Search results for: peer/individual domain
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 6471

Search results for: peer/individual domain

6231 The Impact of WhatsApp Groups as Supportive Technology in Teaching

Authors: Pinn Tsin Isabel Yee

Abstract:

With the advent of internet technologies, students are increasingly turning toward social media and cross-platform messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Line, and WeChat to support their teaching and learning processes. Although each messaging app has varying features, WhatsApp remains one of the most popular cross-platform apps that allow for fast, simple, secure messaging and free calls anytime, anywhere. With a plethora of advantages, students could easily assimilate WhatsApp as a supportive technology in their learning process. There could be peer to peer learning, and a teacher will be able to share knowledge digitally via the creation of WhatsApp groups. Content analysis techniques were utilized to analyze data collected by closed-ended question forms. Studies demonstrated that 98.8% of college students (n=80) from the Monash University foundation year agreed that the employment of WhatsApp groups was helpful as a learning tool. Approximately 71.3% disagreed that notifications and alerts from the WhatsApp group were disruptions in their studies. Students commented that they could silence the notifications and hence, it would not disturb their flow of thoughts. In fact, an overwhelming majority of students (95.0%) found it enjoyable to participate in WhatsApp groups for educational purposes. It was a common perception that some students felt pressured to post a reply in such groups, but data analysis showed that 72.5% of students did not feel pressured to comment or reply. It was good that 93.8% of students felt satisfactory if their posts were not responded to speedily, but was eventually attended to. Generally, 97.5% of students found it useful if their teachers provided their handphone numbers to be added to a WhatsApp group. If a teacher posts an explanation or a mathematical working in the group, all students would be able to view the post together, as opposed to individual students asking their teacher a similar question. On whether students preferred using Facebook as a learning tool, there was a 50-50 divide in the replies from the respondents as 51.3% of students liked WhatsApp, while 48.8% preferred Facebook as a supportive technology in teaching and learning. Taken altogether, the utilization of WhatsApp groups as a supportive technology in teaching and learning should be implemented in all classes to continuously engage our generation Y students in the ever-changing digital landscape.-

Keywords: education, learning, messaging app, technology, WhatsApp groups

Procedia PDF Downloads 157
6230 Research and Implementation of Cross-domain Data Sharing System in Net-centric Environment

Authors: Xiaoqing Wang, Jianjian Zong, Li Li, Yanxing Zheng, Jinrong Tong, Mao Zhan

Abstract:

With the rapid development of network and communication technology, a great deal of data has been generated in different domains of a network. These data show a trend of increasing scale and more complex structure. Therefore, an effective and flexible cross-domain data-sharing system is needed. The Cross-domain Data Sharing System(CDSS) in a net-centric environment is composed of three sub-systems. The data distribution sub-system provides data exchange service through publish-subscribe technology that supports asynchronism and multi-to-multi communication, which adapts to the needs of the dynamic and large-scale distributed computing environment. The access control sub-system adopts Attribute-Based Access Control(ABAC) technology to uniformly model various data attributes such as subject, object, permission and environment, which effectively monitors the activities of users accessing resources and ensures that legitimate users get effective access control rights within a legal time. The cross-domain access security negotiation subsystem automatically determines the access rights between different security domains in the process of interactive disclosure of digital certificates and access control policies through trust policy management and negotiation algorithms, which provides an effective means for cross-domain trust relationship establishment and access control in a distributed environment. The CDSS’s asynchronous,multi-to-multi and loosely-coupled communication features can adapt well to data exchange and sharing in dynamic, distributed and large-scale network environments. Next, we will give CDSS new features to support the mobile computing environment.

Keywords: data sharing, cross-domain, data exchange, publish-subscribe

Procedia PDF Downloads 124
6229 Teachers' Pedagogical Content Knowledge and Students' Achievement: A Correlational study at the Elementary level

Authors: Abrar Ajmal

Abstract:

This quantitative study explored elementary school teachers' pedagogical content knowledge and effects on grade 8 students' achievement in Punjab, Pakistan. A teacher sample (N=100) rated competencies across inquiry-focused teaching, conceptual building, interaction practices and peer collaboration promotion. A student sample (N=120) self-reported academic abilities, intrinsic motivation, help-seeking and accountability. Findings reveal teachers highly endorse learner-centric strategies, although peer interaction promotion seems less common currently. Meanwhile, significant gender disparities in self-perceived expertise emerge, favouring female over male educators across all facets measured. Additionally, teachers' knowledge positively—and significantly—correlates with student achievement overall and for both genders, highlighting the importance of professional enrichment. However, female pupils demonstrate greater confidence, drive, utilization of academic support, and ownership over learning than male counterparts. Recommendations include ongoing teacher training, targeted competency building for male students and teachers, leveraging gender peer collaboration similarities, and holistic female support amid widening divides. Sustaining instructional quality through empowering, equitable practices that nurture disadvantaged and gifted learners alike can spur systemic improvements. Ultimately, the fire line confirms the interrelations between teachers' multifaceted knowledge and student success.

