bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Human Resource Management of Teachers at Madrasah Aliyah Pesantren: An Education Quality Perspective
Authors: Baso B , Rasyid Rusdi , Hanafy Sain
Published: February 2019

This paper discusses human resource management from an education quality perspective. This study aims to find out the description of human resources in building the quality of education. This study applies descriptive qualitative. Data source from Madrasah principals, heads of administration, head of curriculum and evaluation, and educators. Data collection method by interviewing the participants. The instrument of this study uses interview guidelines. Data analysis were carried out through three stages, namely data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion. The results showed that human resources in the Madrasah Aliyah IMMIM Makassar Modern Islamic Boarding School were in the good category. The reality of the quality of education shows very satisfying results, it is categorized in very good. The implication of this study is that it is hoped that it can become information and reference about the need to review the activities of human resource management in developing the quality of education, primarily from the perspective of internal customers consisting of educators and education personnel as "motor" all activities of madrasah and not just factors of production but also assets that need attention. The reality of the implementation of human resource management in several schools and madrasah needs to be evaluated more intensively to find out more about the potential advantages and disadvantages and limitations of each school or madrasah.
Number sense
Authors: Hadi Sutarto
Published: February 2019

Pemahaman anak mengenai bilangan bertujuan untuk menambah dan mengembangkan keterampilan berhitung dengan bilangan sebagai alat dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Salah satu aspek utamanya adalah menekankan pengembangan kepekaan terhadap bilangan atau dikenal dengan number sense. Number sense dapat diartikan sebagai berpikir fleksibel dan intuisi tentang bilangan. Untuk menilai sifat number sense yang dimiliki seorang individu, kita harus memeriksa fleksibilitas terhadap bilangan yang ditunjukkan oleh individu tersebut. Fleksibilitas ini dapat diamati ketika seseorang melakukan empat komponen number sense, yaitu menilai besaran bilangan, komputasi mental, estimasi, dan menilai kerasionalitasan atau kewajaran hasil perhitungan yang diperoleh.
Pembinaan karakter dalam pembelajaran matematika
Authors: Hartoyo Agung
Published: February 2019

Anak-anak adalah harta karun bangsa. Nasib masa depan bangsa ada di pundak para generasi muda. Memperlakukan anak secara istimewa, baik perkembangan emosional, kesehatan, kecerdasan maupun perilaku mereka menjadi kewajiban bersama. Para pendidik bertanggung jawab untuk menggelorakan revolusi mental dalam rangka mengembangkan kemampuan dan membentuk watak serta peradaban bangsa yang bermartabat dalam mencerdaskan kehidupan bangsa. Intergrasipendidikan karakter dalam pembelajaran pada setiap mata pelajaran diarahkan untuk membawa peserta didik ke pengenalan nilai-nilai secara kognitif, penghayatan nilai secara afektif, dan bermuara pada pengamalan nilai secara nyata. Pendidikan karakter membekali kepada peserta didik ilmu, pengetahuan dan pengalaman budaya, perilaku yang berorientasi pada nilai-nilai ideal kehidupan, baik yang bersumber pada budaya lokal maupun budaya luar. Ada banyak local genius khasanah budaya bangsa yang dapat digali dari seantero kawasan nusantara yang sarat makna dan kaya akan nilai-nilai luhur budaya bangsa. Potensi budaya dikembangkan sebagai basis dan sumber belajar berbagai mata pelajaran untuk mewujudkan bangsa yang berjati diri. Matematika bukan sekedar kegiatan hitung menghitung, tetapi banyak yang berkaitan dengan pemberdayaan berbagai kekayaan yang tersedia di sekitar kehidupan peserta didik. Para guru matematika meski berpikir, berkreasi dan menghasilkan karya yang berguna untuk pembelajaran matematika, agar dapat mengajar dan mendidik peserta didik menuju masa depannya sebagaimana dicita-citakan dalam tujuan pendidikan nasional.
Identifikasi kesalahan berpikir visual mahasiswa dalam menggambar grafik fungsi real
Authors: Darmadi Darmadi
Published: February 2019

Untuk memahami konsep dan prosedur pembuktian keintegralan suatu fungsi, mahasiswa perlu mengetahui gambaran konsep dari fungsi dan gambaran prosedur dari tiap-tiap langkahnya. Berpikir dengan menggunakan gambaran konsep dan gambaran prosedur menunjukkan mahasiswa telah berpikir visual. Makalah ini membahas hasil analisis kesalahan berpikir visual mahasiswa program studi pendidikan matematika Universitas PGRI Madiun dalam menggambarkan grafik fungsi.
Kecemasan dan kemampuan siswa dalam memecahkan masalah matematika
Authors: Noor Fahriza
Published: February 2019

Tujuan dalam penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui  tingkat kecemasan matematika siswa, kemampuan siswa dalam memecahkan masalah matematika, serta hubungan antara kecemasan dan kemampuan siswa dalam memecahkan masalah matematika. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah penelitian kuantitatif. Populasi dalam penelitian ini adalah siswa kelas VI SDN Kebun Bunga 4 Banjarmasin, sedangkan sampel yang terambil adalah siswa kelas VIA. Hasil penelitian mengindikasikan bahwa (1) tingkat kecemasan siswa tergolong kurang cemas; (2) kemampuan siswa dalam memecahkan masalah matematika tergolong sangat tinggi; dan (3) terdapat hubungan antara kecemasan dengan kemampuan siswa dalam memecahkan masalah matematika.
Penerapan media dan buku ajar siswa berbasis meaningful learning pada materi bangun datar untuk meningkatkan berpikir kreatif siswa kelas III sekolah dasar
Authors: Normalasarie Normalasarie , Aulia Siti
Published: February 2019

