Search results for: global desirability

Authors: Muhammad Younis Laghari

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Global climate change has had many effects on the aquatic environment, and the major issue is pollution. Along with the other pollutants, there are a significant number of human microbial pathogens that pollute the water bodies. Another concern about the water quality is that the major aquatic resources bring water-borne pathogens and other related diseases. These resources include industrial effluent, untreated domestic sewage, acid mine drainage, etc. However, these water discharges through various routes may have treatment to eliminate the pathogenic microbes. Therefore, it is essential to control the leakage from sewer systems, residential discharge, and agricultural run-off. These pathogenic microbes have been implicated in the lives of water health (fishes), which is harmful and causes diseases. Mostly, the mortality of aquatic species results because of catastrophic floods due to poor water waste treatment and sanitation that introduce pathogenic bacteria into rivers. Pathogens survive in rivers and remain poorly known but essential to control water-borne diseases. The presence of bacteria in watercourses is diverse and constitutes a complicated subject. Many species are autochthonous and play an important role in aquatic ecosystems, while many others arise from untreated or poorly treated waste from industrial and domestic sources. Further, more investigation is required to know the induction of water-borne pathogens in various water resources and the potential impacts of water resource development on pathogen contamination.

Keywords: microbial pathogens, contamination, water resources, river water body

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Authors: Kasi Jockeil-Ojike

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The study of signage and wayfinding design guidelines is to provide consistent, coherent, and comprehensive guidelines for all type of signage design that may be applied to guide persons from the freeway into campus, and to specific building. As the world becomes more complex and the population increases, people increasingly rely on signage and wayfinding systems to navigate their way in built environment such as university campus. This paper will demonstrate and discuss signage and wayfinding, and the importance of visual literacy in university campuses. It discusses the process of wayfinding and signage, how poor signage and wayfinding systems affect people when navigating, and why wayfinding is more than just signage. Hence, this paper tries to examine the design guideline that primarily addresses the signage and wayfinding system that improves visual literacy within University of Port Harcourt multi-campuses. In doing this, the paper explore the environmental graphic design senori-emotional values and communicative information theories that takes the subjectivity of the observer in account. By making these connections, the paper will also determine what University of Port Harcourt need to focus on to be counted in the global trends, using developed visual communication guidelines based on previous studies or concept from professional. In conclusion, information about why physical structures (buildings and waypaths) on University of Port Harcourt multiple campuses need to be branded in self-communicative manner using signage and wayfinding design as integral part of its physical planning policy is recommended.

Keywords: campus-signage, movement, visual-literacy, wayfinding-guidelines

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Authors: Chia-Feng Lu, Yuh-Jen Wang, Shin Teng, Yu-Te Wu, Sui-Hing Yan

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Brain functional networks based on resting-state EEG data were compared between patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease (mAD) and matched patients with amnestic subtype of mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). We integrated the time–frequency cross mutual information (TFCMI) method to estimate the EEG functional connectivity between cortical regions and the network analysis based on graph theory to further investigate the alterations of functional networks in mAD compared with aMCI group. We aimed at investigating the changes of network integrity, local clustering, information processing efficiency, and fault tolerance in mAD brain networks for different frequency bands based on several topological properties, including degree, strength, clustering coefficient, shortest path length, and efficiency. Results showed that the disruptions of network integrity and reductions of network efficiency in mAD characterized by lower degree, decreased clustering coefficient, higher shortest path length, and reduced global and local efficiencies in the delta, theta, beta2, and gamma bands were evident. The significant changes in network organization can be used in assisting discrimination of mAD from aMCI in clinical.

Keywords: EEG, functional connectivity, graph theory, TFCMI

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Authors: Abdelkader Anouzla, Soukaina Bouaouda, Roukaya Bouyakhsass, Salah Souabi, Abdeslam Taleb

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During storage and under the combined action of rainwater and natural fermentation, these wastes produce over 800.000 m3 of landfill leachates. Due to population growth and changing global economic activities, the amount of waste constantly generated increases, making more significant volumes of leachate. Leachate, when leaching into the soil, can negatively impact soil, surface water, groundwater, and the overall environment and human life. The leachate must first be treated because of its high pollutant load before being released into the environment. This article reviews the different leachate treatments in September 2022 techniques. Different techniques can be used for this purpose, such as biological, physical-chemical, and membrane methods. Young leachate is biodegradable; in contrast, these biological processes lose their effectiveness with leachate aging. They are characterized by high ammonia nitrogen concentrations that inhibit their activity. Most physical-chemical treatments serve as pre-treatment or post-treatment to complement conventional treatment processes or remove specific contaminants. After the introduction, the different types of pollutants present in leachates and their impacts have been made, followed by a discussion highlighting the advantages and disadvantages of the various treatments, whether biological, physicochemical, or membrane. From this work, due to their simplicity and reasonable cost compared to other treatment procedures, biological treatments offer the most suitable alternative to limit the effects produced by the pollutants in landfill leachates.

