wall regions of turbulent flows, it is necessary to account for the viscous effects which are important over the thin near-wall layers. Low-Reynolds- number turbulence models do this by including explicit viscous and also damping terms which become active in the near-wall regions, and using very fine near-wall grids to properly resolve the steep gradients present. In order to overcome the cost associated with the low-Re turbulence models, a more advanced wall function approach has been implemented within OpenFoam and tested together with a standard log-law based wall function in the prediction of flows which involve 2-D shock wave/turbulent boundary layer interactions (SWTBLIs). On the whole, from the calculation of the impinging shock interaction, the three turbulence modelling strategies, the Lauder-Sharma k-ε model with Yap correction (LS), the high-Re k-ε model with standard wall function (SWF) and analytical wall function (AWF), display good predictions of wall-pressure. However, the SWF approach tends to underestimate the tendency of the flow to separate as a result of the SWTBLI. The analytical wall function, on the other hand, is able to reproduce the shock-induced flow separation and returns predictions similar to those of the low-Re model, using a much coarser mesh.

Keywords: SWTBLIs, skin-friction, turbulence modeling, wall function

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Authors: Neha Bhushan

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For the purpose of this study a village of district Azamgarh has been selected which is a part of the most populous and backward state of the country, Uttar Pradesh. In the age of information, everyone has the right to acquire information and it becomes important to assess the acceptance and non-acceptance of social media among rural population. Rural women of the state are showing positive trends in the form of increased social media and mobile usage. This study is an effort to know the purpose of rural women for using social media. The study design is exploratory and qualitative in nature. Data collection primarily consisted of 25 semi-structured individual interviews having 10 open-ended specific questions in one of the villages of Azamgarh district of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. Sampling approach is flexible and situational. Data reveals that rural women have become active on social media since last six months to one year. Most of them are using Facebook, Whatsapp, and YouTube for the purpose of interaction, learning new skills, checking out recipes and latest fashion. This pilot study gives a bird eye view of the problem and opens door for exploring this least explored area.

Keywords: exploratory research, mobile usage, rural women, social media

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Ying Yu, Wen-Chi Kuo, Tung-Jung Sung

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The Product-Service System (PSS) has received widespread attention due to the increasing global competition in manufacturing and service markets. Today’s smart products and services are driven by Internet of things (IoT) technologies which will promote the transformation from traditional PSS to smart PSS. Although the smart PSS has some of technological achievements in businesses, it often ignores the real demands of target users when using products and services. Therefore, designers should know and learn the User Experience (UX) of smart products, services and systems. However, both of academia and industry still lack relevant development experience of smart PSS since it is an emerging field. In doing so, this is a case study of Xiaomi’s Chunmi, the largest IoT platform in the world, and addresses the two major issues: (1) why Chunmi should develop smart PSS strategies with UX; and (2) how Chunmi could successfully implement the strategic objectives of smart PSS through the design. The case study results indicated that: (1) the smart PSS can distinguish competitors by their unique UX which is difficult to duplicate; (2) early user engagement is crucial for the success of smart PSS; and (3) interaction, expectation, and enjoyment can be treated as a three-dimensional evaluation of UX design for smart PSS innovation. In conclusion, the smart PSS can gain competitive advantages through good UX design in the market.

Keywords: design, smart PSS, user experience, user engagement

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Authors: Victoria Molina, Wendy Franco, Sergio Benavides, José M. Troncoso, Ricardo Luna, Jose R. PéRez-Correa

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Emamectin Benzoate (EB) is a crystal antiparasitic that belongs to the avermectin family. It is one of the most common treatments used in Chile to control Caligus rogercresseyi in Atlantic salmon. However, the sea lice acquired resistance to EB when it is exposed at sublethal EB doses. The low solubility rate of EB and its degradation at the acidic pH in the fish digestive tract are the causes of the slow absorption of EB in the intestine. To protect EB from degradation and enhance its absorption, specific microencapsulation technologies must be developed. Amorphous Solid Dispersion techniques such as Spray Drying (SD) and Ionic Gelation (IG) seem adequate for this purpose. Recently, Soluplus® (SOL) has been used to increase the solubility rate of several drugs with similar characteristics than EB. In addition, alginate (ALG) is a widely used polymer in IG for biomedical applications. Regardless of the encapsulation technique, the quality of the obtained microparticles is evaluated with the following responses, yield (Y%), encapsulation efficiency (EE%) and loading capacity (LC%). In addition, it is important to know the percentage of EB released from the microparticles in gastric (GD%) and intestinal (ID%) digestions. In this work, we microencapsulated EB with SOL (EB-SD) and with ALG (EB-IG) using SD and IG, respectively. Quality microencapsulation responses and in vitro gastric and intestinal digestions at pH 3.35 and 7.8, respectively, were obtained. A central composite design was used to find the optimum microencapsulation variables (amount of EB, amount of polymer and feed flow). In each formulation, the behavior of these variables was predicted with statistical models. Then, the response surface methodology was used to find the best combination of the factors that allowed a lower EB release in gastric conditions, while permitting a major release at intestinal digestion. Two approaches were used to determine this. The desirability approach (DA) and multi-objective optimization (MOO) with multi-criteria decision making (MCDM). Both microencapsulation techniques allowed to maintain the integrity of EB in acid pH, given the small amount of EB released in gastric medium, while EB-IG microparticles showed greater EB release at intestinal digestion. For EB-SD, optimal conditions obtained with MOO plus MCDM yielded a good compromise among the microencapsulation responses. In addition, using these conditions, it is possible to reduce microparticles costs due to the reduction of 60% of BE regard the optimal BE proposed by (DA). For EB-GI, the optimization techniques used (DA and MOO) yielded solutions with different advantages and limitations. Applying DA costs can be reduced 21%, while Y, GD and ID showed 9.5%, 84.8% and 2.6% lower values than the best condition. In turn, MOO yielded better microencapsulation responses, but at a higher cost. Overall, EB-SD with operating conditions selected by MOO seems the best option, since a good compromise between costs and encapsulation responses was obtained.