Keywords: pedagogical knowledge, academic achievement, teacher gender differences, student gender differences, empowering instruction

Procedia PDF Downloads 47
6228 A Comparative Study of Mental Toughness among Players of Team and Individual Sports

Authors: P. B. Thumar

Abstract:

Today’s athletes face acute and unique challenges as the competition standards are higher and tougher. There are certain moments during a competition that appear to carry great psychological significance when the momentum starts to shift in one direction or another. These situations require athletes to remain completely focused and calm in facing the difficult circumstances. The purpose of the study was to compare the Mental Toughness level among the players of the team and individual sports. Purposive sampling was done in which subjects for the present study were the male students of The M. S. University of Baroda, Vadodara studying various courses in the academic year 2014-15. Thus, a total number of 120 boys were identified and included in the study from which 60 boys had participated in individual sports and 60 in team sports. ‘The Mental Toughness Questionnaire’ prepared by Dr. Alan Goldberg was used to determine mental toughness level of the players of the team and individual sports. The scores arrived from 60 individual players and 60 team players were compared by applying the t-test. Significant difference was found on overall Mental Toughness and in subcomponents there was significant difference in ability to handle pressure, concentration and confidence whereas there was no significant difference in reboundability and motivation among team and individual sports players. This could be largely due the nature of both sports. Team players of MSU found to be having more overall mental toughness, and team players are able to handle pressure more than individual players, can concentrate more and are also more confident while playing in the team. Team preparation and training prior to competition could have increased the level of ability to handle pressure, concentration and confidence of team players.

Keywords: mental toughness, reboundability, confidence, team sports, individual sports

Procedia PDF Downloads 449
6227 Time-Domain Analysis of Pulse Parameters Effects on Crosstalk in High-Speed Circuits

Authors: Loubna Tani, Nabih Elouzzani

Abstract:

Crosstalk among interconnects and printed-circuit board (PCB) traces is a major limiting factor of signal quality in high-speed digital and communication equipments especially when fast data buses are involved. Such a bus is considered as a planar multiconductor transmission line. This paper will demonstrate how the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method provides an exact solution of the transmission-line equations to analyze the near end and the far end crosstalk. In addition, this study makes it possible to analyze the rise time effect on the near and far end voltages of the victim conductor. The paper also discusses a statistical analysis, based upon a set of several simulations. Such analysis leads to a better understanding of the phenomenon and yields useful information.

Keywords: multiconductor transmission line, crosstalk, finite difference time domain (FDTD), printed-circuit board (PCB), rise time, statistical analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 433
6226 Comparative Analysis of Competitive State Anxiety among Team Sport and Individual Sport Athletes in Iran

Authors: Hossein Soltani, Zahra Hojati, Seyed Reza Attarzadeh Hossini

Abstract:

Anxiety levels before and during competition are not clear due to conflicting findings; various athletes have reported different levels of anxiety from much too low. With respect to the fact that every sport field has its own special nature, and the lack of a comprehensive theory in this field made the author to compare competitive state anxiety among team sport and individual sport athletes in Iran. The sample included 120 male athletes, 60 athletes in individual sports (taekwondo, karate, and wrestling) and 60 athletes in team sports (volleyball, basketball, futsal). All participants in this study were regularly competing at the super leagues and regional level. The research instrument employed was the Persian version of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2. This inventory was distributed among the subjects about 30 minutes before the first competition. Finally, using one-way ANOVA data was analyzed. The results indicated that the mean score of cognitive and somatic anxiety among individual sport athletes was higher than that of team sport athletes (P<0.05). Self-confidence levels of individual sports athletes was higher than that of team sports athletes but the difference was not significant (P >0.05). It seems the being part of a team alleviates some of the pressure experienced by those who compete alone. Conclusion: Individual sport athletes may be more exposed to evaluation and more engaged in their own skills and abilities than team sport athletes given that responsibility for performance is not distributed across several performers.

Keywords: competitive state anxiety, cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, team sports, individual sports

Procedia PDF Downloads 576
6225 Epistemic Stance in Chinese Medicine Translation: A Systemic Functional Perspective

Authors: Yan Yue

Abstract:

Epistemic stance refers to the writer’s judgement about the certainty of the proposition, which demonstrates writer’s degree of commitment and confidence to the status of the information. Epistemic stance can exert great consequence to the validity or reliability of the values of a statement, however, to date, it receives little attention in translations studies, especially from the perspective of systemic functional linguistics (SFL) and with the relation to translator’s domain knowledge. This study is corpus-based research carried out in SFL perspective, which investigates translator’s epistemic stance pattern in Chinese medicine discourse translations by translators with and without medical domain knowledge. Overall, our findings show that all translators tend to be neither too assertive nor too doubted about Chinese medicine statements, and they all tend to express their epistemic stance in a subjective rather than objective way. Individually, there is a clear pattern of epistemic stance marked off by translators’ medical expertise, which further consolidates the previous finding that epistemic asymmetry is found most salient between lay people and professionals. However, contrary to our hypothesis, translators as clinicians who have more medical knowledge are found to be more tentative to TCM statements than translators as non-clinicians. This finding could serve to refine the statements about the relation between writer’s domain knowledge and epistemic stance-taking and the current debate whether Chinese medicine texts should only be translated by clinicians.

Keywords: epistemic stance, domain knowledge, SFL, medical translation

Procedia PDF Downloads 148
6224 Investigating the Behavior of Individual Business Taxpayers: Behavioral Economics Approach

Authors: Yeganeh Mousavi Jahromi, Sahar Dehghan

Abstract:

In Direct Tax Act, penalties and incentives are two strategies for realization of the expected tax revenues. In this study, the interaction between individual businesses' taxpayers' behaviors and National Tax Administration is investigated by using prospect theory which is based on behavioral economics approach. For this purpose, the structure of the tax compliance of the mentioned taxpayers is evaluated via the changes in penalty and incentive rates. In this way, a special questionnaire regarding the items of individual businesses sector of Direct Tax Act was designed for tax compliance evaluation, and the results were obtained using Bayesian Hierarchical method. The results indicate that the investigated individual business taxpayers, at all income levels, were more sensitive toward incentive rates so that this result can be useful for tax policymakers.

