bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Distinguishing personal belief from scientific knowledge for the betterment of killer whale welfare – a commentary
Authors: Dudzinski Kathleen M. , Hill Heather M. , Zaccaroni Annalisa , Makecha Radhika , Lilley Malin , Almunia Javier , Frick Erin , Feucht Todd , Stafford Grey , Abramson Charles I.
Published: December 2020

We contest publication of Marino et al. regarding captive killer whale (Orcinus orca) welfare because of misrepresentations of available data and the use of citations that do not support assertions. Marino et al. misrepresent stress response concepts and erroneously cite studies, which appear to support Marino et al.’s philosophical beliefs regarding the cetacean hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis. To be clear, these misrepresentations are not differences of scientific opinion, as the authors’ conclusions lack any scientific basis. More extensive review of Marino et al.’s citations reveal a dearth of empirical evidence to support their assertions. Further, Marino et al.’s approach to animal welfare is not consistent with conventional veterinary approaches to animal welfare, including their apparent opposition to use of preventative and therapeutic veterinary interventions. While Marino et al. argue that killer whales’ cognitive and spatial needs preclude management of this species under human care, misrepresentation of the citations used to support this opinion invalidates their arguments. Misleading interpretations of data relative to killer whales’ cognitive and emotional needs and specious and unsubstantiated comparisons with states experienced by humans with posttraumatic stress disorder and other conditions, represent a number of strategies used to misrepresent knowledge regarding killer whale welfare. These misrepresentations and fallacies are inconsistent with scientific ethical standards for credible, peer-reviewed journals (ICMJE, 2018), and are barriers to rigorous discourse and identification of strategies for optimizing killer whale welfare. Assertions in the paper amount to nothing more than a compilation of conclusory, philosophical statements. We would also like to mention that manuscripts such as Marino et al.’s do great damage to the fields of comparative psychology and to behavioral science as a whole.
Behavioral and Personality Effects ona Cooperative Task for Bottlenose Dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) Dyads
Authors: Bagley Kimberly C. , Winship Kelley , Bolton Teri , Foerder Preston
Published: December 2020

Social species can depend on each other for survival, helping in rearing of young, predator defense, and foraging. Personality dynamics between individuals may influence cooperative behaviors. Bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) live in social communities and cooperate with other conspecifics to achieve goals both in the wild and in human care. We investigated the role that personality plays in the willingness of dolphins to work together. We tested five bottlenose dolphin pairs at the Roatan Institute for Marine Sciences, Honduras, with an apparatus previously used to experimentally test dolphin cooperation. Personality profiles of each dolphin were created using surveys completed by the caretakers, in particular noting two different categories of interactions: dolphin to dolphin and dolphin to world. We hypothesized that dyadic success in the cooperative task would differ based on specific personality traits of individuals. We also hypothesized that the most successful dyads would show similar types of conspecific sociality and different means of interacting with objects. Although none of the dolphin pairs cooperated to open the apparatus, individual personalities were analyzed in relation to the dolphins’ individual and mutual interactions with the apparatus as well as the pairs’ social behaviors. Playfulness, curiosity, and affiliation as well as agreeableness, and extraversion were positively related to affiliation with the apparatus and each other. These findings suggest that certain aspects of personality are indicative of affiliation or interaction by an individual dolphin. These results could guide future animal research on the relationship between personality, social interactions, and problem-solving.
The View of Russian Psychology Students on Whether Psychology is a Science
Authors: Aleksandrova-Howell Maria V. , Abramson Charles I. , Cota Lisa D. , Braches Douglas A. , Karitsky Igor N. , Antonenko Irina V. , Mazilov Vladimir A.
Published: December 2020

The Psychology as Science Scale (Friedrich, 1996) was administered to 525 psychology students from nine Russian universities to assess their beliefs about the nature of the discipline. About half of students (49.6%) generally agreed that psychology may be called a scientific discipline. Specifically, 71. 5% of the students agreed that psychology is a natural science, similar to biology, chemistry, and physics, 39. 9% of students agreed that psychological research is important and training in psychological methodology is necessary, and 43.1% of students agreed that human behavior is highly predictable. Students who took three methodology courses shared significantly stronger beliefs in the need for psychological research and the importance of training in methodology compared to students who did not take any methodology courses. Furthermore, students with a specialist degree had significantly stronger beliefs that psychology is a science compared to students who have just finished school. In terms of the effect of students’ career aspirations, students who wanted to be academic psychologists and clinicians had significantly stronger beliefs that psychology is a science compared to students who did not have clarity about their future careers. Regardless of the study limitations, these findings have potential implications for Russian psychology instructors.
FREQUENCY OF ABO, RH AND ABO-RH BLOOD GROUPS IN STUDENTS OF GOMAL MEDICAL COLLEGE, D.I.KHAN, PAKISTAN
Authors: Amin Sadiq , Ahmad Jawad , Khan Muhammad Suhail , Khan Amanullah , Khan Rashid Hassan , Umar Muhammad , Rehan Muhammad , Ullah Sifat , Ullah Barkat , Sani Muhammad , Zia Abdullah , Khan Ashraf , Kundi Asif , Ullah Rizwan
Published: December 2020