Keywords: microencapsulation, multiple decision-making criteria, multi-objective optimization, Soluplus®

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Authors: Hee-Jung Seo, Yunjung Lee, Areum Han, Heeyoung Park, Se-Hyuk Park

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The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between happiness and depression among people with disabilities and to analyze the social phenomenon of leisure activities among them to promote physical and leisure activities for people with disabilities. The research methods included analyzing differences in happiness according to depression classification. A total of 281 people with disabilities were analyzed using SPSS WIN Ver. 29.0. In addition, the SumTrend platform was used to analyze terms related to 'leisure activities for the disabled.' The findings can be summarized into two main points: First, there were significant differences in happiness according to depression classification. Second, there were 20 mentions before COVID-19, 34 mentions after COVID-19, and currently 43 mentions, with high positive rates observed in each period. Based on these results, the following conclusions were drawn: First, measures for people with disabilities include strengthening online resources and services, social distancing response policies, improving accessibility, and providing support and financial assistance. Second, measures for non-disabled individuals emphasize the need for education and information provision, promoting dialogue and interaction, ensuring accessibility, and promoting inclusive cultural awareness and attitude change.

Keywords: leisure activities, individuals with disabilities, COVID-19 pandemic, depression

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Alberto Sanchidrián, José A. Parra, Jesús Alonso, Julián Pecharromán, Antonia Pacios, Consuelo Huerta

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Glass is a commonly used material in building; there is not a unique design solution as plates with a different number of layers and interlayers may be used. In most façades, a security glazing have to be used according to its performance in the impact pendulum. The European Standard EN 12600 establishes an impact test procedure for classification under the point of view of the human security, of flat plates with different thickness, using a pendulum of two tires and 50 kg mass that impacts against the plate from different heights. However, this test does not replicate the actual dimensions and border conditions used in building configurations and so the real stress distribution is not determined with this test. The influence of different boundary conditions, as the ones employed in construction sites, is not well taking into account when testing the behaviour of safety glazing and there is not a detailed procedure and criteria to determinate the glass resistance against human impact. To reproduce the actual boundary conditions on site, when needed, the pendulum test is arranged to be used "in situ", with no account for load control, stiffness, and without a standard procedure. Fracture stress of small and large glass plates fit a Weibull distribution with quite a big dispersion so conservative values are adopted for admissible fracture stress under static loads. In fact, test performed for human impact gives a fracture strength two or three times higher, and many times without a total fracture of the glass plate. Newest standards, as for example DIN 18008-4, states for an admissible fracture stress 2.5 times higher than the ones used for static and wing loads. Now two working areas are open: a) to define a standard for the ‘in situ’ test; b) to prepare a laboratory procedure that allows testing with more real stress distribution. To work on both research lines a laboratory that allows to test medium size specimens with different border conditions, has been developed. A special steel frame allows reproducing the stiffness of the glass support substructure, including a rigid condition used as reference. The dynamic behaviour of the glass plate and its support substructure have been characterized with finite elements models updated with modal tests results. In addition, a new portable impact machine is being used to get enough force and direction control during the impact test. Impact based on 100 J is used. To avoid problems with broken glass plates, the test have been done using an aluminium plate of 1000 mm x 700 mm size and 10 mm thickness supported on four sides; three different substructure stiffness conditions are used. A detailed control of the dynamic stiffness and the behaviour of the plate is done with modal tests. Repeatability of the test and reproducibility of results prove that procedure to control both, stiffness of the plate and the impact level, is necessary.