Keywords: behavioral economics, prospect theory, tax compliance, penalties, incentives

Procedia PDF Downloads 68
6223 Comparisons of Individual and Group Replacement Policies for a Series Connection System with Two Machines

Authors: Wen Liang Chang, Mei Wei Wang, Ruey Huei Yeh

Abstract:

This paper studies the comparisons of individual and group replacement policies for a series connection system with two machines. Suppose that manufacturer’s production system is a series connection system which is combined by two machines. For two machines, when machines fail within the operating time, minimal repair is performed for machines by the manufacturer. The manufacturer plans to a preventive replacement for machines at a pre-specified time to maintain system normal operation. Under these maintenance policies, the maintenance cost rate models of individual and group replacement for a series connection system with two machines is derived and further, optimal preventive replacement time is obtained such that the expected total maintenance cost rate is minimized. Finally, some numerical examples are given to illustrate the influences of individual and group replacement policies to the maintenance cost rate.

Keywords: individual replacement, group replacement, replacement time, two machines, series connection system

Procedia PDF Downloads 488
6222 The Effects of Learning Engagement on Interpreting Performance among English Major Students

Authors: Jianhua Wang, Ying Zhou, Xi Zhang

Abstract:

To establish the influential mechanism of learning engagement on interpreter’s performance, the present study submitted a questionnaire to a sample of 927 English major students with 804 valid ones and used the structural equation model as the basis for empirical analysis and statistical inference on the sample data. In order to explore the mechanism for interpreting learning engagement on student interpreters’ performance, a path model of interpreting processes with three variables of ‘input-environment-output’ was constructed. The results showed that the effect of each ‘environment’ variable on interpreting ability was different from and greater than the ‘input’ variable, and learning engagement was the greatest influencing factor. At the same time, peer interaction on interpreting performance has significant influence. Results suggest that it is crucial to provide effective guidance for optimizing learning engagement and interpreting teaching research by both improving the environmental support and building the platform of peer interaction, beginning with learning engagement.

Keywords: learning engagement, interpreting performance, interpreter training, English major students

Procedia PDF Downloads 207
6221 Quality Evaluation of Backfill Grout in Tunnel Boring Machine Tail Void Using Impact-Echo (IE): Short-Time Fourier Transform (STFT) Numerical Analysis

Authors: Ju-Young Choi, Ki-Il Song, Kyoung-Yul Kim

Abstract:

During Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) tunnel excavation, backfill grout should be injected after the installation of segment lining to ensure the stability of the tunnel and to minimize ground deformation. If grouting is not sufficient to fill the gap between the segments and rock mass, hydraulic pressures occur in the void, which can negatively influence the stability of the tunnel. Recently the tendency to use TBM tunnelling method to replace the drill and blast(NATM) method is increasing. However, there are only a few studies of evaluation of backfill grout. This study evaluates the TBM tunnel backfill state using Impact-Echo(IE). 3-layers, segment-grout-rock mass, are simulated by FLAC 2D, FDM-based software. The signals obtained from numerical analysis and IE test are analyzed by Short-Time Fourier Transform(STFT) in time domain, frequency domain, and time-frequency domain. The result of this study can be used to evaluate the quality of backfill grouting in tail void.

Keywords: tunnel boring machine, backfill grout, impact-echo method, time-frequency domain analysis, finite difference method

Procedia PDF Downloads 266
6220 Unsupervised Domain Adaptive Text Retrieval with Query Generation

Authors: Rui Yin, Haojie Wang, Xun Li

Abstract:

Recently, mainstream dense retrieval methods have obtained state-of-the-art results on some datasets and tasks. However, they require large amounts of training data, which is not available in most domains. The severe performance degradation of dense retrievers on new data domains has limited the use of dense retrieval methods to only a few domains with large training datasets. In this paper, we propose an unsupervised domain-adaptive approach based on query generation. First, a generative model is used to generate relevant queries for each passage in the target corpus, and then the generated queries are used for mining negative passages. Finally, the query-passage pairs are labeled with a cross-encoder and used to train a domain-adapted dense retriever. Experiments show that our approach is more robust than previous methods in target domains that require less unlabeled data.

Keywords: dense retrieval, query generation, unsupervised training, text retrieval

Procedia PDF Downloads 73
6219 Algebras over an Integral Domain and Immediate Neighbors

Authors: Shai Sarussi

Abstract:

Let S be an integral domain with field of fractions F and let A be an F-algebra. An S-subalgebra R of A is called S-nice if R∩F = S and the localization of R with respect to S \{0} is A. Denoting by W the set of all S-nice subalgebras of A, and defining a notion of open sets on W, one can view W as a T0-Alexandroff space. A characterization of the property of immediate neighbors in an Alexandroff topological space is given, in terms of closed and open subsets of appropriate subspaces. Moreover, two special subspaces of W are introduced, and a way in which their closed and open subsets induce W is presented.