Background: Blood group of an individual is commonly determined by ABO & Rh status. The objectives of the study were to determine the frequency of ABO, Rh and ABO-Rh blood groups in students of Gomal Medical College, D.I.Khan, Pakistan. Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Department of Community Medicine, Gomal Medical College, D.I.Khan, Pakistan from April 1 to May 23, 2019. The population being accessible was taken as sample. Sample size was 452. Our research variables (attributes) were ABO (A, B, AB, O), Rh (positive and negative) and ABO-Rh (A+, B+, AB+ O+, A-, B-, AB-, O-) respectively. All variables being nominal were described by count and percentage. The estimated parameters were given as confidence interval for proportion at 95% confidence level. The observed frequency of ABO, Rh and ABO-Rh blood groups was tested against their expected frequency using chi-square goodness of fit test. Results: Out of 452 students, the frequency of ABO blood group was; A 127 (28.12%), B 165 (36.53%), AB 57 (12.62%) & O 103 (22.73%); Rh blood group was; Rh+ 408 (90.33%) & Rh- 44 (9.67%) and ABO-Rh was; A+ 116 (25.60%), B+ 148 (32.05%), AB+ 50 (11.30%), O+ 91 (20.10%), A- 11 (2.40%), B- 17 (03.70%), AB- 7 (1.50%) & O- 12 (2.60%). The observed frequency of ABO & ABO-Rh blood groups was significantly different whereas of Rh blood group was similar to expected prevalence. Conclusion: In our population, most common blood group was B+ and the least common was AB-. The observed frequency of ABO & ABO-Rh blood groups was different while of Rh was same as expected. Awareness of blood groups in populations will help in the effective management of blood banks record in routine as well as during blood related life emergency situations.
PENERAPAN FRAMEWORK IONIC DALAM PERANCANGAN APLIKASI E-CONCEPT SEBAGAI ALAT TERUKUR DALAM PEREKRUTAN SIMPATISAN PEMILUKADA
Authors: Suhaidi Mustazzihim , Nurhadi Nurhadi , Latip Latip
Published: December 2020

Salah satu bentuk dari Gerakan Reformasi adalah pelaksanaan Pemilihan Umum Kepala Daerah (Pemilukada) baik di tingkat kabupaten, kotamadya maupun provinsi yang dilaksanakan secara langsung. Implikasi dari pelaksanaan pemilukada langsung adalah semakin banyaknya calon - calon yang bermunculan, terlebih ketika dibukanya peluang bagi calon perseorangan (independen) untuk ikut berlaga memperebutkan sebagai pemenangnya. Dengan jumlah penduduk yang besar, sosial kemasyarakatan yang beragam, dan ketatnya persaingan, menjadikan Pemilukada sebuah proses yang menghabiskan energi dan tentu biaya besar. Dalam pandangan masyarakat, semakin banyak calon berarti semakin banyak pilihan. Sebaliknya, bagi para kandidat berarti persaingan yang semakin ketat. Butuh desain strategi yang jitu dan tepat agar perjalanan menuju kantor bupati atau walikota, gubernur bisa lebih efektif dan efisien. Data merupakan aset yang paling berharga pada saat kampanye atau sosialisasi karena dapat berfungsi sebagai alat utama sebuah indikator keberhasilan dan pencapaian target kampanye sebagai bahan pertimbangan dalam mengambil keputusan, terutama meningkatkan efisiensi biaya dan efektifitas gerakan Tim Kampanye. E-Concept adalah Software Aplikasi alat ukur dalam perekrutan simpatisan Pemilukada yaitu sebagai alat ukur untuk memenangkan pemilu/pilkada dengan memanfaatkan teknologi informasi dan komunikasi dalam pengolahan data serta teknik statistika dalam membaca dan mendesain prediksi peluang bagi calon atau kandidat. Ionic Framework merupakan salah satu solusi yang dapat dipergunakan, dimana penggunaan Ionic Framework memungkinkan pengembang membuat aplikasi untuk beberapa platform dengan hanya menggunakan bahasa pengembangan web untuk membuat sebuah aplikasi mobile, sehingga dapat meminimalkan waktu dan biaya dalam proses pengembangan sistem berikutnya.
Expanded Utilization of Personal Electronic Devices during the Pandemic and its Effect on Overall Health and Wellness of People in Bangalore
Authors:   Research Scholar, Department of Commerce Christ University, Bangalore, Venkatesh Amita
Published: December 2020

Over the last few years, smart phones have been replaced by landlines, cellular phones and other older versions of mobile phones. Smartphones and other personal electronic devices like laptop, tab, iPad etc. has made our lives easier by providing access to almost everything making our lives more comfortable and easier. In-spite of these several benefits associated with smartphones and personal electronic devices yet excessive usage results in affecting the mental and physical health of the people. The recent pandemic of covid-19 has bought our lives to a standstill and made us confine within our homes since the lockdown was being enforced in Bangalore and other states of India respectively. Thus, most of the activities including our occupation is being done through the means of smartphones and personal electronic devices which includes laptops, iPod, iPad etc. and the internet. This increased usage of has made a greater impact on the people in affecting their mental and physical health. This study aims to analyze how the people of the city Bangalore have been affected both mentally and physically due to the extended utilization of personal electronic devices during the pandemic and also provide ways to resolve this. A semi-structured questionnaire containing the basic details of the respondents, number of hours spent on personal electronic devices for work purpose and other purposes, number of physical and mental health effects suffered by each individual were being collected from the total number of fifty-four individuals out of which a sample of forty-seven people were being considered for this study.
Pedagogical Conditions for the Development of Artistic Perception in Children of the Fifth Year of Life in the Process of Familiarization with Works of Fine Art
Authors:   Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, Associate Professor Institute of Retraining and Advanced Training of Pre-School Education Institutions, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Abdunazarova Nargiza Fatkhullaevna
Published: December 2020