Keywords: landfill leachate, landfill pollution, impact, wastewater

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Authors: Yao Xing, Hong Ling Liu, Wei Dong Yu

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With the increase of global population, it is of importance for the safe water supply, while, the water-monitoring method with the capability of rapidness, low-cost, green and robustness remains unsolved. In this paper, gold nanoclusters-wool keratin is added into copper ions measured by fluorescent method in order to probe copper ions in aqueous solution. The fluorescent results show that gold nanoclusters-wool keratin exhibits high stability of pHs, while it is sensitive to temperature and time. Based on Gauss fitting method, the results exhibit that the slope of gold nanoclusters-wool keratin with pH resolution under acidic condition is higher compared to it under alkaline solutions. Besides, gold nanoclusters-wool keratin added into copper ions shows a fluorescence turn-off response transferring from red to blue under UV light, leading to the dramatically decreased fluorescent intensity of gold nanoclusters-wool keratin solution located at 690 nm. Moreover, the limited concentration of copper ions tested by gold nanoclusters-wool keratin system is around 1 µmol/L, which meets the need of detection standards. The fitting slope of Stern-Volmer plot at low concentration of copper ions is larger than it at high concentrations, which indicates that aggregated gold nanoclusters are from small amounts to large numbers with the increasing concentration of copper ions. It is expected to provide novel method and materials for copper ions testing with low cost, high efficiency, and easy operability.

Keywords: gold nanoclusters, copper ions, wool keratin, fluorescence

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Authors: Nada Hamed, Mariam Aldhaheri, Sonia Abdennadher

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Islamic Finance is not a new term that emerging in the global market, but it is still under scope by many countries. Its characteristics and regulation are not widely clear and implemented. In 2015, The United Nation announced a plan about potential benefits of using Islamic Finance as a sustainable development approach. Enhancing its application in financial markets could protect from unexpected crisis that might be created from the traditional tools of finance. This paper focuses on this area to test if Islamic finance could be used for maintaining sustainable development and if the term of 'Green Islamic Finance' could be implemented to minimize the deficiencies and 'pollution’ generated from traditional techniques and tools of finance. This paper intends to measure the impact on financial performance and sustainability when financial institutions use Islamic finance or better practice it. The objective of this explanatory research is to measure the performance of Islamic Finance with using a case study of an Islamic bank. The paper would analyze and compare the behavior of financial institutions that used traditional financing tools and converted to Islamic banking system. The methodology used is based on a case study of an Islamic bank in Dubai with comparing its performance before implementing Islamic Finance and after. The selected case study represents the first national bank in Emirates Arab Unis who adopt the Islamic finance approach. Based on a time series analysis, a quantitative analysis would be also used through looking at various set of ratios that are routinely used to measure bank performance.

Keywords: Islamic finance, financial stability, green finance, Islamic finance practices, financial ratios

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Authors: Megi Surmanidze

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The relations between tourists and the population is essentially important to develop tourism. This global branch is an incoming stream and plays the huge economy role in the country is development. This branch is important for adjarian region as well as for Batumi as a touristic city. When lots of tourists visit our city, the relationship and attitudes between tourists and the local population is too important and play the determinant role whether they will visit the country again or not. Receptivness is on actual accompanying process typical for tourism as a growing incoming business direction, and its necessary to be studied the problems and touristic relationships. The aim of the article is to show the importance of receptibility in the business touristic industry also, the topic was to show the dimension scale of receptibility revearing in Batumi population. The topic itself is of hight importance as the touristic business is growing day by day, though the helpful and disturbing social couses were left out of focus were dencely connected to the relations between tourists and the local population. The value is real and directly proportional to the relationship between tourists and the population. The qualitative social research was fulfield. The method to get information was deepened interview. the method gave us the opportunity to get acquented to the actors points of view, also it was suitable points of view, also it was suitable to create favourable conditions to respodents be sincere during interviev and don’t hide their real emotions and the opinions.

