bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Perkembangan Penyakit Morbus Hansen Atau Kusta (Tahun 2002 – 2011 ) di RS Pembantu Abadi Naob, Kefamenanu
Authors: Dr.Sabina Gero SKp
Published: July 2018

Penelitian deskriptif dengan metode survey ini dilakukan di RS Pembantu Abadi Naob, Kabupaten TTU. Data diambil selama 10 tahun sejak 2002 - 2011. RS Tipe D atau RS Khusus ini milik swasta (Yayasan Anfrida, biara PRR), berdiri sejak tahun 1996, penelitian dilakukan bulan oktober - november 2012. Penelitian ini ingin memberi gambaran tentang penderita morbus hansen atau kusta atau penderita lepra di NTT, pulau timor, khusunya kabupaten TTU. Penyakit kusta atau morbus hansen masih merupakan ancaman, upaya promosi dan preventif untuk penyakit ini perlu dilakukan kepada masyarakat, dengan brosur, leaflet, spanduk, baliho, berisi tentang penyakit kusta dan deteksi dini, serta menghilangkan stigma. Status sebagai penderita kusta sulit dihilangkan pada seseorang, walupun telah sembuh. Predikat ini melekat seumur hidup dan meninggalkan permasalahan psikologis seperti rasa kecewa, takut, malu, tidak percaya diri, merasa tidak berguna, kawatir dikucilkan, oleh stigma (opini masyarakat) terhadap penderita kusta dan keluarganya yang menyebabkan mereka dikucilkan. Key words : Penyakit Morbus Hansen, Stigma
Kebutuhan Psikosial - Spritual Pasien Dengan Praktik Aktivitas Psikososial - Spritual Sehari - Hari Pasien Sakit Terminal Di RSUD Prof. DR. W.Z Johanes Kupang Tahun 2013
Authors: Dr.Sabina Gero SKp
Published: July 2018

Psychosocial - spritual needs of patients, less touched by nurses. This is due to lack of recognition and in - depth information about psychosocial - spritual aspects. Many nurses consider it is very privacy. so it can not intervented by nurses. The concept of nursing is caring patient patient as a whole human being, consisting of bio - psycho - social and spritual. The purpose of this study analyzed the relationship of psychosocial - spritual needs of patient with the practice of psychosocial spritual activity daily terminal ill patients. The method is a cross - sectional study, the respondents in the form of patient with a terminal illnes are treated in hospital Prof. Dr. W.Z. Johanes Kupang. Samples taken by the accidental technique, totaling 53 people (patients). The study was conducted in adult space both men and humiliation of women. Sample must meet the citeria, treated at least 3 days, terminal disease (cirrhosis, cancer, AID's and reanl failure), fully aware and willing to become respondents. The result of the study tested by chi-square and wilcoxon, obtained that has a terminal illness meaningful relationship with psychosocial - spritual needs (p < 0,05. Relation practices psychosocial activities have a significant relationship with psychosocial needs during care (p=0,002), where ad the spritual needs are not related to the practice of spritual activity of patients. Therefore the important role nurses asses psychosocial - spritual history of patient with good and complete as well as provide adequate services for psychosocial - spritual needs, because this aspect can not be separated from the physical aspect/biological. Keyword : Psychosocial-spritual needs, Psychosocial-spritual activities, terminal illness
Establishing determinant relevance using CIBER: an introduction and tutorial
Authors: Peters Gjalt - Jorn Ygram , Crutzen Rik
Published: July 2018

When developing behavior change interventions, it is important to target the most important determinants of behavior (i.e. psychological constructs that predict behavior). This is challenging for two reasons. First, determinant selection requires integrating multiple information sources: determinants' associations with either behavior or with determinant that mediate their effect on behavior (i.e. effect sizes), as well as how much room for improvement there is in the population (i.e. means and spread). Second, only information from samples is normally available, and point estimates obtained from samples vary from sample to sample, and therefore cannot be interpreted without information about how much they can be expected to vary over samples. In practice, determinant studies often present multivariate regression analyses, but this is problematic because by default, shared covariance is removed from the equation (literally), compromising operationalisations' validity and affecting effect sizes (i.e., the results of such analyses cannot be used as a first source of information regarding each determinant's association to behavior). In the present contribution, we will briefly explain these points in more detail, after which we will introduce a solution: confidence interval based estimation of relevance (CIBER). We will then present a brief tutorial as to how to generate CIBER plots and how to interpret them. This is a more detailed explanation and introduction: originally, CIBER was published in Crutzen, Peters & Noijen (2017).
The role of episodic simulation in motivating commonplace harms
Authors: Morris Adam , O'Connor Brendan Bo , Cushman Fiery Andrews
Published: July 2018