The article considers the problem of the development of artistic perception in children of the fifth year of life. The paper substantiates the possibility and necessity of developing artistic perception in preschool age, the features of using works of fine art in the development of artistic perception of preschool children, the willingness of a teacher to develop artistic perception of pupils, as well as the relationship of directly educational activities with the independent creativity of children.
Operadores de contraposição na introdução das redações do ENEM
Authors: Carvalho Aleise Guimarães , Morais Maria Eliane Gomes , Do Nascimento Erivaldo Pereira
Published: December 2020

Este artigo objetiva identificar e analisar o emprego dos operadores de contraposição mobilizados para formulação da tese presente na introdução de redações nota 1000 do Exame Nacional de Ensino Médio (ENEM) dos anos 2016 e 2017, publicadas na Cartilha do Participante (2017; 2018). À luz da Semântica Argumentativa, analisou-se o comportamento semântico-argumentativo desses operadores, considerando o requisito da construção de um texto dissertativo-argumentativo avaliado na competência II, da matriz de referência do INEP/MEC, a fim de discutir de que maneira tais elementos contribuem para formulação da tese e direcionam a argumentação. O caráter metodológico do estudo em questão foi documental, de cunho descritivo-interpretativista, baseado nos postulados teóricos de Ducrot (1987; 1988), Vogt e Ducrot (1980), Koch (2011) e Silva (2015). Os resultados obtidos indicam que os operadores de contraposição são recorrentes na construção da tese das redações analisadas e contribuem para marcar o posicionamento do locutor na introdução do texto.
Atos autobiográficos
Authors: Severo Anaise Avila , Olini Polyana
Published: December 2020

O artigo busca, por meio de atos autobiográficos, movimentar procedimentos de referências, afetos, singularidades e deslocamentos de textos desse gênero. Considera que o espaço autobiográfico é uma construção entre autor e leitor, no qual a intencionalidade de leitura e de escrita forma o gênero sem a necessidade de firmação de referencialidade. Logo, a afirmação de que tal espaço possa ser social, é apresentada como uma imagem do autor constantemente inserida em um ato autobiográfico de si. Quando a escrita autobiográfica ficcionaliza o autor, tornando-lhe também experenciável aos seus leitores, o eu autobiográfico pode revelar-se na qualidade de emoção compartilhada com o seu leitor, de maneira que a relação prestar-se-á afetiva operando uma desestruturação da autobiografia tradicional. Essa movimentação constante e em permanente mudança é operada aqui como analise descentrada e fluída, transição tanto individual quanto conjunta da elipse e da espiral, que possibilita a leitura de uma autobiografia enquanto coleção a partir da desconstrução.
Selection of Optimal Discount of Retail Assortments with Data Mining Approach
Authors: Eddla Padmalatha , Reddy R.Ravinder , Ramasani Mamatha
Published: December 2020

Recently, the capabilities of generating and collecting data have been increasing rapidly. Widespread use of bar codes for most commercial products, the computerization of many business, and the advance in data collection tools have provided us with huge amount of retail data. This explosive growth in data and databases has generated an urgent need for data mining techniques and tools that can extract implicit, previously unknown and potentially useful information from data in data storages. One of the most popular data mining approaches is "association rules", which is commonly applied to analyze market baskets to help managers to determine which items are frequently purchased together by customers. Affinity analysis is a data analysis and data mining technique that discovers co-occurrence relationships among activities performed by (or recorded about) specific individuals or groups. In general, this can be applied to any process where agents can be uniquely identified and information about their activities can be recorded. In retail, affinity analysis is used to perform market basket analysis, in which retailers seek to understand the purchase behavior of customers. This information can then be used for purposes of cross-selling and up-selling, in addition to influencing sales promotions, loyalty programs, store design, and discount plans.
Developing A Code Readability Model To Improve Software Quality
Authors: Podugu Venkatesh
Published: December 2020

Software maintenance is one of the main phase in software evaluation. This paper presents the relation between software metrics and maintainability. This paper explains about the concept of Software code readability and its relation to software quality. The quality of code is very essential for the future and for the reuse purpose. Here generated a code readability model to calculate the readability of the code by selecting the snippets and these snippets are to be given to the expert to rate them. Collecting the features of code and combing the judgments generated the readability model. This paper focus on providing the graphical user interface (GUI),to the code readability model to improve the understanding of software code readability. By providing the readability of code to the many open source projects, automatically informing the existed code quality to improve the quality of code. It show that this readability model developed is correlates strongly with three measures of software quality: code changes in software, defect log messages and automated defect reports. It measures correlations over many releases of selected projects.
Eosinophilic esophagitis – 10 years of experience in five Czech pediatric endoscopy centers
Authors: Pecl Jakub , Karásková Eva , Kunovský Lumír , Jimramovský František , Schneiderová Helena , Pinkasová Tereza , Veverková Markéta , Jouza Martin , Hloušková Eliška , Bajerová Kateřina , Látalová Vendula , Véghová-Velgáňová Mária , Geryk Miloš , Šuláková Astrid , Ťoukálková Lenka , Jakšič Damjan , Zimen Martin , Ježová Marta , Urík Milan , Wiesnerová Markéta , Jabandžiev Petr
Published: December 2020

