bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Design of Impeller Blade of Mixed Flow Pump
Authors: Zindani Divya , Roy Apurba Kumar , Kumar Kaushik
Published: January 2018

Mixed flow pumps have got a wide range of application such as that in irrigation, flood control, dewatering and power station cooling systems. A number of design templates have been in use to design the mixed flow pump impeller blades including free vortex theory and mean stream line theory. Here blade of the impeller of the mixed flow pump has been designed using Mean stream line theory and the free vortex theory and stresses arising due to static loading conditions has been obtained for both the cases. Comparison analysis for the equivalent stresses developed due to structural loading using various materials for the blade was undertaken. It was found that the stress for the blade designed using mean stream line theory is always on the higher side in comparison to that designed using free vortex theory. Further, out of the four materials of construction, titanium and copper were found to be suitable for blade designed using free vortex theory and the mean stream line theory respectively.
Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) Ajzen (1988)
Authors: Al Maskari Azzah
Published: January 2018

The Theory of Planned Behavior is widely used to predict human behaviors in many disciplines. According to the Theory of Planned Behavior, Attitude towards the target behavior, Subjective Norms about engaging in the behavior and Perceived Behavior Control influence intention. In addition, an individual's display of a certain behavior is determined by his or her intent to perform that behavior. This chapter describes the origin and history of the Theory of Planned Behavior, its purpose, its limitations and its applications in order to examine acceptance, adoption, use, and continuance of use of Information Systems and services.
Regional Innovation Pattern
Authors: Zhao Jingyuan
Published: January 2018

Beijing biopharmaceutical industrial base are currently still in its infancy, innovation network and collaborative innovation system within pharmaceutical industrial clusters still have many problems, and cluster-based technology innovation mechanism and pattern needs further exploration. This study focuses on Beijing pharmaceutical industry clusters, and industry cluster theory, learning theory, and regional innovation system theory apply to the practice of Beijing pharmaceutical industrial bases. The study discusses on the related concepts of technology learning, and establishes a technology learning network among industry clusters, and presents a technological learning system under the cluster network on the basis of existing learning theory. According to characteristics of biopharmaceutical industry, the study develops a basic framework of regional innovation for biopharmaceutical industry clusters, and proposes synergistic development strategies of Beijing north and south pharmaceutical industry clusters.
Green Characteristics of RFID Technologies
Authors: Ramanathan Ramakrishnan , Ko Lok Wan Lorraine , Chen Hsin , Ramanathan Usha
Published: January 2018

Logistics is an integral part of the supply chain. Many logistics service providers have acknowledged that if they want to operate more efficiently and responsively, they must adopt technologies that help manufacturers, warehouses, and retailers to communicate with each other more efficiently. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology has been identified as an important application among many logistics technologies and is increasingly gaining both practitioners' and researchers' attention. The purpose of this chapter is to explore the factors affecting logistics service providers' intentions to use RFID technology, with special emphasis on its environmentally friendly green characteristics. The theoretical perspective diffusion of innovations is used for the purpose. The data is collected using a questionnaire survey among the UK logistics companies. The analysis shows that observability of green characteristics positively influences the intention to use RFID.
Venkatesh et al.'s Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) (2003)
Authors: Chakraborty Manishankar , Al Rashdi Salim
Published: January 2018

Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) has been in vogue for quite sometime now. The theory lends credence to the fact that technology and its usage in different spheres of life ought to go through various stages like designing, planning, implementing and leveraging in various ways before making that much needed change in human lives. The stakeholders involved in various stages of technology need to know the challenges they might come across in order to overcome them while successfully implementing technology. This is where UTAUT play a pivotal role by providing necessary information to all key stakeholders. The chapter throws light on the importance of UTAUT in different sectors with some illustrations. The research findings highlighted in the chapter provides additional explanation, apart from exploring new areas of research pertaining to UTAUT.
Bio-Inspired Techniques in Human-Computer Interface for Control of Assistive Devices
Authors: Geethanjali P.
Published: January 2018

Most of the assistive devices are of user contact based control like body-powered prosthetic hand, joystick control of wheelchair, sip-and-puff, etc. and have a limited number of control movements. The performance of these assistive devices improves using bio-signals/gesture based control embedded in the processor. Gesture based control is widely used in wheelchair navigation control, communication with external world for neuromuscular impaired subjects. On the other hand, bio-signals are used widely in prosthetic devices, wheelchair control, orthotic devices, etc. with pattern recognition based control strategy. The choice and number of features used in pattern recognition for accurate control of assistive device is crucial. Further, these features performance also varies with the classifier. The appropriate selection of combination of pattern recognition will enhance the accuracy. This chapter focuses on bio-inspired techniques in selection of features and classification for the pattern recognition based assistive device control.
A Study on Various Image Processing Techniques and Hardware Implementation Using Xilinx System Generator
Authors: Rani Jyotsna , Kumar Ram , Sarkar Abahan , Talukdar Fazal A.
Published: January 2018

