Search results for: northern bay of bengal

Authors: Amita Jain, Shantanu Prakash, Suruchi Shukla

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Introduction: Acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) is a complex multi etiology syndrome posing a great public health problem in the northern part of India. Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is an established etiology of AES in this region. Recently, Scrub typhus (ST) is being recognized as an emerging aetiology of AES in JE endemic belt. This study was conducted to establish the direct evidence of Central nervous system invasion by Orientia tsutsugamushi leading to AES. Methodology: A total of 849 cases with clinical diagnosis of AES were enrolled from six districts (Deoria and its adjoining area) of the traditional north Indian Japanese encephalitis (JE) belt. Serum and Cerebrospinal fluid samples were collected and tested for major agent causing acute encephalitis. AES cases either positive for anti-ST IgM antibodies or negative for all tested etiologies were investigated for ST-DNA by real-time PCR. Results: Of these 505 cases, 250 patients were laboratory confirmed for O. tsutsugamushi infection either by anti-ST IgM antibodies positivity (n=206) on serum sample or by ST-DNA detection by real-time PCR assay on CSF sample (n=2) or by both (n=42).Total 29 isolate could be sequenced for 56KDa gene. Conclusion: All the strains were found to cluster with Gilliam strains. The majority of the isolates showed a 97–99% sequence similarity with Thailand and Cambodian strains. Gilliam strain of O.tsusugamushi is an emerging as one of the major aetiologies leading to AES in northern part of India.

Keywords: acute encephalitis syndrome, O. tsutsugamushi, Gilliam strain, North India, cerebrospinal fluid

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Authors: Anne Gesare Timu, Megan Sheahan, Andrew Gache Mude, Rupsha Banerjee

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Women headed households are among the most vulnerable to negative climatic shocks and are often left poorer as a result. Credit provision has been recognized as one way of alleviating rural poverty and developing poor rural households’ resilience to shocks. Much has been documented about credit demand in small-holder agriculture settings in Kenya. However, little is known about demand for credit among pastoral women. This paper analyzes the determinants of demand for credit in the pastoral regions of Marsabit District of Northern Kenya. Using a five wave balanced panel data set of 820 households, a double hurdle model is employed to analyze if shocks, financial literacy and risk aversion affect credit demand among female and male headed households differently. The results show that borrowing goods on credit and monetary credit from informal market segments are the most common sources of credit in the study area. The impact of livestock loss and financial literacy on the decision to borrow and how much to borrow vary with gender. While the paper suggests that provision of credit is particularly valuable in the aftermath of a negative shock and more so for female-headed households, it also explores alternatives to the provision of credit where credit access is a constraint. It recommends further understanding of systems and institutions which could enhance access to credit, and particularly during times of stress, to enable households in the study area in particular and Northern Kenya in general to invest, engage in meaningful development and growth, and be resilient to persistent shocks.

Keywords: female headed households, pastoralism, rural financing, double hurdle model

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Authors: K. P. Farsana

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Each and every community has its own way of understanding on health and illness; it varies from culture to culture. According to the Mappila Muslims of Malappuram, the state of pain, distress, and misery is understood as an affliction to their health. They believe that most of the afflictions are due to the Jinn/ Shaitanic Possession. So they prefer religious healers than the other systems of medicine for their treatments. Thangals are the endogamous community in Kerala, of Yemeni heritage who claim direct descent from the Prophet Mohammed’s family. Because of their sacrosanct status, many Thangals works as religious healers in Northern Kerala. Using the case of one Thangal healer as the illustration of the many religious healers in Kerala who engage in the healing practices, it is intended, in this paper to illustrate the patterns of afflictions among Mappila Muslims of Malappuram. Based on the analysis of this Thangal’s healing practice in the local context of Northern Kerala, the researcher further discusses the modes of treatment which they are providing to care seekers.

Keywords: affliction, religious healing, faith, Mappila Muslims, Jinn/Shaitanic possession

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Authors: Shefali Nayak

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The architectural appeal, familiarity, and idiom of culturally significant structures are due to societal attachment to various movements, historical association or deviation. Generally, the urge to preserve a building in the northern part of India is driven either by emotional dogma or rational thinking, but, it is also influenced by traditional affinity. The northern region of India has an assortment of palaces and Havelis belonging to various time periods and families with vernacular yet signature style of architecture. Many of them are either successfully conserved by being put into adaptive reuse and some of them have been midst controversies and continued to remain in ruins. The research focuses on comparing successful examples of adaptive reuse such as Neemrana, Mehrangargh Fort palace with a few other merchant havelis converted into heritage hotels. Furthermore, evaluates the architectural aspects of structure, materials, plumbing and electrical installations, as well as specific challenges faced by heritage professionals practicing sustainability, while respecting traditional feelings of various stakeholders. This paper concludes through the analysis of the case study that, its highly unlikely for sustainable design cannot be used as a stand-alone application for heritage structures or cities, it needs the support of architecture conservation to be put into practice. However, it is often demanding to fit a new use of a building into an aged structure. This paper records modern-day generic requirements that reflect challenges faced by different architects, while conserving a heritage structure and retrofitting it into today's requisites. The research objective is to establish how conservation, restoration, and urban regeneration are closely related to sustainable architecture in historical cities.

