Search results for: Women Studies

Authors: Catalin Gales, Ionel Dumitrel Ghiba

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This paper studies questions of continuous data dependence and uniqueness for solutions of initial boundary value problems in linear micropolar thermoelastic mixtures. Logarithmic convexity arguments are used to establish results with no definiteness assumptions upon the internal energy.

Keywords: Cellular materials, continuous dependence, micro polar mixtures, uniqueness.

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Authors: F. Stazi, C. Di Perna, C. Filiaci, A. Stazi

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Passive systems were born with the purpose of the greatest exploitation of solar energy in cold climates and high altitudes. They spread themselves until the 80-s all over the world without any attention to the specific climate and the summer behavior; this caused the deactivation of the systems due to a series of problems connected to the summer overheating, the complex management and the rising of the dust. Until today the European regulation limits only the winter consumptions without any attention to the summer behavior but, the recent European EN 15251 underlines the relevance of the indoor comfort, and the necessity of the analytic studies validation by monitoring case studies. In the porpose paper we demonstrate that the solar wall is an efficient system both from thermal comfort and energy saving point of view and it is the most suitable for our temperate climates because it can be used as a passive cooling sistem too. In particular the paper present an experimental and numerical analisys carried out on a case study with nine different solar passive systems in Ancona, Italy. We carried out a detailed study of the lodging provided by the solar wall by the monitoring and the evaluation of the indoor conditions. Analyzing the monitored data, on the base of recognized models of comfort (ISO, ASHRAE, Givoni-s BBCC), is emerged that the solar wall has an optimal behavior in the middle seasons. In winter phase this passive system gives more advantages in terms of energy consumptions than the other systems, because it gives greater heat gain and therefore smaller consumptions. In summer, when outside air temperature return in the mean seasonal value, the indoor comfort is optimal thanks to an efficient transversal ventilation activated from the same wall.

Keywords: Building envelope, energy saving, passive solarwall, thermal comfort.

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Authors: Yue Zhang, Bo Yang, Gang Xiong, Mohamed Elchalakanic, Shidong Nie

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This study aims to investigate the lateral torsional buckling of I-shaped cross-section beams fabricated from Q460GJ structural steel plates. Both experimental and numerical simulation results are presented in this paper. A total of eight specimens were tested under a three-point bending, and the corresponding numerical models were established to conduct parametric studies. The effects of some key parameters such as the non-dimensional member slenderness and the height-to-width ratio, were investigated based on the verified numerical models. Also, the results obtained from the parametric studies were compared with the predictions calculated by different design codes including the Chinese design code (GB50017-2003, 2003), the new draft version of Chinese design code (GB50017-201X, 2012), Eurocode 3 (EC3, 2005) and the North America design code (ANSI/AISC360-10, 2010). These comparisons indicated that the sectional height-to-width ratio does not play an important role to influence the overall stability load-carrying capacity of Q460GJ structural steel beams with welded I-shaped cross-sections. It was also found that the design methods in GB50017-2003 and ANSI/AISC360-10 overestimate the overall stability and load-carrying capacity of Q460GJ welded I-shaped cross-section beams.

Keywords: Experimental study, finite element analysis, global stability, lateral torsional buckling, Q460GJ structural steel.

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Authors: Tae-Heon Moon, Sun-Young Heo, Sang-Ho Lee, Youn-Taik Leem, Kwang-Woo Nam

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This study aims to investigate the possibility of crime prevention through CCTV by analyzing the appropriateness of the CCTV location, whether it is installed in the hotspot of crime-prone areas, and exploring the crime prevention effect and transition effect. The real crime and CCTV locations of case city were converted into the spatial data by using GIS. The data was analyzed by hotspot analysis and weighted displacement quotient (WDQ). As study methods, it analyzed existing relevant studies for identifying the trends of CCTV and crime studies based on big data from 1800 to 2014 and understanding the relation between CCTV and crime. Second, it investigated the current situation of nationwide CCTVs and analyzed the guidelines of CCTV installation and operation to draw attention to the problems and indicating points of CCTV use. Third, it investigated the crime occurrence in case areas and the current situation of CCTV installation in the spatial aspects, and analyzed the appropriateness and effectiveness of CCTV installation to suggest a rational installation of CCTV and the strategic direction of crime prevention. The results demonstrate that there was no significant effect in the installation of CCTV on crime prevention in the case area. This indicates that CCTV should be installed and managed in a more scientific way reflecting local crime situations. In terms of CCTV, the methods of spatial analysis such as GIS, which can evaluate the installation effect, and the methods of economic analysis like cost-benefit analysis should be developed. In addition, these methods should be distributed to local governments across the nation for the appropriate installation of CCTV and operation. This study intended to find a design guideline of the optimum CCTV installation. In this regard, this study is meaningful in that it will contribute to the creation of a safe city.