This article reviews the various image processing techniques in MATLAB and also hardware implementation in FPGA using Xilinx system generator. Image processing can be termed as processing of images using mathematical operations by using various forms of signal processing techniques. The main aim of image processing is to extract important features from an image data and process it in a desired manner and to visually enhance or to statistically evaluate the desired aspect of the image. This article provides an insight into the various approaches of Digital Image processing techniques in Matlab. This article also provides an introduction to FPGA and also a step by step tutorial in handling Xilinx System Generator. The Xilinx System Generator tool is a new application in image processing and offers a friendly environment design for the processing. This tool support software simulation, but the most important is that can synthesize in FPGAs hardware, with the parallelism, robust and speed, this features are essentials in image processing. Implementation of these algorithms on a FPGA is having advantage of using large memory and embedded multipliers. Advances in FPGA technology with the development of sophisticated and efficient tools for modelling, simulation and synthesis have made FPGA a highly useful platform.
Background Subtraction and Object Tracking via Key Frame-Based Rotational Symmetry Dynamic Texture
Authors: D Jeyabharathi , D Dejey
Published: January 2018

Developing universal methods for background subtraction and object tracking is one of the critical and hardest challenges in many video processing and computer-vision applications. To achieve superior foreground detection quality across unconstrained scenarios, a novel Two Layer Rotational Symmetry Dynamic Texture (RSDT) model is proposed, which avoids illumination variations by using two layers of spatio temporal patches. Spatio temporal patches describe both motion and appearance parameters in a video sequence. The concept of key frame is used to avoid redundant samples. Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average model (ARIMA) (Hyndman & Rob, 2015) estimates the statistical parameters from the subspace. Uniform Local Derivative Pattern (LDP) (Zhang et al., 2010) acts as a feature for tracking objects in a video. Extensive experimental evaluations on a wide range of benchmark datasets validate the efficiency of RSDT compared to Center Symmetric Spatio Temporal Local Ternary Pattern (CS-STLTP) (Lin et al., 2015) for unconstrained video analytics.
Image Processing Including Medical Liver Imaging
Authors: Ramamoorthy Suganya , Sivasubramaniam Rajaram
Published: January 2018

Medical diagnosis has been gaining importance in everyday life. The diseases and their symptoms are highly varying and there is always a need for a continuous update of knowledge needed for the doctors. The diseases fall into different categories and a small variation of symptoms may leave to different categories of diseases. This is further supplemented by the medical analysts for a continuous treatment process. The treatment generally starts with a diagnosis and further goes through a set of procedures including X-ray, CT-scans, ultrasound imaging for qualitative analysis and diagnosis by doctors. A small level of error in disease identification introduces overhead in diagnosis and difficult in treatment. In such cases, an automated system that could retrieve medical images based on user's interest. This chapter deals with various techniques, methodologies that correspond to the classification problem in data analysis process and its methodological impacts to big data.
Eco-Labels and the Supply Chain
Authors: Smith Rikki , Wood Lincoln C.
Published: January 2018

This chapter seeks to explore the concept of eco-labels as a method used by firms to promote products with high levels of sustainability performance. The authors examine what this means to the firms involved in terms of implementation and impact on profit. However, they also examine what can happen when a firm fails to live up to the required standards, whether these standards are above required performance or even the minimum mandated performance. The authors use the case of the automotive sector to demonstrate several categories of failure and provide a concluding remark with several pathways forward for future research in this topic.
Effect of Post Weld Heat Treatment on Al 5052-SS 316 Explosive Cladding with Copper Interlayer
Authors: Elango Eswaran , Saravanan Somasundaram , Raghukandan Krishnamorthy
Published: January 2018

This study focuses on effect of post weld heat treatment (PWHT) on interfacial and mechanical properties of Al 5052-SS 316 explosive clad with copper interlayer at varied loading ratios and inclination angles. The use of interlayer is proposed for the control of additional kinetic energy dissipation and to alleviate the formation of intermetallic compounds at the interface. The Al-Steel clads are subjected to PWHT at varied temperatures (300°C-450°C) for 30 minutes and the results are presented. The microstructural characterization of as-clad and PWHT samples is observed by an optical microscope and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Maximum hardness is obtained at the interface of the as-clad and PWHT samples. Increase in PWHT temperature enhances the tensile strength of the composite, whereas, the tensile strength decreases at 300°C due to the diffusion of Al and Cu elements and the formation of detrimental intermetallic compounds.
Growth and Ethanol Yield Responses of Sweet Sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] Varieties to Nitrogen Fertilizer Rates
Authors: Olugbemi O , Aboyeji C M , Olofintoye J A. T , Eifediyi E K
Published: December 2017