Every day, people face choices which could produce negative outcomes for others, and understanding these decisions is a major aim of social psychology. Here, we show that episodic simulation – a key psychological process implicated in other types of social and moral decision-making – can play a surprising role. Across seven experiments, we find that imagining performing actions which adversely affect others makes people report a higher likelihood of performing those actions in the future. This effect happens, in part, because when people construe the actions as morally justified (as they often do spontaneously), imagining doing it makes them feel good. These findings stand in contrast to traditional accounts of harm aversion in moral psychology, and instead contribute to a growing body of evidence that people often cast harming others in a positive light.
A compositional neural architecture for language
Authors: Martin Andrea E.
Published: July 2018

Hierarchical structure and compositionality imbue human language with unparalleled expressive power and set it apart from other perception-action systems. However, neither formal nor neurobiological models account for how these defining computational properties might arise in a physiological system. I attempt to reconcile hierarchy and compositionality with principles from cell assembly computation in neuroscience; the result is an emerging theory of how the brain could convert distributed perceptual representations into hierarchical structures across multiple timescales while representing interpretable incremental stages of (de)compositional meaning. The model's architecture - a multidimensional coordinate system based on neurophysiological models of sensory processing - proposes that a manifold of neural trajectories encodes sensory, motor, and abstract linguistic states. Gain modulation, including inhibition, tunes the path in the manifold in accordance with behavior, and is how latent structure is inferred. As a consequence, predictive information about upcoming sensory input during production and comprehension is available without a separate operation. The proposed processing mechanism is synthesized from current models of neural entrainment to speech, concepts from systems neuroscience and category theory, and a symbolic-connectionist computational model that uses time and rhythm to structure information. I build on evidence from cognitive neuroscience and computational modeling that suggests a formal and mechanistic alignment between structure building and neural oscillations, and moves towards unifying basic insights from linguistics and psycholinguistics with the currency of neural computation.
Dissociation of English Past Tense Forms in Aphasia
Authors: Hickok Gregory , Pinker Steven
Published: July 2018

Examines the ability of three individuals with aphasia to read aloud regular and irregular past tense verb forms. All three were more impaired in reading regular than irregular forms. These findings support a dual mechanism model of past tense formation in production.
Capitalist Income and Hierarchical Power
Authors: Fix Blair
Published: July 2018

This paper offers a new approach to the study of capitalist income. Building on the 'capital as power' framework, I propose that capitalists earn their income not from any productive asset, but from the legal right to command a corporate hierarchy. In short, I hypothesize that capitalist income stems from hierarchical power. Based on this thinking, I hypothesize that the capitalist fraction of an individual's income is a gradient function of hierarchical power (which I define as the number of subordinates under one's control). Using data from US CEOs, I find evidence that this is true. Furthermore, a hierarchical model of the United States that generalizes this data accurately reproduces many aspects of the US distribution of capitalist income, including the relation between income size and capitalist income fraction. This evidence suggests that the ownership structure of US society is closely linked to the hierarchical structure of firms. This has important implications for the study of income distribution.
The Personality Lexicon in Brazilian Portuguese: Studies with Natural Language
Authors: Peres Alexandre José Souza
Published: July 2018

This dissertation consists of three studies concerning the lexical approach of research in the field of personality, with a focus on Brazilian culture and natural language. The first study is of a theoretical nature and explores some of the criticisms regarding the lexical approach to personality research with its origin in the psychological study of natural language and crosscultural psychology, as well as methodological propositions coming from these fields. A historical review of the development of the lexical approach is also presented. The second manuscript reports a study that aimed to generate a set of Brazilian Portuguese personality descriptors using the social network Twitter as a source of trait-descriptive terms. As a result, we obtained a list of potentially relevant descriptors for the construction of a Brazilian personality taxonomy, with 1,454 adjectives, six names, 10 pronouns, and 383 nouns. The third manuscript reports dimensionality analyses of a corpus recovered from Twitter regarding 172 adjectives and 86,899 subjects. The results suggest two suitable candidate models for future research, one with seven and another with 14 dimensions. Methodological and theoretical issues and the potential contributions from these studies for future research in the field of personality are also discussed.
Self-directed learning in undergraduate medical education
Authors: Shankar Pathiyil Ravi
Published: July 2018

No abstract
Factors contributing to safe appendectomy in presence of appendiceal mass
Authors: Pandit Rakesh Kumar , Gupta Uma Shankar , Jha Vinay Kumar , Magar Subhash Thapa
Published: July 2018

Background and Objectives: Early appendectomy in presence of appendiceal mass (AM) is controversial. We present the results of our experience that contribute to safe appendectomy in AM.Material and Methods: A total of 135 patients who underwent early surgery in presence of AM were reviewed. The diagnosis of AM was made clinically, using abdominal ultrasound and/or intra-operatively. All surgeries were done by qualified surgeons with variable experiences.Results: Mean operative day since onset of pain was 5.64 ± 2.1 (range: 3-15) days. A hundred and twenty patients underwent appendectomy, 116 (96.7%) of which was done within 7 days of pain. Two other patients operated on the 6th day had only drainage of abscess and no appendectomy. Remaining 4 (3.3%) appendectomies were performed on the 8th day. Two other patients operated on the 8th day had failed attempt of appendectomy and had just drainage of abscess. Two patients, operated on 12th and 15th day had just open-close. Both had given misleading history of duration of pain. Remaining 9 patients, from the 9th day onward underwent only just drainage of abscess. Only significant complication was injury to ileum during early years of experience when appendectomy was attempted on the 10th day. He fared well in two weeks.Conclusion: With experience we have developed confidence that experience and clarity of safe time limit makes early appendectomy in AM predictably safe. Few other patients who present later and need surgical intervention may be more safely managed by limited procedure like drainage of abscess without precarious attempt of appendectomy.
Training Workshop on developing Objective Structure Clinical Examination (OSCE) conducted at nursing campus in Nepal: Feedback of the nursing faculty participants
Authors: Piryani Rano Mal , Piryani Suneel
Published: July 2018

