bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The study of clinical and endoscopic spectrum of upper gastrointestinal manifestations in HIV patients
Authors: Parashar Raman , Kaushik Deepali , Malik Praveen K.
Published: April 2018

Background: Opportunistic disorders are the most frequent GI complications of HIV infection and remain a major cause of morbidity and mortality in these patients. These disorders account for high prevalence of upper gastrointestinal symptoms such as dysphagia, odynophagia, retrosternal chest pain, abdominal pain and upper GI bleeding. Hence an attempt is being made to study clinical, endoscopic and biopsy changes in HIV patients with upper GI symptoms which helps us to make early diagnosis of upper GI disorders in HIV patients.Methods: HIV positive patients above 14 yrs diagnosed on the basis of recent NACO criteria having Upper G.I. symptoms, attending OPD of Department of Medicine admitted in Wards. All fifty three patients with upper G.I. symptoms were subjected to detail history, thorough clinical examination, routine and special investigations and Upper G.I Endoscopy.Results: Out of fifty three patients, nineteen (35.8%) cases had normal endoscopy. The most common finding was Antral Gastritis in fourteen (26.4%), followed by Candida esophagitis in twelve (22.6%), esophagitis in three (5.7%), candida esophagitis with antral gastritis in two (3.8%), duodenitis, varices and mass (ulcerated growth) in II part of Duodenum seen in one (1.9%) each.Conclusions: The evaluation of specific gastrointestinal complaints must be based on an assessment of degree of immunosuppression. With the progression of immunodeﬁciency, EGD becomes a useful diagnostic modality for the early diagnosis of these opportunistic infections and other inﬂammatory conditions.
Sombreamento de colmeias de abelhas africanizadas no Semiárido Brasileiro
Authors: Santos Ricardo Gonçalves , Domingos Herica Girlane Tertulino , Gramacho Kátia Peres , Gonçalves Lionel Segui
Published: March 2018

No Nordeste do Brasil a apicultura tem um enorme potencial de crescimento, no entanto, na maior parte desta região, o clima é considerado semiárido com altos índices de radiação solar, temperaturas elevadas e pouca intensidade pluviométrica. Este tipo de ambiente tem causado muitas perdas na produção apícola e gerado enormes dificuldades de crescimento no setor. Anualmente os apicultores perdem grande parte de suas colônias de abelhas por causa do abandono das colmeias (enxameação migratória), provocando o desestímulo dos criadores e a desistência da atividade apícola. Este trabalho aborda através de informações da literatura que, apesar da influência negativa das condições ambientais adversas no Semiárido Brasileiro, o sombreamento das colmeias é potencialmente eficiente para amenizar as condições ambientais hostis dessa região. Enxames instalados em colmeias protegidas da radiação direta do sol realizam a termorregulação interna do ninho mais facilmente, o que refletiria num menor gasto energético das abelhas e, portanto, maior rendimento da colônia. Como consequência, torna mais produtivo e rentável o processo de criação racional de abelhas africanizadas (Apis mellifera L.) em regiões áridas e semiáridas. O sombreamento das colmeias pode ser considerado uma técnica simples, eficiente e de baixo custo para os apicultores, representando assim uma alternativa economicamente viável e com ótima relação custo-benefício.
Rentabilidade econômica da cultura da alface sob diferentes sistemas de cultivos e tipos de adubos
Authors: Lacerda Rodolfo Rodrigo de Almeida , Costa Caciana Cavalcanti , Ferreira Jean Telvio Andrade , Paiva Laiza Gomes de
Published: March 2018

A consorciação de hortaliças aliada ao uso de compostos orgânicos como fonte de nutrientes vem sendo bastante empregado e têm se mostrado eficientes quando assim utilizados. No entanto, para evitar comprometimento do processo produtivo torna-se necessária uma análise econômica. Objetivou-se com o trabalho avaliar a rentabilidade econômica da cultura da alface em sistema consorciado e monocultivo em função de diferentes tipos de adubos. O experimento foi conduzido em condições de campo no Centro de Ciências e Tecnologia Agroalimentar da Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, município de Pombal, Paraíba. O delineamento experimental foi o de blocos casualizados constituídos de três tipos de adubações e dois sistemas de cultivo, em esquema fatorial 3x2 sendo no primeiro fator três adubações: 1= Adubação com Resíduo Animal (Esterco Bovino); 2= Adubação Mineral; 3= Incorporação de vegetação espontânea e no segundo fator dois sistemas de cultivo: 1= consórcio e 2 = monocultivo. Nos diferentes sistemas foram mensurados a produtividade, custo operacional total (COT), receita bruta, receita líquida, taxa de retorno e índice de lucratividade, além do uso eficiente da terra (UET). As maiores produtividades foram promovidas pela cultura da alface no tratamento á base de esterco bovino em ambos os sistemas com 16.450,00 e 13.160,00 kg ha-1 para o monocultivo e consórcio respectivamente. As melhores rentabilidades pelo Índice de lucratividade também foram observados na cultura da alface quando submetido ao esterco bovino em ambos os sistemas com valores de 88,73% e 88,28% para o monocultivo e consórcio respectivamente.
Deranged liver among Sudanese Patients with Dengue Virus Infection in Port Sudan Teaching Hospital
Authors: Mohamed Bashir Abdrhman Bashir
Published: April 2018

