Search results for: digital media effects

Authors: Jafar Akbari, Masoud Rismanchian, Samira Ramezani

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Purpose: The photocatalytic degradation of pollutants is a novel technology with various advantages such as high efficiency and energy saving. In this research, the effects of operational variables on the photocatalytic efficiency of TiO₂ coated on nickel foam in the removal of toluene from the simulated indoor air have been investigated. Methods: TiO₂ film were prepared via the sol-gel method and coated on nickel foam. The characteristics and morphology were found using XRD, SEM, and BET technique. Then, the effects of relative humidity, UV-A intensity, the initial toluene concentration, TiO₂ loading, and the air circulation velocity on the photocatalytic degradation rate have been evaluated. Results: The optimal degradation of toluene has been achieved with loading 4.35 g TiO2 on the foam, 30% RH, 5.4 µW.cm−2 UV-A intensity, and 20 ppm initial concentration in the air circulation velocity of 0.15 fpm. Conclusion: The changes of toluene photocatalytic degradation rate have been studied at various times. Also, the kinetic behavior of toluene photocatalytic degradation has been investigated using Langmuir-Hinshelwood (L-H) model.

Keywords: photocatalytic degradation, operational variables, tio₂, nickel foam, gaseous toluene, nanotechnology

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Authors: Claudia Troccoli

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Childbearing constitutes one of the key factors affecting labour market differences between men and women, accounting for almost a quarter of the gender wage gap. Family leave policies, such as maternity, paternity, and parental leave, represent potential key policy tools to address these inequalities, as they can promote mothers' job continuity and career progression. This paper analyses four major reforms implemented in Finland between the 1960s and the early 1980s. It studies the effects of these maternity and parental leave extensions on mothers' short- and long-run labour market outcomes. Eligibility to longer leave was determined on the basis of the child's date of birth. Therefore, estimation of the causal effects of the reforms is possible by exploiting random variation in children's birthdates and comparing the outcomes of mothers giving birth just before and just after the reform cutoff date. Overall, the three maternity leave reforms did not significantly improve mothers' earnings or employment rates. On the contrary, the estimates, although imprecise, seem to indicate negative effects on women's labour market outcomes. The extension of parental leave is, on the other hand, the only reform that improved mothers' short- and long-term labour market outcomes, both in terms of earnings and employment rate. At the same time, fathers appeared to be negatively affected by the reform. These results provide suggestive evidence that shareable parental leave might have more beneficial effects on mothers' job continuity, as it weakens the connotation of childcare as a task reserved for mothers.

Keywords: family policies, Finland, maternal labour market outcomes, maternity leave

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Authors: Konesh Navsaria, Itumeleng Ramodumo

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The study explored university students’ perceptions of cannabis use on academic life at a higher education institution (HEI) in Nelson Mandela Bay, South Africa. Cannabis is described as the most commonly-used drug by youth, especially those who are in tertiary institutions. The use of cannabis has both negative and positive effects; this is evident in different areas of human functioning. Cannabis usage has been debated upon in courts regarding its legalization and decriminalization, and on the 18th of September 2018, the South African High Court decriminalized cannabis for personal use. Cannabis use has increased in academic settings, and this has raised concerns about how it affects the mental health of students. A qualitative approach was used for the study with an explorative, descriptive design. Purposive sampling was used to select 15 participants for the study. Data were collected using focused-group interviews, following ethical clearance from the HEI. The collected data were analyzed and interpreted using thematic analysis, and cognitive behavioural theory was used as the theoretical framework. The research findings indicated both positive and negative influences of cannabis use on mental health. Most participants who expressed positive effects have used cannabis before, whereas most participants with negative perspectives of cannabis use on mental health are non-cannabis users. The findings revealed that participants perceived that the quantity of cannabis smoked determined whether there was a positive or negative effect on mental health; that is, large doses of cannabis were perceived as having negative effects. The research findings also revealed that the legalization of cannabis is very likely to increase its use and also highlighted precautionary measures users take to avoid the substance’s negative effects on mental health.

Keywords: cannabis use, mental health, university students, legalization

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Authors: Anya Glikman, Anastasia Gorodzeisky

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Since the late 1990th labor immigration and its consequences on the society have become one of the most frequently discussed and debated issues in Russia. Social scientists point that the negative attitudes towards immigrants among Russian majority population is widespread, and their level, at least, twice as high as their level in most other European countries. Moreover, recent study by Gorodzeisky, Glikman and Maskyleison (2014) demonstrates that the two sets of individual level predictors of anti-foreigner sentiment – socio-economic status and conservative views and ideologies – that have been repeatedly proved in research in Western countries are not effective in predicting of anti-foreigner sentiment in Post-Socialist Russia. Apparently, the social mechanisms underlying anti-foreigner sentiment in Western countries, which are characterized by stable regimes and relatively long immigration histories, do not play a significant role in the explanation of anti-foreigner sentiment in Post-Socialist Russia. The present study aims to examine alternative possible sources of anti-foreigner sentiment in Russia while controlling for socio-economic position of individuals and conservative views. More specifically, following the research literature on the topic worldwide, we aim to examine whether and to what extent human values (such as tradition, universalism, safety and power), ethnic residential segregation, fear of crime and exposure to mass media affect anti-foreigner sentiments in Russia. To do so, we estimate a series of multivariate regression equations using the data obtained from 2012 European Social Survey. The national representative sample consists of 2337 Russian born respondents. Descriptive results reveal that about 60% percent of Russians view the impact of immigrants on the country in negative terms. Further preliminary analysis show that anti-foreigner sentiments are associated with exposer to mass media as well as with fear of crime. Specifically, respondents who devoted more time watching news on TV channels and respondents who express higher levels of fear of crime tend to report higher levels of anti-immigrants sentiments. The findings would be discussed in light of sociological perspective and the context of Russian society.