Background and Objectives: The aim of this study was to get feedback from the nursing faculty participants about effectiveness of training workshop on developing Objective Structure Clinical Examination and their learning experiences.Material and Methods: Seventeen faculty members participated in two and half days “Training Workshop on conducting OSCE”. There were two sessions of workshop- onsite (2 days) and online (half day). Methods used in sub-sessions of onsite session were tutorial on content, brainstorming, activity based small group work and discussion, and presentation of group work in plenary while assignment on developing OSCE for online session. The feedback of the participants was taken on semi-structured questionnaire containing seven questions; four closed and three open ended. Descriptive analysis was done in IBMS SPSS version 21.Results: Rating of the participants on training workshop was notable on rating scale 1-10 (1 poor to 10 excellent) for usefulness of training 9.65±0.70, content 9.00±1.00, relevance of training and content 9.29±0.85, facilitation 9.59±1.00 and overall rating 9.41±0.79. The level of confidence of participants after training workshop was enhanced 4.06±0.24 rated at Likert scale 1-5 for developing blueprint for assessment in related subject, test blueprint and test map and OSCE station. Useful Group work, step wise approach, interactive session, active participation and conducive environment were among the positive features of workshop.Conclusion: The feedback of the participants were constructive and remarkable. The training enhanced their level of confidence. The training was effective.
Vallecular cyst in an infant with stridor: a case report
Authors: Lageju Nabin , Guragain Rajendra Prasad Sharma
Published: July 2018

Background and Objectives: Vallecular cysts are rare and generally asymptomatic. In infants and children they present with stridor, feeding difficulties, failure to thrive. Treatment is surgical excision with cautery or laser.Presentation of Case: We discuss the clinical, radiological presentation of a 7 months old child with vallecular cyst which was surgically treated with deroofing and marsupialisation with elecrocautery. There was no recurrence even up 2 years of follow-up.Discussion: Flexible nasopharyngolaryngoscopic examination was done which showed present of swelling in the left vallecula pushing the epiglottis posteriorly and to the right with narrowed normal endolarynx. Radiological investigations with CT scan showed cystic lesion noted in left side of neck with no septation and solid component. The lesion was extending to ipsilateral vallecula and paraglottic region with narrowing of endolarynx.Conclusion: Vallecular cyst is rare cause of noisy breathing in infants and children. In adults it is usually asymptomatic. Treatment of choice is marsupialization with electrocautery or laser.
Narratives from parents in England and Norway
Authors: Samsonsen Vibeke , Willumsen Elisabeth
Published: July 2018

The framework for assessment in child protection, as well as the context of the welfare state, differs between England and Norway. Assessments in England are structured in terms of a set model (the triangle) and procedures to be followed, whereas in Norway there are few national guidelines and not a set model for assessments. This underpins professional judgement as the most important component in Norway. This is a study of parents` experiences from assessment in these two contexts, and patterns and themes of assessment experiences have been identified in the two countries through a narrative analysis of in-depth interviews with parents. When asked about their opinions of the current assessment framework, parents in both countries talk more about feelings than about framework and procedures, as their experiences of assessment are similar in both countries. First and foremost, they experience strong emotions in a stressful situation, including anxiety, frustration and powerlessness, but also relief. These cross-national emotions might provide information about how assessment is a stressful situation for the parents involved. However, we find some differences in the way social work is acted out according to the national assessment framework and policy context. In England, the framework and procedures seem to provide clarity with regard to process and power within the system. In Norway, the assessment is characterized by a professional judgement accompanied by more resources, which we find enables helpful decisions from a family perspective. However, this heavy reliance on relationships using professional judgement might also be viewed as a source of informal power. These findings are discussed in relation to theories of emotions and the concept of power. Regarding implications for practice, we would recommend a more explicit awareness of help and control in assessment among social workers involved, together with a clear communication on the topic of emotions and power in assessment.
The involvement of family in child protection cases in Iceland
Authors: Haugen Anni , Klörudóttir Sigrún Yrja
Published: July 2018

