Search results for: four basic operations

Authors: Yuh-Jen Wu, Chun-Min Lin

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Homophonic words are common in Mandarin Chinese which belongs to the tonal language family. Using homophonic cues to study foreign languages is one of the learning techniques of mnemonics that can aid the retention and retrieval of information in the human memory. When learning difficult foreign words, some learners transpose them with words in a language they are familiar with to build an association and strengthen working memory. These phonological clues are beneficial means for novice language learners. In the classroom, if mnemonic skills are used at the appropriate time in the instructional sequence, it may achieve their maximum effectiveness. For Chinese-speaking students, proper use of Chinese-English homophonic word pairs may help them learn difficult vocabulary. In this study, a database program is developed by employing Visual Basic. The database contains two corpora, one with Chinese lexical items and the other with English ones. The Chinese corpus contains 59,053 Chinese words that were collected by a web crawler. The pronunciations of this group of words are compared with words in an English corpus based on WordNet, a lexical database for the English language. Words in both databases with similar pronunciation chunks and batches are detected. A total of approximately 1,000 Chinese lexical items are located in the preliminary comparison. These homophonic word pairs can serve as a valuable tool to assist Chinese-speaking students in learning and memorizing new English vocabulary.

Keywords: Chinese, corpus, English, homophonic words, vocabulary

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Authors: Peaceman Sopazi, Mabila Mathebula, John Smallwood

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Recent health and safety (H&S) concerns and their resultant impact on railway operations, namely, the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or collectively known as SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) pandemic and the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), which have dominated public discourse, brought into question as to whether, or not, some aspects of how we have so far managed safety oversight as railway regulatory bodies and operators will remain relevant in a changing railway environment. Railway practitioners have generally found themselves between a proverbial rock and a hard place by being confronted by emerging challenges which have brought along great opportunities for sustainability. As witnesses and participants to the progressively introduced railway safety management, and transformation regimes, this paper attempts to share gathered field experience on adaptable regulatory oversight and safety awareness. The discourse is approached from a South African context but also with an informed perspective of what seems to work and what usually does not. The authors share their own multi and transdisciplinary experience coupled with insights they have gained as researchers of global trends in general safety management and specific aspects of railway safety management, for sustainability. In addition to sharing a largely experience-based methodology for survival, suggestions are offered for consideration as a way of keeping the railway safety management discourse alive as practitioners navigate a new path which is shrouded in a cloud of untold uncertainty. The authors further believe that the right timing for the implementation of the proposed suggestions in this paper will produce beneficial outcomes. Finally, the paper will identify areas that are still open for further investigation for and by researchers and practitioners alike.

Keywords: health & safety management, safety awareness, railway safety management, railway systems sustainability

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Authors: Jyh-Yi Shih, Chie-Bein Chen, Kuang-Yi Lin, Yu-Wei Huang

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Because of the trend toward globalization, Taiwanese companies have gradually focused more on overseas market operations. Overseas market performance has gradually increased as a proportion of Taiwanese companies’ total business revenues. Existing international investment theories cannot explain numerous new phenomena in this domain. Opinions are inconsistent, and contradictory positions exist regarding the antecedents of multinational enterprise (MNE) performance. This study applied contemporary internalization theory to establish and extend approaches adopted by previous relevant studies. In the context of the overseas market, the influence that MNE investment in research and development (R&D) and marketing has on enterprise performance was investigated from the firm-specific advantages (FSAs) and country-specific advantages (CSAs) perspectives. CSAs and internationalization speed were addressed as moderators, and hypotheses regarding how internationalization and performance were achieved through MNE overseas market operation were explored to ensure the completeness of the investigation. The list of enterprises was sourced from the Taiwan Economic Journal. After examining the relevant data, the following conclusions were obtained: (a) The relationship between the level of FSAs in R&D and enterprise performance exhibited an S-shaped curve. (b) The relationship between the level of FSAs in marketing and enterprise performance displayed a U-shaped curve. (c) The extent to which potential CFAs were obtained positively moderated the relationship between enterprise investment in R&D to gain FSAs and MNE performance. (d) Internationalization speed positively moderated the relationship between MNEs and enterprise investment in R&D and marketing to gain FSAs.

Keywords: multinational corporation, firm-specific advantages, country-specific advantages, international speed

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Authors: Christopher Leung, Tony Kim, Rebecca Lendzion, Scott Mackenzie

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Retroperitoneal abscesses are a rare but serious condition with often delayed diagnosis, non-specific symptoms, multiple causes and high morbidity/mortality. With the advent of more readily available cross-sectional imaging, retroperitoneal abscesses are treated earlier and better outcomes are achieved. Occasionally, a retroperitoneal abscess is present as a huge retroperitoneal abscess, as evident in this 53-year-old male. With a background of chronic renal disease and left partial nephrectomy, this gentleman presented with a one-month history of left flank pain without any other symptoms, including fevers or abdominal pain. CT abdomen and pelvis demonstrated a huge retroperitoneal abscess spanning from the diaphragm, abutting the spleen, down to the iliopsoas muscle and abutting the iliac vessels at the pelvic brim. This large retroperitoneal abscess required open drainage as well as drainage by interventional radiology. A long course of intravenous antibiotics and multiple drainages was required to drain the abscess. His blood culture and fluid culture grew Proteus species suggesting a urinary source, likely from his non-functioning kidney, which had a partial nephrectomy. Such a huge retroperitoneal abscess has rarely been described in the literature. The learning point here is that the basic principle of source control and antibiotics is paramount in treating retroperitoneal abscesses regardless of the size of the abscess.