Keywords: architecture conservation, architecture heritage, adaptive reuse, retrofitting, sustainability, urban regeneration

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Authors: Waleed Sulaiman Shingaly

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The Ordivician-Khabour Formation from the Northern Thrust Zone of Iraqi-Kurdistan comprises between 500 and 800 m of alternating predominantly greenish-grey sandstones, siltstones and shales. The succession has revealed an abundant ichnofossils characterized by 11 ichnogenus, namely: Helminthopsis, Gordia, Cruziana, Rusophycus, Monomorphichnus, Rhizocorallium, Thalassinoide, Planolite, Paleophycus, Deplocraterion and Skolithose. Ethologically these ichnogenera display dwelling and feeding activities of the infaunal organisms. This association of ichnofossils contains elements of the Skolithose and Cruziana ichnofacies. The presence of Skolithos ichnofacies indicates sandy shifting substrate and high energy conditions in foreshore zone while the Cruziana ichnofacies indicate unconsolidated, poorly sorted soft substrate and low energy condition in the shore face/offshore zone. These ichnogenera indicate shoreface-offshore zone of shallow-marine environment for the deposition of the rocks of the Khabour Formation.

Keywords: Ichnofossils, shoreface-offshore zone, Khabour Formation, Iraq

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Authors: Mohana Basu, Snehamanju Basu

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Urbanization has an immense impact on the holistic development of a region. In that same context, the level of women empowerment plays a significant role in the development of any region, particularly a region belonging to a developing country. The present study investigates the status of women empowerment in the Asansol Durgapur Planning Area of the state of West Bengal, India by investigating the status of women and their access to various facilities and awareness about the various governmental and non-governmental schemes meant for their elevation. Through this study, an attempt has been to made to understand the perception of the respondents on the context of women's empowerment. The study integrates multiple sources of qualitative and quantitative data collected from various reports, field-based measurements, questionnaire survey and community based participatory appraisals. Results reveal that women of the rural parts of the region are relatively disempowered due to the various restrictions imposed on them and enjoy lower socioeconomic clout than their male counterparts in spite of the several remedial efforts taken by the government and NGOs to elevate their position in the society. A considerable gender gap still exists regarding access to education, employment and decision-making power in the family and significant differences in attitude towards women are observable in the rural and urban areas. Freedom of women primarily vary according to their age group, educational level, employment and income status and also on the degree of urbanization. Asansol Durgapur Planning Area is primarily an industrial region where huge employment generation scope exists. But these disparities are quite alarming and indicate that economic development does not always usher in socially justifiable rights and access to resources for both men and women alike in its awake. In this backdrop, this study will attempt to forward relevant suggestions which can be followed for betterment of the status of women.

Keywords: development, disempowered, economic development, urbanization, women empowerment

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Authors: Sharmistha Mukherjee

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Health care is the basic requirement for all. The prime question is who gets what, where and how? The unequal distribution of basic facilities do have a adverse effect on the users. The paper tries to examine health care in terms of available facilities, the health care need and how people perceive to it in a small town of Jalpaiguri in the midst of tea gardens in North Bengal. The morbidity pattern is also minutely observed with a section describing the organizational structure of health care keeping in mind the utilization.

Keywords: availability, distribution, health care, utilization

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Authors: Ruchirek Ratchaburi, W. Kevin. Hicks, Christopher S. Malley, Lisa D. Emberson

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Air pollution problems in Thailand have improved over the last few decades, but in some areas, concentrations of coarse particulate matter (PM₁₀) are above health and regulatory guidelines. It is, therefore, useful to investigate how PM₁₀ varies across Thailand, what conditions cause this variation, and how could PM₁₀ concentrations be reduced. This research uses data collected by the Thailand Pollution Control Department (PCD) from 17 monitoring sites, located across 12 provinces, and obtained between 2011 and 2015 to assess PM₁₀ concentrations and the conditions that lead to different levels of pollution. This is achieved through exploration of air mass pathways using trajectory analysis, used in conjunction with the monitoring data, to understand the contribution of different months, an hour of the day and source regions to annual PM₁₀ concentrations in Thailand. A focus is placed on locations that exceed the national standard for the protection of human health. The analysis shows how this approach can be used to explore the influence of biomass burning on annual average PM₁₀ concentration and the difference in air pollution conditions between Northern and Southern Thailand. The results demonstrate the substantial contribution that open biomass burning from agriculture and forest fires in Thailand and neighboring countries make annual average PM₁₀ concentrations. The analysis of PM₁₀ measurements at monitoring sites in Northern Thailand show that in general, high concentrations tend to occur in March and that these particularly high monthly concentrations make a substantial contribution to the overall annual average concentration. In 2011, a > 75% reduction in the extent of biomass burning in Northern Thailand and in neighboring countries resulted in a substantial reduction not only in the magnitude and frequency of peak PM₁₀ concentrations but also in annual average PM₁₀ concentrations at sites across Northern Thailand. In Southern Thailand, the annual average PM₁₀ concentrations for individual years between 2011 and 2015 did not exceed the human health standard at any site. The highest peak concentrations in Southern Thailand were much lower than for Northern Thailand for all sites. The peak concentrations at sites in Southern Thailand generally occurred between June and October and were associated with air mass back trajectories that spent a substantial proportion of time over the sea, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand prior to arrival at the monitoring sites. The results show that emissions reductions from biomass burning and forest fires require action on national and international scales, in both Thailand and neighboring countries, such action could contribute to ensuring compliance with Thailand air quality standards.