Background: Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is a chronic, progressive inflammatory disease of the esophagus characterized by local eosinophilic infiltration accompanied by symptoms of esophageal dysfunction. The aim of this study was to characterize features of EoE dia gnosed regionally and to describe local strategies for its treatment. Methods: The observational survey retrospectively analyzed a data set of child patients with histologically proven EoE from five pediatric endoscopy centers. This analysis focused on describing their general situation (age, gender, symptoms) and also aimed to investigate any possible linkage between age and symptoms or length of dia gnosis period. Demographic features; clinical symptoms; laboratory, endoscopic, and histopathological findings; and chosen treatment of patients were recorded and analyzed. Results: From January 2010 to September 2020, 33 new cases of EoE were reported. Strong association of EoE with male sex is consistent with the results from formerly published studies (81.8%). The median age of symptom onset was 7 years, while the median age for dia gnosis was almost 13 years. The most common symptoms were reflux symptoms in general (39.4%), followed by vomiting (36.4%), and dysphagia (33.3%). Examination for sensitization to food allergens was performed on 23 (69.7%) patients with dia gnosed EoE. Out of these, 17 (51.5% of all cases) were found to be sensitive to some allergens. Most of this subgroup (and 48.5% of all cases) were examined by specific IgE testing, and just 2 (6.1% of all cases) patients were tested only by skin prick tests. Another allergic comorbidity was present in 75.8% of patients, and the most common of these were bronchial asthma and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (45.5% and 42.2%, respectively). More than two-thirds of patients (69.7%) had abnormal macroscopic findings during dia gnostic endoscopy, and the most common were longitudinal furrows and white exudates. The most common initial modality of treatment was to use proton-pump inhibitors (PPI; 93.9%), followed by food elimination (75.8%) and then by corticosteroid administration (63.6%). The vast majority of patients treated with corticosteroids received a topical preparation (90.9%). Conclusion: This is the first retrospective study on pediatric patients with EoE in the Czech Republic. We found similar features of EoE as reported in formerly published works elsewhere. Collecting long-term prospective observational data in a national EoE register of patients in the Czech Republic would significantly improve our knowledge of this disease.
Kierkegaard: Sobre el proceso y la paradoja en Temor y temblor
Authors: Assiter Alison , Fioravanti Anna
Published: December 2020

Aunque es imposible explicar una paradoja, este trabajo trata de dar sentido a lo que ella significa y a lo que Abraham cree “en virtud del absurdo”. Antes que nada, se resumirán diversas interpretaciones de reconocidos autores. Luego, se detallarán algunos lineamientos marcados por Friedrich Schelling, como su filosofía del proceso y su visión del tiempo; y por Immanuel Kant, como las antinomias planteadas en la Crítica de la razón pura, su intento de pensar más allá de los límites posibles para los seres humanos finitos, lo cual conduce a la paradoja y a la conformación especial de un agente libre. Finalmente, a partir de estos fundamentos, expondré mi propia interpretación de la fe de Abraham y algunas conclusiones a partir de allí.
La persona ante Dios
Authors: Uriel Rodríguez Pablo
Published: December 2020

La reflexión antropológica de Kierkegaard constituyó una de las más impor- tantes bases del pensamiento personalista de Romano Guardini. El teólogo católico le prestó particular atención a la teoría de la subjetividad expuesta en La enfermedad mortal, a la que criticó en varios de sus ensayos y libros. El teó- logo católico alemán sostiene que Anti-Climacus desarrolla una antropología dinámica que conduce a una comprensión catastrófica de la libertad humana. Comienzo señalando el modo en que el pensamiento maduro de Guardini se apropia de la noción del yo expuesta en La enfermedad mortal. A continuación, reconstruyo el análisis que realiza Guardini del libro de Anti-Climacus en dos artículos redactados durante la década de 1920. Luego, explico por qué motivo Anti-Climacus se ve obligado a defender esa antropología dinámica rechazada por el teólogo católico. Por último, indico la inspiración kierkegaardeana en la respuesta de Guardini al problema de la relación entre la libertad humana y la omnipotencia divina.
Anadoluculuk Hareketinin Selçuklu Tarihçiliğine Etkileri
Authors: BURGU Abdullah
Published: December 2020

