Search results for: knowledge transfer

Authors: Meltem Karatepe Kaya

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The concept of corporate governance is not new but, due to the recent international financial crisis, it has become prominent in contemporary business, accounting and legal debates. There is a wealth of anecdotal evidence which shows that protection of minority shareholders is an important issue in the corporate governance literature. Minority shareholders typically hold low amounts of stocks, so the benefits gained from their participation in shareholder meetings are very asymmetric to the cost. Therefore, the presence of a good corporate governance structure is the proper protection of and respect for the rights and interests of shareholders, particularly those of minority shareholders. The research will attempt to find answers to the following questions: Why minority shareholders’ rights should be protected? How minority shareholders’ rights could be improved? Does the legal framework in the United Kingdom provide adequate protection for minority shareholders? This study will assess regulations about the legal protections of minority shareholders and try to find answer this question: ’Why is it inevitable for company law to treat in a successful way the problems arising from minority shareholders' conflict with other shareholders of a company?’The protection of minority shareholders is not only a corporate governance objective in its own right but also has added importance particularly in developing countries. In the United Kingdom(UK) and the United States of America(USA), there are diffused ownership structures so that any shareholders do not influence the management of the company. This is in stark contrast to companies in developing countries such as Turkey where controlling shareholders and related insiders are a well-known feature of ownership structures, and where companies are often governed and managed by controlling shareholders such as family firms and associated companies through cross-shareholdings and pyramiding ownership structures. In Turkey, the agency problem is not between shareholders and management. Rather it gives rise to another dimension of the agency problem – a conflict of interest between majority shareholders (controlling) and minority shareholders. This research will make a particularly useful contribution to knowledge-based information and understanding of company law in the UK, particularly minority shareholders' remedies. It will not only give information about law and regulations of minority shareholders' remedies but also it will provide some knowledge about doctrinal discussions and relevant cases. The major contribution to study will be in the knowledge of law and regulation in the legal protections of minority shareholders in the United Kingdom and Turkey. In this study, the recommendations will be given for the development of the legal framework and practices of protections for minority shareholders and small investors.

Keywords: controlling shareholders, corporate governance, derivative actions, minority shareholders

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Authors: Fatima El Zahra Amin, Emine Efe

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This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of the education program for parents of children with Sickle Cell Anemia, on the knowledge level of parents and the reduction of pain relief by non-pharmacological methods used by parents at home. In Turkey, 54 parents and 109 from Chad agreed to participate in the survey. The data were collected by the researcher using a face-to-face interview method. Non-pharmacological treatment information form for parents, face expressions rating scale, and parent education program for non-pharmacological methods used in children with sickle cell anemia were used. It was determined that there was a statistically significant difference between the educational status, occupation, disease status, place of residence, family structure and age of parents of Chad and Turkey. According to the ratings of facial expressions scale, it was concluded that there was no significant difference between the children’s average degree of pain before and after administration of non-pharmacological methods by the groups of Chad and Turkey. It was determined that the educational programs prepared for parents of children with sickle cell anemia in both Turkey and Chad were effective in increasing the knowledge level of parents and also in reducing pain crisis with non-pharmacological methods parents used at home.

Keywords: Chad, child, non-pharmacological treatment methods, nurse, sickle cell anemia, Turkey

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Authors: Ahmad Almutairi

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Kuwait lies to the northwest of the Arabian Gulf. The levels of radionuclides are unknown in this area. Radionuclide like ²¹⁰Po, ²²⁶Ra, and ⁹⁰Sr accumulated in certain body tissues and bones, relate primarily to dietary uptake and inhalation. A large fraction of radiation exposure experienced by individuals comes from food chain transfer. In this study, some types of Kuwait fish were studied for radionuclide determination. These fish were taken from the Kuwaiti water territory during May. The study is to determine the radiation exposure for ²¹⁰Po in some fish species in Kuwait the ²¹⁰Po concentration was found to be between 0.089 and 2.544 Bq/kg the highs was in Zubaidy and the lowest was in Hamour.

Keywords: the radionuclide, radiation exposure, fish species, Zubaida, Hamour

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Authors: Utsamani Cintyamena, Sandra Frans Olivia, Shita Lisyadewi, Ariane Utomo

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Family planning is one of fundamental aspects in preventing maternal morbidity and mortality. However, the prevalence rate of Indonesia’s married women in choosing contraception is low. This study purpose to assess opportunities and challenges in family planning. Methodology: We conducted a qualitative study in Banyumas District which has huge reduction of maternal mortality rate from 2013 to 2015. Four focus group discussions and four small group discussions were conducted to assess knowledge and attitude of women in using contraceptive and their method of choice, as well as in-depth interview to four health workers and two family planning field officers as triangulation. Thematic content analysis was done manually. Results: Key themes emerge across interviews including (1) first choice of contraception is the one that they previously had, provided that they did not encountered problems with it, (2) rumor and fear of side effect affected their method of choice, (3) selection of contraceptive method was influenced by approval of husband, believes, and role model in community. Conclusion: Collaboration of health worker, family planning field officers, community, as well as support from stakeholder, must be increased to socializing family planning.