Berdasarkan hasil pengamatan dan diskusi dengan guru di SDN Pelambuan 7 Banjarmasin dengan guru kelas III disimpulkan bahwa siswa masih kesulitan dalam mengikuti pembelajaran matematika,khususnya pada materi bangun datar. Bahan ajar yang mereka gunakan selama ini berupa buku pelajaran biasa dan LKS yang jumlahnya terbatas dan bukan buatan guru itu sendiri, sehingga tidak sesuai dengan karakter siswa. Meaningful learning merupakan suatu proses dikaitkan informasi baru dengan konsep-konsep yang relevan yang terdapat dalam struktur kognitif seseorang. Model yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah model Plomp karena memiliki urutan sederhana, sistemis dan jelas dipahami, menurut Plomp (Hobri 2010) ada lima fase dalam mendesain pengembangan ini yaitu (1) Fase investigasi awal (2) Fase desain ( 3) Realisasi/konstruksi (4) Fase evaluasi dan revisi (5) Fase implementasi. Hasil penelitian ini menghasilkan buku ajar siswa. Buku ajar siswa terdiri atas tiga bagian, yaitu bagian pendahuluan, pembahasan dan penutup. Hasil validasi ahli dan praktisi menunjukkan buku ajar siswa yang dikembangkan dinyatakan valid dengan skor rata-rata 3,4. sehingga buku ajar siswa tersebut telah memenuhi kriteria kepraktisan. Keefektifan buku ajar siswa ditentukan dari analisis (1) tes penguasaan materi buku ajar, (2) aktivitas guru dan siswa, dan (3) hasil wawancara dengan siswa. Berdasarkan uji coba yang telah dilaksanakan, diperoleh hasil yaitu sebanyak 85% mendapat nilai minimal 65, sehingga kriteria ketuntasan secara klasikal telah terpenuhi
Etnomatematika sebagai salah satu upaya penguatan kearifan lokal dalam pembelajaran matematika
Authors: Chrissanti Maria Isabella
Published: February 2019

Arus globalisasi perlahan telah mengikis nilai-nilai luhur budaya bangsa yang telah diwariskan oleh para leluhur sejak abad-abad sebelumnya. Nilai-nilai kearifan budaya lokal yang merupakan bagian dari identitas diri suatu bangsa seringkali terlupakan seiring kehidupan yang semakin modern. Apabila hal semacam ini terus-menerus dibiarkan terjadi, maka bukan tidak mungkin jika pada akhirnya bangsa ini akan kehilangan jati dirinya. Untuk itulah penguatan kearifan lokal menjadi suatu hal yang perlu diupayakan dengan sungguh-sungguh, salah satunya melalui pendidikan. Dalam kajian ini dibahas mengenai upaya penguatan kearifan lokal dalam pembelajaran, khususnya pembelajaran matematika, melalui pembelajaran berbasis budaya. Sekitar tahun 1985, D’Ambrosio memperkenalkan konsep pembelajaran berbasis budaya dalam konteks matematika yang kemudian dikenal dengan istilah etnomatematika. Secara umum, etnomatematika dapat dipandang sebagai suatu konsep pembelajaran matematika dalam kerangka budaya dan antropologi. Dalam etnomatematika, siswa bukan hanya diajak untuk mengembangkan kemampuan matematisnya melainkan juga mempertahankan budaya yang merupakan karakter asli bangsanya. Oleh sebab itu, etnomatematika dipandang relevan tidak hanya untuk mengembangkan kemampuan matematis siswa, namun juga memperkuat nilai-nilai kearifan lokal dalam diri siswa tersebut.
Profil kemampuan spasial matematis siswa kelas XI SMA Negeri 1 Tuntang pada materi bangun ruang sisi lengkung
Authors: Afriyana Sinta , Mampouw Helti Lygia
Published: February 2019

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menggambarkan kemampuan spasial  matematis siswa kelas XI SMA N 1 Tuntang pada materi Bangun Ruang Sisi Lengkung. Jenis penelitian ini adalah penelitian kualitatif deskriptif. Pengambilan sampel dalam penelitian ini menggunakan teknik purposive sampling. Subjek penelitian terdiri dari 3 siswa kelas XI SMA yakni 1 siswa berkemampuan tinggi, 1 siswa berkemampuan sedang, dan 1 siswa berkemampuan rendah. Hasil Penelitian menunjukkan bahwa: subjek berkemampuan matematika tinggi dan subjek berkemampuan matematika sedang memiliki kemampuan spasial hampir sama atau bahkan sama, dengan hanya memiliki perbedaan dalam cara berpikirnya saja. Cara berpikir subjek berkemampuan tinggi lebih mudah dipahami saat di minta untuk menjelaskan dari pada subjek berkemampuan sedang. Sedangkan subjek berkemampuan matematika rendah memang memiliki kemampuan spasial dibawah subjek berkemampuan matematika tinggi dan subjek berkemampuan matematika sedang. Subjek berkemampuan matematika rendah saat menjawab soal pada jaring-jaring tabung subjek rendah masih kebingungan pada perputaran jaring-jaring tabung secara benar atau tepat. Subjek berkemampuan matematika rendah masih kesulitan untuk mengimajinasikan perputaran atau perpindahan pada suatu objek, dimana objek tersebut berada pada perspektif yang berbeda.
Profil berpikir reflektif siswa dalam menyelesaikan soal tipe-tipe perkalian ditinjau dari perbedaan kemampuan matematika dan gender
Authors: Putri Agustina Sukarno , Mampouw Helti Lygia
Published: February 2019