Keywords: glass plates, human impact test, modal test, plate boundary conditions

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Authors: Naiduwadura Ivon Upekala De Silva, Nathan Lehman, Talia Fargason, Trenton Paul, Zihan Zhang, Jun Zhang

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SRSF1 governs splicing of over 1,500 mRNA transcripts. SRSF1 contains two RNA-recognition motifs (RRMs) and a C-terminal Arg/Ser-rich region (RS). It has been thought that SRSF1 RRMs exclusively recognize single-stranded exonic splicing enhancers, while RS lacks RNA-binding specificity. With our success in solving the insolubility problem of SRSF1, we can explore the unknown RNA-binding landscape of SRSF1. We find that SRSF1 RS prefers purine over pyrimidine. Moreover, SRSF1 binds to the G-quadruplex (GQ) from the ARPC2 mRNA, with both RRMs and RS being crucial. Our binding assays show that the traditional RNA-binding sites on the RRM tandem and the Arg in RS are responsible for GQ binding. Interestingly, our FRET and circular dichroism data reveal that SRSF1 unfolds the ARPC2 GQ, with RS leading unfolding and RRMs aiding. Our saturation transfer difference NMR results discover that Arg residues in SRSF1 RS interact with the guanine base but with other nucleobases, underscoring the uniqueness of the Arg/guanine interaction. Our luciferase assays confirm that SRSF1 can alleviate the inhibitory effect of GQ on gene expression in the cell. Given the prevalence of RNA GQ and SR proteins, our findings unveil unexplored SR protein functions with broad implications in RNA splicing and translation.

Keywords: SR, SRSF!, RNA G-quadruplex, unfolding, RNA binding

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Authors: Fatma Zehra Engin Sagirli, Eyup Sabri Kayali, A. Sezai Sarac

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In this study, Poly (acrylonitrile-co-methylacrylate)/N-Methyl Pyrrole and Pyrrole ([P(AN-co-MA)]-NMPy and [P(AN-co-MA)]-PPy) core–shell nanoparticles were obtained by in situ emulsion polymerization in the presence of Sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDBS and SDS) by using ammonium per sulphate in the aqueous medium. The spectroscopic characterizations during the formation of nanocomposites were studied using Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (FTIR-ATR) spectroscopy, ultraviolet–visible spectrophotometer (Uv-Vis). Electrical conductivity of the emulsion solution was measured by Conductivity Meter from aqueous sample solution. Also, yield of the powder nanocomposites was measured. SDBS and SDS used for investigation of surfactant effect on yield, electrical conductivity and polymerization process. Determination of polymerization yield, (FTIR-ATR) and (Uv-Vis) prove that the SDBS surfactant become more incorporated into the conducting polymers and there is strong interaction between the [P(AN-co-MA)]-PPy derivatives which prepared by these surfactants. The similar inclusion of SDS into conducting polymers was not observed, there is a remarkable difference at nanocomposites which prepared with SDS.

Keywords: nanocomposites, core-shell, pyrole, surfactant

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Authors: Priyadarshini Kiran, Gulshan Kumar

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: Social media are becoming the most important tools for interaction among learners, pedagogues and parents where everybody can share, exchange, comment, discuss and create information and knowledge in a collaborative way. The present case study attempts to highlight the role of social media (WhatsApp) in nurturing learning habits in toddlers with the help of parents in primary education. The Case study is based on primary data collected from a primary school situated in a small town in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India. In research methodology, survey and structured interviews have been used as a tool collected from parents and pedagogues. The findings Suggest: - To nurture learning habits in toddlers, parents and pedagogues use social media site (WhatsApp) in real-time and that too is convenient and handy; - Skill enhancement on the part of Pedagogues as a result of employing innovative teaching-learning techniques; - Social media sites serve as a social connectivity tool to ward off negativity and monotony on the part of parents and pedagogues in the wake of COVID- 19

Keywords: innovative teaching-learning techniques, pedagogues, social media, nurture, toddlers

Procedia PDF Downloads 177

Authors: O. J. Jesumoroti, Faridoon, R. Klein, K. A. Iobb, D. Mnkadhla, H. C. Hoppe, P. T. Kaye

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The 1, 3-aryl diketo acids (DKA) based agents represent an important class of HIV integrase (IN) strand transfer inhibitors. In other to study the chelating role of the divalent metal ion in the inhibition of IN strand transfer, we designed and synthesized a series of 2-hydroxy-3-oxo-3-phenyl propionate derivatives with the notion that such compounds could interact with the divalent ion in the active site of IN. The synthetic sequence to the desired compounds involves the concept of Doebner knoevenagel condensation, Fischer esterification and ketohydroxylation using neuclophilic re-oxidant; compounds were characterized by their IR, IHNMR, 13CNMR, HRMS spectroscopic data and melting point determination. Also, molecular docking was employed in this study and it was revealed that there is interaction with the active site of the enzyme. However, there is disparity in the corresponding anti-HIV activity determined by the experimental bioassay. These compounds lack potency at low micromolar concentration when compared to the results of the docking studies. Nevertheless, the results of the study suggest modification of the aryl ring with one or two hydroxyl groups to improve the inhibitory activity.