Keywords: annual average concentration, long-range transport, open biomass burning, particulate matter

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Authors: R. Odoh, M. S. Dauda, E. A. Kamba, N. C. Igwemmar

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Honey and honey trade is an important economic activity for many tropical rural and urban areas worldwide. In West Africa and other part of the world, honey and honey products holds high socio–cultural, religious, medicinal, and traditional values. Therefore, to maximize benefits or to enhance profit, a variety of components are added to the raw, fresh and unprocessed honey, introducing the possibility of heavy metals contaminants. Therefore the honey sold in various places, markets and shops in some states in Northern Nigeria (Benue, Nassarawa and Taraba) including Abuja FCT, in Nigeria was analyzed to determine the level of heavy metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn). All the honey samples contain heavy metals. The results ranged from 0.028–0.070, 0.023–0.058, 0.042–0.092, 4.231–8.589, 8.115–14.892, 0.078–0.922, 0.044–0.092, 0.041–0.087 and 18.234–28.654 μg/L for Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn respectively. The mean concentration (μg/L) of the heavy metals Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn of the regularly marketed honey is significantly higher than the mean concentration observed in raw, fresh and unprocessed honey. However, continued consumption of honey with high heavy metal content might lead to exposure to chronic heavy metal poisoning.

Keywords: honey, health, mineral profile adulteration, contamination

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Authors: Prama Mukhopadhyay, Rishika Mukhopadhyay

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The twentieth century has seen the world getting divided into three distinct blocks, created by the proponents of the mainstream developmental discourse. India, which has now gained the label of being a ‘developing nation’, stands in between these three groups, as it constantly tries to ‘catch up’ and emulate the developmental standards of the ‘west’. In this endeavour, we find our country trying really hard to blindly replicate the health care infrastructures of the ‘first worlds’, without realizing the needs of evaluating the ground reality. In such a situation, the sudden outbreak of child death in the district of Malda, WB, poses an obvious questions towards the kind of development that our country has been engaging in, ever since its Post Colonial inception. Through this paper we thus try to understand the harsh veracity of the health care facility that exists in rural Bengal, and thereby challenge the conventional notion of ‘health-care’ as is normally discussed in the mainstream developmental discourse. Grounding our research work on detailed ethnography and through the help of questionnaire, interviews and focus group discussions with the local government officials(BDOs), health workers (ICDS, ASHA workers, ANHM and BMOHs) and members of families with experiences of child deaths, we have tried to find out the real and humane factors behind the sudden rise of reported infant deaths in the district, issues which are normally neglected and left out while discussing and evaluating IMR in the mainstream studies on health care and planning in our nation. Therefore the main aim of this paper is to try and look at child death from a ‘wider perspective’, where it is seen from an eye not bounded by the common registers of caste, class and religion. This paper, would thus be an eye opener in some sense, bringing in stories from the rural belt of the country; where the people are regularly torn between the binaries of the developing and shining modernity of ‘India’ which now gets ready to run the last lap and gain the status of becoming a ‘developed nation’ by 2020, and the staggering, dark traditional ‘ Bharat, which lags behind.

Keywords: child mortality, development discourse, health care, tradition and modernity

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Authors: R. Odoh, M. S. Dauda, E. A. Kamba, N. C. Igwemmar

Abstract:

Honey and honey trade is an important economic activity for many tropical rural and urban areas worldwide. In West Africa and other part of the world, honey and honey products holds high socio–cultural, religious, medicinal and traditional values. Therefore, to maximize benefits or to enhance profit, a variety of components are added to the raw, fresh and unprocessed honey, introducing the possibility of heavy metals contaminants. Therefore the honey sold in various places, markets and shops in some states in Northern Nigeria (Benue, Nassarawa and Taraba) including Abuja FCT, in Nigeria was analyzed to determine the level of heavy metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn). All the honey samples contain heavy metals. The results ranged from 0.028–0.070, 0.023–0.058, 0.042–0.092, 4.231–8.589, 8.115–14.892, 0.078–0.922, 0.044–0.092, 0.041–0.087 and 18.234–28.654 μg/L for Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn respectively. The mean concentration (μg/L) of the heavy metals Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn of the regularly marketed honey is significantly higher than the mean concentration observed in raw, fresh and unprocessed honey. However, continued consumption of honey with high heavy metal content might lead to exposure to chronic heavy metal poisoning.

Keywords: honey, health, mineral profile adulteration, contamination

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Authors: Negin Binesh, Mohammad Hossein Niksokhan, Amin Sarang

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Best Management Practices (BMPs) are considered as one of the most important structural adaptive measures to climate change and urban development challenges in recent decades. However, not every location is appropriate for applying BMPs in the watersheds. In this paper, location prioritization of two kinds of BMPs was done: Pourous pavement and Detention pond. West Flood-Diversion (WFD) catchment in northern parts of Tehran, Iran, was considered as the case study. The methodology includes integrating the results of Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) into Fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (FAHP) method using Geographic Information System (GIS). The results indicate that mostly suburban areas of the watershed in northern parts are appropriate for applying detention basin, and downstream high-density urban areas are more suitable for using permeable pavement.