Berpikir reflektif berhubungan dengan kemampuan untuk mereview, memantau dan memonitor proses solusi pada saat melakukan pemecahan masalah. Penelitian kualitatif ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan kemampuan berpikir reflektif siswa SMP dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita tipe scalar multiplication, array multiplication dan combinatorial multiplication berdasarkan perbedaan kemampuan matematika dan gender. Subjek terdiri atas 3 siswa laki-laki dan 3 siswa perempuan kelas VII SMP yang masing-masing memiliki kemampuan matematika tinggi, sedang dan rendah. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa siswa laki-laki dan perempuan berkemampuan matematika tinggi memiliki kemampuan berpikir reflektif untuk semua tipe soal. Siswa berkemampuan matematika sedang memiliki kemampuan berpikir reflektif untuk tipe scalar multiplication dan cukup reflektif pada tipe combinatorial multiplication. Siswa laki-laki berkemampuan matematika rendah cenderung kurang reflektif pada semua tipe soal dan siswa perempuan memiliki kemampuan berpikir reflektif pada semua tipe soal. Ditemukan juga bahwa siswa laki-laki cenderung mampu menggunakan ilustrasi, misalnya dengan gambar sedangkan siswa perempuan cenderung menyelesaikan soal secara teratur, misalnya dengan menuliskan diketahui, ditanya, dan dijawab. Dari hasil penelitian ini diharapkan dapat membantu guru dan peneliti lain untuk memahami tingkat berpikir reflektif siswa pada tipe perkalian ditinjau dari perbedaan kemampuan matematika dan gender.
Pemberian scaffolding untuk menyelesaikan soal cerita materi perbandingan senilai dan berbalik nilai
Authors: Larasati Yulina , Mampouw Helti Lygia
Published: February 2019

Penelitian kualitatif ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan hasil pemberian scaffolding dalam membantu siswa menyelesaikan soal cerita materi perbandingan senilai dan perbandingan berbalik nilai. Instrumen utama dalam penelitian ini adalah peneliti sendiri, dibantu lembar tes dan pedoman wawancara. Subjek terdiri dari 3 siswa kelas VIII SMP N 1 Tengaran berkemampuan matematika rendah, pernah belajar materi perbandingan senilai dan berbalik nilai dan melakukan kesalahan terbanyak dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita materi perbandingan senilai dan berbalik nilai. Data kesalahan siswa dikelompokkan berdasarkan kriteria Newman. Hasil pengelompokkan ini menjadi dasar pemberian scaffolding. Desain pemberianan scaffolding adalah 3 level Anghileri yaitu environmental provisions,  explaining, reviewing dan restructuring dan  developing conceptual thinking. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kesalahan terbanyak yang dilakukan subjek adalah kesalahan transformasi. Kesalahan  membaca dan kesalahan memahami masalah diatasi dengan reviewing. Kesalahan transformasi dan kesalahan keterampilan ditangani dengan explaining dan restructuring. Kesalahan penulisan jawaban dan kesalahan kecerobohan diperbaiki dengan reviewing. Pemberian-pemberian scaffolding tersebut dapat membantu siswa memperbaiki kesalahan dalam menyelesaikan soal cerita materi perbandingan senilai dan berbalik nilai.
Kemampuan pemecahan masalah mahasiswa pada mata kuliah kalkulus diferensial
Authors: Ranti Mayang Gadih , Budiarti Indah
Published: February 2019

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan kemampuan pemecahan masalah mahasiswa program studi pendidikan matematika STKIP PGRI Banjarmasin pada mata kuliah kalkulus diferensial tahun akademik 2017/2018. Populasi penelitian ini adalah mahasiswa program studi pendidikan matematika yang mengambil mata kuliah Kalkulus Diferensial pada semester ganjil tahun akademik 2017/2018 yang berjumlah 21orang. Peneltian ini merupakan Penelitian Sampel Total. Metode Penelitian yang digunakan adalah metode deskriptif. Teknik pengumpulan data yang digunakan adalah tes. Instrumen Penelitian yang digunakan adalah Tes Kemampuan Pemecahan Masalah pada mata kuliah kalkulus diferensial pada materi masalah maksimum-minimum. Teknik analisis data yang digunakan menggunakan rata-rata dan persentase. Hasil Penelitian menunjukkan Kemampuan Pemecahan Masalah Mahasiswa pada mata kuliah kalkulus diferensial berada pada kualifikasi Cukup.
KARAYCANIN BUGÜNKÜ DURUMU:MYKOLAS FİRKOVİÇİUS İLE MARK LAVRİNOVİÇİUS’LERİN ANISINA
Authors: KOCAOĞLU Timur
Published: February 2019

Karaycayı konuşanların sayısının

oldukça azalması dolayısıyla bu dili yeniden yaşatmaya çalışmanın artık çok geç

olduğu bir dönemde, Mykolas Firkovicius and Mark Lavrinoviçius’lerin

1985 ile 2011 yıllarında yaptıkları bilimsel çalışmalar Karay dili açısından

çok önemlidir. Firkovičius

çalışmalarında Karay yazı dilinin tümce kuruluşunda Türkçe özelliğini saklamaya

çabalarken, Lavrinoviçius de daha da mükemmel bir Rusça-Karayca

Sözlük, Karayca dil kursu kullanması ile çeşitli dil metinleri yayımladı. Bu

yazıda Karayların Litvanya ve Polonyada'ki tarihleri, dinleri ile Karay yazın

dilinin 1930’lardan günümüze kadar gelen durumu 

konusunda bilgi veriliyor. Karaylar gibi çok az sayıdaki bir topluluğun

kendi anadilini canlandırabilmesi ve yaşatması için o topluluğun her bir

kişisinin bu iş için kararlı olması ve ayrıca 

dışardan bu topluluğa yardım eli uzatılması gerekiyor. Litvanya’daki

Karay topluluğu arasında anadili Karaycayı gerek yazı dili ve gerekse konuşma

dili olarak en iyi bilen ve bu alanda 

çok sayıda dinî, kültürel ve dilbilgisi kitapları hazırlanmıştır.
Omfalosel Tedavisinde Uygulanılan Yöntemlerin Sağkalım Üzerine Etkileri
Authors: AVCİ Veli , AYENGİN Kemal , SOYSAL Lokman , GÖKSU Mehmet , BİLİCİ Salim , BAŞARANOĞLU Murat
Published: February 2019