Günümüz itibariyle Selçuklu tarihyazımı belli bir seviyeye ulaşmıştır. Bu aşamaya gelmeden önce çeşitli safhalardan geçmiştir. Alanın uzmanı araştırmacılar tarafından bazı dönemlerde bu gelişmeler incelenmiştir. Fakat bazı düşünce hareketleri ve akımların alana katkısı üzerinde detaylı durulmamıştır. Avrupa’da Alman Tarih Okulu ve Annales Okulu gibi büyük tarih ekolleri kuram ve ideolojilerle şekillenmiştir. Türkiye’de ise Selçuklu tarihçiliğinin başlangıcında da böyle bir durum söz konusudur. Araştırmada, Anadoluculuk hareketinin Selçuklu tarihçiliğine ve bunun farklı disiplinlerle olan ilişkisine katkısı yedi önemli isim etrafından anlatılmaya çalışılmıştır. Her biri faklı disiplinlerle tanınan bu bilim adamlarının ortak yönü Anadolucu olmalarıdır. Öncelikle Anadoluculuk hareketi üzerinde genel hatlarıyla durulmuş, sonraki kısımda ise bu hareketin örnek alınan müntesiplerinin alana katkıları Anadoluculuk çerçevesinde ele alınmıştır. Böylece Selçuklu tarihçiliğinin ve Anadoluculuk düşüncesinin birbiri ile olan özgün bağının ortaya çıkarılması amaçlanmıştır.
Optimization of operation scheme for express freight railway
Authors:   School of Economics and Management, Chongqing Jiaotong University Chongqing 400074, China, Xiao Hong , Huang Shu ,   School of Economics and Management, Chongqing Jiaotong University Chongqing 400074, China, Hang Bo ,   Computer School, Hubei University of Arts and Science,Xiangyang 441053, China, Wang Xiao-kun ,   School of Economics and Management, Dalian Jiaotong University ,Dalian 116028, China
Published: December 2020

With the high-speed development of industrialization process and the Internet e-commerce in China, the number of the fast cargoes is increasing. The transportation demands of customer should be provided in a convenient and efficient way. However, compared to road and aviation, railway express freight network is lagging in China, the market share is relatively low, and the service is still in a low level. The operation scheme of railway express freight train can improve the railway efficiency. This paper studies the railway express freight train schemes on several related questions. They are as follows: (1) We analyze the factors of operating express freight train. (2) Based on the assumption of the shortest path for the flow of traffic, the operation scheme of express freight railways is optimized by establishing a multitarget model with making the largest railway revenue and the largest satisfaction of cargo owner. (3) The multitarget model is proposed to be converted into a single-target model. It is the case of carrying out the operation scheme in the four logistics node cities of the southwest China. The following conclusions are taken: (1) The choice method of the flow path is generally analyzed by heuristic method, which is more accurate. (2) We establish a multiobjective optimization model on the base of getting the maximum of transport revenue and satisfying the cargo owner’s demand.
The manifestation of VIS-NIRS spectroscopy data to predict and map soil texture in the Triffa plain (Morocco)
Authors:   Dept. of Geology, Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed First University, Oujda, Morocco, Lazaar Ayoub , Hammouti Kamal El ,   Dept. of Geology, Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed First University, Oujda, Morocco, Naiji Zakariae ,   Dept. of Geology, Faculty of Sciences, Mohammed First University, Oujda, Morocco, Pradhan Biswajeet ,   Center for Advanced Modelling and Geospatial Information Systems, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology,Sydney, Australia, Gourfi Abdelali ,   Dept. of Geology, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques, Cadi Ayyad University, B.P. 549, Marrakech, Andich Karim ,   Dept. Geomatics and Soil Science, National Institute of Agronomic Research, Oujda, Morocco, Monir Abdelilah ,   Dept. of Mathematics, EDP and Scientific Computing Team, Faculty of Sciences, Moulay Ismail University, Meknes, Morocco
Published: December 2020

The use of standard laboratory methods to estimate the soil texture is complicated, expensive, and time-consuming and needs considerable effort. The reflectance spectroscopy represents an alternative method for predicting a large range of soil physical properties and provides an inexpensive, rapid, and reproducible analytical method. This study aimed to assess the feasibility of Visible (VIS: 350-700 nm) and Near-Infrared and Short-Wave-Infrared (NIRS: 701-2500 nm) spectroscopy for predicting and mapping the clay, silt, and sand fractions of the soils of Triffa plain (north-east of Morocco). A total of 100 soil samples were collected from the non-root zone of soil (0-20 cm) and then analyzed for texture using the VIS-NIRS spectroscopy and the traditional laboratory method. The partial least squares regression (PLSR) technique was used to assess the ability of spectral data to predict soil texture. The results of prediction models showed excellent performance for the VIS-NIRS spectroscopy to predict the sand fraction with a coefficient of determination R2 = 0.93 and Root Mean Squares Error (RMSE) =3.72, good prediction for the silt fraction (R2=0.87; RMSE = 4.55), and acceptable prediction for the clay fraction (R2 = 0.53; RMSE = 3.72). Moreover, the range situated between 2150 and 2450 nm is the most significant for predicting the sand and silt fractions, while the spectral range between 2200 and 2440 nm is the optimal to predict the clay fraction. However, the maps of predicted and measured soil texture showed an excellent spatial similarity for the sand fraction, a certain difference in the variability of clay fraction, while the maps of silt fraction show a lower difference.
Location-based expert system for diabetes diagnosis and medication recommendation
Authors:   Dept. of Computer Science, Kuwait University, Kuwait, Almulla Mohammed A.
Published: December 2020