Keywords: attitude, challenge, chance, family planning, knowledge

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Authors: Abram Zoltan

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Over the past hundred years, human activities, particularly the burning of fossil fuels, have released enough carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to dissipate additional heat into the lower atmosphere and affect the global climate. Climate change affects many social and environmental determinants of health: clean air, safe drinking water, and adequate food. Our aim is to draw attention to the effects of climate change on the health and health care system. Improving climate awareness and the knowledge related to climate change's health impacts are essential among medical students and practicing medical doctors. Therefore, in their everyday practice, they also need some assistance and up-to-date knowledge of how climate change can endanger human health and deal with these novel health problems. Our activity, based on the cooperation of more universities, aims to develop new curriculum outlines and learning materials on climate change's health impacts for medical schools. Special attention is intended to pay to the possible preventative measures against these impacts. For all of this, the project plans to create new curriculum outlines and learning materials for medical students, elaborate methodological guidelines and create training materials for medical doctors' postgraduate learning programs. The target groups of the project are medical students, educational staff of medical schools and universities, practicing medical doctors with special attention to the general practitioners and family doctors. We had searched various surveys, domestic and international studies about the effects of climate change and statistical estimation of the possible consequences. The health effects of climate change can be measured only approximately by considering only a fraction of the potential health effects and assuming continued economic growth and health progress. We can estimate that climate change is expected to cause about 250,000 more deaths. We conclude that climate change is one of the most serious problems of the 21st century, affecting all populations. In the short- to medium-term, the health effects of climate change will be determined mainly by human vulnerability. In the longer term, the effects depend increasingly on the extent to which transformational action is taken now to reduce emissions. We can contribute to reducing environmental pollution by raising awareness and by educating the population.

Keywords: climate change, health impacts, medical students, education

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Authors: Hui Fang Huang Su, Jia Borror

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This study compared two interventions for teaching math to preschool-aged students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The first is considered the business as usual (BAU) intervention, which uses the Strategies for Teaching Based on Autism Research (STAR) curriculum and discrete trial teaching as the instructional methodology. The second is the Math is Not Difficult (Project MIND) activity-embedded, naturalistic intervention. These interventions were randomly assigned to four preschool students with ASD classrooms and implemented over three months for Project Mind. We used measurement gained during the same three months for the STAR intervention. In addition, we used A quasi-experimental, pre-test/post-test design to compare the effectiveness of these two interventions in building mathematical knowledge and skills. The pre-post measures include three standardized instruments: the Test of Early Math Ability-3, the Problem Solving and Calculation subtests of the Woodcock-Johnson Test of Achievement IV, and the Bracken Test of Basic Concepts-3 Receptive. The STAR curriculum-based assessment is administered to all Baudhuin students three times per year, and we used the results in this study. We anticipated that implementing these two approaches would improve the mathematical knowledge and skills of children with ASD. Still, it is crucial to see whether a behavioral or naturalistic teaching approach leads to more significant results.

Keywords: early learning, autism, math for pre-schoolers, special education, teaching strategies

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Authors: D. G. Piliposyan

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Propagation of electro-elastic waves in a piezoelectric waveguide with finite stacks and a defect layer is studied using a modified transfer matrix method. The dispersion equation for a periodic structure consisting of unit cells made up from two piezoelectric materials with metallized interfaces is obtained. An analytical expression, for the transmission coefficient for a waveguide with finite stacks and a defect layer, that is found can be used to accurately detect and control the position of the passband within a stopband. The result can be instrumental in constructing a tunable waveguide made of layers of different or identical piezoelectric crystals and separated by metallized interfaces.

