Search results for: ERP project evaluation

Authors: D. O. Miranda, L. R. Azevedo, J. F. C. Cordeiro, A. H. Dos Santos, S. F. Lisboa, F. S. Guimarães, G. S. Bisson

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Background: The Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers and the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the world. The prevalence of psychiatric-disorders among CRC patients, mainly depression, is high, resulting in impaired quality of life and side effects of primary treatment. High levels of proinflammatory cytokines at tumor microenvironment is a feature of CRC and the literature suggests that those mediators could contribute to the development of psychiatric disorders. Nevertheless, the ability of tumor-associated biological processes to affect the central nervous system (CNS) has only recently been explored in the context of symptoms of depression and is still not well understood. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to test the hypothesis that depressive-like behavior in an experimental model of CCR induced by N-methyl-N-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) was correlated to proinflammatory profile in the periphery and in the brain. Methods: Colorectal carcinogenesis was induced in adult C57BL/6 mice (n=12) by administration of MNNG (5mg/kg, 0.1ml/intrarectal instillation) 2 times a week, for 2 week. Control group (n=12) received saline (0.1ml/intrarectal instillation). Eight weeks after beginning of MNNG administration animals were submitted to the forced swim test (FST) and the sucrose preference test for evaluation, respectively, of depressive- and anhedonia-like behaviors. After behavioral evaluation, the colon was collected and brain regions dissected (cortex-C, striatum-ST and hippocampus-HIP) for posterior evaluation of cytokine levels (IL-1β, IL-10, IL-17, and CX3CL1) by ELISA. Results: MNNG induced depressive-like behavior, represented by increased immobility time in the FST (Student t test, p < 0.05) and lower sucrose preference (Student t test, p < 0.05). Moreover, there were increased levels of IL-1β, IL-17 and CX3CL1 in the colonic tissue (Student t test, p < 0.05) and in the brain (IL-1 β in the ST and HIP, Student t test, p < 0.05; IL-17 and CX3CL1 in the C and HIP, p < 0.05). IL-10 levels, in contrast, were decreased in both the colon (p < 0.05) and the brain (C and HIP, p < 0.05). Conclusions: The results obtained in the present work support the notion that tumor growth induces neuroinflammation in stress-related brain regions and depressive-like behavior, which could be related to the high incidence of depression in colorectal carcinogenesis. This work have important clinical and research implications, taken into account that cytokine levels may be a marker promissory for the developing depression in CRC patients. New therapeutic strategies to assist in alleviating mental suffering in cancer patients might result from a better understanding of the role of cytokines in the pathophysiology of depression in these subjects.

Keywords: cytokines, brain, depression, colorectal cancer

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Authors: Jisun Mo, Paola Boarin

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The impact of common buildings on climate and environment has prompted people to get involved in the green building standards aimed at implementing rating tools or certifications. Thus, green building rating systems were introduced to the construction industry, and the demand for certified green buildings has increased gradually and succeeded considerably in enhancing people’s environmental awareness. However, the existing certification process has been unsatisfactory in attracting stakeholders and/or professionals who are actively engaged in adopting a rating system. It is because they have faced recurring barriers regarding limited information in understanding the rating process, time-consuming procedures and higher costs, which have a direct influence on pursuing green building rating systems. To promote the achievement of green building certifications within the building industry more successfully, this paper aims at designing a Pre-Assessment Tool (PAT) framework that can help stakeholders and/or professionals engaged in the construction industry to clarify their basic knowledge, timeframe and extra costs needed to activate a green building certification. First, taking the first steps towards the rating tool seems to be complicated because of upfront commitment to understanding the overall rating procedure is required. This conceptual PAT framework can increase basic knowledge of the rating tool and the certification process, mainly in terms of all resources or information of each credit requirements. Second, the assessment process of rating tools is generally known as a “lengthy and time-consuming system”, contributing to unenthusiastic reactions concerning green building projects. The proposed framework can predict the timeframe needed to identify how long it will take for a green project to process each credit requirement and the documentation required from the beginning of the certification process to final approval. Finally, most people often have the initial perception that pursuing green building certification costs more than constructing a non-green building, which makes it more difficult to execute rating tools. To overcome this issue, this PAT will help users to estimate the extra expenses such as certification fees and third-party contributions based on the track of the amount of time it takes to implement the rating tool throughout all the related stages. Also, it can prevent unexpected or hidden costs occurring in the process of assessment. Therefore, this proposed PAT framework can be recommended as an effective method to support the decision-making of inexperienced users and play an important role in promoting green building certification.

Keywords: green building rating tools, Pre-Occupancy Evaluation (PrOE), client’s decision-making, certification

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Authors: M. Kashiripoor

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Existing indicators for sustainable urban development do not identify the features of cities’ planning structures and their architecture. Iranian city has special relevance problem of assessing the conformity of their planning and development of the concept of sustainable development. Based on theoretical sources, the author concludes that, despite the existence of common indicators for sustainable development of settlements, specialized evaluation criteria city structure planning has not been developed. He is trying to fill this gap and put forward a system of indicators characterizing the level of development of the architectural-planning structure of the city. The proposed system of indicators is designed based on technical and economic urban standard indicators from different countries. Alternative designing systems and requirements of modern rating systems like LEED-ND comprise a criterion for evaluation of urban structures in accordance with principles of "Green" building and New Urbanism. Urban development trends are close in spirit of sustainable development and developed under its influence. The study allowed concluding that a system of indicators to identify the relevant architectural-planning structure of the city, requirements of sustainable development, should be adapted to the conditions of each country, particularly in Iran. The article attempts typology proposed indicators, which are presented in tabular form and are divided into two types: planning and spatial. This article discusses the known indicators of sustainable development and proposed specific system of indicators characterizing the level of development of architectural-planning structure of the city. This article examines indicators for evaluating level of city' planning structure development. The proposed system of indicators is derived from the urban planning standards and rating systems such as LEED-ND, BREEAM Community and CASBEE-UD.