Background Deranged liver is a well-recognized feature of dengue infection, often demonstrated by coagulopathy and mild to moderate increase in transaminase levels although jaundice and fulminant hepatic failure are generally uncommon. Objective This study aimed to evaluate the hepatic effect of dengue fever amongst Sudanese patients.Materials and Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study recruited in Port Sudan teaching hospital in the period from February 2013 to June 2014.  334 cases of dengue along with 101 cases of control were enrolled. Rapid immune chromatographic test was used to confirm positive dengue cases and WHO criteria were used for classifying the dengue severity. Prothrombin time (PT), partial thromboplastin time (PTT), fibrinogen level (FB), platelet count (PLT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and C-reactive protein (CRP) were all measured. Results PT, PTT, and FB were found to be significantly higher in the infected cohort when compared to the controls (P< 0.0001). PT was prolonged in 9%, PTT was prolonged in 12.6% and shortened by 5.4% of the patients, whereas hypofibrinogenemia in 18.3% and hyperfibrinogenemia in 67.4% of the patients. Bleeding was seen in 10.5% of patients and thrombocytopenia was detected in 83.5% of patients. Out of 334 patients, 101 (30.2%) had abnormal coagulation results. Of 101 patients, 72 were subjected mixing studies for PT and PTT that revealed deficiencies in factors VIII (35%), IX (10%), V (10%), X (19%), and XII (14%). 43.6% patients had elevated AST and 21.8% had elevated ALT.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that hepatic dysfunction may be attributed to dengue virus infection which evident by prolongation in PT and PTT as well as hypofibrinogenemia and factor deficiencies.
ABO, Rhesus blood groups and transfusion-transmitted infections among blood donors in Gabon
Authors: Ngassaki-Yoka Christ-Dominique , Ndong Jophrette Mireille Ntsame , Bisseye Cyrille
Published: April 2018

Background: Few studies focused on the study of blood groups in Gabon. This study aimed to determine the phenotypic frequency of ABO and Rhesus antigens in blood donors of Libreville and to assess the association between ABO blood groups and transfusion-transmitted infections.Materials and Methods: The study of ABO and Rhesus blood groups concerned 4,744 blood donors. ABO and Rhesus phenotyping were obtained using monoclonal monospecific antisera: anti-A, anti-B, anti-AB, anti-D, anti-E, anti-C, anti-c, and anti-e with an automate (QWALYS® 3, DIAGAST, France) or a card gel (ID Card, BIO-RAD) according to manufacturer’s instructions.Results: The phenotypic frequency of blood group antigens A, B, AB and O were respectively 21.0%; 17.6%; 2.6% and 58.9%. Those of rhesus antigens D, d, C, c, E and e were 97.7%; 2.3%; 15.9%; 99.9%; 17.6%; 99.3%, respectively. The prevalence of ABO and Rh antigens in Gabonese donors reported here are significantly different from those of neighboring countries. No association was found between the prevalence of HIV, HCV and syphilis and ABO blood groups. Instead, HBV seroprevalence was twice as high among non-O blood groups donors compared with blood group O donors [OR = 2 (CI 1.26 to 3.2), p = 0.003].Conclusions: This study provides new data on phenotypic frequency of ABO and Rh blood groups in a representative sample of the Gabonese blood donor population. It suggests a significant association between ABO blood group and HBV infection.
Knowledge, practice and acceptability of HPV vaccine by mothers of adolescent girls in Ilorin, Nigeria
Authors: Adesina Kikelomo T. , Saka Aishat , Isiaka- Lawal Salamat A. , Adesiyun Omotayo O. , Gobir A. , Olarinoye Adebunmi.O. , Ezeoke Grace G.
Published: April 2018

Background: Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) is a sexually transmitted cause of carcinoma of the cervix. An important determinant of the success of a primary preventive strategy like HPV vaccination is the knowledge and willingness of parents to vaccinate adolescents before sexual debut.
Materials and methods of study: A cross sectional descriptive survey of mothers of girls in 8 secondary schools in Ilorin was carried out from February to April 2015. Schools were selected using multi staged sampling. Descriptive and inferential statistics were performed with Chi Square and ANOVA.
Results: There were 470 questionnaires returned for analysis out of 600, giving a response rate of 78.3%. One hundred and sixty-one (34.3%) knew HPV to be sexually transmitted infection and 40.4% knew it was the cause of cervical cancer. While 35.1% were aware of HPV vaccine, only 1.9% had ever vaccinated their children.Less than half (44.9%) were willing to vaccinate their children. Women with good knowledge of HPV and cervical cancer were more willing to vaccinate their children than women with poor knowledge (P <0.001).
Conclusion: There is poor knowledge of HPV and practice of vaccination among mothers in llorin. Willingness of mothers to vaccinate their daughters is suboptimal. Mother’s knowledge is an important determinant of HPV vaccination of adolescents.
Prevalence of endo-parasites of common tree frog (Rana Saharica) from Misurata, Libya
Authors: Layla Elmajdoub O. , Elhamali Shabash, H. , Mosaab Omar, A. , Afaf Aborawis, M.
Published: April 2018