Keywords: adaptive measures, BMPs, location prioritization, urban flooding

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Authors: Kruti Jaruriya

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Distribution of arsenic (As) and its compound and related toxicology are serious concerns. This is particularly so since millions worldwide are suffering from toxicity due to drinking of As-contaminated groundwater. The Bengal delta plain, formed by the Ganga– Padma–Meghna–Brahmaputra river basin, covering several districts of West Bengal, India and Bangladesh is considered as the worst As affected alluvial basin. However, some equally affected, if not more, areas are emerging in upper Brahmaputra plains. The present study was carried out to examine As contamination trends in the worst affected part of Assam, India. Arsenic (As) mobilization to the groundwater of Brahmaputra floodplains was investigated in Titabor, Jorhat District, located in the North Eastern part of India. The groundwater and the aquifer geochemistry were characterized. The groundwater is characterized by high dissolved Fe, Mn, and HCO-3 and low concentrations of NO-3 and SO2-4 indicating anoxic conditions prevailing in the groundwater. Fifty groundwater samples collected from shallow and deep tubewells of Titabor, Jorhat district (Assam) were examined. Along with total As, examination of concentration levels of other key parameters, viz., pH, EC, Fe, Mn , Mg2+, Ca2+, Na+, K+, PO43- , HCO-3 , NO3- ,Cl - and SO42- was also carried out. In respect to the permissible guideline of World Health Organization (WHO: As 0.01 ppm, Fe 1.0 ppm, and Mn 0.3 ppm for potable water), the range of As concentration in the groundwater varied from 0.014 to 0.604 mg/L with mean concentration 0.184 mg/L. The present study showed that out of the 50 groundwater samples,100%, 54%, and 42% were found contaminated with higher metal contents (for total As, Fe, and Mn, respectively). The results of hydrogeochemical study revealed that the reductive dissolution of MnOOH and FeOOH represents an important mechanism of arsenic release in the study area along with major cations playing an important role in leaching of As into the groundwater. Arsenic released by oxidation of pyrite, as water levels are drawn down and air enters the aquifer, contributes negligibly to the problem of As pollution. Identification of the mechanism of As release to groundwater helps to provide a framework to guide the placement of new water wells so that they will have acceptable concentrations of As.

Keywords: arsenic, assam, brahmaputra floodplain, groundwater, hydrogeochemistry

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Authors: Masoud Irannezhad, Sirpa Rasmus, Saghar Ahmadian, Deliang Chen, Bjorn Klove

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Variability and changes in thermal conditions play a crucial role in functioning of human society, particularly over cold climate regions like Finland. Accordingly, the frost-free season (FFS) parameters in terms of start (FFSS), end (FFSE) and length (FFSL) have substantial effects not only on natural environment (e.g. flora and fauna), but also on human requirements (e.g. agriculture, forestry and energy generation). Applying the 0°C threshold of minimum temperature (Tmin), the FFS was defined as the period between the last spring frost as FFSS and the first fall frost as FFSE. For this study, gridded (10 x 10 km2) daily minimum temperature datasets throughout Finland during 1961-2011 was used to investigate recent spatio-temporal variations and trends in frost-free season (FFS) parameters and their relationships with the well-known large-scale climate teleconnections (CTs). The FFS in Finland naturally increases from north (~60 days) to south (~190 days), in association with earlier FFSS (~24 April) and later FFSE (~30 October). Statistically significant (p<0.05) trends in FFSL were all positive (increasing) ranged between 0 and 13.5 (days/decade) and mainly observed in the east, upper west, centre and upper north of Finland. Such lengthening trends in FFS were attributable to both earlier FFSS and later FFSE mostly over central and upper northern Finland, while only to later FFSE in eastern and upper western parts. Variations in both FFSL and FFSS were significantly associated with the Polar (POL) pattern over northern Finland, while with the East Atlantic (EA) pattern over eastern and upper western areas. However, the POL and Scandinavia (SCA) patterns were most influential CTs for FFSE variability over northern Finland.

Keywords: climate teleconnections, Finland, frost-free season, trend analysis

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Authors: Nilufer Turksoy

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Social media tools successfully connect people from different milieu to each other. This easy access allows politicians with populist attitude to circulate any kind of political opinion or message, which will hardly appear in conventional media. Populism is a relevant concept, especially, in political communication research. In the last decade, populism in social media has been researched extensively. The present study focuses on how social media is used as a playground by Turkish Cypriot politicians to perform populism in Northern Cyprus. It aims to determine and understand the relationship between politicians and social media, and how they employ social media in their political lives. Northern Cyprus’s multi-faced character provides politicians with many possible frames and topics they can make demagogy about ongoing political deadlock, international isolation, economic instability or social and cultural life in the north part of the island. Thus, Northern Cyprus, bizarrely branded as a 'no man's land', is a case par excellence to show how politically and economically unstable geographies are inclined to perform populism. Northern Cyprus is legally invalid territory recognized by no member of the international community other than Turkey and a phantom state, just like Abkhazia and South Ossetia or Nagorno-Karabakh. Five ideological key elements of populism are employed in the theoretical framework of this study: (1) highlighting the sovereignty of the people, (2) attacking the elites, (3) advocacy for the people, (4) excluding others, and (5) invoking the heartland. A qualitative text analysis of typical Facebook posts was conducted. Profiles of popular political leaders who occupy top positions (e.g. member of parliament, minister, chairman, party secretary), who have different political views, and who use their profiles for political expression on daily bases are selected. All official Facebook pages of the selected politicians are examined during a period of five months (1 September 2017-31 January 2018). This period is selected since it was prior to the parliamentary elections. Finding revealed that majority of the Turkish Cypriot politicians use their social media profile to propagate their political ideology in a populist fashion. Populist statements are found across parties. Facebook give especially the left-wing political actors the freedom to spread their messages in manipulative ways, mostly by using a satiric, ironic and slandering jargon that refers to the pseudo-state, the phantom state, the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus state. While most of the political leaders advocate for the people, invoking the heartland are preferred by right-wing politicians. A broad range of left-wing politicians predominantly conducted attack on the economic elites and ostracism of others. The finding concluded that different politicians use social media differently according to their political standpoint. Overall, the study offers a thorough analysis of populism on social media. Considering the large role social media plays in the daily life today, the finding will shed some light on the political influence of social media and the social media usage among politicians.

