Search results for: Adrián Esteban Ortiz-Valera

Authors: Breanna Macumber, Victor A. Huayamave, Emir A. Vela, Wangdo Kim, Tamara T. Chamber, Esteban Centeno

Abstract:

Spina bifida is a type of neural tube defect that affects the nervous system and can lead to problems such as total leg paralysis. Treatment requires physical therapy and rehabilitation. Robotic exoskeletons have been used for rehabilitation to train muscle movement and assist in injury recovery; however, current models focus on the adult populations and not on the infant population. The proposed framework aims to couple a musculoskeletal infant model with a robotic exoskeleton using vacuum-powered artificial muscles to provide rehabilitation to infants affected by spina bifida. The study that drove the input values for the robotic exoskeleton used motion capture technology to collect data from the spontaneous kicking movement of a 2.4-month-old infant lying supine. OpenSim was used to develop the musculoskeletal model, and Inverse kinematics was used to estimate hip joint angles. A total of 4 kicks (A, B, C, D) were selected, and the selection was based on range, transient response, and stable response. Kicks had at least 5° of range of motion with a smooth transient response and a stable period. The robotic exoskeleton used a Vacuum-Powered Artificial Muscle (VPAM) the structure comprised of cells that were clipped in a collapsed state and unclipped when desired to simulate infant’s age. The artificial muscle works with vacuum pressure. When air is removed, the muscle contracts and when air is added, the muscle relaxes. Bench testing was performed using a 6-month-old infant mannequin. The previously developed exoskeleton worked really well with controlled ranges of motion and frequencies, which are typical of rehabilitation protocols for infants suffering with spina bifida. However, the random kicking motion in this study contained high frequency kicks and was not able to accurately replicate all the investigated kicks. Kick 'A' had a greater error when compared to the other kicks. This study has the potential to advance the infant rehabilitation field.

Keywords: musculoskeletal modeling, soft robotics, rehabilitation, pediatrics

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Authors: Breanna Macumber, Victor A. Huayamave, Emir A. Vela, Wangdo Kim, Tamara T. Chamber, Esteban Centeno

Abstract:

Spina bifida is a type of neural tube defect that affects the nervous system and can lead to problems such as total leg paralysis. Treatment requires physical therapy and rehabilitation. Robotic exoskeletons have been used for rehabilitation to train muscle movement and assist in injury recovery; however, current models focus on the adult populations and not on the infant population. The proposed framework aims to couple a musculoskeletal infant model with a robotic exoskeleton using vacuum-powered artificial muscles to provide rehabilitation to infants affected by spina bifida. The study that drove the input values for the robotic exoskeleton used motion capture technology to collect data from the spontaneous kicking movement of a 2.4-month-old infant lying supine. OpenSim was used to develop the musculoskeletal model, and Inverse kinematics was used to estimate hip joint angles. A total of 4 kicks (A, B, C, D) were selected, and the selection was based on range, transient response, and stable response. Kicks had at least 5° of range of motion with a smooth transient response and a stable period. The robotic exoskeleton used a Vacuum-Powered Artificial Muscle (VPAM) the structure comprised of cells that were clipped in a collapsed state and unclipped when desired to simulate infant’s age. The artificial muscle works with vacuum pressure. When air is removed, the muscle contracts and when air is added, the muscle relaxes. Bench testing was performed using a 6-month-old infant mannequin. The previously developed exoskeleton worked really well with controlled ranges of motion and frequencies, which are typical of rehabilitation protocols for infants suffering with spina bifida. However, the random kicking motion in this study contained high frequency kicks and was not able to accurately replicate all the investigated kicks. Kick 'A' had a greater error when compared to the other kicks. This study has the potential to advance the infant rehabilitation field.

Keywords: musculoskeletal modeling, soft robotics, rehabilitation, pediatrics

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Authors: Ionel Zagan, Vasile Gheorghita Gaitan, Adrian Brezulianu

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This paper presents the contributions in designing a mobile system named Tele-ECG implemented for remote monitoring of cardiac patients. For a better flexibility of this application, the authors chose to implement a local memory and multiple communication interfaces. The project described in this presentation is based on the ARM Cortex M0+ microcontroller and the ADAS1000 dedicated chip necessary for the collection and transmission of Electrocardiogram signals (ECG) from the patient to the microcontroller, without altering the performances and the stability of the system. The novelty brought by this paper is the implementation of a remote monitoring system for cardiac patients, having a real-time behavior and multiple interfaces. The microcontroller is responsible for processing digital signals corresponding to ECG and also for the implementation of communication interface with the main server, using GSM/Bluetooth SIMCOM SIM800C module. This paper translates all the characteristics of the Tele-ECG project representing a feasible implementation in the biomedical field. Acknowledgment: This paper was supported by the project 'Development and integration of a mobile tele-electrocardiograph in the GreenCARDIO© system for patients monitoring and diagnosis - m-GreenCARDIO', Contract no. BG58/30.09.2016, PNCDI III, Bridge Grant 2016, using the infrastructure from the project 'Integrated Center for research, development and innovation in Advanced Materials, Nanotechnologies, and Distributed Systems for fabrication and control', Contract No. 671/09.04.2015, Sectoral Operational Program for Increase of the Economic Competitiveness co-funded from the European Regional Development Fund.

Keywords: Tele-ECG, real-time cardiac monitoring, electrocardiogram, microcontroller

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Authors: Miriam Palomo-Nieto, Adrian Agricola, Rudolf Psotta, Reza Abdollahipour, Ludvik Valtr

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The importance of vision and the visual control of movement have been labeled in the literature related to motor control and many studies have demonstrated that children with low motor competence may rely more heavily on vision to perform movements than their typically developing peers. The aim of the study was to highlight the effects of different visual conditions on motor performance during walking in children with different levels of motor coordination. Participants (n = 32, mean age = 8.5 years sd. ± 0.5) were divided into two groups: typical development (TD) and low motor coordination (LMC) based on the scores of the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC-2). They were asked to walk along a 10 meters walkway where the Optojump-Next instrument was installed in a portable laboratory (15 x 3 m), which allows that all participants had the same visual information. They walked in self-selected speed under four visual conditions: full vision (FV), limited vision 100 ms (LV-100), limited vision 150 ms (LV-150) and non-vision (NV). For visual occlusion participants were equipped with Plato Goggles that shut for 100 and 150 ms, respectively, within each 2 sec. Data were analyzed in a two-way mixed-effect ANOVA including 2 (TD vs. LMC) x 4 (FV, LV-100, LV-150 & NV) with repeated-measures on the last factor (p ≤.05). Results indicated that TD children walked faster and with longer normalized steps length and strides than LMC children. For TD children the percentage of the single support and swing time were higher than for low motor competence children. However, the percentage of load response and pre swing was higher in the low motor competence children rather than the TD children. These findings indicated that through walking we could be able to identify different levels of motor coordination in children. Likewise, LMC children showed shorter percentages in those parameters regarding only one leg support, supporting the idea of balance problems.