Keywords: tourism industry, receptiveness, cultural identity, xenophobia

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Authors: M. Akhlaque Ahmed, Sidra A. Shaikh, Maliha A. Siddiqui, Adeel Tahir

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Global and diffuse solar radiation on horizontal surface of southern sindh namely Karachi, Hyderabad, Nawabshah were carried out using sunshine hour data of the area to asses the feasibility of solar Energy utilization at Sindh province for power generation. From the observation, result is derived which shows a drastic variation in the diffuse and direct component of solar radiation for summer and winter for Southern Sindh that is both contributes 50% for Karachi and Hyderabad. In Nawabshah area, the contribution of diffuse solar radiation is low in monsoon months, July and August. The Kᴛ value of Nawabshah indicates a clear sky almost throughout the year. The percentage of diffuse radiation does not exceed more than 20%. In Nawabshah, the appearance of cloud is rare even in monsoon months. The estimated values indicate that Nawabshah has high solar potential whereas Karachi and Hyderabad has low solar potential. During the monsoon months, the southern part of Sind can utilize the hybrid system with wind power. Near Karachi and Hyderabad, the wind speed ranges between 6.2 to 6.9 m/sec. There exist a wind corridor near Karachi, Hyderabad, Gharo, Keti Bander and Shah Bander. The short fall of solar can be compensated by wind because in monsoon months July and August the wind speed are higher in the southern region of Sindh.

Keywords: hybrid power system, power generation, solar and wind energy potential, southern Sindh

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Authors: Mingjun Xu, Shouxiang Lu

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Understanding the interaction mechanism between the water droplet and pool fire has an important significance in engineering application of water sprinkle/spray/mist fire suppression. The micro impact process is unclear when the droplet impacts on the burning liquid surface at present. To deepen the understanding of the mechanisms of pool fire suppression with water spray/mist, dynamic processes of single water droplet impinging onto a hot heptane surface are visualized with the aid of a high-speed digital camera at 2000 fps. Each test is repeated 20 times. The water droplet diameter is around 1.98 mm, and the impact Weber number ranges from 30 to 695. The heptane is heated by a hot plate to mimic the burning condition, and the temperature varies from 30 to 90°C. The results show that three typical phenomena, including penetration, crater-jet and surface bubble, are observed, and the pool temperature has a significant influence on the critical condition for the appearance of each phenomenon. A global picture of different phenomena is built according to impact Weber number and pool temperature. In addition, the pool temperature and Weber number have important influences on the characteristic parameters including maximum crater depth, crown height and liquid column height. For a fixed Weber number, the liquid column height increases with pool temperature.

Keywords: droplet impact, fire suppression, hot surface, water spray

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Authors: Evridiki Papachristou, Nikolaos Bilalis

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Imagine an apparel industry where fashion design does not begin with a paper-and-pen drawing which is then translated into pattern and later to a 3D model where the designer tries out different fabrics, colours and contrasts. Instead, imagine a fashion designer in the future who produces that initial fashion drawing in a three-dimensional space and won’t leave that environment until the product is done, communicating his/her ideas with the entire development team in true to life 3D. Three-dimensional (3D) technology - while well established in many other industrial sectors like automotive, aerospace, architecture and industrial design, has only just started to open up a whole range of new opportunities for apparel designers. The paper will discuss the process of 3D simulation technology enhanced by high quality visualization of data and its capability to ensure a massive competitiveness in the market. Secondly, it will underline the most frequent problems & challenges that occur in the process chain when various partners in the production of textiles and apparel are working together. Finally, it will offer a perspective of how the Virtual Prototyping Technology will make the global textile and apparel industry change to a level where designs will be visualized on a computer and various scenarios modeled without even having to produce a physical prototype. This state-of-the-art 3D technology has been described as transformative and“disruptive”comparing to the process of the way apparel companies develop their fashion products today. It provides the benefit of virtual sampling not only for quick testing of design ideas, but also reducing process steps and having more visibility.A so called“digital asset” that can be used for other purposes such as merchandising or marketing.

Keywords: 3D visualization, apparel, virtual prototyping, prototyping technology

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Authors: Aspalella A. Rahman

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It is widely accepted that the investigation of money laundering and the tracing and confiscation of criminal proceeds have intruded into the principles of banking secrecy. The inroads into banking secrecy present serious threats to democracy, and more importantly, to the traditional banker-customer relationship. It is generally accepted that the fight against money laundering is in conflict with the secrecy rule. Banking secrecy is a customer privilege whereas combating crime is critical for public safety and security. Indeed, achieving a proper balance is a desirable goal. But how we go about achieving such a balance is a question encountered by many law enforcement authorities. Therefore, this paper examines the effect of disclosure under the Malaysian anti-money laundering laws on the traditional duty of banks to keep the customer’s information confidential. It also analyzes whether the Malaysian laws provide a right balance between a duty to keep customer’s information secret and a duty to disclose such information in the fight against money laundering. On closer inspection, it is submitted that the Malaysian laws provide sufficient safeguards to ensure that the disclosure of customer’s information is carried out in a manner that is not prejudicial to the interest of legitimate customers. This is a positive approach that could protect the innocent customers from being mistreated by the law. Ultimately, it can be said that the growing threat of global money laundering and terrorism makes the overriding of banking secrecy justified because without a flow of information from the banks, the effective prevention of the menace is not possible.