Keywords: retroperitoneal abscess, retroperitoneal mass, sepsis, genitourinary infection

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Authors: Ujjwala Bhand, Mridula Goel

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Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) prepared by World Economic Forum has become a benchmark in studying the competitiveness of countries and for understanding the factors that enable competitiveness. Innovation is a key pillar in competitiveness and has the unique property of enabling exponential economic growth. This paper attempts to analyze how the pillars comprising the Global Competitiveness Index affect innovation and whether GDP growth can directly affect innovation outcomes for a country. The key objective of the study is to identify areas on which governments of developing countries can focus policies and programs to improve their country’s innovativeness. We have compiled a panel data set for top innovating countries and large emerging economies called BRICS from 2007-08 to 2014-15 in order to find the significant factors that affect innovation. The results of the regression analysis suggest that government should make policies to improve labor market efficiency, establish sophisticated business networks, provide basic health and primary education to its people and strengthen the quality of higher education and training services in the economy. The achievements of smaller economies on innovation suggest that concerted efforts by governments can counter any size related disadvantage, and in fact can provide greater flexibility and speed in encouraging innovation.

Keywords: innovation, global competitiveness index, BRICS, economic growth

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Authors: Djouhou Fowe Michelle Carole

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In the last few decades, there have been considerable efforts by the international community to develop strategies that reduce global poverty and hunger. Despite the modest success in reducing food insecurity, there are still around 795 million people worldwide who remain undernourished, the majority of whom are in sub-Saharan Africa. In many of these impoverished communities, agriculture still remains one of the most important sectors in driving economic growth and reducing poverty. For the growing population, with higher food demand and fixed agricultural land, sustainable intensification is proposed as an important strategy to respond to the challenges of low yields, environmental degradation, and adaptation to climate change. Adoption of agroforestry technologies is increasingly being promoted as a promising solution. This study was conducted to determine the perceptions of the Cameroonian population and farmers on agroforestry. The methodology used was based on a survey to determine their knowledge level of agroforestry, their representation of its advantages and disadvantages, and the reasons that might motivate them whether or not to adopt agroforestry. Participants were randomly selected and received a questionnaire. Data were subjected to a descriptive analysis using SPSS software. The obtained results showed that less than 50% of the general population had already heard about agroforestry at least once; they have basic knowledge about this concept and its advantages. Farmers had been particularly sensitive to tree's food production function and seemed to value their environmental assets. However, various constraints could affect the possible adoption of agroforestry techniques.

Keywords: agroforestry, quality and sustainable agriculture, perceptions, advantages, limits

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Authors: Namrata D. Hiremath, Mahalaxmi Bhille, P. G. Sunitha Hiremath

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Computer systems play an integral role in all facets of the engineering profession. This calls for an understanding of the processor-level components of computer systems, their design and operation, and their impact on the overall performance of the systems. Systems users are always in need of faster, more powerful, yet cheaper computer systems. The focus of Computer Science engineering graduates is inclined towards software oriented base. To be an efficient programmer there is a need to understand the role of hardware architecture towards the same. It is essential for the students of Computer Science and Engineering to know the basic building blocks of any computing device and how the digital principles can be used to build them. Hence two courses Digital Electronics of 3 credits, which is associated with lab of 1.5 credits and Computer Organization of 5 credits, were introduced at the sophomore level. Activity was introduced with the objective to teach the hardware concepts to the students of Computer science engineering through structured lab. The students were asked to design and implement a component of a computing device using MultiSim simulation tool and build the same using hardware components. The experience of the activity helped the students to understand the real time applications of the SSI and MSI components. The impact of the activity was evaluated and the performance was measured. The paper explains the achievement of the ABET outcomes a, c and k.

Keywords: digital, computer organization, ABET, structured enquiry, course activity

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Authors: Md. Danish Eqbal, Venkat Gundabala

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Microparticles and microcapsules are basically used as a carrier for cells, tissues, drugs, and chemicals. Due to its biocompatibility, non-toxicity and biodegradability, alginate based microparticles have numerous applications in drug delivery, tissue engineering, organ repair and transplantation, etc. The production of uniform monodispersed microparticles was a challenge for the past few decades. However, emergence of microfluidics has provided controlled methods for the generation of the uniform monodispersed microparticles. In this work, we present a successful method for the generation of both microparticles and microcapsules (single and double core) using merging approach of two droplets, completely inside the microfluidic device. We have fabricated hybrid glass- PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) based microfluidic device which has coflow geometry as well as the T junction channel. Coflow is used to generate the single as well as double oil-alginate emulsion in oil and T junction helps to form the calcium chloride droplets in oil. The basic idea is to match the frequency of the alginate droplets and calcium chloride droplets perfectly for controlled generation. Using the merging of droplets technique, we have successfully generated the microparticles and the microcapsules having single core as well as double and multiple cores. The cores in the microcapsules are very stable, well separated from each other and very intact as seen through cross-sectional confocal images. The size and the number of the cores along with the thickness of the shell can be easily controlled by controlling the flowrate of the liquids.