Amaç: Omfalosel yenidoğanlarda en sık görülen konjenital karın duvarı
defektlerindendir. Tedavisi için faklı yaklaşımlar mevcuttur. Bu çalışmada
omfalosel tanısı konulan hastaların tedavi yaklaşımları ile ilgili 10 yıllık
deneyimlerimizi literatür eşliğinde sunmayı hedefledik.Gereç ve Yöntemler: 2009-2018 yılları arasında omfalosel nedeni ile
ameliyat edilen hastaların cinsiyeti, doğum ağırlığı, eşlik eden ek konjenital
anomaliler, defekt çapı ve hastanede yatış süresinin morbidite-mortalite
açısından uygulanılan tedavi metodları üzerine etkisi retrospektif olarak
değerlendirildi.Bulgular: Omfalosel tanılı 6’sı erkek, 6’sı kız toplam 12 hasta
çalışmaya dahil edildi. Hastaların ortalama doğum ağırlığı 2330±890 gram
bulundu. Hastaların %58’inde eşlik eden ek konjenital anomaliler vardı. Defekt
çapı ortalama 6,3±2,3 cm bulundu. Defekt çapı ve eşlik eden ek konjenital
anomalilerin sayısı arttıkça mortalite oranlarının arttığı görüldü. Tedavide en
sık primer kapama yöntemi tercih edildi. Silo yöntemi ile tedavi ettiğimiz tüm
hastalar kaybedildi. Gümüş sülfadiazin kullanarak konservatif yaklaştığımız
büyük defekte sahip üç hastanın tedavileri sonrası ise herhangi bir
komplikasyon görülmedi.

Sonuç: Literatürde omfalosel tedavisinde birçok yöntemin kullanıldığı
bildirilmektedir. Tedavide kullanılan yöntemlerin sağkalım üzerine etkileri
vardır. Özellikle silo yöntemi ile tedavi edilen büyük defekte sahip hastalarda
mortalite oranları daha yüksektir.
Recreational Services Provision and Farm Diversification: A Technical Efficiency Analysis on Italian Agritourism
Authors: Arru Brunella , Furesi Roberto , Madau Fabio A. , Pulina Pietro
Published: February 2019

Recreational functions are among the most important practices to improve farmers’ income and to promote sustainability in the rural territories. Two crucial issues are the ability to rationally allocate farm resources and the ability to efficiently produce different sorts of food and non-food goods. Possible cost savings due to the co-presence of different activities can generate positive effects in the creation of value by agritourist farmers. This paper aims to investigate technical efficiency related to agritourism and recreational functions in Sardinia. Based on a sample of 37 farms and using a data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach, we aim to estimate the technical efficiency of double attitude processes, such as those that characterise agritourism practices. Our findings suggest that efficiency can improve if technical inputs are adequately used; however, the scale appears to be close enough to optimal. Furthermore, we estimated that the margins for improving the efficiency are larger for recreational services and that technical factors contribute to efficiency with a different magnitude. Furthermore, we estimated whether agricultural and non-agricultural resources are efficiently allocated. To our knowledge, this is one of the first attempts in Europe at using an efficiency analysis in agritourism.
Effects of Temperature and Grafting on Yield, Nutrient Uptake, and Water Use Efficiency of a Hydroponic Sweet Pepper Crop
Authors: Ropokis Andreas , Ntatsi Georgia , Kittas Constantinos , Katsoulas Nikolaos , Savvas Dimitrios
Published: February 2019

In areas characterized by mild winter climate, pepper is frequently cultivated in unheated greenhouses in which the temperature during the winter may drop to suboptimal levels. Under low temperature (LT) conditions, the uptake of nutrients may be altered in a different manner than that of the water and thus their uptake ratio, known as uptake concentration, may be different than in greenhouses with standard temperature (ST) conditions. In the present study, pepper plants of the cultivars “Sammy” and “Orangery”, self-grafted or grafted onto two commercial rootstocks (“Robusto” and “Terrano”), were cultivated in a greenhouse under either ST or LT temperature conditions. The aim of the study was to test the impact of grafting and greenhouse temperature on total yield, water use efficiency, and nutrient uptake. The LT regime reduced the yield by about 50% in “Sammy” and 33% in “Orangery”, irrespective of the grafting combination. Grafting of “Sammy” onto both “Robusto” and “Terrano” increased the total fruit yield by 39% and 34% compared with the self-grafted control, while grafting of “Orangery” increased the yield only when the rootstock was “Terrano”. The yield increase resulted exclusively from enhancement of the fruit number per plant. Both the water consumption and the water use efficiency were negatively affected by the LT regime, however the temperature effect interacted with the rootstock/scion combination. The LT increased the uptake concentrations (UC) of K, Ca, Mg, N, and Mn, while it decreased strongly that of P and slightly the UC of Fe and Zn. The UC of K and Mg were influenced by the rootstock/scion combination, however this effect interacted with the temperature regime. In contrast, the Ca, N, and P concentrations were not influenced by the grafting combination. The results of the present study show that the impact of grafting on yield and nutrient uptake in pepper depend not merely on the rootstock genotype, however on the rootstock/scion combination.
Anticancer Efficacy of Long-Term Stored Plasma-Activated Medium
Authors: Nguyen Ngoc Hoan , Park Hyung Jun , Hwang Soon Young , Lee Jong-Soo , Yang Sang Sik
Published: February 2019