Keywords: anti-money laundering law, banker-customer relationship, banking secrecy, confidentiality, money laundering

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Authors: Smriti Mishra, Jaydip Barman, Shashi Kant Pandey

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Many scholars suggest that waterfront development projects have an all round impact on cities. However, their research stops short of considering the perception of local residents, of what they think about the impact of such developments and the kind of waterfront development which they would prefer to support. Therefore, this paper attempts to address this imbalance in the literature by analysing a survey of residents' perceptions of such developments. The paper discusses the issue in the Indian context by considering Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project (SRFD) of Ahmadabad. It gives an overview of the project components of the SRFD; discusses its development issues and concerns associated with it. It further examines the structural relationship between socio-economic and demographic attributes of local residents and their attitudes and perception towards the economic impact of such developments. The study suggests that the economic component that riverfront development will attract more investment in their community and that riverfront development will increase real estate tax revenue emerged as strong components. While the economic component of substantial premiums to developers, land owners and local government and the other of cost of developing riverfront facilities are too much of a burden on government and public sector agencies appear to be weaker economic components of the perceived economic impacts of urban riverfront development. This paper also gives an overview of the urban waterfront development in the global scenario. It highlights the need to consider residents perception in the development of such projects.

Keywords: urban waterfront development, riverfront, economic impact, resident perception, SRFD

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Authors: Mogale Sabone, Thabiso Ntlole

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The pressure from globalization has made manufacturing organizations to move towards three major competitive arenas: quality, cost, and responsiveness. Quality is a universal value and has become a global issue. In order to survive and be able to provide customers with good products, manufacturing organizations’ supporting systems, tools, and structures it uses must grow or evolve. The majority of quality management concepts and strategies that are practiced recently are aimed at detecting and correcting problems which already exist and serve to limit losses. In agile manufacturing environment there is no room for defect and error so it needs a quality management which is proactively directed at problem prevention. This proactive quality management avoids losses by focusing on failure prevention, virtual elimination of the possibility of premature failure, mistake-proofing, and assuring consistently high quality in the definition and design of creation processes. To achieve this, a decision support tool for quality control and management is suggested. Current decision support tools/methods used by most manufacturing companies in Botswana for quality management and control are not integrated, for example they are not consistent since some tests results data is recorded manually only whilst others are recorded electronically. It is only a set of procedures not a tool. These procedures cannot offer interactive decision support. This point brings to light the aim of this research which is to develop a framework which will help manufacturing companies in Botswana build a decision support tool for quality control and management.

Keywords: decision support tool, manufacturing, quality control, quality management

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Authors: Bela Sulistyaguna, Yuli Chomsatu Samrotun, Endang Masitoh Wahyuningsih

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The purpose of this research was to analyze the influence of company size, liquidity, profitability, leverage, company age, industry type, board of director, board of commissioner, audit committee and public ownership on the corporate social responsibility disclosure. The grand theories of this research are agency theory, stakeholders theory, and legitimacy theory. Analysis of data using multiple linear regression method with SPSS 22.0 for mac. The sample consists of companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) and disclosed the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) sustainability reports from 2013 to 2018. The final sample of this research was 19 companies that obtained by purposive sampling. The results of the research showed that, simultaneously, company size, liquidity, profitability, leverage, company age, industry type, board of director, board of commissioner, audit committee and public ownership has an influence on the corporate social responsibility disclosure. Partially, the results showed that liquidity and leverage has an influence on the corporate social responsibility disclosure. Meanwhile, company size, profitability, company age, industry type, board of director, board of commissioner, audit committee and public ownership has no influence on corporate social responsibility disclosure.

Keywords: corporate social responsibility, CSR disclosure, Indonesia

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Authors: Asm Habibullah Choudhury

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Background: This study is an investigation into medical care, ethics, and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) in the context of Bangladesh. The low prevalence of HIV and high prevalence of STDs in Bangladesh, in common with the global experience of HIV epidemics, has been characterized by tremendous stigmatization of those affected. Stigmatization has resulted in an extraordinary degree of unjust discrimination and in numerous human rights violations of PLWHA. Methodology: This will be a cross-sectional descriptive study and will be conducted at different points of Bangladesh. Result: PLWHA will be identified as many as possible and will be interviewed. Medical care providers will be interviewed to assess their attitude and will be observed for stigma while providing medical services. Some of the religious leaders, local influential people will be interviewed to assess their attitude towards PLWHA. Conclusion: If effective responses to HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination are to be promoted in the region, work has to occur simultaneously on several fronts: Legal challenge, where necessary, to bring to account governments, employers, institutions and individuals. To create enabling environment in which PLWHA and their families, women, boys, and girls are able to access prevention and care services. Access to quality and comprehensive care. The fundamental objective, however, is to strive for action based on this understanding—action that will promote egalitarian and gender-progressive role models, and that will help guide the manner in which we interact with one another.