Keywords: anti-immigrant sentiments, fear of crime, human values, mass media, Russia

Procedia PDF Downloads 466

Authors: Chaoran Liu

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Bioactive polysaccharides and polysaccharide-protein complex derived from mushrooms and fungi have a wide range of immunomodulatory activity with low side-effects and have therefore the potential to be developed as an adjuvant in cancer therapies. Mushrooms sclerotium is rich in polysaccharides and the polysaccharides isolated from the sclerotium of Polyporus rhinocerus have shown potent in vivo and in vitro immunomodulatory effects. Macrophages are considered to be an important component of the innate immune response against bacterial infection and cancer. To better understanding the immunomodulatory effects and its underlying mechanisms of sclerotial water-soluble polysaccharides extracted from P. rhinocerus on macrophages, the objectives of this study are to purify the water-soluble novel sclerotial polysaccharides and to characterize the structure and properties as well as to study the detailed molecular mechanisms of the in vitro immunomodulating effects in murine macrophages. The hot water-soluble fraction PRW from the sclerotium of P. rhinocerus was obtained using solvent extraction. PRW was further fractionated by membrane ultrafiltration to a give a fraction (PRW1) with molecular mass less than 50 kDa. PRW1 was characterized to be a polysaccharide-protein complex composed of 45.7% polysaccharide and 44.2% protein. The chemical structure of the carbohydrate moiety of PRW1 was elucidated by GC and FTIR to be mainly beta-D-glucan with trace amount of galactose and mannose. The immunomodulatory effects of PRW1 on murine RAW 264.7 macrophages were demonstrated in terms of the increase in nitric oxide production and cytokine production. Mechanistically, PRW1 initiates ERK phosphorylation to activate macrophages within 15 min and significantly improves the expression level of inducible NOS (iNOS) from 6 h after treatment. In summary, this study indicates that PRW1 is a potent immunomodulatory agent for macrophages and suggests that mushroom sclerotia from Polyporus rhinocerus requires for further investigation in cancer research.

Keywords: Polyporus rhinocerus, mushroom sclerotia, Polysaccharide-Protein Complex, macrophage activation

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Authors: Xiaoxue Jin, Qiong Zhang

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The rapid influx and ongoing flow of young migrants in large cities, alongside the emergence and evolution of new social media, have led to increased interpersonal alienation and weakened place attachment. In the interplay between individuals and space, urban public spaces play a pivotal role in meeting the multifaceted needs of individuals and fostering a sense of attachment. This article aims to investigate the relationship between the place characteristics of public spaces and individuals' needs and perceptions, with an aim to identify the factors influencing place attachment among the youth. This study is conducted in the Shekou community of Shenzhen, focusing on the youth residents to evaluate their place attachment levels and to analyze their perceptions of the place characteristics of selected public spaces. The influencing factors of public spaces on place attachment were sorted out through detailed data analysis. Research has found that rapid urbanization has led to spatial homogenization and spatial segregation caused by uneven resource distribution, which in turn diminishes the utilization of public spaces. The social characteristics of public spaces, such as the quality of social activities and spatial openness, are critical in forming place attachment. In this research, place characteristics impacting place attachment are categorized, aiming to reconstruct the characteristics of public space places and use them as a medium to explore the place attachment of young people, promote their independent creation and participation in public life, and enhance the dynamism between individuals and spaces.

Keywords: place attachment, place characteristics, public spaces, spatial perception

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Authors: Bok Yae Chung, Eun Hee Oh

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Breast cancer patients require more nutritional interventions than others. However, a few studies have attempted to assess the overall nutritional status, to reduce body weight and BMI by improving diet, and to improve the prognosis of cancer for breast cancer patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of diet intervention in the breast cancer patients through meta-analysis. For the study purpose, 16 studies were selected by using PubMed, ScienceDirect, ProQuest and CINAHL. Meta-analysis was performed using a random-effects model, and the effect size on outcome variables in breast cancer was calculated. The effect size for outcome variables of diet intervention was a large effect size. For heterogeneity, moderator analysis was performed using intervention type and intervention duration. All moderators did not significant difference. Diet intervention has significant positive effects on outcome variables in breast cancer. As a result, it is suggested that the timing of the intervention should be no more than six months, but a strategy for sustaining long-term intervention effects should be added if nutritional intervention is to be administered for breast cancer patients in the future.

Keywords: breast cancer, diet, mete-analysis, intervention

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Authors: Andreas Lind, Aitor Iriondo Pascual, Dan Hogberg, Lars Hanson

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Factory setup lifecycles are most often described and prepared in CAD environments; the preparation is based on experience and inputs from several cross-disciplinary processes. Early in the factory setup preparation, a so-called block layout is created. The intention is to describe a high-level view of the intended factory setup and to claim area reservations and allocations. Factory areas are then blocked, i.e., targeted to be used for specific intended resources and processes, later redefined with detailed factory setup layouts. Each detailed layout is based on the block layout and inputs from cross-disciplinary preparation processes, such as manufacturing sequence, productivity, workers’ workplace requirements, and resource setup preparation. However, this activity is often not carried out with all variables considered simultaneously, which might entail a risk of sub-optimizing the detailed layout based on manual decisions. Therefore, this work aims to realize a digital method for assembly manufacturing layout planning where productivity, area utilization, and ergonomics can be considered simultaneously in a cross-disciplinary manner. The purpose of the digital method is to support engineers in finding optimized designs of detailed layouts for assembly manufacturing factories, thereby facilitating better decisions regarding setups of future factories. Input datasets are company-specific descriptions of required dimensions for specific area reservations, such as defined dimensions of a worker’s workplace, material façades, aisles, and the sequence to realize the product assembly manufacturing process. To test and iteratively develop the digital method, a demonstrator has been developed with an adaptation of existing software that simulates and proposes optimized designs of detailed layouts. Since the method is to consider productivity, ergonomics, area utilization, and constraints from the automatically generated block layout, a multi-objective optimization approach is utilized. In the demonstrator, the input data are sent to the simulation software industrial path solutions (IPS). Based on the input and Lua scripts, the IPS software generates a block layout in compliance with the company’s defined dimensions of area reservations. Communication is then established between the IPS and the software EPP (Ergonomics in Productivity Platform), including intended resource descriptions, assembly manufacturing process, and manikin (digital human) resources. Using multi-objective optimization approaches, the EPP software then calculates layout proposals that are sent iteratively and simulated and rendered in IPS, following the rules and regulations defined in the block layout as well as productivity and ergonomics constraints and objectives. The software demonstrator is promising. The software can handle several parameters to optimize the detailed layout simultaneously and can put forward several proposals. It can optimize multiple parameters or weight the parameters to fine-tune the optimal result of the detailed layout. The intention of the demonstrator is to make the preparation between cross-disciplinary silos transparent and achieve a common preparation of the assembly manufacturing factory setup, thereby facilitating better decisions.