Keywords: visual information, motor performance, walking pattern, optojump

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Authors: Samira K. Al-Nasser, Siamak Noroozi, Roya Haratian, Adrian Harvey

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A total knee replacement (TKR) is a surgical procedure necessary when there is severe pain and/or loss of function in the knee. Surgeons balance the load in the knee and the surrounding soft tissue by feeling the tension at different ranges of motion. This method can be unreliable and lead to early failure of the joint. The ideal kinematics and load distribution have been debated significantly based on previous biomechanical studies surrounding both TKRs and normal knees. Intraoperative sensors like VERASENSE and eLibra have provided a method for the quantification of the load indicating a balanced knee. A review of the literature written about intraoperative sensors and tension/stability of the knee was done. Studies currently debate the quantification of the load in medial and lateral compartments specifically. However, most research reported that following a TKR the medial compartment was loaded more heavily than the lateral compartment. In several cases, these results were shown to increase the success of the surgery because they mimic the normal kinematics of the knee. In conclusion, most research agrees that an intercompartmental load differential of between 10 and 20 pounds, where the medial load was higher than the lateral, and an absolute load of less than 70 pounds was ideal. However, further intraoperative sensor development could help improve the accuracy and understanding of the load distribution on the surgical outcomes in a TKR. A reduction in early revision surgeries for TKRs would provide an improved quality of life for patients and reduce the economic burden placed on both the National Health Service (NHS) and the patient.

Keywords: intraoperative sensors, joint load forces, kinematics, load balancing, and total knee replacement

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Authors: Anca-Diana Bibiri, Mihaela Mocanu, Adrian Turculeț

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In a language the inventory of greetings is dynamic with frequent input and output, although this is hardly noticed by the speakers. In this register, there are a number of constant, conservative elements that survive different language models (among them, the classic formulae: bună ziua! (good afternoon!), bună seara! (good evening!), noapte bună! (good night!), la revedere! (goodbye!) and a number of items that fail to pass the test of time, according to language use at a time (ciao!, pa!, bai!). The source of innovation depends both of internal factors (contraction, conversion, combination of classic formulae of greetings), and of external ones (borrowings and calques). Their use imposes their frequencies at once, namely the elimination of the use of others. This paper presents a sociolinguistic approach of contemporary Romanian greetings, based on prosodic surveys in two research projects: AMPRom, and SoRoEs. Romanian language presents a rich inventory of questions (especially partial interrogatives questions/WH-Q) which are used as greetings, alone or, more commonly accompanying a proper greeting. The representative of the typical formulae is Ce mai faci? (How are you?), which, unlike its English counterpart How do you do?, has not become a stereotype, but retains an obvious emotional impact, while serving as a mark of sociolinguistic group. The analyzed corpus consists of structures containing greetings recorded in the main Romanian cultural (urban) centers. From the methodological point of view, the acoustic analysis of the recorded data is performed using software tools (GoldWave, Praat), identifying intonation patterns related to three sociolinguistics variables: age, sex and level of education. The intonation patterns of the analyzed statements are at the interface between partial questions and typical greetings.

Keywords: acoustic analysis, greetings, Romanian language, sociolinguistics

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Authors: Nabil Jallouli, Luisa M. Pastrana-Martínez, Ana R. Ribeiro, Nuno F. F. Moreira, Joaquim L. Faria, Olfa Hentati, Adrián M. T. Silva, Mohamed Ksibi

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Degradation and mineralization of ibuprofen (IBU) were investigated using Ultraviolet (UV) Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) in TiO2 photocatalysis. Samples of ultrapure water (UP) and a secondary treated effluent of a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), both spiked with IBU, as well as a highly concentrated IBU (230 mgL-1) pharmaceutical industry wastewater (PIWW), were tested in the TiO2/UV-LED system. Three operating parameters, namely, pH, catalyst load and number of LEDs were optimized. The process efficiency was evaluated in terms of IBU removal using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS). Additionally, the mineralization was investigated by determining the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) content. The chemical structures of transformation products were proposed based on the data obtained using liquid chromatography with a high resolution mass spectrometer ion trap/time-of-flight (LC-MS-IT-TOF). A possible pathway of IBU degradation was accordingly proposed. Bioassays were performed using the marine bacterium Vibrio fischeri to evaluate the potential acute toxicity of original and treated wastewaters. TiO2 heterogeneous photocatalysis was efficient to remove IBU from UP and from PIWW, and less efficient in treating the wastewater from the municipal WWTP. The acute toxicity decreased by ca. 40% after treatment, regardless of the studied matrix.

Keywords: acute toxicity, Ibuprofen, UV-LEDs, wastewaters

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Authors: Gonzalo Reyes, Magdalena Walczak, Esteban Ramos-Moore, Jorge Ramos-Grez

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Metal additive manufacture technologies have gained strong support and acceptance as a promising and alternative method to manufacture high performance complex geometry products. The main purpose of the present work is to study the microstructure and phase transformation temperatures of Cu-Al-Ni shape memory alloys fabricated from a direct laser additive process using metallic powders as precursors. The potential application is to manufacture self-centering seismic dampers for earthquake protection of buildings out of a copper based alloy by an additive process. In this process, the Cu-Al-Ni alloy is melted, inside of a high temperature and vacuum chamber with the aid of a high power fiber laser under inert atmosphere. The laser provides the energy to melt the alloy powder layer. The process allows fabricating fully dense, oxygen-free Cu-Al-Ni specimens using different laser power levels, laser powder interaction times, furnace ambient temperatures, and cooling rates as well as modifying concentration of the alloying elements. Two sets of specimens were fabricated with a nominal composition of Cu-13Al-3Ni and Cu-13Al-4Ni in wt.%, however, semi-quantitative chemical analysis using EDX examination showed that the specimens’ resulting composition was closer to Cu-12Al-5Ni and Cu-11Al-8Ni, respectively. In spite of that fact, it is expected that the specimens should still possess shape memory behavior. To confirm this hypothesis, phase transformation temperatures will be measured using DSC technique, to look for martensitic and austenitic phase transformations at 150°C. So far, metallographic analysis of the specimens showed defined martensitic microstructures. Moreover, XRD technique revealed diffraction peaks corresponding to (0 0 18) and (1 2 8) planes, which are too associated with the presence of martensitic phase. We conclude that it would be possible to obtain fully dense Cu-Al-Ni alloys having shape memory effect behavior by direct laser fabrication process, and to advance into fabrication of self centering seismic dampers by a controllable metal additive manufacturing process.