Keywords: architectural-planning structure of cities, urban planning indicators, urban space indicators, urban development

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Authors: Julian Sandoval, Philipp Schober

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Lahar sand (lahars) is a material that originates from volcanic debris flows. During and after a volcano eruption, the lahars can move at speeds up to 22 meters per hour or more, so they can easily cover extensive areas and destroy any structure in their path. Mount Pinatubo eruption (1991) brought lahars to its vicinities, and its use has been a matter of research ever since. Lahars are often disposed of for land reclamation projects in the Manila Bay, Philippines. After reclamation, some deep loss deposits may still present and they are prone to liquefaction. To mitigate the risk of liquefaction of such deposits, Vibro compaction has been proposed and used as a ground improvement technique. Cone penetration testing (CPT) campaigns are usually initiated to monitor the effectiveness of the ground improvement works by vibro compaction. The CPT cone resistance is used to analyses the in-situ relative density of the reclaimed sand before and after compaction. Available correlations between the CPT cone resistance and the relative density are only valid for non-crushable sands. Due to the partially crushable nature of lahars, the CPT data requires to be adjusted to allow for a correct interpretation of the CPT data. The objective of this paper is to characterize the chemical and mechanical properties of the lahar sands used for an ongoing project in the Port of Manila, which comprises reclamation activities using lahars from the east of Mount Pinatubo, it investigates their effect in the proposed correction factor. Additionally, numerous CPTs were carried out in a test trial and during the execution of the project. Based on this data, the influence of the grid spacing, compaction steps and the holding time on the compaction results are analyzed. Moreover, the so-called “aging effect” of the lahars is studied by comparing the results of the CPT testing campaign at different times after the vibro compaction activities. A considerable increase in the tip resistance of the CPT was observed over time.

Keywords: vibro compaction, CPT, lahar sands, correction factor, chemical composition

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Authors: Kaczmarzyk Piotr, Anna Dziechciarz, Wojciech Klapsa

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The purpose of this paper is demonstration the test results of research influence of temperature on the velocity of flame propagation using gas and air mixtures for selected gas mixtures. The research was conducted on the test apparatus in the form of duct 2 m long. The test apparatus was funded from the project: “Development of methods to neutralize threats of explosion for determined tanks contained technical gases, including alternative sources of supply in the fire environment, taking into account needs of rescuers” number: DOB-BIO6/02/50/2014. The Project is funded by The National Centre for Research and Development. This paper presents the results of measurement of rate of pressure rise and rate in flame propagation, using test apparatus for mixtures air and methane or air and propane. This paper presents the results performed using the test apparatus in the form of duct measuring the rate of flame and overpressure wave. Studies were performed using three gas mixtures with different concentrations: Methane (3% to 8% vol), Propane (3% to 6% vol). As regard to the above concentrations, tests were carried out at temperatures 20 and 30 ̊C. The gas mixture was supplied to the inside of the duct by the partial pressure molecules. Data acquisition was made using 5 dynamic pressure transducers and 5 ionization probes, arranged along of the duct. Temperature conditions changes were performed using heater which was mounted on the duct’s bottom. During the tests, following parameters were recorded: maximum explosion pressure, maximum pressure recorded by sensors and voltage recorded by ionization probes. Performed tests, for flammable gas and air mixtures, indicate that temperature changes have an influence on overpressure velocity. It should be noted, that temperature changes do not have a major impact on the flame front velocity. In the case of propane and air mixtures (temperature 30 ̊C) was observed DDT (Deflagration to Detonation) phenomena. The velocity increased from 2 to 20 m/s. This kind of explosion could turn into a detonation, but the duct length is too short (2 m).

Keywords: flame propagation, flame propagation velocity, explosion, propane, methane

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Authors: Yi-Ting Liu, Pei-Ying Wen

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In order to improve the overall safety of chemotherapy, safety-protecting net was established for the whole process from prescribing by physicians, transcribing by nurses, dispensing by pharmacists to administering by nurses. The information system was used to check and monitor whole process of administration and related sheets were computerized to simplify the paper work.

Keywords: chemotherapy, bar code medication administration, medication safety

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Authors: Shih-Heng Sun, Hsiu-Yu Chang

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“Family centered service model” becomes mainstream in early intervention. Family outcome should be evaluated in addition child improvement in terms of outcome evaluation in early intervention. The purpose of this study is to develop a surveys to evaluate family outcomes in early intervention. Method: “Family Outcomes Survey- Revised Taiwan Version” (FOS-RT) was developed through translation, back-translation, and review by the original author. Expert meeting was held to determine the content validity. Two hundred and eighty six parent-child dyads recruited from 10 local Early Intervention Resource Centers (EIRC) participated in the study after they signed inform consent. The results showed both parts of FOS-RT exhibits good internal consistency and test-retest reliability. The result of confirmatory factor analysis indicated moderate fit of 5 factor structure of part A and 3 factor structure of part B of FOS-RT. The correlation between different sessions reached moderate to high level reveals some sessions measure similar latent trait of family outcomes. Correlation between FOS-RT and Parents‘ Perceived Parenting Skills Questionnaire was calculated to determine the convergence validity. The moderate correlation indicates the two assessments measure different parts of early intervention outcome although both assessments have similar sub-scales. The results of this study support FOS-RT is a valid and reliable tool to evaluate family outcome after the family and children with developmental disability receive early intervention services.

Keywords: early intervention, family service, outcome evaluation, parenting skills, family centered

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Authors: Arzu Firlarer, Duygu Gocmen, Gokhan Uysal

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There is currently a growing trend among universities towards blended learning. Blended learning is becoming increasingly important in higher education, with the aims of better accomplishing course learning objectives, meeting students’ changing needs and promoting effective learning both in a theoretical and practical dimension like interior architecture discipline. However, the practical dimension of the discipline cannot be supported in the university environment. During the undergraduate program, the practical training which is tried to be supported by two different internship programs cannot fully meet the requirements of the blended learning. The lack of education program frequently expressed by our graduates and employers is revealed in the practical knowledge and skills dimension of the profession. After a series of meetings for curriculum studies, interviews with the chambers of profession, meetings with interior architects, a gap between the theoretical and practical training modules is seen as a problem in all interior architecture departments. It is thought that this gap can be solved by a new education model which is formed by the cooperation of University-Industry in the concept of blended learning. In this context, it is considered that theoretical and applied knowledge accumulation can be provided by the creation of industry-supported educational environments at the university. In the application process of the Interior Architecture discipline, the use of materials and technical competence will only be possible with the cooperation of industry and participation of students in the production/manufacture processes as observers and practitioners. Wood manufacturing is an important part of interior architecture applications. Wood productions is a sustainable structural process where production details, material knowledge, and process details can be observed in the most effective way. From this point of view, after theoretical training about wooden materials, wood applications and production processes are given to the students, practical training for production/manufacture planning is supported by active participation and observation in the processes. With this blended model, we aimed to develop a training model in which theoretical and practical knowledge related to the production of wood works will be conveyed in a meaningful, lasting way by means of university-industry cooperation. The project is carried out in Ankara with Arcora Architecture and Furniture Company and Başkent University Department of Interior Design where university-industry cooperation is realized. Within the scope of the project, every week the video of that week’s lecture is recorded and prepared to be disseminated by digital medias such as Udemy. In this sense, the program is not only developed by the project participants, but also other institutions and people who are trained and practiced in the field of design. Both academicians from University and at least 15-year experienced craftsmen in the wood metal and dye sectors are preparing new training reference documents for interior architecture undergraduate programs. These reference documents will be a model for other Interior Architecture departments of the universities and will be used for creating an online education module.