Keywords: factory setup, multi-objective, optimization, simulation

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Authors: A. Aslihan Gokaltun, Ali Tuncel

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The unique properties of capillary electrochromatography (CEC) such as high performance, high selectivity, low consumption of both reagents and analytes ensure this technique an attractive one for the separation of biomolecules including nucleosides and nucleotides, peptides, proteins, carbohydrates. Monoliths have become a well-established separation media for CEC in the format that can be compared to a single large 'particle' that does not include interparticular voids. Convective flow through the pores of monolith significantly accelerates the rate of mass transfer and enables a substantial increase in the speed of the separation. In this work, we propose a new approach for the preparation of cationic monolithic stationary phase for capillary electrochromatography. Instead of utilizing a charge bearing monomer during polymerization, the desired charge-bearing group is generated on the capillary monolith after polymerization by using the reactive moiety of the monolithic support via one-pot, simple reaction. Optimized monolithic column compensates the disadvantages of frequently used reversed phases, which are difficult for separation of polar solutes. Rapid separation and high column efficiencies are achieved for the separation of neutral analytes, nucleic acid bases and nucleosides in reversed phase mode. Capillary monolith showed satisfactory hydrodynamic permeability and mechanical stability with relative standard deviation (RSD) values below 2 %. A new promising, reactive support that has a 'ligand selection flexibility' due to its reactive functionality represent a new family of separation media for CEC.

Keywords: biomolecules, capillary electrochromatography, cationic monolith, neutral analytes

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Authors: Koutsopoulou Ioanna, Gkintoni Evgenia, Halkiopoulos Constantinos, Antonopoulou Hera

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Recent advances in Internet Computer Technology (ICT) and the ever-increasing use of technological equipment amongst adolescents and young adults along with unattended access to the internet and social media and uncontrolled use of smart phones and PCs have caused social problems like sexting to emerge. The main purpose of the present article is first to present an analytic theoretical framework of sexting as a recent social phenomenon based on studies that have been conducted the last decade or so; and second to investigate Greek students’ and also social network users, sexting perceptions and to record how often social media users exchange sexual messages and to retrace demographic variables predictors. Data from 1,000 students were collected and analyzed and all statistical analysis was done by the software package WEKA. The results indicate among others, that the use of data mining methods is an important tool to draw conclusions that could affect decision and policy making especially in the field and related social topics of educational psychology. To sum up, sexting lurks many risks for adolescents and young adults students in Greece and needs to be better addressed in relevance to the stakeholders as well as society in general. Furthermore, policy makers, legislation makers and authorities will have to take action to protect minors. Prevention strategies based on Greek cultural specificities are being proposed. This social problem has raised concerns in recent years and will most likely escalate concerns in global communities in the future.

Keywords: educational ethics, sexting, Greek sexters, sex education, data mining

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Authors: Raphael M. Rettig, Tessa C. Flatten

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This empirical study answer calls for research on Absorptive Capacity and Process Innovation. Due to the fourth industrial revolution, manufacturing companies face the biggest disruption of their production processes since the rise of advanced manufacturing technologies in the last century. Therefore, process innovation will become a critical task to master in the future for many manufacturing firms around the world. The general ability of organizations to acquire, assimilate, transform, and exploit external knowledge, known as Absorptive Capacity, was proven to positively influence product innovation and is already conceptually associated with process innovation. The presented research provides empirical evidence for this influence. The findings are based on an empirical analysis of 732 companies from seven leading and emerging countries: Brazil, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, and the United States of America. The answers to the survey were collected in February and March 2018 and addressed senior- and top-level management with a focus on operations departments. The statistical analysis reveals the positive influence of potential and Realized Absorptive Capacity on successful process innovation taking the implementation of new digital manufacturing processes as an example. Potential Absorptive Capacity covering the acquisition and assimilation capabilities of an organization showed a significant positive influence (β = .304, p < .05) on digital manufacturing implementation success and therefore on process innovation. Realized Absorptive Capacity proved to have significant positive influence on process innovation as well (β = .461, p < .01). The presented study builds on prior conceptual work in the field of Absorptive Capacity and process innovation and contributes theoretically to ongoing research in two dimensions. First, the already conceptually associated influence of Absorptive Capacity on process innovation is backed by empirical evidence in a broad international context. Second, since Absorptive Capacity was measured with a focus on new product development, prior empirical research on Absorptive Capacity was tailored to the research and development departments of organizations. The results of this study highlight the importance of Absorptive Capacity as a capability in mechanical engineering and operations departments of organizations. The findings give managers an indication of the importance of implementing new innovative processes into their production system and fostering the right mindset of employees to identify new external knowledge. Through the ability to transform and exploit external knowledge, own production processes can be innovated successfully and therefore have a positive influence on firm performance and the competitive position of their organizations.