The aim of this study is to examine the involvement of families in child protection cases in Iceland, as well as to shed light on the attitudes of child protection workers on the importance of including families while working on child protection cases. The study is part of an international comparative analysis called: Social Work with Families: Social Workers’ Constructions of Family in Professional Practice. This article only addresses the Icelandic segment of the research. In the study, qualitative methods were used and three focus groups were conducted, in which the same three-step vignette about a child protection case was presented. The findings highlighted how difficult child protection workers found it to define the family. The main element is that family are those individuals closest to the child and connected to them through emotional ties, as Icelandic child protection workers seem to strive to involve family in child protection cases. However, there are signs which show that when working with more complicated cases the definition of a family becomes narrower, and involvement is restricted mostly to parents and grandparents. The findings also show that attitudes toward fathers differ from those toward mothers. The mother is expected to support and create security for the child, while the father is judged mostly on his violent behaviour and is not automatically regarded as providing support or actively taking responsibility for his child.
Social work and families in child welfare in Malawi
Authors: Tembo Memory Jayne , Oltedal Siv
Published: July 2018

This article discusses professional discretion in relation to placing a child outside the family, as understood by Malawian social workers. The article is a product of an exploratory study covering different aspects of social work practice with children and families in Malawi. It is based on focus group discussions with practicing social workers that were conducted using a vignette. This article describes how social workers handle child protection cases, in which a child has to be placed outside the home or family. The article points out different solutions and the reasoning behind certain decisions on placing children outside their home. The study explores issues of patriarchy, intervention methods into families and the cooperation between social workers, community members and other professionals when helping families. The study found that a number of different factors affect the decision of placing a child outside the home. Social workers in this study put an emphasis on the importance of helping children within the immediate- and extended family to help cope with the lack of financial resources that would provide alternative options.
High temperature compressive behavior of three-dimensional five-directional braided composites
Authors: Liu Jiayi , Zhou Junmeng , Wang Yu , Mei Jie , Liu Jialin
Published: July 2018

An experimental study was performed to investigate the high temperature compressive properties and failure mechanism of three-dimensional (3D) five-directional braided composites. The compression tests of 3D braided composites were conducted at six different temperatures. The failure modes, stress-strain curves, compressive modulus and strength at high temperature were analyzed and compared with those at room temperature. The results showed that temperature has a visible impact on these parameters. The 3D braided composites failed due to shear fracture, and the stress-strain curves exhibited obvious linear elasticity and a brittle failure feature at 20 and 50 °C, while the failure was characterized by fiber/matrix interface debonding, fiber bundles loosening and by outward expansion, and the stress-strain curves exhibited an obvious non-linear trend and a plastic failure feature at 70, 90, 110 and 130 °C. The compressive modulus and strength decreased as temperature increased. The compressive modulus and strength decreased by 92.9 % and 94.1 % as the temperature increased from 20 °C to 130 °C, which was mainly due to the degradation of the matrix properties and fiber/matrix interface properties at high temperature.
MOBILE ACCUMULATORS FOR DISCRETE SYSTEMS HEAT-COLD SUPPLIES. Part 1
Authors: Demchenko V.G. , Falko V.J. , Hron S.S.
Published: July 2018

Technology of conservation of thermal energy is perspective direction for the modern systems of thermal and cold supply. To hire the methods of calculation of transfer of warmth and mass, results of experimental researches, are driven and drawn conclusion about financial viability of application of different substances for creation of mobile thermal accumulators. 

A review of the research of heat accumulators for the system of heat and cold supply is presented. An analysis of theoretical and experimental data on determining the geometric characteristics of the battery for the required amount of heat and cold, depending on the area of premises. Depending on the thermophysical properties of the heataccumulating material, it is possible to significantly reduce the volume of the heat accumulator by using thermal accumulators with a phase transition. The TAM study showed that bischofite-based batteries require 29.7 m3 for the accumulation of 1,0 MWh of heat, while for trihydrate sodium acetate will be spent only 17.4 m3. Implementation of discrete systems of heat and cold supply will create a vertically integrated energy holding company based in each region to generate cheap heat energy and coolant.
EFFECTIVE COEFFICIENT OF THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY OF BIOFUEL IN THE CONDITIONS OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE DRYING
Authors: Korinchuk D.M.
Published: July 2018

The paper is devoted to determining the effective thermal conductivity coefficient of a mathematical model of high temperature drying biomass. The method of experimental research kinetics of drying and theoretical processing of the results is developed. The results of the research are presented. The average value of the effective coefficient of thermal conductivity is calculated and the possibility of its application in calculations of high temperature drying of biomass is substantiated.