Keywords: Cu-Al-Ni alloys, direct laser fabrication, shape memory alloy, self-centering seismic dampers

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Authors: Pedro Esteban

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Most installations nowadays are exposed to many power quality problems, and they also face numerous challenges to comply with grid code and energy efficiency requirements. The reason behind this is that they are not designed to support nonlinear, non-balanced, and variable loads and generators that make up a large percentage of modern electric power systems. These problems and challenges become especially critical when designing green buildings and smart cities. These problems and challenges are caused by equipment that can be typically found in these installations like variable speed drives (VSD), transformers, lighting, battery chargers, double-conversion UPS (uninterruptible power supply) systems, highly dynamic loads, single-phase loads, fossil fuel generators and renewable generation sources, to name a few. Moreover, events like capacitor switching (from existing capacitor banks or passive harmonic filters), auto-reclose operations of transmission and distribution lines, or the starting of large motors also contribute to these problems and challenges. Active power filters (APF) are one of the fastest-growing power electronics technologies for solving power quality problems and meeting grid code and energy efficiency requirements for a wide range of segments and applications. They are a high performance, flexible, compact, modular, and cost-effective type of power electronics solutions that provide an instantaneous and effective response in low or high voltage electric power systems. They enable longer equipment lifetime, higher process reliability, improved power system capacity and stability, and reduced energy losses, complying with most demanding power quality and energy efficiency standards and grid codes. There can be found several types of active power filters, including active harmonic filters (AHF), static var generators (SVG), active load balancers (ALB), hybrid var compensators (HVC), and low harmonic drives (LHD) nowadays. All these devices can be used in applications in Smart Cities bringing several technical and economic benefits.

Keywords: power quality improvement, energy efficiency, grid code compliance, green buildings, smart cities

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Authors: Adrian Forca, Simeon Cainday III

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The Electronic Payment Recording with Payment History Retrieval Module is developed intendedly for the College of Science and Technology. This system software innovates the manual process of recording the payments done in the department through the development of electronic payment recording system software shifting from the slow and time-consuming procedure to quick yet reliable and accurate way of recording payments because it immediately generates receipts for every transaction. As an added feature to its software process, generation of recorded payment report is integrated eliminating the manual reporting to a more easy and consolidated report. As an added feature to the system, all recorded payments of the students can be retrieved immediately making the system transparent and reliable payment recording software. Viewing the whole process, the system software will shift from the manual process to an organized software technology because the information will be stored in a logically correct and normalized database. Further, the software will be developed using the modern programming language and implement strict programming methods to validate all users accessing the system, evaluate all data passed into the system and information retrieved to ensure data accuracy and reliability. In addition, the system will identify the user and limit its access privilege to establish boundaries of the specific access to information allowed for the store, modify, and update making the information secure against unauthorized data manipulation. As a result, the System software will eliminate the manual procedure and replace with an innovative modern information technology resulting to the improvement of the whole process of payment recording fast, secure, accurate and reliable software innovations.

Keywords: collection, information system, manual procedure, payment

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Authors: Adrian Ionita, Ana-Maria Ghimes

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The lack of features, design and the lack of promoting an integrated booking application are some of the reasons why most online travel platforms only offer automation of old booking processes, being limited to the integration of a smaller number of services without addressing the user experience. This paper represents a practical study on how to improve travel applications creating user-profiles through data-mining based on neural networks and genetic algorithms. Choices made by users and their ‘friends’ in the ‘social’ network context can be considered input data for a recommendation engine. The purpose of using these algorithms and this design is to improve user experience and to deliver more features to the users. The paper aims to highlight a broader range of improvements that could be applied to travel applications in terms of design and service integration, while the main scientific approach remains the technical implementation of the neural network solution. The motivation of the technologies used is also related to the initiative of some online booking providers that have made the fact that they use some ‘neural network’ related designs public. These companies use similar Big-Data technologies to provide recommendations for hotels, restaurants, and cinemas with a neural network based recommendation engine for building a user ‘DNA profile’. This implementation of the ‘profile’ a collection of neural networks trained from previous user choices, can improve the usability and design of any type of application.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, DNA profile, genetic algorithms, machine learning, neural networks, optimization, recommendation system, user profiling

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Authors: Agata Zakrzewska, Dominik Kopeć, Adrian Ochtyra

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The growing number of new cameras, sensors, and research methods allow for a broader application of thermal data in remote sensing vegetation studies. The aim of this research was to check whether it is possible to use thermal infrared data with a spectral range (3.6-4.9 μm) obtained during the day and the night to assess the health condition of selected species of deciduous trees in an urban environment. For this purpose, research was carried out in the city center of Warsaw (Poland) in 2020. During the airborne data acquisition, thermal data, laser scanning, and orthophoto map images were collected. Synchronously with airborne data, ground reference data were obtained for 617 studied species (Acer platanoides, Acer pseudoplatanus, Aesculus hippocastanum, Tilia cordata, and Tilia × euchlora) in different health condition states. The results were as follows: (i) healthy trees are cooler than trees in poor condition and dying both in the daytime and nighttime data; (ii) the difference in the canopy temperatures between healthy and dying trees was 1.06oC of mean value on the nighttime data and 3.28oC of mean value on the daytime data; (iii) condition classes significantly differentiate on both daytime and nighttime thermal data, but only on daytime data all condition classes differed statistically significantly from each other. In conclusion, the aerial thermal data can be considered as an alternative to hyperspectral data, a method of assessing the health condition of trees in an urban environment. Especially data obtained during the day, which can differentiate condition classes better than data obtained at night. The method based on thermal infrared and laser scanning data fusion could be a quick and efficient solution for identifying trees in poor health that should be visually checked in the field.