The current study was conducted to detect the prevalence of parasitic infection among (62) common tree frogs (Rana Saharica), of different ages, with weights ranged between 1 and 25g.
Results: The results revealed that 61 (98%) out of 62 examined common frogs were infected with endo-parasites. The prevalence of infection with protozoal was (86.4%) and (80%) for helminthes, while the mixed infection with both was 65%. Furthermore, the nematodes (75.5%) were the most prevalent helminthes, also helminthes mixed infection in a single host was reported. Rhabiditis spp., Ophiotaenia ranae, Glypthelmins quieta, Corynosoma spp. were Recovered from the digestive tract of common tree frogs, whereas, the Oplina ranarum and Copromonas subtillis the most prevalent protozoan species were detected from the common frogs. From the parasitic fauna seen in this study and from the statistical analysis, there were significant differences (P=0.05) between the weight of hosts and the density of infection.
Ultrasonographic examination of kidneys and urinary bladder of normal adult Spiti horses and Himalayan Hill mules of India
Authors: Farooq Uiase Bin , Kumar Adarsh , Ahmad Shabir , Chaudhary Rajni
Published: April 2018

The objective of this study was to develop baseline topographical data of landmarks for locating kidneys and urinary bladder and to generate sonographic calliper measurements along with dynamic parameters of these organs. Ultrasonography was performed on 50 native adult (Spiti horses and Himalayan hill mules) healthy unsedated equines of either sex. The thickness, character and echo-architecture of these organs were recorded. The right kidney was found from 15th (±1) intercostal space (ICS) extending upto first lumbar vertebra, both in horses as well as in mules. The height of right kidney varied from 112.7 to 118.3 mm (Mean± SE= 115.6±1.01 mm) and its thickness varied from 58.4 to 71.2 mm (Mean± SE= 64.3±2.37 mm). While in mules height of right kidney varied from 90.7 to 109.2 mm (Mean± SE= of 101.1±3.14 mm) and its thickness varied from 47.3 to 56.8 mm (Mean± SE= 52.3±1.57 mm). The left kidney in horses was found between 16th ICS to 2nd lumbar vertebra, while in mules it was found from 16th ICS to 3rd lumbar vertebra. The height of left kidney varied from 87 to 107.8 mm (Mean± SE= 99.0±3.67 mm) and its thickness varied from 49.5 to 53.8 mm (Mean± SE= 51.8±0.72 mm). In mules the height of left kidney varied from 85.5 to 111.4 mm (Mean± SE= 95.3±2.36 mm) and its thickness varied from 43.4 to 55.7 mm (Mean± SE= 50.6±2.53 mm). During transrectal ultrasonography urinary bladder was observed as an oval to round structure in the caudal ventral abdomen, the wall thickness of urinary bladder varied from 2.7 to 2.8 mm (Mean± SE= 2.74±0.02 mm), 2.4 to 2.7 mm (Mean± SE= 2.62±0.05 mm) in horses and mules respectively. Hence detailed ultrasonographic examination of these organs helped us to compile baseline data, which will be helpful in future in management of the affections of these organs.
LEADERSHIP STYLE AND PERFORMANCE BASED ON INFORMAL WORKERS PERCEPTION
Authors: Lukiyanto Kukuh
Published: March 2018

Developing country workers in some sectors were still dominated by informal workers. They usually belong together in one group with one leader. Leaders controlled all group activities. The dependence and responsibilities of workers towards the leader was greater than the company. Companies would find it difficult to improve performance without relying on their leaders. This study purpose was to explore effective leadership and performance improvement in according to perception of informal workers. Characteristics of effective leadership could be used as a reference to determine the workers planning for national and global construction companies in Indonesia. Foreign companies that would enter to Indonesia could also study the employment situation in Indonesia to become more effective in completion their work. The phenomenological approach with qualitative method was used to reveal an assessment based on perceptions and perspectives of informal workers. The findings showed that characteristics of effective leaders in according to informal workers were: preferred by workers, care, understand the subordinates and keep promises. For such leaders they were willing to work hard so their leaders' achievements would be good.
THE INFLUENCE OF ENTREPRENEUR ORIENTATION AND GOVERNMENT ROLE TOWARD BATIK SMES PERFORMANCE IN THE PACITAN
Authors: Sudjatno Sudjatno , Safitri Rini
Published: March 2018

This research has aim to determine the effect of entrepreneur orientation on performance of existing businesses in SMEs Batik Pacitan District and the government role as mediating variable. Questionnaire was used to collect data and this research called explanatory quantitative research. The sample is the amount of 40 respondents in the Pacitan that is work in the Batik SMEs. To analyse the data used Warp PLS. This research gives correlation evidence between entrepreneur orientation  and business performance. The R square score in the amount of 0.64, that means regression model able to explain 64% the effect of government role to the entrepreneur orientation toward business performance and the 36% for the rest will be explained by other varible that exclude this research. Based on that result, the goverment should pay attention to the entrepreneur and give contribution to them for expand SMEs because it will give feedback to the government for example increase per capita income, opening job vacancy, and reduce unemployment.  
Rekombinan Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-121 Menekan Ekspresi Heat Shock Protein-70 pada Plasenta Mencit Model Preeklampsia (VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR-121 RECOMBINANT DEPRESSIS HEAT SHOCK PROTEIN-70 EXPRESSION IN PREECLAMPSIA MICE PLACENTA
Authors: Sulistyowati Sri , Tanjung Lungguk Helen Alfian , Respati Supriyadi Hari , Soetrisno Soetrisno
Published: April 2018