Keywords: blended learning, interior design, sustainable training, effective learning.

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Authors: Jayanti De

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Users of any urban road infrastructure may be classified into various categories. The current paper intends to see whether the opinions on different environmental and transportation criteria vary significantly among different types of road users or not. The paper addresses this issue by using a unique survey data that has been collected from Kolkata, a highly populated city in India. Multiple criteria should be taken into account while planning on infrastructure development programs. Given limited resources, a welfare maximizing government typically resorts to public opinion by designing surveys for prioritization of one project over another. Designing such surveys can be challenging and costly. Deciding upon whom to include in a survey and how to represent each group of consumers/road-users depend crucially on how opinion for different criteria vary across consumer groups. A unique dataset has been collected from various parts of Kolkata to statistically test (using Kolmogorov-Smirnov test) whether assigning of weights to rank the transportation criteria like congestion, air pollution, noise pollution, and morning/evening delay vary significantly across the various groups of users of such infrastructure. The different consumer/user groups in the dataset include pedestrian, private car owner, para-transit (taxi /auto rickshaw) user, public transport (bus) user and freight transporter among others. Very little evidence has been found that ranking of different criteria among these groups vary significantly. This also supports the hypothesis that road- users/consumers form their opinion by using their long-run rather than immediate experience. As a policy prescription, this implies that under-representation or over-representation of a specific consumer group in a survey may not necessarily distort the overall opinion, since opinions across different consumer groups are highly correlated as evident from this particular case study.

Keywords: multi criteria analysis, project-prioritization, road- users, survey designing

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Authors: Brandon Takahashi, Marielle Hanley, Gerry Hanley

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The large-scale quick-service restaurant industry is a complex business to manage optimally. With over 40 suppliers providing different ingredients for food preparation and thousands of restaurants serving over 50 unique food offerings across a wide range of regions, the company must implement a quality assurance process. Businesses want to deliver quality food efficiently, reliably, and successfully at a low cost that the public wants to buy. They also want to make sure that their food offerings are never unsafe to eat or of poor quality. A good reputation (and profitable business) developed over the years can be gone in an instant if customers fall ill eating your food. Poor quality also results in food waste, and the cost of corrective actions is compounded by the reduction in revenue. Product compliance evaluation assesses if the supplier’s ingredients are within compliance with the specifications of several attributes (physical, chemical, organoleptic) that a company will test to ensure that a quality, safe to eat food is given to the consumer and will deliver the same eating experience in all parts of the country. The technical component of the evaluation includes the chemical and physical tests that produce numerical results that relate to shelf-life, food safety, and organoleptic qualities. The psychological component of the evaluation includes organoleptic, which is acting on or involving the use of the sense organs. The rubric for product compliance evaluation has four levels: (1) Ideal: Meeting or exceeding all technical (physical and chemical), organoleptic, & psychological specifications. (2) Deviation from ideal but no impact on quality: Not meeting or exceeding some technical and organoleptic/psychological specifications without impact on consumer quality and meeting all food safety requirements (3) Acceptable: Not meeting or exceeding some technical and organoleptic/psychological specifications resulting in reduction of consumer quality but not enough to lessen demand and meeting all food safety requirements (4) Unacceptable: Not meeting food safety requirements, independent of meeting technical and organoleptic specifications or meeting all food safety requirements but product quality results in consumer rejection of food offering. Sampling of products and consumer tastings within the distribution network is a second critical element of the quality assurance process and are the data sources for the statistical analyses. Each finding is not independently assessed with the rubric. For example, the chemical data will be used to back up/support any inferences on the sensory profiles of the ingredients. Certain flavor profiles may not be as apparent when mixed with other ingredients, which leads to weighing specifications differentially in the acceptability decision. Quality assurance processes are essential to achieve that balance of quality and profitability by making sure the food is safe and tastes good but identifying and remediating product quality issues before they hit the stores. Comprehensive quality assurance procedures implement human factors methodologies, and this report provides recommendations for systemic application of quality assurance processes for quick service restaurant services. This case study will review the complex decision rubric and evaluate processes to ensure the right balance of cost, quality, and safety is achieved.

Keywords: decision making, food safety, organoleptics, product compliance, quality assurance

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Authors: Konja Knüppel, Gerrit Meyer, Peter Nyhuis

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The increasing interconnectedness and complexity of production processes raise the susceptibility of production systems to failure. Therefore, the ability to respond quickly to failures is increasingly becoming a competitive factor. The research project "Sustainable failure management in manufacturing SMEs" is developing a methodology to identify failures in the production and select preventive and reactive measures in order to correct failures and to establish sustainable failure management systems.

Keywords: failure categorization, failure management, logistic performance, production optimization

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Authors: Mirco Tarozzi, Giacomo Pignagnoli, Andrea Benedetti

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Structural systems are often subjected to degradation processes due to different kind of phenomena like unexpected loadings, ageing of the materials and fatigue cycles. This is true especially for bridges, in which their safety evaluation is crucial for the purpose of a design of planning maintenance. This paper discusses the experimental evaluation of the stiffness reduction from frequency changes due to uniform damage scenario. For this purpose, a 1:4 scaled bridge has been built in the laboratory of the University of Bologna. It is made of concrete and its cross section is composed by a slab linked to four beams. This concrete deck is 6 m long and 3 m wide, and its natural frequencies have been identified dynamically by exciting it with an impact hammer, a dropping weight, or by walking on it randomly. After that, a set of loading cycles has been applied to this bridge in order to produce a uniformly distributed crack pattern. During the loading phase, either cracking moment and yielding moment has been reached. In order to define the relationship between frequency variation and loss in stiffness, the identification of the natural frequencies of the bridge has been performed, before and after the occurrence of the damage, corresponding to each load step. The behavior of breathing cracks and its effect on the natural frequencies has been taken into account in the analytical calculations. By using a sort of exponential function given from the study of lot of experimental tests in the literature, it has been possible to predict the stiffness reduction through the frequency variation measurements. During the load test also crack opening and middle span vertical displacement has been monitored.

