bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
ON SOME ASPECTS OF VECTOR MEASURES
Authors: Hazoume S.O. , Mensah Y.
Published: January 2022

This paper addresses some properties of vector measures (Banach space valued measures) as well as topological results on some spaces of vector measures of bounded variation.
Jurassic - Cretaceous boundary strata of the extreme Arctic (Peary Land,.North Greenland)
Authors: Håkansson E. , Birkelund T. , Piasecki S. , Zakharov V. A.
Published: January 2022

A fossiliferous Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous sequence is described from the Wandel Sea Basin, eastern North Greenland. The area was transgressed in the Middle Oxfordian and a gradually shallowing marine regime prevailed until Early Valanginian time, when conditions became !ironic. Stratigraphic data based on dinoflagellate cysts, ammonites and Buchia species indicate the presence of strata of Middle and Late Oxfordian, Kimmeridgian, Middle and Late Volgian, Early and Late Ryazanian, and Early Valanginian ages. Both the dinoflagellate assemblages and the mollusc faunas show close similarity to assemblages from the Sverdrup Basin of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Svalbard and northern USSR. They are also linked to more southern Boreal and Sub-Boreal areas in East Greenland, England, the Russian Platform and to some extent, North America. An integrated dinoflagellate-ammonite-Buchia stratigra­phy shows that the Early Cretaceous dinoflagellate assemblage appeared later in the Wandel Sea Basin than further south. It is also seen that a discrete "Jurassic" dinoflagellate assemblage existed for some time in the Early Cretaceous unaffected by the general tum-over at the Jurassic-Cretaceous boundary. Dinoflagellate, ammonite and Buchia assemblages are briefly discussed and selected species figured.
The optical properties of astrophyllite from N arssarssuk, South Greenland
Authors: Petersen O. V.
Published: January 2022

The present investigation proves that astrophyllite from Narssarssuk, like astrophyllite from elsewhere, is biaxial positive and renders it probable that B0ggild's statement in his original description, that astrophyl­lite from Narssarssuk is biaxial negative, is due to a combination of misreading and miscalculation. Astrophyllite from Narssarssuk has 2Va = 98° ± 1° - 91° ± 1°; a .L to the mica-like cleavage (001) and y = the needleaxis (a), i.e. in optical orientation identical with astrophyllite from El Paso County, Colorado.
Older and Younger Coversand in southern Jutland (Denmark)
Authors: Kolstrup Else , Jørgensen Jeppe Bender
Published: January 2022

During trenching for a gas pipeline in southern Jutland extensive aeolian deposits were observed. This note describes their appearance, texture, and grain-size distributions, and it is concluded that deposits of both Older and Younger Coversands are present.
The lithostratigraphical sequence is identical to that in the coversand areas in The Netherlands, Belgium, and northern Germany.
Chalk Reservoirs of the North Sea
Authors: Hardman R. F. P.
Published: January 2022

In the North Sea, chalk became a reservoir for oil and gas by a combination of fortunate circumstances. Shortly after burial chalk in general has a high porosity, but a low permeability. It is a micropore reservoir. For fluids to enter the pore space, pressure is necessary. North Sea Chalk hydrocarbon fields are all located over thick areas of Kimmeridge and Oxford Clay source rocks on structures which grew during the Tertiary. Structural growth caused fracturing allowing hydrocarbons, which were generated from as early as Oligocene times onwards, to build up in the fracture systems within structural closures in the Chalk. In this way hydrocarbons were able, by their buoyancy or by the pressure generated from the shales below, to enter chalk reservoirs. In areas where Paleocene sands are present, a closed pressure system was not present and no saturation of the Chalk was possible.
Chalk is composed of the debris of coccolithophorids, which being composed of low magnesian calcite is of great chemical stability. Although early diagenetic effects such as compaction by dewatering and loss of aragonite are recognised, burial diagenesis does not start until approximately 1000 m below surface. In the case of North Sea Chalk reservoirs, diagenesis, which will normally reduce porosity from approximately 50% at the sea bed to 10% at between 3000 and 4000 m burial depth, is arrested by three factors; the pressure generated, as mentioned above, which partially or wholly supports the overburden, thus reducing or preventing pressure solution; oil or gas in the pore space, which, as a chemically inert fluid also largely prevents pressure solution; magnesium ions, present in sea water and in greater concentrations in the pore-waters of up-domed beds overlying Zechstein evaporites, which poison sites of nucleation of calcite retarding diagenesis. As a result all Chalk fields show anomalously high values of porosity. Valhall Field for instance has values of 50% porosity at a depth of 2500m.
Chalk reservoir quality is controlled by a variety of factors, but four factors predominate; the purity in terms of calcium carbonate of the sediment; the rate of deposition of the Chalk which in tum determines the degree of early frame-work cement; the tectonic setting of the field area during Chalk deposition; and the size distribution of the coccoliths being deposited.
To these four factors nearly all reservoir quality variation can be related. The best Chalk reservoir in the North Sea is undoubtedly the Tor Formation because of its purity, but the Lower Hod Formation and, in places where allochtonous sheets of Tor Formation have slid in during its deposition, the Ekofisk Forma­tion, can act as very satisfactory North Sea Chalk reservoirs.
A web-based interface to calculate phonological neighborhood density for words and nonwords in Modern Standard Arabic
Authors: Aljasser Faisal , Vitevitch Michael S.
Published: January 2022