The modeling of high-temperature drying of biomass and peat will allow developing and substantiat-ing the methods of intensification of the drying process, developing engineering methods for calculating the equipment and ensuring the creation of the most rational designs of drying plants. Increasing the accuracy of mathematical modeling requires conducting experimental studies and de-termining the value of the effective coefficient of thermal conductivity of materials in the dry zone, as well as the influence of the temperature regime and properties of biomass on its value. The aim of the work is to determine the effective coefficient of heat conductivity of biomass in con-ditions of high temperature drying in biofuel production technologies. The methodology of determination of the effective coefficient of thermal conductivity for use in cal-culations of drying process under the model of high temperature drying of biomass is developed. The article presents the results of an experimental study of the kinetics of high- temperature drying of biomass samples of pine, willow and poplar of flat form. The theoretical model of flat particle drying was developed and cal-culations of the process of high-temperature drying of flat bodies were conducted. According to the results of the research, the value of the effective coefficient of thermal conductivity for a series of experiments is de-termined by the method of minimizing the relative error of theoretical and experimental results. The average value of the effective coefficient of thermal conductivity is calculated and the its applicability in the calcula-tions of high temperature drying of biomass using the mathematical model is substantiated. Based on these studies, the validity of the provisions of the developed mathematical model is concluded. The results can be used to upgrade and optimize processes in aerodynamic dryers.
NUMERICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE INFLUENCE OF SURFACE ROUGHNESS ON CONVECTIVE HEAT TRANSFER AT AIRFOIL ICING PROCESS
Authors: Prykhodko A. A. , Alekseyenko S. V.
Published: July 2018

The technique of the processes of investigating of convective heat transfer determining in the problems of icing of aerodynamic surfaces on the basis of the solution of the Reynolds-averaged Navier- Stokes equations and the one-parameter Spalart-Allmaras turbulence differential model with correction for a rough wall is presented.

A methodology that allowed to simulate airfoils icing processes taking into account the ice surface roughness is presented. For the description of the external air-droplet flow a model of interpenetrating media was used. For the description of the ice growing process the method of surface control volumes using the methodology of determining the convective heat transfer based on the solution of the Navier-Stokes equations and the one-parameter differential Spalart-Allmaras turbulence model with a correction for a rough wall were used. Verification was performed by comparing the calculations results with the data obtained with the help of known semiempirical relationships. The proposed approach, unlike existing methods, will allow us to begin solving problems in a three-dimensional statement, with a rather complex geometry, in the presence of transonic regions in the airflow, and also to determine the aerodynamic characteristics of streamlined bodies with rough ice accretions. References 15, figures 3.
ANALYSIS OF THE INFLUENCE OF FILTRATION ON THE SENSITIVITY OF THE CUMULANT METHOD OF DETECTING THE ACOUSTIC SIGNALS OF LEAKAGE
Authors: Beregun V.S. , Krasilnikov A.I. , Polobyuk T.A.
Published: July 2018

An experimental study of the ratio of cumulants of acoustic signals of fluid leakage in a pipeline and interference is carried out. It is shown that the use of bandpass filtering increases the ratio of cumulants by orders of magnitude.

The purpose of the article is to analyze the sensitivity of the cumulant method of detecting fluid leaks in a pipeline based on the statistical processing of the acoustic leakage signal and interference generated by the moving fluid flow. To analyze the possibilities of a cumulant leak detection method, it is necessary to have specific values of cumulants of real leakage signals and interference, which can be obtained as a result of a full-scale experiment.

To generate a leakage signal, an installation is used that allows physical modeling of the leakage of liquid in the pipe in standing water. To simulate a leak in a pipe, a nozzle with copper walls and a through hole with a diameter of 1 mm was used, and a pressure of 6 atmospheres was maintained to produce leakages in the pipe. As a interference, noise generated by a moving fluid flow in the pipeline is used. The interference was recorded on the pipeline of the distribution network at a pressure of 7 atmospheres, the volume flow of the coolant averaged more than 1000 liters per hour, which ensured the flow rate of the fluid at which its motion can be considered turbulent.

The results of experimental studies of acoustic signals of fluid leakage in the pipeline and interference showed that the main interference power is concentrated in the 0...5 kHz band, and the leakage signal is in the band 5...10 kHz. With the use of bandpass filtering, the ratio of the mean square deviation of the leakage signals and interference increased by more than an order of magnitude for the frequency bands 5...10 kHz and 10...15 kHz, as compared with the absence of filtering. In this case, the ratio of the absolute values of the cumulants of the leakage signal and the interference is much greater than the ratio of the variances, and the ratio of cumulants increases substantially with increasing order. This confirms the sensitivity of high-order cumulants to the presence of a leak.
Peningkatan Minat dan Prestasi Bahasa Inggris Siswa melalui Project Based Learning dengan Media Komik
Authors: Karmila Karmila
Published: July 2018

Tujuan penelitian ini adalah untuk meningkatkan minat dan prestasi Bahasa Inggris siswa melalui penggunaan model pembelajaran PBL. Sampel dalam penelitian ini adalah 31 siswa kelas X MC Teknik Pemesinan. Penelitian dilaksanakan pada bulan Agustus sampai dengan Nopember 2017. Data diperoleh dari kegiatan pembelajaran siswa serta hasil tes dan ulangan harian melalui teknik observasi dan tes. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa (1) terdapat kesesuaian antara model PBL dengan karakteristik pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris pada kelas X MC Teknik Pemesinan SMKN 1 Magelang; (2) siswa memperlihatkan peningkatan antusiasme dalam mengikuti pembelajaran Bahasa Inggris; dan (3) prestasi belajar siswa meningkat dari rata-rata Ulangan Harian Siklus I = 56,57 menjadi 82,26 pada Siklus II. Dengan demikian, dapat disimpulkan bahwa penggunaan model pembelajaran PBL dapat meningkatkan minat dan prestasi Bahasa Inggris siswa.
Peningkatan Ketrampilan Menulis Teks Eksposisi dengan Menggunakan Metode Brainwriting
Authors: Budiani Sri Avrianita
Published: July 2018

Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian tindakan kelas yang dilaksanakan dalam dua siklus, mulai dari (1) perencanaan, (2) pelaksanaan, (3) evaluasi, dan (4) refleksi. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah meningkatkan ketrampilan siswa kelas X.IIK MAN Salatiga dalam menulis teks eksposisi menggunakan metode brainwriting. Subjek penelitian ini adalah siswa kelas X.IIK MAN Salatiga sebanyak 40 orang yang terdiri dari 15 orang laki-laki dan 25 orang perempuan. Teknik pengumpulan data yang digunakan adalah teknik tes dan non-tes. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa ketrampilan menulis teks eksposisi siswa mengalami peningkatan yang signifikan setelah diterapkan metode brainwriting dalam proses pembelajaran. Hal ini dibuktikan dengan nilai rata-rata siswa pada siklus I sebesar 69,80 dengan kategori ‘tidak tuntas’ dan meningkat menjadi 83,08 pada siklus II dengan kategori ‘tuntas’.
Role of Civil Society Organizations in FATA Education
Authors: M Ikram Khan Bajauri , Sadia Riaz , Sabeeha Rasheed
Published: July 2018

Soon after 9/11, the advent of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in FATA remained focus of discussion among different scholars and stakeholders at different forums. CSOs are considered the messengers of peace and education. These organizations are getting funds from various sources, UN at their top, and invest in the targeted area(s) for the purpose of enhancing the education of a locality. The debate bifurcates CSOs between real objectives persuading and fabricated objectives persuading. Not only those CSOs who are purely working for education but all CSOs are part of this struggle directly or indirectly. This research is focusing on the programs of the CSOs running in FATA and their direct or indirect impact on the education system of the region. The Methodology used for this research is qualitative, comprising direct in-depth interviews and FGDs with students, local population and other stakeholders.
Comparison of the Rotating Source Identifier and the Virtual Rotating Array Method
Authors: Tóth Bence , Vad János , Kotán Gábor
Published: July 2018

The aim of this paper is to present two acoustic beamforming methods developed for rotating sources, namely the Rotating Source Identifier (ROSI) and the Virtual Rotating Array method (VRAM). These were applied onto a series of simulated test cases, and their behaviour was analysed. Both methods were able to localise the source reliably. However, the source strength was found to depend on the number or microphones when VRAM was applied. This phenomenon was quantified and an approximate formula was given providing the minimum number of microphones required to reach a certain amplitude error. Beamwidth and side lobe suppression were found to agree between the two methods, meaning that the way rotation is handled does not significantly affect the point spread functions. The computational cost of ROSI was two to three orders of magnitude higher than that of VRAM. The results show that both methods are applicable for the beamforming analysis of rotating sound sources. However, in case of VRAM, the number of microphones has to be chosen carefully to obtain reliable amplitude results.
Effect of Dietary Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) and Multi-Strain Probiotic on Growth and Carcass Traits, Blood Biochemistry, Immune Responses and Intestinal Microflora in Broiler Chickens
Authors: Qorbanpour Mehdi , Fahim Taha , Javandel Faramin , Nosrati Mehran , Paz Erwin , Seidavi Alireza , Ragni Marco , Laudadio Vito , Tufarelli Vincenzo
Published: July 2018

A total of 225 day-old male broiler chicks (Ross-308) were randomly allocated to five treatment groups, with three replicates in a completely randomized design for 42 days. Birds were fed a basal-diet supplemented with: no additive (control-diet), multi-strain probiotic (Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, Enterococcus faecium and Bifidobacterium thermophilum), or 0.15, 0.20 and 0.25% ginger (Z. officinale) powder, respectively. The results show no significant differences among treatments for growth traits and carcass characteristics, whereas using probiotics and ginger at all levels resulted in a significant decrease of gizzard weight and abdominal fat compared to the control group. Dietary treatments did not affect blood biochemistry and antibody production against sheep red blood cells (SRBC), IgG and IgM; however, antibody titre was higher in birds fed 0.25% ginger than other diets after 7 days post injection. The Lactobacillus counts in ileal content of birds fed 0.20 and 0.25% ginger were higher compared to the other treatments. In conclusion, dietary supplementation with either ginger or probiotics showed a significant influence on birds’ immune response, probably because ginger had strong antioxidant activity and the probiotics stimulated the production of natural antibodies.
Molecular Recognition between Aβ-Specific Single-Domain Antibody and Aβ Misfolded Aggregates
Authors: Zhang Mingzhen , Zheng Jie , Nussinov Ruth , Ma Buyong
Published: July 2018

