bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Os controles, a confiança e a ética na governança corporativa
Authors: Trevia Carlos Frederico , Rocha-Pinto Sandra Regina da
Published: February 2019

Passaram-se mais de dezesseis anos do escândalo da Enron nos Estados Unidos e os problemas de Governança Corporativa continuam. Recentemente no Brasil as notícias da operação Lava-Jato, envolvendo a corrupção em grandes empresas, mancharam suas imagens. O desenvolvimento da Governança Corporativa se torna assunto focal das empresas perante a falta de confiança dos mercados financeiros nas organizações e em seus processos de tomada de decisão não-transparentes, sem a clara responsabilização dos decisores, em meio à descoberta de diversas fraudes em projetos de investimentos financiados por instituições financeiras ou por seus acionistas, resultando em perda do grau de investimento e queda do preço das ações de empresas de capital aberto. Os mecanismos tradicionais de Governança Corporativa e os controles formais não enxergam todo o processo de tomada de decisão e se mostraram insuficientes para reduzir riscos. A cada dia a sociedade convive com mais sistemas abstratos, de modo que confiança, a etica e o controle social passam a ser condições essenciais para a redução de custos de controle e a geração de resultados. O objetivo deste artigo é apresentar um Quadro de Referência para aplicação no campo dos estudos organizacionais, em pesquisas empíricas, visando ao estabelecimento de uma Governança Corporativa com uma visão mais abrangente para as empresas, contribuindo para que se alcance um novo nível de Governança que traga benefícios aos acionistas e as sociedades, com etica e responsabilidade social. Para tanto, apresenta-se uma revisão bibliográfica sobre os problemas de Governança Corporativa enfrentados nas empresas e os mecanismos que têm sido destacados na literatura e propostos para a abordagem do problema.
Educação empreendedora: avanços e desafios
Authors: De Araujo Gracyanne Freire , Davel Eduardo Paes Barreto
Published: February 2019

A educação empreendedora (EE) é um tema de destaque para pensar os currículos das Escolas de Administração e o desenvolvimento da sociedade como um todo. No entanto, ainda não dispomos de uma visão atual e consolidada sobre a EE: os conhecimentos ainda são fragmentados e dispersos. O objetivo deste artigo é sistematizar um entendimento atualizado e integrado dos conhecimentos produzidos sobre EE. A análise de material publicado (artigos, livros, teses, dissertações) e de documentos institucionais (de centros de pesquisa e ensino do empreendedorismo) permitiu a categorização de institucionalidades, focos e de pedagogias de EE. Os resultados da pesquisa demonstram que as instituições de EE possuem uma predominância do plano de negócios como pedagogia. Os conteúdos ministrados nas disciplinas de empreendedorismo têm um perfil preocupado com a formação de habilidades, competências empreendedoras e intenção empreendedora. Diante desta análise, propomos e discutimos três desafios e perspectivas para a EE: (a) o contexto da economia criativa e cultural; (b) o conceito do empreendedorismo como prática, processo e construção social, (c) a pedagogia da aprendizagem baseada na prática.
Empreendedorismo feminino no Brasil: teorias, políticas e tendências
Authors: Da Silva Juliana Soares , Sullivan dos Santos Tavares Michel Frank , Neto de Jesus Djanires Lageano , Merlin Higya Alessandra
Published: February 2019

Neste estudo, pretendeu-se esboçar as principais contribuições teóricas nacionais relativas ao empreendedorismo feminino, inserindo-as na perspectiva da realidade verificada pelos números e por estudos de nível mundial, que apontam algumas tendências e perspectivas sobre o tema. A partir disso, foi construída uma breve análise de como está o movimento empreendedor feminino no Brasil. Para dar conta do proposto, realizou-se um levantamento bibliográfico e documental de importantes perspectivas mundiais. Até que se chegasse aos dados do caso brasileiro, percorreu-se uma análise teórica dos principais e recentes estudos sobre o tema no Brasil. Foram  utilizadas, também, algumas pesquisas comparadas a outros países, bem como um breve relato das principais ações de apoio ao empreendedorismo feminino. Por fim, com uma análise exploratória de dados, foram traçadas algumas tendências e aplicações das teorias verificadas com base nos dados postos. O presente trabalho está estruturado em seis seções, a saber: introdução; empreendedorismo feminino no mundo, na América Latina e no Brasil; perspectivas atuais e contribuições teóricas no Brasil; políticas e programas de apoio; tendências e rumos; conclusão. Por resultados, verificou-se que o empreendedorismo no Brasil enfrenta fortes desigualdades, porém é sustentado pela força empreendedora da mulher brasileira, força esta que merece novos estudos, para que o cenário seja melhor exposto e delineado.
Percepções e usos dos espaços de Shopping Centers: um estudo na cidade de Maringá
Authors: Bevilacqua Lisiane Mattielo , Da Silva Maiara Moura , Oliveira Josiane Silva de , Nakata Tales Tadaki
Published: February 2019