Keywords: anti-HIV-1 integrase, ketohydroxylation, molecular docking, propionate derivatives

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Authors: Priyanka Mondal, Santosh K. Sarkar

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The present study investigated the spatiotemporal distribution and ecological risk assessment of trace elements of surface sediments (top 0 - 5 cm; grain size ≤ 0.63 µm) in relevance to sediment quality characteristics along the Ganges River Estuary, India. Sediment samples were collected during ebb tide from intertidal regions covering seven sampling sites of diverse environmental stresses. The elements were analyzed with the help of ICPAES. This positive, mixohaline, macro-tidal estuary has global significance contributing ecological and economic services. Presence of fine-clayey particle (47.03%) enhances the adsorption as well as transportation of trace elements. There is a remarkable inter-metallic variation (mg kg-1 dry weight) in the distribution pattern in the following manner: Al (31801± 15943) > Fe (23337± 7584) > Mn (461±147) > S(381±235) > Zn(54 ±18) > V(43 ±14) > Cr(39 ±15) > As (34±15) > Cu(27 ±11) > Ni (24 ±9) > Se (17 ±8) > Co(11 ±3) > Mo(10 ± 2) > Hg(0.02 ±0.01). An overall trend of enrichment of majority of trace elements was very much pronounced at the site Lot 8, ~ 35km upstream of the estuarine mouth. In contrast, the minimum concentration was recorded at site Gangasagar, mouth of the estuary, with high energy profile. The prevalent variations in trace element distribution are being liable for a set of cumulative factors such as hydrodynamic conditions, sediment dispersion pattern and textural variations as well as non-homogenous input of contaminants from point and non-point sources. In order to gain insight into the trace elements distribution, accumulation, and their pollution status, geoaccumulation index (Igeo) and enrichment factor (EF) were used. The Igeo indicated that surface sediments were moderately polluted with As (0.60) and Mo (1.30) and strongly contaminated with Se (4.0). The EF indicated severe pollution of Se (53.82) and significant pollution of As (4.05) and Mo (6.0) and indicated the influx of As, Mo and Se in sediments from anthropogenic sources (such as industrial and municipal sewage, atmospheric deposition, agricultural run-off, etc.). The significant role of the megacity Calcutta in relevance to the untreated sewage discharge, atmospheric inputs and other anthropogenic activities is worthwhile to mention. The ecological risk for different trace elements was evaluated using sediment quality guidelines, effects range low (ERL), and effect range median (ERM). The concentration of As, Cu and Ni at 100%, 43% and 86% of the sampling sites has exceeded the ERL value while none of the element concentration exceeded ERM. The potential ecological risk index values revealed that As at 14.3% of the sampling sites would pose relatively moderate risk to benthic organisms. The effective role of finer clay particles for trace element distribution was revealed by multivariate analysis. The authors strongly recommend regular monitoring emphasizing on accurate appraisal of the potential risk of trace elements for effective and sustainable management of this estuarine environment.

Keywords: pollution assessment, sediment contamination, sediment quality, trace elements

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Authors: Jingya Huang

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This paper argues that Moushumi Mazoomdar has non-monogamous relationships with different men before and after her marriage as a form of rebellion against the traditional Indian culture deeply ingrained in her. Written by Jhumpa Lahiri, The Namesake (2004) features an Indian couple migrating to America who gives birth to two children, including the main character Gogol. Moushumi, like Gogol, is also a second-generation Indian American. Because of the influence of American culture, Moushumi prefers to marry for love, disdaining any thought of an arranged marriage. This paper is divided into two parts: before and after marriage which can also be seen in the light of polyamory and infidelity. First, according to Anapol (2010), polyamory is a newly created word from Greek and Latin which means “loving more than one person at a time when it comes to romantic or erotic love.” The discussion of polyamory mainly focuses on the most basic heterosexual relationship without mentioning of homosexual and bisexual love relationships. By adopting Anapol’s concept of polyamory, this paper examines the nature of the relationships between Moushumi and other men before her marriage. Afterwards, the concept of infidelity is discussed to analyze the interaction between Moushumi and Dimitri. How Moushumi rebels against tradition is shown through these two main discussions.