The availability of online databases (e.g., Balota et al., 2007) and calculators (e.g., Storkel & Hoover, 2010) has contributed to an increase in psycholinguistic-related research, to the development of evidence-based treatments in clinical settings, and to scientifically supported training programs in the language classroom. The benefit of online language resources is limited by the fact that the majority of such resources provide information only for the English language (Vitevitch, Chan & Goldstein, 2014). To address the lack of diversity in these resources for languages that differ phonologically and morphologically from English, the present article describes an online database to compute phonological neighborhood density (i.e., the number of words that sound similar to a given word) for words and nonwords in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). A full description of how the calculator can be used is provided. It can be freely accessed athttps://calculator.ku.edu/density/about.
Frequency to Non-Compliance to Oral Iron Therapy in Pregnancy and Common Factors Leading to it
Authors: Qureshi Qandeela irum , Hashmi Basit , Ammar Ahmed Siddique , Khattak Shehrbano , Saeed Sahar , Alavi Hirra
Published: January 2022

OBJECTIVES:
The objective of this study was to determine frequency of non-compliance to oral iron therapy in pregnancy and common factors leading to it.
METHODOLOGY:
It was a cross-sectional study done in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Lady Willington Hospital Lahore, Pakistan. The duration of this study was six months i.e., 3rd October 2019 to 2nd March 2020. All antenatal patients between ages of 18 to 45 years presented in the obstetrics outdoors or admitted in the ward were included in this study. A total of 245 patients were included in this study by consecutive non-probability sampling. Patients with gynecological problems, patients dependent on others for their medication cost, patients with psychiatric illness or physical disability were excluded. Post stratification Chi-square test was applied keeping P-value ≤0.05 as significant
RESULTS:
Among 245 patients, mean age was 27±2.16 years. Iron supplement used by 245 patients was analyzed as 159 (65%) patients had used the iron supplement while 86 (35%) patients didn’t use iron supplements (P-value 0.001). Iron supplement used by 245 patients was analyzed and only 93 (38%) patients had used the iron supplement while 152 (62%) patients didn’t use iron supplements.
CONCLUSION:
The coverage of antenatal iron and folic acid supplements is very low in the surveyed districts of Pakistan due to lack of parental education and older aged women belonging to poor households.
A Comparison between Type-2 Diabetics and Non-Diabetics in Terms of Papillary Bleeding Index (PBI)
Authors: Mariyum Sara , Saleem Nazma , Iqbal Amjad , Iqbal Shama , Khattak Munazza , Obaid Saher
Published: January 2022

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to compare the Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients and non-diabetics in terms of Papillary bleeding index (PBI) of periodontal disease. METHODOLOGY: This comparative cross-sectional study was conducted during the period of November 2020 to February 2021 in three (3) tertiary care hospitals of Peshawar. The sampling technique was purposive sampling. The sample comprised 105 individuals, 56 participants in Type–2 diabetes group and 49 in non-diabetes group. Male and females, having age between 40-65 years were recruited. Each diabetic and non-diabetic were clinically examined for periodontitis. Age and sex-matched participants suffering from periodontitis without a history of diabetes as well as with good glycemic control (HbA1c) were considered as controls subjects. Glycated hemoglobulin (HbA1c) was carried out for all the participants free of cost by using Human Gmbh-Max-Planck-Ring 21-65205 Wiesbaden-Germany kit. The study was approved by the ethical committee of the Peshawar Medical College. Data was analyzed using software package SPSS version 20. RESULTS: Out of 56  diabetics, 24 subjects brushed once daily, 15  brushed twice daily, 11 brushed occasionally and 6  didn’t brush  whereas in 49 non diabetics, 20 subjects brushed once daily, 13 brushed twice daily, 11  brushed occasionally and 5 didn’t brush. The clinical parameter mean (PBI) was recorded in our study. Score was 2.09 (±0.82) in diabetics and 1.02 (±0.47) in non-diabetics. P-value measured by the chi square test was significant. Spearman correlation test was performed to explore the association between the type 2 diabetes and Papillary bleeding index (PBI). CONCLUSION: We concluded that a significant difference exists between the mean PBI scores of Type 2 diabetics and non-diabetics.
Kinetic and Kinematic Analysis of Locomotion Speed of Higher Secondary Boys
Authors:   Assistant Professor, Kalyani Mahavidyalaya, City Centre Complex, Kalyani, Nadia, West Bengal-741235, Sarkar Dr Amit Kumar
Published: January 2022

