bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Dietary Antioxidant Trans-Cinnamaldehyde Reduced Visfatin-Induced Breast Cancer Progression: In Vivo and In Vitro Study
Authors: Chiang Yi-Fen , Chen Hsin-Yuan , Huang Ko-Chieh , Lin Po-Han , Hsia Shih-Min
Published: December 2019

Excessive growth of cancer cells is the main cause of cancer mortality. Therefore, discovering how to inhibit cancer growth is an important research topic. Recently, the newly discovered adipokine, known as nicotinamide phosphoribosyl transferase (NAMPT, visfatin), which has been associated with metabolic syndrome and obesity, has also been found to be a major cause of cancer proliferation. Therefore, inhibition of NAMPT and reduction of Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) synthesis is one strategy for cancer therapy. Cinnamaldehyde (CA), as an antioxidant and anticancer natural compound, may have the ability to inhibit visfatin. The breast cancer cell line and xenograft animal models were treated under different dosages of visfatin combined with CA and FK866 (a visfatin inhibitor) to test for cell toxicity, as well as inhibition of tumor-related proliferation of protein expression. In the breast cancer cell and the xenograft animal model, visfatin significantly increased proliferation-related protein expression, but combination with CA or FK866 significantly reduced visfatin-induced carcinogenic effects. For the first time, a natural compound inhibiting extracellular and intracellular NAMPT has been demonstrated. We hope that, in the future, this can be used as a potential anticancer compound and provide further directions for research.
Development of Detection System with Low Predictive Errors for Determining Vitamin C Content of Indian Jujube
Authors: Hua Shih-Hao , Hsu Hsun-Ching , Han Pin
Published: December 2019

Herein, we developed a nondestructive detection system with low prediction errors for determining the vitamin C content in Indian jujube. This system comprises a Ge photodetector, a halogen lamp and five near-infrared (NIR) bandpass filters. The detection of vitamin C is enabled by the absorption of its OH and CH2 bonds in the NIR region. The light beams of our system were parallel-polarized and designed to be incident on the fruit at the Brewster angle (θB), which reduces reflectance noise from the fruit’s skin and enhances the OH and CH2 absorption signals of the fruit’s flesh. After the reflectance signal was analyzed by the partial least squares (PLS) algorithm to obtain the predicted vitamin C content of each fruit, the coefficient of prediction ( r p 2 ) and root-mean-square error of prediction (RMSEP) were calculated. When wavelengths of 1200, 1400, 1450, 1500 and 1550 nm were used for probing, r p 2 and RMSEP of the system detecting vitamin C were 0.84 and 1.65 mg/100 g, respectively. In summary, the vitamin C content of Indian jujube was predicted using a low-cost NIR detection system having a high r p 2 and low RMSEP; further, it comprises five parallel-polarized NIR beams and the PLS algorithm.
Potential of Novel Bacterial Cellulose Dressings Chemisorbed with Antiseptics for the Treatment of Oral Biofilm Infections
Authors: Krasowski Grzegorz , Wicher-Dudek Ruth , Paleczny Justyna , Bil-Lula Iwona , Fijałkowski Karol , Sedghizadeh Parish Paymon , Szymczyk Patrycja , Dudek Bartłomiej , Bartoszewicz Marzenna , Junka Adam
Published: December 2019

Infections of the oral cavity are caused by multicellular communities of microbes, referred to as biofilms. Due to the high tolerance of biofilms to antibiotics and specific conditions within the oral cavity, there is an ongoing search for carriers that are able to deliver high local concentrations of potent antimicrobials that can eradicate pathogenic biofilms. Bacterial cellulose, owing to its high flexibility, absorbance, and release potential, meets these demands. In this work we chemisorbed bacterial cellulose with antiseptics containing povidone-iodine or polihexanide and analyzed their ability to eradicate in vitro biofilms formed by oral pathogens, such as Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans, Enterococcus faecalis, Candida albicans, Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. In tests performed by means of standard laboratory methods and with a long contact time (24 h), all antiseptics released from the cellulose dressings displayed a very high antibiofilm efficacy. On the other hand, when conditions imitating the oral cavity were used and cellulose dressings were applied for a 0.5–1 h contact time, the antiseptics released from the dressings displayed lower, though still acceptable, activity. Our findings indicate that besides species-specific resistance to particular antiseptic agents, environmental and experimental settings play an essential role in outcomes. Finally, in a proof-of-concept experiment performed in an oral cavity typodont model, we demonstrated the high flexibility and adhesiveness of antiseptic-containing cellulose dressings. Our novel findings, if developed in further studies, may lead to the introduction of new types of dressings that are able to efficiently deal with biofilm infections of the oral cavity.
Filtering of Irrelevant Clashes Detected by BIM Software Using a Hybrid Method of Rule-Based Reasoning and Supervised Machine Learning
Authors: Lin Will Y. , Huang Ying-Hua
Published: December 2019

