bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cohort profile: The Youth and Mental Health Study (YAMHS) – a longitudinal study of the period from adolescence to adulthood
Authors: Kaasbøll Jannike , Sigurdson Johannes Foss , Skokauskas Norbert , Sund Anne Mari
Published: February 2021

The aim of this article is to provide a detailed description of the Youth and Mental Health Study (YAMHS),a population-based, representative (cluster sampling), prospective cohort study that was conducted to investigate risk and resilience factors for mental health conditions, specifically depressive symptoms and disorders, from adolescence to adulthood. The baseline data were collected in 1998 (T1) in two counties in central Norway from 2464 adolescents (response rate 88.3%, mean age 13.7 years). The first follow-up was conducted in 1999 (T2) (n = 2432, response rate of 87.1%, mean age 14.9 years). A subgroup of individuals was assessed at T2 (n = 345) with clinical interviews, and this subgroup was reassessed in 2005 (T3) (n = 265, 70.1%, 20 years). The last follow-up (of participants assessed at T1 and T2) was conducted in 2012 (T4) (n = 1266, 51.9%, 27.2 years). Demographics, depressive symptoms, general psychopathology, suicidal ideation and attempts and psychological and somatic factors were recorded. Among adolescents of both sexes, psychosocial variables were correlated with and predicted depressive symptom severity. The strongest predictors were sex (female), the levels of depressive symptoms the preceding year, and the total number of stressful events. The association between stressful life events and depressive symptoms was moderated by physical activity, while the relationship between stressful events and coping style was mediated by depressive symptoms. The rate of use of specialised mental health services among the depressed was low. The lifetime prevalence of depressive disorders was 23% at 15 years, and the most common disorder was minor depression. Adolescents who attempted suicide were more often victims of violence and less resilient than were non-suicide attempters. The existing longitudinal data from the cohort will be further analysed. Follow-up data will be obtained from existing national registries by links created with individual identification numbers.
Genome-wide identification and expression profiling of glutathione S-transferase family under multiple abiotic and biotic stresses in Medicago truncatula L.
Authors: Hasan Md. Soyib , Singh Vishal , Islam Shiful , Islam Md. Sifatul , Ahsan Raju , Kaundal Amita , Islam Tahmina , Ghosh Ajit
Published: February 2021

Glutathione transferases (GSTs) constitute an ancient, ubiquitous, multi-functional antioxidant enzyme superfamily that has great importance on cellular detoxification against abiotic and biotic stresses as well as plant development and growth. The present study aimed to a comprehensive genome-wide identification and functional characterization of GST family in one of the economically important legume plants—Medicago truncatula. Here, we have identified a total of ninety-two putativeMtGSTgenes that code for 120 proteins. All these members were classified into twelve classes based on their phylogenetic relationship and the presence of structural conserved domain/motif. Among them, 7MtGSTgene pairs were identified to have segmental duplication. Expression profiling ofMtGSTtranscripts revealed their high level of organ/tissue-specific expression in most of the developmental stages and anatomical tissues. The transcripts ofMtGSTU5,MtGSTU8,MtGSTU17,MtGSTU46, andMtGSTU47 showed significant up-regulation in response to various abiotic and biotic stresses. Moreover, transcripts ofMtGSTU8,MtGSTU14,MtGSTU28,MtGSTU30,MtGSTU34,MtGSTU46 andMtGSTF8 were found to be highly upregulated in response to drought treatment for 24h and 48h. Among the highly stress-responsive MtGST members, MtGSTU17 showed strong affinity towards its conventional substrates reduced glutathione (GSH) and 1‐chloro‐2,4‐dinitrobenzene (CDNB) with the lowest binding energy of—5.7 kcal/mol and -6.5 kcal/mol, respectively. Furthermore, the substrate-binding site residues of MtGSTU17 were found to be highly conserved. These findings will facilitate the further functional and evolutionary characterization ofGSTgenes inMedicago.
Larval nutrition influences adult fat stores and starvation resistance in Drosophila
Authors: Rehman Niyas , Varghese Jishy
Published: February 2021

Insulin plays a major role in connecting nutrient availability to energy homeostasis by regulating metabolic pathways. Defects in insulin signalling is the primary cause for diabetes, obesity and various metabolic disorders. Nutritional status during growth and developmental stages play a crucial role in determining adult size, fecundity and ageing. However, the association between developmental nutrition and adult metabolic disorders has not been fully explored. Here, we address the effects of nutrient status during the larval growth phase on adult metabolism in Drosophila. We report that restricted food supply in larvae led to higher fat reserves and starvation resistance in mature adult flies, which we attribute to low insulin signalling. A lesser amount of stored fat was mobilised during early adult stages and during acute starvation, which accounts for the metabolic effects. Furthermore, larval diet influenced the expression of fat mobilisation genes brummer and lipid storage droplet-2 in adult flies, which led to the metabolic phenotypes reported here. Thus, the restricted nutrient environment in developing larvae led to adaptive changes that entrain the adult flies for scarce food availability.
Validation of the cobas 6800 human papillomavirus test in primary cervical screening
Authors: Sundström Karin , Lamin Helena , Dillner Joakim
Published: February 2021