Keywords: CCTV, Safe City, Crime Prevention, Spatial Analysis.

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Authors: Marzena Świgoń

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The purpose of this paper is to describe the perceptions of knowledge and information sharing by the Polish academic community. An electronic questionnaire was used to gather opinions of respondents. The presented results are a part of the findings of empirical studies carried out amongst academics from various types of universities and academia located throughout Poland.

Keywords: Academics, Information Sharing, Knowledge Sharing, Scholarly Communication.

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Authors: A. G. Margaryan

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Ability of adaptation of the organism is considered as an important component of health in maintaining relative dynamic constancy of the hemostasis and functioning of all organs and systems. Among the various forms of adaptation (individual, species and mental), social adaptation of the organism has a particular role. The aim of this study was to evaluate the subjective perception of social factors, social welfare and the level of adaptability of Armenian physicians. The survey involved 2,167 physicians (592 men and 1,575 women). According to the survey, most physicians (75.1%) were married. It was found that 88.6% of respondents had harmonious family relationships, 7.6% of respondents – tense relationships, and 1.0% – marginal relationships. The results showed that the average monthly salary with all premium payments amounted to 88 263.6±5.0 drams, and 16.7% of physicians heavily relied on the material support of parents or other relatives. Low material welfare was also confirmed by the analysis of the living conditions. Analysis of the results showed that the degree of subjective perception of social factors of different specialties averaged 11.3±3.1 points, which corresponds to satisfactory results (a very good result – 4.0 points). The degree of social adaptation of physicians on average makes 4.13±1.9 points, which corresponds to poor results (allowable less than 3.0 points). The distribution of the results of social adaptation severity revealed that the majority of physicians (58.6%) showed low social adaptation, average social adaptation is observed in 22.4% of the physicians and high adaptation – in only 17.4% of physicians. In conclusions, the findings of this study suggest that the degree of social adaptation of currently practicing physicians is low.

Keywords: Physician's health, social adaptation, social factor, social health.

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Authors: Chinwendu R. Nnabalu, Gioia Falcone, Imma Bortone

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Petroleum refining is a chemical process in which the raw material (crude oil) is converted to finished commercial products for end users. The fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit is a key asset in refineries, requiring optimised processes in the context of engineering design. Following the first stage of separation of crude oil in a distillation tower, an additional 40 per cent quantity is attainable in the gasoline pool with further conversion of the downgraded product of crude oil (residue from the distillation tower) using a catalyst in the FCC process. Effective removal of sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon and heavy metals from FCC gasoline requires greater separation efficiency and involves an enormous environmental significance. The FCC unit is primarily a reactor and regeneration system which employs cyclone systems for separation.  Catalyst losses in FCC cyclones lead to high particulate matter emission on the regenerator side and fines carryover into the product on the reactor side. This paper aims at demonstrating the importance of FCC unit design criteria in terms of technical performance and compliance with environmental legislation. A systematic review of state-of-the-art FCC technology was carried out, identifying its key technical challenges and sources of emissions.  Case studies of petroleum refineries in Nigeria were assessed against selected global case studies. The review highlights the need for further modelling investigations to help improve FCC design to more effectively meet product specification requirements while complying with stricter environmental legislation.

Keywords: Design, emissions, fluid catalytic cracking, petroleum refineries.

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Authors: Mai. M. Toughan, Ahmed A. A. Sallam, Ashraf O. Abd El-Latif

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Termites are eusocial insects that are found on all continents except Antarctica. Termites have serious destructive impact, damaging local huts and crops of poor subsistence. The annual cost of termite damage and its control is determined in the billions globally. In Egypt, most of these damages are due to the subterranean termite species especially the sand termite, P. hypostoma. Pyrethroids became the primary weapon for subterranean termite control, after the use of chlorpyrifos as a soil termiticide was banned. Despite the important role of pyrethroids in termite control, its extensive use in pest control led to the eventual rise of insecticide resistance which may make many of the pyrethroids ineffective. The ability to diagnose the precise mechanism of pyrethroid resistance in any insect species would be the key component of its management at specified location for a specific population. In the present study, detailed toxicological and biochemical studies was conducted on the mechanism of pyrethroid resistance in P. hypostoma. The susceptibility of field populations of P. hypostoma against deltamethrin, α-cypermethrin and ƛ-cyhalothrin was evaluated. The obtained results revealed that the workers of P. hypostoma have developed high resistance level against the tested pyrethroids. Studies carried out through estimation of detoxification enzyme activity indicated that enhanced esterase and cytochrome P450 activities were probably important mechanisms for pyrethroid resistance in field populations. Elevated esterase activity and also additional esterase isozyme were observed in the pyrethroid-resistant populations compared to the susceptible populations. Strong positive correlation between cytochrome P450 activity and pyrethroid resistance was also reported. |Deltamethrin could be recommended as a resistance-breaking pyrethroid that is active against resistant populations of P. hypostoma.