Construction projects are usually designed by different professional teams, where design clashes may inevitably occur. With the clash detection tools provided by Building Information Modeling (BIM) software, these clashes can be discovered at an early stage. However, the number of clashes detected by BIM software is often huge. The literature states that the majority of those clashes are found to be irrelevant, i.e., harmless to the building and its construction. How to filter out these irrelevant clashes from the detection report is one of the issues to be resolved urgently in the construction industry. This study develops a method that automatically screens for irrelevant clashes by combining the two techniques of rule-based reasoning and supervised machine learning. First, we acquire experts’ knowledge through interviews to compile rules for the preliminary classification of clash types. Subsequently, the results of the initial classification inferred by the rules are added into the training dataset to improve the predictive performance of the classifiers implemented by supervised machine learning. The average predictive performance obtained by using the hybrid method is up to 0.96, which has been improved from the traditional machine learning process only using individual or ensemble learning classifiers by 6%–17%.
A Fuzzy-Based Holistic Approach for Supply Chain Risk Assessment and Aggregation Considering Risk Interdependencies
Authors: Díaz-Curbelo Alina , Gento Ángel M. , Redondo Alfonso , Aqlan Faisal
Published: December 2019

Supply chain risk management requires dealing with uncertainty, interrelations, and subjectivity inherent in the risk assessment process. This paper proposes a holistic approach for risk management that considers the impact on multiple performance objectives, the relation between risk agents, and the risk event interdependencies. An aggregated risk score is proposed to capture the cascading effects of common risk triggers and quantify the aggregated score by risk agent and objective. The approach also uses fuzzy logic to allow for the treatment of vague and ambiguity data as input parameters to the model from different domains and scales, according to knowledge and criteria nature. The integration of the balanced scorecard tool improves the analysis and prioritization of mitigation strategies in decision-making, both by risk agent and by strategic objective. A case study of a telecommunication company is presented to illustrate the applicability of the proposed approach.
Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer in Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder
Authors: Álvarez-Sesmero Sonia , Povedano-Montero Francisco J. , Arias-Horcajadas Francisco , Marín-Mayor Marta , Navarrete-Chamorro Patricia , Raga-Martínez Isidoro , Rubio Gabriel , López-Muñoz Francisco
Published: December 2019

The objectives of the present study are to determine the effects of alcohol use on the retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness and macular thickness of abstinent patients with alcohol use disorders (AUD) and to assess whether it correlates with alcohol consumption and/or cognitive impairment. This was a prospective, observational study that included 21 patients (42 eyes) and 21 controls (42 eyes). Patients met the criteria for early remission AUD at the moment of inclusion. We used optical coherence tomography to assess retinal thickness. Macular thickness in the group of AUD patients was lower in all quadrants (p < 0.05), with the exception of the peripheral and central. Regarding the nerve fiber layer in the macular and papilla areas, we found no significant differences. At the retina ganglion cell layer and in the nerve fiber of the macula, we found significant differences in all quadrants (p < 0.05), with the exception of the superior and superior nasal area, for the right eye. For the left eye, the only differences were found in the lower quadrant. Finally, when comparing the AUD patients to the controls, we found significant reductions in the ganglion cell layer of the macula in all quadrants in the former. There was a significant correlation between these findings and cognitive impairment (measured with the Test de Detección de Deterioro Cognitivo en Alcoholismo (TEDCA)), but not with alcohol consumption. Alcohol consumption is correlated with retinal harm and related cognitive decline.
Fast Implicit Surface Reconstruction for the Radial Basis Functions Interpolant
Authors: Zhong Deyun , Zhang Ju , Wang Liguan
Published: December 2019

In this paper we improve an efficient implicit surface reconstruction method based on the surface following method for the radial basis functions interpolant. The method balances the reconstruction efficiency and the evaluation efficiency in the process of surface following. The growing strategy of the surface following method combines both the evaluation and reconstruction processes. Based on the analysis of the black-box fast multipole method (FMM) operations, we improve the FMM procedures for single point evaluation. The goal is to ensure that one point evaluation of the method obtains an optimum efficiency, so that it can be efficiently applied to the voxel growing method. Combined with the single point FMM, we improve the voxel growing method without manually specifying the seed points, and the leaf growing method is developed to avoid a mass of redundant computation. It ensures a smaller number of evaluation points and a higher evaluation efficiency in surface following. The numerical results of several data sets showed the reliability and performance of the efficient implicit surface reconstruction method. Compared with the existing methods, the improved method performs a better time and space efficiency.
Analysis of Methanol Gasoline by ATR-FT-IR Spectroscopy
Authors: XIA Qi , YUAN Lei-ming , CHEN Xiaojing , MENG Liuwei , HUANG Guangzao
Published: December 2019