Evaluation of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) testing systems suitable for large-scale organized cervical screening programs is required. We evaluated the cobas 6800 HPV test system for detection of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 3 or worse (CIN3+) when nested in an organized primary HPV screening program, using the cobas 4800 test as comparator. The Karolinska University Hospital Cervical Cytology Biobank, containing frozen cervical samples from >700,000 women participating in organized cervical screening, was linked to the Swedish national cervical screening registry to identify 470 stored cervical samples taken <180 days before histopathological diagnosis of CIN3+. Two controls per case, with no abnormal results for 2 screening rounds, matched for age and sampling time were also retrieved. Aliquots from 1406 women were retrieved and re-tested on the cobas 4800 system and tested on the cobas 6800 system. There was high reproducibility between the original cobas 4800 HPV test results, and the cobas 4800 HPV re-testing performed on the samples retrieved from biobank storage. 462/464 biobanked samples from women with CIN3+ tested HPV-positive on the cobas 6800 system, corresponding to a relative sensitivity of 99.6%. 925/932 biobanked samples from control women tested HPV-negative on the cobas 6800 platform, corresponding to a relative specificity of 99.2%. By conventional criteria, the cobas 6800 was non-inferior both regarding relative sensitivity of >90% (non-inferiority p-value <0.0001) and relative specificity of >98% (non-inferiority p-value 0.006). We conclude that the cobas 6800 HPV test system had similar, high performance as the cobas 4800 such, when evaluated using cervical samples taken before CIN3+ in a real-life primary HPV screening program.
Enhanced atrial internal-external neural remodeling facilitates atrial fibrillation in the chronic obstructive sleep apnea model
Authors: Xiaokereti Jiasuoer , Guo Yan-Kai , Dong Zhen-Yu , Ma Mei , Lu Yan-Mei , Li Yao-Dong , Zhou Xian-Hui , Zhang Ling , Tang Bao-Peng
Published: February 2021

Objective

Autonomic imbalance plays a crucial role in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) associated atrial fibrillation (AF). Here, we investigated the potential neural mechanism of AF induced by OSA.

Methods

Ten dogs were divided into control group (n = 5) and OSA group (n = 5). The chronic OSA model was established by repeat apnea-ventilation cycles for 4 hours a day for 12 weeks. During the process of model establishment, arterial blood gases, atrial effective refractory period (AERP), AF inducibility, normalized low-frequency power (LFnu), normalized high-frequency power (HFnu), and LFnu/ HFnu were evaluated at baseline, 4th week, 8th week, and 12th week. Nerve activities of left stellate ganglion (LSG) and left vagal nerve(LVN) were recorded. Tyrosine hydroxylase(TH), choline acetyltransferase(CHAT), PGP9.5, nerve growth factor(NGF), and c-Fos were detected in the left atrium, LSG, and LVN by immunohistochemistry and western blot. Moreover, high-frequency stimulations of LSG and LVN were conducted to observe the AF inducibility.

Results

Compared with the control group, the OSA group showed significantly enhanced neural activity of the LSG, increased AF inducibility, and shortened AERP. LFnu and LFnu/HFnu were markedly increased in the OSA group, while no significant difference in HFnu was observed. TH-positive and PGP9.5-positive nerve densities were significantly increased in the LSG and left atrium. Additionally, the protein levels of NGF, c-Fos, and PGP9.5 were upregulated both in the LSG and left atrium. AF inducibility was markedly increased under LSG stimulation without a stimulus threshold change in the OSA group.

Conclusions

OSA significantly enhanced LSG and left atrial neural remodeling, and hyperactivity of LSG may accelerate left atrial neural remodeling to increase AF inducibility.
Frankliniella occidentalis facilitate Salmonella enterica survival in the phyllosphere
Authors: Harrod Victoria L. , Groves Russell L. , Maurice Matthew A. , Barak Jeri D.
Published: February 2021