The purpose was to analyze selected components of locomotion speed. Thirty school boys of age ranging from 17 to 19 year were selected as subject. Selected anthropometric and mechanical parameters were body weight, body height, leg length, maximum locomotion speed, leg power, stride length, stride frequency, body inclination, angle of leg placement in braking phase, push-off angle, horizontal projection of CG in braking phase, horizontal projection of CG in propulsion phase, horizontal velocity of CG in braking phase, horizontal velocity of CG in propulsion phase, velocity of swing leg in braking phase, velocity of swing leg in propulsion phase, angular velocity of thigh in propulsion phase, contact phase, flight phase, braking phase, and propulsion phase. The maximum locomotion speed was determined by a field test. Running action was filmed by a digital video camera with 120 fps for the distance between 40 to 50 m of the 100 m race. The anthropometric parameters were measured using standard procedure. The selected mechanical parameters were analyzed by motion analysis software. Results showed that weight, height, leg length, stride length, stride frequency had higher positive correlation with maximum locomotion velocity, whereas, contact phase, flight phase and propulsion phase had higher negative correlation with maximum locomotion velocity.
Russian healthcare system digitalization: Opportunities and contradictions
Authors: Afyan A. I. , Polozova D. V. , Gordeeva A. A.
Published: January 2022

The article is devoted to the opportunities and key contradictions of the Russian state healthcare system digitalization project implementation. The authors analyze various aspects of the system digitalization algorithms in light of the federal project “Creation of the Single Digital Circuit in Healthcare based on the Unified State Health Information System”. The aim of the article was to identify problems within goal-setting, documentation development, and practical implementation of the healthcare system digitalization project, as well as to come up with proposals for eliminating these issues. The analysis showed the inefficiency of the expensive healthcare system digitalization project, which has both objective and subjective reasons for its low effectiveness. The authors come to the conclusion that it is necessary to eliminate a number of contradictions and barriers in the framework of the project implementation in order to increase the efficiency of both the healthcare system itself and the high budget federal project of the economy digitalization as a whole. The practical significance of the article consists in the applicability of proposed approach to making the necessary amendments to the current federal project documentation, which will ensure a focus on real needs within the framework of the initiative implementation. The work may be of interest to civil servants, initiators of projects on the healthcare system digital transformation, governmental bodies, healthcare organizations managers, students, and practitioners.
Comparison of methods to estimate the size of Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) scale seizures using species-specific conversion parameters
Authors: Algewatta Hirusha Randimal , Perera Priyan
Published: January 2022

The absence of robust species-specific methods to estimate the number of animals in seizures of pangolin scales is a major barrier to effective law enforcement. Therefore, studies focused on developing methods to establish accurate conversion parameters are a priority. This study proposes improved methods to estimate the number of pangolins in the illegal trade to inform law-enforcing authorities. Based on the observations of 25 specimens, Indian pangolins were on average found to possess 511 scales. Three morph-types of scales were identified: broad rhombic (n=411), elongated kite shape (n=69), and folded scales (n=31). The mean dry weight of the three-scale morph-types was 7.5 g, 4.9 g, and 6.2 g. Based on the average frequency and mean dry weight of each scale morph type, the species-specific dry weight of scales for Indian pangolins was 3.6 kg. Accordingly, we propose new and improved methods based on scale morph-type frequencies and species-specific dry weight of scales to estimate the number of Indian pangolins from quantities of scales. Their accuracy was compared with current methods, and the improved methods were found to be more accurate.
Relationship between vulnerability and life satisfaction in older population in Russia
Authors: Fokina Victoria V.
Published: January 2022

The article examines the relationship between various components of vulnerability and life satisfaction among older people in Russia. Empirically, the study bases on data from the first wave of the WHO Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health (SAGE) for 2007–2010. The analysis showed that physical vulnerability, or frailty, is associated with a significantly lower level of life satisfaction of the older population. At the same time, there are differences in this relationship between age groups, and an increase in the physical vulnerability of individuals aged 75–89 years old reduces their subjective well-being to a greater extent in comparison with the group of individuals aged 60–74 years old. The financial situation of individuals also plays a significant role: lack of income to cover daily needs negatively affects subjective well-being. Socializing with friends is another predictor of life satisfaction in older age.
On weak (measure-valued)-strong uniqueness for compressible MHD system with non-monotone pressure law
Authors: Liu Yu , Zhang Ting
Published: January 2022

In this paper, we define a renormalized dissipative measure-valued (rDMV) solution of the compressible magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) equations with non-monotone pressure law. We prove the existence of the rDMV solutions and establish a suitable relative energy inequality. And we obtain the weak (measure-valued)-strong uniqueness property of this rDMV solution with the help of the relative energy inequality.
Exponential ergodicity for regime-switching diffusion processes in total variation norm
Authors: Li Jun , Xi Fubao
Published: January 2022