Keywords: concrete bridge, damage detection, dynamic test, frequency shifts, operational modal analysis

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Authors: Dicko Ali Hamadi, Tong-Yette Nicolas, Gilles Benjamin, Faure Francois, Palombi Olivier

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A novel hybrid model of the lumbar spine, allowing fast static and dynamic simulations of the disc pressure and the spine mobility, is introduced in this work. Our contribution is to combine rigid bodies, deformable finite elements, articular constraints, and springs into a unique model of the spine. Each vertebra is represented by a rigid body controlling a surface mesh to model contacts on the facet joints and the spinous process. The discs are modeled using a heterogeneous tetrahedral finite element model. The facet joints are represented as elastic joints with six degrees of freedom, while the ligaments are modeled using non-linear one-dimensional elastic elements. The challenge we tackle is to make these different models efficiently interact while respecting the principles of Anatomy and Mechanics. The mobility, the intradiscal pressure, the facet joint force and the instantaneous center of rotation of the lumbar spine are validated against the experimental and theoretical results of the literature on flexion, extension, lateral bending as well as axial rotation. Our hybrid model greatly simplifies the modeling task and dramatically accelerates the simulation of pressure within the discs, as well as the evaluation of the range of motion and the instantaneous centers of rotation, without penalizing precision. These results suggest that for some types of biomechanical simulations, simplified models allow far easier modeling and faster simulations compared to usual full-FEM approaches without any loss of accuracy.

Keywords: hybrid, modeling, fast simulation, lumbar spine

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Authors: Rishabh Nagpal, Riya Uchagaonkar, Venkata Naga Narasimha Ashish Mernedi, Ahmed Hambaba

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The rapid evolution of technology in the communication sector continually seeks to bridge the gap between different communities, notably between the deaf community and the hearing world. This project develops a comprehensive American Sign Language (ASL) recognition system, leveraging the advanced capabilities of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and vision transformers (ViTs) to interpret and translate ASL in real-time. The primary objective of this system is to provide an effective communication tool that enables seamless interaction through accurate sign language interpretation. The architecture of the proposed system integrates dual networks -VGG16 for precise spatial feature extraction and vision transformers for contextual understanding of the sign language gestures. The system processes live input, extracting critical features through these sophisticated neural network models, and combines them to enhance gesture recognition accuracy. This integration facilitates a robust understanding of ASL by capturing detailed nuances and broader gesture dynamics. The system is evaluated through a series of tests that measure its efficiency and accuracy in real-world scenarios. Results indicate a high level of precision in recognizing diverse ASL signs, substantiating the potential of this technology in practical applications. Challenges such as enhancing the system’s ability to operate in varied environmental conditions and further expanding the dataset for training were identified and discussed. Future work will refine the model’s adaptability and incorporate haptic feedback to enhance the interactivity and richness of the user experience. This project demonstrates the feasibility of an advanced ASL recognition system and lays the groundwork for future innovations in assistive communication technologies.

Keywords: sign language, computer vision, vision transformer, VGG16, CNN

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Authors: Bensaid A., Mostephaoui T., Nedjai R.

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Climatic factors are the subject of considerable research, both methodologically and instrumentally. Under the effect of climate change, the approach to climate parameters with precision remains one of the main objectives of the scientific community. This is from the perspective of assessing climate change and its repercussions on humans and the environment. However, many regions of the world suffer from a severe lack of reliable instruments that can make up for this deficit. Alternatively, the use of empirical methods becomes the only way to assess certain parameters that can act as climate indicators. Several scientific methods are used for the evaluation of evapotranspiration which leads to its evaluation either directly at the level of the climatic stations or by empirical methods. All these methods make a point approach and, in no case, allow the spatial variation of this parameter. We, therefore, propose in this paper the use of three sources of information (network of weather stations of Meteo France, World Databases, and Moodis satellite images) to evaluate spatial evapotranspiration (ETP) using the Turc method. This first step will reflect the degree of relevance of the indirect (satellite) methods and their generalization to sites without stations. The spatial variation representation of this parameter using the geographical information system (GIS) accounts for the heterogeneity of the behaviour of this parameter. This heterogeneity is due to the influence of site morphological factors and will make it possible to appreciate the role of certain topographic and hydrological parameters. A phase of predicting the evolution over the medium and long term of evapotranspiration under the effect of climate change by the application of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) scenarios gives a realistic overview as to the contribution of aquatic systems to the scale of the region.

Keywords: climate change, ETP, MODIS, GIEC scenarios

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Authors: K. Rhea Devaiah, B. S. Premalatha

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Background: Tonsillar Lingual sulcus is the area between the tonsils and the base of the tongue. The surgical resection of the lesions in the head and neck results in changes in speech and swallowing functions. The severity of the speech and swallowing problem depends upon the site and extent of the lesion, types and extent of surgery and also the flexibility of the remaining structures. Need of the study: This paper focuses on the importance of speech and swallowing rehabilitation in an individual with the lesion in the Tonsillar Lingual Sulcus and post-operative functions. Aim: Evaluating the speech and swallow functions post-intensive speech and swallowing rehabilitation. The objectives are to evaluate the speech intelligibility and swallowing functions after intensive therapy and assess the quality of life. Method: The present study describes a report of an individual aged 47years male, with the diagnosis of basaloid squamous cell carcinoma, left tonsillar lingual sulcus (pT2n2M0) and underwent wide local excision with left radical neck dissection with PMMC flap reconstruction. Post-surgery the patient came with a complaint of reduced speech intelligibility, and difficulty in opening the mouth and swallowing. Detailed evaluation of the speech and swallowing functions were carried out such as OPME, articulation test, speech intelligibility, different phases of swallowing and trismus evaluation. Self-reported questionnaires such as SHI-E(Speech handicap Index- Indian English), DHI (Dysphagia handicap Index) and SESEQ -K (Self Evaluation of Swallowing Efficiency in Kannada) were also administered to know what the patient feels about his problem. Based on the evaluation, the patient was diagnosed with pharyngeal phase dysphagia associated with trismus and reduced speech intelligibility. Intensive speech and swallowing therapy was advised weekly twice for the duration of 1 hour. Results: Totally the patient attended 10 intensive speech and swallowing therapy sessions. Results indicated misarticulation of speech sounds such as lingua-palatal sounds. Mouth opening was restricted to one finger width with difficulty chewing, masticating, and swallowing the bolus. Intervention strategies included Oro motor exercise, Indirect swallowing therapy, usage of a trismus device to facilitate mouth opening, and change in the food consistency to help to swallow. A practice session was held with articulation drills to improve the production of speech sounds and also improve speech intelligibility. Significant changes in articulatory production and speech intelligibility and swallowing abilities were observed. The self-rated quality of life measures such as DHI, SHI and SESE Q-K revealed no speech handicap and near-normal swallowing ability indicating the improved QOL after the intensive speech and swallowing therapy. Conclusion: Speech and swallowing therapy post carcinoma in the tonsillar lingual sulcus is crucial as the tongue plays an important role in both speech and swallowing. The role of Speech-language and swallowing therapists in oral cancer should be highlighted in treating these patients and improving the overall quality of life. With intensive speech-language and swallowing therapy post-surgery for oral cancer, there can be a significant change in the speech outcome and swallowing functions depending on the site and extent of lesions which will thereby improve the individual’s QOL.