Aβ is the toxic amyloid polypeptide responsible for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Prevention and elimination of the Aβ misfolded aggregates are the promising therapeutic strategies for the AD treatments. Gammabody, the Aβ-Specific Single-domain (VH) antibody, recognizes Aβ aggregates with high affinity and specificity and reduces their toxicities. Employing the molecular dynamics simulations, we studied diverse gammabody-Aβ recognition complexes to get insights into their structural and dynamic properties and gammabody-Aβ recognitions. Among many heterogeneous binding modes, we focused on two gammabody-Aβ recognition scenarios: recognition through Aβ β-sheet backbone and on sidechain surface. We found that the gammabody primarily uses the complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR3) loop with the grafted Aβ sequence to interact with the Aβ fibril, while CDR1/CDR2 loops have very little contact. The gammabody-Aβ complexes with backbone binding mode are more stable, explaining the gammabody’s specificity towards the C-terminal Aβ sequence.
A Running Reference Analysis Method to Greatly Improve Optical Backscatter Reflectometry Strain Data from the Inside of Hardening and Shrinking Materials
Authors: Heinze Søren , Echtermeyer Andreas T.
Published: July 2018

Due to the increasing ease of use and the superiority of the results, distributed strain measurements, utilizing Optical Backscatter Reflectometry (OBR), have become more important and widespread over the last few years. Strains are calculated from the difference between an actual optical Raleigh backscattering measurement and an initial reference value. However, under certain physical conditions, e.g., pinching or microbending of the optical fiber, no meaningful strain values are yielded by the commonly-used method to analyze OBR data. Such conditions were experienced in this study where the optical fiber was embedded into hardening epoxy for measuring shrinkage due to curing. In this work, it is shown that a new data analysis method called the “running reference analysis method” can overcome such obstacles and deliver meaningful strain values in circumstances in which the traditional method fails. In the new approach, each measurement is compared to the previous measurement, and the strain differences are added up to the absolute strain value. This method does not require a new experimental technique and will also work on old measurement files. It is also useful for other types of (OBR) strain measurements that contain many outliers and is not restricted to the investigation of cured epoxy.
Signal Intensity of Contrast Enhancement according to TE in 3.0T MRI T1 Imaging
Authors: Jeong Hyun Keun , Lee Kwon Hee , Kim Min Hee , Kim Sung Ho , Kim Min Gi , Kim Ho Chul
Published: July 2018

Normal body tissue or lesion characteristics in T1 images have been evaluated; however, how external parameters effect the change in signal intensity by gadolinium-based contrast agent remains unknown. We investigated how contrast enhancement changed according to echo time (TE) in 3.0T magnetic resonance (MR) T1 imaging and determined the optimal settings for TE in contrast-enhanced T1 imaging. Since there are no guidelines regarding parameters for T1 enhancement when using MR-contrast agents, we analyzed results from varying TEs (between 25 and 7 msec) in both a phantom and clinical study. We obtained the following results: contrast percentage of fat to saline increased from 740.0–1003.6%, response start point increased from 30–90 mmol, max peak signal intensity increased from 1771–2425 a.u., max peak point increased from 2–4 mmol, enhancement percentage of the max peak signal intensity (MPSI) to saline increased from 1671.0–2065.2%, the average of SI on each mol as TE increased from 600.8–996.6 a.u., the average of SI as TE on each molar concentration increased from 378–845 a.u., the AEPSS increased from 44.3–140.3%, and the AEPSC increased from 224.3–647.8%. We confirmed that TE can affect contrast enhancement, and the lowest TE has faster and higher effects on contrast enhancement.
Investigation of the Dynamic Buckling of Spherical Shell Structures Due to Subsea Collisions
Authors: Liu Ping , Kaewunruen Sakdirat , Zhou Daochuan , Wang Shanshui
Published: July 2018

This paper is the first to present the dynamic buckling behavior of spherical shell structures colliding with an obstacle block under the sea. The effect of deep water has been considered as a uniform external pressure by simplifying the effect of fluid–structure interaction. The calibrated numerical simulations were carried out via the explicit finite element package LS-DYNA using different parameters, including thickness, elastic modulus, external pressure, added mass, and velocity. The closed-form analytical formula of the static buckling criteria, including point load and external pressure, has been firstly established and verified. In addition, unprecedented parametric analyses of collision show that the dynamic buckling force (peak force), mean force, and dynamic force redistribution (skewness) during collisions are proportional to the velocity, thickness, elastic modulus, and added mass of the spherical shell structure. These linear relationships are independent of other parameters. Furthermore, it can be found that the max force during the collision is about 2.1 times that of the static buckling force calculated from the analytical formula. These novel insights can help structural engineers and designers determine whether buckling will happen in the application of submarines, subsea exploration, underwater domes, etc.
The Role of Managerial Commitment and TPM Implementation Strategies in Productivity Benefits
Authors: Díaz-Reza José Roberto , García-Alcaraz Jorge Luis , Avelar-Sosa Liliana , Mendoza-Fong José Roberto , Sáenz Diez-Muro Juan Carlos , Blanco-Fernández Julio
Published: July 2018