Preeclampsia has remained a major cause of morbidity and maternal-perinatal mortality. Oxidative stress that occurs in preeclampsia increases HSP-70 expression. Therefore, VEGF therapy is expected to recover this oxidative stress. This research aimed to determine the role of VEGF-121 recombinant on HSP-70 expression in mice model of preeclampsia. This research was an explanatory study conducted at Animal Cage Experiment, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Airlangga University. The samples were 30 mice that were divided into 3 groups, namely a group of 10 normal pregnant mice, a group of 10 mice model of preeclampsia, and a group of 10 mice model of preeclampsia with VEGF-121 recombinant therapy. On the 16th day of gestation, HSP-70 expressions in the placenta of all mice were examined using immunohistochemical methods. The data were analyzed using Kruskall-Wallis test of SPSS program. The mean of HSP-70 expression in normal pregnancy group was 1.69 ± 0.68, in preeclampsia model group was 3.50 ± 0.95 with p = 0.00, and in preeclampsia model group with VEGF-121 recombinant therapy was 2.24 ± 0.84 with p = 0.00. In short, VEGF-121 recombinant has a role in lowering HSP-70 expression in mice placenta model of preeclampsia
Pakan Aditif Ekstrak Etanol Lumut Hati Meningkatkan Pertumbuhan Morfologi Duodenum dan Perkembangan Otot Dada Ayam Pedaging (SUPPLEMENTATION OF ETHANOLIC EXTRACT OF MARCHANTIA IN PRE-STARTER DIET IMPROVES THE GROWTH OF DUODENUM AND PECTORALIS THORACICUS
Authors: Saragih Hendry Tri Sakti Surya Gunawan , Alawi Muhammad Faisal , Rafieiy Muhammad , Lesmana Indra , Sujadmiko Heri
Published: April 2018

This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of ethanolic extract of Marchantia as an alternative additive in broiler’s chicken feed. The research was designed by using 5 treatment groups with 20 day-old chick broilers in each group and the treatment was done until the sample aged 14 days. The treatment groups consisted of basal feed and ethanolic extract of Marchantia in 0; 62.5; 250; 500; 1000 mg/kg basal feed. Data were analyzed by using one way ANOVA test followed by Tukey test with significance P<0.05. The results showed that at 14 days old of the sample, the weight gain of the broilers in the treatment group 1, 2, 3, and 4 were higher than the control group; Feed Conversion Ratio of treatment group 4 was better than the control group and other treatments; the small intestine morphology of villus heights, crypt depth, and villus/crypt ratio showed that the treatment group 3 and 4 were better than the control group; the pectoralis muscle’s weight, muscle’s area, and myofiber’s area showed that the treatment group 1 and 3 were better than the control group. The study indicates that the ethanolic extract of Marchantia spp. with concentration of 750-1000 mg/kg basal feed has effective ability as an alternative additive in broiler’s chicken feed.
RELEVOS GRANÍTICOS DO NORDESTE BRASILEIRO
Authors: Maia Rúbson Pinheiro , Nascimento Marcos Antonio Leite do
Published: April 2018

A exumação de plutons sin, tardi e pós orogênicos tem revelado um diversificado mostruário de formas graníticas no extremo nordeste do Brasil. São maciços, lajedos e campos de inselbergues que em conjunto, caracterizam as extensas superfícies erosivas denominadas depressões sertanejas. Sobre essas superfícies, emergem os relevos graníticos como altos do embasamento. Nesses, um conjunto de feições erosionais formam padrões de relevo associados à meteorização diferencial pela pré-disposição mineralógica, petrográfica ou ao fraturamento. São bacias de dissolução, tafoni (tafone no singular), caneluras e blocos saprolitizados em diferentes graus de desenvolvimento. Nesse trabalho, foram analisados diferentes exemplos das principais feições de relevo granítico nos estados do Ceará e Paraíba. Foi verificado que muitas das feições que caracterizam a morfologia dos lajedos e inselbergues estão associadas à dissolução ao longo de superfícies de descontinuidades em paleoambiente epigênico. Nesse ínterim, constatou-se que a morfologia granítica, em muitos aspectos associados aos lajedos e bolas de granito, fora condicionada sobretudo por eventos de esfoliação pré, sin e pós exumação e que as feições de dissolução estão em muitos casos, geneticamente associadas a enclaves máficos, tendo esses, seu principal ponto de partida.
Assembly of the Boechera retrofracta Genome and Evolutionary Analysis of Apomixis-Associated Genes
Authors: Kliver Sergei , Rayko Mike , Komissarov Alexey , Bakin Evgeny , Zhernakova Daria , Prasad Kasavajhala V. S. K. , Rushworth Catherine , Baskar R. , Smetanin Dmitry , Schmutz Jeremy , Rokhsar Daniel S. , Mitchell-Olds Thomas , Grossniklaus Ueli , Brukhin Vladimir
Published: April 2018

