bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Gondolatok „A hadtudománytól a rendészettudományig – Társadalmi kihívások a nemzeti összetartozás évében” című kötetről
Authors: Kalmár Ádám
Published: August 2021

The year 2020 was unconventional for the practitioners of the law enforcement sciences too. This was especially evident regarding the so-called Pécs-workshop, which had to give up the organization of an international conference traditionally conducted in honour of St. László’s feast for the first time since 2001. However, the scientific values of the advertised forum entitled ‘From Military Science to Law Enforcement Science – Social Challenges in The Year of the National Cohesion’ have not been lost, as the twenty-second volume of the Pécs Border Guard Scientific Bulletin could be published as part of the event of the Feast of the Hungarian Science. This is how the volume - including 38 studies on nearly 350 pages – was born, which also has provided – commemorating the historical memorial days of 2020 (‘Trianon 100’, ‘Zrínyi 400’) - law enforcement responses to current social challenges.
BUSINESS DEMOGRAPHY AND ECONOMIC GROWTH: SIMILARITIES AND DISPARITIES IN 10 EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES
Authors: Andrei Jean Vasile , Chivu Luminita , Gogonea Rodica-Manuela , Iacob Silvia Elena , Patrascu Aurelia , Popescu Constanta , Vasic Mile , Zaharia Marian
Published: August 2021

The main research aim is to investigate and test the long-term existence of a balanced relationship (cointegration) between business demographics and economic growth, expressed in terms of real GDP per capita, and to estimate the econometric models expressing relationships between analyzed variables in European economy. Our The study has focused on ten out of the eleven former communist countries, currently members of the European Union, during the 2006–2016 time period. Croatia was left out due to the shortness of the time series available for it, that the study would have required. These findings have significant implications in designing and shaping the future business models in European former communist countries, and increase convergence. The results obtained confirm the existence of long-term balanced relationships between the variables examined, the forms of which however vary from one cluster of states to another.
Measuring and Replicating the 1–20 μm Energy Distributions of the Coldest Brown Dwarfs: Rotating, Turbulent, and Nonadiabatic Atmospheres
Authors: Leggett S. K. , Tremblin Pascal , Phillips Mark W. , Dupuy Trent J. , Marley Mark , Morley Caroline , Schneider Adam , Caselden Dan , Guillaume Colin , Logsdon Sarah E.
Published: August 2021

Cold, low-mass, field brown dwarfs are important for constraining the terminus of the stellar mass function, and also for optimizing atmospheric studies of exoplanets. In 2020 new model grids for such objects were made available: Sonora-Bobcat and ATMO 2020. Also, new candidate cold brown dwarfs were announced, and new spectroscopic observations at λ ≈ 4.8 μm were published. In this paper we present new infrared photometry for some of the coldest brown dwarfs, and put the new data and models together to explore the properties of these objects. We reconfirm the importance of mixing in these atmospheres, which leads to CO and NH3 abundances that differ by orders of magnitude from chemical equilibrium values. We also demonstrate that the new models retain the known factor ≳3 discrepancy with observations at 2 ≲ λ
μm ≲ 4, for brown dwarfs cooler than 600 K. We show that the entire 1 ≲ λ
μm ≲ 20 energy distribution of six brown dwarfs with 260 ≤ T
eff K ≤ 475 can be well reproduced, for the first time, by model atmospheres which include disequilibrium chemistry as well as a photospheric temperature gradient which deviates from the standard radiative/convective equilibrium value. This change to the pressure–temperature profile is not unexpected for rotating and turbulent atmospheres that are subject to diabatic processes. A limited grid of modified-adiabat model colors is generated, and used to estimate temperatures and metallicities for the currently known Y dwarfs. A compilation of the photometric data used here is given in Appendix C.
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Levels Difference among Hepatocellular Cancer Patients Based on Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer Staging
Authors: Darmadi Darmadi , Ruslie Riska Habriel , Pakpahan Cennikon
Published: August 2021

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. It depends on angiogenesis for growth and metastasis. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a growth factor for angiogenesis, is hoped to be a biomarker for the diagnosis of HCC and its development.

AIM: The objective of the study is to determine the difference of VEGF levels among HCC patients based on barcelona clinic liver cancer (BCLC) staging.

METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Haji Adam Malik General Hospital Medan, Indonesia between January and December 2018. Patients aged 18 years or older with HCC were enrolled using consecutive sampling method. Patients with cholangiocarcinoma, hemangioma, and liver metastasis were excluded from the study. The diagnosis of HCC was confirmed by triphasic computed tomography-scanning. Circulating VEGF levels were determined from serum specimen using Quantikine Human VEGF-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. All patients were grouped based on BCLC staging. Kruskal Wallis-H test was applied at 95% confidence interval. p < 0.05 was considered significant.

RESULTS: Of 60 patients, 47 (78.3%) were male. Mean age of patients was 61.4 (SD11.7) years. Hepatitis B was the most common etiology (70.0%) of HCC. Based on BCLC staging, 25 (41.7%) patients were in stage C. Median VEGF level was 951.25 pg/mL. There was a statistically significant difference in VEGF levels (p = 0.006) where patients in Stage C (1,009.6 pg/mL) and D (1,189.7 pg/mL) had higher VEGF levels compared to those in Stage A (578 pg/mL).

CONCLUSION: There was a statistically significant difference of VEGF levels among HCC patients based on BCLC staging.
The Correlation between Pituitary Gonadotrophins, Gonadal Sex Steroid Hormone with Ferritin Level in Pubertal Females with Thalassemia Major at Wassit Province - Iraq 2020
Authors: Ansaf Ahmed , Faraj Safaa A. , Kazem Safaa
Published: August 2021

Thalassemia Major still a growing disease in Iraq with no clear plan for prevention.
 Failure to get a secondary sexual character, amenorrhea, and then the inability to get pregnant is one the increasingly common problems in female patients with huge burden effects. Despite recent advances in iron chelation therapy, still, excess iron deposition in pituitary gonadotropic and gonadal cells remains one of the major causes for gonadal failure.
Objectives: To evaluate the effect of iron overloads measured by serum ferritin on pituitary gonadotrophins measured by FSH, LH, and the gonadal sex steroid measured by estrogen in pubertal females with thalassemia Major.
Methods: 41 female patients randomly selected in a cross-sectional study with diagnosed Thalassemia Major registered in Al-Kut Hereditary Blood Disease Center in the south of Iraq.
Demographic data were evaluated including (age, type of chelation therapy, compliance for treatment and mean hemoglobin levels, and presence of amenorrhea). Serum ferritin, hemoglobin, FSH, LH, Estrogen levels were collected from patient's files. 
Results:   the age of the studied sample were range from 14-43 years. The majority of the studied patients 33(80.5%) were suffering from primary amenorrhea and only six had a normal menstrual cycle. Twenty-six (63.4%) patients had serum ferritin levels of more than 3000 ng/dl.
A low average serum FSH, LH, and Estrogen concentration were observed in the group with serum ferritin levels more than 3000ng/dl in a statistically significant p-value, 0.001, 0.002, and 0.003 respectively with inverse Pearson's correlation (-0.4 and p-value 0.0009 for FSH), (- 0.2 with no significant p-value 0.12, for LH) and (-0.3 with significant p. value 0.02 for estrogen level). 
Conclusions:
 In this study majority of females with thalassemia, Major suffer from disruption of pituitary gonadotropins and possible gonadal sex steroid. High ferritin still is a statistically significant risk factor for gonadal failure.
The needs for more strict iron control, early screening, and proper treatment of gonadotropin and gonadal sex steroid deficiency around the age of 13 years are essential to be offered. More studies and a larger sample are needed to confirm and/or add other risk factors in pubertal thalassemic females.
A review of Gryllidae (Grylloidea) with the description of one new species and four new records from the Sindh Pakistan
Authors: Sultana Riffat , Sanam Suriya , Kumar Santosh , Shamsudeen Sheik , Soomro Fakhra
Published: August 2021

The family Gryllidae is reviewed, resulting in the recognition of seventeen species, of which one is Modicogryllus? described herein as new. Four species namely Acheta hispanicus Rambur, 1838, Gryllus septentrionalis F. Walker, 1869 and Callogryllus saeedi (Saeed 2000) and Miogryllus itaquiensis Orsini and Zefa, 2017 recorded as new country and state records. Differences to similar species are given and a taxonomic key to species of the Sindh Pakistan is provided.
Ciliate SSU-rDNA reference alignments and trees for phylogenetic placements of metabarcoding data
Authors: Rajter Ľubomír , Dunthorn Micah
Published: August 2021