Methanol gasoline blends are a more economical, and environmentally friendly fuels than gasoline alone, and are widely used in the transportation industry. The content of methanol in methanol gasoline plays an important role in ensuring the quality of gasoline. In some solutions, due to the shortage of energy and illegal profits, the problem of gasoline adulteration and its fineness, has received more and more attention, which would seriously affect the operating condition and service life of internal combustion engines. Therefore, it is very important to identify the correct level of gasoline. However, the traditional detection method is complex and time-consuming. To this end, the feasibility of using attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) methods coupled with chemometrics methods were investigated to quantitatively and qualitatively analyze methanol gasoline. The qualitative analysis result of partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) obtained 100% and 98.66% accuracy in the calibration set and the prediction set, respectively. As for quantitative analysis; two regression algorithms of partial least squares regression (PLSR) and the least square support vector machine (LS-SVM), as well as two variables selection methods of the successive projections algorithm (UVE) competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) and uninformative variable elimination (UVE) were combined to establish the quantitative model. By comparing the performance of the optimal models; the UVE-PLSR model performed best with a residual predictive deviation (RPD) value of 6.420. The qualitative and quantitative analysis results demonstrate the feasibility of using ATR-FTIR spectra to detect the methanol in methanol gasoline. It is believed that the promising IR spectra will be widely used in gasoline energy quality control in the further.
Kinetics, Isotherms and Thermodynamic Modeling of Liquid Phase Adsorption of Crystal Violet Dye onto Shrimp-Waste in Its Raw, Pyrolyzed Material and Activated Charcoals
Authors: Rojas John , Suarez David , Moreno Alfredo , Silva-Agredo Javier , Torres-Palma Ricardo A.
Published: December 2019

Shrimp waste and its charcoal derivatives were evaluated for the removal of crystal violet. Activation was conducted at 500 °C with phosphoric acid at the 1:2 and 1:3 ratios. Activated charcoals were more porous and had a more roughly surface containing mainly C, O, Ca N, and P. Equilibrium adsorption data were fitted using seven kinetic and six isotherms models. Activation created acidic moieties (>4700 µmol/g) and reduced the point of zero charge (<2.5). Freundlich isotherm best described the uptake of the dye onto the adsorbents suggesting a heterogeneous adsorption, whereas the Bangham and Avrami models best described the kinetics of adsorption process. An endothermic and spontaneous physisorption was responsible for the sorption phenomena in most adsorbents. The high removal of crystal violet was attributed to the high ionization capacity of the adsorbent coupled with the high external surface area (>44 m2/g). The best adsorption capacity (208 mg/g) was found for the activated and charred materials, whereas the lowest one (3.9 mg/g) was found for the pyrolyzed material. This research creates the possibility to deal with two environmental problems: (i) the reuse of shrimp waste and (ii) the removal of water pollutants such as crystal violet.
A Vulnerable Environment Study in Karst Regions between 1991 and 2017: A Bibliometric Analysis
Authors: Shi Pengtao , Zhang Tianshu , Liu Ziqi , Lan Jiacheng , Fan Xin
Published: December 2019

In order to understand the research hotspots and the development directions in the field of vulnerable karst environment, we undertook bibliometrics citation analysis on 5425 contributions to the literature written in the range from 1991 to 2017 based on the “Web of Science” core collection citation index database. Hopefully, this work will help to set up a scientific foundation for further studies. This research considered the following factors: keywords frequency, influence of author, research hotspot, reference citation network, research institution and the evolution of research topic. It was revealed that the research interests were focused on water, cave, and soil environments and implicated trends switching from a water environment to cave and eco-environment and from ecological restoration and rehabilitation to karst rocky desertification. A European-American-Chinese centered cooperation network has shown its initial form. This research will offer researchers a bird’s eye view of the global vulnerable karst environment and point out the directions of further study.
On Transparency and Accountability of Smart Assistants in Smart Cities
Authors: Elahi Haroon , Wang Guojun , Peng Tao , Chen Jianer
Published: December 2019

Smart Assistants have rapidly emerged in smartphones, vehicles, and many smart home devices. Establishing comfortable personal spaces in smart cities requires that these smart assistants are transparent in design and implementation—a fundamental trait required for their validation and accountability. In this article, we take the case of Google Assistant (GA), a state-of-the-art smart assistant, and perform its diagnostic analysis from the transparency and accountability perspectives. We compare our discoveries from the analysis of GA with those of four leading smart assistants. We use two online user studies (N = 100 and N = 210) conducted with students from four universities in three countries (China, Italy, and Pakistan) to learn whether risk communication in GA is transparent to its potential users and how it affects them. Our research discovered that GA has unusual permission requirements and sensitive Application Programming Interface (API) usage, and its privacy requirements are not transparent to smartphone users. The findings suggest that this lack of transparency makes the risk assessment and accountability of GA difficult posing risks to establishing private and secure personal spaces in a smart city. Following the separation of concerns principle, we suggest that autonomous bodies should develop standards for the design and development of smart city products and services.
Effect of Processing Parameters on the Dynamic Characteristic of Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing Plates
Authors: Jiang Shijie , Shi Yinfang , Siyajeu Yannick , Zhan Ming , Zhao Chunyu , Li Changyou
Published: December 2019