Keywords: Psammotermes hypostoma, pyrethroid resistance, esterase, cytochrome P450.

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Authors: D. Ščeulovs, E. Gaile-Sarkane

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Latvia is the fourth in the world by means of broadband internet speed. The total number of internet users in Latvia exceeds 70% of its population. The number of active mailboxes of the local internet e-mail service Inbox.lv accounts for 68% of the population and 97.6% of the total number of internet users. The Latvian portal Draugiem.lv is a phenomenon of social media, because 58.4 % of the population and 83.5% of internet users use it. A majority of Latvian company profiles are available on social networks, the most popular being Twitter.com. These and other parameters prove the fact consumers and companies are actively using the Internet. 

However, after the authors in a number of studies analyzed how enterprises are employing the e-environment, namely, e-environment tools, they arrived to the conclusions that are not as flattering as the aforementioned statistics. There is an obvious contradiction between the statistical data and the actual studies. As a result, the authors have posed a question: Why are entrepreneurs resistant to e-tools? In order to answer this question, the authors have addressed the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). The authors analyzed each phase and determined several factors affecting the use of e-environment, reaching the main conclusion that entrepreneurs do not have a sufficient level of e-literacy (digital literacy). 

The authors employ well-established quantitative and qualitative methods of research: grouping, analysis, statistic method, factor analysis in SPSS 20  environment etc. 

The theoretical and methodological background of the research is formed by, scientific researches and publications, that from the mass media and professional literature, statistical information from legal institutions as well as information collected by the author during the survey.

Keywords: E-environment, e-environment tools, technology acceptance model, factors.

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Authors: Jing Li, Xiuli Li

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This paper studies a special class of linear codes, called skew cyclic codes, over the ring R= F_q+uF_q+…+u^k-1F_q, where q is a prime power. A Gray map ɸ from R to F_q and a Gray map ɸ' from Rⁿ to Fⁿ_q are defined, as well as an automorphism Θ over R. It is proved that the images of skew cyclic codes over R under map ɸ' and Θ are cyclic codes over F_q, and they still keep the dual relation.

Keywords: Skew cyclic code, gray map, automophism, cyclic code.

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Authors: Haythem A. Nakkas, Philip J. Scott, Jim S. Briggs

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This paper reports a structured literature review of the application of Health Information Technology in developing countries, defined as the World Bank categories Low-income countries, Lower-middle-income, and Upper-middle-income countries. The aim was to identify and classify the various applications of health information technology to assess its current state in developing countries and explore potential areas of research. We offer specific analysis and application of HIT in Libya as one of the developing countries. A structured literature review was conducted using the following online databases: IEEE, Science Direct, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Publication dates were set for 2000-2013. For the PubMed search, publications in English, French, and Arabic were specified. Using a content analysis approach, 159 papers were analyzed and a total number of 26 factors were identified that affect the adoption of health information technology. Of the 2681 retrieved articles, 159 met the inclusion criteria which were carefully analyzed and classified. The implementation of health information technology across developing countries is varied. Whilst it was initially expected financial constraints would have severely limited health information technology implementation, some developing countries like India have nevertheless dominated the literature and taken the lead in conducting scientific research. Comparing the number of studies to the number of countries in each category, we found that Low-income countries and Lower-middle-income had more studies carried out than Upper-middle-income countries. However, whilst IT has been used in various sectors of the economy, the healthcare sector in developing countries is still failing to benefit fully from the potential advantages that IT can offer.

Keywords: Developing Countries, Developed Countries, Factors, Failure, Implementation, Libya, Success.