O objetivo desta pesquisa foi compreender as percepções de usuários e trabalhadores sobre o espaço dos shoppings centers. Consideramos que os shoppings centers são espaços híbridos por conjugarem a comercialização de diferentes produtos e serviços produzindo diferentes experiências para quem consume nestes espaços e para quem trabalha nos mesmos. O conceito de percepção é apresentado a partir do entendimento que este ocorre a partir de diferentes estímulos dos sentidos que são compreendidos e interpretados pelas pessoas. A pesquisa de campo foi realizada em um shopping center localizado na cidade de Maringá, Paraná. Foram entrevistadas dez pessoas, sendo cinco consumidores e cinco trabalhadores destes shoppings por meio de um roteiro estruturado de perguntas sobre o uso dos espaços da organização pesquisada. Os dados coletados foram analisados por meio da técnica de análise de conteúdo a partir de três categorias, sendo estas: ocupação do espaço, localização e conforto. Os resultados da pesquisa indicam que os shoppings centers são espaços de lazer, mais do que de consumo de produtos, porém quanto maior a percepção de regulação do tempo nesse espaço, menor é essa percepção de lazer sobre o shopping center e as percepções do ambiente interno do shopping tem relação direta com o tipo de grupo social que faz uso desse espaço.
The Hybrid Micro-chaos Map: Digitally Controlled Inverted Pendulum with Dry Friction
Authors: Gyebrószki Gergely , Csernák Gábor
Published: February 2019

Digital effects (quantization, sampling and delay) can lead to small amplitude chaotic oscillations, called micro-chaos [1, 2]. Often,  these vibrations are neglected due to their small amplitude or replaced by random noise, but doing so one might be unable to capture some important behavior of the digitally controlled system.One notable example is the PD-controlled inverted pendulum with quantization at the calculated control effort. Taking digital effects into account leads to separated chaotic attractors in the state space. While the amplitude of the chaotic oscillations is indeed small, these attractors are situated rather far from the desired position, introducing considerable control error. Micro-chaos is undoubtedly present in ideal models of computer-controlled mechanical systems, however an important question is still open: does it persist if a more complex model of reality is used? For instance, does it survive in the presence of dry friction?This paper answers the latter question analyzing the micro-chaos in a system with Coulomb friction. We introduce the so-called hybrid micro-chaos map that describes the behavior of a digitally controlled system with dry friction. Then, the theoretical analysis of this map is presented and numerical results are provided that were acquired using a new mathematical tool, the Clustered Simple Cell Mapping method.Lastly, we conclude, that the phenomena of micro-chaos can withstand the presence of Coulomb friction and chaotic attractors can coexist with sticking zones in the state space.
Estudio de factibilidad de un diseño web para el registro, control y seguimiento de los sílabos académicos en las Universidades
Authors: Núñez Freire Luis Alfonso , Moreta Chávez Miguel Mesias , Solano Gutiérrez Gerardo Alfredo , Sarmiento Saavedra Juan Carlos , Guaman Chávez Ramiro Enrique , Baque Yoza Nexar Ignacio
Published: February 2019

Esta investigación se realiza con el fin hacer un estudio de factibilidad sobre una implementación de sistema web para registrar, controlar   y dar seguimiento al sílabo para un adecuado control que se pueda realizar sobre el avance académico y, sobre la planificación de las unidades didácticas, depende en gran medida el éxito o la consecución de los objetivos propuestos tanta universidad matriz ubicado en la provincia de Esmeraldas y el director de la sede universitaria en La Concordia. El análisis realizado al proceso de control que se efectúa en la comunidad educativa, permitió evidenciar que se manejan sistemas de información que utilizan procesos manuales, hojas de cálculo e incluso procedimientos no estandarizados que hacen que el control que se pueda llevar sobre el avance académico y los planes de clase, no se pueden realizar, usando herramientas de software libre y aplicando los estándares de diseño que propone la Ingeniería de Software, mediante la implementación del sistema en la red informática de la institución, dentro de una arquitectura Cliente-Servidor, se ha lograra mejorar el control del cumplimiento del Sílabos  y la planificación del currículo del aula, mejorando los procesos y automatizando los procedimientos en un nuevo sistema de información digital.
RANCANG BANGUN ANJUNGAN BIMBINGAN TUGAS AKHIR SECARA ONLINE (STUDI KASUS : JURUSAN TEKNIK INFORMATIKA STT-PLN)
Authors: Jurnal Redaksi Tim
Published: February 2019

In the process of implementation of the final task are the obstacles encountered on the initial stage of registration until the stage of completion of the final project. One form among the obstacles in the form of the registration process less effective, difficult to perform the guidance and monitoring of the implementation of the final project as well as the report of guidance do still manual.  This application is designed by transform manual business processes into web and use MySQL database to store all of important data, with the order flow process similar to current manual process. In these applications, the guidance can be done remotely, the progress of implementation can be known in an instant, the valuation guidance report is organized better than before, determine the feasibility of the project that was created and the other necessary fittings, and other information that supporting the creation of final task.  This application provides solution and ease of implementation final task guidance and monitoring. With this application, all activities pf prathesis running better than before. This application is implemented using PHP programming language, MySQL database and another supporting software.
IMPLEMENTASI SISTEM PELAYANAN MITRA PADA PT. PELINDO II (PERSERO) CABANG TANJUNG PRIOK JAKARTA
Authors: Jurnal Redaksi Tim
Published: February 2019