Keywords: double-core, droplets, microcapsules, microparticles

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Authors: Henry Schwartz, Bogdan Iancu, Magnus Gustafsson, Johan Lilius

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The shipping sector generates significant amounts of carbon emissions on annual basis. The excess amount of carbon dioxide is harmful for both the environment and the society, and partly for that reason, there is acute interest to decrease the volume of anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions in shipping. The usage of the existing cargo carrying capacity can be maximized, and the share of time used in actual transportation operations could be increased if the whole transportation and logistics chain was optimized with the aid of information sharing done through a centralized marketplace and an information-sharing platform. The outcome of this change would be decreased carbon dioxide emission volumes produced per each metric ton of cargo transported by a vessel. Cargo coordination is a platform under development that matches the need for waterborne transportation services with the ships that operate at a given moment in time. In this research, the transition towards adopting cargo coordination is modelled with system dynamics. The model encompasses the complex supply-demand relationships of ship operators and cargo owners. The built scenarios predict the pace at which different stakeholders start using the digitalized platform and by doing so reduce the amount of annual CO2 emissions generated. To improve the reliability of the results, various sensitivity analyses considering the pace of transition as well as the overall impact on the environment (carbon dioxide emissions per amount of cargo transported) are conducted. The results of the study can be used to support investors and politicians in decision making towards more environmentally sustainable solutions. In addition, the model provides concepts and ideas for a wider discussion considering the paths towards carbon neutral transportation.

Keywords: carbon dioxide emissions, energy efficiency, sustainable transportation, system dynamics

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Authors: Qin Zhu

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Under the development concept of Park City, Tianfu Greenway system, as the basic and pre-configuration element of Chengdu Global Park construction, connects urban open space with linear and circular structures and undertakes and exerts the ecological, cultural and recreational functions of the park system. Chengdu greenway construction is in full swing. In the process of greenway planning and construction, the landscape effect of greenway on urban quality improvement is more valued, and the long-term impact of crowd experience on the sustainable development of greenway is often ignored. Therefore, it is very important to test the effectiveness of greenway construction from the perspective of users. Taking Jincheng Greenway in Chengdu as an example, this paper attempts to introduce multi-source data to construct a post-occupancy evaluation model of greenway and adopts behavior mapping method, questionnaire survey method, web text analysis and IPA analysis method to comprehensively evaluate the user 's behavior characteristics and satisfaction. According to the evaluation results, we can grasp the actual behavior rules and comprehensive needs of users so that the experience of building greenways can be fed back in time and provide guidance for the optimization and improvement of built greenways and the planning and construction of future greenways.

Keywords: multi-source data, greenway, IPA analysis, post -occupancy evaluation (POE)

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Authors: Sanaa Bardaweel

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Inorganic polyphosphate (poly P) is present in all living forms tested to date, from each of the three kingdoms of life. Studied mainly in prokaryotes, poly P and its associated enzymes are vital in diverse basic metabolism, in at least some structural functions and, notably, in stress responses. These plentiful and unrelated roles for poly P are probably the consequence of its presence in life-forms early in evolution. The genomes of many bacterial species, including pathogens, encode a homologue of a major poly P synthetic enzyme, poly P kinase 1 (PPK1). Genetic deletion of ppk1 results in reduced poly P levels and loss of pathogens virulence towards protozoa and animals. Thus far, no PPK1 homologue has been identified in higher-order eukaryotes and, therefore, PPK1 represents a novel target for chemotherapy. The idea of the current study is to purify the PPK1 from Escherichia coli to homogeneity in order to study the effect of active site point mutations on PPK1 catalysis via the application of site-directed mutagenesis strategy. The knowledge obtained about the active site of PPK1 will be utilized to characterize the catalytic and kinetic mechanism of PPK1 with model substrates. Comprehensive understanding of the enzyme kinetic mechanism and catalysis will be used to design and screen a library of synthetic compounds for potential discovery of selective PPK1-inhibitors.