Material extrusion (ME), an additive manufacturing technique, can fabricate parts almost without geometrical limitations. With the growing application of ME parts, especially in actual working conditions, the dynamic characteristics are needed to be studied to accurately determine their reliability. This study provides an experimental validation of the theoretical model for predicting the dynamic characteristics of ME plates fabricated with three different key processing parameters, i.e., extrusion width, layer height and build direction. The model is set up based on the bidirectional beam function combination method, and a series of experimental tests are performed. It is found that different processing parameters result in the material properties of the samples to vary, thus leading to different dynamic characteristics. Through the comparison between predictions and measurements, it is shown that the influencing trend of the processing parameters is predicted precisely. The theoretical model gives reliable predictions in dynamic characteristics of ME plates. The natural frequency discrepancy is below 13.4%, and the predicted mode shapes are the same as the measured ones. This present work provides theoretical basis and technical support for further research in improving the dynamic performance of ME products, and helps extend the applications of this technique.
Chemical and Enzymatic Treatment of Hemp Biomass for Bioethanol Production
Authors: Wawro Aleksandra , Batog Jolanta , Gieparda Weronika
Published: December 2019

In this study chemical and enzymatic treatment of hemp biomass were optimized to obtain maximum ethanol production. In the first stage, physical and chemical pretreatment of hemp biomass was carried out. It was found that the Tygra variety is susceptible to alkaline treatment at an optimum concentration of 2% NaOH. Next, the effect of NaOH on the value of reducing sugars and the chemical composition of the solid fraction before and after the treatment was determined. Hemp biomass before and after the chemical treatment was analysed by FTIR spectra and SEM. The effect of enzymatic hydrolysis, i.e., substrate content, temperature, time, pH and dose of enzyme by means of Response Surface Methodology on glucose content was determined. The highest glucose value was observed at 50 °C, in time process between 48 and 72 h, and the dose of enzyme was not less than 20 FPU·g−1. After the optimization of enzymatic hydrolysis two processes of ethanol fermentation from hemp biomass, SHF and SSF, were carried out. In the SHF process a 40% higher concentration of ethanol was obtained (10.51 g/L). In conclusion, hemp biomass was found to be an interesting and promising source to be used for bioethanol production.
Dynamic Psychotherapy: The Therapeutic Process in the Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Authors: Becker Joana Proença , Paixão Rui , Silva Simone , Quartilho Manuel João , Custódio Eda M.
Published: December 2019

Dynamic Psychotherapy (DP) was developed to overcome the limitations of traditional psychoanalysis, responding to a broader demand of patients who seek help to cope with specific problems in the short term, such as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). OCD is a chronic disabling mental disorder that leads to substantial distress, functional disability and severe occupational and social impairments. Recognizing the literature gap in this field, and the improvements reported by dynamic therapists who have dealt with patients suffering from OCD, a study on the treatment of these patients was conducted in order to discuss the effects of this technique. The method involved a narrative literature review and the analysis of two clinical cases to discuss therapeutic processes, which include the specificities of OCD patients and the mechanisms adopted in the treatment through DP. The therapist’s active stance seemed to be essential to encourage the patient to face feared situations and identify the core conflict. Both patients who were treated through DP presented similarities, such as high anxiety, feelings of guilt and inhibition of aggressive and sexual impulses. Through emotional exploration, confrontation of defensive functioning and interpretative interventions of inner conflicts, patients had reached awareness of their hidden feelings and experiences, and their symptoms and feelings of guilt decreased. They also showed significant improvements in their interpersonal relationships. Although both treatments do not fit into short-term therapies, this technique has led to long-term results, providing evidence that DP may produce favorable outcomes in the treatment of OCD.
The Effect of 12 Hour Shifts, Time of Day, and Sleepiness on Emotional Empathy and Burnout in Medical Students
Authors: Fowler Lauren A. , Ellis Shannon
Published: December 2019

Sleepiness decreases alertness and results in decrements in performance. This is especially problematic in the healthcare field due to restricted sleep from shift-work. Sleepiness increases medical errors, but it also affects emotions and interpersonal interactions. Empathy in physicians is a desirable trait which is associated with increased patient recovery rates and patient satisfaction, and decreased use of pain medication. Shift-work may alter empathy in physicians and affect patient outcomes, but the effects of sleepiness on empathy are unknown. Empathy, which is related to burnout, declines during medical school, while incidence of burnout increases. This study assessed the effect of sleepiness from time of day (TOD) and 12 h shifts on empathy and burnout in medical students. Participants were tested on sleepiness and empathy prior to and immediately following a 12 h Emergency Medical Technician shift. Burnout was assessed following each shift to determine if it was affected by sleepiness, empathy, and shift. TOD affected empathy, with empathy highest in the evening. Sleepiness from working 12 h shifts resulted in decreased empathy and increased burnout, with females showing higher rates on the exhaustion component of burnout. This research demonstrates that TOD affects empathy, and sleepiness decreases empathy and increases burnout in medical students.
Certified Randomness From Steering Using Sequential Measurements
Authors: Coyle Brian , Kashefi Elham , Hoban Matty J.
Published: December 2019