Keywords: oral cancer, speech and swallowing therapy, speech intelligibility, trismus, quality of life

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Authors: Sumita Srivastava

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Despite several measures taken by the Government of India, entrepreneurship is still not perceived as a viable career option by the young generation. Although the rate of startups has improved a little after the penetration of e portals as business platforms, still the numbers are not very significant. It is also important to note that entrepreneurial initiatives are mostly taken up by graduates of premier institutions of India like Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Management (IIMs). The scenario is not very satisfactory amongst the masses graduating from mainstream universities of the country. Indian youth at large are not attracted towards entrepreneurship as a career choice. The reason probably lies in the social fabric of the country and inappropriate education system which does not support the entrepreneurship at large amongst youth in the country. Education is critical to the development of an economy from the poverty level to the level of self-sustenance and development. The current curriculum in the majority of business schools in India prepares the average graduate to become employed by the available firms or business owners in society. For graduates in other streams, employment opportunities are very limited. The aim of this study was to identify and design entrepreneurship education contents to encourage undergraduates to pursue entrepreneurship as a career choice. This comprehensive study was conducted in multiple stages. Extensive research was conducted at each stage with an appropriate methodology. These stages of the project study were interconnected with each other, and each preceding stage provided inputs for the following stage of the study. In the first stage of the study, an empirical analysis was conducted to understand the current state of entrepreneurial intentions of undergraduates of Agra city. Various stakeholders were contacted at the stage, including students (n = 500), entrepreneurs (n = 20) and academicians and field experts (n = 10). At the second stage of the project study, a systems science technique, Nominal Group Technique (NGT) was used to identify the critical elements of entrepreneurship education in India based upon the findings of stage 1. The application of the Nominal Group Technique involved a workshop format; 15 domain experts participated in the workshop. Throughout the process, a democratic process was followed to avoid individual dominance and premature focusing on a single idea. The study obtained 63 responses from experts for effective entrepreneurship education in India. The responses were reduced to seven elements after a few thematic iterations. These elements were then segregated into content (knowledge, skills and attitude) and learning interaction on the basis of experts’ responses. After identifying critical elements of entrepreneurship education in the previous stage, the course was designed and validated at stage 3 of the project. Scientific methods were used at this stage to validate the curriculum contents and training interventions experimentally. The educational and training interventions designed through this study would not only help in developing entrepreneurial intentions but also creating skills relevant to the local entrepreneurial opportunities in the vicinity.

Keywords: curriculum design, entrepreneurial intention, entrepreneuship education, nominal group technique

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Authors: Arnesh Vijay

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Ever since its early introduction in the late 1980s, the mobile industry has been rapidly evolving with each passing year. The development witnessed is not just in its ability to support diverse applications, but also its extension into diverse technological means to access and offer various services to users. Amongst the various technologies present, radio systems have clearly emerged as a strong contender, due to its fine attributes of accessibility, reachability, interactiveness, and cost efficiency. These advancements have no doubt guaranteed unprecedented ease, utility and sophistication to the cell phone users, but caused uncertainty due to the interdependence of various systems, making it extremely complicated to exactly map concepts on to 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) standards. Although the close interrelation and interdependence of intellectual property rights and mobile standard specifications have been widely acknowledged by the technical and legal community; there, however, is a requirement for clear distinction between the scope and future-proof of inventions to influence standards and its market place adoptability. For this, collaborative work is required between intellectual property professionals, researchers, standardization specialists and country specific legal experts. With the evolution into next generation mobile technology, i.e., to 5G systems, there is a need for further work to be done in this field, which has been felt now more than ever before. Based on these lines, this poster will briefly describe the importance of intellectual property rights in the European market. More specifically, will analyse the role played by intellectual property in various standardization institutes, such as 3GPP (3rd generation partnership project) and ITU (International Telecommunications Union). The main intention: to ensure the scope and purpose is well defined, and concerned parties on all four sides are well informed on the clear significance of good proposals which not only bring economic revenue to the company but those that are capable of improving the technology and offer better services to mankind. The poster will comprise different sections. The first segment begins with a background on the rapidly evolving mobile technology, with a brief insight on the industrial impact of standards and its relation to intellectual property rights. Next, section two will succinctly outline the interplay between patents and standards; explicitly discussing the ever changing and rapidly evolving relationship between the two sectors. Then the remaining sections will examine ITU and its role played in international standards development, touching upon the various standardization process and the common patent policies and related guidelines. Finally, it proposes ways to improve the collaboration amongst various sectors for a more evolved and sophisticated next generation mobile telecommunication system. The sole purpose here is to discuss methods to reduce the gap and enhance the exchange of information between the two sectors to offer advanced technologies and services to mankind.