Keywords: piezoelectric layered structure, periodic phononic crystal, bandgap, bloch waves

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Authors: Nader Chavoshi Boroujeni, Naser Chavoshi Boroujeni

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Considering the importance of managerial competencies on organizational performance as well as the role of social capital and entrepreneurship as mediator parameters affecting organizational performance, this study attempts to examine the impact carefully. In this regard, Isfahan Science and Technology Town (ISTT) as an effective and knowledge generator company that has a great effect on improving organizational performances of many other companies such as Knowledge-Based Companies (KBCs) activing in the ISTT's site was selected as statistical population. According to coordination with the Department of Development and Technology of ISTT, all employees of ISTT and active KBCs were selected as sample. Then, to analyze the variables a standard and self-made questionnaire containing 98 questions was designed and distributed. Of the 350 questionnaires distributed, 319 questionnaires were collected that 313 cases were confirmed and analyzed. To confirm the reliability of questionnaire, the Leader professor and two other professors approved it. Cronbach's alpha coefficient was used to validate the questionnaire that all coefficient was between 0/7 and 0/95. So, the validity was confirmed. After descriptive study population, the normality of distribution was investigated with Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. Finally, the results obtained from the questionnaires were analyzed by Amos software that all hypotheses were confirmed.

Keywords: managerial competencies, personnel organizational performance, entrepreneurship, social capital

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Authors: Samuel Quashie

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Ph.D. Construction Management methodology and mixed methods are organized to guide the researcher to assemble and assess data in the research activities. Construction management research is close to business management and social science research. It also contributes to researching the phenomenon and answering the research question, generating an integrated management system for post-disaster reconstruction in construction and related industries. Research methodology and methods drive the research to achieve the goal or goals, contribute to knowledge, or increase knowledge. This statement means the research methodology, mixed methods, aim, objectives, and processes address the research question, facilitate its achievement and foundation to conduct the study. Mixed methods use project-based case studies, interviews, observations, literature and archival document reviews, research questionnaires, and surveys, and evaluation of integrated systems used in the construction industry and related industries to address the research work. The research mixed methods (qualitative, quantitative) define the research topic and establish a more in-depth study. The research methodology is action research, which involves the collaboration of participants and service users to collect and evaluate data, studying the phenomenon, research question(s) to improve the situation in post-disaster reconstruction phase management.

Keywords: methodology, Ph.D. research, post-disaster reconstruction, mixed-methods qualitative and quantitative

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Authors: Jingqi Li

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A new vertical carbon nanotube field effect transistor (CNTFET) has been developed. The source, drain and gate are vertically stacked in this structure. The carbon nanotubes are put on the side wall of the vertical stack. Unique transfer characteristics which depend on both silicon type and the sign of drain voltage have been observed in silicon integrated CNTFETs. The significant advantage of this CNTFET is that the short channel of the transistor can be fabricated without using complicate lithography technique.

Keywords: carbon nanotubes, field-effect transistors, electrical property, short channel fabrication

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Authors: Mubarack Ahmed, Gabriele Gradoni, Stephen C. Creagh, Gregor Tanner

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High-frequency cables commonly connect modern devices and sensors. Interestingly, the proportion of electric components is rising fast in an attempt to achieve lighter and greener devices. Modelling the propagation of signals through these cable networks in the presence of parameter uncertainty is a daunting task. In this work, we study the response of high-frequency cable networks using both Transmission Line and Quantum Graph (QG) theories. We have successfully compared the two theories in terms of reflection spectra using measurements on real, lossy cables. We have derived a generalisation of the vertex scattering matrix to include non-uniform networks – networks of cables with different characteristic impedances and propagation constants. The QG model implicitly takes into account the pseudo-chaotic behavior, at the vertices, of the propagating electric signal. We have successfully compared the asymptotic growth of eigenvalues of the Laplacian with the predictions of Weyl law. We investigate the nearest-neighbour level-spacing distribution of the resonances and compare our results with the predictions of Random Matrix Theory (RMT). To achieve this, we will compare our graphs with the generalisation of Wigner distribution for open systems. The problem of scattering from networks of cables can also provide an analogue model for wireless communication in highly reverberant environments. In this context, we provide a preliminary analysis of the statistics of communication capacity for communication across cable networks, whose eventual aim is to enable detailed laboratory testing of information transfer rates using software defined radio. We specialise this analysis in particular for the case of MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) protocols. We have successfully validated our QG model with both TL model and laboratory measurements. The growth of Eigenvalues compares well with Weyl’s law and the level-spacing distribution agrees so well RMT predictions. The results we achieved in the MIMO application compares favourably with the prediction of a parallel on-going research (sponsored by NEMF21.)

Keywords: eigenvalues, multiple-input multiple-output, quantum graph, random matrix theory, transmission line

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Authors: P. Javid, A. Aeenmehr, J. Taghavifar

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In this paper, supply air pressure of HVAC system has been modeled with second-order transfer function plus dead-time. In HVAC system, the desired input has step changes, and the output of proposed control system should be able to follow the input reference, so the idea of using model based predictive control is proceeded and designed in this paper. The closed loop control system is implemented in MATLAB software and the simulation results are provided. The simulation results show that the model based predictive control is able to control the plant properly.