Although ciliates are one of the most dominant microbial eukaryotic groups in many environments, there is a lack of updated global ciliate alignments and reference trees that can be used for phylogenetic placement methods to analyze environmental metabarcoding data. Here we fill this gap by providing reference alignments and trees for those ciliates taxa with available SSU-rDNA sequences derived from identified species. Each alignment contains 478 ciliate and six outgroup taxa, and they were made using different masking strategies for alignment positions (unmasked, masked and masked except the hypervariable V4 region). We constrained the monophyly of the major ciliate groups based on the recently updated classification of protists and based on phylogenomic data. Taxa of uncertain phylogenetic position were kept unconstrained, except for Mesodinium species that we constrained to form a clade with the Litostomatea. These ciliate reference alignments and trees can be used to perform taxonomic assignments of metabarcoding data, discover novel ciliate clades, estimate species richness, and overlay measured ecological parameters onto the phylogenetic placements.
The millipede tribe Brachyiulini in the Caucasus (Diplopoda, Julida, Julidae)
Authors: Vagalinski Boyan , Golovatch Sergei I.
Published: August 2021

The diplopod tribe Brachyiulini is represented in the fauna of the Caucasus by eight genera and 32 species, of which one genus and 14 species are described as new:Colchiobrachyiulus montanusVagalinski,sp. nov.,Iraniulus tricornisVagalinski,sp. nov.,Omobrachyiulus armatusVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. fasciatusVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. faxiferVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. kvavadzeiVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. lazanyiaeVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. ponticusVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. pristisVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. trochiloidesVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. unugulisVagalinski,sp. nov.,O. zueviVagalinski,sp. nov.,Svaniulus ryvkiniVagalinski,gen. nov.,sp. nov., andS. waltheriVagalinski,gen. nov.,sp. nov.Colchiobrachyiulus Lohmander, 1936, a former subgenus of Megaphyllum, is here elevated to a full genus, and the genus Grusiniulus Lohmander, 1936 is downgraded to a subgenus of the genus Cyphobrachyiulus Verhoeff, 1900, bothstat. nov., with their previously described species,Colchiobrachyiulus dioscoriadis(Lignau, 1915) andCyphobrachyiulus redikorzevi(Lohmander, 1936), respectively, listed ascomb. nov.Omobrachyiulus brachyurus(Attems, 1899) is formally established as a junior subjective synonym ofO. caucasicus(Karsch, 1881),syn. nov., andOmobrachyiulus implicitus ritsensis(Golovatch, 1981) is formally synonymised with the typicalOmobrachyiulus implicitus(Lohmander, 1936),syn. nov.Omobrachyiulus sevangensis(Lohmander, 1932), originally described in the genusMegaphyllum, is here transferred to the former genus,comb. nov.The diagnoses and descriptions of some genera and subgenera are refined and complemented. A key is given to all genera and species of Brachyiulini that occur in the Caucasus, and their distributions are mapped. Several species are recorded as new to the faunas of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, or Russia. The distribution patterns of the Caucasian Brachyiulini and their biogeographic implications are discussed.
Incorporating Kahoot! in core engineering courses: Student engagement and performance
Authors: Chernov Victor , Klas Sivan , Furman Shaharabani Yael
Published: August 2021

Technology-enriched lessons can contribute to improving student engagement and learning in engineering courses. In this study we systematically incorporated Kahoot!, a game-based response system, in two mandatory content-intensive undergraduate engineering courses. In both courses, short quizzes were incorporated regularly at the beginning of the lesson. The questions were mostly about concepts, and students earned bonus points. At the end of the course, the students filled in an anonymous survey regarding their perceptions of the Kahoot! part of the lessons. In addition, the students’ grades in the final test were compared to their gains in the Kahoot! quizzes. We found that student satisfaction with the systematic incorporation of the Kahoot! quizzes was high in both courses. Most students were motivated to review the course content before class and about half were motivated to attend class. Most students perceived Kahoot! quizzes as contributing to their understanding of the course content. We also found a positive association between student success in the quizzes and their performance in the final exam in both courses. The frequent Kahoot! quizzes supplied continuous feedback to the students and lecturers, and the students became more engaged in the course content. Our findings indicate that technology-enriched strategies, specifically gamification techniques, contribute to increased student engagement, motivation, and performance in content-intensive engineering courses.
Frustration in mathematical problem-solving: A systematic review of research
Authors: Riegel Kaitlin
Published: August 2021