Keywords: mobile technology, mobile standards, intellectual property rights, 3GPP

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Authors: Faranak Omidian

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This study has been carried out to examine the status of architecture department at bachelor's level of engineering architecture in Islamic Azad University of Dezful in 2012-13 academic year. The present research is a descriptive cross sectional study and in terms of measurement, it is descriptive and analytical, which was done based on 7 steps and in 7 areas with 32 criteria and 169 indicators. The sample includes 201 students, 14 faculty members, 72 graduates and 39 employers. Simple random sampling method, complete enumeration method, network sampling (snowball sampling) were used for students, faculty members and graduates respectively. All sample responded to the questions. After data collection, the findings were ranked on Likert scale from desirable to undesirable with the scores ranging from 1 to 3.The results showed that the department with a score of 1.88 in regard to objectives, organizational status, management and organizations, with a score of 2 in relation to students, with a score of 1.8 in regard to faculty members was in a relatively desirable status. Regarding training courses and curriculum, it gained a score of 2.33 which indicates the desirable status of the department in this regard. It gained scores of 1.75, 2, and 1.8 with respect to educational and research facilities and equipment, teaching and learning strategies, and graduates respectively, all of which shows the relatively desirable status of the department. The results showed that the department of architecture, with an average score of 2.14 in all evaluated areas, was in a desirable situation. Therefore, although the department generally has a desirable status, it needs to put in more effort to tackle its weaknesses and shortages and corrects its defects in order to promote educational quality, taking to the desirable level.

Keywords: internal evaluation, architecture department in Islamic, Azad University, Dezful

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Authors: Niaz Latif, Joy L. Colwell

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Following implementation of a master’s level graduate degree program in technology, a research-based assessment of the program was undertaken to determine how well the program met its goals and objectives, and the impact of the degree program on the objectives and the needs of its graduates. Upon review of the survey data, it was concluded that the program was meeting its goals and objectives and that the directed project option should be encouraged.

Keywords: master’s degree, graduate program, assessment, master's program in technology

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Authors: P. Barreto, A. Guevara, V. Ibujes

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In this study, the removal of arsenic from synthetic solutions and natural water from Papallacta Lagoon was evaluated, by using the rhizofiltration method with terrestrial and aquatic plant species. Ecuador is a country of high volcanic activity, that is why most of water sources come from volcanic glaciers. Therefore, it is necessary to find new, affordable and effective methods for treating water. The water from Papallacta Lagoon shows levels from 327 µg/L to 803 µg/L of arsenic. The evaluation for the removal of arsenic began with the selection of 16 different species of terrestrial and aquatic plants. These plants were immersed to solutions of 4500 µg/L arsenic concentration, for 48 hours. Subsequently, 3 terrestrial species and 2 aquatic species were selected based on the highest amount of absorbed arsenic they showed, analyzed by plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES), and their best capacity for adaptation into the arsenic solution. The chosen terrestrial species were cultivated from their seed with hydroponics methods, using coconut fiber and polyurethane foam as substrates. Afterwards, the species that best adapted to hydroponic environment were selected. Additionally, a control of the development for the selected aquatic species was carried out using a basic nutrient solution to provide the nutrients that the plants required. Following this procedure, 30 plants from the 3 types of species selected were exposed to a synthetic solution with levels of arsenic concentration of 154, 375 and 874 µg/L, for 15 days. Finally, the plant that showed the highest level of arsenic absorption was placed in 3 L of natural water, with arsenic levels of 803 µg/L. The plant laid in the water until it reached the desired level of arsenic of 10 µg/L. This experiment was carried out in a total of 30 days, in which the capacity of arsenic absorption of the plant was measured. As a result, the five species initially selected to be used in the last part of the evaluation were: sunflower (Helianthus annuus), clover (Trifolium), blue grass (Poa pratensis), water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) and miniature aquatic fern (Azolla). The best result of arsenic removal was showed by the water hyacinth with a 53,7% of absorption, followed by the blue grass with 31,3% of absorption. On the other hand, the blue grass was the plant that best responded to the hydroponic cultivation, by obtaining a germination percentage of 97% and achieving its full growth in two months. Thus, it was the only terrestrial species selected. In summary, the final selected species were blue grass, water hyacinth and miniature aquatic fern. These three species were evaluated by immersing them in synthetic solutions with three different arsenic concentrations (154, 375 and 874 µg/L). Out of the three plants, the water hyacinth was the one that showed the highest percentages of arsenic removal with 98, 58 and 64%, for each one of the arsenic solutions. Finally, 12 plants of water hyacinth were chosen to reach an arsenic level up to 10 µg/L in natural water. This significant arsenic concentration reduction was obtained in 5 days. In conclusion, it was found that water hyacinth is the best plant to reduce arsenic levels in natural water.

Keywords: arsenic, natural water, plant species, rhizofiltration, synthetic solutions

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Authors: Zi Y. Kang, Tracy D. Cassidy, Tom Cassidy

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3D apparel CAD is one of the remarkable products in advanced technology which enables intuitive design, visualisation and evaluation of garments through stereoscopic drape simulation. The progressive improvements of 3D apparel CAD have led to the creation of more realistic clothing simulation which is used not only in design development but also in presentation, promotion and communication for fashion as well as other industries such as film, game and social network services. As a result, 3D clothing technology is becoming more ubiquitous in human culture and lives today. This study considers that such phenomenon implies that the technology has reached maturity and it is time to inspect the status of current technology and to explore its potential uses in ways to create cultural values to further move forward. For this reason, this study aims to generate virtual costumes as culturally significant objects using 3D apparel CAD and to assess its capability, applicability and attitudes of the audience towards clothing simulation through comparison with physical counterparts. Since the access to costume collection is often limited due to the conservative issues, the technology may make valuable contribution by democratization of culture and knowledge for museums and its audience. This study is expected to provide foundation knowledge for development of clothing technology and for expanding its boundary of practical uses. To prevent any potential damage, two replicas of the costumes in the 1860s and 1920s at the Museum of London were chosen as samples. Their structural, visual and physical characteristics were measured and collected using patterns, scanned images of fabrics and objective fabric measurements with scale, KES-F (Kawabata Evaluation System of Fabrics) and Titan. Commercial software, DC Suite 5.0 was utilised to create virtual costumes applying collected data and the following outcomes were produced for the evaluation: Images of virtual costumes and video clips showing static and dynamic simulation. Focus groups were arranged with fashion design students and the public for evaluation which exposed the outcomes together with physical samples, fabrics swatches and photographs. The similarities, application and acceptance of virtual costumes were estimated through discussion and a questionnaire. The findings show that the technology has the capability to produce realistic or plausible simulation but expression of some factors such as details and capability of light material requires improvements. While the use of virtual costumes was viewed as more interesting and futuristic replacements to physical objects by the public group, the fashion student group noted more differences in detail and preferred physical garments highlighting the absence of tangibility. However, the advantages and potential of virtual costumes as effective and useful visual references for educational and exhibitory purposes were underlined by both groups. Although 3D apparel CAD has sufficient capacity to assist garment design process, it has limits in identical replication and more study on accurate reproduction of details and drape is needed for its technical improvements. Nevertheless, the virtual costumes in this study demonstrated the possibility of the technology to contribute to cultural and knowledgeable value creation through its applicability and as an interesting way to offer 3D visual information.