Pelabuhan Indonesia II or PELINDO II Tanjung Priok Branch is a State-Owned Enterprises engaged in port service activities. The service of ships and goods is a task carried on the environment of the port of PT. PELINDO II Tanjung Priok Branch. Information Technology is needed for service activities can be presented quicklu, presely and efficiently. PT. PELINDO II Tanjung Priok Branch has implemented Information Communication Technology (ICT) based system. However, the uster division is still using masnual methods in relation to customer complaints service to ship operational activities and good such as the many obstacles they are very disturbing the operational activities and complaints are known still onlu limited to the TOP Manager Level. And with the existence of the service system, then the company, especially employees who are facing directly in the field will know the various complaints felt by partner/ customer during the service users who are environment PT. PELINDO II Tanjung Priok Branch
PELATIHAN APLIKASI AKADEMIK RAPOR ONLINE BERBASIS WEB SEBAGAI ALAT BANTU MONITORING HASIL BELAJAR SISWA (STUDI KASUS: MADRASAH ALIYAH NEGERI 12 JAKARTA)
Authors: Jatnika Hendra
Published: February 2019

terlampir
Pelatihan Internet dan Pengenalan E-Commerce Bagi Masyarakat Desa Ciaruteun Ilir Bogor
Authors: Aziza Rosida Nur
Published: February 2019

Ciaruteun Ilir is a village in the District of Cibungbulang, Bogor. It is located approximately 25 kilometres from the capital of  the Bogor Regency. The average population, mostly farming, is on the poverty line and has a low level of education. Formal education facilities are still very limited. Therefore, training and courses from the government and other parties are needed to increase the knowledge, broaden their mind, and improve the skills of the population. The courses that are organized are expected to increase the villagers’  income. While broader mind is expected to increase citizens' awareness of the importance of education. The PKM (Program Kemitraan Masyarakat or  community service program) team intends to provide training related to Information Technology to the public, especially regarding the introduction of the Internet. The public will be introduced to the Internet and E-Commerce, which is one of the Internet applications that allows buying and selling transactions through the Internet network. The internet will open opportunities for citizens to increase knowledge and learn from various sources. With E-Commerce training, villagers will be equipped with the ability to be able to introduce products from their villages and  doing commercial transactions  via the Internet.
Che cosa è non decidibile: cinque regioni del coto vedado
Authors: Bovero Michelangelo
Published: February 2019

In questo articolo, l’A. richiama l’attenzione sul concetto di «sfera dell’indecidibile» coniato da Luigi Ferrajoli, ponendolo a confronto con la nozione di «coto vedado» di Ernesto Garzón Valdés e con l’analoga idea di «territorio» o «frontiera» inviolabile elaborata da Norberto Bobbio: le tre nozioni indicano l’insieme di principi e regole costituzionali che nessun potere politico può violare negli stati democratici di diritto, al centro del quale si trovano i diritti individuali fondamentali. L’A. propone un’interpretazione estensiva della teoria della democrazia di Bobbio capace di offrire una soluzione più avanzata al problema dei limiti del potere politico democratico. Invita a riconoscere nelle «regole del gioco» indicate da Bobbio le condizioni (in senso logico) della democrazia, articolate in due serie: cinque condizioni formali, contenute nelle regole di competenza e di procedura che riguardano il «chi» e il «come» delle decisioni collettive; e cinque condizioni sostanziali, contenute nei principi normativi impliciti nella «sesta regola» dell’elenco di Bobbio, che prescrivono limiti e vincoli al «che cosa», ossia alla sostanza delle medesime decisioni. Tali condizioni sostanziali corrispondono a quelle che l’A. chiama le «cinque regioni del coto vedado». L’A. torna in conclusione sulla concezione di Ferrajoli, in cui riconosce un miglioramento teorico rispetto alle elaborazioni esplicite sia di Bobbio sia di Garzón Valdés; ma sostiene che la teoria delle condizioni e precondizioni della democrazia ricavata per interpretazione estensiva dalla costruzione teorica di Bobbio offre un miglior fondamento razionale alla costruzione della «sfera dell’indecidibile».
Les usages relatifs au vin: nunc est bibendum
Authors: Mousseron Pierre
Published: February 2019

Définis comme des pratiques dotées d’une force juridique, les usages sont l’enjeu d’un débat tenant à la définition des sources du droit les plus appropriées. Ce débat est particulièrement vif dans le secteur agro alimentaire.

La première partie de l’article examine la présence de nombreux usages aussi bien dans l’élaboration, la commercialisation que la consommation du vin.

Dans une perspective plus dynamique, la seconde partie témoigne d’une marginalisation des usages régionaux et de la vitalité des usages transnationaux.

Cette situation invite à défendre, dans une troisième partie, les usages régionaux afin de promouvoir une diversité juridique. Cette promotion met en lumière un nouvel effet des usages protecteur de pratiques traditionnelles restreintes par certaines appellations d’origine contrôlée ou protégée.
Brevíssimas reflexões sobre a evolução do tratamento da litigiosidade repetitiva no ordenamento brasileiro, do CPC de 1973 ao CPC de 2015
Authors: Sica Heitor Vitor Mendonça
Published: February 2019

O presente texto propõe-se a analisar a evolução do tratamento legislativo da litigiosidade repetitiva, do CPC de 1973 ao CPC de 2015, com especial ênfase ao microssistema de tutela coletiva e às reformas do ordenamento processual orientadas a introduzir mecanismos de aglomeração de processos individuais repetitivos.
Rise and fall of the classic concept of private law: lessons from the legal consciousness of european private law
Authors: De Almeida Lucila
Published: February 2019