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Authors: Eva Čáslavová, Andrej Višněvský

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This research focused on the dimensions of brand personality of the Ice Hockey World Championship sporting event. The authors compared the elements in relation to different demographic groups including gender, age, level of education and student status of the population of Prague. Moreover, the differences of opinions of respondents who had experience of visiting a sports event and those who had not were assessed. In the research, the modified brand personality scale was used. This modified scale consists of five dimensions: responsibility, activity, toughness, individuality and emotionality, none of which was previously tested. The authors had an intentional sample of 291 respondents from Prague available, ranging in age from 18 years to 75 years, with either a high school or university education. The respondents rated the characteristic features in a seven-point Likert Scale and the data was collected in November 2012. The results suggest that the Ice Hockey World Championship is most identified with these dimensions: responsibility, emotionality and activity. Men had higher mean scores (4.93) on the Likert Scale in the emotionality dimension, while women had higher mean scores (4.91) in the activity dimension. Those respondents with experience visiting an Ice Hockey World Championship match had the highest mean score (5.10) in the emotionality dimension. This research had expected to show more pronounced mean values (above six) on the Likert scale in the emotionality and activity dimensions that more strongly characterize the brand personality of the Ice Hockey World Championship, however this expectation was not confirmed.

Keywords: Brand personality dimensions, ice hockey, international sport event, sports marketing.

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Authors: Chunghan Li, Chang-Shyh Peng, Daisy F. Sang

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Augmented Reality is an application which combines a live view of real-world environment and computer-generated images. This paper studies and demonstrates an efficient Augmented Reality development in the mobile Android environment with the native Java language and Android SDK. Major components include Barcode Reader, File Loader, Marker Detector, Transform Matrix Generator, and a cloud database.

Keywords: Augmented Reality, Android.

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Authors: Sarina Md Yusof, Suhana Aiman, Mohd Khairi Zawi, Hosni Hasan, Azila Azreen Md Radzi

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Failure in mastery of motor skills proficiency during childhood has been seen as a detrimental factor for children to be physically active. Lack of motor skills proficiency tends to reduce children’s competency and confidence level to participate in physical activity. As a consequence of less participation in physical activity, children will turn to be overweight and obese. It has been suggested that children who master motor skill proficiency will be more involved in physical activity thus preventing them from being overweight. Obesity has become a serious childhood health issues worldwide. Previous studies have found that children who were overweight and obese were generally less active however these studies focused on one gender. This study aims to compare motor skill proficiency of underweight, normal-weight, overweight and obese young boys as well as to determine the relationship between motor skills proficiency and body composition. 112 boys aged between 8 to 10 years old participated in this study. Participants were assigned to four groups; underweight, normal-weight, overweight and obese using BMI-age percentile chart for children. Bruininks- Oseretsky Test Second Edition-Short Form was administered to assess their motor skill proficiency. Meanwhile, body composition was determined by the skinfold thickness measurement. Result indicated that underweight and normal children were superior in motor skills proficiency compared to overweight and obese children (p < 0.05). A significant strong inverse correlation between motor skills proficiency and body composition (r = -0.849) is noted. The findings of this study could be explained by non-contributory mass that carried by overweight and obese children leads to biomechanical movement inefficiency which will become detrimental to motor skills proficiency. It can be concluded that motor skills proficiency is inversely correlated with body composition.

Keywords: Motor skills proficiency, body composition, obesity.

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Authors: Mediha B. Sılaydın Aydın, Emine D. Kahraman

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One of the important impacts of climate change is the sea level rise. Turkey is a peninsula, so the coastal areas of the country are threatened by the problem of sea level rise. Therefore, the urbanized coastal areas are highly vulnerable to climate change. At the aim of enhancing spatial resilience of urbanized areas, this question arises: What should be the priority intervention subject in the urban planning process for a given city. To answer this question, by focusing on the problem of sea level rise, this study aims to determine spatial vulnerability typologies and levels of Turkey coastal cities based on morphological, physical and social characteristics. As a method, spatial vulnerability of coastal cities is determined by two steps as level and type. Firstly, physical structure, morphological structure and social structure were examined in determining spatial vulnerability levels. By determining these levels, most vulnerable areas were revealed as a priority in adaptation studies. Secondly, all parameters are also used to determine spatial typologies. Typologies are determined for coastal cities in order to use as a base for urban planning studies. Adaptation to climate change is crucial for developing countries like Turkey so, this methodology and created typologies could be a guide for urban planners as spatial directors and an example for other developing countries in the context of adaptation to climate change. The results demonstrate that the urban settlements located on the coasts of the Marmara Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean respectively, are more vulnerable than the cities located on the Black Sea’s coasts to sea level rise.

Keywords: Climate change, coastal cities, sea level rise, urban land use planning, vulnerability.