Keywords: antimicobial, Escherichia coli, inorganic polyphosphate, PPK1-inhibitors

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Authors: Ayman Mohammed, Abdul Raffay Ilyas, Syeda Rohma Sadia, Zuha Durrani, Fareeha Kamal, Shaheryar Syed, Arshiya Shareef, Mukarram Zaidi

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On June 16, 2019, Coalition Avenir de Québec (CAQ) passed Bill 21, a controversial bill impacting many Canadians. The Bill prohibits workers in the Quebec provincial sector from wearing any form of religious articles. While the Bill claims to treat all religious symbols equally, those with distinctive items of dress such as hijabs, kippahs, and turbans become targets of the discriminatory nature of the Bill. With the rise in xenophobic behaviour across Canada and the West, Think For Actions conducted a study of Bill 21. The study included responses from Indigenous, Muslims, Sikhs and Jewish people residing in Calgary. The focus was on the recent passing of Bill 21, their opinions on the perceived attitudes of intolerance, and the perceptions of common stereotypes. The data collection and analysis happened over 9 weeks. The method of data collection was semi-structured interviews held in focus groups in different religious institutions and cultural/community centres in Calgary. The focus groups generated unanimously negative responses to the Bill. Participants described the Bill as “hateful” and one which “targets minority religions”. The participants had hopes that the Bill would be defeated and Quebec residents would be protected by their basic rights to practice their religion.

Keywords: Bill 21, Islamophobia, Quebec, minorities, discrimination

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Authors: Suarez-Puello Alejandro, Baquero-Ruiz Andrés F, Suarez-Puello Rodrigo

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This paper discusses the results of a foresight exercise which analyzes Bogota’s fruit, vegetable and tuber supply chain strategy- described at the Food Supply and Security Master Plan (FSSMP)-to provide the inhabitants of Bogotá, Colombia, with basic food products at a fair price. The methodology consisted of using quantitative and qualitative foresight tools such as system dynamics and variable selection methods to better represent interactions among stakeholders and obtain more integral results that could shed light on this complex situation. At first, the Master Plan is an input to establish the objectives and scope of the exercise. Then, stakeholders and their relationships are identified. Later, system dynamics is used to model product, information and money flow along the fruit, vegetable and tuber supply chain. Two scenarios are presented, discussing actions by the public sector and the reactions that could be expected from the whole food supply system. Finally, these impacts are compared to the Food Supply and Security Master Plan’s objectives suggesting recommendations that could improve its execution. This foresight exercise performed at a governmental level is intended to promote the widen the use of foresight as an anticipatory, decision-making tool that offers solutions to complex problems.

Keywords: decision making, foresight, public policies, supply chain, system dynamics

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Authors: Hasan Serdar Öge, Esra Çiftçi, Kazım Karaboğa

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The main purpose of the research is to address the role of psychological harassment behaviors (mobbing) to which employees are exposed and personality characteristics over work alienation. Research population was composed of the employees of Provincial Special Administration. A survey with four sections was created to measure variables and reach out the basic goals of the research. Correlation and step-wise regression analyses were performed to investigate the separate and overall effects of sub-dimensions of psychological harassment behaviors and personality characteristic on work alienation of employees. Correlation analysis revealed significant but weak relationships between work alienation and psychological harassment and personality characteristics. Step-wise regression analysis revealed also significant relationships between work alienation variable and assault to personality, direct negative behaviors (sub dimensions of mobbing) and openness (sub-dimension of personality characteristics). Each variable was introduced into the model step by step to investigate the effects of significant variables in explaining the variations in work alienation. While the explanation ratio of the first model was 13%, the last model including three variables had an explanation ratio of 24%.

Keywords: alienation, five-factor personality characteristics, mobbing, psychological harassment, work alienation

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Authors: Ofosuhene O. Apenteng, Noor Azina Ismail

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Over the last several years, concern has developed over how to minimize the spread of HIV/AIDS epidemic in many countries. AIDS epidemic has tremendously stimulated the development of mathematical models of infectious diseases. The transmission dynamics of HIV infection that eventually developed AIDS has taken a pivotal role of much on building mathematical models. From the initial HIV and AIDS models introduced in the 80s, various improvements have been taken into account as how to model HIV/AIDS frameworks. In this paper, we present the impact of migration on the spread of HIV/AIDS. Epidemic model is considered by a system of nonlinear differential equations to supplement the statistical method approach. The model is calibrated using HIV incidence data from Malaysia between 1986 and 2011. Bayesian inference based on Markov Chain Monte Carlo is used to validate the model by fitting it to the data and to estimate the unknown parameters for the model. The results suggest that the migrants stay for a long time contributes to the spread of HIV. The model also indicates that susceptible individual becomes infected and moved to HIV compartment at a rate that is more significant than the removal rate from HIV compartment to AIDS compartment. The disease-free steady state is unstable since the basic reproduction number is 1.627309. This is a big concern and not a good indicator from the public heath point of view since the aim is to stabilize the epidemic at the disease equilibrium.