The therapeutic potential of nonthermal atmospheric-pressure plasma for cancer treatment via generation of reactive species, induction of decreased mitochondrial membrane potential, and sequential apoptosis has been reported in our previous studies. Nonthermal atmospheric-pressure plasma-activated medium produced by jetting air plasma above a liquid surface shows advantages over direct plasma such as storage and delivery to tissues inside the body. In this study, we demonstrated that plasma-activated medium can be stored for up to 6 months in a freezer and that the stored plasma-activated medium has anticancer effects similar to those of direct plasma. Plasma-activated medium stored for 6 months showed cytocidal effects on human cervical cancer HeLa cells that were comparable to the effects of fresh plasma-activated medium or direct plasma. Furthermore, the levels of reactive species in plasma-activated medium persisted for up to 6 months. These results indicate that therapeutic application of plasma-activated medium is applicable in plasma medicine and is a promising anticancer strategy.
A Novel Coding Based Dimming Scheme with Constant Transmission Efficiency in VLC Systems
Authors: Zuo Yu , Zhang Jian
Published: February 2019

Visible light communication (VLC) has attracted tremendous attention due to two functions: communication and illumination. Both reliable data transmission and lighting quality need to be considered when the transmitted signal is designed. To achieve the desired levels of illumination, dimming control is an essential technology applied in VLC systems. In this paper, we propose a block coding-based dimming scheme to construct the codeword set, where dimming control can be achieved by changing the ratio of two levels (ON and OFF) based on on-off keying (OOK) modulation. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme can maintain good error performance with constant transmission efficiency under various dimming levels.
An Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference Model to Predict Punching Shear Strength of Flat Concrete Slabs
Authors: Mashrei Mohammed A. , Mahdi Alaa M.
Published: February 2019

An adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS)-based model was developed to predict the punching shear strength of flat concrete slabs without shear reinforcement. The model was developed using a database collected from 207 experiments available in the existing literature. Five key input parameters were used to build the model, which were slab effective depth, concrete strength, reinforcement ratio, yield tensile strength of reinforcement, and width of square loaded area. The output parameter of the model was punching shear strength. The results from the adaptive neural fuzzy inference model were compared to those from the simplified punching shear equations of ACI, BS-8110, Model Code 2010, Euro-Code 2, and also experimental results. The root mean square error (RMSE) and the correlation coefficient (R) were used as evaluation criteria. Parametric studies were presented using ANFIS to assess the effect of each input parameter on the punching shear strength and to compare ANFIS results to those from the equations proposed in commonly used codes. The results showed that the ANFIS model is simple and provided the most accurate predictions of the punching shear strength of two-way flat concrete slabs without shear reinforcement.
The Adoption of Three-Dimensional Additive Manufacturing from Biomedical Material Design to 3D Organ Printing
Authors: Vikram Singh Ajay , Hasan Dad Ansari Mohammad , Wang Shuo , Laux Peter , Luch Andreas , Kumar Amit , Patil Rajendra , Nussberger Stephan
Published: February 2019

Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting promises to change future lifestyle and the way we think about aging, the field of medicine, and the way clinicians treat ailing patients. In this brief review, we attempt to give a glimpse into how recent developments in 3D bioprinting are going to impact vast research ranging from complex and functional organ transplant to future toxicology studies and printed organ-like 3D spheroids. The techniques were successfully applied to reconstructed complex 3D functional tissue for implantation, application-based high-throughput (HTP) platforms for absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) profiling to understand the cellular basis of toxicity. We also provide an overview of merits/demerits of various bioprinting techniques and the physicochemical basis of bioink for tissue engineering. We briefly discuss the importance of universal bioink technology, and of time as the fourth dimension. Some examples of bioprinted tissue are shown, followed by a brief discussion on future biomedical applications.
Integration of Advanced Soft Computing Techniques in Hydrological Predictions
Authors: Chau Kwok-wing
Published: February 2019

Recently, extreme events have been occurring more frequently, a possible result of climate change, and have resulted in both significant economic losses as well as loss of life around the world [...]
Accuracy of Balloon Trajectory Forecasts in the Lower Stratosphere
Authors: Dharmalingam Selvaraj , Plougonven Riwal , Hertzog Albert , Podglajen Aurélien , Rennie Michael , Isaksen Lars , Kébir Sélim
Published: February 2019

This paper investigates the accuracy of simulated long-duration super-pressure balloon trajectories in the lower stratosphere. The observed trajectories were made during the (tropical) Pre-Concordiasi and (polar) Concordiasi campaigns in 2010, while the simulated trajectories are computed using analyses and forecasts from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Integrated Forecast System model. In contrast with the polar stratosphere situation, modelling accurate winds in the tropical lower stratosphere remains challenging for numerical weather prediction systems. The accuracy of the simulated tropical trajectories are quantified with the operational products of 2010 and 2016 in order to understand the impact of model physics and vertical resolution improvements. The median errors in these trajectories are large (typically ≳250 km after 24 h), with a significant negative bias in longitude, for both model versions. In contrast, using analyses in which the balloon-borne winds have been assimilated reduces the median error in the balloon position after 24 h to ∼60 km. For future campaigns, we describe operational strategies that take advantage of the geographic distribution and the episodic nature of large error events to anticipate the amplitude of error in trajectory forecasts. We finally stress the importance of a high vertical resolution in the model, given the intense shears encountered in the tropical lower stratosphere.
Loss of Stromal Galectin-1 Enhances Multiple Myeloma Development: Emphasis on a Role in Osteoclasts
Authors: Muller Joséphine , Duray Elodie , Lejeune Margaux , Dubois Sophie , Plougonven Erwan , Léonard Angélique , Storti Paola , Giuliani Nicola , Cohen-Solal Martine , Hempel Ute , Thijssen Victor L. , Beguin Yves , Heusschen Roy , Caers Jo
Published: February 2019