Keywords: Indian American, non-monogamous relationship, rebellion, polyamory, infidelity

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Authors: H. Chassaigne, S. Gioria, J. Lobo Vicente, D. Carpi, P. Barboro, G. Tomasi, A. Kinsner-Ovaskainen, F. Rossi

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Emerging approaches in the area of exposure to nanomaterials and assessment of human health effects combine the use of in vitro systems and analytical techniques to study the perturbation of the proteome and/or the metabolome. We investigated the modification in the cytoplasmic compartment of the Balb/3T3 cell line exposed to gold nanoparticles. On one hand, the proteomic approach is quite standardized even if it requires precautions when dealing with in vitro systems. On the other hand, metabolomic analysis is challenging due to the chemical diversity of cellular metabolites that complicate data elaboration and interpretation. Differentially expressed proteins were found to cover a range of functions including stress response, cell metabolism, cell growth and cytoskeleton organization. In addition, de-regulated metabolites were annotated using the HMDB database. The "omics" fields hold huge promises in the interaction of nanoparticles with biological systems. The combination of proteomics and metabolomics data is possible however challenging.

Keywords: data processing, gold nanoparticles, in vitro systems, metabolomics, proteomics

Procedia PDF Downloads 507

Authors: Avijit Datta

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We have presented a phase control scheme in population transfer using chirped laser fields. A chirped pulse can do population transfer from one level to another level via adiabatic rapid passage accessible by one photon dipole transition. We propose to use a pair of phase-locked chirped pulses of the same frequency w(t) instead of a singly chirped-pulse frequency w(t). Simultaneous action of phase controlled interference in addition to rapid adiabatic passages due to chirped pulses lead to phase control over this population transfer dynamics. We have demonstrated the proposed phase control scheme over the population distribution from the initial level X(v=0,j=0) to C(v=2,j=1) level of hydrogen molecule using a pair of phase-locked and similarly chirped laser pulses. We have extended this two-level system to three-level 1+1 ladder system of hydrogen molecule from X level to final J(v=2,j=2) level via C intermediate level using two pairs of laser pulses having frequencies w(t) and w'(t) respectively and obtained laudable control over the population distribution among three levels. We also have presented some results of interference effects of w₁(t) and its third harmonics w₃(t).

Keywords: phase control, population transfer, chirped laser pulses, rapid adiabatic passage, laser-molecule interaction

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Authors: Fevy Kae Mateo, Kimberly Javier, Alyzza Marie Palles

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Leadership is a process of relationship involving interaction with other people. Leaders emphasise authority, which executes and implements regulations, maintains the rules and leads to a better future. The First Time voters are very significant because there are the stakeholders of the type of leader to be deployed. They also have the capacity of engaging the government and can be the agents of change. The objective of the study is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of leader. Moreover, the study identifies the qualities of a leader. Finally, the study determines first-time voter’s representation of a leader. Focus Group Discussion was carried out into two groups of first time voter’s ages 18 to 21 years old. Verbatim transcripts of the discussion were analyzed using Thematic Analysis. Overall results showed super ordinate themes for weaknesses of leader: Lace of transparency in the government, poor communication strategy, and valuing experience over potential and other contributory factor; for strength of a leader: analytical skill, emotional intelligence in political work, analytical ability and economic status on political participation; finally, in the representation of a leader: positive representation of a leader and negative representation of a leader.

Keywords: first time voters, focus group discussion, leadership, qualitative research design

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Authors: Andrey V. Osipov, Sergey A. Kukushkin, Andrey V. Luk’yanov

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A method is developed for the solid-phase synthesis of epitaxial layers when the substrate itself is involved into a topochemical reaction and the reaction product grows in the interior of substrate layer. It opens up new possibilities for the relaxation of the elastic energy due to the attraction of point defects formed during the topochemical reaction in anisotropic media. The presented method of silicon carbide (SiC) formation employs a topochemical reaction between the single-crystalline silicon (Si) substrate and gaseous carbon monoxide (CO). The corresponding theory of interaction of point dilatation centers in anisotropic crystals is developed. It is eliminated that the most advantageous location of the point defects is the direction (111) in crystals with cubic symmetry. The single-crystal SiC films with the thickness up to 200 nm have been grown on Si (111) substrates owing to the topochemical reaction with CO. Grown high-quality single-crystal SiC films do not contain misfit dislocations despite the huge lattice mismatch value of ~20%. Also the possibility of growing of thick wide-gap semiconductor films on these templates SiC/Si(111) and, accordingly, its integration into Si electronics, is demonstrated. Finally, the ab initio theory of SiC formation due to the topochemical reaction has been developed.