Keywords: air conditioning system, GPC, dead time, air supply control

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Authors: Dwi Kartika Rukmi, Miftafu Darussalam

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Background: The disclosure of women’s HIV status toward their sexual partners is an important issue that should be regarded as one of the efforts to prevent and control the spread of HIV. Research on the disclosure of seropositive HIV status as well as women-related factors in Indonesia, especially Yogyakarta is only a few. Methods: This is a correlational descriptive research along with its cross-sectional approach on 329 women with HIV/AIDS at the Victory Plus NGO from June to July 2016. This research used a purposive sampling method and a questionnaire as the data collection technique. The bivariate analysis test was undertaken by using a chi-square and multivariate test along with a logistic regression. Result: The multivariate analysis and logistic regression show five independent variables related to the disclosure of seropositive HIV status of women with HIV/AIDS toward their sexual partners, namely ethnicity (aOR = 36,859; 95% CI; (6,544-207,616)) religion (aOR =0,255; 95%CI; (0,075-0,868)), discussion with partners prior to the HIV test (aOR =0,069; 95%CI; (0,065-0,438)) , types of sexual partners (aOR = 0.191; 95% CI; (0.082-0,445)) and knowledge on the partners’ HIV status (aOR = 0.036; 95% CI; (0.008-0.160)). The highest level of reason for seropositive HIV women not to be open about their partners’ status is the fear of being rejected by their partners and the environmental stigma of HIV AIDS disease. Conclusion: The disclosure of seropositive HIV status in women with HIV/AIDS in the Victory Plus NGO of Yogyakarta was 79.4% or classified as a high category with some related factors such as ethnicity, religion, discussion with partners prior to the HIV test, types of partners and knowledge on the partners’ HIV status.

Keywords: women, HIV, disclosure, sexual partner

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Authors: Luiz Ernani Meira Jr., Antônio Prates Caldeira, Gilson Gabriel Viana Veloso, Jackson Andrade

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Background: In Brazil, primary health care (PHC) system has developed with multidisciplinary teams in facilities located in peripheral areas, as the entrance doors for all patients. So, professionals must be prepared to deal with patients with simple and complex problems. Objective: To evaluate the knowledge and the skills of physicians and nurses of PHC on cardiorespiratory arrest (CRA) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) before and after training in Basic Life Support. Methods: This is a before-and-after study developed in a Simulation Laboratory in Montes Claros, Brazil. We included physicians and nurses randomly chosen from PHC services. Written tests on CRA and CPR were carried out and performances in a CPR simulation were evaluated, based on the American Heart Association recommendations. Training practices were performed using special manikins. Statistical analysis included Wilcoxon’s test to compare before and after scores. Results: Thirty-two professionals were included. Only 38% had previous courses and updates on emergency care. Most of professionals showed poor skills to attend to CRA in a simulated situation. Subjects showed an increased in knowledge and skills about CPR after training (p-value=0.003). Conclusion: Primary health care professionals must be continuously trained to assist urgencies and emergencies, like CRA.

Keywords: primary health care, professional training, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, cardiorespiratory, emergency

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Authors: Mubina Rauf

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Critical thinking is a highly valued outcome of university education. There is an agreement in literature that it is demonstrated through the abilities to highlight issues and assumptions, find links between ideas and concepts, make correct inferences, evaluate evidence or authority and deduce conclusions (Tsui, 2002). Although Critical thinking plays a significant role in developing all academic skills, its role in developing writing skills is significant (Kurfiss, 1988). SAW (student academic writing) is an observable output of critical thinking (Wilson K. , 2016). When students apply critical thinking to their writing, they present clear, accurate, significant and logical arguments constructing their own voice in the form of an essay or dissertation (Matsuda, 2001). This presentation will show how a rubric can be used to find evidence of critical thinking in SAW. Participants will experience how evidence-based written arguments supported by background knowledge and authorial voice can develop students into efficient critical thinkers. Participants will have an opportunity to use the rubric to find the evidence of critical thinking in SAW samples. This presentation is intended for classroom teachers with or without the basic knowledge of implementing critical thinking in academic settings. Participants will also learn tips how various features of critical thinking can be developed among students. After the session, the participants will be able to use or adapt the rubric according to their needs to find evidence of critical thinking in SAW within their context.

Keywords: critical thinking, Rubric, student academic writing, argumentation, text analysis

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Authors: Igor Belykh

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Anti-scatter grids used in radiographic imaging for the contrast enhancement leave specific artifacts. Those artifacts may be visible or may cause Moiré effect when a digital image is resized on a diagnostic monitor. In this paper, we propose an automated grid artifacts detection and suppression algorithm which is still an actual problem. Grid artifacts detection is based on statistical approach in spatial domain. Grid artifacts suppression is based on Kaiser bandstop filter transfer function design and application avoiding ringing artifacts. Experimental results are discussed and concluded with description of advantages over existing approaches.