Keywords: integral domains, Alexandroff topology, immediate neighbors, valuation domains

Procedia PDF Downloads 177
6218 Factors That Facilitate and Hinder Friendship with Peers: A Qualitative Study Involving Early Adolescents

Authors: I. Stacher, B. Schrank, K. Stiehl, K. A. Woodcock

Abstract:

Background: The need and desire for connectedness and belonging to a peer group is a major concern in middle childhood. This is particularly true for the period of school transition when making and maintaining friendships is put to the test. Social relations are important for enhancing self-esteem, confidence, and mental health. Conflicts with peers and victimization mark challenges in the complex social environment of early adolescents. Thus, the promotion of supportive peer relationships is an important social goal. The current literature lacks an in-depth analysis of young people’s experiences connected to making and maintaining friendships. Aim: This qualitative study aims to understand the factors that facilitate and hinder friendship and peer relations within the complex context of school transition. Methods: Youth engagement workshops at primary and secondary schools were conducted with 53 classes (N = 906 pupils; M age = 10.44; SD = .912) in 29 different schools across lower Austria. A big poster was created with the entire class, collecting early adolescents’ ideas on ways they can support each other in the school environment. Then, students were divided into smaller groups and encouraged to share their personal experiences of friendship. Verbatim quotes from students were collected on observation sheets and sticky notes during the activities. A thematic analysis was conducted. Results: Early adolescents describe facilitating factors that allow them to connect with peers. These descriptions are mainly on a behavioral level and are relevant for face-to-face and digital contact, e.g., practical and emotional support, spending time together, pleasure and fun. Specific challenges such as offensive actions, betrayal, and lack of emotion regulation exist and need to be addressed if aiming to reduce barriers between peers. Conclusion: Knowing first-hand experiences, desires, and barriers for making and maintaining friends at the time of school transition will help researchers to develop preventive health programs that adequately address the needs and preferences of today’s youth.

Keywords: youth voice, experts by experience, friendship, peer relations, primary-secondary school, transition

Procedia PDF Downloads 124
6217 Burnout in the Resident Physician and a Simple Means of Improvement

Authors: Jacob Dangerfield, Jacob Pollard, Jennifer DeCou

Abstract:

Introduction: Burnout, anxiety, and depression are three conditions that are prevalent in medical providers. This is especially the case in the field of anesthesia, which has a high number of providers suffering from burnout and burnout syndrome. A major contributor to this issue is isolation in the workplace, with a perceived lack of peer support as a major risk factor for burnout. Two organizational interventions that can be done to help improve this issue are small group sessions and providing affordable mental health services. Per American College of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Guidelines, these affordable mental health services are a requirement of all residency programs, but for a variety of reasons, many residents do not access them. As physicians, we are often not good at asking for help. With this in mind, we hypothesized that carrying out small group resiliency sessions facilitated by Graduate Medical Education (GME) Wellness Counselors would improve both resident peer support as well as the likelihood that a resident will reach out to GME Wellness in a time of need. Methods: We held small group resiliency sessions with the GME Wellness Mental Health Professionals during protected didactic time. These sessions were small groups, including the members of one’s class (i.e., first-year residents on their own), and were facilitated by 1-2 mental health professionals. After these sessions, we surveyed residents who attended using a short Google Forms survey and using a 5-point Likert Scale, asked residents about some outcomes from the session. A “strongly agree” or “agree” was considered a positive response. Results: Results from our survey showed that the resident sessions had multiple positive outcomes. This survey was sent to 29 residents, and we had a 62% response rate. We found out through this survey that these small group sessions had a perceived positive impact on resident personal well-being, increased perceived peer support from classmates, and made residents more likely to reach out to GME Wellness in the future. Perceived positive impact on well-being was found in 83% of resident respondents, improved perceived peer support in 83% of respondents, and 78% of resident respondents stated that this session increased their likelihood of reaching out to mental health professionals. Conclusions: Through this study, we can conclude that our hypothesis was correct in that Small Group Resiliency Sessions that are facilitated by GME Wellness Counselors improve both resident peer support as well as the likelihood a resident reaches out to these mental health professionals in time of need. We believe these findings are very important as they address two important factors that can aid in decreasing a provider’s risk of experiencing burnout. Through this simple means, we believe other residency programs can help the well-being of their residents, and together, we can decrease the number of cases of burnout in anesthesia.

Keywords: anesthesiology, burnout, wellness, depression, residents, trainees, mental health

Procedia PDF Downloads 54
6216 Implementation of Project-Based Learning with Peer Assessment in Large Classes under Consideration of Faculty’s Scare Resources

Authors: Margit Kastner

Abstract:

To overcome the negative consequences associated with large class sizes and to support students in developing the necessary competences (e.g., critical thinking, problem-solving, or team-work skills) a marketing course has been redesigned by implementing project-based learning with peer assessment (PBL&PA). This means that students can voluntarily take advantage of this supplementary offer and explore -in addition to attending the lecture where clicker questions are asked- a real-world problem, find a solution, and assess the results of peers while working in small collaborative groups. In order to handle this with little further effort, the process is technically supported by the university’s e-learning system in such a way that students upload their solution in form of an assignment which is then automatically distributed to peer groups who have to assess the work of three other groups. Finally, students’ work is graded automatically considering both, students’ contribution to the project and the conformity of the peer assessment. The purpose of this study is to evaluate students’ perception of PBL&PA using an online-questionnaire to collect the data. More specifically, it aims to discover students’ motivations for (not) working on a project and the benefits and problems students encounter. In addition to the survey, students’ performance was analyzed by comparing the final grades of those who participated in PBL&PA with those who did not participate. Among the 260 students who filled out the questionnaire, 47% participated in PBL&PA. Besides extrinsic motivations (bonus credits), students’ participation was often motivated by learning and social benefits. Reasons for not working on a project were connected to students’ organization and management of their studies (e.g., time constraints, no/wrong information) and teamwork concerns (e.g., missing engagement of peers, prior negative experiences). In addition, high workload and insufficient extrinsic motivation (bonus credits) were mentioned. With regards to benefits and problems students encountered during the project, students provided more positive than negative comments. Positive aspects most often stated were learning and social benefits while negative ones were mainly attached to the technical implementation. Interestingly, bonus credits were hardly named as a positive aspect meaning that intrinsic motivations have become more important when working on the project. Team aspects generated mixed feelings. In addition, students who voluntarily participated in PBL&PA were, in general, more active and utilized further course offers such as clicker questions. Examining students’ performance at the final exam revealed that students without participating in any of the offered active learning tasks performed poorest in the exam while students who used all activities were best. In conclusion, the goals of the implementation were met in terms of students’ perceived benefits and the positive impact on students’ exam performance. Since the comparison of the automatic grading with faculty grading showed valid results, it is possible to rely only on automatic grading in the future. That way, the additional workload for faculty will be within limits. Thus, the implementation of project-based learning with peer assessment can be recommended for large classes.