The human enteric bacterial pathogen Salmonella enterica causes approximately 1.35 million cases of food borne illnesses annually in the United States. Of these salmonellosis cases, almost half are derived from the consumption of fresh, raw produce. Although epiphytic S. enterica populations naturally decline in the phyllosphere, a subset of phytophagous insects have recently been identified as biological multipliers, consequently facilitating the growth of bacterial populations. We investigated whether tomato leaves with macroscopic feeding damage, caused by infestation of adult Western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), support higher S. enterica populations. To explore this hypothesis, we assessed S. enterica populations in response to thrips feeding by varying insect density, plant age, and the gender of the insect. As a reference control, direct leaf damage analogous to thrips feeding was also evaluated using directed, hydraulic pressure. In a supplementary set series of experiments, groups of F. occidentalis infested tomato plants were later inoculated with S. enterica to determine how prior insect infestation might influence bacterial survival and persistence. Following an infestation period, leaves visibly damaged by adult F. occidentalis supported significantly higher S. enterica populations and resulted in greater amounts of electrolyte leakage (measured as electrical conductivity) than leaves lacking visible feeding damage. Plant age did not significantly influence S. enterica populations or estimates of electrolyte leakage, independent of initial infestation. Additionally, the gender of the insect did not uniquely influence S. enterica population dynamics. Finally, applications of aggressive water bombardment resulted in more electrolyte leakage than leaves damaged by F. occidentalis, yet supported comparable S. enterica populations. Together, this study indicates that F. occidentalis feeding is one of the many potential biological mechanisms creating a more habitable environment for S. enterica.
Germline molecular data in hereditary breast cancer in Brazil: Lessons from a large single-center analysis
Authors: Sandoval Renata Lazari , Leite Ana Carolina Rathsam , Barbalho Daniel Meirelles , Assad Daniele Xavier , Barroso Romualdo , Polidorio Natalia , dos Anjos Carlos Henrique , de Miranda Andréa Discaciati , Ferreira Ana Carolina Salles de Mendonça , Fernandes Gustavo dos Santos , Achatz Maria Isabel
Published: February 2021

Brazil is the largest country in South America and the most genetically heterogeneous. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of germline pathogenic variants (PVs) in Brazilian patients with breast cancer (BC) who underwent genetic counseling and genetic testing at a tertiary Oncology Center. We performed a retrospective analysis of the medical records of Brazilian patients with BC referred to genetic counseling and genetic testing between August 2017 and August 2019. A total of 224 unrelated patients were included in this study. Premenopausal women represented 68.7% of the cohort. The median age at BC diagnosis was 45 years. Multigene panel testing was performed in 219 patients, five patients performed single gene analysis or family variant testing. Forty-eight germline PVs distributed among 13 genes were detected in 20.5% of the patients (46/224). Eighty-five percent of the patients (91/224) fulfilled NCCN hereditary BC testing criteria. Among these patients, 23.5% harbored PVs (45/191). In the group of patients that did not meet NCCN criteria, PV detection rate was 3% (1/33). A total of 61% of the patients (28/46) harbored a PV in a high-penetrance BC gene: 19 (8.5%) BRCA1/2, 8 (3.5%) TP53, 1 (0.5%) PALB2. Moderate penetrance genes (ATM, CHEK2) represented 15.2% (7/46) of the positive results. PVs detection was statistically associated (p<0.05) with BC diagnosis before age 45, high-grade tumors, bilateral BC, history of multiple primary cancers, and family history of pancreatic cancer. According to the current hereditary cancer guidelines, 17.4% (39/224) of the patients had actionable variants. Nine percent of the patients (20/224) had actionable variants in non-BRCA genes, it represented 43.5% of the positive results and 51.2% of the actionable variants. Considering the observed prevalence of PVs in actionable genes beyond BRCA1/2 (9%, 20/224), multigene panel testing may offer an effective first-tier diagnostic approach in this population.
Radiotherapy treatment scheduling: Implementing operations research into clinical practice
Authors: Vieira Bruno , Demirtas Derya , van de Kamer Jeroen B. , Hans Erwin W. , Jongste Willem , van Harten Wim
Published: February 2021

Background

Every week, radiotherapy centers face the complex task of scheduling hundreds of treatment sessions amongst the available linear accelerators. With the increase in cancer patient numbers, manually creating a feasible and efficient schedule has shown to be a difficult, time-consuming task. Although operations research models have been increasingly reported upon to optimize patient care logistics, there is almost no scientific evidence of implementation in practice.

Methods

A mathematical operations research model was adapted to generate radiotherapy treatment schedules in two Dutch centers. The model was iteratively adjusted to fulfill the technical and medical constraints of each center until a valid model was attained. Patient data was collected for the planning horizon of one week, and the feasibility of the obtained schedules was verified by the staff of each center. The resulting optimized solutions are compared with the ones manually developed in practice.

Results

The weekly schedule was improved in both centers by decreasing the average standard deviation between sessions’ starting times from 103.0 to 50.4 minutes (51%) in one center, and the number of gaps in the schedule from 18 to 5 (72%) in the other. The number of patients requiring linac switching between sessions has also decreased from 71 to 0 patients in one center, and from 43 to 2 in the other. The automated process required 5 minutes and 1.5 hours of computation time to find an optimal weekly patient schedule, respectively, as opposed to approximately 1.5 days when performed manually for both centers.