Keywords: grid, computed radiography, pattern recognition, image processing, filtering

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Authors: Robin Lok Wang Ma

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The purpose of this paper is to investigate how engineering students’ motivation and interests are maintained in their journeys. In recent years, different pedagogies of teaching, including entrepreneurship, experiential and lifelong learning, as well as dream builder, etc., have been widely used for education purposes. University advocates hands-on practice, learning by experiencing and experimenting throughout different courses. Students are not limited to gaining knowledge via traditional lectures, laboratory demonstrations, tutorials, and so on. The capability to identify both complex problems and their corresponding solutions in daily life are one of the criteria/skill sets required for graduates to obtain their careers at professional organizations and companies. A project-based course, namely Mechatronic Design and Prototyping, was developed for students to design and build a physical prototype for solving existing problems in their daily lives, thereby encouraging them as an entrepreneur to explore further possibilities to commercialize their designed prototypes and launch them to the market. Feedbacks from students show that they are keen to propose their own ideas freely with guidance from the instructor instead of using either suggested or assigned topics. Proposed ideas of the prototypes reflect that if students’ interests are maintained, they acquire the knowledge and skills they need, including essential communication, logical thinking, and, more importantly, problem solving for their lifelong learning journey.

Keywords: problem solving, lifelong learning, entrepreneurship, engineering

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Authors: Christine Demaecker

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Many researchers have underlined the importance of metaphors in specialised language. Their use of specific domains helps us understand the conceptualisations used to communicate new ideas or difficult topics. Within the wide area of specialised discourse, wine tasting is a very specific example because it is almost exclusively metaphoric. Wine tasting metaphors express various conceptualisations. They are not linguistic but rather conceptual, as defined by Lakoff & Johnson. They correspond to the linguistic expression of a mental projection from a well-known or more concrete source domain onto the target domain, which is the taste of wine. But unlike most specialised terminologies, the vocabulary is never clearly defined. When metaphorical terms are listed in dictionaries, their definitions remain vague, unclear, and circular. They cannot be replaced by literal linguistic expressions. This makes it impossible to transfer them into another language with the traditional linguistic translation methods. Qualitative research investigates whether wine tasting metaphors could rather be translated with the cognitive translation process, as well described by Nili Mandelblit (1995). The research is based on a corpus compiled from two high-profile wine guides; the Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide and its translation into French and the Guide Hachette des Vins and its translation into English. In this small corpus with a total of 68,826 words, 170 metaphoric expressions have been identified in the original English text and 180 in the original French text. They have been selected with the MIPVU Metaphor Identification Procedure developed at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The selection demonstrates that both languages use the same set of conceptualisations, which are often combined in wine tasting notes, creating conceptual integrations or blends. The comparison of expressions in the source and target texts also demonstrates the use of the cognitive translation approach. In accordance with the principle of relevance, the translation always uses target language conceptualisations, but compared to the original, the highlighting of the projection is often different. Also, when original metaphors are complex with a combination of conceptualisations, at least one element of the original metaphor underlies the target expression. This approach perfectly integrates into Lederer’s interpretative model of translation (2006). In this triangular model, the transfer of conceptualisation could be included at the level of ‘deverbalisation/reverbalisation’, the crucial stage of the model, where the extraction of meaning combines with the encyclopedic background to generate the target text.

Keywords: cognitive translation, conceptual integration, conceptual metaphor, interpretative model of translation, wine tasting metaphor

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Authors: You-Kai Jhang, Yang-Cheng Lu