Keywords: absorptive capacity, digital manufacturing, dynamic capabilities, process innovation

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Authors: H. Shola Adeosun, F. Ajoke Adebiyi

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This study appraises the impact of television on the coverage of Lassa Fever disease. The objectives of the study are to find out whether television is an effective tool for raising awareness about Lassa fever shapes the perception of members of the public. The research work was based on the theoretical foundation of Agenda – setting and reinforcement theory. Survey research method was adopted in the study to elicit data from the residents of Obafemi Owode Local Government, area of Ogun state. Questionnaire and oral interview were adopted as a tool for data gathering. Simple random sampling techniques were used to draw a sample for this study. Out of filled 400 questionnaires distributed to the respondents. 37 of them were incorrectly filled and returned at the stipulated time. This is about (92.5% Tables, percentages, and figures were used to analyse and interpret the data and hypothesis formulation for this study revealed that Lassa fever diseases with higher media coverage were considered more serious and more representative of a disease and estimated to have lower incidents, than diseases less frequently found in the media. Thus, 92% of the respondents agree that they have access to television coverage of Lassa fever disease led to exaggerated perceptions of personal vulnerability. It, therefore, concludes that there is a need for relevant stakeholders to ensure better community health education and improved housing conditions in southwestern Nigeria, with an emphasis on slum areas and that Nigeria need to focus on the immediate response, while preparing for the future because a society or community is all about the people who inhabit. Therefore every effort must be geared towards their society and survival.

Keywords: impact, television, coverage, Lassa fever disease

Procedia PDF Downloads 212

Authors: Ammar Younas

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This paper is an attempt to explore the legal progression in procedural laws related to “intellectual property protection for the autonomous output of artificial intelligence” in Post-Colonial, Post-Communist and Socialist Countries. An in-depth study of legal progression in Pakistan (Common Law), Uzbekistan (Post-Soviet Civil Law) and China (Socialist Law) has been conducted. A holistic attempt has been made to explore that how the ideological context of the legal systems can impact, not only on substantive components but on the procedural components of the formal laws related to IP Protection of autonomous output of Artificial Intelligence. Moreover, we have tried to shed a light on the prospective IP laws and AI Policy in the countries, which are planning to incorporate the concept of “Digital Personality” in their legal systems. This paper will also address the question: “How far IP of autonomous output of AI can be protected with the introduction of “Non-Human Legal Personality” in legislation?” By using the examples of China, Pakistan and Uzbekistan, a case has been built to highlight the legal progression in General Provisions of Civil Law, Artificial Intelligence Policy of the country and Intellectual Property laws. We have used a range of multi-disciplinary concepts and examined them on the bases of three criteria: accuracy of legal/philosophical presumption, applying to the real time situations and testing on rational falsification tests. It has been observed that the procedural laws are designed in a way that they can be seen correlating with the ideological contexts of these countries.

Keywords: intellectual property, artificial intelligence, digital personality, legal progression

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Authors: Uche C. Okafor, Nwanneka M. Okpokwu, Felix Nwafor, Carl E. A. Okezie

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Securidaca longepedunculata Fresen (Violet tree) belongs to the family Polygalaceae characterised by papillionaceous purplish flowers. This medicinally valued plant disappears at an alarming rate due to intensified anthropopressure particularly the unregulated manner of subterranean plant parts' collection from natural stands. Some indiscriminately harvested plants bear seeds containing both mature and immature zygotic embryos that are often discarded. Here, such seeds are collected for this experiment. Seeds were collected, washed, de-coated, and dipped in 70 % (v/v) ethanol for 30 s followed by rising in 5 % solution sodium hypochlorite, containing two drops of tween 20, for another 25 min. Mature zygotic embryos (MZEs) were excised from seeds and cultured in two basal media (MS and B5), three carbon sources (sucrose, glucose and fructose) at five concentrations (0-40 g/L) while immature zygotic embryos (iMZEs) were composed on similar basal media and carbon source supplemented with 0-2 mg/L Benzylaminopurine (BAP) and 0-2 mg/L Indole acetic acid (IAA). MZEs cultured on MS + 30g/L sucrose differed significantly from other treatments at p≤0.05 with maximum percent sprouting (85.24± 5.67 %) and shoot length (7.53±0.67 cm). MZEs culture had the maximum percent sprouting (85.24± 5.67 %) and shoot length (7.53±0.67 cm) in medium containing MS+ 30g L-1 sucrose. iMZEs on the other hand had maximum growth on MS + 40g/L sucrose supplemented with 1.5 mg/L IAA+ 1.0 mg/L BAP. This study is a geared towards creating an alternative path for the maximum production of plants in vitro, thereby, preventing the plants from disappearing.

Keywords: Gamborg's medium, Murashige and Skoog medium, Securidaca longepedunculata, zygotic embryos

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Authors: Viktoriia Malinovska, Iryna Kuklina, Katerina Grabicova, Milos Buric, Pavel Kozak

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Personal care products, including organic UV filters, are considered emerging contaminants and their toxic effects have been a concern for the last decades. Sunscreen compounds continually enter the surface waters via sewage water treatment due to incomplete removal and during human recreational and laundry activities. Despite the environmental occurrence of organic UV filters in the freshwater environment, little is known about their impacts on aquatic biota. In this study, environmentally relevant concentrations of 5-Benzoyl-4-hydroxy-2-methoxybenzenesulfonic acid (BP-4, 2.5 µg/L) and 2-Phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulfonic acid (PBSA, 3 µg/L) were used to evaluate the cardiac and locomotor responses of signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus during a short time period. The effects of these compounds were evident in experimental animals. Specimens exposed to both tested compounds exhibited significantly bigger changes in distance moved and time movement than controls. Significant differences in changes in mean heart rate were detected in both PBSA and BP-4 experimental groups compared to control groups. Such behavioral and physiological alterations demonstrate the ecological effects of selected sunscreen compounds during a short time period. Since the evidence of the impacts of sunscreen compounds is scarce, the knowledge of how organic UV filters influence aquatic organisms is of key importance for future research.