Is there such a thing as European private law, a set of rules of EU law distinguished by the binary opposition public and private law? This article aims to shed light on the debate over the rise and the fall of the classic concept of private law and how the legal consciousness of the latter enhanced the legal awareness of European private law. Philosophyand sociology of law claim reasons in the search for answers, from a metaphysical and epistemological points of view.Furthermore,the reality of private law in practice put the ancient concepts in challenge by the phenomena of transnationalization of Law. Globalization, europanization, and the privatization of private Law are factual claims against the persistence of the classic concept of private law. These categories reveal the inconsistences between the theory of will in books and law in practice, suggesting that pluralism can face the lack of sense of a universal model of private law to all the realities involved in the European Union. The belief that the harmonization (or systematization) of national Civil Codes at the European level would lead to the coherence of private law is one of the basesto a final question about the extent to which the persistence of the classic concept of private law among legal scholarship is still an obstacle to the effectiveness of EU integration through the combination of public and private enforcement.
LSTM Neural Network Based Forecasting Model for Wheat Production in Pakistan
Authors: Haider Sajjad Ali , Naqvi Syed Rameez , Akram Tallha , Umar Gulfam Ahmad , Shahzad Aamir , Sial Muhammad Rafiq , Khaliq Shoaib , Kamran Muhammad
Published: February 2019

Pakistan’s economy is largely driven by agriculture, and wheat, mostly, stands out as its second most produced crop every year. On the other hand, the average consumption of wheat is steadily increasing as well, due to which its exports are not proportionally growing, thereby, threatening the country’s economy in the years to come. This work focuses on developing an accurate wheat production forecasting model using the Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) neural networks, which are considered to be highly accurate for time series prediction. A data pre-processing smoothing mechanism, in conjunction with the LSTM based model, is used to further improve the prediction accuracy. A comparison of the proposed mechanism with a few existing models in literature is also given. The results verify that the proposed model achieves better performance in terms of forecasting, and reveal that while the wheat production will gradually increase in the next ten years, the production to consumption ratio will continue to fall and pose threats to the overall economy. Our proposed framework, therefore, may be used as guidelines for wheat production in particular, and is amenable to other crops as well, leading to sustainable agriculture development in general.
Lifetime Prognosis of Lithium-Ion Batteries Through Novel Accelerated Degradation Measurements and a Combined Gamma Process and Monte Carlo Method
Authors: Lin Yu-Chang , Chung Kuan-Jung
Published: February 2019

A compositional prognostic-based assessment using the gamma process and Monte Carlo simulation was implemented to monitor the likelihood values of test Lithium-ion batteries on the failure threshold associated with capacity loss. The evaluation of capacity loss for the test LiFePO4 batteries using a novel dual dynamic stress accelerated degradation test, called D2SADT, to simulate a situation when driving an electric vehicle in the city. The Norris and Landzberg reliability model was applied to estimate activation energy of the test batteries. The test results show that the battery capacity always decreased at each measurement time-step during D2SADT to enable the novel test method. The variation of the activation energies for the test batteries indicate that the capacity loss of the test battery operated under certain power and temperature cycling conditions, which can be accelerated when the charge–discharge cycles increase. Moreover, the modeling results show that the gamma process combined with Monte Carlo simulations provides superior accuracy for predicting the lifetimes of the test batteries compared with the baseline lifetime data (i.e., real degradation route and lifetimes). The results presented high prediction quality for the proposed model as the error rates were within 5% and were obtained for all test batteries after a certain quantity of capacity loss, and remained so for at least three predictions.
Shared Neural Correlates Underlying Addictive Disorders and Negative Urgency
Authors: Um Miji , Whitt Zachary T. , Revilla Rebecca , Hunton Taylor , Cyders Melissa A.
Published: February 2019

Negative urgency is a personality trait reflecting the tendency to act rashly in response to extreme negative emotions and is considered a transdiagnostic endophenotype for problematic levels of addictive behaviors. Recent research has begun to identify the neural correlates of negative urgency, many of which appear to overlap with neural circuitry underlying addictive disorders associated with negative urgency. The goal of this qualitative review is to summarize the extant literature concerning the neural correlates of negative urgency, to compare these correlates with those implicated with addictive disorders, and to propose new ways to begin to leverage such findings in treatment and intervention approaches. We also address current limitations in the field and make recommendations for areas for future growth in this research domain. Patterns of structure and function in the ventral striatum, frontal regions, such as the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and amygdala are common across addictive disorders and are related to both real-world risky behaviors and self-report measures of negative urgency. We propose that the time has come to move past considering this trait and these disorders as completely separate entities, and instead for the field to consider how general patterns of convergence across these disorders can lead to a more transdiagnostic approach to treatment and intervention. We suggest future work utilize these convergent patterns in the development of animal models of negative urgency, in the identification and testing of prime pharmacological and physiological interventions, and as objective biomarkers to be used when testing behavioral, pharmacological, and physiological intervention effectiveness. Little empirical work has been done to date in these areas and advances in these nascent fields would advance understanding and applications of the neuroscience of negative urgency.
Rodents Versus Pig Model for Assessing the Performance of Serotype Chimeric Ad5/3 Oncolytic Adenoviruses
Authors: Koodie Lisa , Robertson Matthew G. , Chandrashekar Malavika , Ruth George , Dunning Michele , Bianco Richard W. , Davydova Julia
Published: February 2019