Keywords: epitaxy, silicon carbide, topochemical reaction, wide-bandgap semiconductors

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Authors: Mallikarjun B. Channappagoudar, Pallapa Venkataram

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The dynamic nature of Mobile adhoc network (MANET) due to mobility and disconnection of mobile nodes, leads to various problems in predicting the movement of nodes and their location information updation, for efficient interaction among the application specific nodes. Location management is one of the main challenges to be considered for an efficient service provision to the applications of a MANET. In this paper, we propose a location management protocol, for locating the nodes of a MANET and to maintain uninterrupted high-quality service for distributed applications by intelligently anticipating the change of location of its nodes. The protocol predicts the node movement and application resource scarcity, does the replacement with the chosen nodes nearby which have less mobility and rich in resources, with the help of both static and mobile agents, and maintains the application continuity by providing required network resources. The protocol has been simulated using Java Agent Development Environment (JADE) Framework for agent generation, migration and communication. It consumes much less time (response time), gives better location accuracy, utilize less network resources, and reduce location management overhead.

Keywords: mobile agent, location management, distributed applications, mobile adhoc network

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Authors: M. C. A. Leite, B. Chen-Charpentier, F. Agusto

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A long-term goal of sustainable forest management is a relatively stable source of wood and a stable forest age-class structure has become the goal of many forest management practices. In the absence of disturbances, this forest management goal could easily be achieved. However, in the face of recurring insect outbreaks and other disruptive processes forest planning becomes more difficult, requiring knowledge of the effects on the forest of a wide variety of environmental factors (e.g., habitat heterogeneity, fire size and frequency, harvesting, insect outbreaks, and age distributions). The association between distinct forest disturbances and the potential effect on forest dynamics is a complex matter, particularly when evaluated over time and at large scale, and is not well understood. However, gaining knowledge in this area is crucial for a sustainable forest management. Mathematical modeling is a tool that can be used to broader the understanding in this area. In this talk we will introduce mathematical models formulation incorporating the effect of insect outbreaks either as a single disturbance in the forest population dynamics or coupled with other disturbances: either wildfire or harvesting. The results and ecological insights will be discussed.

Keywords: age-structured forest population, disturbances interaction, harvesting insects outbreak dynamics, mathematical modeling

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Authors: Siyu Wang, Anthony Ward

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Emotional intelligence (EI) is a well-established personal characteristic. It has been viewed as a critical factor which can influence an individual's academic achievement, ability to work and potential to succeed. When working in a group, EI is fundamentally connected to the group members' interaction and ability to work as a team. The ability of a group member to intelligently perceive and understand own emotions (Intrapersonal EI), to intelligently perceive and understand other members' emotions (Interpersonal EI), and to intelligently perceive and understand emotions between different groups (Cross-boundary EI) can be considered as Group emotional intelligence (Group EI). In this research, a more representative Group EI measurement approach, which incorporates the information of the composition of a group and an individual’s role in that group, is proposed. To demonstrate the claim of being more representative Group EI measurement approach, this study adopts a multi-method research design, involving a combination of both qualitative and quantitative techniques to establish a metric of Group EI. From the results, it can be concluded that by introducing the weight coefficient of each group member on group work into the measurement of Group EI, Group EI will be more representative and more capable of understanding what happens during teamwork than previous approaches.

Keywords: case study, emotional intelligence, group EI, multi-method research

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Authors: Chakshu Baweja, Ishaan Prakash, Deepak Giri, Prithwish Mukherjee, Herambraj Ashok Nalawade

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The need to prevent and control rampant and indiscriminate usage of energy in present-day realm on earth has motivated active research efforts aimed at understanding of controlling mechanisms leading to sustained energy. Although much has been done but complexity of the problem has prevented a complete understanding due to nonlinear interaction between flow, heat and mass transfer in terrestrial environment. Therefore, there is need for a systematic study to clearly understand mechanisms controlling energy-spreading phenomena to increase a system’s efficiency. The present work addresses the issue of sustaining energy and proposes a devoted technique of optimizing energy in the automotive domain. The proposed method focus on utilization of the mechanical and thermal energy of an automobile IC engine by converting and storing energy due to motion of a piston in form of electrical energy. The suggested technique utilizes piston motion of the engine to generate high potential difference capable of working as a secondary power source. This is achieved by the use of a gear mechanism and a flywheel.

Keywords: internal combustion engine, energy, electromagnetic induction, efficiency, gear ratio, hybrid vehicle, engine shaft

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Authors: Juan Bernal-Martinez, Zoe Quinones-Jurado, Miguel Waldo-Mendoza, Elias Perez