Multiple myeloma osteolytic disease is caused by an uncoupled bone-remodelling process with an increased osteoclast activity. Disease development relies on interactions between myeloma cells and bone marrow stromal cells. Recent findings suggest a role for glycan-binding proteins in myeloma microenvironment. Here, we investigated lectins involved in osteoclastogenesis and their role in myeloma bone disease. Microarray data analysis showed a lower expression of galectin-1 (gal-1) in mature osteoclasts compared to monocytic progenitor cells, confirmed at the RNA and protein levels in osteoclast cultures. Confocal microscopy showed that gal-1 localised predominantly in the sealing zone of mature osteoclasts. Although equal differentiated-osteoclast numbers, gal-1−/− osteoclasts showed a higher resorption activity compared to wild-type controls. Micro-computed tomography showed an aberrant bone phenotype with decreased bone densities in gal-1−/− mice. In vivo, tumour progression was faster in gal-1−/− mice and associated with a marked bone loss. Additionally, myeloma cells were found to decrease gal-1 expression in osteoclasts. Our results demonstrate that galectin-1 regulates osteoclast activity with an increased resorption by gal-1−/− osteoclasts and decreased bone densities in gal-1−/− mice. We observed an enhanced tumour development in gal-1−/− mice compared to wild-type mice, suggesting that galectin-1 has a functional role in stromal cells in myeloma microenvironment.
MicroRNA in Lung Cancer Metastasis
Authors: Wu Shang-Gin , Chang Tzu-Hua , Liu Yi-Nan , Shih Jin-Yuan
Published: February 2019

Tumor metastasis is a hallmark of cancer, with distant metastasis frequently developing in lung cancer, even at initial diagnosis, resulting in poor prognosis and high mortality. However, available biomarkers cannot reliably predict cancer spreading sites. The metastatic cascade involves highly complicated processes including invasion, migration, angiogenesis, and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition that are tightly controlled by various genetic expression modalities along with interaction between cancer cells and the extracellular matrix. In particular, microRNAs (miRNAs), a group of small non-coding RNAs, can influence the transcriptional and post-transcriptional processes, with dysregulation of miRNA expression contributing to the regulation of cancer metastasis. Nevertheless, although miRNA-targeted therapy is widely studied in vitro and in vivo, this strategy currently affords limited feasibility and a few miRNA-targeted therapies for lung cancer have entered into clinical trials to date. Advances in understanding the molecular mechanism of metastasis will thus provide additional potential targets for lung cancer treatment. This review discusses the current research related to the role of miRNAs in lung cancer invasion and metastasis, with a particular focus on the different metastatic lesions and potential miRNA-targeted treatments for lung cancer with the expectation that further exploration of miRNA-targeted therapy may establish a new spectrum of lung cancer treatments.
Targeted Radionuclide Therapy: New Advances for Improvement of Patient Management and Response
Authors: Malcolm Javian , Falzone Nadia , Lee Boon Q. , Vallis Katherine A.
Published: February 2019

Compared to external beam radiotherapy, targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT) allows for systemic radiation treatment of metastatic lesions. Published work on recent strategies to improve patient management and response to TRT through individualising patient treatment, modifying treatment pharmacokinetics and increasing anticancer potency are discussed in this review, with a special focus on the application of clinically evaluated radiolabelled ligands and peptides in the treatment of neuroendocrine and prostate cancers.
Aldol Condensation of Furfural with Acetone Over Mg/Al Mixed Oxides. Influence of Water and Synthesis Method
Authors: Parejas Almudena , Cosano Daniel , Hidalgo-Carrillo Jesús , Ruiz José Rafael , Marinas Alberto , Jiménez-Sanchidrián César , Urbano Francisco J.
Published: February 2019

Aldol condensation of furfural and acetone (an important initial step to obtain diesel from biomass) was studied over MgAl mixed oxides. The influence of the utilization of microwaves and/or a surfactant (Pluronic 123) during the synthesis as well as the use of water (either pre-hydrating the solids before catalytic studies or in water/toluene mixtures as the reaction medium) is discussed. The combined use of Pluronic 123 and microwaves led to solids with bigger pore sizes, exhibiting lower basicity and higher acidity than the conventional synthetic method, thus resulting in an increase in the yield of the desired product of condensation, comprising two molecules of furfural and one of acetone (F2Ac). As for the influence of water, re-hydration of the mixed oxides was detrimental to activity, probably as a result of the partial blocking (solvation) of active sites. On the contrary, the increase in water percentage in the reaction medium resulted in higher conversions, though selectivity to F2Ac decreased. The weakening of the C=O bond of furfural in the presence of water as well as the higher solubility of the first condensation product (FAc) in toluene, as compared to water, could account for that. A 44.5% yield of F2Ac (66% conversion) after 16 h was obtained with the most active solid, which maintained the activity for three consecutive reactions.
Comprehensive Study of Au Nano-Mesh as a Catalyst in the Fabrication of Silicon Nanowires Arrays by Metal-Assisted Chemical Etching
Authors: Wang Shanshan , Liu Huan , Han Jun
Published: February 2019