The present research proposes a structural equation model to integrate four latent variables: managerial commitment, preventive maintenance, total productive maintenance, and productivity benefits. In addition, these variables are related through six research hypotheses that are validated using collected data from 368 surveys administered in the Mexican manufacturing industry. Consequently, the model is evaluated using partial least squares. The results show that managerial commitment is critical to achieve productivity benefits, while preventive maintenance is indispensable to total preventive maintenance. These results may encourage company managers to focus on managerial commitment and implement preventive maintenance programs to guarantee the success of total productive maintenance.
The Association between Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor (EGFR) Gene Polymorphisms and Lung Cancer Risk
Authors: Bashir Nabil A. , Ragab Entesar S. , Khabour Omar F. , Khassawneh Basheer Y. , Alfaqih Mahmoud A. , Momani Jafar A.
Published: July 2018

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death globally. The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) plays an important role in cell proliferation and signaling. In this study, we examined the association between EGFR gene polymorphisms and lung cancer risk among the Jordanian population. A total of 129 patients with primary lung cancer and 129 matched healthy controls were recruited into this study. EGFR rs712829, rs712830, rs2072454, and rs11543848 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped to test for their association with lung cancer risk. A significant association was observed between the rs712829 SNP and lung cancer risk (p < 0.05) where the GG + GT genotypes were higher in lung cancer patients when compared to controls. In addition, no association was detected between rs712830, rs2072454, and rs11543848 SNPs and lung cancer risk. When patients were stratified according to the lung cancer type, a significant association was detected between both rs712829 and rs2072454 and adenocarcinoma lung cancer (p < 0.05). Haplotype analysis of all four SNPs showed a significant association between the TCCG haplotype and both lung cancer and the adenocarcinoma subtype (p < 0.001). In conclusion, EGFR rs712829, rs2072454 SNPs, and TCCG haplotypes are associated with a risk of lung cancer among Jordanians. Since genetic associations are affected by the genetic background of populations, more studies in other Arab populations are required to confirm the present findings.
PerLE: An “Open Source”, ELearning Moodle-Based, Platform. A Study of University Undergraduates’ Acceptance
Authors: Servidio Rocco , Cronin Michael
Published: July 2018

The implementation of innovative eLearning platforms offers numerous benefits, but it is important to understand individual acceptance and use of new technological systems in the educational setting. This study adopts a modified version of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), including three service quality constructs as external variables, to assess students’ acceptance of PerLE, a Moodle-based eLearning platform developed at the University of Calabria (Italy). A six-section questionnaire, which was based on previous studies, was administered to 293 undergraduate students. Results show that the quality of online courses is the main construct that affects students’ acceptance of PerLE. We found also that the PerLE user interface was a critical issue, requiring improvements to facilitate ease of use. In addition, the study underlines the important influence of Technical Support as an antecedent to the two main constructs of the TAM: PerLE Usefulness and PerLE Ease of Use.
Magnetic Microreactors with Immobilized Enzymes—From Assemblage to Contemporary Applications
Authors: Gkantzou Elena , Patila Michaela , Stamatis Haralambos
Published: July 2018

Microfluidics, as the technology for continuous flow processing in microscale, is being increasingly elaborated on in enzyme biotechnology and biocatalysis. Enzymatic microreactors are a precious tool for the investigation of catalytic properties and optimization of reaction parameters in a thriving and high-yielding way. The utilization of magnetic forces in the overall microfluidic system has reinforced enzymatic processes, paving the way for novel applications in a variety of research fields. In this review, we hold a discussion on how different magnetic particles combined with the appropriate biocatalyst under the proper system configuration may constitute a powerful microsystem and provide a highly explorable scope.
Effect of Y Modified Ceria Support in Mono and Bimetallic Pd–Au Catalysts for Complete Benzene Oxidation
Authors: Ilieva Lyuba , Venezia Anna , Petrova Petya , Pantaleo Giuseppe , Liotta Leonarda , Zanella Rodolfo , Kaszkur Zbigniew , Tabakova Tatyana
Published: July 2018

Mono metallic and bimetallic Pd (1 wt. %)–Au (3 wt. %) catalysts were prepared using two ceria supports doped with 1 wt. % Y2O3. Yttrium was added by impregnation or co-precipitation. The catalyst synthesis was carried out by deposition–precipitation method, with sequential deposition–precipitation of palladium over previously loaded gold in the case of the bimetallic samples. The obtained materials, characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and temperature programmed reduction (TPR) techniques, were tested in the complete benzene oxidation (CBO). The results of the characterization analyses and the catalytic performance pointed to a close relationship between structural, redox, and catalytic properties of mono and bimetallic catalysts. Among the monometallic systems, Pd catalysts were more active as compared to the corresponding Au catalysts. The bimetallic systems exhibited the best combustion activity. In particular, over Pd–Au supported on Y-impregnated ceria, 100% of benzene conversion towards total oxidation at the temperature of 150 °C was obtained. Comparison of surface sensitive XPS results of fresh and spent catalysts ascertained the redox character of the reaction.