Purpose: Soils of the experimental area are low in vital nutrients such as nitrogen. Fallow is no longer possible because of increasing pressure on arable land. The limited available chemical fertilizers must be inevitably and judiciously used for optimum yield. The study was carried out to assess the response of sweet sorghum varieties to varying nitrogen fertilizer (N) rates.Research Method: Sweet sorghum varieties (NTJ-2, 64 DTN, SW Makarfi 2006 and SW Dansadau 2007) were alloted to the main plots and nitrogen fertilizer (0, 40, 80, 120 and 160 kg N ha-1) to the sub-plots of a split-plot design, in three replicates. Data on growth and yield characteristics were collected and analysed.Findings: Variations were observed among the four varieties of sweet sorghum; SW Dansadau 2007 had greater growth and yield characteristics. N fertilizer had positive effects on the growth characteristics and ethanol yield of the crop. 80 kg N ha-1 resulted in increase of most parameters and ethanol yield, beyond which there was either no significant difference or a drop in the values of these parameters. Thus the use of 80 kg N ha-1 would result in optimum yield of sweet sorghum in the study area.Limitations: The requirement of 80 kg N ha-1 may not be generalized for the entire southern guinea savanna agro-ecological of Nigeria as the study was carried out only in one location.Originality/Value: These findings would assist farmers in the study area identify the most promising sweet sorghum variety and the optimum fertilizer rate for its production.
Selection of Differentially Expressed Genes Using the Transcriptome Analysis of Ripening Grape Berries in Response to High Temperature
Authors: Kim Seon Ae , Ahn Soon Young , Yun Hae Keun
Published: December 2017

Purpose: The transcriptome of ‘Campbell Early’ grape berries exposed to high temperature was analyzed to select useful genes by evaluating their differential expression through sequencing short reads on Solexa platform.Research Method: We assembled 118 million high-quality trimmed reads using Velvet followed by Oases.Findings: Functional categorization of expressed transcripts revealed the conservation of genes involved in various biological processes like responses to chemical (12.7%), responses to abiotic stimulus (11.8%), biosynthesis processes (11.8%), and cellular metabolic processes (10.4%) in grape berries exposed to high temperature. The major up-regulated genes included isocitratelyase, cysteine proteinases superfamily protein, cupin family protein, and glycosyl hydrolase genes, and the major down-regulated genes included flavanone 3-hydroxylase, phenylalanine ammonia lyase, chlorophyll A-B binding family protein, and polygalacturonase inhibiting protein genes in grape berries exposed to high temperature. Among genes related to grape coloration, expressions of chalcone and stilbene synthase, flavanone 3-hydroxylase, leucoanthocyanidin dioxygenase, phenylalanine ammonia lyasegenes were more strongly inhibited in berries kept at 35°C than 25°C.Originality/Value: Transcript sets of grape berries generated in this study will provide a resource for gene discovery and development of functional molecular markers to be used in elucidating the mechanism of tolerance to high temperature.
Effect of Heat Stress on Phenological Traits of Wheat Genotype
Authors: Bala P. , Sikder S.
Published: December 2017

Purpose: This study was conducted at Crop Physiology and Ecology Department, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University, Dinajpur to identify phenology, growing degree days, phenothermal index and heat use efficiency of wheat genotypes in response to heat stress.Research Method: Eight wheat genotypes viz., Pavon-76, Prodip, BARI Gom-25, BARI Gom-26, BAW-1143, BAW-1146, BAW-1147 and BAW-118 were used and seeding them at November 27 (normal), December 17 (late) and January 7 (very late growing condition) over two successive years of 2011-12 and 2012-13. The experiment was laid out in a split plot design and main plot treatments were sowing time and sub plot design was wheat genotypes.Findings: The number of days for attaining different phenological stages, the requirement of heat unit (GDD), phenothermal index (PTI) and heat use efficiency (HUE) was higher for normal growing condition compared to late and very late growing condition and higher in heat tolerant genotypes than the heat sensitive genotypes in each sowings of every year. The heat tolerant (HT) genotype BAW-1143 needed highest number of days whereas, HS genotype Pavon-76 required the lowest number of days for attaining all the phenological stages .Under normal growing condition, HT genotype BAW-1143 had the  significantly highest HUE (2.22 and 2.37 for first and second year, respectively).  But HS genotype Pavon-76 had the lowest HUE (1.71 and 2.16 for first and second year, respectively).Limitations: The limitations of the research are apparent  to the fact that it  was done in a single location.Originality/Value: This research helps the  researcher to identify heat tolerance genotypes for further investigation.
Yield Evaluation and Interrelationship between Yield Related Traits in Advance Lines of Mustard through Correlation Studies
Authors: Mustafa Hafiz Saad Bin , Mahmood Tariq , Hasan Ejaz ul , Saeed-ur-Rehman Hafiz , Aftab Muhammad
Published: December 2017

Purpose: Pakistan is spending a large amount of foreign exchange on the import of edible oil every year. The present experiment  was conducted to study the relationship between different seed yield related traits in advance lines of Brassica juncea developed through pedigree method of plant breeding. The seed yield performance of these advance lines was also evaluated during the experiment.Research Method: Twelve lines were grown in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications during September 2016. All recommended cultural practices were used throughout the experiment. The data for plant height, days to flowering, days to maturity, branches per plant, seeds per silique, seed yield per plot and oil% was collected.Findings: The correlation analysis revealed that seed yield per plot was highly and significantly correlated with the number of branches per plant and seeds per siliqua. ZBJ-13006 & ZBJ-15009 produced significantly higher seed yield (2.21kg/plot) & (2.10kg/plot) respectively than the check variety AARI Canola.Research limitations: Although the study was carefully carried out and reached its aim, environmental conditions were unavoidable limitations.Originality/Value: The present study has clearly indicated the need for giving due weightage for the number of seeds per siliqua and the number of branches per plant for improving seed yield in Mustard.
Factors affecting Adoption of Maize Production Technologies: A study in Ghana
Authors: Wongnaa Camillus Abawiera , Awunyo-Vitor Dadson , Bakang John-Eudes Andivi
Published: December 2017