Closely related to the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, the genus Boechera is known to contain both sexual and apomictic species or accessions. Boechera retrofracta is a diploid sexually reproducing species and is thought to be an ancestral parent species of the apomictic species Boechera divaricarpa. Here we report the de novo assembly of the B. retrofracta genome using short Illumina and Roche reads from 1 paired-end and 3 mate pair libraries. The distribution of 23-mers from the paired end library has indicated a low level of heterozygosity and the presence of detectable duplications and triplications. The genome size was estimated to be equal 227 Mb. N50 of the assembled scaffolds was 2.3 Mb. 27048 protein-coding genes were predicted using a hybrid approach that combines homology-based and de novo methods. Also repeats, tRNA and rRNA genes were annotated. Finally, genes of B. retrofracta and 6 other Brassicaceae species were used for phylogenetic tree reconstruction. Also, a detailed analysis of evolution of the APOLLO apomixis-associated locus was performed. An assembled genome of B. retrofracta will help in the challenging assembly of the highly heterozygous genomes of hybrid apomictic species such as B. divaricarpa.
Türk Modernleşmesinin Arka Yüzü: Dini Grupların Gündelik Hayatta Dışa Kapalı Yapılaşması ve “Taktik”sel Yaklaşımı
Authors: Türkyılmaz Hilmi
Published: March 2018

Bütün dinler müntesiplerinden en üst düzeyde tek bir
ümmet/topluluk olmalarını istemesine rağmen, dinlerin süreç içinde farklı
sebeplerle mezhep, fırka, tarikat gibi alt gruplaşmalara ayrıştıkları
bilinmektedir. Bu grupların ortaya çıkmasında sosyal, siyasi, ekonomik ve
kültürel etkenlerin yanında, inanç, ibadet, teşkilat, yönetim vb. konulardaki
tartışma ve ihtilafların etkili olduğu görülmektedir. Her ne sebeple olursa
olsun toplumda bir takım dini grupların olduğu ve bu grupların da birey ve
toplum üzerinde bir takım etkilerinin olduğu bir gerçektir.

Bireylerin dini algılama ve yaşama biçimleri, zihniyet
dünyaları bir anda oluşmayıp belli bir sürecin neticesinde şekillenerek ortaya
çıkmıştır. Dini grupların yapılaşmaları, tavır ve tutumları da bir anda ortaya
çıkmamış belli bir tarihsel süreç içinde şekillenmiştir. Bu anlamda nasıl ki
bireyler içinde yaşadığı toplumun siyasi, ekonomik, kültürel şartlarından
etkilenirse, dini gruplar da bu şartlardan etkilenmekte bunlara göre
yapılanmaktadır. Onun için bu çalışmada sırf dini gruplar kapsamında yer alan
tarikat/cemaat tipi oluşumların cumhuriyet döneminden itibaren, dışa kapalı/içe
dönük yapılaşmaları ele alınmış söz konusu yapılaşmaların sebep ve sonuçları
analiz edilmeye çalışılmıştır.
KUR’ÂN’DA DİNÎ ŞÜPHE
Authors: Denizer Nurullah
Published: March 2018

İnsan, doğası gereği merak eden, sorgulayan, bir bilginin hakikatini

kabullenebilmek için ikna olması gereken ve bu konuda sürekli tatmin arayışı

içerisinde bulunan bir varlıktır. Bu durumdan dinî bilgi de istisna değildir.

İnsan vahiy ile kendisine bildirilen dinî bilgiler hususunda da sürekli bir

merak ve onların hakikatini arayış içerisinde olmuştur. Dinî bilginin fizikî

dünyaya dair yönü her devrin imkânları nispetince araştırılmış ve araştırılmaya

devam etmektedir. Dinî bilginin metafizik yönü ise fizikî imkânlarla

doğrulanabilir bir alan değildir. Dolayısıyla bu konular iman sahası içine

girmektedir. Sağlam bir imanın, içerisinde şüphe barındırmaması beklenir.

Bununla birlikte imanın bu seviyeye ulaşması sürecinde birey, inandığı konular

hakkında şüphe içerisine düşebilir. Bu durumda şüphe; bireyin imanî meselelerde

çıkmaza girmesine ve hatta imanını kaybetmesine sebep olabileceği gibi onu,

kuşku duyduğu konuları araştırmaya sevk ederek imanda tahkik seviyesine de

ulaştırabilir. Bu çalışmada öncelikle, Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’de şüphe anlamında

kullanılan kavramlar ele alınacak, Kur’ân-ı Kerîm’de hangi konularda insanların

şüpheye düştüğü değerlendirilecek ve Hz. Peygamber’in konu ile ilgili hadîs-i

şerîflerinden de yararlanılarak şüphenin iman ile olan ilişkisi, Kur’ân-ı Kerîm

ışığında ortaya konmaya çalışılacaktır.
Community Consensus: Respect Your Elders
Authors: Spady Darcy
Published: April 2018

President's column

The value of senior professionals

As the SPE 2018 President, I set a goal to revisit the SPE strategic plan, which was last updated in 2013. A lot has changed over those 5 years, and SPE has responded to those changes. Our mission remains unchanged, and our commitment to the One SPE guiding principles (adopted in September 2001) has endured.

One of the products of the 2013 strategic plan was an impact review of the “Big Crew Change,” as the current generation of senior professionals with more than 30 years of industry experience retire and leave our ranks. The demographic representing those 55 and older was identified in the strategic plan as a vital and valuable segment of our membership, at risk of slipping away during the then-nascent oil price downturn.