Keywords: middle wave infrared, thermal imagery, tree discoloration, urban trees

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Authors: Adrian Hang Yue Siu, Matthew Holyland, Sharon Carey, Daniel Steffens, Nabila Ansari, Cherry E. Koh

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Introduction: Peritoneal malignancies are challenging cancers to manage. While cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (CRS and HIPEC) may offer a cure, it’s considered radical and morbid. Pre-emptive identification of deconditioned patients for optimization may mitigate the risks of surgery. However, the difficulty lies in the scarcity of validated predictive tools to identify high-risk patients. In recent times, there has been growing interest in sarcopenia, which can occur as a result of malnutrition and malignancies. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the utility of sarcopenia in predicting post-operative outcomes. Methods: A single quaternary-center retrospective study of CRS and HIPEC patients between 2017-2020 was conducted to determine the association between pre-operative sarcopenia and post-operative outcomes. Lumbar CT images were analyzed using Slice-o-matic® to measure sarcopenia. Results : Cohort (n=94) analysis found that 40% had sarcopenia, with a majority being female (53.2%) and a mean age of 55 years. Sarcopenia was statistically associated with decreased weight compared to non-sarcopenia patients, 72.7kg vs. 82.2kg (p=0.014) and shorter overall survival, 1.4 years vs. 2.1 years (p=0.032). Post-operatively, patients with sarcopenia experienced more post-operative complications (p=0.001). Conclusion: Complex procedures often require optimization to prevent complications and improve survival. While patient biomarkers – BMI and weight – are used for optimization, this research advocates for the identification of sarcopenia status for pre-operative planning. Sarcopenia may be an indicator of advanced disease requiring further treatment and is an emerging area of research. Larger studies are required to confirm these findings and to assess the reversibility of sarcopenia after surgery.

Keywords: sarcopaenia, cytoreductive surgery, hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy, surgical oncology

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Authors: Adrian Reynaldo Sudirman, Siti Farida, Aisyah Aminy Maulidina, Caren Andika Surbakti

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Sedentary lifestyle and imbalance consumption pattern has made metabolic syndrome as the global time bomb phenomenon in the world. The increasing tendency of people in consuming high amount of fructose and cholesterol food has worsened this issue in the society. Pancreas steatosis become one of the most comorbid when early diagnosis and prompt treatment has not been applied on hyperglycemic and hyperlipidemic condition in metabolic syndrome patient. Gemfibrozil become the drug of choice to prevent this issue, yet the efficacy of this regiment was still questionable. Acalypha indica Linn. is the herb that has protective effect on hyperlipidemic and hyperglycemic condition. This study was aimed to compare therapeutic effect of gemfibrozil (G) and Acalypha indica Linn. (AI) on high fructose and cholesterol diet-induced pancreas steatosis in Sprague-Dawley mice. The post induction mice were divided into four groups: control, gemfibrozil, AI extract, and G+AI combination regiment. Each group received four weeks intervention. The result of statistical analysis using the One-Way ANOVA test and Tukey Post Hoc test showed significant decrease in pancreatic steatosis between the control group and administered Acalypha indica group (p = 0.004, 95% CI: 0.170-0.959) and the group administered with a combination of Gemfibrozil-Acalypha indica (p = 0.023, 95% CI: 0.537-0.813). The protective effect of Acalypha indica Linn. shows that this plant has the potential as therapeutic option in overcoming the condition of pancreas steatosis in metabolic syndrome.

Keywords: Acalypha Indica Linn., Cholesterol, Fructose, Gemfibrozil, Pancreas Steatosis

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Authors: Monika Sogani, Zainab Syed, Adrian C. Fisher

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Pollution of estrogenic compounds has caught the attention of researchers as the slight increase of estrogens in the water bodies has a significant impact on the aquatic system. They belong to a class of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) and are able to mimic hormones or interfere with the action of endogenous hormones. The microbial electrochemical remediation system (MERS) is employed here for exploiting an electrophototrophic bacterium for evaluating the capacity of biodegradation of ethinylestradiol hormone (EE2) under anaerobic conditions with power generation. MERS using electro-phototrophic bacterium offers a tailored solution of wastewater treatment in a developing country like India which has a huge solar potential. It is a clean energy generating technology as they require only sunlight, water, nutrients, and carbon dioxide to operate. Its main feature that makes it superior over other technologies is that the main fuel for this MERS is sunlight which is indefinitely present. When grown in light with organic compounds, these photosynthetic bacteria generate ATP by cyclic photophosphorylation and use carbon compounds to make cell biomass (photoheterotrophic growth). These cells showed EE2 degradation and were able to generate hydrogen as part of the process of nitrogen fixation. The two designs of MERS were studied, and a maximum of 88.45% decrease in EE2 was seen in a total period of 14 days in the better design. This research provides a better insight into microbial electricity generation and self-sustaining wastewater treatment facilities. Such new models of waste treatment aiming waste to energy generation needs to be followed and implemented for building a resource efficient and sustainable economy.

Keywords: endocrine disrupting compounds, ethinylestradiol, microbial electrochemical remediation systems, wastewater treatment

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Authors: Adrian Lo

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Since the beginning of modern architecture, ideas of free plan and transparency have proliferated well into current trends of building design, from houses to highrise office buildings. The movement’s notion of a spatially homogeneous, open, and limitless ‘free plan’ stands opposite to the spatially heterogeneous ‘separation of rooms’ defined by load-bearing walls, which in turn triggered new notions of transparency achieved by vast expanses of glazed walls. Similarly, transparency was also dichotomized as something that was physical or optical, as well as something conceptual, akin to spatial organization. As opposed to merely accepting the duality and possible incompatibility of these dichotomies, this paper seeks to ask how can space be both literally and phenomenally transparent, as well as display both homogeneous and heterogeneous qualities? This paper explores this potential destabilization or blurring of spatial phenomena by dissecting the transparent layers and volumes of a series of selected case studies to investigate how different architects have devised strategies of spatial ambivalence, ambiguity, and interpenetration. Projects by Peter Eisenman, Sou Fujimoto, and SANAA will be discussed and analyzed to show how the superimposition of geometries and spaces achieve different conditions of layering, transparency, and interstitiality. Their particular buildings will be explored to reveal various innovative kinds of spatial interpenetration produced through the articulate relations of the elements of architecture, which challenge conventional perceptions of interior and exterior whereby visual homogeneity blurs with spatial heterogeneity. The results show how spatial conceptions such as interpenetration and transparency have the ability to subvert not only inside-outside dialectics but could also produce multiple degrees of interiority within complex and indeterminate spatial dimensions in constant flux as well as present alternative forms of social interaction.