Emotions are an integral part of problem-solving, but must emotions traditionally conceptualised as "negative" have negative consequences in learning? Frustration is one of the most prominent emotions reported during mathematical problem-solving across all levels of learning. Despite research aiming to mitigate frustration, it can play a positive role during mathematical problem solving. A systematic review method was used to explore how frustration usually appears in students during mathematical problem-solving and the typical patterns of emotions, behaviours, and cognitive processes that are associated with its occurrence. The findings are mixed, which informs the need for further research in this area. Additionally, there are theories and qualitative findings about the potential positive role of frustration that have not been followed up with empirical investigations, which illuminate how our findings about negative emotions may be limited by the questions we ask as researchers. With the support of research, I consider how educators may directly or indirectly address rethinking the role and consequences of frustration during problem-solving with their students.
Four Constituents of an Entrepreneurial Culture Within Business Organizations
Authors: Javaid Omar
Published: August 2021

A culture of fear, control, and meaninglessness can effectively kill the entrepreneurial spirit within an organization. This chapter will explore why such a culture typically takes root and how it is deadly for the organization's entrepreneurial orientation. The chapter is based on an interdisciplinary reflective analysis done by exploring disciplines including depth psychology, neuroscience, positive psychology, and organizational behavior. The chapter argues from the perspectives of these disciplines that it is perhaps the factor of safety, risk-taking, collaboration, and meaningfulness if present in organizational culture that will eventually cultivate the spirit of entrepreneurship in an organization. While discussing these factors, the chapter also explains how seemingly irrational forces of the unconscious mind keep the leadership from adopting a behavior which is fundamentally important in fostering a culture where entrepreneurial behavior takes root. The chapter also explains how these psychic forces can be turned around to cultivate an entrepreneurial culture in an organization.
Blockchain Applications in the Energy Industry
Authors: Saraji Soheil , Khalaf Christelle
Published: August 2021

The current energy transition from a fossil-fuel-based economy to a zero-carbon has significantly accelerated in recent years, as the largest emitters have committed to achieving carbon-neutral goals in the next 20-30 years. The energy industry transition is characterized by modernization through digital technologies, increased renewable energy generation, and environmental sustainability. Blockchain technology can play a significant role in providing secure digital distributed platforms facilitating digitization, decarbonization, and decentralization of the energy systems. Several promising blockchain applications in the energy sector are under research and development, including peer-to-peer energy trading; carbon monitoring, management, and trading; and IoT-enabled electric grid management. However, several challenges are slowing down the commercialization of these applications, including outdated legislation and regulations, slow pace of adaptation from the traditional energy industry, and risks associated with the new, untested technology.
Pandemic and Literary Creativity
Authors: Greco Barbara
Published: August 2021

The essay proposes the analysis of some stories included in the digital collection Relatos de Confinamiento, published on the internet page of the Catalan newspaper La Vanguardia between March and April 2020. The stories, of about 2-3 pages in length, composed by contributors to the newspaper, utilize the pandemic experience about COVID-2019 in a creative way and reflect on the typical circumstances of the first wave and the period of confinement. After a brief introduction to the project, the chapter offers a critical analysis of selected texts focusing on the following topics: isolation and loneliness, isolation and fear, isolation and dystopia.
Emotional and Psychological Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic in College Students
Authors: Vacalebri Lloret Úrsula
Published: August 2021

COVID-19 has altered the mental health of the global population. The fear of getting sick, combined with other factors from a healthcare crisis—fear of losing loved ones, social isolation, unemployment, uncertainty about the future, etc.—have created the perfect environment for a greater development of psychological health disorders. All sectors of society are being affected by these changes, including above all, college students. The aim of this chapter is to observe the specific disorders college students may develop and what teachers can do about them. A language exchange project will be proposed as an integrated and preventive tool. It will also constitute a resource for eventual mental health disorders management. The combination of these two realities—mental health and education—should work as the basis for further investigation on integrated projects.
The Debate on the Pandemic in Spain
Authors: Vellón Lahoz Francisco Javier
Published: August 2021

The chapter analyses the discourse of the political debate in the Spanish parliamentary confrontation on the coronavirus and its health and economic consequences. To this end, it analyses eight debates led by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, and the leader of the opposition, Pablo Casado. The discursive strategies of both influence the central aspects of the political framework on which the legislature is structured, as can be seen in the grammatical mechanisms, in the lexical selection, in the evidentiality around the sources of legitimacy, and in general, in the stylistic and emotional component of the respective interventions. In this way, the pandemic has become a privileged reference for the political programmes of the different parties.
How Does Communicating Herd Immunity Affect Immunization Intentions?
Authors: Stoffel Sandro , Herrmann Benedikt
Published: August 2021

