Search results for: fundamental neutral ground overvoltage

Authors: Shima Naderi, Abbas Abbaszadeh Shahri

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Energy resources are reachable and affordable in Iran, thus surplus access to fossil fuels besides high level of economic growth leads to serious environmental critical such as pollutants and greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, increase in average degrease and lack of water sources specially in Tehran as a capital city of Iran. As building sector consumes a huge portion of energy, taking actions towards alternative sources of energy as well as conserving non-renewable energy resources and architectural energy saving methods are the fundamental basis for achieving sustainability`s goals. This study tries to explore implantation of both high technologies and traditional issues for reduction of energy demands in buildings of Tehran and introduce some factors and instructions for achieving this purpose. Green and energy efficient buildings such as ZEBs make it possible to preserve natural resources for the next generations by reducing pollution and increasing ecosystem self-recovery. However ZEB is not widely spread in Iran because of its low economic efficiency, it is not viable for a private entrepreneur without the governmental supports. Therefore executing of Architectural Energy Efficiency can be a better option. It is necessary to experience a substructure expansion with respect to traditional residential building style. Renewable energies and passive design which are the substantial part of the history of architecture in Iran can be regenerated and employed as an essential part of designing energy efficient buildings.

Keywords: architectural energy efficiency, passive design, renewable energies, zero energy buildings

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Authors: Adam Jenkins

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The Maritime RobotX Challenge provides a platform for postgraduate students conducting research in autonomous robotic systems to participate in an international competition. Although targeted to postgraduate students, the problem domain lends itself to a wide range of different levels of student expertise. In 2022, undergraduate Information Technology students from the University of South Australia undertook the challenge, utilizing a System of the Systems approach to the project's architecture. Each student group produced an independent solution to an identified task, which was then implemented on a Single Board Computer (SBC). A Central Control System then engaged each solution when appropriate, allowing the encapsulated SBC systems to manage each task as it was encountered. This approach facilitated collaboration among the multiple independent student teams over an 18-month period, and the fundamental system-agnostic architecture allowed for both the variance in student solutions and the limitations caused by the global electronics shortage. By adopting this approach, Information Technology teams were able to work independently yet produce an effective solution, leveraging their expertise to develop and construct an autonomous catamaran capable of meeting the competition's demanding requirements while producing a high level of engagement. The System of Systems approach is recommended to other universities interested in competing at this level and engaging students in a real-world problem.

Keywords: case study, robotics, education, programming, system of systems, multi-disciplinary collaboration

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Authors: Camila Amin-Puello, Lina Vasco-Diaz, Juan Ramirez-Arias, Claudia Munoz, Carlos Gonzalez-Calderon

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Operational flexibility is a fundamental aspect in the field of airlines because although demand is constantly changing, it is the duty of companies to provide a service to users that satisfies their needs in an efficient manner without sacrificing factors such as comfort, safety and other perception variables. The objective of this research is to understand the factors that describe and explain operational flexibility by implementing advanced analytical methods such as exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling, examining multiple levels of operational flexibility and understanding how these variable influences users' decision-making when choosing an airline and in turn how it affects the airlines themselves. The use of a hybrid model and latent variables improves the efficiency and accuracy of airline performance prediction in the unpredictable Colombian market. This pioneering study delves into traveler motivations and their impact on domestic flight demand, offering valuable insights to optimize resources and improve the overall traveler experience. Applying the methods, it was identified that low-cost airlines are not useful for flexibility, while users, especially women, found airlines with greater flexibility in terms of ticket costs and flight schedules to be more useful. All of this allows airlines to anticipate and adapt to their customers' needs efficiently: to plan flight capacity appropriately, adjust pricing strategies and improve the overall passenger experience.

Keywords: hybrid choice model, airline, business travelers, domestic flights

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Authors: Lingzhi Li, Jiankun Zhang, Tiantian Gu

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Hazard management that can prevent fatal accidents and property losses is a fundamental process during the buildings’ construction stage. However, due to lack of safety supervision resources and operational pressures, the conduction of hazard management is poor and ineffective in China. In order to improve the quality of construction safety management, it is critical to explore the use of information technologies to ensure that the process of hazard management is efficient and effective. After exploring the existing problems of construction hazard management in China, this paper develops the griddization management model for construction hazard management. First, following the knowledge grid infrastructure, the griddization computing infrastructure for construction hazards management is designed which includes five layers: resource entity layer, information management layer, task management layer, knowledge transformation layer and application layer. This infrastructure will be as the technical support for realizing grid management. Second, this study divides the construction hazards into grids through city level, district level and construction site level according to grid principles. Last, a griddization management process including hazard identification, assessment and control is developed. Meanwhile, all stakeholders of construction safety management, such as owners, contractors, supervision organizations and government departments, should take the corresponding responsibilities in this process. Finally, a case study based on actual construction hazard identification, assessment and control is used to validate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed griddization management model. The advantage of this designed model is to realize information sharing and cooperative management between various safety management departments.