Using expert systems in the medical field has been practiced continuously for the past decades. There are attempts of using expert systems for a diabetes diagnosis. In this paper, we go further by proposing an expert system that not only diagnoses diabetes but also recommends the right medication depending on the location where the patient lives and on the symptoms of the patient and other effective factors. This system can be very helpful to many diabetic patients, especially to those who are not aware of their disease type or how to control it. The system outputs a list of names of locally available brand names of medications that suit the diabetes type of the patient and that do not pose any danger to the health of the patients according to their symptoms, effective factors, and results of the patients’ medical tests. Our expert system is capable of reasoning using either forward chaining or backward chaining. The rules in the knowledge base are collected from several medical textbooks and articles published in scientific journals, periodicals, and international conferences. To verify the content of the knowledge base, a medical expert and a pharmacist working in Kuwait were consulted.
Correlation of maternal neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio with fetal birth weight in preeclampsia
Authors:   Dept. of Physiology, Lahore Medical and Dental College Lahore/ University of Health Sciences Lahore, Pakistan, Ali Zaima , Zaki Saima ,   Dept. of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jinnah Hospital Lahore, Pakistan, Khalid Uzma Zafar,Attiqa ,   Dept. of Physiology, Lahore Medical and Dental College Lahore/ University of Health Sciences Lahore, Pakistan, Tauseef Ambreen ,   Dept. of Physiology, CMH Lahore Medical College & IOD/ University of Health Sciences Lahore, Pakistan, Tariq Sundus ,   Dept. of Physiology, University Medical and Dental College, University of Faisalabad/ University of Health Sciences,Lahore, Pakistan
Published: December 2020

Preeclampsia is a generalized inflammatory disorder complicating gestation, with most of the cases developing in the third trimester. To evaluate the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in diagnosed cases of preeclampsia and determine its correlation with fetal birth weight, a cross sectional analytical study was performed in Shaikh Zayed Medical Complex and Jinnah Hospital, Lahore. The participants included 60 cases of preeclampsia and 60 normotensive controls in the third trimester of pregnancy. All the participants were in the age group of 20 -40 years and body mass index of 18 -25. Total and differential leukocyte count was checked by automated hemoanalyzer, and the neutrophil lymphocyte ratio was calculated. Fetal birth weight was recorded immediately after birth. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS (version 20). The p value of < 0.05 was considered significant. Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was significantly high (p value < 0.001) in the preeclamptic group with a median value of 2.64 (2.0-3.8) as compared to 1.87 (1.7-2.0) in the healthy group. The fetal birth weight was significantly low (p value < 0.001) in the pregnancies complicated with preeclampsia. High neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was negatively correlated with fetal birth weight in preeclampsia (p value < 0.01). On logistic regression significant association of high neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio with low fetal birth weight was found after controlling for the confounder gestational age, with an odds ratio of 8.28 (95% confidence interval 2.84-24.17). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was 0.8. The optimum cutoff value of neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio was 2.3 with 79% sensitivity and 76% specificity. High maternal neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in the third trimester in preeclampsia negatively correlates with fetal birth weight and is a simple promising biomarker to predict low fetal birth weight.
Screening of microfungi for lipolytic activity and optimization of process parameters in lipase production by solid substrate fermentation using selected microfungi (Penicillium aurantiogriseum)
Authors:   Dept. of Biotechnology and Genetics, Institute of Science, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey, Çakmak Meltem , Aydoğdu Halide ,   Arda Vocational College, Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey
Published: December 2020

In the present study, eighty-four strains of microfungi were screened for lipolytic activity, and Penicillium aurantiogriseum showing the highest enzyme activity was selected. Then extracellular lipase production from this species was carried out using the solid state fermentation (SSF) method, in which various agricultural wastes were used as substrates. Among the various agricultural wastes used in SSF, sunflower pulp was determined as the best solid substrate. Optimum fermentation conditions were found as follows: 6-day incubation time at 25 oC and moisturizing liquid pH: 5.5 (distilled water), initial moisture level 75% (w/v), initial inoculum concentration 1 ml (1x106 spores/ml), and 1% sesame oil as a carbon source. As a result of the optimum conditions, the volume activity was recorded as 0.4 U/ml, and the specific enzyme activity was obtained as 1.13 U/mg.
Optimum design of the hybrid (diffractive/refractive) multifocal intraocular lenses implanted within human eye
Authors:   Dept. of Laser and Optoelectronics, Engineering, University of Technology, Iraq, Al-Hamdani Ali H. , Rashid Hayfa G. ,   Dept. of Physics, College of Education, University of Al-Mustansiryah, Iraq, Hashim Hussein T. ,   Dept. of Physics, College of Education, University of Al-Mustansiryah, Iraq
Published: December 2020