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Authors: A. S. Adelokun, O. O. Gambo, A. A. Adegboye

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This study estimates the private cost of Humanities and Education programs in public universities in Osun state, Nigeria, as well as the private monetary returns to Humanities and Education programs in public universities in the state. It also estimates the private rates of return to Humanities and Education programmes in public universities in Osun state; with the view of providing information on the relative profitability of investments in Humanities and Education programs in public universities in Osun state. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The population for the study consisted of all Humanities and Education students from public universities in Osun State and all Humanities and Education graduates who are workers in Osun state establishments. The sample was made up of 600 students and 120 workers. The students were selected through simple random sampling technique from the two public universities in the state while the workers were purposively selected from Osun state establishments. These workers were graduates of Humanities and Education programs. The selected programs included Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in English, Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) in English, B.A. in Religious Studies, B.Ed. in Religious Studies, B.A. in Yoruba and B.Ed. in Yoruba. Two research instruments were used, namely: Private Costs of University Education Questionnaire (PCUEQ) and Age Education Earnings of Workers Questionnaire (AEEWQ). The data were analyzed using compounding and discount cash flow techniques. The results showed that the private costs of Humanities and Education programs in public universities in Osun state were N855,935.59 and N694,269.34 respectively. The private monetary returns to Humanities and Education programs in public universities in the State were N9,052,859.28 and N9,052,859.28, respectively. The private rates of return to Humanities and Education programmes in public universities in Osun state were 27.36% and 34.40% respectively. The study concluded that it was more profitable to invest in Education programs than in Humanities programs at public universities in Osun state, Nigeria.

Keywords: Rates of return, private cost, investment, education.

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Authors: Yuri Bizzoni, Marianne Reboul

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Our program compares French and Italian translations of Homer’s Odyssey, from the XVIth to the XXth century. We focus on the third point, showing how distributional semantics systems can be used both to improve alignment between different French translations as well as between the Greek text and a French translation. Although we focus on French examples, the techniques we display are completely language independent.

Keywords: Translation studies, machine translation, computational linguistics, distributional semantics.

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Authors: A. U. Moreh, M. Momoh, H. N. Yahya, B. Hamza, I. G. Saidu, S. Abdullahi

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This work studies the effect of thickness on structural and electrical properties of CuAlS2 thin films grown by two stage vacuum thermal evaporation technique. CuAlS2 thin films of thicknesses 50nm, 100nm and 200nm were deposited on suitably cleaned corning 7059 glass substrate at room temperature (RT). In the first stage Cu-Al precursors were grown at room temperature by thermal evaporation and in the second stage Cu-Al precursors were converted to CuAlS2 thin films by sulfurisation under sulfur atmosphere at the temperature of 673K. The structural properties of the films were examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique while electrical properties of the specimens were studied using four point probe method. The XRD studies revealed that the films are of crystalline in nature having tetragonal structure. The variations of the micro-structural parameters, such as crystallite size (D), dislocation density ( ), and micro-strain ( ), with film thickness were investigated. The results showed that the crystallite sizes increase as the thickness of the film increases. The dislocation density and micro-strain decreases as the thickness increases. The resistivity (  ) of CuAlS2 film is found to decrease with increase in film thickness, which is related to the increase of carrier concentration with film thickness. Thus thicker films exhibit the lowest resistivity and high carrier concentration, implying these are the most conductive films. Low electrical resistivity and high carrier concentration are widely used as the essential components in various optoelectronic devices such as light-emitting diode and photovoltaic cells.

Keywords: Crystalline, CuAlS2, evaporation, resistivity, sulfurisation, thickness.

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Authors: A. Aissani, H. Benaoudia

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Stochastic comparison has been an important direction of research in various area. This can be done by the use of the notion of stochastic ordering which gives qualitatitive rather than purely quantitative estimation of the system under study. In this paper we present applications of comparison based uncertainty related to entropy in Reliability analysis, for example to design better systems. These results can be used as a priori information in simulation studies.

Keywords: Uncertainty, Stochastic comparison, Reliability, serie's system, imperfect repair.