Keywords: epidemic model, HIV, MCMC, parameter estimation

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Authors: Tabitha D. Hussein, Arigu M. Sunday

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This paper is an attempt to gauge the conception and misconception of mental health in the Gwafan community, Jos North Plateau State, Nigeria (West Africa), to ascertain which side of the scale the pendulum swings. Mental health education and awareness are necessary for healthy community development. However, in a society such as ours in Nigeria (Africa) that is not knowledge-based, it is easy for people to embrace hearsay, speculations, superstition, and the supernatural. The objectives of this paper are two folds: first, to examine the level of awareness of the people on mental health, or the lack of it; second, to ascertain their access to mental health services and good practices. The methodology adopted is qualitative research, and the instrument used is T-test related. The findings include, first, the fact that a larger population has misconceptions about Mental Health. Second, this misconception is a result of a lack of basic knowledge of Mental Health. Based on the aforementioned, the paper recommends that there is a need for more Mental Health Education among the populace and access to Mental Health services and practices (Preventative and Curative). The paper concludes that in a society that is not knowledgebase, every attempt should be made to shift people’s mindset from superstitious knowledge to evidence-based knowledge, which can empower them to make informed decisions not only on mental Health but on associative Health issues that can aid their wellbeing, livelihood and sustainable development as a whole.

Keywords: conceptions, misconceptions, mental health, knowledge, superstition, service delivery

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Authors: Raveendranath Veeramani, Parkash Chand, H. Y. Suma, A. Umamageswari

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Background and Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate students’ perception of Integrated Learning Program[ILP]. Settings and Design: A questionnaire was used to survey and evaluate the perceptions of 1styear MBBS students at the Department of Anatomy at our medical college in India. Materials and Methods: The first MBBS Students of Anatomy were involved in the ILP on the Liver and extra hepatic biliary apparatus integrating the Departments of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Hepato-biliary Surgery. The evaluation of the ILP was done by two sets of short questionnaire that had ten items using the Likert five-point grading scale. The data involved both the students’ responses and their grading. Results: A majority of students felt that the ILP was better in as compared to the traditional lecture method of teaching.The integrated teaching method was better at fulfilling learning objectives (128 students, 83%), enabled better understanding (students, 94%), were more interesting (140 students, 90%), ensured that they could score better in exams (115 students, 77%) and involved greater interaction (100 students, 66%), as compared to traditional teaching methods. Most of the students (142 students, 95%) opined that more such sessions should be organized in the future. Conclusions: Responses from students show that the integrated learning session should be incorporated even at first phase of MBBS for selected topics so as to create interest in the medical sciences at the entry level and to make them understand the importance of basic science.

Keywords: integrated learning, students response, vertical integration, horizontal integration

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Authors: Diba Arjmandi

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The notion of power and gender domination is one of the inseparable aspects of themes in postmodern literature. The reason of its importance has been discussed frequently since the rise of Michel Foucault and his vantage point toward the circulation of power and the transgression of forces. The language and society act as the basic grounds for the study, as all human beings are bound to the set of rules and norms which shape them in the acceptable way in the macrocosm. How different genders in different positions behave and show reactions to the provocation of social forces and superiority of one another, is of great interest to writers and literary critics. Mamet’s works are noticeable for their controversial but timely themes which illustrate the human conflict with the community and greed for power. Many critics like Christopher Bigsby and Harold Bloom have been discussing Mamet and his ideas during recent years. This paper is the study of Oleanna, Mamet’s masterpiece about teacher-student relationship and the circulation of power between a man and woman. He shows the very breakable boundaries in domination of a gender and the downfall of speech as the consequence of transgression and freedom. The failure of the language the teacher uses and the abuses of his own words by a student who seeks superiority and knowledge are the main subjects of discussion. Supported by the ideas of Foucault, the language Mamet uses to represent his characters becomes the fundamental element of this survey. As a result, language becomes both the means of achievement and also downfall.

Keywords: domination, foucault, language, mamet, oleanna, power, transgression

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Authors: Lynn Lehmann, Dinorah Leyva, Ana Lazic, Stefan Duhr, Philipp Baaske

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Characterization of biomolecular interactions, such as protein-protein, protein-nucleic acid or protein-small molecule, provides critical insights into cellular processes and is essential for the development of drug diagnostics and therapeutics. Here we present a novel, label-free, and tether-free technology to analyze picomolar to millimolar affinities of biomolecular interactions by Microscale Thermophoresis (MST). The entropy of the hydration shell surrounding molecules determines thermophoretic movement. MST exploits this principle by measuring interactions using optically generated temperature gradients. MST detects changes in the size, charge and hydration shell of molecules and measures biomolecule interactions under close-to-native conditions: immobilization-free and in bioliquids of choice, including cell lysates and blood serum. Thus, MST measures interactions under close-to-native conditions, and without laborious sample purification. We demonstrate how MST determines the picomolar affinities of antibody::antigen interactions, and protein::protein interactions measured from directly from cell lysates. MST assays are highly adaptable to fit to the diverse requirements of different and complex biomolecules. NanoTemper´s unique technology is ideal for studies requiring flexibility and sensitivity at the experimental scale, making MST suitable for basic research investigations and pharmaceutical applications.