We investigate the long time behavior for a class of regime-switching diffusion processes. Based on direct evaluation of moments and exponential functionals of hitting time of the underlying process, we adopt coupling method to obtain existence and uniqueness of the invariant probability measure and establish explicit exponential bounds for the rate of convergence to the invariant probability measure in total variation norm. In addition, we provide some concrete examples to illustrate our main results which reveal impact of random switching on stochastic stability and convergence rate of the system.
Pricing and quality decisions in a supply chain with consumers' privacy concern
Authors: Zhao You , Cui Zibin , Chen Jianxin , Hou Rui
Published: January 2022

This study considers a supply chain consists of one manufacturer produces a product with a quality level and sells it through one retailer. A stylized model is developed to investigate the impacts of consumers' privacy concerns on pricing, quality decisions, and profitability through the relationship between product quality and personal information. When consumers' privacy concern is considered, the product quality level, the wholesale price, the payoffs of the manufacturer and retailer, and consumer surplus decrease with the personal information loss, whereas the selling price increases if this loss is low. Our results also show that the retailer prefers to charge a high selling price if the information benefit and the personal information loss are low, or the information benefit is relatively high. Moreover, a "win-win-win" outcome can be achieved among the manufacturer, retailer, and consumers if the personal information loss is sufficiently low. In the case of quality-differentiated products, however, although the manufacturer improves the product quality level, the wholesale prices are increased if the information benefit and the personal information loss are low, or the information benefit is high.
Optimal pricing and ordering strategies for dual-channel retailing with different shipping policies
Authors: Li Ning , Wang Zheng
Published: January 2022

In this paper, considering dual-channel retailing (online channel and offline channel), we study the pricing and ordering problem under different shipping policies. In this research, we mainly consider three shipping policies: without shipping price (OSP), with shipping price (WSP) and conditional free shipping (CFP). Based on the principle of maximum utility, we firstly obtain the probability of demand for the online and offline channels and further model the pricing and ordering problem under the three shipping policies. Further, avoiding the curse of dimensionality, the deep deterministic policy gradient (DDPG) method is employed to solve the problem to obtain the optimal pricing and ordering policy. Finally, we conduct some numerical experiments to compare the optimal pricing and ordering quantity under the three different shipping policies and reveal some managerial insights. The results show that the conditional free shipping policy is better than the other two policies, and stimulates the increase of demand to gain more profit.
Linear instability of Vlasov-Maxwell systems revisited-A Hamiltonian approach
Authors: Lin Zhiwu
Published: January 2022

We consider linear stability of steady states of 1\begin{document}$ \frac{1}{2} $\end{document} and 3DVlasov-Maxwell systems for collisionless plasmas. The linearized systems canbe written as separable Hamiltonian systems with constraints. By using ageneral theory for separable Hamiltonian systems, we recover the sharp linearstability criteria obtained previously by different approaches. Moreover, weobtain the exponential trichotomy estimates for the linearized Vlasov-Maxwellsystems in both relativistic and nonrelativistic cases.
Interpolating estimates with applications to some quantitative symmetry results
Authors: Magnanini Rolando ,   Dipartimento di Matematica ed Informatica "U. Dini", Università di Firenze, viale Morgagni 67/A, 50134 Firenze, Italy, Poggesi Giorgio ,   Department of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, Perth, WA 6009, Australia
Published: January 2022

We prove interpolating estimates providing a bound for the oscillation of a function in terms of two $ L^p $ norms of its gradient. They are based on a pointwise bound of a function on cones in terms of the Riesz potential of its gradient. The estimates hold for a general class of domains, including, e.g., Lipschitz domains. All the constants involved can be explicitly computed. As an application, we show how to use these estimates to obtain stability for Alexandrov's Soap Bubble Theorem and Serrin's overdetermined boundary value problem. The new approach results in several novelties and benefits for these problems.
Care Triangle or Care Diamond? The Case of Childcare and Eldercare in Serbia
Authors: Perišić Natalija , Pantelić Marina
Published: January 2022

Overall changes in political, social and economic spheres in Serbia, along with ongoing demographic processes, have affected various policies and all aspects of people’s lives, including system(s) of care. While care became an important analytical concept and category of social policy analysis internationally, it has not been systematically applied in the analysis of the Serbian welfare state. Incorporation of care in welfare state analysis is much needed as its organisation in the national context reveals a lot about the nature of the welfare state, changes in its socio-institutional arrangements and, most importantly, the effects of provision. This article thus aims to outline the evolution of childcare and eldercare policies in Serbia over the last decade, employing the concept of the care diamond developed by Shahra Razavi, which allows examining the “architecture” through which the care is provided: families/ households, markets, the state and the voluntary sector. By analysing the prevalent care policy “architecture” for children and the elderly in Serbia and the roles of different sectors in that respect, as well as by identifying similarities and differences in the provision of childcare and eldercare in the national context, the article exposes developments and current state in childcare and eldercare provision in Serbia. The analysis indicates the profound role of the informal sphere in both care systems in Serbia, childcare and eldercare. Some differences between the two care domains could also be noted. These relate to the configuration of welfare sectors involved in care provision, revealing the modified shape of the care diamond in the case of childcare. That is, while all four sectors are involved in providing care in the case of eldercare forming an eldercare diamond, this is not the case with childcare. In the latter case, the voluntary, nonprofit sector does not exist as a care provider in Serbia, with childcare “architecture” having a shape of a care triangle. In light of this evidence, the role of families and the voluntary, nonprofit sector should be taken into account in future planning and funding of policies as well as in their implementation. Key words: care, childcare, eldercare, care diamond, policy, provision, Serbia
Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Family Policy Challenges in Meeting the European Union’s Standards and Recommendations
Authors: Obradović Nikolina
Published: January 2022