Keywords: aquatic pollutants, behavior, freshwaters, heart rate, invertebrate

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Authors: Abd El-Basit Ahmed Hashem Mahmoud, Othman Fekry Abdelbaki

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This study attempts to investigate the exposure to YouTube ads among Egyptian college students, their attitudes towards these ads, behavioral intentions to watch them, and the effects of this exposure and to examine the relationships among these variables as well. The current study is theoretically guided by the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and cognitive-affective behavioral model (CAB) through a questionnaire survey administered to a convenience sample of 390 college students who watch YouTube videos from Cairo University, Egypt from February to May 2019. The results showed that 98.7% of respondents exposed to YouTube ads, and both of their attitudes towards YouTube ads exposure and their intentions to this exposure were moderately positive. The findings also indicated that respondents' gender had a significant impact on their intention to expose these ads. One-way ANOVA indicated that their attitudes towards exposure to YouTube ads influenced their behavioral intentions to watch these ads, and it also demonstrated that their behavioral intentions to watch these ads had an impact on the exposure to such ads. Pearson correlation revealed that there was a significant positive relationship between respondents' attitudes towards YouTube ads exposure and the cognitive, affective, and behavioral effects of this exposure.

Keywords: attitudes, behavioral intentions, theory of reasoned action, YouTube ads

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Authors: Mohanad Elemary, Imose Itua, Rajeswari B. Matam

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Virologists and public health experts have been predicting potential pandemics from coronaviruses for decades. The viruses which caused the SARS and MERS pandemics and the Nipah virus led to many lost lives, but still, the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV2 virus surprised many scientific communities, experts, and governments with its ease of transmission and its pathogenicity. Governments of various countries reacted by locking down entire populations to their homes to combat the devastation caused by the virus, which led to a loss of livelihood and economic hardship to many individuals and organizations. To revive national economies and support their citizens in resuming their lives, governments focused on the development and use of contact tracing apps as a digital way to track and trace exposure. Google and Apple introduced the Exposure Notification Systems (ENS) framework. Independent organizations and countries also developed different frameworks for contact tracing apps. The efficiency, popularity, and adoption rate of these various apps have been different across countries. In this paper, we present a critical analysis of the different contact tracing apps with respect to their efficiency, adoption rate and general perception, and the governmental strategies and policies, which led to the development of the applications. When it comes to the European countries, each of them followed an individualistic approach to the same problem resulting in different realizations of a similarly functioning application with differing results of use and acceptance. The study conducted an extensive review of existing literature, policies, and reports across multiple disciplines, from which a framework was developed and then validated through interviews with six key stakeholders in the field, including founders and executives in digital health startups and corporates as well as experts from international organizations like The World Health Organization. A framework of best practices and tactics is the result of this research. The framework looks at three main questions regarding the contact tracing apps; how to develop them, how to deploy them, and how to regulate them. The findings are based on the best practices applied by governments across multiple countries, the mistakes they made, and the best practices applied in similar situations in the business world. The findings include multiple strategies when it comes to the development milestone regarding establishing frameworks for cooperation with the private sector and how to design the features and user experience of the app for a transparent, effective, and rapidly adaptable app. For the deployment section, several tactics were discussed regarding communication messages, marketing campaigns, persuasive psychology, and the initial deployment scale strategies. The paper also discusses the data privacy dilemma and how to build for a more sustainable system of health-related data processing and utilization. This is done through principles-based regulations specific for health data to allow for its avail for the public good. This framework offers insights into strategies and tactics that could be implemented as protocols for future public health crises and emergencies whether global or regional.

Keywords: contact tracing apps, COVID-19, digital health applications, exposure notification system

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Authors: Jessica Arthur, Duke Amegah, Kingsley Akenten Wiafe

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

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

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Authors: Banu Baybars Hawks

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To date, academic attention in social sciences remains inadequate with regard to research and analysis of public opinion in Turkey. Most of the existing research has assessed the public opinion during political election periods. Therefore, it is of great interest to find out what the public thinks about current issues in Turkey, and how to interpret the results to be able to reveal whether they may have any reflections on social, political, and cultural structure of the country. Accordingly, the current study seeks to fill the gap in the social sciences literature in English regarding Turkey’s social and political stand which may be perceived to be very different by other nations. Without timely feedback from public surveys, various programs for improving different services and institutions functioning in the country might not achieve their expected goal, nor can decisions about which programs to implement be made rationally. Additionally, the information gathered may not only yield important insights into public’s opinion regarding current agenda in Turkey, but also into the correlates shaping public policies. Agenda-setting studies including agenda-building, agenda melding, reversed agenda-setting and information diffusion studies will be used to explain the roles of factors and actors in the formation of public opinion in Turkey. Knowing the importance of public agenda in the agenda setting and building process, this paper aims to reveal the social and political tendencies of the Turkish public. For that purpose, a survey will be carried out in December of 2014 to determine the social and political trends in Turkey for that same year. The subjects for the study, which utilize a questionairre in one-on-one interviews, will include 1,000 individuals aged 18 years and older from 26 cities representing general population. A stratified random sampling frame will be used. The topics covered by the survey include: The most important current problem in Turkey; the Economy; Terror; Approaches to the Kurdish Issue; Evaluations of the Government and Opposition Parties; Evaluations of Institutional Efficiency; Foreign Policy; the Judicial System/Constitution; Democracy and the Media; and, Social Relations/Life in Turkey. Since the beginning of the 21st century, Turkey has been undergoing a rapid transformation. The reflections of the changes can be seen in all areas from economics to politics. It is my hope that findings of this study may shed light on the important aspects of institutions, variables setting the agenda, and formation process of public opinion in Turkey.