Keywords: biochemistry, biophysics, molecular interactions, quantitative techniques

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Authors: Kamyar Maleki Bagherabadi, Torstein Aarseth Bø, Truls Flatberg, Olve Mo

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Hydrogen fuel cells and batteries are one of the promising solutions aligned with carbon emission reduction goals for the marine sector. However, the higher installation and operation costs of hydrogen-based systems compared to conventional diesel gensets raise questions about the appropriate hydrogen tank size, energy, and fuel consumption estimations. Ship designers need methodologies and tools to calculate energy and fuel consumption for different component sizes to facilitate decision-making regarding feasibility and performance for retrofits and design cases. The aim of this work is to compare three alternative modeling approaches for the estimation of energy and fuel consumption with various hydrogen tank sizes, battery capacities, and load-sharing strategies. A fishery vessel is selected as an example, using logged load demand data over a year of operations. The modeled power system consists of a PEM fuel cell, a diesel genset, and a battery. The methodologies used are: first, an energy-based model; second, considering load variations during the time domain with a rule-based Power Management System (PMS); and third, a load variations model and dynamic PMS strategy based on optimization with perfect foresight. The errors and potentials of the methods are discussed, and design sensitivity studies for this case are conducted. The results show that the energy-based method can estimate fuel and energy consumption with acceptable accuracy. However, models that consider time variation of the load provide more realistic estimations of energy and fuel consumption regarding hydrogen tank and battery size, still within low computational time.

Keywords: fuel cell, battery, hydrogen, hybrid power system, power management system

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Authors: Benedictus Asriparusa

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In the area of the oil industry, there is accompanied by associated natural gas. The thing shows that a large amount of energy is being wasted mostly in the developing countries by contributing to the global warming process. This research represents an overview of methods in Minas area employed by these researchers in PT. Chevron Pacific Indonesia to determine ways of measuring and reducing gas flaring and its emission drastically. It provides an approximation includes analytical studies, numerical studies, modeling, computer simulations, etc. Flaring system is the controlled burning of natural gas in the course of routine oil and gas production operations. This burning occurs at the end of a flare stack or boom. The combustion process will release emissions of greenhouse gases such as NO2, CO2, SO2, etc. This condition will affect the air and environment around the industrial area. Therefore, we need a simulation to create the pattern of the dissemination of pollutant. This research paper has being made to see trends in gas flaring model and current developments to predict dominant variable which gives impact to dissemination of pollutant. Fluent models used to simulate the distribution of pollutant gas coming out of the stack. While WRF model output is used to overcome the limitations of the analysis of meteorological data and atmospheric conditions in the study area. This study condition focused on transition season in 2012 at Minas area. The goal of the simulation is looking for the exact time which is most influence towards dissemination of pollutants. The most influence factor divided into two main subjects. It is the quickest wind and the slowest wind. According to the simulation results, it can be seen that quickest wind moves to horizontal way and slowest wind moves to vertical way.

Keywords: flaring system, fluent model, dissemination of pollutant, transition season

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Authors: A. Elmethnani, A. Jroud

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This coastal crude oil refinery is situated north of a big city west of Tripoli; the city then could be highly prone to downwind refinery emissions where the NNE wind direction is prevailing through most seasons of the year. Furthermore, due to the absence of an air quality monitoring network and scarce emission data available for the neighboring community, nearby residents have serious worries about the impacts of the oil refining operations on local air quality. In responding to these concerns, a short term survey has performed for three consecutive days where a semi-continues mobile monitoring approach has developed effectively in this study; the monitoring station (Compact AQM 65 AeroQual) was mounted on a vehicle to move quickly between locations, measurements of 10 minutes averaging of 60 seconds then been taken at each fixed sampling point. The downwind ambient concentration of CO, H₂S, NOₓ, NO₂, SO₂, PM₁, PM₂.₅ PM₁₀, and TSP were measured at carefully chosen sampling locations, ranging from 200m nearby the fence-line passing through the city center up to 4.7 km east to attain best spatial coverage. Results showed worrying levels of PM₂.₅ PM₁₀, and TSP at one sampling location in the city center, southeast of the refinery site, with an average mean of 16.395μg/m³, 33.021μg/m³, and 42.426μg/m³ respectively, which could be attributed to road traffic. No significant concentrations have been detected for other pollutants of interest over the study area, as levels observed for CO, SO₂, H₂S, NOₓ, and NO₂ haven’t respectively exceeded 1.707 ppm, 0.021ppm, 0.134 ppm, 0.4582 ppm, and 0.0018 ppm, which was at the same sampling locations as well. Although it wasn’t possible to compare the results with the Libyan air quality standards due to the difference in the averaging time period, the technique was adequate for the baseline air quality screening procedure. Overall, findings primarily suggest modeling of dispersion of the refinery emissions to assess the likely impact and spatial-temporal distribution of air pollutants.