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Introduction and Objective: Ag-TiO2 nanoparticles (NP) have been characterized as effective antibacterial compounds against E. aureous, E. coli, Salmonella and others. Because these nanoparticles have been used in plastic-food containers, there is a concern about the toxicity of Ag-TiO2 NP for higher organisms from protozoan, invertebrates, and mammals. The objective of this study is to evaluate the cytotoxic effect of Ag-TiO2 NP on the survival and swimming behavior of the unicellular organism Paramecium tetraurelia. Material and Methods: Preparation of metallic silver on TiO2 surface was based on chemical reduction route of AgNO3. Aqueous suspension of TiO2 nanoparticles was preparing by adding 5 g of TiO2 to 250 ml of deionized water and followed by sonication for 10 min. The required amount of AgNO3 solutions was added to TiO2 suspension, maintaining heating and stirring. Silver concentration was 0.5, 1.5, 5.0, 25, 35 and 45 % w/w versus TiO2. Paramecium tetraurelia (Carolina Biological, Cat. # 131560) was used as a biological preparation. It was cultured in artificial culture media made as follows: Stigmasterol 5 mg/ml of ethanol, Caseaminoacids 0.3 gr/lt.; KCl 4mM; CaCl2 1mM; MgCl2 100uM and MOPS 1mM, pH 7.3. This media was inoculated with Enterobacter-sp. Paramecium was concentrated after 24 hours of incubation by centrifugation. The pellet of cells was resuspended in 4.1.1 solution prepared as follows (in mM): KCl, 4 mM; CaCl2, 1mM and Trizma, 1mM; pH 7.3. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies were performed to evaluate the appropriate dispersion and topographic distribution AgNPs deposited on TiO2. The experimental solutions were prepared as follows: 50 mg of Polyvinyhlpirolidone were added to 5 ml of 4.1.1. solution. Then, 50 mg of powder 25-Ag-TiO2 was added, mixing for 10 min and sonicated for 60 min. Survival of Paramecium and possible toxic effects after 25-Ag-TiO2 treatment was observed through an inverted microscope. The Paramecium swimming behavior and possible dead cells were recorded for periods of approximately 20-50 seconds by using a digital USB camera adapted to the microscope. Results and Discussion: TEM micrographs demonstrated the topographic distribution of AgNPs deposited on TiO2. 25Ag-TiO2 NP was efficiently dissolved and dispersed in 4.1.1 solution at concentrations from 0.1, 1 and 10 mg/ml. When Paramecium were treated with 25Ag-TiO2 NP at 100 ug/ml, it was observed that cells started swimming backwards. This backward swimming behavior is the typical avoiding reaction of the ciliate in response to a noxious stimulus. After 10 min of incubation, it was observed that Paramecium stopped swimming backwards and exploited. We can argue that this toxic effect of 25Ag-TiO2 NP is probably due to the calcium influx and calcium accumulation during the long-lasting swimming backwards. Conclusions: Here we have demonstrated that 25Ag-TiO2 NP has a specific toxic effect on an organism higher than bacteria such as the protozoan Paremecium. Probably these toxic phenomena could be expected to be observed in a higher organism such as invertebrates and mammals.

Keywords: Ag-TiO2, calcium permeability, cytotoxicity, paramecium

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Authors: Juan Carlos Briones Macias

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Currently, the Huancavilca City Park in Guayaquil is an abandoned public space that is discovering a growing problem of insecurity, where various problems have been perceived, such as the lack of green areas, deteriorating furniture, insufficient lighting, the use of inadequate cladding materials and very sunny areas due to the lack of planning in the design of green areas. The objective of this scientific article is to redesign Huancavilca Park through public space design strategies for more attractive and comfortable areas, becoming a point of interaction in a safe and accessible way. A mixed methodology (qualitative and quantitative) was applied, obtaining information based on surveys, interviews, field observations, and systematizing the data in the traditional weighting of the structuring aspects of the park. The results were obtained from the methodological design scheme of iterative analysis of public spaces by Jan Güell. It is concluded that the use of urban strategies in the structuring elements of the park, such as vegetation, furniture, generating new activities, and security interventions, will specifically solve all the problems of the Huancavilca Park tested in a Pareto 80/20 Diagram.

Keywords: public space, green areas, vegetation, street furniture, urban analysis

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Authors: Deepshikha Shukla, C. H. Solanki, Mayank K. Desai

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Amongst all the natural hazards, earthquakes have the potential for causing the greatest damages. Since the earthquake forces are random in nature and unpredictable, the quantification of the hazards becomes important in order to assess the hazards. The time and place of a future earthquake are both uncertain. Since earthquakes can neither be prevented nor be predicted, engineers have to design and construct in such a way, that the damage to life and property are minimized. Seismic hazard analysis plays an important role in earthquake design structures by providing a rational value of input parameter. In this paper, both mathematical, as well as computational methods adopted by researchers globally in the past five years, will be discussed. Some mathematical approaches involving the concepts of Poisson’s ratio, Convex Set Theory, Empirical Green’s Function, Bayesian probability estimation applied for seismic hazard and FOSM (first-order second-moment) algorithm methods will be discussed. Computational approaches and numerical model SSIFiBo developed in MATLAB to study dynamic soil-structure interaction problem is discussed in this paper. The GIS-based tool will also be discussed which is predominantly used in the assessment of seismic hazards.