While previous studies have shown that communicating herd immunity can increase immunization intentions, it is unclear how the definition of the beneficiaries influences intentions. In a vignette study, using a new hypothetical influenza virus, 4,172 participants from five European countries (Bulgaria, N=873; Denmark, N=896; England, N=873; Estonia, N=916; and Italy, N=745) were randomized to one of three experimental conditions: (1) control (no mention of herd immunity), (2) society (social benefit of immunization for overall society mentioned), and (3) friends (social benefit for friends and family members mentioned). While the study did not find that communicating herd immunity influenced overall immunization intentions across the five countries, it found substantial cross-country differences in the effect of the communication. In England, friends increased intentions, while society increased intentions in Denmark but decreased it in Italy. While communicating the social benefit of immunization can influence intentions, its contrasting effects highlight the importance of empirically testing.
Social Ties and Money Priming in Bargaining Games and the Prisoner‘s Dilemma
Authors: Bühren Christoph , Michailova Julija
Published: August 2021

The authors examine the effects of money priming and solidarity on individual behavior in three simple games: dictator, ultimatum, and prisoner's dilemma game. In three consecutive experiments, they use two different money treatments and two neutral (control) treatments. Additionally, they vary the strength of social ties between participants by conducting experiments with students from a military university and a regular university. Although the priming procedure is sufficient to remind people of the concept of money, it is not sufficient to induce systematically different behavior of the treatment groups compared to the control groups. They find significant differences between groups with strong and weak social ties, even without activating the idea of group affiliation. They discuss various explanations of why the results seem to contradict previous research on money priming.
Developing Future Leaders
Authors: Alzahmi Rashed A. , AlMazrouei Hanan , Zacca Robert
Published: August 2021

The processes of acquiring and managing human capital are critical to achieving success and to gaining and sustaining a competitive advantage. Talent management planning is a means to manage changes in workforce supply and demand and to implement strategies to recruit and retain talented individuals. This study investigates how managers at one of the world's largest energy companies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) perceive and develop talent management in their organization. The study utilized an exploratory non-probability purposive sampling method of 10 individual managers within Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and its subsidiaries (ADNOC) triangulated with organizational documentation and archived records. The study results are organized under three themes: (1) recruitment and selection strategies; (2) training, education, and professional development; and (3) attractive compensation and benefits packages.
The Extent of Pilgrims and Umrah Performers' Reliance on the Mobile Exhibition Using Hologram Technology During the Performance of the Rituals
Authors: Gazzaz Osman Bakur , Mohamed Hamza Saad
Published: August 2021

The purpose of the current study was to reveal the role played by mobile exhibitions such as modern techniques using stereoscopic imaging technology (zebra and hologram) in enriching the knowledgeable experience of the pilgrims and Umrah visitors by providing awareness and guidance and contributing to the performance of their rituals from the beginning of their arrival to the end. A random sample of 400 Umrah performers and pilgrims (200 males and 200 females) were selected. The study used quantitative research methodology in the form of a survey. Results indicated that the dependence on hologram technology increased the level of awareness and guidance between the pilgrims preforming the rituals in the two holy mosques.
An Intelligent Approach to Detect Fake News Using Artificial Intelligence Technique
Authors: Das Sumit , Sanyal Manas Kumar , Mallik Sarbajyoti
Published: August 2021

There is a lot of fake news roaming around various mediums, which misleads people. It is a big issue in this advanced intelligent era, and there is a need to find some solution to this kind of situation. This article proposes an approach that analyzes fake and real news. This analysis is focused on sentiment, significance, and novelty, which are a few characteristics of this news. The ability to manipulate daily information mathematically and statistically is allowed by expressing news reports as numbers and metadata. The objective of this article is to analyze and filter out the fake news that makes trouble. The proposed model is amalgamated with the web application; users can get real data and fake data by using this application. The authors have used the AI (artificial intelligence) algorithms, specifically logistic regression and LSTM (long short-term memory), so that the application works well. The results of the proposed model are compared with existing models.
A Comprehensive Feature Selection Approach for Machine Learning
Authors: Das Sumit , Sanyal Manas Kumar , Datta Debamoy
Published: August 2021