Oncolytic adenoviruses (Ad) are promising tools for cancer therapeutics. Most Ad-based therapies utilize species C serotypes, with Adenovirus type 5 (Ad5) most commonly employed. Prior clinical trials demonstrated low efficiency of oncolytic Ad5 vectors, mainly due to the absence of Ad5 primary receptor (Coxsackie and Adenovirus Receptor, CAR) on cancer cells. Engineering serotype chimeric vectors (Ad5/3) to utilize Adenovirus type 3 (Ad3) receptors has greatly improved their oncolytic potential. Clinical translation of these infectivity-enhanced vectors has been challenging due to a lack of replication permissive animal models. In this study, we explored pigs as a model to study the performance of fiber-modified Ad5/3 chimeric vectors. As a control, the Ad5 fiber-unmodified virus was used. We analyzed binding, gene transfer, replication, and cytolytic ability of Ad5 and Ad5/3 in various non-human cell lines (murine, hamster, canine, porcine). Among all tested cell lines only porcine cells supported active binding and replication of Ad5/3. Syrian hamster cells supported Ad5 replication but showed no evidence of productive viral replication after infection with Ad5/3 vectors. Transduction and replication ability of Ad5/3 in porcine cells outperformed Ad5, a phenomenon often observed in human cancer cell lines. Replication of Ad5 and Ad5/3 was subsequently evaluated in vivo in immunocompetent pigs. Quantitative PCR analyses 7 days post infection revealed Ad5 and Ad5/3 DNA and replication-dependent luciferase activity in the swine lungs and spleen indicating active replication in these tissues. These studies demonstrated the flaws in using Syrian hamsters for testing serotype chimeric Ad5/3 vectors. This is the first report to validate the pig as a valuable model for preclinical testing of oncolytic adenoviruses utilizing Adenovirus type 3 receptors. We hope that these data will help to foster the clinical translation of oncolytic adenoviruses including those with Ad3 retargeted tropism.
Identification of Cross Talk between FoxM1 and RASSF1A as a Therapeutic Target of Colon Cancer
Authors: Blanchard Thomas G. , Czinn Steven J. , Banerjee Vivekjyoti , Sharda Neha , Bafford Andrea C. , Mubariz Fahad , Morozov Dennis , Passaniti Antonino , Ahmed Hafiz , Banerjee Aditi
Published: February 2019

Metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) is characterized by the expression of cellular oncogenes, the loss of tumor suppressor gene function. Therefore, identifying integrated signaling between onco-suppressor genes may facilitate the development of effective therapy for mCRC. To investigate these pathways we utilized cell lines and patient derived organoid models for analysis of gene/protein expression, gene silencing, overexpression, and immunohistochemical analyses. An inverse relationship in expression of oncogenic FoxM1 and tumor suppressor RASSF1A was observed in various stages of CRC. This inverse correlation was also observed in mCRC cells lines (T84, Colo 205) treated with Akt inhibitor. Inhibition of FoxM1 expression in mCRC cells as well as in our ex vivo model resulted in increased RASSF1A expression. Reduced levels of RASSF1A expression were found in normal cells (RWPE-1, HBEpc, MCF10A, EC) stimulated with exogenous VEGF165. Downregulation of FoxM1 also coincided with increased YAP phosphorylation, indicative of tumor suppression. Conversely, downregulation of RASSF1A coincided with FoxM1 overexpression. These studies have identified for the first time an integrated signaling pathway between FoxM1 and RASSF1A in mCRC progression, which may facilitate the development of novel therapeutic options for advanced colon cancer therapy.
Supramolecular Chemistry and Self-Organization: A Veritable Playground for Catalysis
Authors: Leclercq Loïc , Douyère Grégory , Nardello-Rataj Véronique
Published: February 2019

The directed assembly of molecular building blocks into discrete supermolecules or extended supramolecular networks through noncovalent intermolecular interactions is an ongoing challenge in chemistry. This challenge may be overcome by establishing a hierarchy of intermolecular interactions that, in turn, may facilitate the edification of supramolecular assemblies. As noncovalent interactions can be used to accelerate the reaction rates and/or to increase their selectivity, the development of efficient and practical catalytic systems, using supramolecular chemistry, has been achieved during the last few decades. However, between discrete and extended supramolecular assemblies, the newly developed “colloidal tectonics” concept allows us to link the molecular and macroscopic scales through the structured engineering of colloidal structures that can be applied to the design of predictable, versatile, and switchable catalytic systems. The main cutting-edge strategies involving supramolecular chemistry and self-organization in catalysis will be discussed and compared in this review.
Microbial Reduction of Cholesterol to Coprostanol: An Old Concept and New Insights
Authors: Kriaa Aicha , Bourgin Mélanie , Mkaouar Héla , Jablaoui Amin , Akermi Nizar , Soussou Souha , Maguin Emmanuelle , Rhimi Moez
Published: February 2019