Keywords: automated grading, large classes, peer assessment, project-based learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 167
6215 Motives and Barriers of Using Airbnb: Findings from Mixed Method Approach

Authors: Ghada Mohammed, Mohamed Abdel Salam, Passent Tantawi

Abstract:

The study aimed to investigate the impact of motives and barriers for Egyptian users to use Airbnb as a platform of peer-to-peer accommodation instead of hotels on overall attitude towards Airbnb. A sequential mixed-methods approach was adopted to this study and it proposed a comprehensive research model adapted from both literature and results of qualitative phase and then tested via an online questionnaire. The findings revealed that, motives, price, home benefits, privacy, and online reviews significantly explained overall attitude towards Airbnb, while the main barriers were respectively: perceived risk and distrust in which they can predict the overall attitude. While from the subjective norms, only social influence can predict behavioral intention to use Airbnb. The study may serve as a practical reference for practitioners as well as researchers when developing programs and strategies to manage Airbnb consumers' needs and decision process. Some of the main conclusions drawn from this study are that variety was one of the major things that users like about Airbnb and the most important motives are the functional ones like price rather than the experiential ones like authenticity.

Keywords: airbnb, barriers, disruptive innovation, motives, sharing economy

Procedia PDF Downloads 147
6214 Purification and Pre-Crystallization of Recombinant PhoR Cytoplasmic Domain Protein from Mycobacterium Tuberculosis H37Rv

Authors: Oktira Roka Aji, Maelita R. Moeis, Ihsanawati, Ernawati A. Giri-Rachman

Abstract:

Globally, tuberculosis (TB) remains a leading cause of death. The emergence of multidrug-resistant strains and extensively drug-resistant strains have become a major public concern. One of the potential candidates for drug target is the cytoplasmic domain of PhoR Histidine Kinase, a part of the Two Component System (TCS) PhoR-PhoP in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). TCS PhoR-PhoP relay extracellular signal to control the expression of 114 virulent associated genes in Mtb. The 3D structure of PhoR cytoplasmic domain is needed to screen novel drugs using structure based drug discovery. The PhoR cytoplasmic domain from Mtb H37Rv was overexpressed in E. coli BL21(DE3), then purified using IMAC Ni-NTA Agarose his-tag affinity column and DEAE-ion exchange column chromatography. The molecular weight of the purified protein was estimated to be 37 kDa after SDS-PAGE analysis. This sample was used for pre-crystallization screening by applying sitting drop vapor diffusion method using Natrix (HR2-116) 48 solutions crystal screen kit at 25ºC. Needle-like crystals were observed after the seventh day of incubation in test solution No.47 (0.1 M KCl, 0.01 M MgCl2.6H2O, 0.05 M Tris-Cl pH 8.5, 30% v/v PEG 4000). Further testing is required for confirming the crystal.

Keywords: tuberculosis, two component system, histidine kinase, needle-like crystals

Procedia PDF Downloads 433
6213 Platform Urbanism: Planning towards Hyper-Personalisation

Authors: Provides Ng

Abstract:

Platform economy is a peer-to-peer model of distributing resources facilitated by community-based digital platforms. In recent years, digital platforms are rapidly reconfiguring the public realm using hyper-personalisation techniques. This paper aims at investigating how urban planning can leapfrog into the digital age to help relieve the rising tension of the global issue of labour flow; it discusses the means to transfer techniques of hyper-personalisation into urban planning for plasticity using platform technologies. This research first denotes the limitations of the current system of urban residency, where the system maintains itself on the circulation of documents, which are data on paper. Then, this paper tabulates how some of the institutions around the world, both public and private, digitise data, and streamline communications between a network of systems and citizens using platform technologies. Subsequently, this paper proposes ways in which hyper-personalisation can be utilised to form a digital planning platform. Finally, this paper concludes by reviewing how the proposed strategy may help to open up new ways of thinking about how we affiliate ourselves with cities.

Keywords: platform urbanism, hyper-personalisation, digital inventory, urban accessibility

Procedia PDF Downloads 115
6212 A Review on the Impact of Institutional Setting on Land Use Conflicts in Coastal Areas

Authors: Roni Susman, Thomas Weith

Abstract:

This article explores how institutional setting, mainly from institutionalism, could clearly explain the understanding of land use conflict analysis in coastal areas and has been used in current practices. Institutional setting appears as a guideline that is committed by the stakeholders who are involved directly or indirectly in land management process. This paper is aimed to identify the setting of institutional and to measure how the conflicts occur, how the actors act and influence the process, how is the condition to apply the appropriate framework for adequate solution of land use conflict in coastal area in order to enhance better decisions. To reflect the current practice and use of theories a qualitative review of 150 scientific peer-reviewed papers regarding the issue of land use conflicts in coastal areas as well as institutional process is included. The selection of peer-reviewed papers is obtained through a structured literature survey of the recently published database in a way to investigate the variances of institutional between theory and practices specifically in the case of coastal land management.