Family policy in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s entities (Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Republic Srpska) is incoherent, with its different elements being scattered across different ministries and levels of government. The system is found to be inapt to respond to the needs of families, thus enhancing gender inequalities in the labour market and within families. As a country aspiring to join the European Union, Bosnia and Herzegovina, together with other countries of the Western Balkans region, participates in regular policy dialogue with the European Union institutions. The latest European Commission assessment of the country’s Economic Reform Programme identifies low employment of women as one of the key challenges and implicitly calls for the country to develop an employment-oriented family policy. By analysing the system of family policy and its recent policy developments, the article assesses the country’s capacity to respond to the recommendation and create conditions for greater participation of women in the labour market. The question is whether the European Union’s conditionality and recommendations have the potential to transform the current family policy arrangements in the entities. Key words: work-family policy, female employment, gender inequalities, maternity leave, parental leave, early childhood education and care services, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Living in a Virtual Reality
Authors: Zeng Chengyan
Published: January 2022

Anime (animated films) and manga (comic books), fans are easily misunderstood and can even face prejudice. In fact, they are usually not as people see them. As one of the many anime and manga fans, I would like to show people what the real world of the anime and manga fan is like. As the fan population grows, the market increases, so this chapter will also act as a guide for those who are interested in this market. This chapter aims to introduce readers to the world of anime and manga fandom and to its fans, in particular. It will present and explain specific terms such as weeaboo, otaku, waifu, husbando, fujoshi, and critic. This chapter will also describe the different characters of anime and manga fans and explain how these characters can affect marketing. Finally, this chapter will look at the current market size of anime and manga fandom and explore how the culture is used in marketing.
When Science Fiction Meets Reality
Authors: Burton Tyra Anne Mitchell
Published: January 2022

Eighty years after the first science fiction convention, geek culture has gone mainstream and facilitated exponential growth in the fandom convention industry. With fandom conventions facing increasing competition and changing demographics, standing out in the crowded convention space is essential. Dragon Con founded in 1987 created the idea of the multi-genre convention that has something for everyone. Since its inception, Dragon Con has changed to fit fans' evolving tastes and formed strategic relationships with key partners. With growth comes issues related to registration, wait lines, harassment and security which need to be addressed while trying to take into account the younger and more diverse fandoms.
Disadvantages Boys in Public Schools in Kuwait Face When Compared to Their Peers in Private Schools
Authors: Alhashem Fatimah
Published: January 2022

The social capital gap in education in Kuwait's public vs. private schools, including early stages to higher education, is a serious phenomenon that requires intervention. This chapter uses a qualitative approach to explore the rationales behind disadvantaged boys in public schools compared to their peers in private schools. Differences in school visits indicated a need for interventions directed toward students with unqualified teachers and a primitive educational paradigm. The chapter concludes with an alteration to the culture of human resources as well as building capabilities for improved outcomes among boys in public schools in Kuwait. Achieving these goals will require a strong education system enriched with highly qualified human resources teams and an insight to cultural circumstances.
The Student Loan Fund and the Education for All in Thailand
Authors: Chaiya Chitralada , Ahmad Mokbul Morshed
Published: January 2022

“Reaching the marginalized” was the goal of “Education for All” to meet equality in education. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) also investigate the relationship between SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 4 (Quality Education). It was stated that one year of education can contribute 10% of the rise in income. Emphasizing the inclusiveness to reach SDG 1 and SDG 4, SDG 10 (Reduced Inequality) needs to be achieved. Therefore, many countries attempt to promote access to education. In Thailand, the Student Loan Fund was established in 1996. There are currently over 5.3 million students who received funds during the period between 1996 and 2020. It is argued that this policy can serve as a mechanism to achieve greater access to education, leading to a better quality of life and more equity in society. However, issues need to be considered since the policy should address, more specifically, the needs of the marginalized.
Let's All Play Together
Authors: Parapanos Demos , Michopoulou Eleni (Elina)
Published: January 2022

Gamification is recognized as the next big thing in marketing by using game design elements in a non-game context. Producing desirable experiences and motivating users to remain engaged in an activity is one of the strengths of gamification. The introduction of digital social networks has become the biggest change regarding digital technology, also leading to the evolution and popularity of gamification. Although it is possible to design games, serious games, or gamified systems without knowing who the target users are, it is more likely to create a more engaging experience when these users are identified first. Taking this into consideration, this chapter will look to identify and present the motivations of individuals when using gamification systems. Identifying the motivations behind gamification usage and acknowledging the interaction between them will help organizations understand their audience and create more engaging experiences.
Gamification in Marketing
Authors: Basaran Umit
Published: January 2022