While the crew change has passed, our strategic response to this potential significant loss of membership, knowledge, experience, and human resource is critical to the future of SPE and our industry. These valued members carry with them the institutional memory of our trade, the competencies and technical knowledge we seek to disseminate, and the volunteer spirit on which SPE was built. The value of retaining and engaging these senior professional members cannot be overstated, and I personally wish to recruit these venerated members to assist in achieving my goals.

I value these members as strategic thinkers, champions of community outreach, and supporters of corporate responsibility. They have so much to offer by mentoring less-experienced members as well as future SPE and industry leaders. These senior professional members can also mutually benefit from their continued engagement in our society. I believe it is imperative that SPE recognize the value these members represent by offering benefits tailored to their specific needs.
The Use of Grammar Learning Strategies by Libyan EFL Learners at Sebha University
Authors: Alsied Safia Mujtaba , Ibrahim Noura Winis , Pathan Mustafa Mubarak
Published: March 2018

For most English  language  learners, grammar can be  a very hard subject and some students tend to use different types of  strategies to learn grammar. Using learning strategies is very beneficial as they facilitate the learning process and make it more controlled, enjoyable  and effective for learners. This study explores the grammar learning strategies used by Libyan EFL undergraduate  students  at the English Department of Sebha University and the most  frequents used strategies. The  study also aims to find out if there is a significant difference between the students' use of learning strategies and gender. The population of the study  were  121 Libyan EFL undergraduate students who are currently in  their first and second years.  Data was collected through questionnaire distributed to the participants in the class. The result  of the study revealed that Libyan EFL learners used different types of grammar learning strategies which included memory strategies, metacognitive strategies, socio-affective strategies and cognitive strategies which were the least frequent used ones. It was found that  the most frequent used strategies were memory strategies. The findings also  showed that there is no significant difference between the use of grammar learning strategies and the participants' genders.
Learner Beliefs and Language Proficiency in SA Context: A Case study of Chinese Students Taking Pre-sessional Language Course in the UK
Authors: Xin Li , Jiayi Zhang
Published: March 2018

This study seeks to explore the interrelation between learners’ beliefs and language proficiency in study abroad (SA) context. The participants of this study consisted of 30 Chinese students who were taking the pre-sessional language course at the University of Sheffield in the UK. Combining data from the questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and test scores, the current study tries to answer three research questions: (1) Do learners’ beliefs change in the SA context? If so, in what ways? (2) Does learners’ language proficiency change in the SA context? If so, in what ways? (3) What is the relationship between learners’ English language proficiency and their beliefs about language learning?
By investigating learners’ beliefs change in SA context and how such change impacts on their language learning behavior and outcomes, it is hoped that students can have a more fruitful study-abroad sojourn.
IFRS convergence: opportunities and challenges in India
Authors: P. R. Parvathy
Published: April 2018

Past decade has witnessed several changes in the process of conduct of business activities across the world especially due to the wave of globalization. It has also made drastic changes in the process of financial reporting, in particular the continuing adoption of IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) worldwide. IFRS are high quality, understandable, enforceable and globally acceptable accounting standards issued by IASB (International Accounting Standard Board). Thus these are a set of international accounting standards stating how a particular type of transaction and other events should be reported in the financial statements. Thus IFRS are designed as a common global language for business affairs so that company accounts are understandable and comparable across international boundaries. IFRS is becoming the global language of business with over 40% of the world adopting this as their standard for reporting. India also decided to converge to IFRS from 1st April 2016 in a phased manner, which in turn improves the financial statement comparability and transparency that helps to attract greater cross border investments. This paper focuses on the convergence of IFRS with Indian Accounting Standards, its utility, issues and challenges faced by the stakeholders. It also throws light to the ways through which problems can be addressed.
The impact of globalization challenges on pension provision development
Authors: Barannyk Liliya
Published: April 2018

The article analyzes pension provision development in the world and the problems of its implementation under the globalization challenges. The main reasons for considering pension provision as a global problem are specified. It is noted that the negative manifestations of globalization are inherent in the Ukrainian practice of pension provision. The purpose of the paper is to study the world’s experience in reforming national pension systems under increasing global negative trends. The research was conducted using the methods of scientific knowledge: comparison and generalization – to establish the essential differences in approaches to the globalization processes studying; analysis and synthesis – to identify regularities in economic development and their determination of social consequences; historical and logical, as well as statistical methods. The article considers some countries’ experience in improving the practice of pension provision. It was established that pension reform was aimed at making the pension age most upon the individual achievements of an employee (pension insurance record, salary, deductions, other personal preferences). In most developed countries, pension funds are provided from three sources: state pension funds, corporate sector pensions and individual pensions received under a contract of personal voluntary pension accumulative insurance. Further development of the pension system in Ukraine should be provided due to the introduction of its second level. As a result of the study, it was found out that global challenges are problems that hinder the normal course of human development. They make a particular negative impact on pension provision. The search for methods to neutralize or mitigate the effects of global challenges has led many countries to introduce a three-tier pension system that involves funding from various sources.
Assessment of the Ukrainian economy in 2000–2015 based on the macroeconomic stabilization pentagon (MSP) model
Authors: Lyulyov Oleksii
Published: April 2018