Keywords: coastal areas, institutional settings, land use conflict, land governance, actors’ constellation, analytical framework

Procedia PDF Downloads 191
6211 3D Modeling for Frequency and Time-Domain Airborne EM Systems with Topography

Authors: C. Yin, B. Zhang, Y. Liu, J. Cai

Abstract:

Airborne EM (AEM) is an effective geophysical exploration tool, especially suitable for ridged mountain areas. In these areas, topography will have serious effects on AEM system responses. However, until now little study has been reported on topographic effect on airborne EM systems. In this paper, an edge-based unstructured finite-element (FE) method is developed for 3D topographic modeling for both frequency and time-domain airborne EM systems. Starting from the frequency-domain Maxwell equations, a vector Helmholtz equation is derived to obtain a stable and accurate solution. Considering that the AEM transmitter and receiver are both located in the air, the scattered field method is used in our modeling. The Galerkin method is applied to discretize the Helmholtz equation for the final FE equations. Solving the FE equations, the frequency-domain AEM responses are obtained. To accelerate the calculation speed, the response of source in free-space is used as the primary field and the PARDISO direct solver is used to deal with the problem with multiple transmitting sources. After calculating the frequency-domain AEM responses, a Hankel’s transform is applied to obtain the time-domain AEM responses. To check the accuracy of present algorithm and to analyze the characteristic of topographic effect on airborne EM systems, both the frequency- and time-domain AEM responses for 3 model groups are simulated: 1) a flat half-space model that has a semi-analytical solution of EM response; 2) a valley or hill earth model; 3) a valley or hill earth with an abnormal body embedded. Numerical experiments show that close to the node points of the topography, AEM responses demonstrate sharp changes. Special attentions need to be paid to the topographic effects when interpreting AEM survey data over rugged topographic areas. Besides, the profile of the AEM responses presents a mirror relation with the topographic earth surface. In comparison to the topographic effect that mainly occurs at the high-frequency end and early time channels, the EM responses of underground conductors mainly occur at low frequencies and later time channels. For the signal of the same time channel, the dB/dt field reflects the change of conductivity better than the B-field. The research of this paper will serve airborne EM in the identification and correction of the topographic effects.

Keywords: 3D, Airborne EM, forward modeling, topographic effect

Procedia PDF Downloads 318
6210 Evaluating and Supporting Student Engagement in Online Learning

Authors: Maria Hopkins

Abstract:

Research on student engagement is founded on a desire to improve the quality of online instruction in both course design and delivery. A high level of student engagement is associated with a wide range of educational practices including purposeful student-faculty contact, peer to peer contact, active and collaborative learning, and positive factors such as student satisfaction, persistence, achievement, and learning. By encouraging student engagement, institutions of higher education can have a positive impact on student success that leads to retention and degree completion. The current research presents the results of an online student engagement survey which support faculty teaching practices to maximize the learning experience for online students. The ‘Indicators of Engaged Learning Online’ provide a framework that measures level of student engagement. Social constructivism and collaborative learning form the theoretical basis of the framework. Social constructivist pedagogy acknowledges the social nature of knowledge and its creation in the minds of individual learners. Some important themes that flow from social constructivism involve the importance of collaboration among instructors and students, active learning vs passive consumption of information, a learning environment that is learner and learning centered, which promotes multiple perspectives, and the use of social tools in the online environment to construct knowledge. The results of the survey indicated themes that emphasized the importance of: Interaction among peers and faculty (collaboration); Timely feedback on assignment/assessments; Faculty participation and visibility; Relevance and real-world application (in terms of assignments, activities, and assessments); and Motivation/interest (the need for faculty to motivate students especially those that may not have an interest in the coursework per se). The qualitative aspect of this student engagement study revealed what instructors did well that made students feel engaged in the course, but also what instructors did not do well, which could inform recommendations to faculty when expectations for teaching a course are reviewed. Furthermore, this research provides evidence for the connection between higher student engagement and persistence and retention in online programs, which supports our rationale for encouraging student engagement, especially in the online environment because attrition rates are higher than in the face-to-face environment.

Keywords: instructional design, learning effectiveness, online learning, student engagement

Procedia PDF Downloads 290
6209 Tracking the Effect of Ibutilide on Amplitude and Frequency of Fibrillatory Intracardiac Electrograms Using the Regression Analysis

Authors: H. Hajimolahoseini, J. Hashemi, D. Redfearn

Abstract:

Background: Catheter ablation is an effective therapy for symptomatic atrial fibrillation (AF). The intracardiac electrocardiogram (IEGM) collected during this procedure contains precious information that has not been explored to its full capacity. Novel processing techniques allow looking at these recordings from different perspectives which can lead to improved therapeutic approaches. In our previous study, we showed that variation in amplitude measured through Shannon Entropy could be used as an AF recurrence risk stratification factor in patients who received Ibutilide before the electrograms were recorded. The aim of this study is to further investigate the effect of Ibutilide on characteristics of the recorded signals from the left atrium (LA) of a patient with persistent AF before and after administration of the drug. Methods: The IEGMs collected from different intra-atrial sites of 12 patients were studied and compared before and after Ibutilide administration. First, the before and after Ibutilide IEGMs that were recorded within a Euclidian distance of 3 mm in LA were selected as pairs for comparison. For every selected pair of IEGMs, the Probability Distribution Function (PDF) of the amplitude in time domain and magnitude in frequency domain was estimated using the regression analysis. The PDF represents the relative likelihood of a variable falling within a specific range of values. Results: Our observations showed that in time domain, the PDF of amplitudes was fitted to a Gaussian distribution while in frequency domain, it was fitted to a Rayleigh distribution. Our observations also revealed that after Ibutilide administration, the IEGMs would have significantly narrower short-tailed PDFs both in time and frequency domains. Conclusion: This study shows that the PDFs of the IEGMs before and after administration of Ibutilide represents significantly different properties, both in time and frequency domains. Hence, by fitting the PDF of IEGMs in time domain to a Gaussian distribution or in frequency domain to a Rayleigh distribution, the effect of Ibutilide can easily be tracked using the statistics of their PDF (e.g., standard deviation) while this is difficult through the waveform of IEGMs itself.