Advances in digital marketing technologies and the experience and value they provide to consumers have become important factors in market success. Therefore, businesses are focusing much more on the use of innovative technologies such as gamification. Gamification is the use of game design elements and mechanisms in non-game environments to increase the motivation of users to guide their behavior. Gamification elements used in marketing activities have an impact on the attitudes and behaviors of consumers towards brands, products, and services by increasing experience and value for them. Accordingly, this chapter is aimed at evaluating the gamified marketing activities from the perspective of customer value. In this context, the concepts of customer value and gamification are examined, and gamification techniques used in marketing and their effects on consumer value are evaluated. Also, the case study of Starbucks' gamified mobile application is presented from the perspective of customer value.
Serious Games Design Principles Using Virtual Reality to Gamify Upper Limb Stroke Rehabilitation
Authors: Herne Robert , Shiratuddin Mohd Fairuz , Rai Shri , Blacker David
Published: January 2022

Stroke is a debilitating condition that impairs one's ability to live independently while also greatly decreasing one's quality of life. For these reasons, stroke rehabilitation is important. Engagement is a crucial part of rehabilitation, increasing a stroke survivor's recovery rate and the positive outcomes of their rehabilitation. For this reason, virtual reality (VR) has been widely used to gamify stroke rehabilitation to support engagement. Given that VR and the serious games that form its basis may not necessarily be engaging in themselves, ensuring that their design is engaging is important. This chapter discusses 39 principles that may be useful for engaging stroke survivors with VR-based rehabilitation post-stroke. This chapter then discusses a subset of the game design principles that are likely to engage stroke survivors with VR designed for upper limb rehabilitation post-stroke.
The Potential of Gamification for Humanitarian Organizations to Support Integration in Migration Contexts
Authors: Jammermann Marvin , Tunc Beybin Elvin
Published: January 2022

The aim of this chapter is to explore the connections between the inherent characteristics of gamification and the current need for sustainable integration activities that are based on meaningful social interactions. By highlighting the potential of gamification for creating democratic spaces of social interaction and engaging diverse actors in joyful encounters, it is possible to underline the notion of social change that gamification can induce. In the area of integration, humanitarian organizations can harness the potential of gamification in their integration activities in order to ensure increased social cohesion. Through a critical analysis of existing gamification and integration approaches, the chapter provides arguments for why gamification is perfectly suited to improve integration processes by highlighting the manifold applications of gamification experience in the humanitarian field.
Introducing Serious Games as a Master Course in Information Security Management Programs
Authors: Østby Grethe , Kowalski Stewart James
Published: January 2022

In this chapter, the authors outline their process for introducing serious games as a course in an Information Security Master Course Program at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The process is built on the author's experiences from both participating, coaching, judging, and even arranging serious games and cyber security challenges. With the lack of cultural recipes (or shared experiences) in information and cyber security from previous generations, these recipes must be learned in other environments. Given the efficiency of using exercises for incident response training, the authors suggest that information and cyber security incident response can be learned efficiently through serious games as one type of exercise. The authors suggest that serious games give relevant learning experiences from both developing them and participating in them, and they suggest these learning experiences as part of the course, in addition to necessary instructions.
Hybrid and Virtual Educational Simulation Games (vESGs) for the Remote Learning Era
Authors: Riel Jeremy , Lawless Kimberly A.
Published: January 2022

Virtual educational simulation games (vESGs) promote unique combinations of learning interactions and affordances to create environments with which students can engage to effectively learn about complex phenomena and processes in multiple domains. Using the GlobalEd vESG as an example case throughout the chapter, the authors discuss (1) the key functions and experiences that vESGs provide to learners; (2) the types of valuable student interactions that can be expected when playing a vESG and strategies for maximizing these interactions for learning; (3) strategies for teacher implementation and adaptation of vESGs, as well as professional development programs to support their use of vESGs in classrooms; and (4) observed benefits of using vESGs as evidenced from over a decade of implementation of the GlobalEd vESG in authentic classroom settings.
Heat Treatment Effect on Biological Behavior of Polyetheretherketone Composites
Authors: Mohammed Alaa A. , Oleiwi Jawad K.
Published: January 2022