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Authors: M.Jalali Azizpour, S.Norouzi, H.mohammadi Majd, M.M.Rabieh, D.Sajedipour, A. Jaderi

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The mechanical and tribological properties in WC-Co coatings are strongly affected by hardness and elasticity specifications. The results revealed the effect of spraying distance on microhardness and elasticity modulus of coatings. The metallurgical studies have been made on coated samples using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Keywords: Elasticity modulus, HVOF, Micro-indentation, Thermal spray, WC-Co

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Authors: David Osa-Egonwa

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Visual culture is the expression of the norms and social behavior of a society in visual images. A reflection simply shows you how you look when you stand before a mirror, a clear water or stream. The mirror does not alter, improve or distort your original appearance, neither does it show you a caricature of what stands before it, this is the case with visual images created by a tribe or society. The ‘uli’ is hand drawn body design done on Igbo women and speaks of a culture of body adornment which is a practice that is appreciated by that tribe. The use of pattern of the gliding python snake ‘ije eke’ or ‘ijeagwo’ for wall painting speaks of the Igbo culture as one that appreciates wall paintings based on these patterns. Modern life came and brought a lot of change to the Igbo-speaking people of Nigeria. Change cloaked in the garment of Westernization has influenced the culture of the Igbos. This has resulted in a problem which is a break in the cultural practice that has also affected art produced by the Igbos. Before the colonial masters arrived and changed the established culture practiced by the Igbos, visual images were created that retained the culture of this people. To bring this point to limelight, this paper has adopted a historical method. A large number of works produced during pre and post-colonial era which range from sculptural pieces, paintings and other artifacts, just to mention a few, were studied carefully and it was discovered that the visual images hold the culture or aspects of the culture of the Igbos in their renditions and can rightly serve as a mirror of the Igbo visual culture.

Keywords: Artistic renditions, historical method, Igbo visual culture, changes.

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Authors: Katarzyna Rzeszut, Ilona Szewczak

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The review of selected methods of strengthening of steel structures with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) tapes and the analysis of influence of composite materials on the steel thin-walled elements are performed in this paper. The study is also focused to the problem of applying fast and effective strengthening methods of the steel structures made of thin-walled profiles. It is worth noting that the issue of strengthening the thin-walled structures is a very complex, due to inability to perform welded joints in this type of elements and the limited ability to applying mechanical fasteners. Moreover, structures made of thin-walled cross-section demonstrate a high sensitivity to imperfections and tendency to interactive buckling, which may substantially contribute to the reduction of critical load capacity. Due to the lack of commonly used and recognized modern methods of strengthening of thin-walled steel structures, authors performed the experimental studies of thin-walled sigma profiles strengthened with CFRP tapes. The paper presents the experimental stand and the preliminary results of laboratory test concerning the analysis of the effectiveness of the strengthening steel beams made of thin-walled sigma profiles with CFRP tapes. The study includes six beams made of the cold-rolled sigma profiles with height of 140 mm, wall thickness of 2.5 mm, and a length of 3 m, subjected to the uniformly distributed load. Four beams have been strengthened with carbon fiber tape Sika CarboDur S, while the other two were tested without strengthening to obtain reference results. Based on the obtained results, the evaluation of the accuracy of applied composite materials for strengthening of thin-walled structures was performed.

Keywords: CFRP tapes, sigma profiles, steel thin-walled structures, strengthening.

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Authors: Kiriaki-Maria Fameli, Vasiliki D. Assimakopoulos, Vasiliki Kotroni

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The Greater Athens Area (GAA) faces photochemical and particulate pollution episodes as a result of the combined effects of local pollutant emissions, regional pollution transport, synoptic circulation and topographic characteristics. The area has undergone significant changes since the Athens 2004 Olympic Games because of large scale infrastructure works that lead to the shift of population to areas previously characterized as rural, the increase of the traffic fleet and the operation of highways. However, few recent modelling studies have been performed due to the lack of an accurate, updated emission inventory. The photochemical modelling system MM5/CAMx was applied in order to study the photochemical and particulate pollution characteristics above the GAA for two distinct ten-day periods in the summer of 2006 and 2010, where air pollution episodes occurred. A new updated emission inventory was used based on official data. Comparison of modeled results with measurements revealed the importance and accuracy of the new Athens emission inventory as compared to previous modeling studies. The model managed to reproduce the local meteorological conditions, the daily ozone and particulates fluctuations at different locations across the GAA. Higher ozone levels were found at suburban and rural areas as well as over the sea at the south of the basin. Concerning PM10, high concentrations were computed at the city centre and the southeastern suburbs in agreement with measured data. Source apportionment analysis showed that different sources contribute to the ozone levels, the local sources (traffic, port activities) affecting its formation.

Keywords: Photochemical modelling, urban pollution, greater Athens area, MM5/CAMx.