Keywords: interpenetration, literal and phenomenal transparency, spatial heterogeneity, visual homogeneity

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Authors: Mahmoud Abdulhamid, Rifan Hardian, Prashant Bhatt, Shuvo Datta, Adrian Ramirez, Jorge Gascon, Mohamed Eddaoudi, Gyorgy Szekely

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Polybenzimidazole (PBI) is a high-performance polymer that exhibits high thermal and chemical stability. However, it suffers from low porosity and low fractional free volume, which hinder its application as separation material. Herein, we demonstrate the molecular engineering of gas separation materials by manipulating a PBI backbone possessing kinked moieties. PBI was selected as it contains NH groups which increase the affinity towards CO₂, increase sorption capacity, and favors CO₂ over other gasses. We have designed and synthesized an intrinsically microporous polybenzimidazole (iPBI) featuring a spirobisindane structure. Introducing a kinked moiety in conjunction with crosslinking enhanced the polymer properties, markedly increasing the gas separation performance. In particular, the BET surface area of PBI increased 30-fold by replacing a flat benzene ring with a kinked structure. iPBI displayed a good CO₂ uptake of 1.4 mmol g⁻¹ at 1 bar and 3.6 mmol g⁻¹ at 10 bar. Gas sorption uptake and breakthrough experiments were conducted using mixtures of CO₂/CH₄ (50%/50%) and CO₂/N₂ (50%/50%), which revealed the high selectivity of CO₂ over both CH₄ and N₂. The obtained CO₂/N₂ selectivity is attractive for power plant flue gas application requiring CO₂ capturing materials. Energy and process simulations of biogas CO₂ removal demonstrated that up to 70% of the capture energy could be saved when iPBI was used rather than the current amine technology (methyl diethanolamine [MDEA]). Similarly, the combination of iPBI and MDEA in a hybrid system exhibited the highest CO₂ capture yield (99%), resulting in nearly 50% energy saving. The concept of enhancing the porosity of PBI using kinked moieties provides new scope for designing highly porous polybenzimidazoles for various separation processes.

Keywords: polybenzimidazole (PBI), intrinsically microporous polybenzimidazole (iPBI), gas separation, pnergy and process simulations

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Authors: Adrián P. Gómez Mañas

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Autonomous vehicles have already transformed urban policies and cities. This is the main assumption of our research, which aims to understand how the representations of the possible arrival of autonomous vehicles already transform priorities or actions in transport and more largely, urban policies. This research is done within the framework of a Ph.D. doctorate directed by Professor Xavier Desjardins at the Sorbonne University of Paris. Our hypotheses are: (i) the perspectives, representations, and imaginaries on autonomous vehicles already affect the stakeholders of urban policies; (ii) the discourses on the opportunities or threats of autonomous vehicles reflect the current strategies of the stakeholders. Each stakeholder tries to integrate a discourse on autonomous vehicles that allows them to change as little as possible their current tactics and strategies. The objective is to eventually make a comparison between three different cases: Paris, United Arab Emirates, and Bogota. We chose those territories because their contexts are very different, but they all have important interests in mobility and innovation, and they all have started to reflect on the subject of self-driving mobility. The main methodology used is to interview actors of the metropolitan area (local officials, leading urban and transport planners, influent experts, and private companies). This work is supplemented with conferences, official documents, press articles, and websites. The objective is to understand: 1) What they know about autonomous vehicles and where does their knowledge come from; 2) What they expect from autonomous vehicles; 3) How their ideas about autonomous vehicles are transforming their action and strategy in managing daily mobility, investing in transport, designing public spaces and urban planning. We are going to present the research and some preliminary results; we will show that autonomous vehicles are often viewed by public authorities as a lever to reach something else. We will also present that speeches are very influenced by local context (political, geographical, economic, etc.), creating an interesting balance between global and local influences. We will analyze the differences and similarities between the three cases and will try to understand which are the causes.

Keywords: autonomous vehicles, self-driving mobility, urban planning, urban mobility, transport, public policies

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Authors: Amanda Aliende da Matta, Maria del Pilar Fogueiras Bertomeu, Valeria de Ormaechea Otalora, Maria Paz Sandin Esteban, Miriam Comet Donoso

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This communication presents proposed questions about the existential in research on the political participation of young women. The study follows a qualitative methodology, in particular, the applied hermeneutic phenomenological (AHP) method, and the general objective of the research is to give an account of the experience of political participation as a young woman. The study participants are women aged 18 to 35 who have experience in political participation. The techniques of data collection are the descriptive story and the phenomenological interview. Hermeneutic phenomenology as a research approach is based on phenomenological philosophy and applied hermeneutics. The ultimate objective of HP is to gain access to the meaning structures of lived experience by appropriating them, clarifying them, and reflectively making them explicit. Human experiences are always lived through existential: fundamental themes that are useful in exploring meaningful aspects of our life worlds. Everyone experiences the world through the existential of lived relationships, the lived body, lived space, lived time, and lived things. The phenomenological research, then, also tacitly asks about the existential. Existentials are universal themes useful for exploring significant aspects of our life world and of the particular phenomena under study. Four main existentials prove especially helpful as guides for reflection in the research process: relationship, body, space, and time. For example, in our case, we may ask ourselves how can the existentials of relationship, body, space, and time guide us in exploring the structures of meaning in the lived experience of political participation as a woman and a young person. The study is still not finished, as we are currently conducting phenomenological thematic analysis on the collected stories of lived experience. Yet, we have already identified some fragments of texts that show the existential in their experiences, which we will transcribe below. 1) Relationality - The experienced I-Other. It regards how relationships are experienced in our narratives about political participation as young women. One example would be: “As we had known each other for a long time, we understood each other with our eyes; we were all a little bit on the same page, thinking the same thing.” 2) Corporeality - The lived body. It regards how the lived body is experienced in activities of political participation as a young woman. One example would be: “My blood was boiling, but it was not the time to throw anything in their face, we had to look for solutions.”; “I had a lump in my throat and I wanted to cry.”. 3) Spatiality - The lived space. It regards how one experiences the lived space in political participation activities as a young woman. One example would be: “And the feeling I got when I saw [it] it's like watching everybody going into a mousetrap.” 4) Temporality - Lived time. It regards how one experiences the lived time in political participation activities as a young woman. One example would be: “Then, there were also meetings that went on forever…”

Keywords: applied hermeneutic phenomenology, existentials, hermeneutics, phenomenology, political participation

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Authors: Florian Vincent Haase, Adrian Dierl, Anna Henke, Ralf Woll, Ennes Sarradj

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Structured sheet metals and structured sandwich sheet metals are three-dimensional, lightweight structures with increased stiffness which are used in the automotive industry. The impedance, a figure of resistance of a structure to vibrations, will be determined regarding plain sheets, structured sheets, and structured sandwich sheets. The aim of this paper is generating an experimental design in order to minimize costs and duration of experiments. The design of experiments will be used to reduce the large number of single tests required for the determination of correlation between the impedance and its influencing factors. Full and fractional factorials are applied in order to systematize and plan the experiments. Their major advantages are high quality results given the relatively small number of trials and their ability to determine the most important influencing factors including their specific interactions. The developed full factorial experimental design for the study of plain sheets includes three factor levels. In contrast to the study of plain sheets, the respective impedance analysis used on structured sheets and structured sandwich sheets should be split into three phases. The first phase consists of preliminary tests which identify relevant factor levels. These factor levels are subsequently employed in main tests, which have the objective of identifying complex relationships between the parameters and the reference variable. Possible post-tests can follow up in case additional study of factor levels or other factors are necessary. By using full and fractional factorial experimental designs, the required number of tests is reduced by half. In the context of this paper, the benefits from the application of design for experiments are presented. Furthermore, a multistage approach is shown to take into account unrealizable factor combinations and minimize experiments.