Silicon nanowires (SiNWs) arrays have become one of low-dimensional structural nanomaterials for the preparation of high-performance optoelectronic devices with the advantages of highly efficient light trapping effect, carrier multiplication, and adjustable optical bandgap. The controlled growth of SiNWs determines their electrical and optical properties. The morphology of silicon nanowires fabricated by conventional metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) involving the Ag-based etching process cannot be precisely controlled. Ultra-thin anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) is one of the new-pattern nanostructure assembly systems for the synthesis of nanomaterials. The synthesized nanostructure arrays can be tuned to exhibit different optical and electrical properties in a certain wavelength range by adjusting the AAO membrane parameters. In this paper, we demonstrate an ultra-thin Au nano-meshes array from a single hexagonal AAO membrane as a replication master instead of conventional Ag particles as etching catalyst. The extended ordered silicon nanowires arrays are fabricated by the selective chemical dissolution of nanoscale noble metal meshes that exhibit excellent anti-reflection performance in broadband wavelengths and a wide incidence angle.
Engineering Topological Nodal Line Semimetals in Rashba Spin-Orbit Coupled Atomic Chains
Authors: Gentile Paola , Benvenuto Vittorio , Ortix Carmine , Noce Canio , Cuoco Mario
Published: February 2019

In this paper, we study an atomic chain in the presence of modulated charge potential and modulated Rashba spin-orbit coupling (RSOC) of equal periods. We show that for commensurate periodicities, λ = 4 n with integer n, the three-dimensional synthetic space obtained by sliding the two phases of the charge potential and RSOC features a topological nodal-line semimetal protected by an anti-unitary particle-hole symmetry. The location and shape of the nodal lines strongly depend on the relative amplitude between the charge potential and RSOC.
Effect of C on the Martensitic Transformation in Fe-C Alloys in the Presence of Pre-Existing Defects: A Molecular Dynamics Study
Authors: Karewar Shivraj , Sietsma Jilt , Santofimia Maria J.
Published: February 2019

Molecular dynamics simulations are used to investigate the atomic effects of carbon (C) addition in Fe on the martensitic phase transformation in the presence of pre-existing defects such as stacking faults and twin boundaries. The pre-existing defect structures in Fe-C alloys have the same effect on the atomistic mechanisms of martensitic transformation as in pure Fe. However, C addition decreases the martensitic transformation temperature. This effect is captured by characterizing three parameters at the atomic level: atomic shear stresses, atomic energy, and total energy as a function of temperature for face-centered-cubic (fcc) and body-centered-cubic (bcc) phases. The thermodynamic effect of fcc phase stabilization by C addition is revealed by the atomic energy at a particular temperature and total energy as a function of temperature. The barrier for fcc-to-bcc transformation is revealed by analysis of atomic shear stresses. The analysis indicates that addition of C increases the atomic shear stresses for atomic displacements during martensitic transformation, which in turn decreases the martensitic transformation temperature.
Performance Evaluation of Fixed Sample Entropy in Myographic Signals for Inspiratory Muscle Activity Estimation
Authors: Lozano-García Manuel , Estrada Luis , Jané Raimon
Published: February 2019

Fixed sample entropy (fSampEn) has been successfully applied to myographic signals for inspiratory muscle activity estimation, attenuating interference from cardiac activity. However, several values have been suggested for fSampEn parameters depending on the application, and there is no consensus standard for optimum values. This study aimed to perform a thorough evaluation of the performance of the most relevant fSampEn parameters in myographic respiratory signals, and to propose, for the first time, a set of optimal general fSampEn parameters for a proper estimation of inspiratory muscle activity. Different combinations of fSampEn parameters were used to calculate fSampEn in both non-invasive and the gold standard invasive myographic respiratory signals. All signals were recorded in a heterogeneous population of healthy subjects and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients during loaded breathing, thus allowing the performance of fSampEn to be evaluated for a variety of inspiratory muscle activation levels. The performance of fSampEn was assessed by means of the cross-covariance of fSampEn time-series and both mouth and transdiaphragmatic pressures generated by inspiratory muscles. A set of optimal general fSampEn parameters was proposed, allowing fSampEn of different subjects to be compared and contributing to improving the assessment of inspiratory muscle activity in health and disease.
Bounding the Plausibility of Physical Theories in a Device-Independent Setting via Hypothesis Testing
Authors: Liang Yeong-Cherng , Zhang Yanbao
Published: February 2019

The device-independent approach to physics is one where conclusions about physical systems (and hence of Nature) are drawn directly and solely from the observed correlations between measurement outcomes. This operational approach to physics arose as a byproduct of Bell’s seminal work to distinguish, via a Bell test, quantum correlations from the set of correlations allowed by local-hidden-variable theories. In practice, since one can only perform a finite number of experimental trials, deciding whether an empirical observation is compatible with some class of physical theories will have to be carried out via the task of hypothesis testing. In this paper, we show that the prediction-based-ratio method—initially developed for performing a hypothesis test of local-hidden-variable theories—can equally well be applied to test many other classes of physical theories, such as those constrained only by the nonsignaling principle, and those that are constrained to produce any of the outer approximation to the quantum set of correlations due to Navascués-Pironio-Acín. We numerically simulate Bell tests using hypothetical nonlocal sources of correlations to illustrate the applicability of the method in both the independent and identically distributed (i.i.d.) scenario and the non-i.i.d. scenario. As a further application, we demonstrate how this method allows us to unveil an apparent violation of the nonsignaling conditions in certain experimental data collected in a Bell test. This, in turn, highlights the importance of the randomization of measurement settings, as well as a consistency check of the nonsignaling conditions in a Bell test.
Attack Algorithm for a Keystore-Based Secret Key Generation Method
Authors: Chae Seungjae , Kim Young-Sik , No Jong-Seon , Kim Young-Han
Published: February 2019