Keywords: construction hazard, griddization computing, grid management, process

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Authors: B. Tiseo, V. Quaranta, G. Bruno, G. Sisinni

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There is an increasing demand of nano-satellite development among universities, small companies, and emerging countries. Low-cost and fast-delivery are the main advantages of such class of satellites achieved by the extensive use of commercial-off-the-shelf components. On the other side, the loss of reliability and the poor success rate are limiting the use of nano-satellite to educational and technology demonstration and not to the commercial purpose. Standardization of nano-satellite environmental testing by tailoring the existing test standard for medium/large satellites is then a crucial step for their market growth. Thus, it is fundamental to find the right trade-off between the improvement of reliability and the need to keep their low-cost/fast-delivery advantages. This is particularly even more essential for satellites of CubeSat family. Such miniaturized and standardized satellites have 10 cm cubic form and mass no more than 1.33 kilograms per 1 unit (1U). For this class of nano-satellites, the qualification process is mandatory to reduce the risk of failure during a space mission. This paper reports the description and results of the space qualification test campaign performed on Endurosat’s CubeSat nano-satellite and modules. Mechanical and environmental tests have been carried out step by step: from the testing of the single subsystem up to the assembled CubeSat nano-satellite. Functional tests have been performed during all the test campaign to verify the functionalities of the systems. The test duration and levels have been selected by tailoring the European Space Agency standard ECSS-E-ST-10-03C and GEVS: GSFC-STD-7000A.

Keywords: CubeSat, nano-satellite, shock, testing, vibration

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Authors: Chien-Yeh Hsu, Yuan-Ching Chiang, Zi-Jie Chien, Sih-Li Chen

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In this study, a field experiment and performance analysis of air-tunnel heat exchanger integrated with water-filled raft foundation of residential building were performed. In order to obtain better performance, conventional applications of air-tunnel inevitably have high initial cost or issues about insufficient installation space. To improve the feasibility of air tunnel heat exchanger in high-density housing, an integrated system consisting of air pipes immersed in the water-filled raft foundation was presented, taking advantage of immense amount of water and relatively stable temperature in raft foundation of building. The foundation-integrated air tunnel was applied to a residential building located in Yilan, Taiwan, and its thermal performance was measured in the field experiment. The results indicated that the cooling potential of integrated system was close to the potential of soil-based EAHE at 2 m depth or deeper. An analytical model based on thermal resistance method was validated by measurement results, and was used to carry out the dimensioning of foundation-integrated air tunnel. The discrepancies between calculated value and measured data were less than 2.7%. In addition, the return-on-investment with regard to thermal performance and economics of the application was evaluated. Because the installation for air tunnel is scheduled in the building foundation construction, the utilization of integrated system spends less construction cost compare to the conventional earth-air tunnel.

Keywords: air tunnel, ground heat exchanger, raft foundation, residential building

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Authors: Ashwini V. Chavan, Sukhanand S. Bhosale

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Challenges of weak soil subgrade are often resolved either by stabilization or reinforcing it. However, it is also practiced to reinforce the granular fill to improve the load-settlement behavior of over weak soil strata. The inclusion of reinforcement in the engineered granular fill provided a new impetus for the development of enhanced Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI) models, also known as mechanical foundation models or lumped parameter models. Several researchers have been working in this direction to understand the mechanism of granular fill-reinforcement interaction and the response of weak soil under the application of load. These models have been developed by extending available SSI models such as the Winkler Model, Pasternak Model, Hetenyi Model, Kerr Model etc., and are helpful to visualize the load-settlement behavior of a physical system through 1-D and 2-D analysis considering beam and plate resting on the foundation respectively. Based on the literature survey, these models are categorized as ‘Reinforced Pasternak Model,’ ‘Double Beam Model,’ ‘Reinforced Timoshenko Beam Model,’ and ‘Reinforced Kerr Model.’ The present work reviews the past 30+ years of research in the field of SSI models for reinforced foundation systems, presenting the conceptual development of these models systematically and discussing their limitations. Special efforts are taken to tabulate the parameters and their significance in the load-settlement analysis, which may be helpful in future studies for the comparison and enhancement of results and findings of physical models.

Keywords: geosynthetics, mathematical modeling, reinforced foundation, soil-structure interaction, ground improvement, soft soil

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Authors: Maulana Ayoub Ali

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“Both Socialist as well as the capitalist in the economic systems have proven their failure to ensure economic justice that serves to benefit all in the society, both the rich and the poor. In particular, capitalism is currently causing a terrifying scenario by making the rich richer and the poor poorer” . In this paper, the author looks at the level of exploitation which is taking place to small and middle entrepreneurs (SME’s), government and private employees as well as large investors in East African countries who depends on interest-based loans which undermines their lives every day due to heavy monthly returns. Numbers of families have been evicted from their family premises and SME’s properties have been attached in the courts due to failure to return their loans timely. In fact, there are a lot of issues which have taken place on the ground which badly affected number of families socially and most importantly economically due to engagement in interest-based loans offered by commercial banks in East Africa. This paper looks on the alternative ways of eliminating interest-based loans to better lives of devastated Africans who are almost “dying” of heavy debts generated through higher interest loans. Reaching to that particular root the author has visited various literatures in a bid to deeply investigate and find out the best alternative mode of enabling African SME’s, businessmen and employees to benefit from the interest-free loans. The question is whether interest-free loans can be a long term solution towards poverty alleviation in East Africa generally and Tanzania in particular.