Keywords: structured sheet metals, structured sandwich sheet metals, impedance measurement, design of experiment

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Authors: Amanda Aliende da Matta, Maria del Pilar Fogueiras Bertomeu, Valeria de Ormaechea Otalora, Maria Paz Sandin Esteban, Miriam Comet Donoso

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This communication presents the preliminary emerging themes in a research on political participation of young women. The study follows a qualitative methodology; in particular, the applied hermeneutic phenomenological method, and the general objective of the research is to give an account of the experience of political participation as young women. The study participants are women aged 18 to 35 who have experience in political participation. The techniques of data collection are the descriptive story and the phenomenological interview. With respect to the first methodological steps, these have been: 1) collect and select stories of lived experience in political participation, 2) select descriptions of lived experience (DLEs) in political participation of the chosen stories, 3) to prepare phenomenological interviews from the selected DLEs, 4) to conduct phenomenological thematic analysis (PTA) of the DLEs. We have so far initiated the PTA on 5 vignettes. Hermeneutic phenomenology as a research approach is based on phenomenological philosophy and applied hermeneutics. Phenomenology is a descriptive philosophy of pure experience and essences, through which we seek to capture an experience at its origins without categorizing, interpreting or theorizing it. Hermeneutics, on the other hand, may be defined as a philosophical current that can be applied to data analysis. Max Van Manen wrote that hermeneutic phenomenology is a method of abstemious reflection on the basic structures of the lived experience of human existence. In hermeneutic phenomenology we focus, then, on the way we experience “things” in the first person, seeking to capture the world exactly as we experience it, not as we categorize or conceptualize it. In this study, the empirical methods used were: Lived experience description (written) and conversational interview. For these short stories, participants were asked: “What was your lived experience of participation in politics as a young woman? Can you tell me any stories or anecdotes that you think exemplify or typify your experience?”. The questions were accompanied by a list of guidelines for writing descriptive vignettes. And the analytical method was PTA. Among the provisional results, we found preliminary emerging themes, which could in the advance of the investigation result in meaning structures of political participation of young women. They are the following: - Complicity may be inherent/essential in political participation as a young woman; - Feelings may be essential/inherent in political participation as a young woman; - Hope may be essential in authentic political participation as a young woman; - Frustration may be essential in authentic political participation as a young woman; - Satisfaction may be essential in authentic political participation as a young woman; - There may be tension between individual/collective inherent/essential in political participation as a young woman; - Political participation as a young woman may include moments of public demonstration.

Keywords: applied hermeneutic phenomenology, hermeneutics, phenomenology, political participation

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Authors: Nathaniel Deboever, Malcolm Breeze, Adrian Sheen

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Basic surgical and suturing techniques are a fundamental requirement for all doctors. In order to gain confidence and competence, doctors in training need to obtain sufficient teaching and just as importantly: practice. Young doctors with an apt level of expertise on these simple surgical skills, which are often used in the Emergency Department, can help alleviate some pressure during a busy evening. Unfortunately, learning these skills can be quite difficult during medical school or even during junior doctor years. The aim of this project was to adequately train medical students attending University of Sydney’s Nepean Clinical School through a series of workshops highlighting practical skills, with hopes to further extend this program to junior doctors in the hospital. The sessions instructed basic skills via tutorials, demonstrations, and lastly, the sessions cemented these proficiencies with practical sessions. During such an endeavor, it is fundamental to employ models that appropriately resemble what students will encounter in the clinical setting. The sustainability of workshops is similarly important to the continuity of such a program. To address both these challenges, the authors have developed models including suturing platforms, knot tying, and vessel ligation stations, as well as a shave and punch biopsy models and ophthalmologic foreign body device. The unique aspect of this work is that we utilized hands-on teaching sessions, to address a gap in doctors-in-training and junior doctor curriculum. Presented to you through this poster are our approaches to creating models that do not employ animal products and therefore do not necessitate particular facilities or discarding requirements. Covering numerous skills that would be beneficial to all young doctors, these models are easily replicable and affordable. This exciting work allows for countless sessions at low cost, providing enough practice for students to perform these skills confidently as it has been shown through attendee questionnaires.

Keywords: medical education, surgical models, surgical simulation, surgical skills education

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Authors: Adrián D. García-Soto, Alejandro Hernández-Martínez, Jesús G. Valdés-Vázquez, Reyna A. Vizguerra-Alvarez

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Reinforced concrete bridges designed by code are intended to achieve target reliability levels adequate for the geographical environment where the code is applicable. Several methods can be used to estimate such reliability levels. Many of them require the establishment of an explicit limit state function (LSF). When such LSF is not available as a close-form expression, the simulation techniques are often employed. The simulation methods are computing intensive and time consuming. Note that if the reliability of real bridges designed by code is of interest, numerical schemes, the finite element method (FEM) or computational mechanics could be required. In these cases, it can be quite difficult (or impossible) to establish a close-form of the LSF, and the simulation techniques may be necessary to compute reliability levels. To overcome the need for a large number of simulations when no explicit LSF is available, the point estimate method (PEM) could be considered as an alternative. It has the advantage that only the probabilistic moments of the random variables are required. However, in the PEM, fitting of the resulting moments of the LSF to a probability density function (PDF) is needed. In the present study, a very simple alternative which allows the assessment of the reliability levels when no explicit LSF is available and without the need of extensive simulations is employed. The alternative includes the use of the PEM, and its applicability is shown by assessing reliability levels of reinforced concrete bridges in Mexico when a numerical scheme is required. Comparisons with results by using the Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) technique are included. To overcome the problem of approximating the probabilistic moments from the PEM to a PDF, a well-known distribution is employed. The approach mixes the PEM and other classic reliability method (first order reliability method, FORM). The results in the present study are in good agreement whit those computed with the MCS. Therefore, the alternative of mixing the reliability methods is a very valuable option to determine reliability levels when no close form of the LSF is available, or if numerical schemes, the FEM or computational mechanics are employed.