The gut microbiota plays a key role in cholesterol metabolism, mainly through the reduction of cholesterol to coprostanol. The latter sterol exhibits distinct physicochemical properties linked to its limited absorption in the gut. Few bacteria were reported to reduce cholesterol into coprostanol. Three microbial pathways of coprostanol production were described based on the analysis of reaction intermediates. However, these metabolic pathways and their associated genes remain poorly studied. In this review, we shed light on the microbial metabolic pathways related to coprostanol synthesis. Moreover, we highlight current strategies and future directions to better characterize these microbial enzymes and pathways.
Robust Computer Vision Chess Analysis and Interaction with a Humanoid Robot
Authors: Chen Andrew , Wang Kevin
Published: February 2019

As we move towards improving the skill of computers to play games like chess against humans, the ability to accurately perceive real-world game boards and game states remains a challenge in many cases, hindering the development of game-playing robots. In this paper, we present a computer vision algorithm developed as part of a chess robot project that detects the chess board, squares, and piece positions in relatively unconstrained environments. Dynamically responding to lighting changes in the environment, accounting for perspective distortion, and using accurate detection methodologies results in a simple but robust algorithm that succeeds 100% of the time in standard environments, and 80% of the time in extreme environments with external lighting. The key contributions of this paper are a dynamic approach to the Hough line transform, and a hybrid edge and morphology-based approach for object/occupancy detection, that enable the development of a robot chess player that relies solely on the camera for sensory input.
Nanowires for High-Efficiency, Low-Cost Solar Photovoltaics
Authors: Zhang Yunyan , Liu Huiyun
Published: February 2019

Solar energy is abundant, clean, and renewable, making it an ideal energy source. Solar cells are a good option to harvest this energy. However, it is difficult to balance the cost and efficiency of traditional thin-film solar cells, whereas nanowires (NW) are far superior in making high-efficiency low-cost solar cells. Therefore, the NW solar cell has attracted great attention in recent years and is developing rapidly. Here, we review the great advantages, recent breakthroughs, novel designs, and remaining challenges of NW solar cells. Special attention is given to (but not limited to) the popular semiconductor NWs for solar cells, in particular, Si, GaAs(P), and InP.
Struvite Grown in Gel, Its Crystal Structure at 90 K and Thermoanalytical Study
Authors: Prywer Jolanta , Sieroń Lesław , Czylkowska Agnieszka
Published: February 2019

In this article, we report the crystallization of struvite in sodium metasilicate gel by single diffusion gel growth technique. The obtained crystals have a very rich morphology displaying 18 faces. In this study, the habit and morphology of the obtained struvite crystals are analyzed. The crystals were examined and identified as pure struvite by single X-ray diffraction (XRD). The orthorhombic polar noncentrosymmetric space group Pmn21 was identified. The structure of the crystal was determined at a temperature of 90 K. Our research indicates a lack of polymorphism, resulting from the temperature lowering to 90 K, which has not been previously reported. The determined unit cell parameters are as follows a = 6.9650(2) Å, b = 6.1165(2) Å, c = 11.2056(3) Å. The structure of struvite is presented here with a residual factor R1 = 1.2% at 0.80 Å resolution. We also present thermoanalytical study of struvite using thermal analysis techniques such as thermogravimetry (TG), derivative thermogravimetry (DTG) and differential thermal analysis (DTA).
A Competitive Design and Material Consideration for Fabrication of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell Bipolar Plates
Authors: Ul Hassan Noor , Tunaboylu Bahadir , Soydan Ali Murat
Published: February 2019

The bipolar plate is one of the most significant components of a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell, and contributes substantially to the cost structure and the weight of the stacks. A number of graphite polymer composites with different fabrication techniques have been reported in the literature. Graphite composites show excellent electromechanical properties and chemical stability in acidic environments. Compression and injection molding are the most common manufacturing methods being used for mass production. In this study, a competitive bipolar plate design and fabrication technique is adopted in order to develop a low-cost and light-weight expanded graphite (EG) polymer composite bipolar plate for an air-breathing PEM fuel cell. Cutting molds are designed to cut fuel flow channels on thin expanded graphite (EG) sheets (0.6 mm thickness). Three separate sheets, with the flow channel textures removed, are glued to each other by a commercial conductive epoxy to build a single bipolar plate. The final product has a density of 1.79 g/cm3. A bipolar plate with a 20 cm2 active area weighs only 11.38 g. The manufacturing cost is estimated to be 7.77 $/kWe, and a total manufacturing time of 2 minutes/plate is achieved with lab-scale fabrication. A flexural strength value of 29 MPa is obtained with the three-point bending method. A total resistance of 22.3 milliohms.cm2 is measured for the three-layer bipolar plate. We presume that the suggested design and fabrication process can be a competitive alternate for the small-scale, as well as mass production of bipolar plates.
Classical (Local and Contextual) Probability Model for Bohm–Bell Type Experiments: No-Signaling as Independence of Random Variables
Authors: Khrennikov Andrei , Alodjants Alexander
Published: February 2019