Keywords: Northern Cyprus, populism, politics, qualitative text analysis, social media

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Authors: G. Sava, I. Popa, T. Sava, A. Ion, M. Ilie, C. Manailescu, A. Robu

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At the RoAMS laboratory in Bucharest we have looked for a head-to-head meeting between AMS radiocarbon dating and dendrochronology dating, aiming to point out and explain any differences or similarities that might appear between their output results. As a subject of this investigation, we have fixed our attention on a sequence of tree rings spanning on a period of 700 years, starting with 1000 AD. The samples were collected from the northern Romanian territory within Moldavia region, and were provided by the ‘Marin Dracea - National Institute for Research and Development in Forestry’. All the 23 single ring wood samples were radiocarbon dated using alpha-cellulose extraction, followed by graphitization in an AGE3 installation. A wiggle matching procedure was applied to reduce the radiocarbon uncertainties for the calibrated ages. The results showed a good agreement on 3 out of 4 wood cores, the age-shifting of one of the wood cores being interpreted as an uncertain dendrochronology matching, which was further corrected.

Keywords: wiggle matching, tree-ring radiocarbon dating, dendrochronology, AMS radiocarbon dating, radiocarbon dating in Romania

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Authors: R. Gounina-Allouane, I. Moussaoui, N. Boukahel

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Bacillus antimicrobial metabolites, especially those of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), are of great interest for research because of health risks generated by the excessive use of chemical additives as well as the propagation of resistant microbial strains, caused by the massive treatment with antibiotics. The objective of this study was the selection of Bt strains producing antimicrobial peptides (bacteriocins), and the partial purification of the most powerful bacteriocins, then the determination of their spectra of antimicrobial action. A collection of twenty one Bt strains isolated from soil at Boumerdès (northern Algeria) was used for screening strains having an antagonistic activity against phylogenetically closed bacteria. Spectra of antagonistic activity of two selected strains was determined against other Bt strains, Gram positive and Gram negative bacterial strains of clinical origin and others from ATCC collection as well as yeasts isolated in human dermatology. Bacteriocins of these two strains were partially purified and their effect on the kinetics of growth of the most sensitive microbial strains was studied. The bacteriocinogenic strains were biochemically characterized and their sensitivity to antibiotics was studied.

Keywords: antimicrobial peptides, Bacillus thuringiensis, bacteriocin, partial purification

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Authors: Abdul Salam Turkmani

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Clay of the northern Palmyra region is one of the most important raw materials used in the Syrian ceramics industry. This study is focused on the evaluation of various laboratory analyses such as chemical analysis (XRF), mineral X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), differential thermal analysis (DTA), and semi-industrial tests carried out on samples collected on two representative locations of the upper Oligocene in AlMkamen valley (MK) and lower Miocene in AlZukara valley (ZR) of the northern part of Palmyra, Syria. Chemical results classify the (MK) and (ZR) clays as semi-plastic red clay slightly carbonate and (eliminate probable) illite-chlorite clays with a very fine particle size distribution. Content of SiO₂ between 46.28-57.66%, Al2O3 13.81-25.2%, Fe₂O₃ 3.47-11.58%, CaO 1.15-7.19%, Na₂O+K₂O varied between 3.34-3.71%. Based on clay chemical composition and iron and carbonate content, these deposits can be considered as red firing clays. Their mineralogical composition is mainly represented by illite, kaolinite and quartz, and accessories minerals such as calcite, feldspar, phillipsite, and goethite. The results of the DTA test confirm the presence of gypsum and quartz phases in (MK) clay. Ceramic testing shows good green and dry bending strength values, which varied between 9-14 kg/cm², at 1160°C to 1180°C. Water absorption moves from 14.6 % at 1120°C to 2.2% at 1180°C to 1.6% at 1200°C. Breaking load after firing changes from 400 to 590 kg/cm². At 1200°C (MK), clay reaches perfect vitrification. After firing, the color of the clay changes from orange-hazel to red-brown at 1180°C. Technological results confirmed the suitability of the studied clays to produce floor and wall ceramic tiles. Using one of the two types of clay into the ceramic body or both types together gave satisfactory industrial results.