Keywords: interest-free loans, SME’s, financial institutions, poverty, east Africa

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Authors: Paschal A. Ochang, Emmanuel C. Oji

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The Duffing’s Equation is a second order system that is very important because they are fundamental to the behaviour of higher order systems and they have applications in almost all fields of science and engineering. In the biological area, it is useful in plant stem dependence and natural frequency and model of the Brain Crash Analysis (BCA). In Engineering, it is useful in the study of Damping indoor construction and Traffic lights and to the meteorologist it is used in the prediction of weather conditions. However, most Problems in real life that occur are non-linear in nature and may not have analytical solutions except approximations or simulations, so trying to find an exact explicit solution may in general be complicated and sometimes impossible. Therefore we aim to find out if it is possible to obtain one analytical fixed point to the non-linear ordinary equation using fixed point analytical method. We started by exposing the scope of the Duffing’s equation and other related works on it. With a major focus on the fixed point and fixed point iterative scheme, we tried different iterative schemes on the Duffing’s Equation. We were able to identify that one can only see the fixed points to a Damped Duffing’s Equation and not to the Undamped Duffing’s Equation. This is because the cubic nonlinearity term is the determining factor to the Duffing’s Equation. We finally came to the results where we identified the stability of an equation that is damped, forced and second order in nature. Generally, in this research, we approximate the solution of Duffing’s Equation by converting it to a system of First and Second Order Ordinary Differential Equation and using Fixed Point Iterative approach. This approach shows that for different versions of Duffing’s Equations (damped), we find fixed points, therefore the order of computations and running time of applied software in all fields using the Duffing’s equation will be reduced.

Keywords: damping, Duffing's equation, fixed point analysis, second order differential, stability analysis

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Authors: Mike Omilusi

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Since the Buhari administration came to power, it has gained the people’s confidence with its anti-corruption efforts. Making culprits account for their past unlawful deeds, in a very determined and aggressive manner ever witnessed in the nation’s political history, generates different reactions among Nigerians. However, some questions remain pertinent to this study: Are Nigerians really advocating persecution or prosecution in respect of the graft suspects? Do they want conviction without being convinced? Is their outburst propelled by emotions and revengeful anticipation of having suspected looters of the nation’s commonwealth behind bars? Can the war be successfully fought without resorting to impunity? Relying extensively on secondary sources with the aid of descriptive and narrative tools, this study seeks to interrogate the claim of fundamental human rights in the face of wanton looting of the nation’s resources. If, as opined by President Buhari, corruption is a crime against humanity, then it is argued that those who commit such crime should be subjected to penalties prescribed by law. Such crime -as corruption in this study- deprives the citizens of welfare, social amenities and good things of life. In this instance, it also poses threats to national security, having misappropriated funds meant for the war against the Boko Haram terrorism as revealed by the anti-corruption agency in the country. A theoretically-driven investigation, this essay raises some expectations within the context of good governance-propelled anti-corruption crusade, making modest recommendations as to how corruption should be prevented and combated within the confine of rule of law.

Keywords: corruption, rule of law, human rights, prosecution, commonwealth

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Authors: Akinyemi Tomiwa

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The microstructure of rainfall is important for predicting and modeling various environmental processes, such as rainfall interception by vegetation, soil erosion, and radar signals in rainfall. This rain microstructure was studied with a vertically pointing Micro Rain Radar (MRR) located at a tropical location in Akure South West Nigeria (7o 15’ N, 5o 15’ E). This research utilizes two years of data (2018 and 2019), and the data obtained comprises rainfall parameters such as Rain rates, radar reflectivity, liquid water content, fall velocity and Drop Size Distribution (DSD) based on vertical profiles. The measurement and variations of rain microstructure of these parameters with heights for different rain types were presented from ground level up to the height of 4800 m at 160 m range gates. It has been found that the convective, stratiform and mixed, which are the three major rain types, have different rain microstructures at different heights and were evaluated in this research. The correlation coefficient and the regression line equation were computed for each rain event. The highest rain rate and liquid water content were observed within the height range of 160-4800. It was found that a good correlation exists between the measured parameters. Hence it shows that specific liquid water content increases with increasing rain rate for both stratiform and convective rain types in this part of the world. The results can be very useful for a better understanding of rain structure over tropical regions.

Keywords: rain microstructure, drop size distribution, rain rates, stratiform, convective.

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Authors: Othman M. Hakami, Abdul Jabbar Al-Rajab

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Occurrence of heavy metals in water resources increased in the recent years albeit at low concentrations. Lead (PbII) is among the most important inorganic pollutants in ground and surface water. However, removal of this toxic metal efficiently from water is of public and scientific concern. In this study, we developed a rapid and efficient removal method of lead from water using chitosan/magnetite nanoparticles. A simple and effective process has been used to prepare chitosan/magnetite nanoparticles (NPs) (CS/Mag NPs) with effect on saturation magnetization value; the particles were strongly responsive to an external magnetic field making separation from solution possible in less than 2 minutes using a permanent magnet and the total Fe in solution was below the detection limit of ICP-OES (<0.19 mg L-1). The hydrodynamic particle size distribution increased from an average diameter of ~60 nm for Fe3O4 NPs to ~75 nm after chitosan coating. The feasibility of the prepared NPs for the adsorption and desorption of Pb(II) from water were evaluated using Chitosan/Magnetite NPs which showed a high removal efficiency for Pb(II) uptake, with 90% of Pb(II) removed during the first 5 minutes and equilibrium in less than 10 minutes. Maximum adsorption capacities for Pb(II) occurred at pH 6.0 and under room temperature were as high as 85.5 mg g-1, according to Langmuir isotherm model. Desorption of adsorbed Pb on CS/Mag NPs was evaluated using deionized water at different pH values ranged from 1 to 7 which was an effective eluent and did not result the destruction of NPs, then, they could subsequently be reused without any loss of their activity in further adsorption tests. Overall, our results showed the high efficiency of chitosan/magnetite nanoparticles (NPs) in lead removal from water in controlled conditions, and further studies should be realized in real field conditions.