Keywords: atrial fibrillation, catheter ablation, probability distribution function, time-frequency characteristics

Procedia PDF Downloads 160
6208 A PHREEQC Reactive Transport Simulation for Simply Determining Scaling during Desalination

Authors: Andrew Freiburger, Sergi Molins

Abstract:

Freshwater is a vital resource; yet, the supply of clean freshwater is diminishing as the consequence of melting snow and ice from global warming, pollution from industry, and an increasing demand from human population growth. The unsustainable trajectory of diminishing water resources is projected to jeopardize water security for billions of people in the 21st century. Membrane desalination technologies may resolve the growing discrepancy between supply and demand by filtering arbitrary feed water into a fraction of renewable, clean water and a fraction of highly concentrated brine. The leading hindrance of membrane desalination is fouling, whereby the highly concentrated brine solution encourages micro-organismal colonization and/or the precipitation of occlusive minerals (i.e. scale) upon the membrane surface. Thus, an understanding of brine formation is necessary to mitigate membrane fouling and to develop efficacious desalination technologies that can bolster the supply of available freshwater. This study presents a reactive transport simulation of brine formation and scale deposition during reverse osmosis (RO) desalination. The simulation conceptually represents the RO module as a one-dimensional domain, where feed water directionally enters the domain with a prescribed fluid velocity and is iteratively concentrated in the immobile layer of a dual porosity model. Geochemical PHREEQC code numerically evaluated the conceptual model with parameters for the BW30-400 RO module and for real water feed sources – e.g. the Red and Mediterranean seas, and produced waters from American oil-wells, based upon peer-review data. The presented simulation is computationally simpler, and hence less resource intensive, than the existent and more rigorous simulations of desalination phenomena, like TOUGHREACT. The end-user may readily prepare input files and execute simulations on a personal computer with open source software. The graphical results of fouling-potential and brine characteristics may therefore be particularly useful as the initial tool for screening candidate feed water sources and/or informing the selection of an RO module.

Keywords: desalination, PHREEQC, reactive transport, scaling

Procedia PDF Downloads 136
6207 CAG Repeat Polymorphism of Androgen Receptor and Female Sexual Functions in Egyptian Female Population

Authors: Azza Gaber Farag, Yasser Atta Shehata, Sara Elsayed Elghazouly, Mustafa Elsayed Elshaib, Nesreen Gamal Elden Elhelbawy

Abstract:

Background: Androgen receptor (AR) polymorphism in cytosine adenineguanine (CAG) repeat has an effect on the functional capacity of AR in males. However, little researches in this field are available regarding female sexual function. Aim: To investigate the possible link between polymorphism in the CAG repeat of AR gene and female sexual function in a sample of the Egyptian population. Materials and methods: 500 Egyptian married females completed a questionnaire regarding sociodemographic, reproductive, and sexual data. AR CAG repeat length was analyzed for those having female sexual dysfunctions (FSD) using real-time PCR. Results: The most sensitive domain to AR CAG repeat length was the orgasm domain that showed significant positive correlations with short allele (p=0.001), long allele (p=.015), biallellic mean (p=.000), and X weighted biallelic mean (p=.000). The satisfaction domain had significant positive correlations with the biallelic mean (p=.035), and the X weighted biallelic mean (p=. 032). However, the pain domain was of significant negative correlations with AR polymorphism of short allele (p=.002), biallelic mean (p=.013), and X weighted biallelic mean (p = . 011). Conclusions: AR polymorphism could represent a non-negligible aspect in female sexual function. The lower AR CAG repeat polymorphism was of significant impact on FSD, affecting mainly female orgasm followed by pain disorders that finally reflected On her sexual satisfaction.

Keywords: female sexual dysfunction, androgen receptor, CAG repeat polymorphism, androgen

Procedia PDF Downloads 183
6206 Global Pandemic of Chronic Diseases: Public Health Challenges to Reduce the Development

Authors: Benjamin Poku

Abstract:

Purpose: The purpose of the research is to conduct systematic reviews and synthesis of existing knowledge that addresses the growing incidence and prevalence of chronic diseases across the world and its impact on public health in relation to communicable diseases. Principal results: A careful compilation and summary of 15-20 peer-reviewed publications from reputable databases such as PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and other peer-reviewed journals indicate that the Global pandemic of Chronic diseases (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.) have become a greater public health burden in proportion as compared to communicable diseases. Significant conclusions: Given the complexity of the situation, efforts and strategies to mitigate the negative effect of the Global Pandemic on chronic diseases within the global community must include not only urgent and binding commitment of all stakeholders but also a multi-sectorial long-term approach to increase the public health educational approach to meet the increasing world population of over 8 billion people and also the aging population as well to meet the complex challenges of chronic diseases.