Keywords: digital clothing technology, garment simulation, 3D Apparel CAD, virtual costume

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Authors: Ian N. Robertson

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Alkali Silica Reaction (ASR) occurs in concrete when the alkali hydroxides (Na, K and OH) from the cement react with unstable silica, SiO2, in some types of aggregate. The gel that forms during this reaction will expand when it absorbs water, potentially leading to cracking and overall expansion of the concrete. ASR has resulted in accelerated deterioration of concrete highways, dams and other structures that are exposed to moisture during their service life. Concrete aggregates available in Hawaii have not demonstrated a history of ASR, however, accelerated laboratory tests using ASTM 1260 indicated a potential for ASR with some aggregates. Certain clients are now requiring import of aggregates from the US mainland at great expense. In order to assess the accuracy of the laboratory test results, a long-term field study of the potential for ASR in concretes made with Hawaiian aggregates was initiated in 2011 with funding from the US Federal Highway Administration and Hawaii Department of Transportation. Thirty concrete specimens were constructed of various concrete mixtures using aggregates from all Hawaiian aggregate sources, and some US mainland aggregates known to exhibit ASR expansion. The specimens are located in an open field site in Manoa valley on the Hawaiian Island of Oahu, exposed to relatively high humidity and frequent rainfall. A weather station at the site records the ambient conditions on a continual basis. After two years of monitoring, only one of the Hawaiian aggregates showed any sign of expansion. Ten additional specimens were fabricated with this aggregate to confirm the earlier observations. Admixtures known to mitigate ASR, such as fly ash and lithium, were included in some specimens to evaluate their effect on the concrete expansion. This paper describes the field evaluation program and presents the results for all forty specimens after four years of monitoring.

Keywords: aggregate, alkali silica reaction, concrete durability, field exposure

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Authors: Mohamed Boly

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This paper investigates the link between foreign aid and environmental protection, specifically CO2 emissions, in aid recipient countries. Conflicting results exist in the literature regarding the environmental impact of foreign aid. We come to reconcile them, using Project-Level Aid Data with environment codes, over the 1980- 2010 period. The disaggregation of aid according to the environmental codes, show why the results of previous literature remain very mixed. Moreover, we find that the effect of environmental aid is conditioned by some specific characteristics of the recipient country, independently of the donor.

Keywords: foreign aid, green aid, interactive effects, pollution

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Authors: Antarip Bhattacharya, Dhritiman Maitra

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Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is the most common cause of hypercalcemia due to autonomous production of parathormone (PTH) and the third most common endocrine disorder. Upto 2% of postmenopausal women could have this condition. Primary hyperparathyroidism is characterized by hypercalcemia with a high or insufficiently suppressed level of parathyroid hormone and is caused by a solitary parathyroid adenoma in 85-90% of patients. PHPT may also be caused by parathyroid hyperplasia (involving multiple glands) or parathyroid carcinoma. Associated morbidities and sequelae include decreased bone mineral density, fractures, kidney stones, hypertension, cardiac comorbidities and psychiatric disorder which entail huge costs for treatment. In the year 2021, by virtue of running a Breast and Endocrine Surgery clinic in a Tier 1 city at a tertiary care hospital, the opportunity to be associated with patients of hyperparathyroidism came our way. Here, we shall describe the spectrum of clinical presentations and customisation of treatment for parathyroid diseases with reference to the above patients. A retrospective analysis of the data of all patients presenting with symptoms of parathyroid diseases was made and classified according to the cause. 13 patients had presented with symptoms of hyperparathyroidism and each case presented with unique symptoms and necessitated detailed evaluation. The treatment or surgery offered to each patient was tailored to his/her individual disease and led to favourable outcomes. Diseases affecting parathyroid are not as rare as we believe. Each case merits detailed clinical evaluation, investigations and tailoring of suitable treatment with regard to medical management and extent of surgery. Intra-operative frozen section/iOPTH monitoring are really useful adjuncts for intra-operative decision making.

Keywords: hyperparathyroidism, parathyroid adenoma, parathyroid surgery, PTH

Procedia PDF Downloads 125

Authors: Evrim Buyukaslan, Simona Jevsnik, Fatma Kalaoglu

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Simulation of fabrics is more difficult than any other simulation due to complex mechanics of fabrics. Most of the virtual garment simulation software use mass-spring model and incorporate fabric mechanics into simulation models. The accuracy and fidelity of these virtual garment simulation software is a question mark. Drape is a subjective phenomenon and evaluation of drape has been studied since 1950’s. On the other hand, fabric and garment simulation is relatively new. Understanding drape perception of subjects when looking at fabric simulations is critical as virtual try-on becomes more of an issue by enhanced online apparel sales. Projected future of online apparel retailing is that users may view their avatars and try-on the garment on their avatars in the virtual environment. It is a well-known fact that users will not be eager to accept this innovative technology unless it is realistic enough. Therefore, it is essential to understand what users see when they are displaying fabrics in a virtual environment. Are they able to distinguish the differences between various fabrics in virtual environment? The purpose of this study is to investigate human perception when looking at a virtual fabric and determine the most visually noticeable drape parameter. To this end, five different fabrics are mechanically tested, and their drape simulations are generated by commercial garment simulation software (Optitex®). The simulation images are processed by an image analysis software to calculate drape parameters namely; drape coefficient, node severity, and peak angles. A questionnaire is developed to evaluate drape properties subjectively in a virtual environment. Drape simulation images are shown to 27 subjects and asked to rank the samples according to their questioned drape property. The answers are compared to the calculated drape parameters. The results show that subjects are quite sensitive to drape coefficient changes while they are not very sensitive to changes in node dimensions and node distributions.