Conclusions

The practical application of a theoretical operations research model for radiotherapy treatment scheduling has provided radiotherapy planners a feasible, high-quality schedule in an automated way. Iterative model adaptations performed in small steps, early engagement of stakeholders, and constant communication proved to facilitate the implementation of operations research models into clinical practice.
Coronavirus risk perception and compliance with social distancing measures in a sample of young adults: Evidence from Switzerland
Authors: Franzen Axel , Wöhner Fabienne
Published: February 2021

The health risk of the coronavirus pandemic is age-specific. The symptoms of a COVID-19 infection are usually mild in the healthy population below the age of 65; however, the measures laid down to prevent the spread of the virus apply typically to the whole population. Hence, those who have a low risk of severe symptoms face a social dilemma in cooperating and complying with the safety measures: Cooperating in preventing the spread of the disease is good for society but comes with individual costs. These costs provide an incentive not to cooperate with the safety measures. In this paper we analyze via structural equation modelling a sample of young adults (N = 510) who were surveyed right after the end of the first lockdown period in Switzerland. We investigate why and to what extent they cooperated in preventing the epidemic by following the recommendation to stay at home as much as possible. We hypothesize that those respondents who perceive themselves to be personally at risk, or who have relatives belonging to the risk group, complied more often with the safety measures as compared to those without severe risks. Cooperating should also be linked to individuals’ pro-social orientation. Furthermore, we hypothesize that those who believe that the virus is dangerous for society or who have a personal interest in protection show higher support for the general safety measures. Our empirical results show that compliance with the coronavirus social distancing measures was generally very high during the first lockdown. Although young adults perceived themselves to be at low personal risk, they still believed that the virus is dangerous for society. Those who had a personal interest in staying at home because they had relatives belonging to the risk group complied more often with the safety measures. Overall, the results suggest that the support of the preventive measures is the most important promoter of cooperation to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Small area estimation and childhood obesity surveillance using electronic health records
Authors: Zhao Ying-Qi , Norton Derek , Hanrahan Larry
Published: February 2021

There is an urgent need for childhood surveillance systems to design, implement, and evaluate interventions at the local level. We estimated obesity prevalence for individuals aged 5–17 years using a southcentral Wisconsin EHR data repository, Public Health Information Exchange (PHINEX, 2007–2012). The prevalence estimates were calculated by aggregating the estimated probability of each individual being obese, which was obtained via a generalized linear mixed model. We incorporated the random effects at the area level into our model. A weighted procedure was employed to account for missingness in EHR data. A non-parametric kernel smoothing method was used to obtain the prevalence estimates for locations with no or little data (<20 individuals) from the EHR. These estimates were compared to results from newly available obesity atlas (2015–2016) developed from various EHRs with greater statewide representation. The mean of the zip code level obesity prevalence estimates for males and females aged 5–17 years is 16.2% (SD 2.72%); 17.9% (SD 2.14%) for males and 14.4% (SD 2.00%) for females. The results were comparable to the Wisconsin Health Atlas (WHA) estimates, a much larger dataset of local community EHRs in Wisconsin. On average, prevalence estimates were 2.12% lower in this process than the WHA estimates, with lower estimation occurring more frequently for zip codes without data in PHINEX. Using this approach, we can obtain estimates for local areas that lack EHRs data. Generally, lower prevalence estimates were produced for those locations not represented in the PHINEX database when compared to WHA estimates. This underscores the need to ensure that the reference EHRs database can be made sufficiently similar to the geographic areas where synthetic estimates are being created.
Viral etiology and seasonal trends of pediatric acute febrile illness in southern Puerto Rico; a seven-year review
Authors: Sánchez-González Liliana , Quandelacy Talia M. , Johansson Michael , Torres-Velásquez Brenda , Lorenzi Olga , Tavarez Mariana , Torres Sanet , Alvarado Luisa I. , Paz-Bailey Gabriela
Published: February 2021

Background

Acute febrile illness (AFI) is an important cause for seeking health care among children. Knowledge of the most common etiologic agents of AFI and its seasonality is limited in most tropical regions.

Methodology/Principal findings

To describe the viral etiology of AFI in pediatric patients (≤18 years) recruited through a sentinel enhanced dengue surveillance system (SEDSS) in Southern Puerto Rico, we analyzed data for patients enrolled from 2012 to May 2018. To identify seasonal patterns, we applied time-series analyses to monthly arboviral and respiratory infection case data. We calculated coherence and phase differences for paired time-series to quantify the association between each time series.

A viral pathogen was found in 47% of the 14,738 patients. Influenza A virus was the most common pathogen detected (26%). The incidence of Zika and dengue virus etiologies increased with age. Arboviral infections peaked between June and September throughout the times-series. Respiratory infections have seasonal peaks occurring in the fall and winter months of each year, though patterns vary by individual respiratory pathogen.