Keywords: HIV, AIDS, Bangladesh, human rights

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Authors: Ann-May Marais

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South African higher education institutions are following the global adoption of a blended approach to teaching and learning. Blended learning is viewed as a transformative teaching-learning approach, as it provides students with the optimum experience by mixing the best of face-to-face and online learning. Although academics realise the benefits of blended learning, they find it challenging and time-consuming to implement blended strategies. Professional development is a critical component of the adoption of higher education teaching-learning approaches. The Institutional course for higher education academics offered at a South African University was designed in a blended model, implemented and evaluated. This paper reports on a study that investigated the experiences of academics on the blended approach used during the induction course. A qualitative design-based research methodology was employed, and data was collected using participant feedback and document analysis. The data gathered from each of the four ICNL offerings were used to inform the design of the next course. Findings indicated that lecturers realised that blended learning could cater to student diversity, different learning styles, engagement, and innovation. Furthermore, it emerged that the course has to cater for diversity in technology proficiency and readiness of participants. Participants also require ongoing support in technology usage and discipline-specific blended learning workshops. This paper contends that the modelling of a blended approach to professional development can be an effective way to motivate academics to apply blended learning in their teaching-learning experiences.

Keywords: blended learning, professional development, induction course, integration of technology

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Authors: Yolanda Zografova, Ekaterina Dimitrova, Tsvetelina Panchelieva, Victoria Nedeva-Atanasova

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Aggression and violence amongst school-aged children are widely spread phenomenon, which is expanding both on a global level and in Bulgaria. The purpose of the paper is to reveal the overall range of different types and manifestations of school aggression in a specific age group (12 to 18 years old students) from the 5th to the 12th grade according to the Bulgarian education system. In addition, the research investigates the dynamics of aggressive behaviour in two parallel lines – a horizontal one (with students from the same age) and a vertical one (with students from different grade). In the current study based on the original authors’ inventory (School Aggression Questionnaire), the three main types of aggression are measured – physical, verbal and indirect. The sample consists of 300 students from schools in a big metropolitan city, a mid-sized town, and a small town. Results show that the predominant aggression type is the verbal one, but this is the predominant type for the girls in the sample, not for the boys. Another result is that the higher the school grade, the lower levels of overall aggression is shown by the students. The study of such a multi-dimensional phenomenon as the aggression will provide up-to-date scientific knowledge, important both for the development of science on these topics, and useful for public interests in relation to the balanced development of children and adolescents at school. The results provide an excellent base for the development of prevention and intervention programs in order to reduce school aggression.

Keywords: educational psychology, School aggression, interpersonal relations, school aggression questionnaire, types of aggression

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Authors: Phillip Thebe

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African traders in China have generated magnanimous attention from scholars because of their choices to take short-term trips to Guangzhou and other places in search of cheaper products taking advantage of the status of China as a "global manufacturing hub". Nevertheless, their activities only gained traction at the turn of the millennium, with their presence in China incrementally dwindling over the next two decades. Now, with the devastating effects of COVID-19, their journeys have had to be totally cut short by unending lockdowns and stiff migration rules due to China's zero-tolerance of COVID-19 policy. This unfortunate yet untimely occurrence has left many scholars wondering if this marks the end of African traders in China and, indeed, the end of their business careers. Between March and September 2022, 20 traders were followed back to Africa, Zimbabwe, to find out what they are doing after having been shut out of China. Data was collected through ethnographic immersion and purposive in-depth interviewing in and around the city of Bulawayo. Snowballing was employed to reach out to the traders until a saturation point was reached and interview transcripts were filed for analysis. The findings revealed that some still trading online in China, report different opinions and feelings about doing business during COVID-19. Others have left the Chinese marketplace, now pursuing European industries in Turkey and other places. Others are still getting Chinese goods but in African countries such as Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, and Botswana. Some are now into the second-hand clothing trade, whereas others have stopped doing business to pursue other life-course interests. These and other issues are addressed in this paper from the anthropology of migration and globalization perspectives.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, African traders, China, COVID-19, Africans in China

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Authors: Sarthak Mishra, Astha Sinha

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There’s no doubt about the convenience of making commercial and business transactions over the Internet under the new business model known as the e-Commerce. The term 'Electronic commerce' or e-Commerce refers to the use of an electronic medium to carry out commercial transactions. E-Commerce is one of the parts of Information Science framework and its uses are gradually becoming popular. Thus, the threat of security issues in Information Science has now become an important subject of discussion amongst the concerned users. These two issues i.e. security and privacy are required to be looked into through social, organizational, technical and economic perspectives. The current paper analyses the effect of these two issues in the arena of e-commerce. Here, no specification has been discussed rather an attempt has been made to provide a general overview. Further, attempts have been made to discuss the security and privacy issues in relation to the E-Commerce financial transactions. We shall also discuss in particular different steps required to be taken before online shopping and also shall discuss the purpose of security and privacy in E-Commerce and why it has currently become the need of the present hour. Lastly, an attempt has been made to discuss the plausible future course of development of this practice and its impact upon the global economy and if any changes should be bought about to ensure a smooth evolution of the practice. This paper has adopted a descriptive methodology to undertake its major area of study, wherein the major source of information has been via the secondary resources. Also, the study is of a comparative nature wherein the position of the various national regimes have compared with regards to the research question.