Keywords: ceramic, clay, industry , Palmyra

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Authors: Mojtaba Heydarizad

Abstract:

Zagros mountain range is a very important precipitation zone in Iran as it receives high average annual precipitation compared to other parts of this country. Although this region is important precipitation zone in semi-arid an arid country like Iran, accurate method to study water resources in this region has not been applied yet. In this study, stable isotope δ¹⁸O content of precipitation and groundwater resources showed spatial variations across Zagros region as southern parts of Zagros region showed more enriched isotope values compared to the northern parts. This is normal as southern Zagros region is much drier with higher air temperature and evaporation compared to northern parts. In addition, the spatial variations of stable isotope δ¹⁸O in precipitation in Zagros region have been simulated by the models which consider the altitude and latitude variations as input to simulate δ¹⁸O in precipitation.

Keywords: groundwater, precipitation, simulation, stable isotopes, Zagros region

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Authors: Zafer Ceylan, Gülgün F.Unal Şengör, Onur Gönülal

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In this study, sous vide technology were treated with different herbs into different fish species which were caught from northern Aegean and Marmara Sea. Before samples were packaged under vacuum, herbs had been cut and added at the same ratio into the package. Samples were sliced, the weight of each sample was about 150 g, and packaged under vacuum. During the storage period at 4ºC, taste, odor, texture properties of fish samples treated with sous vide were evaluated by trained panelists. Meanwhile, the effect of different herbs on pH values of the samples was investigated. These results were correlated with sensorial results. Furthermore, the effects of different herbs on L, a, b values of fish samples treated with sous vide were evaluated by color measurement. All sensorial results indicated that the values of samples treated with herbs were higher than that of the control group. Color measurement results and pH values were found parallel with sensorial results.

Keywords: Sous vide, fish, herbs, consumer preferences, pH, color measurement

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Authors: R. Gounina-Allouane, I. Moussaoui, N. Boukahel

Abstract:

Bacillus antimicrobial metabolites, especially those of Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), are of great interest for research because of health risks generated by the excessive use of chemical additives as well as the propagation of resistant microbial strains, caused by the massive treatment with antibiotics. The objective of this study was the selection of Bt strains producing antimicrobial peptides (bacteriocins), and the partial purification of the most powerful bacteriocins, then the determination of their spectra of antimicrobial action. A collection of twenty one Bt strains isolated from soil at Boumerdès (northern of Algeria) was used for screening strains having an antagonistic activity against phylogenetically closed bacteria. Spectra of antagonistic activity of two selected strains was determined against other Bt strains, Gram positive and Gram negative bacterial strains of clinical origin and others from ATCC collection as well as yeasts isolated in human dermatology. Bacteriocins of these two strains were partially purified and their effect on the kinetics of growth of the most sensitive microbial strains was studied. The bacteriocinogenic strains were biochemically characterized and their sensitivity to antibiotics was studied.

Keywords: antimicrobial peptides, Bacillus thuringiensis, bacteriocin, partial purification

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Authors: Odinah Cuartero-Enteria, Kyla Rita Mercado, Jason Salamanes, Aian Pecasales, Sherwin Sabado

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The northern part of Mindanao Island, Philippines has sizable reserve of mineral resources. Years ago, mining activities have been flourishing which resulted to both local economic gain but with environmental concerns. This study investigates the prevalent diseases by mining activities in these areas. The study was done using the secondary data gathered from the Rural Health Units (RHU) of the selected areas. The study further determined the prevalent diseases that existed in the three areas from years 2005, 2010 and 2015 indicating before the mining activities and when mining activities are present. The results show that areas which are far from mining activities have fewer cases of patients suffering from air-borne diseases. The top ten most common diseases such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, influenza, upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) and skin diseases were caused by air-borne due to air pollution. Hence, the places where mining activities are present contribute to the prevalent diseases. Thus, addressing the air pollution caused by mining activities is very important.

Keywords: Philippines, Mindanao Island, mining activities, pollution, prevalent diseases

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Authors: Hui-Chi Huang, Su-Ju Yang, Ching-Wei Lin, Jui-Yao Tsai, Liang-Yiang

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Background: The most common serious complication following acute stroke is pneumonia. It has been associated with the increased morbidity, mortality, and medical cost after acute stroke in elderly patients. Purpose: The aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the relationship between stroke patients, risk factors of pneumonia, and one-year survival rates in a group of patients, in a tertiary referal center in Northern Taiwan. Methods: From January 2012 to December 2013, a total of 1730 consecutively administered stroke patients were recruited. The Survival analysis and multivariate regression analyses were used to examine the predictors for the one-year survival in stroke patients of a stroke registry database from northern Taiwan. Results: The risk of stroke mortality increased with age≧ 75 (OR=2.305, p < .0001), cancer (OR=3.221, p=<.0001), stayed in intensive care unit (ICU) (OR=2.28, p <.0006), dysphagia (OR=5.026, p<.0001), without speech therapy(OR=0.192, p < .0001),serum albumin < 2.5(OR=0.322, p=.0053) , eGFR > 60(OR=0.438, p <. 0001), admission NIHSS >11(OR=1.631, p=.0196), length of hospitalization (d) > 30(OR=0.608, p=.0227), and stroke subtype (OR=0.506, p=.0032). After adjustment of confounders, pneumonia was not significantly associated with the risk of mortality. However, it is most likely to develop in patients who are age ≧ 75, dyslipidemia , coronary artery disease , albumin < 2.5 , eGFR <60 , ventilator use , stay in ICU , dysphagia, without speech therapy , urinary tract infection , Atrial fibrillation , Admission NIHSS > 11, length of hospitalization > 30(d) , stroke severity (mRS=3-5) ,stroke Conclusion: In this study, different from previous research findings, we found that elderly age, severe neurological deficit and rehabilitation therapy were significantly associated with Post-stroke Pneumonia. However, specific preventive strategies are needed to target the high risk groups to improve their long-term outcomes after acute stroke. These findings could open new avenues in the management of stroke patients.