Keywords: chitosan, magnetite, water, treatment

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Authors: Y. Roumila, D. Meziani, R. Bagtache, K. Abdmeziem, M. Trari

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Heterogeneous photocatalysis over semiconductors has proved its effectiveness in the treatment of wastewaters since it works under soft conditions. It has emerged as a promising technique, giving rise to less toxic effluents and offering the opportunity of using sunlight as a sustainable and renewable source of energy. Many compounds have been used as photocatalysts. Though synthesized ones are intensively used, they remain expensive, and their synthesis involves special conditions. We thus thought of implementing a natural material, a phosphate ore, due to its low cost and great availability. Our work is devoted to the removal of hazardous organic pollutants, which cause several environmental problems and health risks. Among them, dye pollutants occupy a large place. This work relates to the study of the photodegradation of methyl violet (MV) and rhodamine B (RhB), in single and binary systems, under UV light and sunlight irradiation. Methyl violet is a triarylmethane dye, while RhB is a heteropolyaromatic dye belonging to the Xanthene family. In the first part of this work, the natural compound was characterized using several physicochemical and photo-electrochemical (PEC) techniques: X-Ray diffraction, chemical, and thermal analyses scanning electron microscopy, UV-Vis diffuse reflectance measurements, and FTIR spectroscopy. The electrochemical and photoelectrochemical studies were performed with a Voltalab PGZ 301 potentiostat/galvanostat at room temperature. The structure of the phosphate material was well characterized. The photo-electrochemical (PEC) properties are crucial for drawing the energy band diagram, in order to suggest the formation of radicals and the reactions involved in the dyes photo-oxidation mechanism. The PEC characterization of the natural phosphate was investigated in neutral solution (Na₂SO₄, 0.5 M). The study revealed the semiconducting behavior of the phosphate rock. Indeed, the thermal evolution of the electrical conductivity was well fitted by an exponential type law, and the electrical conductivity increases with raising the temperature. The Mott–Schottky plot and current-potential J(V) curves recorded in the dark and under illumination clearly indicate n-type behavior. From the results of photocatalysis, in single solutions, the changes in MV and RhB absorbance in the function of time show that practically all of the MV was removed after 240 mn irradiation. For RhB, the complete degradation was achieved after 330 mn. This is due to its complex and resistant structure. In binary systems, it is only after 120 mn that RhB begins to be slowly removed, while about 60% of MV is already degraded. Once nearly all of the content of MV in the solution has disappeared (after about 250 mn), the remaining RhB is degraded rapidly. This behaviour is different from that observed in single solutions where both dyes are degraded since the first minutes of irradiation.

Keywords: environment, organic pollutant, phosphate ore, photodegradation

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Authors: Gul Nihal Gugul, Merih Aydinalp-Koksal

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In this study, hourly energy consumption model of a single detached house in Ankara, Turkey is developed using ESP-r building energy simulation software. Natural gas is used for space heating, cooking, and domestic water heating in this two story 4500 square feet four-bedroom home. Hourly electricity consumption of the home is monitored by an automated meter reading system, and daily natural gas consumption is recorded by the owners during 2013. Climate data of the region and building envelope data are used to develop the model. The heating energy consumption of the house that is estimated by the ESP-r model is then compared with the actual heating demand to determine the performance of the model. Scenarios are applied to the model to determine the amount of reduction in the total energy consumption of the house. The scenarios are using photovoltaic panels to generate electricity, ground source heat pumps for space heating and solar panels for domestic hot water generation. Alternative scenarios such as improving wall and roof insulations and window glazing are also applied. These scenarios are evaluated based on annual energy, associated CO2 emissions, and fuel expenditure savings. The pay-back periods for each scenario are also calculated to determine best alternative energy source or technology option for this home to reduce annual energy use and CO2 emission.

Keywords: ESP-r, building energy simulation, residential energy saving, CO2 reduction

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Authors: Maysoon Khalil Askar

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The delineation of possible areas of corrosion along the external face of an underground oil pipeline in Trunk line of Al- Garraf oil field was investigated using the horizontal electrical resistivity profiling technique and study the contribution of pH, Moisture Content in Soil and Presence chlorides, sulfates and total dissolve salts in soil and water. The test sites represent a physical and chemical properties of soils. The hydrogen-ion concentration of soil and groundwater range from 7.2 to 9.6, and the resistivity values of the soil along the pipeline were obtained using the YH302B model resistivity meter having values between 1588 and 720 Ohm-cm. the chloride concentration in soil and groundwater is high (more than 1000 ppm), total soulable salt is more than 5000 ppm, and sulphate range from 0.17% and 0.98% in soil and more than 600 ppm in groundwater. The soil is poor aeration, the soil texture is fine (clay and silt soil), the water content is high (the groundwater is close to surface), the chloride and sulphate is high in the soil and groundwater, the total soulable salt is high in ground water and finally the soil electric resistivity is low that the soil is very corrosive and there is the possibility of the pipeline failure. These methods applied in the study are quick, economic and efficient for detecting along buried pipelines which need to be protected. Routine electrical geophysical investigations along buried oil pipelines should be undertaken for the early detection and prevention of pipeline failure with its attendant environmental, human and economic consequences.