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Major contributions of this study are threefold: designing a new model of planar-membrane humidifier for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC), an index to measure the Effectiveness (εT) of that humidifier, and an air compressor system to replicate related planar-membrane humidifier experiments. PEMFC as a kind of renewable energy has become more and more important in recent years due to its reliability and durability. To maintain the efficiency of the fuel cell, the membrane of PEMFC need to be controlled in a good hydration condition. How to maintain proper membrane humidity is one of the key issues to optimize PEMFC. We developed new humidifier to recycle water vapor from cathode air outlet so as to keep the moisture content of cathode air inlet in a PEMFC. By measuring parameters such as dry side air outlet dew point temperature, dry side air inlet temperature and humidity, wet side air inlet temperature and humidity, and differential pressure between dry side and wet side, we calculated indices obtained by dew point approach temperature (DPAT), water flux (J), water recovery ratio (WRR), effectiveness (εT), and differential pressure (ΔP). We discussed six topics including sealing effect, flow rate effect, flow direction effect, channel effect, temperature effect, and humidity effect by using these indices. Gas cylinders are used as sources of air supply in many studies of humidifiers. Gas cylinder depletes quickly during experiment at 1kW air flow rate, and it causes replication difficult. In order to ensure high stable air quality and better replication of experimental data, this study designs an air supply system to overcome this difficulty. The experimental result shows that the best rate of pressure loss of humidifier is 0.133×10³ Pa(g)/min at the torque of 25 (N.m). The best humidifier performance ranges from 30-40 (LPM) of air flow rates. The counter flow configured humidifies moisturizes the dry side inlet air more effectively than the parallel flow humidifier. From the performance measurements of the channel plates various rib widths studied in this study, it is found that the narrower the rib width is, the more the performance of humidifier improves. Raising channel width in same hydraulic diameter (Dh ) will obtain higher εT and lower ΔP. Moreover, increasing the dry side air inlet temperature or humidity will lead to lower εT. In addition, when the dry side air inlet temperature exceeds 50°C, the effect becomes even more obvious.

Keywords: PEM fuel cell, water management, membrane humidifier, heat and mass transfer, humidifier performance

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Authors: Yoonjin Lee, Dongwook Hwang, Juhee Park, Woojin Park

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As undesirable sitting posture is known to be a major cause of musculoskeletal disorder of office workers, sitting has attracted attention on occupational health. However, there seems to be no consensus on what are safe and unsafe sitting behaviors. The purpose of this study was to characterize safe and unsafe behaviors based on scientific findings of sitting behavior. Three objectives were as follows; to identify different sitting behaviors measure used in ergonomics studies on safe sitting, for each measure identified, to find available findings or recommendations on safe and unsafe sitting behaviors along with relevant empirical grounds, and to synthesize the findings or recommendations to provide characterizations of safe and unsafe behaviors. A systematic review of electronic databases (Google Scholar, PubMed, Web of Science) was conducted for extensive search of sitting behavior. Key terms included awkward sitting position, sedentary sitting, dynamic sitting, sitting posture, sitting posture, and sitting biomechanics, etc. Each article was systemically abstracted to extract a list of studied sitting behaviors, measures used to study the sitting behavior, and presence of empirical evidence of safety of the sitting behaviors. Finally, characterization of safe and unsafe sitting behavior was conducted based on knowledge with empirical evidence. This characterization is expected to provide useful knowledge for evaluation of sitting behavior and about postures to be measured in development of sensing chair.

Keywords: sitting position, sitting biomechanics, sitting behavior, unsafe sitting

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Authors: Valerie Triggs, Michele Sorensen

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As two university professors in postsecondary faculties of social work and education, we have observed that students often recognize the importance of learning facts about colonization but have difficulty grappling with how they themselves might be implicated in reconciliation or how they might respond to these facts in meaningful ways. The detachment observed between students and factual information results in the initiation of a research study centered around an approach to teaching the course. This involved transitioning its pedagogical format to embrace a/r/tographic methods of teaching, learning, and inquiry. By taking seriously the arguments of various Indigenous scholars for learning from the land and by working alongside traditional Indigenous knowledge, we chose to engage a speculative approach to course design and teaching, which actually used the land as one of the course texts. We incorporated art practices that involved connecting bodies with land as well as using land materials in various creative and aesthetic projects while being informed by Medicine Keepers, Indigenous and settler artists, and knowledge-keeper helpers. In this study, we share some of the unanticipated themes that arose when students began to allow land and artmaking, both aesthetically and intuitively, through both joy and sorrow, to affect a reimagining and repositioning of selves and relations. We found that time and engagement with land and art began to build more empathic understanding and foster personal and professional practices grounded in respect, relevance, reciprocity, and responsibility.

Keywords: reconciliation, decolonization, artmaking, respect

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Authors: Alan C. Lin, Ricky N. Joevan

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This paper focuses on developing a system to transfer mold base plates and standard parts faster during the stage of injection mold design. This system not only provides a way to compare the file version, but also it utilizes Siemens NX 10 to isolate the updated information into a single executable file (.dll), and then, the file can be transferred without the need of transferring the whole file. By this way, the system can help the user to download only necessary mold base plates and standard parts, and those parts downloaded are only the updated portions.