Keywords: stroke, risk, pneumonia, survival

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Authors: T. Prommi, P. Thamsenanupap

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The influence of physicochemical water quality parameters on the abundance and diversity of caddisfly larvae was studied in seven sampling stations in Mae Tao and Mae Ku watersheds, Mae Sot District, Tak Province, northern Thailand. The streams: MK2 and MK8 as reference site, and impacted streams (MT1-MT5) were sampled bi-monthly during July 2011 to May 2012. A total of 4,584 individual of caddisfly larvae belonging to 10 family and 17 genera were found. The larvae of family Hydropsychidae were the most abundance, followed by Philopotamidae, Odontoceridae, and Leptoceridae, respectively. The genus Cheumatopsyche, Hydropsyche, and Chimarra were the most abundance genera in this study. Results of CCA ordination showed the total dissolved solids, sulfate, water temperature, dissolved oxygen and pH were the most important physicochemical factors to affect distribution of caddisflies communities. Changes in the caddisfly fauna may indicate changes in physicochemical factors owing to agricultural pollution, urbanization, or other human activities. Results revealed that the order Trichoptera, identified to species or genus, can be potentially used to assess environmental water quality status in freshwater ecosystems.

Keywords: Caddisfly larvae, environmental variables, diversity, streams

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Authors: Waisu Iliyasu

Abstract:

It is a well-known fact that the Hausa people have, since time immemorial, had a distinct culture of living together and assisting one another. In fact, the communal bond has been an important aspect that bound society together. Over the years, this communal bond has been eroded, giving way to an individualistic society whereby everyone lives a different way of life free from social cohesion and family bonds. It is against this backdrop the paper examines the forces of change in Hausa society and their effect on communal living. The paper also highlights the factors and actors involved in such change and how, in the later years of Nigeria’s independence, such factors transformed the social, political and economic structures of Hausa society in Northern Nigeria. In writing this paper, qualitative research is used in which questionnaires and oral interviews were used as a method of data collection. Along this way, other sources like primary and secondary are also used extensively in writing the paper. The concluding part of the paper reveals that unless the problems of elitism, corruption and poverty are addressed, the gap between have and have-nots, wealthy and poor, literate and illiterate, will continue to widen, thereby leading to an individualistic society that negates all forms of communal living.

Keywords: communalism, individualism, historical insights, Hausa land

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Authors: Chakrit Chotamonsak

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This study was analyzed changes in temperature and precipitation extremes in northern Thailand for the period 1981-2011.The study includes an analysis of the average and trends of changes in temperature and precipitation using 22 climate indices, related to the intensity, frequency and duration of extreme climate events. The results showed that the averaged trend of maximum, minimum and mean temperature is likely to increase over the study area in rate of 0.5, 0.9 and 0.7 °C in last 30 years. Changes in temperature at nighttime, then rising at a rate higher daytime is resulting to decline of diurnal temperature range throughout the area. Trend of changes in average precipitation during the year 1981-2011 is expected to increase at an average rate of 21%. The intensity of extreme temperature events is increasing almost all station. In particular, the changes of the night were unusually hot has intensified throughout the region. In some provinces such as Chiang Mai and Lampang are likely be faced with the severity of hot days and hot nights in increasing rate. Frequency of extreme temperature events are likely to increase each station, especially hot days, and hot nights are increasing at a rate of 2.38 and 3.58 days per decade. Changes in the cold days and cold nights are declining at a rate of 0.82 and 3.03 days per decade. The duration of extreme temperature events is expected to increase the events hot in every station. An average of 17.8 days per decade for the number of consecutive cold winter nights likely shortens the rate of 2.90 days per decade. The analysis of the precipitation indices reveals the intensity of extreme precipitation is increasing almost across the region. The intensify expressed the heavy rain in one day (Rx1day) and very heavy rain accumulated in 5 days (RX5day) which is likely to increase, and very heavy rainfall is likely to increase in intensity. Frequency of extreme precipitation events is likely to increase over the station. The average frequency of heavy precipitation events increased xxx days per decade. The duration of extreme precipitation events, such as the consecutive dry days are likely to reduce the numbers almost all station while the consecutive wet days tends to increase and decrease at different numbers in different areas.