Keywords: business-business transaction (B2B), business-consumer transaction (B2C), e-commerce, online transaction, privacy and security threats

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Authors: Nicolas D. Norboge

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Purchasers of municipal bonds in primary and secondary markets are increasingly expecting issuers to disclose environmental, social, and governance factors (ESG) inissuance and continuing disclosure documents. U.S. tolling authorities are slowly catching up with other transportation sectors, such as public transit, in integrating ESG factors into their bond disclosure documents. A systematic mixed-methods evaluation of publicly available bond disclosure documents from 2010-2022 suggest that only a small number of U.S. tolling authorities disclosedall ESG factors; however, the pace has accelerated significantly from 2020-2022. Because many tolling authorities have a direct financial stake in the growth of passenger vehicle miles traveled on their toll facilities, and in turn the burning of more climate-warming fossil fuels, one crucial questionthat remains is how bond purchasers will view increasedESG transparency. Recent moves by large institutional investors, credit rating agencies, and regulators suggestan expectation of ESG disclosure is a trend likely to endure. This researchsuggests tolling authorities will need to proactively consider these emerging trends and carefully adapt their disclosure practiceswhere possible. Building on these findings, this research also provides a basic sketch framework for how issuers can responsibly position themselves within the changing global municipal debt marketplace.

Keywords: debt policy, ESG, municipal bonds, public-private partnerships, public tolling authorities, transportation finance, and policy

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Authors: Qian Zhao

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With global increasing demand for phosphorus and intensively depleting reserves, it is urgent need to explore innovative approaches towards capturing phosphate from sewage, which is also an effective way to reduce phosphate contamination and avoid eutrophication of water bodies. In the present article, the superparamagnetic nano-sorbents containing Fe₃O₄ core and hafnium-modified MgAl/MgFe layered double hydroxides shell (abbreviated as MgAlHf-NP and MgFeHf-NP) was developed using a simple and low-cost synthesis protocol. The obtained Hf-coated nano-materials showed well-defined crystal structure and sufficient saturation magnetization and exhibited higher adsorption capacity for phosphate. Meanwhile, high selectivity was also confirmed since coexisting foreign anions and biomacromolecules showed little competitive effect on phosphate adsorption. The enhancement via doping with Hf should be explained by the stronger ligand complexation built by the pair of hard acid Hf ion and hard base phosphate that matched up the bonding preferences. Sufficient OH⁻ concentration and clear pH shift during the desorption/regeneration allowed for regeneration rate of higher than 90% after 5 cycles of adsorption desorption. This article attempts to provide a competitive candidate for phosphate-capture, which is highly effective, easily separable and repeatedly usable.

Keywords: phosphate recovery, nanoparticles, superparamagnetic, adsorption, reusability

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Authors: Peng-Shao Chen, Yen-Jong Chen

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In recent years, global warming, the dramatic change in energy prices and the exhaustion of natural resources illustrated that energy-related topic cannot be ignored. Despite the relationship between the cities and CO₂ emissions has been extensively studied in recent years, little attention has been paid to differences in the geographical location of the city. However, the geographical climate has a great impact on lifestyle from city to city, such as the type of buildings, the major industry of the city, etc. Therefore, the paper instigates empirically the effects of kinds of urban factors and CO₂ emissions with consideration of the different geographic, climatic zones which cities are located. Using the regression model and a dataset of urban agglomeration in East Asia cities with over one million population, including 2005, 2010, and 2015 three years, the findings suggest that the impact of urban factors on CO₂ emissions vary with the latitude of the cities. Surprisingly, all kinds of urban factors, including the urban population, the share of GDP in service industry, per capita income, and others, have different level of impact on the cities locate in the tropical climate zone and temperate climate zone. The results of the study analyze the impact of different urban factors on CO₂ emissions in urban area with different geographical climate zones. These findings will be helpful for the formulation of relevant policies for urban planners and policy makers in different regions.