The main task of the article is to assess the development process of the macroeconomic stabilization in Ukraine during 1997–2016. The work shows the results of author’s own research, carried out using the method of tools given by director of Finance Institute in Warsaw, Professor of Economics Kolodko. This method is based on the assessment of five key macroeconomic indices: GDP rate growth, unemployment rate, inflation rate, state budget balance to GDP, balance of current turnovers to GDP. The results of calculations show that macroeconomic stability level, which is higher than 0.5 was demonstrated by the country only during 1999–2007, and during this period general internal and external stability is kept. Based on the macroeconomic predictions of GDP rate growth, unemployment rate, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and on the data extrapolation of consumer price index, state budget balance, current account balance, Ukraine’s MSP profile for 2018–2020 was constructed.
The relations unshadowing in business activities: the economic and legal factors of security at the macroeconomic level
Authors: Kulish Anatoliy , Petrushenko Mykola , Reznik Oleg , Kiselyova Elena
Published: April 2018

The paper analyzes the current state of the shadow relations in business activities in Ukraine. The purpose of the article is to investigate the current state of the shadow relations in business activity in Ukraine and abroad; find out the essence of the term “the relations unshadowing in business activity”, develop the suggestions, which are aimed at improving the scientific approaches to the economic and legal principles of the relations unshadowing in business activity as a factor of an influence at the macroeconomic level. The issue of sensitive motivation system creating is actualized for the purpose of the economic activities unshadowing. It is proved that it is impossible now to accurately assess the extent of the shadow economy. The economic and legal ways of improving the business unshadowing are proposed, as well as the integration of the relations unshadowing in the business activities into a system of safety factors at the macroeconomic level. Namely, the institutional and structural factors, including: an influence on the structural policy and mechanism of its implementation, possible changes in the structure of the public administration, institutional changes, management of the state corporate rights, as well as a new stage of denationalization of the property and the privatization; programmatic and strategic factors: the economic development strategy, targeted state programs, as well as the state programs of the social and economic development; financial, investment, competition, and innovation factors: the competition policy and its implementation, the state investment policy and its implementation, innovation policy and its implementation, as well as the impact on financial and economic processes in the state. Based on the research, the ways to improve the economic unshadowing issue are proposed, in particular through the introduction of changes to the existing regulatory legislation.
Design and realization of multi-channel wireless data acquisition system for laboratory-scale experiments on structural health monitoring
Authors: Gürkan Koray , Gürkan Güray , Dindar Ahmet Anıl
Published: March 2018

In this paper, we present the design steps of a low cost multi-channel accelerometer system accompanied with an open-source data acquisition software. Hardware part of the system, named KACC, is composed of battery powered tri-axial MEMS accelerometers that use IEEE 802.15.1 protocol for data transmission. The software part, named PyKACC, is developed under Python© open-source environment and handles initiation of data acquisition, data synchronization and data logging. The developed system is tested for synchronization and reliability via shake-table tests and results are presented.
The crack analysis in monitoring procedures of Seaport pier concrete constructions
Authors: Jankauskiene Dainora , Dorosevas Viktoras , Volkovas Vitalijus
Published: March 2018

The geodetic and geotechnical techniques were accepted for monitoring and measurement of unique hydro-technical structures, i.e. of pier stability. The designed monitoring system for pier damage prevention has been realized at the experimental object of Klaipeda State Seaport. Cracks of pier concrete constructions were identified, measured and continuously observed by the application of crack-gauges for experimental measurement. The analysis of the results shows that cracks of chosen locations depend upon meteorological conditions, such as, for example, temperature. It influences the width of cracks in the pier concrete. The relations were obtained according to the created monitoring system of hydro-technical structure which estimates the influence of cracks of pier concrete to the structural damages.
High performance estimations of natural frequency of basalt FRP laminated plates with intermediate elastic support using response surfaces method
Authors: Altabey Wael A.
Published: March 2018

Studying the changes of the natural frequencies due to intermediate elastic support of laminated composites is usually need a lot of computational processes or difficult to estimate. The present study employs a new high performance method for natural frequency estimating in basalt fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) laminated, variable thickness plates with intermediate elastic support based on the finite strip transition matrix (FSTM) with response surfaces (RS) method. Author has found that the FSTM method is very effective. However, a large error of estimation remains for estimation of natural frequency due to the large number of an iteration implemented in FSTM algorithm to estimate the natural frequency. In the present study, a new data processing procedure is proposed to improve performance of estimations of natural frequency. The estimation responses for four of classical boundary conditions at the plate ends with different elastic restraint coefficients (KT) are computed to obtain the first six frequency parameters (Ω). As a result, the method reveals excellent performance of estimations of natural frequencies.
A VCM-based novel whole-spacecraft vibration isolation device: simulation and experiment
Authors: Tang Jie , Cao Dengqing , Qin Zhaohong , Li Haibo , Chen Dengshuo
Published: March 2018