Keywords: computational methods, MATLAB, seismic hazard, seismic measurements

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Authors: Warakorn Supwirapakorn

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The purpose of this research was to study the effects of choice theory in group counseling on coping strategies of students. The sample consisted of 16 students at a boarding school, who had the lowest score on the coping strategies. The sample was divided into two groups by random assignment and then were assigned into the experimental group and the control group, with eight members each. The instruments were the Adolescent Coping Scale and choice theory group counseling program. The data collection procedure was divided into three phases: The pre-test, the post-test, and the follow-up. The data were analyzed by repeated measure analysis of variance: One between-subjects and one within-subjects. The results revealed that the interaction between the methods and the duration of the experiment was found statistically significant at 0.05 level. The students in the experimental group demonstrated significantly higher at 0.05 level on coping strategies score in both the post-test and the follow-up than in the pre-test and the control group. No significant difference was found on coping strategies during the post-test phase and the follow-up phase of the experimental group.

Keywords: coping strategies, choice theory, group counseling, boarding school

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Authors: Kashif Jabbar

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Milk adulteration is a global concern, and the current study was plan to synthesize Selenium nanoparticles by green method using plant extract of garlic, Allium Sativum, and to characterize Selenium nanoparticles through different analytical techniques and to apply Selenium nanoparticles as fast and easy technique for the detection of salicylic acid in milk. The highly selective, sensitive, and quick interference green synthesis-based sensing of possible milk adulterants i.e., salicylic acid, has been reported here. Salicylic acid interacts with nanoparticles through strong bonding interactions, hence resulting in an interruption within the formation of selenium nanoparticles which is confirmed by UV-VIS spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and x-ray diffraction. This interaction in the synthesis of nanoparticles resulted in transmittance wavelength that decrease with the increasing amount of salicylic acid, showing strong binding of selenium nanoparticles with adulterant, thereby permitting in-situ fast detection of salicylic acid from milk having a limit of detection at 10-3 mol and linear coefficient correlation of 0.9907. Conclusively, it can be draw that colloidal selenium could be synthesize successfully by garlic extract in order to serve as a probe for fast and cheap testing of milk adulteration.

Keywords: adulteration, green synthesis, selenium nanoparticles, salicylic acid, aggregation

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Authors: M. Nagaraja, H. M. Mahesh, K. Rajanna, M. Z. Kurian, J. Manjanna

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In recent years, composites of conjugated polymers with fullerenes (C60) has attracted considerable scientific and technological attention in the field of organic electronics because they possess a novel combination of electrical, optical, ferromagnetic, mechanical and sensor properties. These properties represent major advances in the design of organic electronic devices. With the addition of C60 in the conjugated polymer matrix, the primary photo-excitation of the conjugated polymer undergoes an ultrafast electron transfer, and it has been demonstrated that fullerene molecules may serve as efficient electron acceptors in polymeric solar cells. The present paper includes the systematic studies on the effect of electrical, structural and sensor properties of polyaniline (PANI) matrix by the presence of C60. Polyaniline-fullerene (PANI/C60) composite is prepared by the introduction of fullerene during polymerization of aniline with ammonium persulfate and dodechyl benzene sulfonic acid as oxidant and dopant respectively. FTIR spectroscopy indicated the interaction between PANI and C60. X-ray diffraction proved the formation of a PANI/C60 complex. SEM image shows the highly branched chain structure of the PANI in the presence of C60. The conductivity of the PANI/C60 was found to be more than ten orders of magnitude over the pure PANI.

Keywords: conductivity, fullerene, nanocomposite, polyaniline

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Authors: E. Accomando, L. Delle Rose, S. Moretti, E. Olaiya, C. Shepherd-Themistocleous

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Heavy sterile neutrinos are almost ubiquitous in the class of Beyond Standard Model scenarios aimed at addressing the puzzle that emerged from the discovery of neutrino flavour oscillations, hence the need to explain their masses. In particular, they are necessary in a U(1)’ enlarged Standard Model (SM). We show that these heavy neutrinos can be rather long-lived producing distinctive displaced vertices and tracks. Indeed, depending on the actual decay length, they can decay inside a Large Hadron Collider (LHC) detector far from the main interaction point and can be identified in the inner tracking system or the muon chambers, emulated here through the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector parameters. Among the possible production modes of such heavy neutrino, we focus on their pair production mechanism in the SM Higgs decay, eventually yielding displaced lepton signatures following the heavy neutrino decays into weak gauge bosons. By employing well-established triggers available for the CMS detector and using the data collected by the end of the LHC Run 2, these signatures would prove to be accessible with negligibly small background. Finally, we highlight the importance that the exploitation of new triggers, specifically, displaced tri-lepton ones, could have for this displaced vertex search.

Keywords: beyond the standard model, displaced vertex, Higgs physics, neutrino physics

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