Keywords: air quality, mobil monitoring, oil refinery

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Authors: Juliet Udoudom

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Complement ordering principles of natural language phrases (XPs) stipulate that Head terms be consistently placed phrase initially or phrase-finally, yielding two basic theoretical orders – Head – Complement order or Complement – Head order. This paper examines the principles which determine complement ordering in English V- and N-bar structures. The aim is to determine the extent to which complement linearisations in the two phrase types are consistent with the two theoretical orders outlined above given the flexible and varied nature of natural language structures. The objective is to see whether there are variation(s) in the complement linearisations of the XPs studied and the implications which such variations hold for the inter-language syntax of English and Ibibio. A corpus-based approach was employed in obtaining the English data. V- and -N – bar structures containing complement structures were isolated for analysis. Data were examined from the perspective of the X-bar and Government – theories of Chomsky’s (1981) Government-Binding format. Findings from the analysis show that in V – bar structures in English, heads are consistently placed phrase – initially yielding a Head – Complement order; however, complement linearisation in the N – bar structures studied exhibited parametric variations. Thus, in some N – bar structures in English the nominal head is ordered to the left whereas in others, the head term occurs to the right. It may therefore be concluded that the principles which determine complement ordering are both Language – Particular and Phrase – specific following insights provided within Phrasal Syntax.

Keywords: complement order, complement–head order, head–complement order, language–particular principles

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Authors: A. Soualem

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The design of multi stage deep drawing processes requires the evaluation of many process parameters such as the intermediate die geometry, the blank shape, the sheet thickness, the blank holder force, friction, lubrication etc..These process parameters have to be determined for the optimum forming conditions before the process design. In general sheet metal forming may involve stretching drawing or various combinations of these basic modes of deformation. It is important to determine the influence of the process variables in the design of sheet metal working process. Especially, the punch and die corner for deep drawing will affect the formability. At the same time the prediction of sheet metals springback after deep drawing is an important issue to solve for the control of manufacturing processes. Nowadays, the importance of this problem increases because of the use of steel sheeting with high stress and also aluminum alloys. The aim of this paper is to give a better understanding of the springback and its effect in various sheet metals forming process such as expansion and restraint deep drawing in the cup drawing process, by varying radius die, lubricant for two commercially available materials e.g. galvanized steel and Aluminum sheet. To achieve these goals experiments were carried out and compared with other results. The original of our purpose consist on tests which are ensured by adapting a U-type stretching-bending device on a tensile testing machine, where we studied and quantified the variation of the springback.

Keywords: springback, deep drawing, expansion, restricted deep drawing

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Authors: José María Renteria, Vania Salas

Abstract:

This study explores the impact of inclusive education on the educational outcomes of students without Special Educational Needs (non-SEN) in Peru, utilizing official Ministry of Education data and implementing cross-sectional regression analyses. Inclusive education is a complex issue that, without appropriate adaptations and comprehensive understanding, can present substantial challenges to the educational community. While prior research from developed nations offers diverse perspectives on the effects of inclusive education on non-SEN students, limited evidence exists regarding its impact in developing countries. Our study addresses this gap by examining inclusive education in Peru and its effects on non-SEN students, thereby contributing to the existing literature. the findings reveal that, on average, the presence of SEN students in regular classrooms does not significantly affect their non-SEN counterparts. However, we uncover heterogeneous effects contingent on the specific type of SEN and students’ academic placement. These results emphasize the importance of targeted resources, specialized teachers, and parental involvement in facilitating successful inclusive education, particularly for specific SEN types and students positioned at the lower end of the academic achievement spectrum. In summary, this study underscores the need for tailored strategies and additional resources to foster the success of inclusive education and calls for further research in this field to expand our understanding and enhance educational policy.

Keywords: inclusive education, special educational needs, learning achievement, Peru, Basic education

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Authors: Sitarrine Thongpussawal, Hui Shao, Clark Gantzer

Abstract:

Terracing is a conservation practice to reduce erosion and widely used for soil and water conservation throughout the world but is relatively expensive. A modification of the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (called SWAT-Terrace or SWAT-T) explicitly aims to improve the simulation of the hydrological process of erosion from the terraces. SWAT-T simulates erosion from the terraces by separating terraces into three segments instead of evaluating the entire terrace. The objective of this work is to evaluate the terrace benefits on erosion from the Goodwater Creek Experimental Watershed (GCEW) at watershed and Hydrologic Response Unit (HRU) scales using SWAT-T. The HRU is the smallest spatial unit of the model, which lumps all similar land uses, soils, and slopes within a sub-basin. The SWAT-T model was parameterized for slope length, steepness and the empirical Universal Soil Erosion Equation support practice factor for three terrace segments. Data from 1993-2010 measured at the watershed outlet were used to evaluate the models for calibration and validation. Results of SWAT-T calibration showed good performance between measured and simulated erosion for the monthly time step, but poor performance for SWAT-T validation. This is probably because of large storms in spring 2002 that prevented planting, causing poorly simulated scheduling of actual field operations. To estimate terrace benefits on erosion, models were compared with and without terraces. Results showed that SWAT-T showed significant ~3% reduction in erosion (Pr <0.01) at the watershed scale and ~12% reduction in erosion at the HRU scale. Studies using the SWAT-T model indicated that the terraces have advantages to reduce erosion from terraced-agricultural watersheds. SWAT-T can be used in the evaluation of erosion to sustainably conserve the soil and water.