In the launching process, the spacecraft situated in an extreme dynamic environment may withstand by various dynamic loads such as noise loading in the fairing, motor excited vibration, shock of the separation devices, etc. To achieve a successful launching, the device called whole-spacecraft vibration isolator is usually installed between the adapter and the spacecraft to prevent the later from being damage. A novel WSVI device, which composed of supporting leaf springs, voice coil motors (VCM) and actuator supports, is designed to suppress the structural vibration of the spacecraft in this paper. The novel WSVI device features small space footprint and light weight, and satisfy the design requirement of vibration isolation without changing of the Payload Adaptor Fitting structure. A dynamic model of the WSVI device is established to evaluate the performance of the system. The dynamic characteristics and responses subjected to external excitation are studied for the spacecraft installed with WSVI. The vibration isolation performance is analyzed after turning the VCM into passive dampers. The results show that the novel WSVI device, which can reduce the amplitude of vibration response of the spacecraft significantly, is valid for vibration suppression of the spacecraft.
Knock detection in spark ignition engines based on complementary ensemble improved intrinsic time-scale decomposition (CEIITD) and Bi-spectrum
Authors: Bi Fengrong , Ma Teng , Liu Chunchao , Tian Congfeng
Published: March 2018

Engine knock limits the thermal efficiency improvement of spark-ignition (SI) engines. Thus, the extract research of the knock characteristics has a great significance for the development of gasoline engines. The research proposes a novel knock detection and diagnosis method in SI engines using the CEIITD (Complementary Ensemble Improved Intrinsic time-scale decomposition) and Bi-spectrum algorithm. The CEIITD algorithm is used to extract the knock characteristics. The results show that the CEIITD algorithm can effectively and clearly extract the knock shock characteristics (including light knock) through the vibration signals. A Bi-spectrum analysis can further distinguish between the light knock signal and normal combustion signal. The Bi-spectrum results also show that knock characteristic has a strong non-Gaussian property. At last, the Band pass filter and Improved ITD method were employed to identify the knock characteristics from these cylinder block vibration signals. The comparison result shows that the CEIITD method proposed in this paper is more suitable to detect the knock characteristic.
Investigation assembly state of spindle bearing based on improved maximum correlated kurtosis deconvolution and support vector machine
Authors: Zhang Yanfei , Li Xiaohu , Wang Sun’an , Sun Yanhui
Published: March 2018

Aiming at the skew and misalignment between the inner and outer rings of the spindle bearing during the installation process, a new method for detecting the spindle bearing assembly state is proposed combined an improved maximum correlated kurtosis deconvolution (IMCKD) and support vector machine (SVM). The vibration and impulse signals induced by bearing assembly skew or dislocation are quite weak. In this paper, the collected vibration signals were preprocessed by IMCKD algorithm with optimized parameters between the normal and skewed state of the outer rings at first, which aims to deconvolve periodic impulse characteristic and enhance the periodic impulse component from a new assembly spindle vibration signal. Then, wavelet packet decomposition method was adopted to extract the characteristic energy value of different frequency bands, and the eigenvector of the assembly state of the spindle bearing was calculated. Furthermore, the support vector machine classification method is implemented to analyze the eigenvectors under different assembly states. Finally, the proposed method was verified by experimental results. The results show that the IMCKD and SVM methods can effectively detect the bearing assembly skew state of the spindle with an accuracy of more than 95 %.
On crack detection in curved beams using change of natural frequency
Authors: Zare Maryam
Published: March 2018

In this study, an inverse method for the purpose of identifying the parameters of a single-edge crack in a curved beam is investigated. This method requires both numerical and experimental natural frequencies. The differential quadrature element method (DQEM) is introduced to get the numerical ones. For the purpose of implementing the DQEM the beam is divided into some elements and the governing equations, the continuity and the boundary conditions, are exerted on these elements to create an eigenvalue problem which is solved to obtain the required frequencies. A rotational spring whose stiffness is a function of crack depth is used to model the crack. An objective function with the variables of crack location and depth which is the weighted mean squared error between experimental and numerical frequencies is defined. The artificial bee colony algorithm (ABC) an optimization algorithm inspired by the natural foraging behavior of honeybees is used to minimize the aforementioned objective function and obtain crack parameters. To investigate the accuracy of this non-destructive, fast and easy method, an experimental modal analysis test is conducted on a cracked beam. The results indicate that the position and depth of the crack can be determined successfully using this method. This test is done five times with a different crack depth each time, to show the efficiency of the method for all cracks even small ones. A brief investigation is also done on the effect of crack location and depth on the natural frequencies.
Experimental study on damage detection of RC bridge piers under ambient vibration
Authors: Safakhah Soroush , Kheyroddin Ali , Zahrai Seyed Mehdi
Published: March 2018

This paper presents an experimental method for damage detection of bridge piers as the basic and strategic elements in such engineering structures. Definition of percentage and location of damage are considered as initial data to solve damage detection problems. Nowadays, regarding the development of inverse methods for damage detection such as definition of objective functions and optimization approaches, the present experimental study can be utilized as initial stage of such methods. In this study, three 1/3 scaled test specimens of RC bridge piers are casted. Spacing of transverse reinforcements is considered as the main variable parameter for test specimens. The constant vertical loads and low vibrations as cyclic loads are applied to the specimens and the results including the hysteresis behavior of specimens and the backbone curves are investigated. The damage percentage per first four steps is also extracted to utilize the results using Banon-Veneziano method. Also increase in lateral displacement during first steps initiated micro cracks propagated along nearly one tenth of the piers length (0.1L) above the foundation. The cracks were propagated after an increase in displacement from fourth step and were separately observed. Finally, the ultimate failures were observed along nearly one fifth of the piers length (0.2L). Finally, the results revealed that the proposed method is an appropriate method to determine the severity of damage and its location as the primary information in reverse-optimization methods.