Keywords: climate extreme, temperature extreme, precipitation extreme, Northern Thailand

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Authors: Hamed A. El-Serehy, Khaled A. Al-Rasheid, Fahad A Al-Misned

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The meiofaunal population fluctuation, microbial dynamic and the composition of the sedimentary organic matter were investigated seasonally in the Egyptian shores along the northern part of Red Sea. Total meiofaunal population densities were extremely low with an annual average of 109 ±26 ind./10 cm2 and largely dominated by nematodes (on annual average from 52% to 94% of total meiofaunal density). The benthic microbial population densities ranged from 0.26±0.02 x 108 to 102.67±18.62 x 108/g dry sediment. Total sedimentary organic matter concentrations varied between 5.8 and 11.6 mg/g and the organic carbon, which was measured as summation of the carbohydrates, proteins and lipids, accounted for only a small fraction of being 32 % of the total organic matter. Chlorophyll a attained very low values and fluctuated between 2 and 11 µg/g. The very low chlorophyll a concentration in the Egyptian coasts along the Red Sea can suggest that the sedimentary organic matter along the Egyptian coasts is dominated by organic detrital and heterotrophic bacteria on one hand, and do not promote carbon transfer towards the higher trophic level on the other hand. However, the present study indicates that the existing of well diversified meiofaunal group, with a total of ten meiofaunal taxa, can serve as food for higher trophic levels in the Red Sea marine ecosystem.

Keywords: bacteria, meiofauna, intertidal sediments, Red Sea

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Authors: Mojtaba Heydarizad, Hamid Ghalibaf Mohammadabadi

Abstract:

Iran is a semi-arid and arid country in south-western Asia in the Middle East facing intense climatological drought from the early times. Therefore, studying the precipitation events and the moisture sources and air masses causing precipitation has great importance in this region. In this study, the moisture sources and stable isotope content of precipitation moisture in three main events in 2015 have been studied in North-Eastern Iran. HYSPLIT model backward trajectories showed that the Caspian Sea and the mixture of the Caspian and Mediterranean Seas are dominant moisture sources for the studied events. This showed the role of cP (Siberian) and Mediterranean (MedT) air masses. Stable isotope studies showed that precipitation events originated from the Caspian Sea with lower Sea Surface Temperature (SST) have more depleted isotope values. However, precipitation events sourced from the mixture of the Caspian and the Mediterranean Seas (with higher SST) showed more enriched isotope values.

Keywords: HYSPLIT, Iran, Northern Khorasan, stable isotopes

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Authors: Eduardo Garcia Agustin

Abstract:

This paper focuses on how Mickey – the 10-year-old main character and narrator in Paul McVeigh’s novel The Good Son (2015) – becomes aware of his own queerness and its implications in a conflicting place and time such as Belfast during ‘The Troubles’ in the 1980s. Queer theory allows a comparative reading of identity issues such as national and gender discourses. As opposed to some other excluding social constructs that classify identities in an Us-Others binomial, queer has become a sort of umbrella term where there is room for more identities other than LGTBQ. Therefore, it offers some relevant tools to read this highly awarded novel by focusing on the intersectional construction of Mickey’s identity in progress within the social and familiar realms. The aim of this paper is to offer a queer reading of the The Good Son, which was awarded with the Polari First Book Prize in 2016, by showing the key role of Mickey’s conflictive realization of his own queerness in the polarized society of Northern Ireland in the 1980s, where there is no shade of grey. Within such a polarized context, Mickey’s perception of his own internal and external identity conflicts he is exposed to will show how necessary a certain touch of pink is as a potential escape to those conflicts.

Keywords: conflict, national identity, Northern Ireland, queer identity

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Authors: Yu-Tzu Hsu, Alice Wu, Hsiang-Kuang Tseng

Abstract:

Introduction: Hepatitis A virus causes acute hepatitis and is usually transmitted by a fecal-oral route of food contamination, which is more prevalent in areas with poor hygienic practices. However, we described a hepatitis A outbreak associated with a fecal-oral route of sexual behavior in men who has sex with men (MSM) in Northern Taiwan. Methods: We retrospectively collected patients with acute HAV infection in MacKay Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan between July 2015 and November 2016. Demographic data (age, gender, onset time and infection risk), laboratory data (GOT, GPT, bilirubin, HIV status, HBsAg, HCV antibody and syphilis), clinical symptoms and travel history with a foreign tour were analyzed. We compared variables between HIV and non-HIV group. Unless otherwise stated, continuous variables were expressed as mean ± SD, and categorical variables were expressed as number (percentage) for each item. The t test for continuous variables was applied for the comparison between two groups and chi-square for categorical variables were applied for measures of association. Results: We collected 80 cases during the study period. Among them, 54 (67.5%) cases were MSM and 43 (53.8%) cases were HIV positive. The average age was 32.6±7.59 years-old. The average value of initial liver function was 1324 IU/L for AST (GOT), 2100 IU/L for ALT (GPT), and 5.82 mg/dL for bilirubin. We found seven (8.6%) cases were in the status of HBV carrier, five (6.3%) cases were positive for HCV antibody, and 15 (18.6%) cases were co-infected with syphilis. With regards to associated symptoms, 32 (40%) had fever, 46 (57.5%) had nausea, 34 (42.5%) had abdominal discomfort and 46 (57.5%) had general malaise. To compare the non-HIV patients with HIV patients, HIV patients were more likely to be male (p=0.008), MSM (p=0.000), co-infected syphilis (p=0.000) and slowly improving liver function of transaminases (p=0.033, 0.027). Conclusion: The HAV outbreak in Northern Taiwan was mainly occurred in MSM population. Hereafter, our cohort data support a policy in Taiwan to provide one dose of free HAV vaccine shot in this population. Hopefully, the outbreak could be stop by the free vaccine policy and public education.

Keywords: acute hepatitis A, men who has sex with men, human immunodeficiency virus, vaccine

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