Keywords: pandemic, chronic disease, public health, health challenges

Procedia PDF Downloads 527
6205 The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Individual Entrepreneurial Behavior and the Moderating Role of Hierarchy

Authors: Patrick Guggenberger

Abstract:

Extant literature has highlighted the importance of individual employees in the entrepreneurial process, as they are those that come up with novel ideas and promote their implementation throughout the organization. However, research on antecedents of individual entrepreneurial behavior (IEB) is very limited. The present study takes an initial step to investigate the interplay between transformational leader behaviors of direct supervisors and employees’ ability and willingness to act entrepreneurial and sheds light on the moderating role of an individual’s hierarchical level. A theoretically derived research model is empirically tested, drawing on survey data of 450 individuals working in medium- and large-sized corporations in two countries. Findings indicate that various transformational leader behaviors have a strong positive impact on IEB, while the ability of direct supervisors to influence their followers’ entrepreneurial behavior depends strongly on their own hierarchical level. The study reveals that transformational leadership has most impact at lower hierarchical levels, where employees’ motivation to act entrepreneurial is the lowest.

Keywords: corporate entrepreneurship, hierarchy, individual entrepreneurial behavior, transformational leadership

Procedia PDF Downloads 352
6204 Bridging the Gap between Problem and Solution Space with Domain-Driven Design

Authors: Anil Kumar, Lavisha Gupta

Abstract:

Domain-driven design (DDD) is a pivotal methodology in software development, emphasizing the understanding and modeling of core business domains to create effective solutions. This paper explores the significance of DDD in aligning software architecture with real-world domains, with a focus on its application within Siemens. We delve into the challenges faced by development teams in understanding domains and propose DDD as a solution to bridge the gap between problem and solution spaces. Key concepts of DDD, such as Ubiquitous Language, Bounded Contexts, Entities, Value Objects, and Aggregates, are discussed, along with their practical implications in software development. Through a real project example in the automatic generation of hardware and software plant engineering, we illustrate how DDD principles can transform complex domains into coherent and adaptable software solutions, echoing Siemens' commitment to excellence and innovation.

Keywords: domain-driven design, software architecture, ubiquitous language, bounded contexts, entities, value objects, aggregates

Procedia PDF Downloads 38
6203 A Deviation Analysis of Career Anchors and Domain Specialization in Management Education

Authors: Santosh Kumar Sharma, Imran Ahmed Khan

Abstract:

Context: In the field of management education, it has been observed that students often have discrepancies between their career anchors and their chosen domain of specialization. This misalignment creates challenges for students during their summer internships and job placements in the corporate sector. The outcome is that some students opt to change their career track or even leave the management profession altogether. This situation poses a significant concern in terms of the overall human capital in the industry. However, there is a notable lack of substantial literature addressing this specific context. Therefore, this current study aims to contribute to the global discourse on management education and its impact on human resource management. Research Aim: The objective of this study is to analyze the deviation between career anchors and domain specialization in the context of management education in India. Methodology: This study adopts an exploratory approach. Data is collected from a substantial sample of post-graduate students who are currently pursuing management education from a renowned business school in India. The data collection process is followed by a descriptive analysis. Findings: The findings of this research contribute to the professional development of management students by highlighting the significance of aligning career anchors with their chosen domain of specialization. This alignment is crucial for enhancing human capital, which in turn impacts various factors within the Indian economy. Theoretical Importance: This study addresses the gap in the existing literature by exploring the relationship between career anchors and domain specialization in management education. By shedding light on this issue, it contributes to theoretical knowledge in the field and provides insights into the importance of career alignment within the management profession.

Keywords: management education, specialization, human resource management, India

Procedia PDF Downloads 69
6202 Security Issues in Long Term Evolution-Based Vehicle-To-Everything Communication Networks

Authors: Mujahid Muhammad, Paul Kearney, Adel Aneiba

Abstract:

The ability for vehicles to communicate with other vehicles (V2V), the physical (V2I) and network (V2N) infrastructures, pedestrians (V2P), etc. – collectively known as V2X (Vehicle to Everything) – will enable a broad and growing set of applications and services within the intelligent transport domain for improving road safety, alleviate traffic congestion and support autonomous driving. The telecommunication research and industry communities and standardization bodies (notably 3GPP) has finally approved in Release 14, cellular communications connectivity to support V2X communication (known as LTE – V2X). LTE – V2X system will combine simultaneous connectivity across existing LTE network infrastructures via LTE-Uu interface and direct device-to-device (D2D) communications. In order for V2X services to function effectively, a robust security mechanism is needed to ensure legal and safe interaction among authenticated V2X entities in the LTE-based V2X architecture. The characteristics of vehicular networks, and the nature of most V2X applications, which involve human safety makes it significant to protect V2X messages from attacks that can result in catastrophically wrong decisions/actions include ones affecting road safety. Attack vectors include impersonation attacks, modification, masquerading, replay, MiM attacks, and Sybil attacks. In this paper, we focus our attention on LTE-based V2X security and access control mechanisms. The current LTE-A security framework provides its own access authentication scheme, the AKA protocol for mutual authentication and other essential cryptographic operations between UEs and the network. V2N systems can leverage this protocol to achieve mutual authentication between vehicles and the mobile core network. However, this protocol experiences technical challenges, such as high signaling overhead, lack of synchronization, handover delay and potential control plane signaling overloads, as well as privacy preservation issues, which cannot satisfy the adequate security requirements for majority of LTE-based V2X services. This paper examines these challenges and points to possible ways by which they can be addressed. One possible solution, is the implementation of the distributed peer-to-peer LTE security mechanism based on the Bitcoin/Namecoin framework, to allow for security operations with minimal overhead cost, which is desirable for V2X services. The proposed architecture can ensure fast, secure and robust V2X services under LTE network while meeting V2X security requirements.

Keywords: authentication, long term evolution, security, vehicle-to-everything

Procedia PDF Downloads 167