Polyetheretherketone is a semi-crystalline thermoplastic polymer, that so with heat treatments, it is possible to get different properties which are very important for the material performance. Heat treatment is a broadly utilized to develop the semi-crystalline polymers properties. In the present investigation, annealing of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) was carried out at temperatures above its glass transition temperature (Tg) to study its effects upon the biological conduct of the control and PEEK ternary composites. The bioactivity of the specimens was evaluated by investigating the apatite formation after immersion for different periods in a simulated body fluid (SBF). The biocompatibility of specimens was assessed by MTT assay. Additionally, the antibacterial property of the specimens versus S. aureus was observed with the optical density methods. The results manifested that the formation of hydroxyapatite was obviously observed on specimens after immersion for (7 and 14 days) in the simulated body fluid (SBF). Otherwise, the results of MTT assay recorded the PEEK specimens that excited the activity of fibroblasts, and therefore a high cytocompatibility was noticed and the specimens revealed antibacterial properties against S. aureus. So, the results of the bioactivity, biocompatibility and antibacterial tests in vitro demonstrated that the heat treatment enhanced biological behavior.
Short-Term Oxidation Behavior, Microstructure Evolution and Compression Behavior of Nickel-Based Superalloy GH4037 in Solid and Semi-Solid States
Authors: Xiao Guan Fei , Jiang Ju Fu , Wang Ying , Liu Ying Zhe , Zhang Ying , Huang Min Jie
Published: January 2022

Semi-solid processing combines the advantages of traditional forging and casting methods, so it has received much attention recently. However, the research on semi-solid behaviors of Nickel-based superalloys has been rarely reported. In order to investigate the behaviors of Nickel-based superalloy at solid and semi-solid states, oxidation experiments, isothermal treatment experiments and deformation experiments of GH4037 alloy were studied. Short-term oxidation experiments of GH4037 alloy were carried out at a solid temperature (1200 °C) and a semi-solid temperature (1360 °C). The results indicated that the oxides formed at 1200 °C were mainly composed of TiO2, Cr2O3 and a small amount of spinels NiCr2O4, while the oxides formed at 1360 °C consisted of the spinels of NiCr2O4, NiWO4 and NiMoO4 besides TiO2 and Cr2O3. Microstructure evolution of GH4037 alloy after semi-solid isothermal treatment at 1370 °C and 1380 °C was studied. The results indicated that semi-solid microstructures consisted of equiaxed solid grains and liquid phases. The average grains size and shape factor of solid grains were affected by melting mechanism and grain growth mechanism. Compression behaviors of GH4037 alloy after compressed at 1200 °C and 1360 °C were investigated. The results indicated that the flow stress of 1360 °C decreased significantly compared to that of 1200 °C. The deformation zones in the specimens were divided into three parts: the difficult deformation zone, the large deformation zone, and the free deformation zone. At 1200 °C, the deformation mechanism was plastic deformation mechanism. At 1360 °C, sliding between solid particles (SS), liquid flow (LF), flow of liquid incorporating solid particles (FLS), plastic deformation of solid particles (PDS) coexisted in the compression specimen.
Properties of Semisolid Parts: Comparison with Conventional and Innovative Manufacturing Technologies
Authors: Tonolini Pietro , Pola Annalisa , Montesano Lorenzo , Tocci Marialaura , Gelfi Marcello , La Vecchia Giovina Marina
Published: January 2022

In this paper, wear properties of samples manufactured using thixocasting were compared with those of components obtained using low-pressure die-casting and additive manufacturing in order to assess the relationship between material performance and production technologies, both conventional and innovative. The investigated items were made with AlSi7Mg alloy. First, microstructural analysis and hardness measurements were carried out. Subsequently, pin-on-disk wear tests were performed. Wear behavior of the samples was studied considering both coefficient of friction and wear rate, while the damage mechanism was analyzed by observation of the worn paths using scanning electron microscope, correlating the behavior to the specific microstructure. In addition, the effect of selected heat-treated conditions, relevant for real applications, on wear properties was also evaluated.
Manufacturing of Hybrid Al-Cu-Heatsinks by Combining Powder Pressing with Thixoforming
Authors: Speth Marco , Liewald Mathias , Riedmüller Kim Rouven , Schomer Laura
Published: January 2022

Hybrid material structures allow different material properties to be combined in one single component and thus to meet high functional requirements. When manufacturing such hybrid components, particular attention must be paid to the transition zones between metallic composite partners. These transition zones need to show largely homogeneous and materially bonded structures in order to ensure ideal transmission of the material properties and to prevent component failure due to material defects. In this respect, this paper focuses on a newly developed process in which a powder metallurgical route is combined with semi-solid forming technology. Here, porous copper green bodies are inserted into a forming die and subsequently forged together with a semi-solid aluminium alloy. In this way, it was tried to combine both metal materials into a material locking or at least into a form locking manner in order to achieve ideal material properties in the final hybrid component. The aim of this paper is to find suitable process parameters to infiltrate the porous copper inlay with the semi-solid aluminium alloy during thixoforming. Therefore, different process parameters such as varying liquid fraction of the aluminium alloy and different densities of the green bodies were examined during the production of simply shaped hybrid Al-Cu-components. Afterwards the infiltration depth and produced microstructure of the components was analysed. In the future, this process allows for producing aluminium-copper hybrid heat sinks with improved heat transfer properties compared to conventional produced heat sinks.
Recent Industrial Application and Perspectives of Rheo-Diecast Process in China
Authors: Li Da Quan , Liang Xiao Kang , Zhang Fan , Chen Song , Zhang Fan , Feng Jian
Published: January 2022