Purpose: The huge gap between actual and achievable yields in Ghana’s maize production threatens Ghana’s household food security. Poor adoption of improved maize production technologies is often cited as the major cause of the low yields. This study examined the factors influencing adoption of improved production technologies by maize farmers in order to highlight the constraints and opportunities for improving adoption.Research Method: The data used were obtained through a cross-sectional survey of 576 maize farmers in Ghana using the structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and the multinomial logit model were the methods of analysis employed.Findings: The results showed that adoption of production technologies is influenced by age, educational level, initial capital outlay, agricultural extension contact, group membership, availability of ready maize market, access to credit, experience in maize farming, land fragmentation and previous year’s price of maize. For adoption of maize production technologies to be improved, technology dissemination programmes should target to  literate farmers and  farmers should be encouraged to join farmer groups, stakeholders should support maize farmers with credit, maize farmers should be provided with ready market and younger farmers should be encouraged to consider maize production as a business.Research Limitations: The study focused on whether or not in general, maize farmers used production technologies. It presents limited information on specific technologies in different agro-ecological zones.Originality/Value: This study provides insights into why especially some Ghanaian maize farmers adopt or do not adopt certain technological packages promoted by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) of Ghana.
Double heterozygosity for hemoglobin C and beta-thalassemia dominant: A rare case of thalassemia intermedia
Authors: Agapidou Alexandra , King Paul , Ng Cecilia , Tsitsikas Dimitris A.
Published: January 2018

Beta thalassemia dominant results from mutations in the β globin chain gene resulting in the production of elongated, highly unstable β globin chains. Several such mutations have been described and in a heterozygous state they may confer a phenotype more severe than that of β thalassemia trait and lead to a clinical syndrome of thalassemia intermedia and its associated complications such as extramedullary hemopoiesis, bone disease, endocrinopathies and iron overload even in the absence of transfusion. In this report we present a case of double heterozygosity for HbC and β thalassemia dominant leading to a series of complications that were treated successfully once the correct diagnosis was made.
Volume, conductance, and scatter parameters of neoplastic and nonneoplastic lymphocytes using Coulter LH780
Authors: Choccalingam Chidambharam
Published: January 2018

PURPOSE: Automated hematology analyzers yield a complete hematological profile including a complete blood count and a differential white blood cell count. The differential count is based on analyses of three parameters, namely, volume, conductance, and scatter (VCS). We aimed to evaluate the VCS parameters, histograms, and scatterplots of neoplastic and nonneoplastic lymphocytes.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Patients were grouped into four categories, namely, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), chronic systemic disorders, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), and acute viral disease. Lymphocytes from all four groups were compared with lymphocytes from normal participants.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The histogram for acute viral disease showed a trough at T1, which was slightly obliterated, and the F1 curve mildly extended to the right. The T1 for ALL was replaced with a peak at >40% of the preset limit. The F1 peak was shifted to left for CLL. The scatterplot for viral disease showed lymphocytes extending to the variant lymphocyte window. The lymphocytes of ALL extended to the blast window, with both increase in volume and mild increase in scatter. The lymphocytes in CLL were smaller and located below the normal lymphocyte region. Mean lymphocyte volume was significantly increased in ALL and was significantly decreased in CLL. Mean lymphocyte conductance was significantly increased in CLL and significantly decreased in both acute viral disease and ALL. Mean lymphocyte scatter was significantly decreased in acute viral disease and significantly increased in ALL.
Development of a dry-reagent mix-based polymerase chain reaction as a novel tool for the identification of Acinetobacter species and its comparison with conventional polymerase chain reaction
Authors: Kulkarni Raghavendra D. , Mishra Mukti Nath , Mohanraj Jeevanandam , Chandrasekhar Arun , Ajantha G S. , Kulkani Sheetal , Bhat Shama
Published: January 2018

BACKGROUND: Nosocomial infections are often caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria and the incidence is increasing. Acinetobacter, a Gram-negative bacillus, is commonly associated with the use of intravascular catheterization and airway intubation. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for identification of Acinetobacter baumannii from samples has been standardized that use conventional wet-reagent mix. We have designed and optimized a dry-reagent mix for identification of Acinetobacter species by PCR. The dry-reagent mix can be stored at room temperature, has less chances of contamination, and thus can be used at point-of-care diagnosis.

AIM AND OBJECTIVE: The present work was focused on comparing the sensitivity and specificity of dry-reagent PCR mix over conventional wet-reagent PCR mix for identification of Acinetobacter species.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Conventional wet-reagent mix based and dry-reagent mix based PCR were carried out for the DNA isolated from Acinetobacter species. The latter was also applied directly on bacterial growth without prior DNA extraction process. Equal numbers of bacterial isolates other than Acinetobacter species were also subjected to identification by the same protocols for determining the sensitivity and specificity of the test.