In machine learning, it is required that the underlying important input variables are known or else the value of the predicted outcome variable would never match the value of the target outcome variable. Machine learning tools are used in many applications where the underlying scientific model is inadequate. Unfortunately, making any kind of mathematical relationship is difficult, and as a result, incorporation of variables during the training becomes a big issue as it affects the accuracy of results. Another important issue is to find the cause behind the phenomena and the major factor that affects the outcome variable. The aim of this article is to focus on developing an approach that is not particular-tool specific, but it gives accurate results under all circumstances. This paper proposes a model that filters out the irrelevant variables irrespective of the type of dataset that the researcher can use. This approach provides parameters for determining the quality of the data used for mining purposes.
A Hybrid Approach for Automated Plant Leaf Recognition Using Hybrid Texture Features and Machine Learning-Based Classifiers
Authors: Kumar Upendra , Yadav Shashank , Tripathi Esha
Published: August 2021

Automated plant recognition performs a significant role in various applications used by environmental experts, chemists, and botany experts. Humans can recognize plants manually, but it is a prolonged and low-efficiency process. This paper introduces an automated system for recognizing plant species based on leaf images. A hybrid texture and colour-based feature extraction method was applied on digital leaf images to produce robust feature, and a further classification model was developed. A combination of machine learning methods, such as SVM (support vector machine), KNN (k-nearest neighbours), and ANN (artificial neural network), was applied on dataset for plant classification. This dataset contains 32 types of leaves. The outcomes of this work proved that success rate of plant recognition can be enhanced up to 94% with ANN classifier when both shape and colour features are utilized. Automatic recognition of plants is useful for medicine, foodstuff, and reduction of chemical wastage during crop spraying. It is also useful for identification and preservation of species.
Creativity Processes Applied to the Innovation Management of Digital Showroom for Cars
Authors: Macêdo Francelma Maria de Moura , Queiroz Jamerson Viegas , Virgínia de Carvalho Zulmara , Alves Cristiano
Published: August 2021

The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted the Brazilian service sector. With the health crisis, challenges and changes in the business models of car dealerships are also intensified. Creativity is discussed by several conceptual approaches. From the point of view of neuroscience, it is a response to the human need of solving problems. It is within this premise that the present work aims to enhance value proposition for a business model centered on automobile e-commerce. This purpose unfolds in an exploratory research on approaches, methodologies, and tools of creativity, as well as the application of Cristiano Alves' Creative Framework in this business model. The analysis of the results signals improvements in solutions for car e-commerce. With this, it is concluded that collective creativity is efficient in the discovery of potentially innovative ideas.
The Impact of Globalization on Development of MSMEs
Authors: Katta Rama Mohana Rao , Patro Chandra Sekhar
Published: August 2021

Globalization has been a significant force in the development of the market and economic environments. The micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) need to focus on technological capabilities to face the competition in the globalized market. They have to analyze the market opportunities in the rapidly growing economy as well as emerging markets. The aids of a globalized and digital economy depends to an excessive extent on favourable business environments and healthy competition. The performance of MSMEs depends on accessibility to various strategic resources like abilities, technical know-how, innovativeness, and finance. Thus, it is imperative to consider the factors influencing work conditions firm level, and the strategies formulated at the national level are organized to local business perspectives. This paper examines the global scenario of MSMEs, the impact of globalization, the role of MSMEs in India, the growth perspectives of MSMEs during the pre-and post-globalization period, the critical challenges, and the role of the government in encouraging and developing MSMEs.
Escape Rooms as a Collaborative Problem-Solving Environment
Authors: Papadopoulos Ioannis , Tenta Eirini
Published: August 2021

Escape room games are a popular recreative activity that recently started gaining popularity as both a means for conducting research studies and a teaching and learning environment. This paper follows a group of 16- to 17-year-old students in an escape room while they encounter logical challenges in order to escape from the room in a limited amount of time. Their ability to work effectively as a team and complete activities quickly is a key element to success. In this setting, the aim was to examine in what ways this innovative environment might help students benefit in terms of social metacognition. The findings gave evidence that during collaborative problem-solving in an escape room, cognitive demands are distributed among the players. This makes metacognition visible, facilitates shared management thus improving individual cognition, facilitates reciprocal scaffolding, and enhances motivation.
The Relevance of Academic Performance in Career Development According to the Big Five Model
Authors: Dogaru Mihaela Mirela , Popescu Manoela
Published: August 2021