The generation of certifiable randomness is one of the most promising applications of quantum technologies. Furthermore, the intrinsic non-locality of quantum correlations allow us to certify randomness in a device-independent way, i.e., we do not need to make assumptions about the devices used. Due to the work of Curchod et al. a single entangled two-qubit pure state can be used to produce arbitrary amounts of certified randomness. However, the obtaining of this randomness is experimentally challenging as it requires a large number of measurements, both projective and general. Motivated by these difficulties in the device-independent setting, we instead consider the scenario of one-sided device independence where certain devices are trusted, and others are not; a scenario motivated by asymmetric experimental set-ups such as ion-photon networks. We show how certain aspects of previous works can be adapted to this scenario and provide theoretical bounds on the amount of randomness that can be certified. Furthermore, we give a protocol for unbounded randomness certification in this scenario, and provide numerical results demonstrating the protocol in the ideal case. Finally, we numerically test the possibility of implementing this scheme on near-term quantum technologies, by considering the performance of the protocol on several physical platforms.
Isomorphous Crystals Formed by the Similar Supramolecular Motifs in Sorafenib Hydrochloride and Regorafenib Hydrochloride Salts
Authors: Phan Chi Uyen , Shen Jie , Liu Jiyong , Mao Jianming , Hu Xiurong , Tang Guping
Published: December 2019

Sorafenib and regorafenib (or fluoro-sorafenib) are multikinase inhibitors active in the treatment of various human cancers, but their solubilities are very poor. To improve their solubilities, in this study, sorafenib hydrochloride (Sor·HCl, I) and regorafenib hydrochloride (Reg·HCl, II) have been prepared and their crystal structures were characterized. Their solubility properties in water were evaluated. Intriguingly, they are isomorphous crystal structures with the same space group and the similar unit cell dimensions, which were caused by the similar supramolecular patterns resulted by the formation of N–H···Cl− hydrogen bond instead of hydrogen bond between the protonated pyridinium cation and counterion. Moreover, the solubility properties displayed identical profiles. It may be concluded that a similar crystal structure leads to a comparable solubility profile.
An Entropy Analysis of Classroom Conditions Based on Mathematical Social Science
Authors: Koyama Kazuo , Niwase Keisuke
Published: December 2019

In classroom management, it is well-known that students’ mental states are strongly related to classroom conditions. There are many ways to describe human behavior in mathematical modeling in sociology. In social science, a model to describe human behavior has been developed by an analogy with the ferromagnetic spin model in statistical physics. Entropy, on the other hand, can express the order and/or disorder in many-body systems. The concept of entropy can be extended to continuous random variables in the information theory, which is called “differential entropy” and has been a powerful tool in many stochastic systems. Here, we show that classroom conditions can be expressed by the differential entropy, based on the model used in social science. To assess the applicability of this method to real classroom conditions, we investigated fluctuations in students’ minds with pictures and a questionnaire relating to school life, and then applied this to the present method, and calculated the differential entropy. The results correspond well with real classroom conditions, and suggest the usefulness of the present method. The significance of the present research is the proposal of a new method which has not yet been used in educational psychology.
High-Level Synthesis of Multiclass SVM Using Code Refactoring to Classify Brain Cancer from Hyperspectral Images
Authors: Baez Abelardo , Fabelo Himar , Ortega Samuel , Florimbi Giordana , Torti Emanuele , Hernandez Abian , Leporati Francesco , Danese Giovanni , M. Callico Gustavo , Sarmiento Roberto
Published: December 2019

Currently, high-level synthesis (HLS) methods and tools are a highly relevant area in the strategy of several leading companies in the field of system-on-chips (SoCs) and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). HLS facilitates the work of system developers, who benefit from integrated and automated design workflows, considerably reducing the design time. Although many advances have been made in this research field, there are still some uncertainties about the quality and performance of the designs generated with the use of HLS methodologies. In this paper, we propose an optimization of the HLS methodology by code refactoring using Xilinx SDSoCTM (Software-Defined System-On-Chip). Several options were analyzed for each alternative through code refactoring of a multiclass support vector machine (SVM) classifier written in C, using two different Zynq®-7000 SoC devices from Xilinx, the ZC7020 (ZedBoard) and the ZC7045 (ZC706). The classifier was evaluated using a brain cancer database of hyperspectral images. The proposed methodology not only reduces the required resources using less than 20% of the FPGA, but also reduces the power consumption −23% compared to the full implementation. The speedup obtained of 2.86× (ZC7045) is the highest found in the literature for SVM hardware implementations.
Stability and Thermal Properties Study of Metal Chalcogenide-Based Nanofluids for Concentrating Solar Power
Authors: Martínez-Merino Paloma , Alcántara Rodrigo , Aguilar Teresa , Gallardo Juan Jesús , Carrillo-Berdugo Iván , Gómez-Villarejo Roberto , Rodríguez-Fernández Mabel , Navas Javier
Published: December 2019