We start with a review on classical probability representations of quantum states and observables. We show that the correlations of the observables involved in the Bohm–Bell type experiments can be expressed as correlations of classical random variables. The main part of the paper is devoted to the conditional probability model with conditioning on the selection of the pairs of experimental settings. From the viewpoint of quantum foundations, this is a local contextual hidden-variables model. Following the recent works of Dzhafarov and collaborators, we apply our conditional probability approach to characterize (no-)signaling. Consideration of the Bohm–Bell experimental scheme in the presence of signaling is important for applications outside quantum mechanics, e.g., in psychology and social science. The main message of this paper (rooted to Ballentine) is that quantum probabilities and more generally probabilities related to the Bohm–Bell type experiments (not only in physics, but also in psychology, sociology, game theory, economics, and finances) can be classically represented as conditional probabilities.
Irregular Wave Validation of a Coupling Methodology for Numerical Modelling of Near and Far Field Effects of Wave Energy Converter Arrays
Authors: Verao Fernández Gael , Stratigaki Vasiliki , Troch Peter
Published: February 2019

Between the Wave Energy Converters (WECs) of a farm, hydrodynamic interactions occur and have an impact on the surrounding wave field, both close to the WECs (“near field” effects) and at large distances from their location (“far field” effects). To simulate this “far field” impact in a fast and accurate way, a generic coupling methodology between hydrodynamic models has been developed by the Coastal Engineering Research Group of Ghent University in Belgium. This coupling methodology has been widely used for regular waves. However, it has not been developed yet for realistic irregular sea states. The objective of this paper is to present a validation of the novel coupling methodology for the test case of irregular waves, which is demonstrated here for coupling between the mild slope wave propagation model, MILDwave, and the ‘Boundary Element Method’-based wave–structure interaction solver, NEMOH. MILDwave is used to model WEC farm “far field” effects, while NEMOH is used to model “near field” effects. The results of the MILDwave-NEMOH coupled model are validated against numerical results from NEMOH, and against the WECwakes experimental data for a single WEC, and for WEC arrays of five and nine WECs. Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) between disturbance coefficient (Kd) values in the entire numerical domain ( R M S E K d , D ) are used for evaluating the performed validation. The R M S E K d , D between results from the MILDwave-NEMOH coupled model and NEMOH is lower than 2.0% for the performed test cases, and between the MILDwave-NEMOH coupled model and the WECwakes experimental data R M S E K d , D remains below 10%. Consequently, the efficiency is demonstrated of the coupling methodology validated here which is used to simulate WEC farm impact on the wave field under the action of irregular waves.
The NDVI-CV Method for Mapping Evergreen Trees in Complex Urban Areas Using Reconstructed Landsat 8 Time-Series Data
Authors: Yang Yingying , Wu Taixia , Wang Shudong , Li Jing , Muhanmmad Farhan
Published: February 2019

Evergreen trees play a significant role in urban ecological services, such as air purification, carbon and oxygen balance, and temperature and moisture regulation. Remote sensing represents an essential technology for obtaining spatiotemporal distribution data for evergreen trees in cities. However, highly developed subtropical cities, such as Nanjing, China, have serious land fragmentation problems, which greatly increase the difficulty of extracting evergreen trees information and reduce the extraction precision of remote-sensing methods. This paper introduces a normalized difference vegetation index coefficient of variation (NDVI-CV) method to extract evergreen trees from remote-sensing data by combining the annual minimum normalized difference vegetation index (NDVIann-min) with the CV of a Landsat 8 time-series NDVI. To obtain an intra-annual, high-resolution time-series dataset, Landsat 8 cloud-free and partially cloud-free images over a three-year period were collected and reconstructed for the study area. Considering that the characteristic growth of evergreen trees remained nearly unchanged during the phenology cycle, NDVIann-min is the optimal phenological node to separate this information from that of other vegetation types. Furthermore, the CV of time-series NDVI considers all of the phenologically critical phases; therefore, the NDVI-CV method had higher extraction accuracy. As such, the approach presented herein represents a more practical and promising method based on reasonable NDVIann-min and CV thresholds to obtain spatial distribution data for evergreen trees. The experimental verification results indicated a comparable performance since the extraction accuracy of the model was over 85%, which met the classification accuracy requirements. In a cross-validation comparison with other evergreen trees’ extraction methods, the NDVI-CV method showed higher sensitivity and stability.
Antioxidant Activities of Solanum nigrum L. Leaf Extracts Determined in In Vitro Cellular Models
Authors: Campisi Agata , Acquaviva Rosaria , Raciti Giuseppina , Duro Anna , Rizzo Milena , Santagati Natale Alfredo
Published: February 2019

Several medicinal foods abound in traditional medicine with antioxidant potentials that could be of importance for the management of several diseases but with little or no scientific justification to substantiate their use. Thus, the objective of this study was the assessment of the antioxidant effect of two leave extracts of Solanum nigrum L. (SN), which is a medicinal plant member of the Solanaceae family, mainly used for soup preparation in different parts of the world. Then methanolic/water (80:20) (SN1) and water (SN2) leaves extracts were prepared. The total polyphenolic content and the concentration of phenolic acids and flavones compounds were determined. In order to verify whether examined extracts were able to restore the oxidative status, modified by glutamate in primary cultures of astrocytes, the study evaluated the glutathione levels, the intracellular oxidative stress, and the cytotoxicity of SN1 and SN2 extracts. Both extracts were able to quench the radical in an in vitro free cellular system and restore the oxidative status in in vitro primary cultures of rat astroglial cells exposed to glutamate. These extracts prevented the increase in glutamate uptake and inhibited glutamate excitotoxicity, which leads to cell damage and shows a notable antioxidant property.
Inositol Polyphosphate Multikinase (IPMK), a Gene Coding for a Potential Moonlighting Protein, Contributes to Human Female Longevity
Authors: De Rango Francesco , Crocco Paolina , Iannone Francesca , Saiardi Adolfo , Passarino Giuseppe , Dato Serena , Rose Giuseppina
Published: February 2019