A purely theoretical analysis reveals the existence of a direct relationship between academic performance and work performance. It is also expected that individuals who have registered during academic performance will develop a career in their field of academic preparation. A research of the students' academic performance contributes to the identification of the relevant factors of the academic performance with an impact on the work performance. The fundamental idea is that the performance of individuals is determined by their personality, characterized by the big five model. Known to be a positive personality ensures both academic performance and work performance and career success.
Dry Machining of Inconel 825 Superalloys
Authors: Pandey Kshitij , Datta Saurav
Published: August 2021

The present work investigates application feasibility of PVD TiN/TiCN/TiN coated cermet and CVD Al2O3/TiCN coated SiAlON for dry machining of Inconel 825 superalloy. Machining performance is interpreted through cutting force magnitude, tool-tip temperature, and mechanisms of tool wear. Results are compared to that of CVD multi-layer TiN/TiCN/Al2O3/TiN coated WC-Co tool. It is evidenced that SiAlON tool generates lower cutting force but experiences higher tool-tip temperature than other two counterparts. Apart from abrasion and adhesion, carbide tool witnesses coating peeling and ploughing. In contrast, SiAlON tool suffers from inexorable chipping and notching. Wear pattern of cermet tool seems less severe than carbide and SiAlON. Chip's underside surface morphology appears relatively better in case of cermet tool.
SLS Process Parameter Optimization to Improve Surface Quality and Accuracy of Polyamide Parts
Authors: Baloni Sunil Dutt , Sharma Somesh K. , Singh Jagroop , Negi Sushant
Published: August 2021

The contribution of selective laser sintering (SLS) technique in the 4.0 manufacturing industry is undisputedly significant. SLS part quality exhibits high dependence on SLS process parameters and is a major challenge. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the effect of input parameters (i.e., part orientation, bed temperature, and layer thickness) on the surface roughness and accuracy of laser-sintered polyamide specimens. Response surface methodology (RSM) and ANOVA analysis aided the testing and evaluation. Optimal working conditions for minimum shrinkage were 0.17 mm layer thickness, 177.89°C part bed temperature, and part orientation at 88.91 degrees. The surface quality deteriorated with the increment in part bed temperature and layer thickness, and it shows an inverse trend (or improves) with the part orientation in the prescribed range. The optimal surface roughness was at a layer thickness of 0.11 mm, bed temperature at 174.55°C, and part orientation at 86.5 degrees.
Determination of Thermo-Mechanical Properties of Recycled Polyurethane From Glycolysis Polyol
Authors: Njuguna James , Muchiri Peter , Karuri Nancy , Mwema Fredrick Madaraka , Herzog Michael T. , Dimitrov Kiril
Published: August 2021

This study aimed to determine the possible changes in thermo-mechanical properties between recycled polyurethane with benchmark polyurethane. The glycolysis polyol was used as a raw material for recycled polyurethane production. The glass transition temperature of the recycled polyurethane was determined using DSC. Tensile strength, elastic modulus, toughness, and hardness test of the recycled polyurethane were conducted at 24°C, 40°C, and 60°C. The glass transition temperatures for the recycled and the benchmark polyurethane occurred at 43°C and 50.4°C, respectively. Tensile strength for recycled polyurethane was lower than that of benchmark polyurethane by 29-43%. Recycled polyurethane recorded lower toughness than petroleum-based pure polyurethane by 13-16%. However, recycled polyurethane recorded high shored D values than the benchmark polyurethane by 9-29%. This study reveals that recycled polyol could be used as feedstock for polyurethane production with applications tailored to its mechanical properties.
Effect of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes on the Series Resistance and Trap Energy of Malachite Green Dye Based Organic Device
Authors: Das Pallab Kumar , Sen Sudipta , Manik Nabin Baran
Published: August 2021