Keywords: carbon emissions, urban agglomeration, urban factor, urban geography

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Authors: Huang Haoxin

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Large dark current at room temperature has long been the major bottleneck that impedes the development of high-performance infrared photodetectors towards miniaturization and integration. Although infrared photodetectors based on layered 2D narrow bandgap semiconductors have shown admirable advantages compared with those based on conventional compounds, which typically suffer from expensive cryogenic operations, it is still urgent to develop a simple but effective strategy to further reduce the dark current. Herein, a tellurium (Te) based infrared photodetector is reported with a specifically designed asymmetric electrical contact area. The deliberately introduced asymmetric electrical contact raises the electric field intensity difference in the Te channel near the drain and the source electrodes, resulting in spontaneous asymmetric carrier diffusion under global infrared light illumination under zero bias. Specifically, the Te-based photodetector presents promising detector performance at room temperature, including a low dark current of≈1 nA, an ultrahigh photocurrent/dark current ratio of 1.57×10⁴, a high specific detectivity (D*) of 3.24×10⁹ Jones, and relatively fast response speed of ≈720 μs at zero bias. The results prove that the simple design of asymmetric electrical contact areas can provide a promising solution to high-performance 2D semiconductor-based infrared photodetectors working at room temperature.

Keywords: asymmetrical contact, tellurium, dark current, infrared photodetector, sensitivity

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Authors: Leila Rashidian, Abbas Ebrahimi

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The development of industrial activities, increase in fossil fuel consumption, vehicles, destruction of forests and grasslands, changes in land use, and population growth have caused to increase the amount of greenhouse gases especially CO₂ in the atmosphere in recent decades. This has led to global warming and climate change. In the present paper, we have investigated the trend of climate change according to the data simulation during the time interval of 2010-2030 in the Fars province. In this research, the daily climatic parameters such as maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation and number of sunny hours during the 1977-2008 time interval for synoptic stations of Shiraz and Abadeh and during 1995-2008 for Lar stations and also the output of HADCM₃ model in 2010-2030 time interval have been used based on the A₂ propagation scenario. The results of the model show that the average temperature will increase by about 1 degree centigrade and the amount of precipitation will increase by 23.9% compared to the observational data. In conclusion, according to the temperature increase in this province, the amount of precipitation in the form of snow will be reduced and precipitations often will occur in the form of rain. This 1-degree centigrade increase during the season will reduce production by 6 to 10% because of shortening the growing period of wheat.

Keywords: climate change, Lars WG, HADCM3, Gillan province, climatic parameters, A2 scenario

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Authors: Damous Mohamed, Zeroudi Nasredine

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High-speed milling of thin-walled parts with complex curvilinear profiles often encounters machining instability, commonly referred to as chatter. This phenomenon arises due to the dynamic interaction between the cutting tool and the part, exacerbated by the part's low rigidity and varying dynamic characteristics along the tool path. This research presents a dynamic model specifically developed to predict machining stability for such curved thin-walled components. The model employs the semi-discretization method, segmenting the tool trajectory into small, straight elements to locally approximate the behavior of an inclined plane. Dynamic characteristics for each segment are extracted through experimental modal analysis and incorporated into the simulation model to generate global stability lobe diagrams. Validation of the model is conducted through cutting tests where acoustic intensity is measured to detect instabilities. The experimental data align closely with the predicted stability limits, confirming the model's accuracy and effectiveness. This work provides a comprehensive approach to enhancing machining stability predictions, thereby improving the efficiency and quality of high-speed milling operations for thin-walled parts.

Keywords: chatter, curved thin-walled part, semi-discretization method, stability lobe diagrams

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Authors: Zahra Emami, Mohammad Ebrahim Khamseh, Nahid Hashemi Madani, Iman Kermani

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The aim of the study was to map scientific research on adrenal gland diseases in the Middle East countries through the Web of Science database using scientometric analysis. Data were analyzed with Excel software; and HistCite was used for mapping of the scientific texts. In this study, from a total of 268 retrieved records, 1125 authors from 328 institutions published their texts in 138 journals. Among 17 Middle East countries, Turkey ranked first with 164 documents (61.19%), Israel ranked second with 47 documents (15.53%) and Iran came in the third place with 26 documents. Most of the publications (185 documents, 69.2%) were articles. Among the universities of the Middle East, Istanbul University had the highest science production rate (9.7%). The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism had the highest TGCS (243 citations). In the scientific mapping, 7 clusters were formed based on TLCS (Total Local Citation Score) & TGCS (Total Global Citation Score). considering the study results, establishment of scientific connections and collaboration with other countries and use of publications on adrenal gland diseases from high ranking universities can help in the development of this field and promote the medical practice in this regard. Moreover, investigation of the formed clusters in relation to Congenital Hyperplasia and puberty related disorders can be research priorities for investigators.