Keywords: CAD, injection molding, mold base, data retrieval

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Authors: Yawen Dai, Ping Cheng, Jian Ru Gong

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Photoelctrochemical (PEC) water splitting using semiconductors (SCs) provides a convenient way to convert sustainable but intermittent solar energy into clean hydrogen energy, and it has been regarded as one of most promising technology to solve the energy crisis and environmental pollution in modern society. However, the record energy conversion efficiency of a PEC cell (~3%) is still far lower than the commercialization requirement (~10%). The sluggish kinetics of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) half reaction on photoanodes is a significant limiting factor of the PEC device efficiency, and electrocatalysts (ECs) are always deposited on SCs to accelerate the hole injection for OER. However, an active EC cannot guarantee enhanced PEC performance, since the newly emerged SC-EC interface complicates the interfacial charge behavior. Herein, α-Fe2O3 photoanodes coated with Co3O4 and CoO ECs are taken as the model system to glean fundamental understanding on the EC-dependent interfacial charge behavior. Intensity modulated photocurrent spectroscopy and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy were used to investigate the competition between interfacial charge transfer and recombination, which was found to be dominated by the charge storage capacities of ECs. The combined results indicate that both ECs can store holes and increase the hole density on photoanode surface. It is like a double-edged sword that benefit the multi-hole participated OER, as well as aggravate the SC-EC interfacial charge recombination due to the Coulomb attraction, thus leading to a nonmonotonic PEC performance variation trend with the increasing surface hole density. Co3O4 has low hole storage capacity which brings limited interfacial charge recombination, and thus the increased surface holes can be efficiently utilized for OER to generate enhanced photocurrent. In contrast, CoO has overlarge hole storage capacity that causes severe interfacial charge recombination, which hinders hole transfer to electrolyte for OER. Therefore, the PEC performance of α-Fe2O3 is improved by Co3O4 but decreased by CoO despite the similar electrocatalytic activity of the two ECs. First-principle calculation was conducted to further reveal how the charge storage capacity depends on the EC’s intrinsic property, demonstrating that the larger hole storage capacity of CoO than that of Co3O4 is determined by their Co valence states and original Fermi levels. This study raises up a new strategy to manipulate interfacial charge behavior and the resultant PEC performance by the charge storage capacity of ECs, providing insightful guidance for the interface design in PEC devices.

Keywords: charge storage capacity, electrocatalyst, interfacial charge behavior, photoelectrochemistry, water-splitting

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Authors: Syukri Himran, Erwin Eka Putra, Nanang Roni

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This study explains the natural convection of viscous fluid flowing on semi-infinite vertical plate. A set of the governing equations describing the continuity, momentum and energy, have been reduced to dimensionless forms by introducing the references variables. To solve the problems, the equations are formulated by explicit finite-difference in time dependent form and computations are performed by Fortran program. The results describe velocity, temperature profiles both in transient and steady state conditions. An approximate value of heat transfer coefficient and the effects of Pr on convection flow are also presented.

Keywords: natural convection, vertical plate, velocity and temperature profiles, steady and unsteady

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Authors: Ruwan Gunawardane

Abstract:

This paper attempts to emphasize the benefits of conducting an intensive course in English for university entrants. In the Sri Lankan university context, an intensive course in English is usually conducted amidst various obstacles. In the 1970s and 1980s, undergraduates had intensive programmes in English for two to three months. Towards the end of the 1990s, a programme called General English Language Training (GELT) was conducted for the new students, and it was done outside universities before they entered their respective universities. Later it was not conducted, and that also resulted in students’ poor performance in English at university. However, having understood its importance, an eight week long intensive course in English was conducted for the new intake of the Faculty of Science, University of Ruhuna. As the findings show, the students heavily benefited from the programme. More importantly, they had the opportunity to refresh their knowledge of English gained at school and private institutions while gaining new knowledge. Another advantage was that they had plenty of time to enjoy learning English since the learners had adequate opportunities to carry out communicative tasks and the course was not exam-oriented, which reduced their fear of making mistakes in English considerably. The data was collected through an open-ended questionnaire given to 60 students, and their oral feedback was also taken into consideration. In addition, a focus group interview with 6 teachers was also conducted to get an idea about their experience and perception. The data were qualitatively analyzed. The findings suggest that an intensive programme in English undoubtedly lays a good foundation for the students’ academic career at university.

Keywords: intensive course, English, teachers, undergraduates, experience, perception

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Authors: Kuo-Teng Tsai, You-Min Huang

Abstract:

In this study, the problem of a spiral fin with a period base temperature is analyzed by using the Adomian decomposition method. The Adomian decomposition method is a useful and practice method to solve the nonlinear energy equation which are associated with the heat radiation. The period base temperature is around a mean value. The results including the temperature distribution and the heat flux from the spiral fin base can be calculated directly. The results also discussed the effects of the dimensionless variables for the temperature variations and the total energy transferred from the spiral fin base.