The human eye natural crystalline lens becomes opaque due to cataract. For improvement of the eye vision, the crystalline lens is typically surgically removed and replaced by an intraocular lens (IOLs). The optimum design of hybrid multifocal intraocular lenses (MIOLs) implanted within the human eye model is proposed. The AR40N acrylic MIOLs material has good biocompatibility. Two types of hybrid MIOLs (diffractive/refractive (D/R) and refractive/ diffractive (R/D)) with four foci were designed and evaluated. A comparison between the image quality for a healthy eye (Liou & Brennan model) and an eye with the implanted hybrid MIOLs has been performed based on ZEMAX-EE optical software. The image characteristics, point spread function (PSF), modulation transfer function (MTF), blur spot size, and longitudinal chromatic aberration (LCA) were used as an image criterion in this study. The eye pupil diameter was “3 mm,” the visual field of view was 5 degrees, and the light spectral region was 455- 655 nm. Results indicate that both hybrid MIOLs models achieved good visual acuity (sharp vision) for distances within the range 25 to 108 cm. The MIOLs made a remarkable correction in chromatic aberration than the healthy eye. The MTF for R/D-MIOL model improves the visual quality more than D/R-MIOL and healthy eye models.
Sistema automatizado para monitorear el uso de equipos de protección personal en la industria de la construcción
Authors: Massiris M. , Fernández J. A. , Bajo J. , Delrieux C.
Published: December 2020

Este artı́culo presenta un novedoso sistema de visión por computador que genera indicadores automatizados de uso adecuado de equipos de protección personal (EPP) de gran importancia en la industria de la construcción,  concretamente el uso de casco de seguridad y chaleco de alta visibilidad. El sistema se construye sobre una arquitectura de redes neuronales que trabaja sobre imágenes digitales. Primero se utiliza la red neuronal OpenPose para la detección de puntos antropométricos de los trabajadores visualizados, los cuales se utilizan para segmentar automáticamente regiones de interés (ROI) ubicadas en la cabeza y el tronco. Sobre estas ROI, un clasificador neuronal estima la presencia o ausencia de los dos EPP de interés. Los resultados obtenidos en vı́deos tomados en movimiento por drones o smartphones muestran que nuestro sistema es plenamente capaz de realizar una evaluación completa de indicadores de utilización de estos dos EPP sin asistencia, con el propósito principal de prevenir incidentes potencialmente peligrosos en el lugar de trabajo.
The Dangers of Lift on Parked Planes: General Aviation Airport Safety
Authors:   University of South Florida, Malloy Robert
Published: December 2020

The focus of this paper is to investigate proper aircraft management for safety on an airfield. This is accomplished by looking at lift caused by powerful winds to the aircrafts stored on an airfield, and the tension it places on the rope that secures them. This work could be used to determine when aircrafts are in high-risk and need to be stored either in hangars or moved to other airports prior to storms. The calculations used to determine these conclusions are also explored in the paper.
Mathematical Reconstruction of a Traffic Crash
Authors:   University of South Florida, Covert Benjamin
Published: December 2020

The objective is to find the impact speeds of two motor vehicles involved in a traffic crash. The calculations take into account the approach (pre-collision) and departure (post collision) angles, as well as weights and post collision speeds of both vehicles. The data is provided by Timothy Sleyzack who investigated this traffic collision. The conclusions confirm the validity of the use of Conservation of Linear Momentum in the field of traffic crash reconstruction.
Area of Irregular Shaped Roof
Authors:   University of South Florida, Alkhawaldeh Omar
Published: December 2020

This project makes use of calculus, specifically integration, to find the exact area of a roof garden to minimize the cost of material used in flooring it. Since the roof is of irregular shape, it is divided into four sections, the integral of each section is taken, and a relationship between the integrals is generated. Positive results are found, and the data reveal that the area of the grass floor is 175.3 m2 while the area of the wooden floor is 23.4 m2 with the total price being 2472 US dollars.
Albania
Authors:   International Monetary Fund. European Dept.
Published: December 2020

Albania continues to be severely affected by the aftermath of the November 2019 earthquake and the COVID-19 pandemic. The authorities responded promptly to the shocks, and macroeconomic and financial stability have so far been maintained. The economy is expected to contract sharply in 2020, followed by a gradual recovery in 2021-22. The outlook is subject to major uncertainty and rising downside risks as a second wave is gripping many countries in Europe. Albania’s capacity to repay the Fund is adequate, but risks have risen in light of the shocks. Aside from a more severe pandemic, key risks stem from elevated public deficits and debt, weaknesses in public finances, and a relatively high level of non-performing loans (NPLs) and euroization.
The Effects of Puppet in Eduwebtv Programmes on Children’s National Language Speaking Skills
Authors:   Faculty of  Human Development, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia., Chee Luen Loy , Swee Choo Goh , Mohd Radzi Nor Mashitah , Mamat Nordin , Teck Wong Kung , Hoi Wong Yu ,   Faculty of  Human Development, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia., Awang Mohd Mahzan ,   Faculty of  Education Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.
Published: December 2020

The objective of this study was to investigate the differences between children’s National language speaking skills in terms of words, phrases, and sentences between the treatment group and control group. The duration of this study was three weeks. Sixty four children from two classes of primary one, government school in Malaysia were selected as the respondents in this study. This study adopted the quasi-experimental research design with one treatment group and one control group of thirty children, respectively. The treatment group learned speaking skills through Puppet in EduWebTV Programmes, while the control group learned speaking skills without Puppet in EduWebTV Programmes. The findings of the study revealed that the learning of speaking skills through Puppet in EduWebTV Programmes is more effective in increasing the skills in words, phrases, and sentences than the learning without Puppet in EduWebTV Programmes. Learning National language speaking skills with Puppet in EduWebTV Programmes has given a positive impact based on the fact that the puppets need to be used to improve children’s speaking skills.
Promoting Children Potential and Social Abilities: A Qualitative Study of Nursery Assessment Practices in Malaysia
Authors:   Department of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Human Development, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia., Mamat Nordin , Che Mustafa Mazlina , Chee Luen Loy , Rahim Hamdan Abdul , Rahim Razalli Abdul ,   Department of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Human Development, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia., M Abdul Talib Hashim ,   Department of Education Studies, Faculty of Human Development, Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris, Malaysia., Mahzan Awang Mohd ,   Faculty of Education, The National University of Malaysia.
Published: December 2020