Keywords: mapping, scientific research, adrenal gland diseases, scientometric

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Authors: Araceli Martinez Ortiz, Gillian Bayne, Solomon Abraham

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This paper describes research led by faculty from three American universities and four Ethiopian universities on the delivery of professional leadership development for early-career female Ethiopian university instructors in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. The objective was to carry out a case study focused on the impact of an innovative intervention program designed to assist in the empowerment and leadership development related to teaching effectiveness, scholarly activity participation, and professional service participation by female instructors. This research was conducted utilizing a case study methodology for the weeklong intervention and a survey to capture the voices of the leadership program participants. The data regarding insights into the challenges and opportunities for women in these fields is presented. The research effort project expands upon existing linkages between universities to support professional development and research effort in this region of the world. Findings indicate the positive reception of this kind of professional development by the participating women. Survey data also reflects the particular cultural challenges professional women in STEM education face in Ethiopia as well as the global challenges of balancing family expectations with career development.

Keywords: Ethiopian women, STEM leadership, professional development, gender equity

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Authors: Athira Babu, M. Nazeer

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Concrete is the most common and versatile construction material used in any type of civil engineering structure. The durability and strength characteristics of concrete make it more desirable among any other construction materials. The manufacture and use of concrete produces wide range of environmental and social consequences. The major component in concrete, cement accounts for roughly 5 % of global CO2 emissions. In order to improve the environmental friendliness of concrete, suitable substitutes are added to concrete. The present study deals with GGBS and silica fume as supplementary cementitious materials. The strength and durability studies were conducted in this ternary blended concrete. Several mixes were adopted with varying percentages of Silica Fume i.e., 5%, 10% and 15%. Binary mix with 50% GGBS was also prepared. GGBS content has been kept constant for the rest of mixes. There is an improvement in compressive strength with addition of Silica Fume.Maximum workability, split tensile strength, modulus of elasticity, flexural strength and impact resistance are obtained for GGBS binary blend. For durability studies, maximum sulphate resistance,carbonation resistance andresistance to chloride ion penetration are obtained for ternary blended concrete. Partial replacement of GGBS and Silica Fume reduces the environmental effects, produces economical and eco-friendly concrete. The study showed that for strength characteristics, binary blended concrete showed better performance while for durability study ternary blend performed better.

Keywords: concrete, GGBS, silica fume, ternary blend

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Authors: Anisul Islam

Abstract:

The U.S. has a very strong trade relationship with China but with a large and persistent trade deficit. Some has argued that the undervalued Chinese Yuan is to be blamed for the persistent trade deficit. The empirical results are mixed at best. This paper empirically estimates the U.S. export function along with the U.S. import function with its trade with China with the purpose of testing for the existence of the Marshall-Lerner (ML) condition as well for the possible existence of the J-curve hypothesis. Annual export and import data will be utilized for as long as the time series data exists. The export and import functions will be estimated using advanced econometric techniques, along with appropriate diagnostic tests performed to examine the validity and reliability of the estimated results. The annual time-series data covers from 1975 to 2022 with a sample size of 48 years, the longest period ever utilized before in any previous study. The data is collected from several sources, such as the World Bank’s World Development Indicators, IMF Financial Statistics, IMF Direction of Trade Statistics, and several other sources. The paper is expected to shed important light on the ongoing debate regarding the persistent U.S. trade deficit with China and the policies that may be useful to reduce such deficits over time. As such, the paper will be of great interest for the academics, researchers, think tanks, global organizations, and policy makers in both China and the U.S.

Keywords: exports, imports, marshall-lerner condition, j-curve hypothesis, united states, china

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Authors: Imran Ullah Imran

Abstract:

Language contact is a familiar concept in the present global world. Across the globe, languages get mixed up at different levels. Borrowing, code-switching are some of the means through which languages interact. This study examines Pashto-English contact at word and syllable levels. By recording the speech of 30 Pashto native speakers, selected via 'social network' sampling, the study located a number of Pashto-English compound words, which is a unique contact of its kind. In data analysis, tokens were categorized on the basis of their pattern and morphological structure. The study shows that Pashto-English Bilingual Compound words (BCWs) are very prevalent in the Pashto language. The study also found that the BCWs in Pashto are completely productive and have their own meanings. It also shows that the dominant pattern of hybrid words in Pashto is the conjugation of an independent English root word followed by a Pashto inflectional morpheme, which contributes to the core semantic content of the construction. The BCWs construction shows that how both the languages are closer to each other. Pashto-English contact results into bilingual compound and hybrid words, which forms a considerable number of tokens in the present-day spoken Pashto. On the basis of these findings, the study assumes that the same phenomenon may increase with the passage of time that would, in turn, result in the formation of more bilingual compound or hybrid words.

Keywords: code-mixing, bilingual compound words, pashto-english contact, hybrid words, inflectional lexical morpheme

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