Conclusions/Significance

Distinct seasonal patterns and differences in relative frequency by age groups seen in this study can guide clinical and laboratory assessment in pediatric patients with AFI in Puerto Rico.
Associations between the household environment and stunted child growth in rural India: a cross-sectional analysis
Authors: Lee Charlotte , Lakhanpaul Monica , Stern Bernardo Maza , Sarkar Kaushik , Parikh Priti
Published: February 2021

Stunting is a major unresolved and growing health issue for India. There is a need for a broader interdisciplinary cross-sectoral approach in which disciplines such as the environment and health have to work together to co-develop integrated socio-culturally tailored interventions. However, there remains scant evidence for the development and application of such integrated, multifactorial child health interventions across India’s most rural communities. In this paper we explore and demonstrate the linkages between environmental factors and stunting thereby highlighting the scope for interdisciplinary research. We examine the associations between household environmental characteristics and stunting in children under 5 years of age across rural Rajasthan, India. We used Demographic and Health Survey (DHS)-3 India (2005–2006) data from 1194 children living across 109,041 interviewed households. Multiple logistic regression analyses independently examined the association between (i) the primary source of drinking water, (ii) primary type of sanitation facilities, (iii) primary cooking fuel type, and (iv) agricultural land ownership and stunting adjusting for child age. The results suggest, after adjusting for child age, household access to (i) improved drinking water source was associated with 23% decreased odds [odds ratio (OR) = 0.77, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.5–1.00], (ii) improved sanitation facility was associated with 41% decreased odds (OR = 0.51, 95% CI 0.3–0.82), and (iii) agricultural land ownership was associated with 30% decreased odds of childhood stunting (OR 0.70, 95% CI 0.51–0.94]. The cooking fuel source was not associated with stunting. Our findings indicate that a shift is needed from nutrition-specific to contextually appropriate interdisciplinary solutions, which incorporate environmental improvements. This will not only improve living conditions in deprived communities but also help to tackle the challenge of childhood malnutrition across India’s most vulnerable communities.
Modelling and control of a grid-tied power conditioning unit for a megawatt fuel cell system
Authors: Ben Hamad Khlid , Tariq Kahn Mohamed
Published: February 2021

It is a reality that future development in the energy sector is founded on the utilization of renewable and sustainable energy sources. These energy sources can empower to meet the double targets of diminishing greenhouse gas emissions and ensuring reliable and cost-effective energy supply. Fuel cells are one of the advanced clean energy technologies and have demonstrated their ability to be a decent substitute to address the above-mentioned concerns. They are viewed as reliable and efficient technologies to operate either tied or non-tied to the grid and power applications ranging from domestic, commercial to industrial. Among different fuel cell technologies, proton exchange membrane is the most attractive. Its connection to the utility grid requires that the power conditioning system serving as the interface between the stack and the grid operates accordingly. This study aims to model and control a power conditioning system for the grid-connection of a megawatt fuel cell stack. Besides the grid, the system consists of a 1.54 MW/1400 V DC proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack, a 1.3 MW/600 V three-level diode clamped inverter and an LCL filter which is designed to reduced harmonics and meet the standards such as IEEE 519 and IEC 61000-3-6. The power conditioning control scheme comprises voltage and current regulators to provide a good power factor and satisfy synchronization requirements with the grid. The frequency and phase are synchronized with those of the grid through a phase-locked-loop. The modelling and simulation are performed using Matlab/Simulink. The results show good performance of the proposed microgrid as well as the inverter design and control approach with a low total harmonic distortion of about 0.35% for the voltage and 0.19% for the current.Â Â Â
Investigation of factors affecting power density radiation of mobile phones
Authors: B. Oluwafemi Ilesanmi , O. Adeoye Johnson , M. Faluru Deji , D. Obasanya Dorcas
Published: February 2021

The use of mobile phones in Nigeria has greatly increased in the recent year. This has also increased the general population exposure to mobile phone radiation. In this research, the intensity of radiation around selected mobile phones base on some factors are investigated using Radiofrequency Meter (RF) TM-96, 9V DC and Spectrum Analyzer (NA-773, 144/430 MHz) in a bid to confirm how they affect the radiation level. Measurements were taken at distances of 5 cm from the mobile phones when seeking for connections, calls establishing and calls connections under different conditions such as periods of the day, when charging and when not charging, battery charged levels, single and dual SIMs and network signal levels. The radiation levels from the 5 selected mobile phones ranges from 0.3204 to 0.4824 mW/cm2 during call conversation, with the highest radiating mobile phone being Asus while the least was Infinix 3. The radiation levels of these mobile phones are above the International Commission on Non-ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) reference level, 0.45 mW/cm2. Results also shows that the cell phone battery level, network signal level, the number of inserted SIM cards increases the radiation level of the mobile phones.Â Â
Designed and Implementing of Quadcopter Control Unit Capable of Tracking and Detecting Airplanes Types
Authors: Aslinezhad Mehdi , Hosseinzadeh Massoud , Heidari Farsad
Published: February 2021