A new attack algorithm is proposed for a secure key generation and management method introduced by Yang and Wu. It was previously claimed that the key generation method of Yang and Wu using a keystore seed was information-theoretically secure and could solve the long-term key storage problem in cloud systems, thanks to the huge number of secure keys that the keystone seed can generate. Their key generation method, however, is considered to be broken if an attacker can recover the keystore seed. The proposed attack algorithm in this paper reconstructs the keystore seed of the Yang–Wu key generation method from a small number of collected keys. For example, when t = 5 and l = 2 7 , it was previously claimed that more than 2 53 secure keys could be generated, but the proposed attack algorithm can reconstruct the keystone seed based on only 84 collected keys. Hence, the Yang–Wu key generation method is not information-theoretically secure when the attacker can gather multiple keys and a critical amount of information about the keystone seed is leaked.
Asymptotic Rate-Distortion Analysis of Symmetric Remote Gaussian Source Coding: Centralized Encoding vs. Distributed Encoding
Authors: Wang Yizhong , Xie Li , Zhou Siyao , Wang Mengzhen , Chen Jun
Published: February 2019

Consider a symmetric multivariate Gaussian source with ℓ components, which are corrupted by independent and identically distributed Gaussian noises; these noisy components are compressed at a certain rate, and the compressed version is leveraged to reconstruct the source subject to a mean squared error distortion constraint. The rate-distortion analysis is performed for two scenarios: centralized encoding (where the noisy source components are jointly compressed) and distributed encoding (where the noisy source components are separately compressed). It is shown, among other things, that the gap between the rate-distortion functions associated with these two scenarios admits a simple characterization in the large ℓ limit.
16.8/15.2 ppm/°C 81 nW High PSRR Dual-Output Voltage Reference for Portable Biomedical Application
Authors: Yue Hongwei , Sun Xiaofei , Liu Junxin , Xu Weilin , Li Haiou , Wei Baolin , Wang Taotao , Lin Siyu
Published: February 2019

A dual-output voltage reference circuit with two reference voltages of 281 mV (Vref1) and 320.5 mV (Vref2) is presented in this paper. With a novel and precise circuit structure, the proposed circuit, operating in the subthreshold region, integrates two different output voltages into a circuit to form a dual-output voltage reference, and cascode current mirrors are used to enhance the power supply rejection ratio (PSRR). The proposed circuit was designed in a standard 0.18-µm CMOS process and has a series of attractive features: low-temperature coefficient (TC), high-PSRR, low-Line sensitivity (LS), small-chip area and low-power consumption. Monte Carlo simulations for 2000 samples showed that the output voltages 281 mV and 320.5 mV had a variation coefficient of 1.73% and 1.44%, respectively. The minimum power consumption was 84.1 nW at 0.9 V supply, proving that the circuit is suitable for portable biomedical application. The active area of the proposed voltage reference was only 0.0086 mm2.
Design of XOR Photonic Gate using Highly Nonlinear Fiber
Authors: Jasim Mohammed A. , Aldalbahi Adel
Published: February 2019

In this paper, a comprehensive design and simulation of an all-photonic XOR logic gate is proposed. The design is based on the third-order Kerr nonlinear effect in highly nonlinear fiber, i.e., utilizing the self-phase and cross-phase modulations phenomena. This work presents the first photonic logic gate based on highly nonlinear fiber component only that achieves a data rate of 20 Gbps. Moreover, the design is based on two input binary bit sequences, narrow pulsed by a Gaussian distribution as 8-bit incoming data streams. Also, optical cross connectors with different coupling coefficients are used to generate pump and probe signals and tuneable optical band pass filters are leveraged to perform the logic gate functionalities. Remarkable performance outcomes are concluded from the eye pattern diagram and bit error rate analyzers. Simulation results show that the proposed XOR optical logic gate design is achieved at very low power penalties, low bit error rates, a significant Q-factor, and high extinction ratios as compared to existing methods.
A Modified Model Predictive Power Control for Grid-Connected T-Type Inverter with Reduced Computational Complexity
Authors: Ngo Van-Quang-Binh , Nguyen Minh-Khai , Tran Tan-Tai , Choi Joon-Ho , Lim Young-Cheol
Published: February 2019

This study proposed a modified power strategy based on model predictive control for a grid-connected three-level T-type inverter. The controller utilizes the mathematical model to forecast the performance of the grid current, the balance of DC-bus capacitor voltages and switching frequency. The proposed method outlines a new technique to formulate a control objective. The control objective includes the absolute error of the inverter voltage reference and its possible values instead of the grid current error. By using the modified equivalent transformations in the cost function, the execution time was reduced 22% compared to the traditional model predictive control while maintaining the high dynamic performances of the power and low total harmonic distortion of the current. A comparative investigation showed that the proposed method obtains a high-performance control compared with the classical power control scheme with linear PI controllers and space vector modulation. The feasibility of the proposed method was verified by the simulation and experimental results.
Development of a Low-Cost Fault Detector for Photovoltaic Module Array
Authors: Chao Kuei-Hsiang , Tsai Jen-Hsiang , Chen Ying-Hao
Published: February 2019

This study proposes a binary search-based fault detection system for photovoltaic (PV) modules to ameliorate the deficiencies in the existing fault detectors for PV module arrays. The proposed system applies a single-chip microcontroller to execute the binary search algorithm. Moreover, to overcome multi-node voltage detection and reduce the number of integrated circuit components, an analog switch is used to perform detection channel switching; the detection results are displayed on a software platform developed using Visual C#. The proposed system does not require learning to execute the fault diagnosis of PV module arrays and has advantages including high accuracy and low construction costs. Finally, to verify the feasibility of the proposed system, this study simulated the abnormal situations of actual modules and applied the binary search algorithm for maximum power point tracking to detect malfunctions of the PV module arrays.