RESULTS: The Acinetobacter species showed amplification of the target rpoB gene and the band was observed at 397 bp. The dry-reagent PCR mix results matched completely with the conventional wet-reagent PCR mix assay. All the non-Acinetobacter isolates were negative for the PCR. This indicates that the test is highly specific. The dry-reagent mix also contained an enzyme resistant to PCR inhibitors and capable of amplifying DNA directly from cells.

CONCLUSION: Performance of dry-reagent PCR mix without the need for DNA extraction and preparation of a PCR mix proved to be more sensitive and reduce the handling error, minimizes the time, manual work, and skilled labor.
Dilute antiferromagnetism in magnetically doped phosphorene
Authors: Allerdt Andrew , Feiguin Adrian E.
Published: December 2017

We study the competition between Kondo physics and indirect exchange on monolayer black phos-phorous using a realistic description of the band structure in combination with the density matrixrenormalization group (DMRG) method. The Hamiltonian is reduced to a one-dimensional problemvia an exact canonical transformation that makes it amenable to DMRG calculations, yielding exactresults that fully incorporate the many-body physics. We find that a perturbative description of theproblem is not appropriate and cannot account for the slow decay of the correlations and the completelack of ferromagnetism. In addition, at some particular distances, the impurities decouple formingtheir own independent Kondo states. This can be predicted from the nodes of the Lindhard function.Our results indicate a possible route toward realizing dilute anti-ferromagnetism in phosphorene.
Received: 19 September 2017,  Accepted: 12 October 2017; Edited by: K. Hallberg; DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4279/PIP.090008
Cite as: A Allerdt, A E Feiguin, Papers in Physics 9, 090008 (2017)
This paper, by A Allerdt, A E Feiguin, is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0.
N-(Dibenzylcarbamothioyl)-3-methylbutanamide: Crystal structure, Hirshfeld surfaces and antimicrobial activity
Authors: Gumus Ilkay , Gonca Serpil , Arslan Birdal , Keskin Ebru , Solmaz Ummuhan , Arslan Hakan
Published: December 2017

The compound N-(dibenzylcarbamothioyl)-3-methylbutanamide as a thiourea derivative was synthesized and structurally characterized by NMR and FT-IR spectroscopic techniques. The molecular structure of compound was also characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction method. Crystal data for title compound C20H24N2OS: monoclinic, space group C2/c (no. 15), a = 19.6882(9) Å, b = 9.4045(4) Å, c = 19.5012(8) Å, β = 98.433(2)°, V = 3571.8(3) Å3, Z = 8, μ(CuKα) = 1.665 mm-1, 25057 reflections measured (9.168° ≤ 2Θ ≤ 144.196°), 3500 unique (Rint = 0.0322, Rsigma = 0.0200) which were used in all calculations. The final R1 was 0.0363 (I>2σ(I)) and wR2 was 0.0910 (all data). Intermolecular contacts obtained from X-ray single crystal diffraction study were also explored using both Hirshfeld surfaces and fingerprint plots. Hirshfeld surface analysis showed the occurrence of S···H, O···H and H···H contacts that display an important role to crystal packing stabilization of the thiourea derivative compound. In addition, the compound was evaluated for both their in-vitro antibacterial and antifungal activity.
Transport of Canadian forest fire smoke over the UK as observed by
lidar
Authors: Vaughan Geraint , Draude Adam P. , Ricketts Hugo M. A. , Schultz David M. , Adam Mariana , Sugier Jacqueline , Wareing David P.
Published: January 2018

Abstract. Layers of aerosol at heights between 2 and 11 km were observed with Raman lidars in the UK between 23 and 31 May 2016. A network of such lidars, supported by ceilometer observations, is used to map the extent of the aerosol and its optical properties. Spaceborne lidar profiles show that the aerosol originated from forest fires over Western Canada around 17 May, and indeed the aerosol properties – weak depolarisation and a lidar ratio at 355 nm in the range 35–65 sr – were consistent with long-range transport of forest fire smoke. The event was unusual in its persistence – the smoke plume was drawn into an atmospheric block that kept it above North-west Europe for nine days. Lidar observations show how the smoke layers became optically thinner during this period, but the lidar ratio and aerosol depolarisation showed little change.
Modelling of the urban concentrations of PM2.5 on a high resolution
for a period of 35 years, for the assessment of lifetime exposure and health
effects
Authors: Kukkonen Jaakko , Kangas Leena , Kauhaniemi Mari , Sofiev Mikhail , Aarnio Mia , Jaakkola Jouni J. K. , Kousa Anu , Karppinen Ari
Published: January 2018