Keywords: soil resistivity, corrosion, cathodic protection, chloride concentration, water content

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Authors: Mohammed Usman Sani

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Worldwide it is observed that sport plays an important role in our communities and is capable of bringing about the need for peaceful coexistence within and among nations which include tolerating one another, building team spirit, showing loyalty and fair play. In addition, sport builds character and the development of skills, which are necessary in fulfilling a desirable and happy life among nations. Sport builds discipline, endurance, courage and self-motivation among nations. Sports for Peace was set up to answer the question of whether sport can foster common ideals. In sports as a powerful tool in building peace, athletes all over the world come together to promote the core values of sport, such as fair play, tolerance, the Olympic ideal of freedom and intercultural understanding. Sport as a powerful tool is used to address varieties of social issues that is widely accepted in countries mostly affected by poverty, violence and conflict. In building peace through sports among nations, a wide range of individuals and nonprofit organizations which includes the United Nations (UN) and international development agencies have accepted sport as an important social catalyst. This paper therefore seeks to define sports, sports and its fundamental rights, sports as a powerful tool, and ways in which sport may bring about peace building among countries and finally the status of Sport Development and Peace initiatives in Nigeria. It concluded that the international community has acknowledged the importance of sport in peace building efforts among nations. It further recommended that countries should engage in the design and delivery of sports, adhering to generally accepted principles of openness and sustainability through sports collaboration, sports partnerships and coordinated effort.

Keywords: building, peace, powerful tool, sports

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Authors: Abraham J. Rizkalla, Joanne F. Irons, Christopher Q. Cao

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Purpose: Lobectomy was considered the standard of care for early-stage non-small lung cancer (NSCLC) after the Lung Cancer Study Group trial demonstrated increased locoregional recurrence for sublobar resections. However, there has been heightened interest in segmentectomies for selected patients with peripheral lesions ≤2cm, as investigated by the JCOG0802 and CALGB140503 trials. Minimally invasive robotic surgery facilitates segmentectomies with improved maneuverability and visualization of intersegmental planes using indocyanine green. We hereby present a patient who underwent robotic lingulectomy for an undiagnosed ground-glass opacity. Methodology: This video demonstrates a robotic portal lingulectomy using three 8mm ports and a 12mm port. Stereoscopic direct vision facilitated the identification of the lingula artery and vein, and intra-operative bronchoscopy was performed to confirm the lingula bronchus. The intersegmental plane was identified by indocyanine green and a near-infrared camera. Thorough lymph node sampling was performed in accordance with international standards. Results: The 18mm lesion was successfully excised with clear margins to achieve R0 resection with no evidence of malignancy in the 8 lymph nodes sampled. Histopathological examination revealed lepidic predominant adenocarcinoma, pathological stage IA. Conclusion: This video presentation exemplifies the standard approach for robotic portal lingulectomy in appropriately selected patients.

Keywords: lung cancer, robotic segmentectomy, indocyanine green, lingulectomy

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Authors: Maria Angela Bedini, Fabio Bronzini

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Most of the Italian territory is at seismic risk. Many earthquakes have hit Italy, and devastating effects have been generated. The specific objective of the research is to distinguish the negative approaches that have generated unacceptable social situations of marginalization, abandonment, and economic regression, from positive methodological approaches. On the basis of the different situations examined, the study proposes strategies and guidelines to obtain the best possible results, in Italy or abroad, in the event of new earthquakes. At national and international level, many theoretical studies address the aspects of prevention, while the comparisons, carried out in this study, between the techniques and the operative procedures applied and the results obtained are rare. The adopted methodology compares the different pre-earthquake urban-planning approaches, for the emergency (temporary urban planning), and for the post-earthquake (socio-economic-territorial processes) in Italy. Attention is placed on the current consolidated planning and programming acquisitions, pre and post-earthquake. The main results of the study concern the prospects in Italy of protection from seismic risks in the next decades. An integrated settlement system for a new economic and social model, aimed at the rebirth of territories in crisis, is proposed. Finally, the conclusions describe the disciplinary positions, procedures and the fundamental points generally shared by the scientific community for each approach, in order to identify the strategic choices and the disciplinary and management paths that will be followed in the coming decades.

Keywords: post-earthquake, seismic emergency, seismic prevention, urban planning interventions in Italy

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Authors: Felipe A. Guth, Shane Ward, Kevin McDonnell

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The assessment of disease levels in crop fields is an important and time-consuming task that generally relies on expert knowledge of trained individuals. Image classification in agriculture problems historically has been based on classical machine learning strategies that make use of hand-engineered features in the top of a classification algorithm. This approach tends to not produce results with high accuracy and generalization to the classes classified by the system when the nature of the elements has a significant variability. The advent of deep convolutional neural networks has revolutionized the field of machine learning, especially in computer vision tasks. These networks have great resourcefulness of learning and have been applied successfully to image classification and object detection tasks in the last years. The objective of this work was to propose a new method based on deep learning convolutional neural networks towards the task of disease level monitoring. Common RGB images of winter wheat were obtained during a growing season. Five categories of disease levels presence were produced, in collaboration with agronomists, for the algorithm classification. Disease level tasks performed by experts provided ground truth data for the disease score of the same winter wheat plots were RGB images were acquired. The system had an overall accuracy of 84% on the discrimination of the disease level classes.