This study aims toidentify the frequency of assessments at TASKA (nursery) centres and how the assessments are conducted. The study involves 20 teachers from TASKA (nurseries) who conduct early education programs for children aged birth to 4 years old. In-depth interviews were conducted with the teachers based on instruments from the early childhood care and education (ECCE) Research Project which included two main standards, an element of children’s learning and assessment. There are various frequencies of each assessments for each TASKA such as two times a year; three times a year; every three months, monthly, weekly and daily. The frequencies of assessment are depending on the TASKA needs such as a reporting to other teachers when they progress. The result also shows that the observation conducted with checklist, anecdotal record, running records and portfolio. Observation records as mentioned by the teachers to monitor children development and to show the quality of the TASKA. In conclusion, the frequency of observation gives benefit to the children and for teachers’ preparation and future plan for the program. The continuation of child observations carried out by parents or guardians at home can help identify the child’s development more accurately.
Review: How to Steal a City: The Battle for Nelson Mandela Bay, an Inside Account by Crispian Olver
Authors: Thina Nzo
Published: December 2020

The insider account of 'How to Steal a City' undoubtedly is one of the few books that offers a much needed insight into the everyday workings of local government politics and administration in South Africa. This book is underpinned by rich descriptions of local government politics and administration generated through the personal experiences of Crispian Olver. Researchers, scholars, local politicians, municipal officials and practitioners of local government who wish to learn more about South African local government politics should have a good reason to pay close attention to this book.
Comparación molecular de poblaciones de chile (Capsicum spp.) de Tabasco y Chiapas, México
Authors: Gálvez Muñoz Yasmín Araceli , Cea María Esther , Lesher Gordillo Julia María , Latournerie-Moreno Luis , Martínez-Moreno Eusebio , Martínez-Sánchez José Luis , Castañón-Nájera Guillermo
Published: December 2020

Dada la importancia que tiene el chile en el sureste de la república mexicana,los objetivos de la investigación fueron caracterizar molecularmente, estimar el polimorfismo y la estructura genética de 21 poblaciones de Capsicum spp. delos estados de Tabasco y Chiapas. Se sembraron semillas de las poblaciones ya los 40 días después de la germinación, se cortaron dos hojas jóvenes por planta de 10 individuosde cada población. Las 20 hojas de cada población se mezclaron y de ellas se tomarontres muestras de 0,5 g de tejido vegetal para extraer el ADN. Se usaron cuatro marcadores microsatélites (SSR) para estimar la diversidad genética. Se detectaron 229 alelos, de ellos 70 fueron polimórficos. El marcador Hpms1-106 detectó 38,8% de polimorfismo, y HpmsCaSIG-19 el menor polimorfismo (20,55%). El AMOVA explicó 13,0% de la variabilidad entre poblaciones, y losindividuos dentro de las poblaciones el 87,0% restante. El estadístico FST= 0,176 indicóque la diferenciación genética entre poblaciones es grande, el FIS= -0,448 que las poblaciones poseen exceso de heterocigotos, yelFIT= -0,193, que los individuos de cada población mostraron efecto moderado de apareamiento no aleatorio. El análisis clusteraglomeró a las poblaciones evaluadas en seis grupos. El clusterI agrupó 13 poblaciones, y dentro de éstas, Amashito Cerro Blanco y Colmillo deLagarto El Porvenir mostraron ser las más parecidas genéticamente. En el clusterVI, Pico de Paloma Miahuatlán fue diferente al resto de las poblaciones. Los marcadores microsatélites fueron útiles para analizar la diversidad genética de las poblaciones de chile evaluadas.
NON-HYBRID ENSEMBLE SPATIAL REGRESSION ON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX (IPM) in CENTRAL JAVA
Authors: Sazaen Evi Ardiati
Published: December 2020

The human development index (HDI) is a measure to see an increase in regional development that has a very broad dimension, because it increases the quality of the population of an area in terms of life expectancy, education, and decent standard of living. In 2010 the Central Java HDI increased by 66.08% and increased by 4.44%, with the total HDI in 2017 of 70.52 percent. Spatial regression is the development of classical linear regression involving the region model. Spatial regression ensemble is a technique to be sent spasi spatial regression models by adding noise (additive noise). The type of spatial weighting used is Queen Contiguity. The selection of the best model using AIC and RMSE values. The purpose of this study is to provide an assessment of the distribution of HDI data in the Province of Central Java in 2017 and to do modeling using non-hybrid spatial ensemble regression regression. The results of this study are the SAR spatial method with ensemble giving results with AIC value of 143 and RMSE value of 1.3899 with a value of  90.09%. Significant variables on HDI are population density (X1), poverty (X2), school participation rates (X5), and average per capita per month for food and non-food (X7).