Keywords: spiral fin, period, adomian decomposition method, nonlinear

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Authors: William Kelly, Sorelle Veigne, Xianhua Li, Zuyi Huang, Shyamsundar Subramanian, Eugene Schaefer

Abstract:

The ambr15™ bioreactor is a single-use microbioreactor for cell line development and process optimization. The ambr system offers fully automatic liquid handling with the possibility of fed-batch operation and automatic control of pH and oxygen delivery. With operating conditions for large scale biopharmaceutical production properly scaled down, micro bioreactors such as the ambr15™ can potentially be used to predict the effect of process changes such as modified media or different cell lines. In this study, gassing rates and dilution rates were varied for a semi-continuous cell culture system in the ambr15™ bioreactor. The corresponding changes to metabolite production and consumption, as well as cell growth rate and therapeutic protein production were measured. Conditions were identified in the ambr15™ bioreactor that produced metabolic shifts and specific metabolic and protein production rates also seen in the corresponding larger (5 liter) scale perfusion process. A Dynamic Flux Balance model was employed to understand and predict the metabolic changes observed. The DFB model-predicted trends observed experimentally, including lower specific glucose consumption when CO₂ was maintained at higher levels (i.e. 100 mm Hg) in the broth. A Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) model of the ambr15™ was also developed, to understand transfer of O₂ and CO₂ to the liquid. This CFD model predicted gas-liquid flow in the bioreactor using the ANSYS software. The two-phase flow equations were solved via an Eulerian method, with population balance equations tracking the size of the gas bubbles resulting from breakage and coalescence. Reasonable results were obtained in that the Carbon Dioxide mass transfer coefficient (kLa) and the air hold up increased with higher gas flow rate. Volume-averaged kLa values at 500 RPM increased as the gas flow rate was doubled and matched experimentally determined values. These results form a solid basis for optimizing the ambr15™, using both CFD and FBA modelling approaches together, for use in microscale simulations of larger scale cell culture processes.

Keywords: cell culture, computational fluid dynamics, dynamic flux balance analysis, microbioreactor

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Authors: T. Watanabe

Abstract:

Combustion analysis of suspended sodium droplet is performed by solving numerically the Navier-Stokes equations and the energy conservation equations. The combustion model consists of the pre-ignition and post-ignition models. The reaction rate for the pre-ignition model is based on the chemical kinetics, while that for the post-ignition model is based on the mass transfer rate of oxygen. The calculated droplet temperature is shown to be in good agreement with the existing experimental data. The temperature field in and around the droplet is obtained as well as the droplet shape variation, and the present numerical model is confirmed to be effective for the combustion analysis.

Keywords: analysis, combustion, droplet, sodium

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Authors: Ibrahim Ellithy, Mauricio Esguerra, , Rewanth Radhakrishnan

Abstract:

In this study, the effects of hydrostatic stress on the magnetic properties of MnZn ferrite rings of different power grades, were measured and analyzed in terms of the magneto-mechanical effect on core losses was modeled via the Hodgdon-Esguerra hysteresis model. The results show excellent agreement with the model and a correlation between the permeability drop and the core loss increase in dependence of the material grade properties. These results emphasize the vulnerabilities of MnZn ferrites when subjected to mechanical perturbations, especially in real-world scenarios like under-road embedding for WPT.

Keywords: hydrostatic stress, power ferrites, core losses, wireless power transfer

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Authors: Joanne Hardman

Abstract:

South Africa’s crisis in mathematics attainment is well documented. To meet the need to develop students’ mathematical performance in schools the government has launched various initiatives using computers to impact on mathematical attainment. While it is clear that computers can change pedagogical practices, there is a dearth of qualitative studies indicating exactly how pedagogy is transformed with Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) in a teaching activity. Consequently, this paper addresses the following question: how, along which dimensions in an activity, does pedagogy alter with the use of computer drill and practice software in four disadvantaged grade 6 mathematics classrooms in the Western Cape province of South Africa? The paper draws on Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) to develop a view of pedagogy as socially situated. Four ideal pedagogical types are identified: Reinforcement pedagogy, which has the reinforcement of specialised knowledge as its object; Collaborative pedagogy, which has the development of metacognitive engagement with specialised knowledge as its object; Directive pedagogy, which has the development of technical task skills as its object, and finally, Defensive pedagogy, which has student regulation as its object. Face-to-face lessons were characterised as predominantly Reinforcement and Collaborative pedagogy and most computer lessons were characterised as mainly either Defensive or Directive.

Keywords: computers, cultural historical activity theory, mathematics, pedagogy

Procedia PDF Downloads 270