Nanofluids are colloidal suspensions of nanomaterials in a fluid which exhibit enhanced thermophysical properties compared to conventional fluids. The addition of nanomaterials to a fluid can increase the thermal conductivity, isobaric-specific heat, diffusivity, and the convective heat transfer coefficient of the original fluid. For this reason, nanofluids have been studied over the last decades in many fields such as biomedicine, industrial cooling, nuclear reactors, and also in solar thermal applications. In this paper, we report the preparation and characterization of nanofluids based on one-dimensional MoS2 and WS2 nanosheets to improve the thermal properties of the heat transfer fluid currently used in concentrating solar plants (CSP). A comparative study of both types of nanofluids was performed for explaining the influence of nanostructure morphologies on nanofluid stability and thermal properties. The nanofluids prepared in this work present a high stability over time and thermal conductivity enhancements of up to 46% for MoS2-based nanofluid and up to 35% for WS2-based nanofluid. These results led to an increase in the efficiency of the solar collectors of 21.3% and 16.8% when the nanofluids based on MoS2 nanowires or WS2 nanosheets were used instead of the typical thermal oil.
Integration of Stationary Batteries for Fast Charge EV Charging Stations
Authors: De Simone Davide , Piegari Luigi
Published: December 2019

One of the biggest issues preventing the spread of electric vehicles is the difficulty in supporting distributed fast charging stations by actual distribution grids. Indeed, a significant amount of power is required for fast charging, especially if multiple vehicles must be supplied simultaneously. A possible solution to mitigate this problem is the installation of auxiliary batteries in the charging station to support the grid during high peak power demands. Nevertheless, the integration of high-voltage batteries with significant power is not a trivial task. This paper proposes the configuration and control of a converter to integrate batteries in a fast charging station. The proposed configuration makes it possible to decouple the grid power from the vehicle power using several auxiliary battery modules. At the same time, the converter makes it possible to draw different amounts of power from the battery modules, allowing the use of second life batteries performing in different ways. This paper discusses the design, control, and operation of the converter. Moreover, the effectiveness of the proposed control is shown by means of numerical results.
Quantification of Efficiency Improvements from Integration of Battery Energy Storage Systems and Renewable Energy Sources into Domestic Distribution Networks
Authors: Farrag Mohamed E. A. , Hepburn Donald M , Garcia Belen
Published: December 2019

Due to the increasing use of renewable, non-controllable energy generation systems energy storage systems (ESS) are seen as a necessary part of future power delivery systems. ESS have gained research interest and practical implementation over the past decade and this is expected to continue into the future. This is due to the economic and operational benefits for both network operators and customers, battery energy storage system (BESS) is used as the main focus of this research paper. This paper presents an analytical study of the benefits of deploying distributed BESS in an electrical distribution network (DN). The work explores the optimum location of installing BESS and its impact on the DN performance and possible future investment. This study provides a comparison between bulk energy storage installed at three different locations; medium voltage (MV) side and low voltage (LV) side of the distribution transformer (DT) and distributed energy storage at customers’ feeders. The performance of a typical UK DN is examined under different penetration levels of wind energy generation units and BESS. The results show that the minimum storage size is obtained when BESS is installed next to the DT. However, the power loss is reduced to its minimum when BESS and wind energy are both distributed at load busbars. The study demonstrates that BESS installation has improved the loss of life factor of the distribution transformer.
A Simple Calibration Procedure for an LPIT plus PMU System Under Off-Nominal Conditions
Authors: Mingotti Alessandro , Peretto Lorenzo , Tinarelli Roberto , Angioni Andrea , Monti Antonello , Ponci Ferdinanda
Published: December 2019

This work deals with two paramount devices when Smart Grids are concerned: phasor measurement units (PMUs) and low-power instrument transformers (LPITs). In particular, a simple calibration procedure to test the measurement chain PMU + LPIT has been developed. The procedure involves steady-state conditions of the grid and off-nominal input signals for testing current, voltage, frequency, and rate of change of frequency (ROCOF). In addition, the procedure includes a preliminary testing of the PMU without the LPIT to understand the influence of the latter. The procedure is then applied to a specific case study: a low-cost PMU developed by the authors and one of the most common LPITs adopted in Italian medium voltage networks. The obtained results are promising for two reasons. First, the low-cost PMU works correctly even in off-nominal conditions of the grid; second, the presented calibration procedure demonstrated to be effective and applicable to very common equipment, using a rather simple test setup.
Using Legitimation Code Theory to Conceptualize Learning Opportunities in Fluid Mechanics
Authors: Pott Robert W. M. , Wolff Karin
Published: December 2019