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Authors: Kay-Anne Haykal, Issack Biyong

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The post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rises from exposure to a traumatic event and appears by a persistent experience of this event. Several psychiatric co-morbidities are associated with PTSD and include mood disorders, anxiety disorders, and substance abuse. The main objective was to compare the criteria for PTSD according to the literature to those used to diagnose a patient in a francophone hospital and to check the correspondence of these two criteria. 700 medical charts of admitted patients on the medicine or psychiatric unit at the Montfort Hospital were identified with the following diagnoses: major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, substance abuse, and PTSD for the period of time between April 2005 and March 2006. Multiple demographic criteria were assembled. Also, for every chart analyzed, the PTSD criteria, according to the Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) IV were found, identified, and grouped according to pre-established codes. An analysis using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) method was elaborated for the study of data. A sample of 57 women and 50 men was studied. Age was varying between 18 and 88 years with a median age of 48. According to the PTSD criteria in the DSM IV, 12 patients should have the diagnosis of PTSD in opposition to only two identified in the medical charts. The ROC method establishes that with the combination of data from PTSD and depression, the sensitivity varies between 0,127 and 0,282, and the specificity varies between 0,889 and 0,917. Otherwise, if we examine the PTSD data alone, the sensibility jumps to 0.50, and the specificity varies between 0,781 and 0,895. This study confirms the presence of an underdiagnosed and treated PTSD that causes severe perturbations for the affected individual.

Keywords: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, diagnosis, co-morbidities, mental health disorders.

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Authors: Joseph Zernik

Abstract:

Validity, integrity, and impacts of the IT systems of the US federal courts have been studied as part of the Human Rights Alert-NGO (HRA) submission for the 2015 Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of human rights in the United States by the Human Rights Council (HRC) of the United Nations (UN). The current report includes overview of IT system analysis, data-mining and case studies. System analysis and data-mining show: Development and implementation with no lawful authority, servers of unverified identity, invalidity in implementation of electronic signatures, authentication instruments and procedures, authorities and permissions; discrimination in access against the public and unrepresented (pro se) parties and in favor of attorneys; widespread publication of invalid judicial records and dockets, leading to their false representation and false enforcement. A series of case studies documents the impacts on individuals' human rights, on banking regulation, and on international matters. Significance is discussed in the context of various media and expert reports, which opine unprecedented corruption of the US justice system today, and which question, whether the US Constitution was in fact suspended. Similar findings were previously reported in IT systems of the State of California and the State of Israel, which were incorporated, subject to professional HRC staff review, into the UN UPR reports (2010 and 2013). Solutions are proposed, based on the principles of publicity of the law and the separation of power: Reliance on US IT and legal experts under accountability to the legislative branch, enhancing transparency, ongoing vigilance by human rights and internet activists. IT experts should assume more prominent civic duties in the safeguard of civil society in our era.

Keywords: E-justice, federal courts, United States, human rights, banking regulation.

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Authors: Dhananjoy Shaw, Seema Sharma (Kaushik)

Abstract:

Anthropometry helps in associating the physical properties of an individual with their racial, cultural, and psychological attributes. Numerous research studies have included different skeletal diameters as a variable. However, most of the studies suggest their inclusion describing specific characteristics/traits of the body. However, there seems to be a scarcity of literature related to the effect of any kind of longitudinal physical training on human skeletal diameters. Hence, the present investigation was conducted to study the variability of covariance of selected skeletal diameters of females in a longitudinal physical training programme. The sample for the study was 78 college going students of the University of Delhi, classified equally in three groups, i.e. viz. (a) Progressive load of training or conditioning group coded as PLT; (b) Constant load of training or non-conditioning group coded as CLT; and (c) No-load or control or sedentary group coded as NL. Collectively, mean age of the sample was 19.54±1.79 years. The randomly selected samples were given maximum consideration to maintain their homogeneity. The variables included biacromial diameter, biiliocristal diameter, bitrochantaerion diameter, humeral bicondylar, femoral bicondylar, wrist diameter, ankle diameter, and foot breadth. Multi-group repeated measure design was adopted for the experimentation. Each group was measured four times after completion of each of the three meso-cycles of six-weeks duration. The measurements were taken following the standard landmarks and procedures. Mean, standard deviation, analysis of co-variance and its post-hoc analysis were computed to analyze the data statistically. The study concluded that both the progressive and constant load of physical training bring changes in the selected skeletal diameters of females. It also reflected the increase due to growth also along with training.

Keywords: Longitudinal, physical training, skeletal diameters, step progression load.

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Authors: Jureerat Buakaew

Abstract:

The purpose of this research was to investigate Thai Muslims’ way of life through the way their clothes. The data of this qualitative research were collected from related documents and research reports, ancient cloths and clothing, and in-depth interviews with clothes owners and weavers.