Keywords: Erosion, Modeling, Terraces, SWAT

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Authors: Daming Xu, Yuanyuan Wang

Abstract:

Abstract: Under the trend of rapid expansion of urbanization, the motorized urban characteristics become more and more obvious, and the walkability of urban space is seriously affected. The construction of walkability of space, as the main mode of travel for the elderly in their daily lives, has become more and more important in the current social context of serious aging. Settlement is the most basic living unit of residents, and daily shopping, medical care, and other daily trips are closely related to the daily life of the elderly. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to explore the impact of built environment on elderly people's daily walking trips at the settlement level for the construction of pedestrian-friendly settlements for the elderly. The study takes three typical settlements in Harbin Daoli District in three different periods as examples and obtains data on elderly people's walking trips and built environment characteristics through field research, questionnaire distribution, and internet data acquisition. Finally, correlation analysis and multinomial logistic regression model were applied to analyze the influence mechanism of built environment on elderly people's walkability based on the control of personal attribute variables in order to provide reference and guidance for the construction of walkability for elderly people in built environment in the future.

Keywords: built environment, elderly, walkability, multinomial logistic regression model

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Authors: Carmen Silvia Gabriel, Maria de Fátima Paiva Brito, Mariane de Paula Candido, Vanessa Barato Oliveira

Abstract:

Patient identification is a necessary practice to ensure patient safety in any healthcare environment, including emergency care units, test laboratories, home care and clinics. The present study aimed to provide evidence that can effectively contribute to practices concerning patient identification. Its objective was to investigate patient identification in basic healthcare units through patient safety standards. To do so, a descriptive and non-experimental research outline study was carried out to inquire how patient identification takes place in a particular situation. All technical manager nurses from the chosen healthcare facilities were included in the sample for the study. Data was collected in September of 2014 after approval from the Committee of Ethics. All researched institutions fit the same profile: they’re public facilities for general care with observation beds. None of them has a wristband identification protocol or policy. Only one institution mentioned using some kind of visual identification; namely, body tags separated by colors according to the type of care, but it still does not apply the recommended tags by the Brazilian Ministry of Health. This study allowed the authors to acknowledge how important the commitment from the whole healthcare team in the patient identification process is and also acknowledge how necessary it is to implement institutional policies that may aid the healthcare units in this area to promote a quality and safe patient care.

Keywords: patient safety, identification, nursing, emergency care units

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Authors: Rui Liu, Pengyu Cui, Nan Jiang

Abstract:

At present, there is much research on the application of centralized management and cross-integration application of basic geographic information. However, the idea of information integration and sharing between land, sea, and air navigation targets is not deeply applied into the research of navigation information service, especially in the information expression. Targeting at this problem, the paper carries out works about the expression pattern of navigation electronic map for ground vehicles under air and land united navigation mechanism. At first, with the support from multi-source information fusion of GIS vector data, RS data, GPS data, etc., an air and land united information expression pattern is designed aiming at specific navigation task of emergency rescue in the earthquake. And then, the characteristics and specifications of the united expression of air and land navigation information under the constraints of map load are summarized and transferred into expression rules in the rule bank. At last, the related navigation experiment is implemented to evaluate the effect of the expression pattern. The experiment selects evaluation factors of the navigation task accomplishment time and the navigation error rate as the main index, and make comparisons with the traditional single information expression pattern. To sum up, the research improved the theory of navigation electronic map and laid a certain foundation for the design and realization of united navigation system in the aspect of real-time navigation information delivery.

Keywords: navigation electronic map, united navigation, multi-element expression pattern, multi-source information fusion

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Authors: Ashok E. Kalange

Abstract:

Diagnosis according to Ayurveda is to find the root cause of a disease. Out of the eight different kinds of examinations, Nadi-Pariksha (pulse examination) is important. Nadi-Pariksha is done at the root of the thumb by examining the radial artery using three fingers. Ancient Ayurveda identifies the health status by observing the wrist pulses in terms of 'Vata', 'Pitta' and 'Kapha', collectively called as tridosha, as the basic elements of human body and in their combinations. Diagnosis by traditional pulse analysis – NadiPariksha - requires a long experience in pulse examination and a high level of skill. The interpretation tends to be subjective, depending on the expertise of the practitioner. Present work is part of the efforts carried out in making Nadi-Parikshan objective. Nadi Parikshan Yantra (three point pulse examination system) is developed in our laboratory by using three pressure sensors (one each for the Vata, Pitta and Kapha points on radial artery). The radial pulse data was collected of a large number of subjects. The radial pulse data collected is analyzed on the basis of relative amplitudes of the three point pulses as well as in frequency and time domains. The same subjects were examined by Ayurvedic physician (Nadi Vaidya) and the dominant Dosha - Vata, Pitta or Kapha - was identified. The results are discussed in details in the paper.

Keywords: Nadi Parikshan Yantra, Tridosha, Nadi Pariksha, human pulse data analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 188