Keywords: public opinion, media, agenda setting, information diffusion, government, freedom, Turkey

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Authors: Erhong Sun, Xuchun Ye

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Technophobia, namely the fear or dislike of modern advanced technologies, plays a central role in age-related digital divides and is considered a new risk factor for older adults, which can affect the daily lives of people through low adherence to digital living. Indeed, there is considerable heterogeneity in the group of older adults who feel technophobia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify different technophobia typologies of older people and to examine their associations with the subjective age factor. A sample of 704 retired elderly over the age of 55 was recruited in China. Technophobia and subjective age were assessed with a questionnaire, respectively. Latent profile analysis was used to identify technophobia subgroups, using three dimensions including techno-anxiety, techno-paranoia, and privacy concerns as indicators. The association between the identified technophobia subgroups and subjective age was explored. In summary, four different technophobia typologies were identified among older adults in China. Combined with an investigation of personal background characteristics and subjective age, it draws a more nuanced image of the technophobia phenome among older adults in China. First, not all older adults suffer from technophobia, with about half of the elderly subjects belonging to the profiles of “Low-technophobia” and “Medium-technophobia.” Second, privacy concern plays an important role in the classification of technophobia among older adults. Third, subjective age might be a protective factor for technophobia in older adults. Although the causal direction between identified technophobia typologies and subjective age remains uncertain, our suggests that future interventions should better focus on subjective age by breaking the age stereotype of technology to reduce the negative effect of technophobia on older. Future development of this research will involve extensive investigation of the detailed impact of technophobia in senior populations, measurement of the negative outcomes, as well as formulation of innovative educational and clinical pathways.

Keywords: technophobia, older adults, latent profile analysis, subjective age

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Authors: Eun Ko, Moonsung Choi, Sooim Shin

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4,4’-Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (4,4’-DDT) is colorless, odorless organochlorine and known as persistent toxic organic pollutant accumulated in organs. In this study, effects of 4,4’-DDT on activities of mitochondrial electron transport chain system was analyzed. 4,4’-DDT is directly treated to isolated mitochondria from eyes of zebrafish and then activities of mitochondrial complex I, II, III, IV were measured spectrophotometrically. The reaction was proceeded immediately after adding 4,4’-DDT to examine the short-term exposing effects of persistent organic pollutant. As a result, high concentration of 4,4’-DDT treated mitochondria exhibited slightly enhanced activity in all complexes than non-treated one except complex III in male. Particularly, 4,4’-DDT was more effective on enzymatic activity in mitochondria isolated from eyes of male zebrafish. These results represented that 4,4’-DDT might temporarily induce to open up ion channel on isolated mitochondria resulting in increasing the functional activity of mitochondrial electron transport chain system.

Keywords: electron transport chain, mitochondrial function, persistent organic pollutant, spectrophotometric assay, zebrafish

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Authors: S. Rostampour Yasouri, M. Ghane, M. Doudi

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Leptospirosis is one of the most significant infectious and zoonotic diseases along with global spreading. This disease is causative agent of economoic losses and human fatalities in various countries, including Northern provinces of Iran. The aim of this research is to identify and compare the rapid diagnostic techniques of pathogenic leptospiras, considering the multifacetedness of the disease from a clinical manifestation and premature death of patients. In the spring and summer of 2020-2022, 25 fecal samples were collected from suspected leptospirosis patients and 25 Fecal samples from mice residing in the rice fields and factories in Tonekabon city. Samples were prepared by centrifugation and passing through membrane filters. Culture technique was used in liquid and solid EMJH media during one month of incubation at 30°C. Then, the media were examined microscopically. DNA extraction was conducted by extraction Kit. Diagnosis of leptospiras was enforced by PCR and Real time PCR (SYBR Green) techniques using lipL32 specific primer. Out of the patients, 11 samples (44%) and 8 samples (32%) were determined to be pathogenic Leptospira by Real time PCR and PCR technique, respectively. Out of the mice, 9 Samples (36%) and 3 samples (12%) were determined to be pathogenic Leptospira by the mentioned techniques, respectively. Although the culture technique is considered to be the gold standard technique, but due to the slow growth of pathogenic Leptospira and lack of colony formation of some species, it is not a fast technique. Real time PCR allowed rapid diagnosis with much higher accuracy compared to PCR because PCR could not completely identify samples with lower microbial load.

Keywords: culture, pathogenic leptospiras, PCR, real time PCR

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Authors: Omaima N. Ahmad AL-Allaf

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Over communication networks, images can be easily copied and distributed in an illegal way. The copyright protection for authors and owners is necessary. Therefore, the digital watermarking techniques play an important role as a valid solution for authority problems. Digital image watermarking techniques are used to hide watermarks into images to achieve copyright protection and prevent its illegal copy. Watermarks need to be robust to attacks and maintain data quality. Therefore, we discussed in this paper two approaches for image watermarking, first is based on Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and the second approach is based on Genetic Algorithm (GA). Discrete wavelet transformation (DWT) is used with the two approaches separately for embedding process to cover image transformation. Each of PSO and GA is based on co-relation coefficient to detect the high energy coefficient watermark bit in the original image and then hide the watermark in original image. Many experiments were conducted for the two approaches with different values of PSO and GA parameters. From experiments, PSO approach got better results with PSNR equal 53, MSE equal 0.0039. Whereas GA approach got PSNR equal 50.5 and MSE equal 0.0048 when using population size equal to 100, number of iterations equal to 150 and 3×3 block. According to the results, we can note that small block size can affect the quality of image watermarking based PSO/GA because small block size can increase the search area of the watermarking image. Better PSO results were obtained when using swarm size equal to 100.