Keywords: drape simulation, drape evaluation, fabric mechanics, virtual fabric

Procedia PDF Downloads 339

Authors: Haiyoung Jung, Mi Joung Leem, Sun Hwa Lee

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Background & Objective: Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is a genetic abnormality that results in an inadequate amount of G6PD, leading to increased susceptibility of red blood cells to reactive oxygen species and hemolysis. The present study aimed to evaluate the careSTARTTM S1 analyzer for measuring G6PD activity to hemoglobin (Hb) ratio. Methods: Precision for G6PD activity and hemoglobin measurement was evaluated using control materials with two levels on five repeated runs per day for five days. The analytic performance of the careSTARTTM S1 analyzer was compared with spectrophotometry in 40 patient samples. Reference ranges suggested by the manufacturer were validated in 20 healthy males and females each. Results: The careSTARTTM S1 analyzer demonstrated precision of 6.0% for low-level (14~45 U/dL) and 2.7% for high-level (60~90 U/dL) control in G6PD activity, and 1.4% in hemoglobin (7.9~16.3 u/g Hb). A comparison study of G6PD to Hb ratio between the careSTARTTM S1 analyzer and spectrophotometry showed an average difference of 29.1% with a positive bias of the careSTARTTM S1 analyzer. All normal samples from the healthy population were validated for the suggested reference range for males (≥2.19 U/g Hb) and females (≥5.83 U/g Hb). Conclusion: The careSTARTTM S1 analyzer demonstrated good analytical performance and can replace the current spectrophotometric measurement of G6PD enzyme activity. In the aspect of the management of clinical laboratories, it can be a reasonable option as a point-of-care analyzer with minimal handling of samples and reagents, in addition to the automatic calculation of the ratio of measured G6PD activity and Hb concentration, to minimize any clerical errors involved with manual calculation.

Keywords: POCT, G6PD, performance evaluation, careSTART

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Authors: Ali Mohammadi

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Forming and equipping the surveyors team for construction projects such as dams, roads, and tunnels is always one of the first challenges and hiring surveyors who are proficient in reading maps and controlling structures, purchasing appropriate surveying equipment that the employer can find Also, using methods that can save time, in the bigger the project, the more these challenges show themselves. Finding a surveyor engineer who can lead the teams and train surveyors of the collection and buy TOTAL STATION according to the company's budget and the surveyors' ability to use them and the time available to each team In the following, we will introduce a surveying app and examine how to use it, which shows how useful it can be for surveyors in projects.

Keywords: DTM CUTFILL, datatransfer, section, tunnel, traverse

Procedia PDF Downloads 82

Authors: Ozlem Oral, Seval Kilic, Ozlem Yedier, Serap Dokmeci, Devrim Gozuacik

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Autophagy is a degradation pathway, activating under stress conditions. It digests macromolecules, such as abnormal proteins and long-lived organelles by engulfing them and by subsequent delivery of the cargo to lysosomes. The members of the phospholipid-dependent serine/threonine kinases, involved in many signaling pathways, which are necessary for the regulation of cellular metabolic activation. Previous studies implicate that, serine/threonine kinases have crucial roles in the mechanism of many diseases depend on the activated and/or inactivated signaling pathway. Data indicates, the signaling pathways activated by serine/threonine kinases are also involved in activation of autophagy mechanism. However, the information about the effect of serine/threonine kinases on autophagy mechanism and the roles of these effects in disease formation is limited. In this study, we investigated the effect of activated serine/threonine kinases on autophagic pathway. We performed a commonly used autophagy technique, GFP-LC3 dot formation and by using microscopy analyses, we evaluated promotion and/or inhibition of autophagy in serine/threonine kinase-overexpressed fibroblasts as well as cancer cells. In addition, we carried out confocal microscopy analyses and examined autophagic flux by utilizing the differential pH sensitivities of RFP and GFP in mRFP-GFP-LC3 probe. Based on the shRNA-library based screening, we identified autophagy-related proteins affected by serine/threonine kinases. We further studied the involvement of serine/threonine kinases on the molecular mechanism of newly identified autophagy proteins and found that, autophagic pathway is indirectly controlled by serine/threonine kinases via specific autophagic proteins. Our data indicate the molecular connection between two critical cellular mechanisms, which have important roles in the formation of many disease pathologies, particularly cancer. This project is supported by TUBITAK-1001-Scientific and Technological Research Projects Funding Program, Project No: 114Z836.

Keywords: autophagy, GFP-LC3 dot formation assay, serine/threonine kinases, shRNA-library screening

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Authors: A. Kourou, S. Kyriakopoulos, N. Anyfanti

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A lot of children under the age of five spend their daytime hours away from their home, in a kindergarten. Caring for children is a serious subject, and their safety in case of earthquake is the first priority. Being aware of earthquakes helps to prioritize the needs and take the appropriate actions to limit the effects. Earthquakes occurring anywhere at any time require emergency planning. Earthquake planning is a cooperative effort and childcare providers have unique roles and responsibilities. Greece has high seismicity and Ionian Islands Region has the highest seismic activity of the country. The last five years Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (EPPO), which is a national organization, has analyzed the needs and requirements of kindergartens on earthquake protection issues. In this framework it has been noticed that although the State requires child care centers to hold drills, the standards for emergency preparedness in these centers are varied, and a lot of them had not written plans for emergencies. For these reasons, EPPO supports the development of emergency planning guidance and familiarizes the day care centers’ staff being prepared for earthquakes. Furthermore, the Handbook on Day Care Earthquake Planning that has been developed by EPPO helps the providers to understand that emergency planning is essential to risk reduction. Preparedness and training should be ongoing processes, thus EPPO implements every year dozens of specific seminars on children’s disaster related needs. This research presents the results of a survey that detects the level of earthquake preparedness of kindergartens in all over the country and Ionian Islands too. A closed-form questionnaire of 20 main questions was developed for the survey in order to detect the aspects of participants concerning the earthquake preparedness actions at individual, family and day care environment level. 2668 questionnaires were gathered from March 2014 to May 2019, and analyzed by EPPO’s Department of Education. Moreover, this paper presents the EPPO’s educational activities targeted to the Ionian Islands Region that implemented in the framework of “Telemachus” Project. To provide safe environment for children to learn, and staff to work is the foremost goal of any State, community and kindergarten. This project is funded under the Priority Axis "Environmental Protection and Sustainable Development" of Operational Plan "Ionian Islands 2014-2020". It is increasingly accepted that emergency preparedness should be thought of as an ongoing process rather than a one-time activity. Creating an earthquake safe daycare environment that facilitates learning is a challenging task. Training, drills, and update of emergency plan should take place throughout the year at kindergartens to identify any gaps and to ensure the emergency procedures. EPPO will continue to work closely with regional and local authorities to actively address the needs of children and kindergartens before, during and after earthquakes.

Keywords: child care centers, education on earthquake, emergency planning, kindergartens, Ionian Islands Region of Greece

Procedia PDF Downloads 117