The goal of this study is to design and implement a new idea for air-launched quadcopter control unit using the digital video processing. In this study, itâ€™s endeavored to transmit the captured videos by a camera embedded on the quadcopter via video transceiver and after pro-cessing, the ground station relays appropriate command to the quadcopter to tracking target. Moreover, itâ€™s desired to detect a target in the sky and both stay in one direction until detect the target when intercepting toward the target and the quadcopter intercepts the target in every direction. In order to identify the type of aerial targets, the dimensions are studied at different intervals, which makes military and non - military goals detected at different intervals.Â Â
Frequency synchronization enhancement in wireless sensor network using cheetah chase algorithm
Authors: Goudhaman M. , Sasikumar S. , Vanathi N.
Published: February 2021

Frequency synchronization is a cutting edge framework for any distributed systems. Wireless sensor networks have risen as an imperative and promising exploration territory in the current years. Frequency synchronization is an imperative for some, sensor organize applications that require extremely exact mapping of assembled sensor information with the frequency of the occasions happened. Biologically inspirited, innovative swarm intelligence algorithms are the most unique algorithms for enhancement. In this proposed work, new population based nature-impelled metaheuristic optimization algorithm, named Cheetah Chase Algorithm (CCA), is presented for upgrading the frequency synchronization in the distributed environment.Â Â
A floating IP implementation based-on load balancing in cloud computing
Authors: Andhyka Awang , Badri Fawaidul
Published: February 2021

With the advance of technology and constant changes in internet development, cloud computing has poured today. The industrial 4.0 requires technology that is reliable and has high stability. With lower funds and convenience in overcast computing as a serving, for ex-ample, cloud servers, users are increasingly placing web resources and information on cloud computing. But, when needed, by many users, errors or downtime cloud server often occurs on the cloud server. Various kinds of obstacles often happen, such as errors, ISP interrupted, overloaded, or others. From these problems, the availability and reliability system on the cloud server will be increasingly important so that this study will discuss the issue of an encumbrance balancing and floating IP (internet protocol) in a cloud server with a minimum cost. This study proposes a dual balanced approach using floating IP addresses to balance workload in cloud computing. This is to ensure the reliability with the stability of a cloud server to optimize the maximum available resources. Cloud analyst, like a visual-based Cloud Sim Modeler, will be used for algorithm analysis. Comparative studies are also brought out by several algorithms such as the robin algorithm and First Serve algorithm, the results will be analyzed and expected to be a right solution that can later be applied to a need that requires resources with a lot of connectivity, such as e-commerce, revenue new students, online exams, or others.Â Â Â
Effect of linkage design of an elbow implant on micro-motion: a finite element analysis
Authors: Heidari Milad , Rahmanivahid Pooyan
Published: February 2021

The major reason for total elbow arthroplasty failure is loosening. Loosening is the outcome of a detrimental mechanical incident, which causes the failure of the bond between the bone bed and implant. The shape of the linkage of an elbow implant has a considerable role to transfer a portion of the load to the cement-bone and cement-implant interfaces. Therefore, in this study, the linkage of an elbow implant was modified to reduce loosening using finite element analyses. Elbow bone was constructed using image processing software. Linkage components were modeled using modeling computer-aided design software. Material properties and boundary conditions were applied. The stress distribution and micro-motion were obtained in linkage component and cement-implant-bone interfaces respectively. Based on our results, sub-design 3B proved less interface micro-motion compared to others. Our study showed that modification of a linkage reduces the micro-motion transferred to bone-cement and cement-implant interfaces. A reduction of micro-motion, through linkage modification, may improve the clinical outcomes.Â Â
Redesigning the Borobudur chair to sustain local creative industries: introducing to wangun concept
Authors: Widayat Rahmanu
Published: February 2021

Redesigning the already existed thing is a common practice in the world of design. This study objectively conducted to produce a fresh new look and commercially bargaining product of furniture in addition to pursue current aesthetic needs. This study focuses on reconstructing the Borobudur chair, a typical form of chair inspired from the 8th century Borobudur temple reliefs, which theoretically does not follow modern art. This proposes a traditional conceptual approach called wangun (beauty) inspired by the wisdom of local Javanese culture, which is termed as Ngowahi Rupa (the change of form). Ngowahi Rupa does not change the 'inner structure' of an object, the changes occur only at the 'outer structure' level. There were two distinctive chairs being redesigned in this study, the first type of chair can accommodate one person only, and the other accommodates three people. Both types of chairs constitute of a complete structure of chair such as the legs, seat stands, and backrests, which in the sense of wangun conceptually termed telu-teluning atunggal. The Ngowahi Rupa furniture making process not only demands visual aspects, but also the concept of the creative industry. The concept was applied in redesigning the Borobudur chair that synergically in accordance with the rapidly developed creative industries in Indonesia. The results of redesigning the old-type of chair objectively contribute to the advance of current furniture industry and trend, both in Indonesia and abroad, in addition to maintaining the excellence of the creative industry with regard to the economic concern.Â Â
Significant role of internet of things (IoT) for designing smart home automation and privacy issues
Authors: Talal Alsharari Dr. , Shayem Saleh Alresheedi Dr. , Abdulaziz Fatani Dr. , Ismail Yaqub Maolood Dr.
Published: February 2021