Keywords: image watermarking, genetic algorithm, particle swarm optimization, discrete wavelet transform

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Authors: Ayoub. El Bourtali, Abdessamed.Najine, Amrou Moussa. Benmoussa

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One of the main goals of river engineering is river training, which is defined as controlling and predicting the behavior of a river. It is taking effective measurements to eliminate all related risks and thus improve the river system. In some rivers, the riverbed continues to erode and degrade; therefore, equilibrium will never be reached. Generally, river geometric characteristics and riverbed erosion analysis are some of the most complex but critical topics in river engineering and sediment hydraulics; riverbank erosion is the second answering process in hydrodynamics, which has a major impact on the ecological chain and socio-economic process. This study aims to integrate the new computer technology that can analyze erosion and hydraulic problems through computer simulation and modeling. Choosing the right model remains a difficult and sensitive job for field engineers. This paper makes use of the 5.0.4 version of the HEC-RAS model. The river section is adopted according to the gauged station and the proximity of the adjustment. In this work, we will demonstrate how 2D hydraulic modeling helped clarify the design and cover visuals to set up depth and velocities at riverbanks and throughout advanced structures. The hydrologic engineering center's-river analysis system (HEC-RAS) 2D model was used to create a hydraulic study of the erosion model. The geometric data were generated from the 12.5-meter x 12.5-meter resolution digital elevation model. In addition to showing eroded or overturned river sections, the model output also shows patterns of riverbank changes, which can help us reduce problems caused by erosion.

Keywords: 2D hydraulics model, erosion, floodplain, hydrodynamic, HEC-RAS, riverbed erosion, river morphology, resolution digital data, sediment

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Authors: Abdalaziz M. Alsalhabi, Loai M. Alowa

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This paper investigates Weld Rejection Rate (WRR) limits and tracer effects in construction projects, with a specific focus on a Gas Plant Project, a mega-project held by Saudi Aramco (SA) in Saudi Arabia. The study included a comprehensive examination of various factors impacting WRR limits. It commenced by comparing the Company practices with ASME standards, followed by an in-depth analysis of both weekly and cumulative projects' historical WRR data, evaluation of Radiographic Testing (RT) reports for rejected welds, and proposal of mitigation methods to eliminate future rejections. Additionally, the study revealed the causes of fluctuation in WRR data and benchmarked with the industry practices. Furthermore, a case study was conducted to explore the impact of tracers on WRR, providing insights into their influence on the welding process. This paper aims to achieve three primary objectives. Firstly, it seeks to validate the existing practices of WRR limits and advocate for their inclusion within relevant International Industry Standards. Secondly, it aims to validate the effectiveness of the WRR formula that incorporates tracer effects, ensuring its reliability in assessing weld quality. Lastly, this study aims to identify opportunities for process improvement in WRR control, with the ultimate goal of enhancing project processes and ensuring the integrity, safety, and efficiency of constructed assets.

Keywords: weld rejection rate, weld repair rate in joint and linear basis, tracers effects, construction projects

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Authors: Ali Kassem, Yaser Kamal, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Mohamed Hussen

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Introduction: Atherosclerosis is one of the leading causes of death all over the world. Recently, there is an increasing interest in Carotid Intima-Medial Thickness (CIMT) and Ankle Brachial Index (ABI) as non-invasive tools for identifying subclinical atherosclerosis. We aim to examine the role of CIMT and ABI as predictors of the severity of angiographically documented coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods: A cross-sectional study conducted on 60 patients who were investigated by coronary angiography at Sohag University Hospital, Egypt. CIMT: After the carotid arteries were located by transverse scans, the probe was rotated 90 ° to obtain and record longitudinal images of bilateral carotid arteries ABI: Each patient was evaluated in the supine position after resting for 5 min. ABI was measured in each leg using a Doppler Ultrasound while the patient remained in the same position. The lowest ABI obtained for either leg was taken as the ABI measurement for the patient. Results: Patients with carotid mean IMT ≥ 0.9 mm had significantly more severe coronary artery disease than patients without thickening (mean IMT > 0.9 mm). Similarly, patients with low ABI (< 0.9) had significantly more severe coronary artery disease than patients with ABI ≥ 0.9. When the patients were divided into 4 groups (group A, n = 15, mean IMT < 0.9 mm, ABI ≥ 0.9; group B, n = 25, mean IMT < 0.9 mm, low ABI; group C, n = 5, mean IMT ≥ 0.9 mm, ABI ≥ 0.9; group D, n = 19, mean IMT ≤ 0.9 mm, low ABI), the presence of significant coronary stenosis (> 50%) of the groups were significantly different (group A, n = 5: (33.3%); group B, n = 11: (52.4%); group C, n = 4: (60%); group D, n=15, (78.9%), P = 0.001). Conclusion: CIMT and ABI provide useful information on the severity of CAD. Early and aggressive intervention should be considered in patients with CAD and abnormalities in one or both of these non-invasive modalities.

Keywords: ankle brachial index, carotid intima media thickness, coronary artery disease, predictors of severity

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Authors: K. Rasool

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Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRBs) induced biofilm formation is a global industrial concern due to its role in the development of microbial-induced corrosion (MIC). Herein, we have developed a biodegradable chitosan/lignosulfonate nanocomposite (CS@LS) as an efficient green biocide for the inhibition of SRBs biofilms. We investigated in detail the inhibition mechanism of SRBs by CS@LS in seawater media. Stable CS@LS-1:1 with 150–200 nm average size and zeta potential of + 34.25 mV was synthesized. The biocidal performance of CS@LS was evaluated by sulfate reduction profiles coupled with analysis of extracted extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release assays. As the nanocomposite concentration was increased from 50 to 500 µg/mL, the specific sulfate reduction rate (SSRR) decreased from 0.278 to 0.036 g-sulfate/g-VSS*day showing a relative sulfate reduction inhibition of 86.64% as compared to that of control. Similarly, the specific organic uptake rate (SOUR) decreased from 0.082 to 0.039 0.036 g-TOC/g-VSS*day giving a relative co-substrate oxidation inhibition of 52.19% as compared to that of control. The SRBs spiked with 500 µg/mL CS@LS showed a reduction in cell viability to 1.5 × 106 MPN/mL. To assess the biosafety of the nanocomposite on the marine biota, the 72-hours acute toxicity assays using the zebrafish embryo model revealed that the LC50 for the CS@LS was 103.3 µg/mL. Thus, CS@LS can be classified as environmentally friendly. The nanocomposite showed long-term stability and excellent antibacterial properties against SRBs growth and is thus potentially useful for combating the problems of biofilm growth in harsh marine and aquatic environments.