Keywords: crop disease assessment, deep learning, precision agriculture, residual neural networks

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Authors: Clare S. Sullivan

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The high desert of central Oregon, USA is a challenging growing environment: short growing season (70-100 days); average annual precipitation of 280 mm; drastic swings in diurnal temperatures; possibility of frost any time of year; and sandy soils low in organic matter. Despite strong demand, there is almost no fruit grown in central Oregon due to potential yield loss caused by early and late frosts. Elsewhere in the USA, protected culture (i.e., high tunnels) has been used to extend fruit production seasons and improve yields. In central Oregon, high tunnels are used to grow multiple high-value vegetable crops, and farmers are unlikely to plant a perennial crop in a high tunnel unless proven profitable. In May 2019, two berry trials were established on a farm in Alfalfa, OR, to evaluate raspberry and strawberry yield, season length, and fruit quality in protected (high tunnels) vs. unprotected culture (open field). The main objective was to determine whether high tunnel berry production is a viable enterprise for the region. Each trial was arranged using a split-plot design. The main factor was the production system (high tunnel vs. open field), and the replicated, subplot factor was berry variety. Four day-neutral strawberry varieties and four primocane-bearing raspberry varieties were planted for the study and were managed using organic practices. Berries were harvested once a week early in the season, and twice a week as production increased. Harvested berries were separated into ‘marketable’ and ‘unmarketable’ in order to calculate percent cull. First-year results revealed berry yield and quality differences between varieties and production systems. Strawberry marketable yield and berry fruit size increased significantly in the high tunnel compared to the field; percent yield increase ranged from 7-46% by variety. Evie 2 was the highest yielding strawberry, although berry quality was lower than other berries. Raspberry marketable yield and berry fruit size tended to increase in the high tunnel compared to the field, although variety had a more significant effect. Joan J was the highest yielding raspberry and out-yielded the other varieties by 250% outdoor and 350% indoor. Overall, strawberry and raspberry yields tended to improve in high tunnels as compared to the field, but data from a second year will help determine whether high tunnel investment is worthwhile. It is expected that the production system will have more of an effect on berry yield and season length for second-year plants in 2020.

Keywords: berries, high tunnel, local food, organic

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Authors: Erin Curtis, Avraham Schwiger

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Neuropsychological testing and evaluation is a crucial step in providing patients with effective diagnoses and treatment while in clinical care. The variety of batteries used in these evaluations can help clinicians better understand the nuanced declivities in a patient’s cognitive, behavioral, or emotional functioning, consequently equipping clinicians with the insights to make intentional choices about a patient’s care. Despite the knowledge these batteries can yield, some aspects of neuropsychological testing remain largely inaccessible to certain patient groups as a result of fundamental cultural, educational, or social differences. One such battery includes the Dot Counting Test (DCT), during which patients are required to count a series of dots on a page as rapidly and accurately as possible. As the battery progresses, the dots appear in clusters that are designed to be easily multiplied. This task evaluates a patient’s cognitive functioning, attention, and level of effort exerted on the evaluation as a whole. However, there is evidence to suggest that certain social groups, particularly Latinx groups, may perform worse on this task as a result of cultural or educational differences, not reduced cognitive functioning or effort. As such, this battery fails to account for baseline differences among patient groups, thus creating questions surrounding the accuracy, generalizability, and value of its results. Accessibility and cultural sensitivity are critical considerations in the testing and treatment of marginalized groups, yet have been largely ignored in the literature and in clinical settings to date. Implications and improvements to applications are discussed.

Keywords: culture, latino, neuropsychological assessment, neuropsychology, accessibility

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Authors: E. Kempen, M. J. Labuschagne, M. P. Jama

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There is evidence that experiential learning is truly influential and favored by the millennial generation. However, little is known about the role and attributes an educator has to adopt during the experiential learning cycle, especially when applied in optometry education. This study aimed to identify the roles and attributes of an optometry educator during the different modes of the experiential learning cycle. Methods: A qualitative case study design was used. Data was collected using an open-ended questionnaire survey, following the application of nine different teaching-learning methods based on the experimental learning cycle. The total sample population of 68 undergraduate students from the Department of Optometry at the University of the Free State, South Africa were invited to participate. Focus group interviews (n=15) added additional data that contributed to the interpretation and confirmation of the data obtained from the questionnaire surveys. Results: The perceptions and experiences of the students identified a variety of roles and attributes as well as recommendations on the effective adoption of these roles and attributes. These roles and attributes included being knowledgeable, creating an interest, providing guidance, being approachable, building confidence, implementing ground rules, leading by example, and acting as a mediator. Conclusion: The findings suggest that the actions of an educator have the most substantial impact on students’ perception of a learning experience. Not only are the recommendations based on the views of a millennial generation, but the implementation of the personalized recommendations may also transform a learning environment. This may lead an optometry student to a deeper understanding of knowledge.