The Rheo-diecast process has been rapidly developed and increasingly used in China in the recent 5 years. The high solid fraction (solid content close to 50%) rheo-diecast components were commercially used in the transportation markets mainly because of lightweight. The mechanical properties of the high solid fraction rheo-diecast components are obviously superior than that of the conventional liquid diecast parts. The defects such as oxide, gas entrapment, shrinkage porosities are well prevented in the high solid fraction rheo-diecast parts. The high solid fraction rheo-diecast parts can be fully T6 heat treated. A comparison between high solid fraction rheo-diecast part and conventional liquid diecast part will be described in detail. The low solid fraction (solid content 5-20%) rheo-diecast components were widely used in the 5G communication markets. The future perspectives of Rheo-diecast process will be described at last. 1. Cost reduction. 2. Production consistency. 3. New Rheo-diecast alloys development. 4. Numerical simulation of Rheological filling.
Using Micro-CT Scanning to Quantitative Characterize Porosity in High Pressure Die Castings and Semi-Solid Castings
Authors: Midson Stephen P.
Published: January 2022

Porosity is one of the main defects that limits the performance of castings. Porosity in aluminum castings can originate from several sources, including the volumetric shrinkage occurring during solidification, the precipitation of dissolved hydrogen, and entrapment of gasses such as air, boiling water, vaporized lubricants, etc. Traditional methods of identifying and measuring porosity in castings include 2D x-rays, sectioning and polishing, and Archimedes density measurements, but none of these provide a satisfactory quantitative estimate of the size, total volume and distribution of the pores. X-ray CT scanning is a relatively new method that generates not only a 3-dimensional view of the size and distribution of the pores, but can also provide quantitative information of the volume, surface area, size, shape and position of each pore within a casting. Micro-CT scanning is a specialized sub-category of CT scanning, which provides excellent resolution of fine porosity (a resolution limit of 4 microns in one of the case-stores presented in this paper), but it should be noted that the resolution limit in CT scanning techniques is related to sample size. This paper describes results from micro-CT scanning studies of two high pressure die castings and a semi-solid casting, and provides quantitative data on the total porosity content, and the porosity distribution. The paper will also demonstrate the capabilities of the micro-CT scanning process to provide a quantitative comparison of the porosity content in these different types of aluminum castings.
Effect of Solute Ta on Grain Refinement of Al-7Si-0.3Mg Based Alloys
Authors: Spacil Ivo , Holec David , Schumacher Peter , Li Jiehua
Published: January 2022

Different Ta concentrations together with stochiometric grain refiner (Al-2.2Ti-1B) in Al-Si-Mg based alloys were investigated with the aim to elucidate grain refinement mechanisms. Post-solidification microstructure was characterised using optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), with a special focus on the Ta-rich layer (more likely to be Al3Ta) on the basal planes (0001) of TiB2. A significant grain refinement was observed by using the solute Ta together with stochiometric grain refiner (Al-2.2Ti-1B). In order to further elucidate the formation of Ta-rich layer on the basal planes (0001) of TiB2, the Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculation were also performed to determine the interface energies of different interfaces and sandwich configurations, including Al (111), Al3Ti (112) and Al3Ta (112) at the interface of TiB2 basal plane (0001). It was found that the interface energy for Ti-terminated TiB2 at the interface throughout all configurations involved in this paper is lower than that for B-terminated TiB2, indicating that Ti-terminated TiB2 is more favourable. It was also found that the Al3Ta configuration yields the same interface energies as the Al3Ti configuration. Furthermore, the interface energy of the sandwich configuration also shows nearly identical values along the TiB2 // Al3Ti and TiB2 // Al3Ta interface energy, strongly indicating that the solute Ti can be fully replaced by the solute Ta.
Effect of Homogenization Annealing on Wear Properties of Thixo-Extrued Copper Alloy
Authors: Cui Yun Xin , Xiao Han , Xiong Chi , Zhou Rong Feng , Li Zu Lai , Li Yong Kun
Published: January 2022

The semi-solid extruded CuSn10P1 alloy bushings were homogenization annealed. The effects of annealing process on the hardness and wear properties of bushings were researched. The results show the Brinell hardness increases firstly and then decreases with the increase of annealing temperature and annealing time. With the annealing temperature increasing, the grinding loss rate and friction factor decrease firstly and then increase. At the annealing time of 120 min, the grinding loss rate decreases from 7% at the annealing temperature of 450 °C to 6% at 500 °C, and then increases from 6% at 500 °C to 12% at 600 °C. The friction factor decreases from 0.54 to 0.48 and then increases to 0.83. At the annealing temperature of 500 °C, the grinding loss rate decreases from 11% at the annealing time of 60 min to 6% at 120 min, and then increases to 15% at 150 min. The friction factor decreases from 0.67 to 0.48 and then increases to 0.72. The best wear performance and Brinell hardness can be obtained at annealing temperature of 500 °C for 120 min.