The research found that in the 18^th century Thai Muslims in the three southern border provinces used many types of clothing in their life. At home women wore plain clothes. They used checked cloths to cover the upper part of their body from the breasts down to the waist. When going out, they used Lima cloth and So Kae with a piece of Pla-nging cloth as a head scarf. For men, they wore a checked sarong as a lower garment, and wore no upper garment. However, when going out, they wore Puyo Potong. In addition, Thai Muslims used cloths in various religious rites, namely, the rite of placing a baby in a cradle, the Masoyawi rite, the Nikah rite, and the burial rite. These types of cloths were related to the way of life of Thai Muslims from birth to death. They reflected the race, gender, age, social status, values, and beliefs in traditions that have been inherited.

Practical Implication: Woven in these cloths are the lost local wisdom, and therefore, aesthetics on the cloths are like mirrors reflecting the background of people in this region that is fading away. These cloths are pages of a local history book that is of importance and value worth for preservation and publicity so that they are treasured. Government organizations can expand and materialize the knowledge received from the study in accordance with government policy in supporting the One Tambon, One Product project.

Keywords: Way of life, rite of placing a baby in a cradle, Masoyawi rite, Thai Muslims.

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Authors: Prabhat Ranjan Prem, B.H.Bharatkumar, Nagesh R Iyer

Abstract:

A research program is conducted to evaluate the mechanical properties of Ultra High Performance Concrete, target compressive strength at the age of 28 days being more than 150 MPa. The methodology to develop such mix has been explained. The material properties, mix design and curing regime are determined. The material attributes are understood by studying the stress strain behaviour of UHPC cylinders under uniaxial compressive loading. The load –crack mouth opening displacement (cmod) of UHPC beams, flexural strength and fracture energy was evaluated using third point loading test. Compressive strength and Split tensile strength results are determined to find out the compressive and tensile behaviour. Residual strength parameters are presented vividly explaining the flexural performance, toughness of concrete.Durability studies were also done to compare the effect of fibre to that of a control mix For all the studies the Mechanical properties were evaluated by varying the percentage and aspect ratio of steel fibres The results reflected that higher aspect ratio and fibre volume produced drastic changes in the cube strength, cylinder strength, post peak response, load-cmod, fracture energy flexural strength, split tensile strength, residual strength and durability. In regards to null application of UHPC in India, an initiative is undertaken to comprehend the mechanical behaviour of UHPC, which will be vital for longer run in commercialization for structural applications.

Keywords: Ultra High Performance Concrete, Reinforcement Index, Compressive Strength, Tensile Strength, Flexural Strength, Residual Strength, Fracture Energy, Stress-Strain Relationships, Load-Crack Mouth Opening Displacement and Durability.

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Authors: Sakulsri Srisaracam

Abstract:

Social media has become an important source of information for the public and the media profession. Some social issues raised on social media are picked up by journalists to report on other platforms. This relationship between social media and mainstream media can sometimes drive public debate or stimulate social movements. The question to examine is in what situations can social media conversations raise awareness and stimulate change on public issues. This study addresses the communication patterns of social media conversations driving covert issues into mainstream media and leading to social advocacy movements. In methodological terms, the study findings are based on a content analysis of Facebook, Twitter, news websites and television media reports on three different case studies – saving Bryde’s whale, protests against a government proposal to downsize the Office of Knowledge Management and Development in Thailand, and a dengue fever campaign. These case studies were chosen because they represent issues that most members of the public do not pay much attention to but social media conversations stimulated public debate and calls to action. This study found: 1) Collective social media conversations can stimulate public debate and encourage change at three levels – awareness, public debate, and action of policy and social change. The level depends on the communication patterns of online users and media coverage. 2) Patterns of communication have to be designed to combine social media conversations, online opinion leaders, mainstream media coverage and call to both online and offline action to motivate social change. Thus, this result suggests that social media is a powerful platform for collective communication and setting the agenda on public issues for mainstream media. However, for social change to succeed, social media should be used to mobilize online movements to move offline too.

Keywords: Public issue, social media conversation, social media, social movement.

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Authors: M. Nabeel Rashin, J. Hemalatha

Abstract:

Novel Coconut oil nanofluids of various concentrations have been prepared through ultrasonically assisted sol-gel method. The structural and morphological properties of the copper oxide nanoparticle have been analyzed with respectively and it revealed the monoclinic end-centered structure of crystallite and shuttle like flake morphology of agglomerates. Ultrasonic studies have been made for the nanofluids at different temperatures. The molecular interactions responsible for the changes in acoustical parameter with respect to concentration and temperature are discussed.

Keywords: Cutting Fluid, Molecular Interaction, Nanofluids, Ultrasonic

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