Keywords: green biocides, chitosan/lignosulfonate nanocomposite, SRBs, toxicity

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Authors: Pau Rodriguez, Jordi Gonzalez, Josep M. Gonfaus, Xavier Roca

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Image sharing in social networks has increased exponentially in the past years. Officially, there are 600 million Instagrammers uploading around 100 million photos and videos per day. Consequently, there is a need for developing new tools to understand the content expressed in shared images, which will greatly benefit social media communication and will enable broad and promising applications in education, advertisement, entertainment, and also psychology. Following these trends, our work aims to take advantage of the existing relationship between text and personality, already demonstrated by multiple researchers, so that we can prove that there exists a relationship between images and personality as well. To achieve this goal, we consider that images posted on social networks are typically conditioned on specific words, or hashtags, therefore any relationship between text and personality can also be observed with those posted images. Our proposal makes use of the most recent image understanding models based on neural networks to process the vast amount of data generated by social users to determine those images most correlated with personality traits. The final aim is to train a weakly-supervised image-based model for personality assessment that can be used even when textual data is not available, which is an increasing trend. The procedure is described next: we explore the images directly publicly shared by users based on those accompanying texts or hashtags most strongly related to personality traits as described by the OCEAN model. These images will be used for personality prediction since they have the potential to convey more complex ideas, concepts, and emotions. As a result, the use of images in personality questionnaires will provide a deeper understanding of respondents than through words alone. In other words, from the images posted with specific tags, we train a deep learning model based on neural networks, that learns to extract a personality representation from a picture and use it to automatically find the personality that best explains such a picture. Subsequently, a deep neural network model is learned from thousands of images associated with hashtags correlated to OCEAN traits. We then analyze the network activations to identify those pictures that maximally activate the neurons: the most characteristic visual features per personality trait will thus emerge since the filters of the convolutional layers of the neural model are learned to be optimally activated depending on each personality trait. For example, among the pictures that maximally activate the high Openness trait, we can see pictures of books, the moon, and the sky. For high Conscientiousness, most of the images are photographs of food, especially healthy food. The high Extraversion output is mostly activated by pictures of a lot of people. In high Agreeableness images, we mostly see flower pictures. Lastly, in the Neuroticism trait, we observe that the high score is maximally activated by animal pets like cats or dogs. In summary, despite the huge intra-class and inter-class variabilities of the images associated to each OCEAN traits, we found that there are consistencies between visual patterns of those images whose hashtags are most correlated to each trait.

Keywords: emotions and effects of mood, social impact theory in social psychology, social influence, social structure and social networks

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Authors: Ahmed Elgharably, Nivien Nafady

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Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant growth promoting microbes (PGPM) can promote plant growth under saline conditions. This study investigated how AMF and PGPM affected the growth and grain yield of wheat at different soil salinity levels (0, 75 and 150 mM NaCl). AMF colonization percentage, grain yield and dry weights and lengths of shoot and root, N, P K, Na, malondialdehyde, chlorophyll and proline contents and shoot relative permeability were determined. Salinity reduced NPK uptake and malondialdehyde and chlorophyll contents, and increased shoot Na concentration, relative permeability, and proline content, and thus declined plant growth. PGPM inoculation enhanced AMF colonization, P uptake, and K/Na ratio, but alone had no significant effect on plant growth and grain yield. AMF inoculation significantly enhanced NPK uptake, increased chlorophyll content and decreased shoot relative permeability, proline and Na contents, and thus promoted the plant growth. The inoculation of PGPM significantly enhanced the positive effects of AMF in controlling Na uptake and in increasing chlorophyll and NPK contents. Compared to AMF inoculation alone, dual inoculation with AMF and PGPM resulted in approximately 10, 25 and 25% higher grain yield at 0, 75 and 150 mM NaCl, respectively. The results provide that PGPM inoculation can maximize the effects of AMF inoculation in alleviating the deleterious effects of NaCl salts on wheat growth.

Keywords: mycorrhizal fungi, salinity, sodium, wheat

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Authors: Ali Momeni

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Visual media has had a significant impact on the mental structure and behaviors of humanity. One interactive platform that has played a major role in this is Instagram. In Islamic countries, particularly Iran, many Muslims have embraced this interactive media platform for various reasons. Instagram has also provided an opportunity for individuals to become famous and gain micro-celebrity status through its semi-algorithmic features. A notable group of Iranian women who have gained fame through Instagram are religious Muslim women who have transitioned into bloggers. These Iranian religious women bloggers (IRWB) have garnered a large following by showcasing different models of hijab and their private lives. This research aims to qualitatively study the representation of femininity and religiosity of these women. The main question addressed in this study is the acceptance of Instagram activity by IRWB among religious women. Drawing on concepts such as 'The Society of the Spectacle' and 'Celebrity Online', this study utilized the netnography method to analyze 14 pages of IRWB. Data was collected in two phases, with the first phase involving the analysis of religious women's comments on posts related to these themes. The second phase included interviews with religious women students who view or follow these pages. A total of 120 comments and 14 interviews were thematically analyzed. The results revealed that the reception of these pages by religious women fell into four main themes: the spectacle of femininity, the commercialization of religiosity, the distortion of Islam, and the construction of religiosity and femininity. Ultimately, religious women did not find these pages to be reflective of their own experiences of female and religious life.

Keywords: women, bloggers, instagram, IRWB, reception.

Procedia PDF Downloads 75