Biogerontological research highlighted a complex and dynamic connection between aging, health and longevity, partially determined by genetic factors. Multifunctional proteins with moonlighting features, by integrating different cellular activities in the space and time, may explain part of this complexity. Inositol Polyphosphate Multikinase (IPMK) is a potential moonlighting protein performing multiple unrelated functions. Initially identified as a key enzyme for inositol phosphates synthesis, small messengers regulating many aspects of cell physiology, IPMK is now implicated in a number of metabolic pathways affecting the aging process. IPMK regulates basic transcription, telomere homeostasis, nutrient-sensing, metabolism and oxidative stress. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the genetic variability of IPMK may affect human longevity. Single-SNP (single nuclear polymorphism), haplotype-based association tests as well as survival analysis pointed to the relevance of six out of fourteen genotyped SNPs for female longevity. In particular, haplotype analysis refined the association highlighting two SNPs, rs2790234 and rs6481383, as major contributing variants for longevity in women. Our work, the first to investigate the association between variants of IPMK and longevity, supports IPMK as a novel gender-specific genetic determinant of human longevity, playing a role in the complex network of genetic factors involved in human survival.
A Systematic Review of Methods, Study Quality, and Results of Economic Evaluation for Childhood and Adolescent Obesity Intervention
Authors: Zanganeh Mandana , Adab Peymane , Li Bai , Frew Emma
Published: February 2019

Many suggested policy interventions for childhood and adolescent obesity have costs and effects that fall outside the health care sector. These cross-sectorial costs and consequences have implications for how economic evaluation is applied and although previous systematic reviews have provided a summary of cost-effectiveness, very few have conducted a review of methods applied. We undertook this comprehensive review of economic evaluations, appraising the methods used, assessing the quality of the economic evaluations, and summarising cost-effectiveness. Nine electronic databases were searched for full-economic evaluation studies published between January 2001 and April 2017 with no language or country restrictions. 39 economic evaluation studies were reviewed and quality assessed. Almost all the studies were from Western countries and methods were found to vary by country, setting and type of intervention. The majority, particularly “behavioural and policy” preventive interventions, were cost-effective, even cost-saving. Only four interventions were not cost effective. This systematic review suggests that economic evaluation of obesity interventions is an expanding area of research. However, methodological heterogeneity makes evidence synthesis challenging. Whilst upstream interventions show promise, an expanded and consistent approach to evaluate cost-effectiveness is needed to capture health and non-health costs and consequences.
Mobilities of Older Chinese Rural-Urban Migrants: A Case Study in Beijing
Authors: Cheng Yang , Rosenberg Mark , Winterton Rachel , Blackberry Irene , Gao Siyao
Published: February 2019

Along with the rapid urbanization process in Beijing, China, the number of older rural-urban migrants is increasing. This study aims to understand how Chinese rural-urban migration in older age is influenced by, and impacts on the migrants’ mobilities. This study draws on a new conceptual framework of mobile vulnerability, influenced by physical, economic, institutional, social and cultural mobility, to understand older people’ experiences of migration from rural to urban areas. Forty-five structured in-depth interviews with older rural-urban migrants aged 55 and over were undertaken in four study sites in Beijing, using the constant comparative method. Results demonstrate that rural household registration (hukou) is an important factor that restricts rural older migrants’ institutional mobility. As older migrants’ physical mobility declines, their mobile vulnerability increases. Economic mobility is the key factor that influences their intention to stay in Beijing. Older migrants also described coping strategies to improve their socio-cultural mobility post-migration. These findings will inform service planning for older rural-urban migrants aimed at maintaining their health and wellbeing.
Participation in Physical Activity is Associated with Sexual Activity in Older English Adults
Authors: Smith Lee , Grabovac Igor , Yang Lin , Veronese Nicola , Koyanagi Ai , Jackson Sarah E.
Published: February 2019

Physical activity (PA) is a potential modifiable correlate of the age-related decline in sexual function, but no studies have explicitly tested this. This study aimed to examine associations between PA, television viewing (TV) time and sexual activity, problems, and concerns. Data were from 7,038 men and women aged ≥50 years participating in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. PA and TV viewing time were self-reported. Sexual behaviour and concerns were assessed by self-completion questionnaire. Covariates included age, partnership status, socio-economic status, limiting long-standing illness, smoking status, alcohol intake and depressive symptoms. The odds of reporting any sexual activity were increased among individuals who participated in moderate (OR = 1.64, 95% CI: 1.24–2.15 in men) or vigorous (OR = 2.06, 95% CI: 1.50–2.84 in men, OR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.09–1.85 in women) PA at least once a week. Erectile difficulties were less common among men who were active (OR = 0.58, 95% CI: 0.44–0.77 for vigorous PA). Women who watched ≥6 hours of TV/day had lower odds of thinking about sex frequently (OR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.50–0.96) or, if they did not live with a partner, being sexually active (OR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.22–0.72). Encouraging older adults to be more physically active could help to improve sexual relationships and, as a result, mental health and wellbeing.