In this research paper the researcher emphasized the significant role of internet of things (IoT) for designing smart home automation with high security. The IoT is based on the internet and automated devices which are controlled by remotely using a PC, Smart phone, Tablet or other devices. The IoT is an intelligently connected devices and system which comprised of smart machines, environment, objects, and in-frastructure, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), and sensors which will lead to meet the new challenges of Home Automation. In this research paper the researcher review the current research issues on Internet of Things(IoT) and Home Automation devices which are signif-icant to design the smart home or offices gadgets interact , seamlessly, surely control, monitor and improve accessibility from anywhere across the globe. The researcher used some of the statistical data from the STATISTA to show the current usage of smart home automation devices and it significant uses across the globe.Â Â
Maturity Framework Analysis ISO 27001: 2013 on Indonesian Higher Education
Authors: Mantra IGN , Abd. Rahman Aedah , Saragih Hoga
Published: February 2021

Information Security Management System (ISMS) implementation in Institution is an effort to minimize information security risks and threats such as information leakage, application damage, data loss and declining IT network performance. The several incidents related to information security have occurred in the implementation of the Academic System application in Indonesian higher education. This research was conducted to determine the maturity level of information security practices in Academic Information Systems at universities in Indonesia. The number of universities used as research samples were 35 institutions. Compliance with the application of ISO 27001:2013 standard is used as a reference to determine the maturity level of information system security practices. Meanwhile, to measure and calculate the level of maturity using the SSE-CMM model. In this research, the Information System Security Index obtained from the analysis results can be used as a tool to measure the maturity of information security that has been applied. There are six key areas examined in this study, namely the role and importance of ICT, information security governance, information security risk management, information security management framework, information asset management, and information security technology. The results showed the level of information security maturity at 35 universities was at level 2 Managed Process and level 3 Established Process. The composition is that 40% of universities are at level 3, and 60% are out of level 3. The value of the gap between the value of the current maturity level and the expected level of maturity is varied for each clause (domain). The smallest gap (1 level) is in clause A5: Information Security Policy, clause A9: Access Control, and clause A11: Physical and environmental security. The biggest gap (4 levels) is in clause A14: System acquisition, development and maintenance and clause A18: compliance.Â Â Â
Analysis of CBR design value selection methods on flexible pavement design: Colombia case study
Authors: Mora L. Otto , Murillo A. Michel , Rosania A. Tiana , CastaÃ±eda A. Abraham , Pinto C. Rosa , Padilla M. Andrea
Published: February 2021

A comparative analysis was carried out to observe the variation of a flexible pavement structural thickness, due to the use of different meth-ods to calculate the CBR design value, as an essential variable to estimate the Subgrade Resilient Modulus (Mr) through an empirical corre-lation. The Asphalt Institute Method and the Mean Criterion Method were applied to calculate de Design CBR value of a homogeneous roadway division from a representative track section located in the Bolivar Department, Colombia. As a result, the Design Percentiles of the CBR design unit were expanded for the Asphalt Institute method, thus, allowing the approach of more reliable and safe designs, considering that this method limits the selection percentiles to three traffic levels.Â Â
Conflict matrix as a mechanism of identifying the conflict in emotions of written text
Authors: Mohsin Manshad Abbasi , Anees Qumar Abbasi , Anatoly Petrovich Beltiukov , Lal. Hussain
Published: February 2021

Text is a major source of information and is considered as a mechanism of communicating emotions and ideas. The emotion and their analysis from written text gained popularity over recent decades. It has been credited to the growth of information technology and the rapid increase in availability of internet around the globe. In this work, the main idea is to identify the conflict in emotions that exist in the written text. The use of conflict analysis is to identify the contradictory views of people about an object or a topic of discussion. Its existence in text however complicates the process of analysis of emotions from text. This paper describes a mechanism in which the emotions in each pair of sentence are considered as conflicting to each other. The emotional orientation of each pair of sentence is observed to identify the truth-value of the proposed conflict hypothesis. The result of the analysis is summarized using the Conflict matrix. Conflict matrix is a major product of this research that is used to identify the conflicting emotions in text and to measure their characteristics. The results of the experiment were analyzed using the supervised learning techniques along with the Confusion matrix. In methodology and conclusion sections of the paper, the results are discussed in detail.Â Â
A study for the prediction of corona power on electrostatic precipitator based on simple and easy two-dimensional electrostatic simulation
Authors: Cho Chang-Hee , Kim Dong-Hoon , Park Sang-Eon
Published: February 2021