Keywords: structural reliability, reinforced concrete bridges, combined approach, point estimate method, monte carlo simulation

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Authors: Anuradha Maharaj, Adrian Cashman

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The cross-cutting nature of water as a resource translates into the need for a better understanding of its movement, storage and loss at all points in the hydro-socioeconomic cycle. An integrated approach to addressing the issue of sustainability means quantitatively understanding: the linkages within this cycle, the role of water managers in resource allocation, and the critical factors influencing its scarcity. The Water Evaluation and Planning Tool (WEAP) is an integrative model that combines the catchment-scale hydrologic processes with a water management model, driven by environmental requirements and socioeconomic demands. The concept of demand priorities is included to represent the areas of greatest use within a given catchment. Located on Barbados’ West Coast, Speightstown and the surrounding areas encompass a well-developed tourist, residential and agricultural area. The main water resource for this area, and the rest of the island, is that of groundwater. The availability of groundwater in Barbados may be adversely affected by the projected changes in climate, such as reduced wet season rainfall. Economic development and changing sector priorities together with climate related changes have the potential to affect water resource abundance and by extension the allocation of resources for example in the Speightstown area. In order to investigate the potential impacts on the Speightstown area specifically, a WEAP Model of the study area was developed to estimate the present available water (baseline reference scenario 2000-2010). From this baseline scenario, it is envisioned that an exploration into projected changes in availability in the near term (2035-2045) and medium/long term (2065-2075) time frames will be undertaken. The generated estimations can assist water managers to better evaluate the status of and identify trends in water use and formulate adaptation measures to offset future deficits.

Keywords: water evaluation and planning system (WEAP), water availability, demand and supply, water allocation

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Authors: Qunying Yuan, Manjula Bomma, Adrian Rhoden, Zhigang Xiao

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Selenium is an essential micronutrient for all mammals and plays an important role in maintaining human physiological functions. The potential applications of selenium as food supplements, cancer-prevention, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agents have been investigated in biomedicine and food sciences. Nanoscale of selenium is of particular interest due to its better biocompatibility, higher bioavailability, lower toxicity, more homogeneous distribution, and presumptive controlled release of substances. The objective of this study is to explore whether selenium nanoparticle (SeNP) has the potential to be used as a food preservative to reduce food spoilage. SeNPs were synthesized through ascorbic acid reduction of sodium selenite using the bovine serum albumin (BSA) as capping and stabilizing agent. The chemically synthesized SeNPs had a spherical conformation and a size of 22.8 ± 4.7 nm. FTIR analysis confirmed that the nanoparticles were covered with BSA. We further tested the antimicrobial activity of these SeNPs against common food-borne bacteria. Colony forming unit assay showed that SeNPs exhibited good inhibition on the growth of Listeria Monocytogens (ATCC15313), Staphylococcus epidermidis (ATCC 700583) starting at 0.5µg/mL, but only a moderate inhibitory effect on the growth of Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC12600) and Vibrio alginolyticus (ATCC 33787) at a concentration higher than 10µg/mL and 2.5µg/mL, respectively. There was a mild effect against the growth Salmonella enterica (ATCC19585) when the concentration reached 15µg/mL. No inhibition was observed in the growth of Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 19433). Surprisingly, SeNPs appeared to promote the growth of Vibrio parahaemolyticus (ATCC43996) and Salmonella enterica (ATCC49284) at 30 µg/mL and above. Our preliminary data suggested that the chemically synthesized SeNPs may be able to inhibit some food-borne bacteria, and SeNP as a food preservative should be used with caution. We will explore the mechanisms of the inhibitory action of chemically synthesized SeNPs on bacterial growth and whether the SeNPs are able to inhibit the development of biofilm and antibiotic resistance.

Keywords: antimicrobial, food-borne bacteria, nanoparticles, selenium

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Authors: Arturo S. Daag, Ira Karrel D. L. San Jose, Mike Gabriel G. Pedrosa, Ken Adrian C. Villarias, Rayfred P. Ingeniero, Cyrah Gale H. Rocamora, Margarita P. Dizon, Roland Joseph B. De Leon, Teresito C. Bacolcol

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The province of Leyte consists of various geomorphological landforms: These are: a) landforms of tectonic origin transect large part of the volcanic centers in upper Ormoc area; b) landforms of volcanic origin, several inactive volcanic centers located in Upper Ormoc are transected by Philippine Fault; c) landforms of volcano-denudational and denudational slopes dominates the area where most of the earthquake-induced landslide occurred; and d) Colluvium and alluvial deposits dominate the foot slope of Ormoc and Jaro-Pastrana plain. Earthquake ground acceleration and geotechnical properties of various landforms are crucial for landslide studies. To generate the landslide critical acceleration model of sliding block, various data were considered, these are: geotechnical data (i.e., soil and rock strength parameters), slope, topographic wetness index (TWI), landslide inventory, soil map, geologic maps for the calculation of the factor of safety. Horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) surveying methods, refraction microtremor (ReMi), and three-component microtremor (3CMT) were conducted to measure site period and surface wave velocity as well as to create a soil thickness model. Critical acceleration model of various geomorphological unit using Remote Sensing, field geotechnical, geophysical, and geospatial data collected from the areas affected by the 06 July 2017 M6.5 Leyte earthquake. Spatial analysis of earthquake-induced landslide from the 06 July 2017, were then performed to assess the relationship between the calculated critical acceleration and peak ground acceleration. The observed trends proved helpful in establishing the role of critical acceleration as a determining factor in the distribution of co-seismic landslides.

Keywords: earthquake-induced landslide, remote sensing, geomorphology, seismic response

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Authors: Manqhai Kraai, Adrian M. Shrader, Peter F. Scogings

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For animals living in herds, competition between group members increases as herd size increases. The intensity of this competition is likely greater across poor quality landscapes and during the dry season. In contrast to wild herbivores, herd size in domestic livestock is determined by their owners. This then raises the question, how do domestic livestock, like goats, reduce competition for food within these defined herds? To explore this question, large-scale foraging behaviour of both small (12 to 28 individuals) and large (42 to 83 individuals) herds of free-ranging goats were recorded in Tugela Ferry, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The study was conducted on three different landscapes that varied in both food quality and availability, during the wet and dry seasons of 2013-2014. The goats were housed in kraals overnight and let out in the mornings to forage unattended. Thus, foraging decisions were made by the goats and not by herders. The large-scale foraging behaviours focussed on included, (i) total distance travelled by goats while foraging, (ii) distance travelled before starting to feed, (iii) travel speed, and (iv) feeding duration. This was done using Garmin Foretrex 401 GPS devices harnessed to two goats per herd. Irrespective of season, there was no difference in the total distance travelled by the different sized herds across the different quality landscapes. However, both small and large herds started feeding farther from the kraal in the dry compared to the wet season. Despite this, there was no significant seasonal difference in total amount of time the herds spent feeding across the different landscapes. Finally, both small and large herds increased their travel speed across all the landscapes in the dry season, but large herds travelled faster than small herds. This increase was likely to maximise the time that large herds could spend feeding in good areas. Ultimately, these results indicate that both small and large herds were affected by declines in food quality and quantity during the dry season. However, as large herds made greater behavioural adjustments compared to smaller herds (i.e., feeding farther away from the kraal and travelling faster), it appeared that they were more affected by the seasonal increases in intra-herd competition.