With widespread industry feedback on engineering graduates’ lack of technical skills and research demonstrating that higher education does not effectively facilitate the development of open-ended problem-solving competencies, many educators are attempting to implement measures that address these concerns. In order to properly formulate sensible interventions that result in meaningful improvements in student outcomes, useful educational measurement and analysis approaches are needed. Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) has rapidly emerged as an effective, theoretically informed ‘toolkit’ offering a suite of dimensions through which to observe, analyze, interpret, and design teaching and learning practices. LCT Semantics has been used to help engineering educators unpack both levels of engineering knowledge abstraction and the complexity of engineering terms, while LCT Specialization focuses on knowledge practices (using the epistemic plane) and enables a visualization and differentiation between kinds of phenomena and the fixed versus open-ended methods with which to approach a particular phenomenon. Drawing on a range of initiatives to enable an improved practical grasp of fluid mechanics concepts, this paper presents a description and graphic LCT analysis of student learning that has been designed to anchor the ‘purist’ principles underpinning applied fluid mechanics concepts (such as in piping and pump network design) by way of concerted ‘doctrinal’ practices, and the exposure to more open-ended practical situations involving peer learning/group work, allowing educators to visualize the code clash between the curriculum and the world of work.
Diet and Genetics Influence Beef Cattle Performance and Meat Quality Characteristics
Authors: Mwangi Felista W. , Charmley Edward , Gardiner Christopher P. , Malau-Aduli Bunmi S. , Kinobe Robert T. , Malau-Aduli Aduli E. O.
Published: December 2019

A comprehensive review of the impact of tropical pasture grazing, nutritional supplementation during feedlot finishing and fat metabolism-related genes on beef cattle performance and meat-eating traits is presented. Grazing beef cattle on low quality tropical forages with less than 5.6% crude protein, 10% soluble starches and 55% digestibility experience liveweight loss. However, backgrounding beef cattle on high quality leguminous forages and feedlot finishing on high-energy diets increase meat flavour, tenderness and juiciness due to improved intramuscular fat deposition and enhanced mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids. This paper also reviews the roles of stearoyl-CoA desaturase, fatty acid binding protein 4 and fatty acid synthase genes and correlations with meat traits. The review argues that backgrounding of beef cattle on Desmanthus, an environmentally well-adapted and vigorous tropical legume that can persistently survive under harsh tropical and subtropical conditions, has the potential to improve animal performance. It also identifies existing knowledge gaps and research opportunities in nutrition-genetics interactions aimed at a greater understanding of grazing nutrition, feedlot finishing performance, and carcass traits of northern Australian tropical beef cattle to enable red meat industry players to work on marbling, juiciness, tenderness and overall meat-eating characteristics.
The Influence of Workplace Incivility on Employees’ Emotional Exhaustion in Recreational Sport/Fitness Clubs: A Cross-Level Analysis of the Links between Psychological Capital and Perceived Service Climate
Authors: Chang Chia-Ming , Liu Li-Wei , Huang Hsiu-Chin , Hsieh Huey-Hong
Published: December 2019

The aim of this study was to explore the influence of workplace incivility on the emotional exhaustion of recreational sport/fitness club providers through a cross-level analysis. A total of 200 recreational sport/fitness club providers from Taiwan were selected for the repeated collection of measures and a 10-day diary method was used. The effect of workplace incivility on recreational sport/fitness club employees’ emotional exhaustion on a daily basis was analyzed at the intra-personal level, and the relationship between psychological capital and perceived service climate was studied at the inter-personal level. Five hypotheses were developed and tested using hierarchical linear modeling. The results found that employees’ emotional exhaustion and burnout highly correlated with workplace incivility and service climate. Based on the results, recommendations for employees and sport/fitness centers are proposed. Furthermore, research limitations and future directions are discussed.
Regulating the Fast-Food Landscape: Canadian News Media Representation of the Healthy Menu Choices Act
Authors: Moghimi Elnaz , Wiktorowicz Mary E
Published: December 2019

With the rapid rise of fast food consumption in Canada, Ontario was the first province to legislate menu labelling requirements via the enactment of the Healthy Menu Choice Act (HMCA). As the news media plays a significant role in policy debates and the agenda for policymakers and the public, the purpose of this mixed-methods study was to clarify the manner in which the news media portrayed the strengths and critiques of the Act, and its impact on members of the community, including consumers and stakeholders. Drawing on data from Canadian regional and national news outlets, the major findings highlight that, although the media reported that the HMCA was a positive step forward, this was tempered by critiques concerning the ineffectiveness of using caloric labelling as the sole measure of health, and its predicted low impact on changing consumption patterns on its own. Furthermore, the news media were found to focus accountability for healthier eating choices largely on the individual, with very little consideration of the role of the food industry or the social and structural determinants that affect food choice. A strong conflation of health, weight and calories was apparent, with little acknowledgement of the implications of menu choice for chronic illness. The analysis demonstrates that the complex factors associated with food choice were largely unrecognized by the media, including the limited extent to which social, cultural, political and corporate determinants of unhealthy choices were taken into account as the legislation was developed. Greater recognition of these factors by the media concerning the HMCA may evoke more meaningful and long-term change for health and food choices.
Promoting Good Public Governance and Environmental Support for Sustainable Economic Development
Authors: Noja Gratiela Georgiana , Cristea Mirela , Sirghi Nicoleta , Hategan Camelia-Daniela , D’Anselmi Paolo
Published: December 2019