This study examines how the designing of an electrostatic precipitator can be carried out in a simple way. While it is of value to find out the theoretical values of design parameters using three-dimensional finite element model and numerical method, this study shows that employ-ing a two-dimensional finite element model and easily usable public-domain program is equally simple and fast. Variations of some physical properties occurring between an electrode and a duct are expressed using two design parameters. In this process, the design of the experi-ment and the response surface method are used based on the two-dimensional finite element model, as well as electrostatic simulation. A test using an electrostatic precipitator is performed and it is confirmed that a variation of corona power by the test is most similar with the varia-tion of stored energy by the simulation. A conversion factor that can predict corona power with the response surface function for the stored energy is proposed.Â Â
Electrical Load Forecasting: A methodological overview
Authors: Rostum Medhat , Zamel Amr , Moustafa Hassan , Ziedan Ibrahim
Published: February 2021

Electric load forecasting process plays an extensive role in forecasting future electric load demand and peak load by understanding the previous data. Several researchers proved that, the presence of load forecasting error leads to an increase in operating costs. Thus Accurate electric load forecast is needed for power system security and reliability. It also improves energy efficiency, revenues for the electrical companies and reliable operation of a power system.In recent times, there are significant proliferations in the implementation of forecasting techniques. This survey aids readers to summarize and compare the latest predominant researches on electric load forecasting. Besides, it presents the most relevant studies on load forecasting over the last decade and discusses the different methods that are used in load prediction as well as the future directions in this field.
Implementation of a developed water tunnels cleaning model with an automatic sensing and operation mechanism
Authors: Yasen Abd Rasha , Sachit Kaittan Ali , Ali Mejeed Raghad
Published: February 2021

Iraq contains two main rivers with several sub streams and tributaries. One of the most important problems in these streams and tributaries is the amount of waste on the water surface. This waste can lead to many issues such as diseases infection and affects the fisheries. River cleaning machine is one of the most important solutions for this problem. In this paper, a developed cleaning machine was designed based on Arduino and remote sensing mechanism to reduce the operation time and cost. The proposed cleaning machine model was tested and validated and can be used efficiently in many places under different conditions.Â Â
Estimation of porosity of rocks based upon axiomatic local linear model tree (a lolimot model) approach
Authors: Hossein Iranmanesh Hossein , Mollajan Ali
Published: February 2021

Shear and Compressional Wave Velocities along with other Petrophysical Logs, are considered as upmost important data for Hydrocarbon reservoirs characterization. In this study, porosity of the extracted rocks form concerned wells is interest as it can indicate the oil capacity of the wells of interest. In this study, we employ the principles of Axiomatic Design theory, specially the first (independence) axiom, to more simplify the measurement system. Also, to clarify the strength of Axiomatic Design theory in reducing the complexity of the system and optimizing the measurement system, we utilize the The Lolimot model (LOcal LInear MOdel Tree) as a model from the neural network family and apply it before and after implementing the basic logic of Axiomatic Design (AD) theory. In addition, in order to illustrate strength of the proposed method emphasizing the effectiveness of a method which benefit from both AD theory and Lolimot model together, the existing system used to measure the rock porosity is addressed and actual data related to one of wells located in southern Iran is utilized. The results of the study show that integrating the Axiomatic Design principles with the LOLIMOT method leads to the least complex and most accurate results.Â Â
Modification of kaolinite clay using benzyltriethylammonium chloride as a surfactant: Preparation and characterization
Authors: Meftah Elgubbi Hana , Salhah Othman Siti , Wahida Harun Farah
Published: February 2021

Natural kaolinite clay from Perak, Malaysia with cation exchange capacity (CEC) of 2.5 meq/100g was modified using cationic surfactant, benzyltriethylammonium chloride (BTEA-Cl), at 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 times the CEC. A number of techniques, namely energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) nitrogen adsorption-desorption were then used for characterization of the kaolinite and/or organo-modified kaolinite clays. The presence of alkyl groups as a result of successful intercalation of cationic surfactant within the organo-kaolinite layers of the clay was exhibited by the FTIR spectra. The SEM microphotographs exhibited good dispersion of the natural clay particles and slight agglomeration in the organo-modified clay particles. XRD patterns showed that the d001 spacing of the natural kaolinite clay increased from 7.12 â„« to between 7.20 - 7.34 â„« for the organo-modified clays. Following the BET nitrogen adsorption-desorption technique, all clay samples were of Type IV with narrow hysteresis loops. Surface areas of the clays showed drastic decrease from (25.34 m2/g) for natural kaolinite clay to between 5.90 - 13.11 m2/g for organo-modified clays. The results suggested that modification of natural kaolinite clay using cation surfactant had successfully occurred. The modification can therefore be further applied for alteration and improvement of the properties of natural clays for various industrial applications.Â Â Â