Keywords: distance, feeding duration, food availability, food quality, travel speed

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Authors: Gabriel Roveda-Hoyos, Margarita Ramirez-Gomez, Adrian Perez, Diana Paola Serralde

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The objective of this study was to determine the variability of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (HFMA) communities associated with wild agraz plants (Vaccinium meridionale Swartz) in the Colombian Andes. This species is one of the most promising fruits within the genus Vaccinium because of the high content of anthocyanins and antioxidants in its fruits, and like other species of the Ericaceae family, it depends on the association with HFM for its development in the natural environment. In this study, the presence of mycorrhizae in wild communities of V. meridionale was evaluated, and their relationship with the edaphic and climatic conditions of the study area was analyzed. Sampling was conducted in the rural area of the municipalities of Raquira, and Chiquinquira, Chia, and Tabio in the departments of Cundinamarca and Boyaca, Colombia. Seven sites were selected, and in each site, 5 plants were randomly selected, root and soil samples were taken from each plant in the rhizosphere zone for the quantification of colonization and the presence of spores. The samples were collected on different soils, taxonomic orders Entisols, Inceptisols, and Alfisols, located at altitudes between 2,600 and 3,000 above sea level in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia. The physicochemical characteristics of the soil were compared with the density of spores and the percentage of presence of mycorrhizae in the roots and variables with the morphometric and physiological characteristics of the plants. Four types of mutual associations were found: arbuscular mycorrhizae, ectendomycorrhiza, ericoid mycorrhizae, and endophytic septate fungi. The main results obtained show a predominance of spores of the genera Glomus and Acaulsopora, in most of the soils analyzed. The spore density of Glomeromycete fungi in the soil varied considerably between the different sites; it was higher ( > 50 spores/g of dry soil) in soil samples with lower bulk density and higher content of organic matter; in these soils a higher cation exchange capacity was found, as well as of nitrogen, calcium, magnesium, manganese and zinc concentration. It can be concluded that Vaccinium meridionale is able to establish in a natural way, association with HFMA.

Keywords: Ericaceae, Arbuscular mycorrhizae, Andes, soils, Glomus sp.

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Authors: Esteban Maioli

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Generational studies have an important research tradition in social and human sciences. On the one hand, the speed of social change in the context of globalization imposes the need to research the transformations are identified both the subjectivity of the agents involved and its inclusion in the institutional matrix, specifically employment. Generation Z, (generally considered as the population group whose birth occurs after 1995) have unique psycho-social characteristics. Gen Z is characterized by a different set of values, beliefs, attitudes and ambitions that impact in their concrete action in organizational structures. On the other hand, managers often have to deal with generational differences in the workplace. Organizations have members who belong to different generations; they had never before faced the challenge of having such a diverse group of members. The members of each historical generation are characterized by a different set of values, beliefs, attitudes and ambitions that are manifest in their concrete action in organizational structures. Gen Z it’s the only one who can fully be considered "global," while its members were born in the consolidated context of globalization. Some salient features of the Generation Z can be summarized as follows. They’re the first fully born into a digital world. Social networks and technology are integrated into their lives. They are concerned about the challenges of the modern world (poverty, inequality, climate change, among others). They are self-expressive, more liberal and open to change. They often bore easily, with short attention spans. They do not like routine tasks. They want to achieve a good life-work balance, and they are interested in a flexible work environment, as opposed to traditional work schedule. They are critical thinkers, who come with innovative and creative ideas to help. Research design considered methodological triangulation. Data was collected with two techniques: a self-administered survey with multiple choice questions and attitudinal scales applied over a non-probabilistic sample by reasoned decision. According to the multi-method strategy, also it was conducted in-depth interviews. Organizations constantly face new challenges. One of the biggest ones is to learn to manage a multi-generational scope of work. While Gen Z has not yet been fully incorporated (expected to do so in five years or so), many organizations have already begun to implement a series of changes in its recruitment and development. The main obstacle to retaining young talent is the gap between the expectations of iGen applicants and what companies offer. Members of the iGen expect not only a good salary and job stability but also a clear career plan. Generation Z needs to have immediate feedback on their tasks. However, many organizations have yet to improve both motivation and monitoring practices. It is essential for companies to take a review of organizational practices anchored in the culture of the organization.

Keywords: employment, expectations, generation Z, organizational culture, organizations, psycho-social characteristics

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Authors: Yei Mian Adrian Yap

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This study aims to assess the Japanese and Singaporean mainstream teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy towards the inclusion of students with special needs in the regular classrooms by investigating what kind of key variables influence their attitudes and teaching-efficacy. It also further investigates how they strategize to address their challenges to include their students with special needs in their regular classrooms. In order to understand the nature of teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy towards the inclusive education, a mixed-method research methodology was carried out in Japan and Singapore; it involved an explanatory sequential method of employing quantitative research first before qualitative research. In the quantitative research, 189 Japanese and 183 Singaporean teachers were invited to participate in the questionnaires and out of these participants, 38 Japanese and 15 Singaporean teachers shared their views during their semi-structured interviews. Based on the empirical findings, Japanese teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy were more likely to be influenced by their experiences in teaching students with special needs, knowledge about disability legislation, presence of their disabled family members and level of confidence to teach students with special needs. On the other hand, Singaporean teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy were affected by gender, educational level, received trainings in special needs education, knowledge about disability legislation and level of confidence to teach students with special needs. Both country results also demonstrated that there was a positive correlation between their teaching-efficacy and attitude. Narrative findings further expanded the reasons behind these quantitative factors that shaped teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy. Also, it discussed the various problems faced by Japanese and Singaporean teachers and how they identified their coping strategies to circumvent their challenges in including their students with special needs in their regular classrooms. The significance of this research manifests in necessary educational reforms in both countries especially in the context of inclusive education. These findings may not be as definitive as expected but it is believed that it could provide useful information on the current situation about teachers’ concerns towards the inclusive education. In conclusion, this research could potentially make its positive contribution to the body of literature on teachers’ attitudes and teaching-efficacy in the context of Asian developed countries. Further, these findings could posit that regular teachers’ positive attitudes and strong sense of teaching self-efficacy could directly improve the success rate of inclusion of students with special needs in the regular classrooms.

Keywords: attitudes, inclusive education, special education, teaching-efficacy

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