Keywords: experiences and perceptions, experiential learning, millennial generation, recommendation for optometry education

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Authors: Lucia Perez, Maria Gaton y Santa Palella

Abstract:

Starting from the etymology of the word culture, the Latin term ‘colere’, whose meaning is to cultivate, we understand that the society that cultivates its knowledge is laying the foundations for new possibilities. In this sense, art and fashion contain the same attributes: concept, aesthetic principles, and refined techniques. Both play a crucial role, communication, and this implies a sense of community, relationship with tradition, and innovation. This is the mirror in which to contemplate, but also the space that helps to grow. This is the framework where our object of study opens up: the anthropological management or the mission management model applied to fashion exhibitions in museums and cultural institutions. For this purpose, a bibliographic review has been carried out with its subsequent analysis, a case study of three successful exhibitions: ‘Christian Dior: designer of dreams’, ‘Balenciaga and the Spanish painting’, and ‘China: Through the Looking Glass’. The methodology has been completed with interviews focused on the curators. Amongst the results obtained, it is worth highlighting the fundamental role of transcendent leadership, which, in addition to being results-oriented, must align the motivations of the collaborators with the mission. The anthropological management model conceives management as a service, and it is oriented to the interests of the staff and the public, in short, of the person; this is what enables the objectives of effectiveness, efficiency, and social value to be achieved; dimensions, all necessary for the proper development of the mission of the exhibitions. Fashion, understood as art, is at the service of culture, and therefore of the human being, which defines a transcendent mission. We conclude that the profile of an anthropological management model applied to fashion exhibitions in museums is the ideal one to achieve the purpose of these institutions.

Keywords: art, culture, fashion, anthropological model, fashion exhibitions

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Authors: Fatima U. Maigari, Musa Halilu, M. Maryam Umar, Rabiu Zainab

Abstract:

Plants as therapeutic agents are used as drug in many parts of the world. Medicinal plants are mostly used in developing countries due to culture acceptability, belief or due to lack of easy access to primary health care services. Jatropha curcas is a plant from the Euphorbiaceae family which is widely used in Northern Nigeria as an anti-diarrheal agent. This study was conducted to determine the anti-diarrheal effect of the leaf extract on castor oil induced diarrhea in albino rats. The leaves of J. curcas were collected from Balanga Local government in Gombe State, north-eastern Nigeria; due to its bioavailability. The leaves were air-dried at room temperature and ground to powder. Phytochemical screening was done and different concentrations of the extract was prepared and administered to the different categories of experimental animals. From the results, aqueous leaf extract of Jatropha curcas at doses of 200mg/Kg and 400mg/Kg was found to reduce the mean stool score as compared to control rats, however, maximum reduction was achieved with the standard drug of Loperamide (5mg/Kg). Treatment of diarrhea with 200mg/Kg of the extract did not produce any significant decrease in stool fluid content but was found to be significant in those rats that were treated with 400mg/Kg of the extract at 2hours (0.05±0.02) and 4hours (0.01±0.01). A significant reduction of diarrhea in the experimental animals signifies it to possess some anti-diarrheal activity.

Keywords: anti-diarrhea, diarrhea, Jatropha curcas, loperamide

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Authors: H. T. Le Luong, C. Hénaux, F. Messine, G. Bueno-Mariani, S. Mollov, N. Voyer

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This paper presents a comparative study of different modular brushless wound rotor synchronous machine (MB-WRSM). The goal of the study is to highlight the structure which offers the best fault tolerant capability and the highest output performances. The fundamental winding factor is calculated by using the method based on EMF phasors as a significant criterion to select the preferred number of phases, stator slots, and poles. With the limited number of poles for a small machine (3.67kW/7000rpm), 15 different machines for preferred phase/slot/pole combinations are analyzed using two-dimensional (2-D) finite element method and compared according to three criteria: torque density, torque ripple and efficiency. The 7phase/7slot/6pole machine is chosen with the best compromise of high torque density, small torque ripple (3.89%) and high nominal efficiency (95%). This machine is then compared with a reference design surface permanent magnet synchronous machine (SPMSM). In conclusion, this paper provides an electromagnetic analysis of a new brushless wound-rotor synchronous machine using multiphase non-overlapping fractional slot double layer winding. The simulation results are discussed and demonstrate that the MB-WRSM presents interesting performance features, with overall performance closely matching that of an equivalent SPMSM.

Keywords: finite element method (FEM), machine performance, modular wound rotor synchronous machine, non-overlapping concentrated winding

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Authors: Benyelles Zakaria, Yousfi Djaafar, Karoui Moussa Sofiane

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Agriculture is fundamental and remains an important objective in the Algerian economy, based on traditional techniques and structures, it generally has a purpose of consumption. Collection of agricultural statistics in Algeria is done using traditional methods, which consists of investigating the use of land through survey and field survey. These statistics suffer from problems such as poor data quality, the long delay between collection of their last final availability and high cost compared to their limited use. The objective of this work is to develop a processing chain for a reliable inventory of agricultural land by trying to develop and implement a new method of extracting information. Indeed, this methodology allowed us to combine data from remote sensing and field data to collect statistics on areas of different land. The contribution of remote sensing in the improvement of agricultural statistics, in terms of area, has been studied in the wilaya of Sidi Bel Abbes. It is in this context that we applied a method for extracting information from satellite images. This method is called the non-negative matrix factorization, which does not consider the pixel as a single entity, but will look for components the pixel itself. The results obtained by the application of the MNF were compared with field data and the results obtained by the method of maximum likelihood. We have seen a rapprochement between the most important results of the FMN and those of field data. We believe that this method of extracting information from satellite data leads to interesting results of different types of land uses.