Abstract. Reliable and self-consistent data on air quality is needed for an extensive period of time for conducting long-term, or even lifetime health impact assessments. We have modelled the urban scale concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area for a period of 35 years, from 1980 to 2014. These high resolution computations included both the emissions originated from vehicular traffic (separately exhaust and suspension emissions) and those from small-scale combustion, and were conducted using the road network dispersion model CAR-FMI and the multiple source Gaussian dispersion model UDM-FMI. The regional background concentrations were evaluated based on reanalyses of the atmospheric composition on global and European scales, using the SILAM model. The modelled concentrations of PM2.5 agreed fairly well or well with the measured data at a regional background station and at four urban measurement stations, during 1999–2014. There was no systematic deterioration of the agreement of predictions and data for earlier years (the 1980's and 1990's), compared with the results for more recent years (2000's and early 2010's). The local vehicular emissions were about five-folds higher in the 1980's, compared with the emissions during the latest considered years. However, the local small-scale combustion emissions increased slightly over time. The highest urban concentrations of PM2.5 occurred in the 1980's; these have since decreased to about to a half of the highest values. However, there is only a very slight decreasing trend of the PM2.5 concentrations during the last decade. Regional background is the largest contribution in this area. Vehicular exhaust has been the most important local source, but the relative shares of both small-scale combustion and vehicular suspension emissions have increased. The study provides long-term, high-resolution concentration databases on regional and urban scales that have been used for the assessment of health effects.
Distribution of planktonic biogenic carbonate organisms in the Southern Ocean south of Australia: a baseline for ocean acidification impact assessment
Authors: Trull Thomas W. , Passmore Abraham , Davies Diana M. , Smit Tim , Berry Kate , Tilbrook Bronte
Published: January 2018

Abstract. The Southern Ocean provides a vital service by absorbing about one-sixth of humankind's annual emissions of CO2. This comes with a cost – an increase in ocean acidity that is expected to have negative impacts on ocean ecosystems. The reduced ability of phytoplankton and zooplankton to precipitate carbonate shells is a clearly identified risk. The impact depends on the significance of these organisms in Southern Ocean ecosystems, but there is very little information on their abundance or distribution. To quantify their presence, we used coulometric measurement of particulate inorganic carbonate (PIC) on particles filtered from surface seawater into two size fractions: 50–1000 µm to capture foraminifera (the most important biogenic carbonate-forming zooplankton) and 1–50 µm to capture coccolithophores (the most important biogenic carbonate-forming phytoplankton). Ancillary measurements of biogenic silica (BSi) and particulate organic carbon (POC) provided context, as estimates of the biomass of diatoms (the highest biomass phytoplankton in polar waters) and total microbial biomass, respectively. Results for nine transects from Australia to Antarctica in 2008–2015 showed low levels of PIC compared to Northern Hemisphere polar waters. Coccolithophores slightly exceeded the biomass of diatoms in subantarctic waters, but their abundance decreased more than 30-fold poleward, while diatom abundances increased, so that on a molar basis PIC was only 1 % of BSi in Antarctic waters. This limited importance of coccolithophores in the Southern Ocean is further emphasized in terms of their associated POC, representing less than 1 % of total POC in Antarctic waters and less than 10 % in subantarctic waters. NASA satellite ocean-colour-based PIC estimates were in reasonable agreement with the shipboard results in subantarctic waters but greatly overestimated PIC in Antarctic waters. Contrastingly, the NASA Ocean Biogeochemical Model (NOBM) shows coccolithophores as overly restricted to subtropical and northern subantarctic waters. The cause of the strong southward decrease in PIC abundance in the Southern Ocean is not yet clear. The poleward decrease in pH is small, and while calcite saturation decreases strongly southward, it remains well above saturation ( > 2). Nitrate and phosphate variations would predict a poleward increase. Temperature and competition with diatoms for limiting iron appear likely to be important. While the future trajectory of coccolithophore distributions remains uncertain, their current low abundances suggest small impacts on overall Southern Ocean pelagic ecology.
Technical note: Stage and water width measurement of a mountain stream using a simple time-lapse camera
Authors: Leduc Pauline , Ashmore Peter , Sjogren Darren
Published: January 2018

Abstract. Remote sensing applied to river monitoring adds complementary information useful for understanding the system behaviour. In this paper, we present a method for visual stage gauging and water surface width measurement using a ground-based time-lapse camera and a fully automatic image analysis algorithm for flow monitoring at a river cross section of a steep, bouldery channel. The remote stage measurement was coupled with a water level logger (pressure transducer) on site and shows that the image-based method gives a reliable estimate of the water height variation and daily flow record when validated against the pressure transducer (R = 0.91). From the remotely sensed pictures, we also extracted the water width and show that it is possible to correlate water surface width and stage. The images also provide valuable ancillary information for interpreting and understanding flow hydraulics and site weather conditions. This image-based gauging method is a reliable, informative and inexpensive alternative or adjunct to conventional stage measurement especially for remote sites.
Institutional reforms and development of corporate governance and banking system in China
Authors: Ratnam Vijayakumaran , Vijayakumaran Sunitha
Published: December 2017