Good governance promotes the fundamental grounds of participation and democracy in contemporary public administration, whilst institution building and the (in)effectiveness of public administration is linked to economic growth. This synergy brings forth sheer implications on the sustainable economic development. On this composite setting, the paper examines several fundamental credentials of public administration in the European Union (EU) countries, in relation to economic development, but also poverty, research, and development support, as representative socio-economic credentials. The empirical analysis is based on data covering the 1995–2017 lapse of time, processed through three econometric procedures, namely robust regression, structural equation modeling, and Gaussian graphical models. The main results emphasize that there are significant joint implications of public administration on the considered socio-economic dimensions. General government spending and, particularly, the environmental support, have positive implications on the European Union economies, leading to significant increases in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita and downsize in poverty risk (more emphasized in regard to the government expenditures than the environmental protection). Overall, the quality of governance in EU countries requires an additional effort dedicated to leverage good public governance in order to support the long-term economic development.
Does Nut Consumption Reduce Mortality and/or Risk of Cardiometabolic Disease? An Updated Review Based on Meta-Analyses
Authors: Kim Yoona , Keogh Jennifer B , Clifton Peter M
Published: December 2019

Aim We aimed to determine if nut consumption decreases mortality and/or the risk of cardiometabolic diseases based on updated meta-analyses of epidemiological and intervention studies. Methods. An updated electronic search was conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), and the Cochrane Library databases for original meta-analyses to investigate the effects of nut consumption on cardiometabolic disease in humans. Results. Seven new meta-analyses were included in this updated review. Findings similar to our previous review were observed, showing that nut consumption significantly decreased cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality (−19% to −25%; n = 4), coronary heart disease (CHD) mortality (−24% to −30%; n = 3), stroke mortality (−17% to −18%; n = 3), CVD incidence (−15% to −19 %; n = 4), CHD [or coronary artery disease (CAD)] incidence (−17% to −34%; n = 8), and stroke incidence (−10% to −11%; n = 6) comparing high with low categories of nut consumption. Fasting glucose levels (0.08 to 0.15 mmol/L; n = 6), total cholesterol (TC; 0.021 to 0.30 mmol/L; n = 10), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C; 0.017 to 0.26 mmol/L; n = 10) were significantly decreased with nut consumption compared with control diets. Body weight and blood pressure were not significantly affected by nut consumption. Conclusion. Nut consumption appears to exert a protective effect on cardiometabolic disease, possibly through improved concentrations of fasting glucose, total cholesterol, and LDL-C.
Critical Success Factors of Medical Tourism: The Case of South Korea
Authors: Kim Soojung , Arcodia Charles , Kim Insin
Published: December 2019

The purpose of this study was to identify the key success factors of medical tourism using the case of South Korea. Medical tourism refers to the phenomenon of travelling across national borders intentionally to access a variety of medical treatments, especially modern medical treatment. Through conducting semi-structure face-to-face in-depth interviews with the service suppliers of Korean medical tourism, it was discovered that Korean medical tourism has been facilitated by the effect of Hallyu and advanced Korean brand power. More importantly, tourism activities for companions and extra support for patients’ convenience are identified as important success factors of Korean medical tourism, suggesting that the medical tourism industry not only includes medical services but also involves tourism perspectives, supporting the patient and their companions to stay in a comfortable and pleasurable environment. This study generated results which are valuable for both academic and industry perspectives, as this is a field which has not been extensively researched. Medical tourism representatives in other countries can consult these findings to develop the industry.
How Do Health and Social Networks Compare between Low-Income Multiproblem Households and the General Population?
Authors: Nagelhout Gera E. , Abidi Latifa , de Vries Hein
Published: December 2019

Multiproblem households that receive social care for multiple problems, such as debts, psychiatric disorders, and domestic violence, may also be disadvantaged in terms of health and social networks. This study examines whether low-income multiproblem households and the general population differ in self-perceived health, mental health, health behaviors, and social networks. We performed a cross-sectional survey among respondents from low-income multiproblem households (n = 105) and the general population (n = 99) in the municipality of Apeldoorn in the Netherlands. Comparisons with national statistics data indicated that our sample of multiproblem households is more disadvantaged in terms of self-perceived health and mental health than low socioeconomic groups in general in the Netherlands. A multiple logistic regression analysis showed that being part of the multiproblem household group versus the general population group was associated with a lower educational level, a lower likelihood of being in paid employment, a lower score with respect to mental health, less alcohol consumption, and less fruit consumption. There were also differences between the groups on other variables, but these were not significant in adjusted analyses. In conclusion, multiproblem households in Apeldoorn had lower scores on mental health, drank fewer alcoholic drinks per week, and ate less fruit than the general population.