Keywords: blind source separation, hyper-spectral image, non-negative matrix factorization, remote sensing

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Authors: Xu Lan, Zainor Izat Zainal

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Human intervention in Earth’s macro system has ushered in the age of the Anthropocene, prompting introspection among humans, the action agent. This epoch demands a reawakening of human conscience and inner motivation to mitigate the irreversible trend so as to shape the trajectory of the Anthropocene. Environmental virtue ethics claims that the fundamental cause of environmental crisis lies in humans themselves. Rather than focusing more on what humans should do, environmental virtue ethics seeks to specify environmental virtues to appeal to what kind of person a human should be. Renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning author Barbara Kingsolver illustrates her contentions about environmental ethics through the narrative of Codi and her sister Hallie’s environmental choices and actions in Animal Dreams (1990). This study adopts a textual analysis approach of the character traits exhibited by Codi and Hallie that are constitutive of making them environmentally virtuous, exploring how emotions and inner motivations drive actions. This paper is informed by Ronald Sandler’s (2007) virtues of sustainability, virtues of communion with nature, and virtues of environmental stewardship and activism. It aims to examine how Codi and Hallie’s character traits are built around these virtues. Furthermore, this study underscores the importance of internalizing principles and cultivating virtues for the environment and humans’ flourishing in the Anthropocene. As a tentative practice in applying environmental virtue ethics to examine environmental virtues for the Anthropocene, this study reveals Kingsolver’s endeavor of setting environmental virtue exemplars from fictional characters to inspire humans’ long-term and stable contribution to a better future.

Keywords: anthopocene, environmental ethics, environmental virtues, virtue ethics

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Authors: Wei Wang, Martin Chen

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The reconstitution behaviours of nutritional products could impact user experience. Reconstitution issues such as lump formation and white flecks sticking to bottles surfaces could be very unappealing for the consumers in milk preparation. The controlling steps in dissolving instant milk powders include wetting, swelling, sinking, dispersing, and dissolution as in the literature. Each stage happens simultaneously with the others during milk preparation, and it is challenging to isolate and measure each step individually. This study characterized three adult nutritional products for different properties including particle size, density, dispersibility, stickiness, and capillary wetting to understand the relationship between powder physical properties and their reconstitution behaviours. From the results, the formation of clumps can be caused by different factors limiting the critical steps of powder reconstitution. It can be caused by small particle size distribution, light particle density limiting powder wetting, or the rapid swelling and dissolving of particle surface materials to impede water penetration in the capillary channels formed by powder agglomerates. For the grain or white flecks formation in milk preparation, it was believed to be controlled by dissolution speed of the particles after dispersion into water. By understanding those relationship between fundamental powder structure and their user experience in reconstitution, this information provides us new and multiple perspectives on how to improve the powder characteristics in the commercial manufacturing.

Keywords: characterization, dairy nutritional powder, physical property, reconstitution

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Authors: Karolin Bauer, Anna Brinkmann

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Vulnerabilities in critical infrastructure can cause significant difficulties for the affected population during crises. Securing the food supply as part of the critical infrastructure in crisis situations is an essential part of public services and a ground stone for a successful concept of civil protection. In most industrialized countries, there are currently no comparative studies regarding the food supply of the population during crisis and disaster events. In order to mitigate the potential impact in case of major disasters in Germany, it is absolutely necessary to investigate how the food supply can be secured. The research project aims to provide in-depth research on the experiences gathered during past large-scale disasters in the 34 OECD member countries in order to discover alternatives for an updated civil protection system in Germany. The basic research question is: "Which international approaches and structures of civil protection have been proven and would be useful to modernize the German civil protection with regards to the critical infrastructure and food supply?" Research findings should be extracted from an extensive literature review covering the entire research period as well as from personal and online-based interviews with experts and responsible persons from involved institutions. The capability of the research project insists on the deliberate choice to investigate previous large-scale disasters to formulate important and practical approaches to modernize civil protection in Germany.

Keywords: food supply, vulnerabilty, critical infratstructure, large-scale disaster

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Authors: Daniela Ribeiro, Silvia Lenyra Meirelles Campos Titotto

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Nature has long served as inspiration for humans, since various technologies present in society are a mirror of the natural world. This is due to the fact that nature has adapted for millions of years to possess the characteristics they have today. In this sense, man takes advantage of this situation and uses it to produce his own objects and solve his problems. This concept, which is known as biomimetics, is something relatively new, once it was only denominated in 1957. Nature, in turn, responds directly and consistently to environmental conditions. For example, plants that have touch sensitivity contract with this stimulus. Such a situation resembles a technology that has been gaining ground in the contemporary world of scientific innovation: 4D printing. 4D printing technology emerged in 2012 as a complement to 3D printing and presents numerous benefits since it provides a deficiency in the second kind of printing mentioned. This type of technology reaches several areas, since it is capable of producing materials that change over time, be it in its composition, form or properties and is such a characteristic that determines the additional dimension of the material. Precisely because of these factors, this type of impression resembles nature and is related to biomimetics. However, only certain types of ‘intelligent’ materials are generally employed in this type of impression, since only they will respond well to such stimuli, one of which is the hydrogel. The hydrogel is a biocompatible polymer that presents several applications, these in turn will be briefly mentioned in this article to exemplify its importance and the reason for choosing this material as object of study. In addition, aspects that configure 4D printing will be treated here, such as the importance of architecture, programming language and the reversibility of printed materials.

Keywords: 4D printing, biomimetic, hydrogel, materials

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