The objective of this paper is to review China’ instructional reforms and evaluate its effectiveness based on available empirical evidences with special reference to Chinese corporate governance system and financial system. As part of the wider economic reform initiated in the late 1970s, in the 1980s, the Chinese government adopted various measures aimed at reforming state owned enterprises (SOEs). These mainly include managerial autonomy, a management responsibility system, corporatization and partial privatization of former SOEs. In addition, the Chinese government took various steps to enhance the efficiency of the banking sector. The analysis shows that China’s efforts to improve the corporate sector through its own unique gradual and piecemeal approach has been successful in terms of introducing a formal governance structure for the corporate sector, liberalizing its financial sector, improving governance of state owned banks, and most importantly, developing the private sector as the back bone of the economy.
BIOESTIMULANTE NA PRODUÇÃO DE MUDAS DE VIDEIRA CV. CRIMSON SEEDLESS
Authors: Ribeiro Rafael Ferreira , Lobo Jackson Teixeira , Cavalcante Ítalo Herbert Lucena , Tenreiro Igor Gomes Pouso , Lima Deisiele Diniz
Published: January 2018

A produção de mudas com qualidade é fundamental na exploração das culturas agrícolas, e os bioestimulantes apresentam-se como ferramentas benéficas nessa fase da planta. O estudo objetivou avaliar as diferentes concentrações de bioestimulante composto por extrato de algas, no favorecimento da expansão radicular e desenvolvimento vegetativo inicial de mudas de uva, cultivar Crimson Seedless enxertadas em porta-enxerto SO4. O experimento foi realizado em viveiro comercial na cidade de Petrolina-PE. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o inteiramente casualizado, com cinco tratamentos e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos foram: (T1) 0; (T2) 0,75; (T3) 1,12; (T4) 1,5 e (T5) 1,87 mL planta-1 do bioestimulante. Aos 45 dias após a enxertia foram analisados o comprimento e diâmetro da brotação do enxerto; área foliar; diâmetro, densidade, área, comprimento e matéria seca das raízes e matéria seca da parte aérea. Os dados foram submetidos à análise de variância e analise de regressão polinomial. Os melhores resultados foram proporcionados pela aplicação da dose 0,75 mL planta-1. O aumento da dose causou efeito fitotóxico. Conclui-se que o bioestimulante é uma ferramenta importante na produção de mudas com qualidade.
MÉTODOS DE AVALIAÇÃO DA INFLUÊNCIA E CONTRIBUIÇÃO DAS PLANTAS SOBRE A ESTABILIDADE DE TALUDES
Authors: Maffra Charles Rodrigo Belmonte , De Moraes Moacir Tuzzin , Sousa Rita Dos Santos , Sutili Fabrício Jaques , Pinheiro Rinaldo José Barbosa , Soares José Mario Doleys
Published: January 2018

O reforço e estabilização de solos por plantas são facilmente observados na natureza. Entretanto, o uso de plantas (e suas raízes) em obras de Engenharia Natural requer conhecimentos e medições de seus efeitos na estabilidade do solo. O objetivo desta revisão foi abordar e discutir conceitualmente a influência das raízes sobre a melhoria da resistência mecânica do solo e na estabilidade de taludes. O efeito das raízes e sua arquitetura sobre as propriedades físicas dos solos foram brevemente discutidos. A estabilização de taludes, seja pela redução da erodibilidade ou ancoramento do solo em profundidade, está diretamente associada à arquitetura e à densidade de comprimento radicular das espécies e do tipo de planta utilizada (gramínea, arbusto ou árvore). As informações compiladas mostram-se úteis aos trabalhos que envolvem o uso de plantas em dimensionamentos geotécnicos, seja para a contenção de processos erosivos ou para a estabilização superficial de massas de solo. O reforço mecânico do solo devido à presença de raízes tem papel de grande importância na estabilidade de taludes, no entanto, técnicas de avaliação da interação solo-raízes ainda devem ser aprimoradas para condições de campo.
GROWTH AND YIELD OF SOYBEAN WITH PENERGETIC APPLICATION
Authors: Aparecido de Souza Adriano , Zanuto de Almeida Fabio , Alberton Odair
Published: January 2018

The soybean (Glycine max L.) plant is economically important for the food and animal feed industries due to its nutritional qualities. Soybean crops are highly productive and responsive to new technologies. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of Penergetic-P and Penergetic-K on the dry weight of shoot (DWS), dry weight of root (DWR), total dry weight (DWT), dry weight of nodules (DWN), number of nodules per plant (NNP), level of N in the shoot (NS), chlorophyll index, plant height and soybean yield. The experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with three replications. The means were compared by ANOVA and Duncan test (p ≤ 0.05). Differences among treatments for NNP were not significantly evident, but observed for DWN. The application of Penergetic-K in soil increased significantly the DWN in comparison with the application of only NPK and micronutrients. The DWR, DWS, DWT and the DWS/DWR ratio didn’t differ significantly among the treatments as well as the chlorophyll index and NS. The grain yield was significantly lower with the addition of NPK + micronutrients and significantly higher with the addition of Penergetic-K. The Penergetic-K promoted an increased soybean yield, up to 20% compared to the treatment with only NPK + micronutrients. It was concluded that the use of Penergetic benefits the soybean production and the soil quality.
Movement Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm
Authors: Hudaib Amjad A. , AL Hwaitat Ahmad Kamel
Published: December 2017

Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) ia a will known meta-heuristic that has been used in many applications for solving optimization problems. But it has some problems such as local minima. In this paper proposed a optimization algorithm called Movement Particle Swarm Optimization (MPSO) that enhances the behavior of PSO by using a random movement function to search for more points in the search space. The meta-heuristic has been experimented over 23 benchmark faction compared with state of the art algorithms: Multi-Verse Optimizer (MFO), Sine Cosine Algorithm (SCA), Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO) and particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). The Results showed that the proposed algorithm has enhanced the PSO over the tested benchmarked functions.
World Health Organization recommendations for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis: should different standards be applied?
Authors: Cox V. , Furin J.
Published: January 2018

The World Health Organization uses a Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation process to make recommendations for treating multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Even with this standardized approach, there have been discrepancies between recommendations for newer
drugs such as bedaquiline and delamanid and the shorter regimen. This may be because newer drugs are novel chemical entities and may merit closer scrutiny. Here, we explore the problematic nature of this supposition, arguing that although the newer drugs have been used in fewer individuals,
they may have more robust efficacy and safety data than many of the second-line drugs used in the shorter regimen.
Diabetes and poor tuberculosis treatment outcomes: issues and implications in data interpretation and analysis
Authors: Huangfu P. , Pearson F. , Ugarte-Gil C. , Critchley J.
Published: January 2018

Tuberculosis (TB) remains one of the 10 leading causes of death worldwide, especially in low- and middle-income countries. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis including 88 studies examining the association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and TB treatment outcomes. However,
we found several common methodological problems among them, including inappropriate adjustments for confounding factors, not using optimal statistical methods for ‘time to event' data, misclassification in exposure (DM) and outcomes (TB treatment outcomes) due to study design and non-standardisation
of definitions, misunderstanding of basic study design concept, standardisation of TB treatment outcomes and quality control of publications. Many of these problems would apply more broadly to other ‘risk factors' for poor TB treatment outcomes. These issues need to be addressed and
resolved to improve the quality of the studies and provide more accurate results for policy makers in the future to tackle the burden of TB.
NATIONAL HOUSING PROGRAM OF THE MAIN STRATEGIC AND PROGRAM DOCUMENT FOR THE CURRENT STATE RESIDENTIAL POLICY OF THE STATE
Authors: Gołębiowska Anna , Prokopowicz Dariusz
Published: January 2018

Launched in April 2016, the Family 500 Plus program significantly reduces the scale of poverty in large families, contributes to the growth of consumption and perhaps also to the increase in fertility in Poland. The second key program of social family policy in Poland launched in December 2016 is the Flat Plus program. This program, through the improvement of the housing situation, should fulfill important functions of housing policy in the scope of reducing the social stratification of families in Poland. The main objective of the Flat Plus program is to significantly increase the availability of flats, especially low-cost rental apartments, with the option of purchasing property after 20-30 years of use. The consequence of developing this program on a larger scale in the coming years will be offering such housing primarily for families who have not been able to rent and buy flats on the open market due to low incomes and lack of creditworthiness. If the plan adopted by the government to develop the Flat Plus program in the coming years will be implemented by 2030, the level of housing availability for citizens in Poland will reach a level close to the average in the European Union.
Analysis of molecular heterogeneity of PRL is important
in patients with hyperprolactinemia
Authors: Kokot Izabela , Płaczkowska Sylwia , Pawlik-Sobecka Lilla
Published: December 2017

Assessment of prolactin level in a medical laboratory is most frequently related to verifying the cause of the problems with fertility. However, hyperprolactinaemia diagnosis by laboratory test often does not reflect the clinical condition of a patient. Patients with hyperprolactinemia,
but without characteristic symptoms related to this disorder, undergo further biochemical
and/or image diagnosis, which could be harmful to the human organism. In some cases,
pharmacological treatment and even surgical intervention are applied, although the cause
of elevated prolactin levels has not been identified.
Prolactin is present in blood in different forms and/or complexes. Most frequently, three
basic isoforms of this hormone are distinguished: monomeric prolactin, big-prolactin, and
big-big-prolactin, called a macroprolactin. The listed forms of prolactin have different biological
activity, but in laboratory tests, all of them show immunoreactiveness. For that reason,
prolactin is a large problem for laboratory diagnosticians and clinicians. The analysis of the
presence of macroprolactin in blood samples with elevated prolactin level is not a routine
matter, even though it has a key meaning in the further diagnostic process of hyperprolactinemia.
A gold standard identifying all forms of prolactin is gel filtration chromatography,
which gives qualitative and also quantitative results. Unfortunately, the equipment used for
this method is not commonly available in medical laboratory. Results of many studies showed
that the precipitation of macroprolactin with polyethylene glycol could be the screening
method for evaluating the macroprolactinaemia prevalence. This procedure is simple and
relatively low-cost, and though it has some analytical restrictions, its results correlate well
with the results of the gel filtration chromatography.
Macroprolactinaemia is present in a small percentage of the total population; however, it can
occured in 53% patients with hyperprolactinaemia.