In this paper, we have estimated the series resistance (Rs) and the trap energy (Ec) of the sandwiched type Malachite Green (MG) dye-based organic device and have also observed the influence of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) on both of these parameters. To form the organic device, we have used Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) coated glass as the front electrode and Aluminium (Al) as a back electrode by using the spin coating technique. The values of series resistance are measured from both I-V characteristics and by utilizing Cheung Function due to the non ideal behavior of organic devices. We have also extracted the values of Rsby using H (I) versus I plot and verified the values with the measured values of Rsfrom the Cheung function. The extracted values of series resistance using these three processes remain consistent with each other in showing that the values of series resistance have been reduced considerably in the presence of SWCNT. The trap energy has been estimated from the steady-state current-voltage characteristics. There is a significant correlation in between series resistance and the trap energy of the organic device. The presence of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes reduces the trap energy from 0.086 eV to 0.057 eV. Lowering of the trap energy of the metal-organic layer interface in presence of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes attributes to the reduction of the value of the series resistance. The extracted value of Rsdecreases from 0.154 MΩ to 0.0389 MΩ in presence of SWCNT. Decrease in the value of both of these parameters in the presence of SWCNT will definitely improve the charge transport mechanism of the organic device and thereby the conductivity.
Editorial Note
Authors: Gnanapala Athula , Cooper Malcolm , Dewasiri N. J.
Published: August 2021

No abstract available
Book Review: Future of Tourism Marketing edited by Seongseop (Sam) Kim and Dan Wang (Routledge; 1st Edition (15th June 2021); Pages: 128)
Authors: Gamage Thilini Chathurika
Published: August 2021

The rapid emergence and vast adoption of information and communication technologies (ICT) have transformed tourism marketing strategies from a conservative, static marketing model to an emerging, transformative conception. The transformative power of ICT has created a paradigm shift in the tourism industry by providing an opportunity for tourism service providers and tourists to co-create value. Moreover, recent technological developments have paved the way for new markets, product/ service innovations, management practices, and competitive strategies, thus forming a complex socio-technical tourism ecosystem. Meanwhile, postmodern, digitally savvy tourists expect tourism service providers to be more active in digital platforms. Consequently, a burgeoning research stream has started looking into these new developments, capabilities, and changes driven by ICT advancement in the tourism and hospitality industry in recent times. Moreover, to better understand and anticipate these fundamental changes, novel theoretical lenses, approaches, concepts, themes, and even research methods have emerged lately. Future of Tourism Marketing, edited by two renowned contemporary tourism scholars, Seongseop (Sam) Kim and Dan Wang, adds to this growing research stream by emphasizing how ICT developments have revolutionized conventional tourism marketing strategies. The reviewer used the academic approach as applied by Gamage (2021) and Peiris et al. (2020) in reviewing this book.
Impact of Social Media Advertising on Consumer Buying Behaviour: With Special Reference to Fast Fashion Industry
Authors: Bandara D. M. D.
Published: August 2021

Recently, social media advertising has become a key component of the most successful fashion brands' marketing strategies. With the rise of social media, the majority of fashion retailers have started to identify the opportunities of using social media networks to attract new customers. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of social media advertising on consumer buying behavior towards fast fashion. Along with the study, it measures the overall impact of social media advertising on the consumer decision making process in line with fast fashion industry. This study adopts a descriptive quantitative research design and data was collected through self-administrated questionnaire. The population of this study is taken from active social media users in Western province and a sample of 300 consumers was selected using the convenience sampling method. The hypotheses were tested using Correlation and Regression analysis since the purpose of the study is to measure the impact of each independent variable on the chosen dependent variable. The present study revealed that social media advertising has a positive influence on consumer buying behavior towards the fast fashion industry. Three independent variables out of four, namely entertainment, familiarity, and social imaging, have a significant influence on consumer behavior, while the remaining variable, advertising expenditure, has no statistically significant influence. Also the study provides valuable implications for the fast fashion industry, allowing marketers to use the findings to identify their consumers' real buying behavior in a digital environment and make decisions accordingly.
The Impact of ‘on the Job Training’ on Employee Performance: A Study of Production Assistants in Noritake Lanka (Pvt) Limited, Mathale, Sri Lanka
Authors: Nawarathna K. J. N. M. D. V. , Abeykoon M. W. M. , Harshani M. D. R.
Published: August 2021

In present business world a lot of entities tend to conduct training programs to the employees and expecting high level of performance from the employees. Hence the different kinds of training methods are used by the manufacturing sectors to train workforce. Although there are number of researches conducted in assessing the impact of training programs of manufacturing industry in other countries in Sri Lankan context research findings in this regard is limited. Therefore, the objective of the current study was to assess the impact of ‘employee on the Job Training on the performance of production assistants in Noritake Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. Matale, Sri Lanka. The independent variable and the dependent variable of this study were the level of on-the job training and the employee performance respectively. The reliability of the instruments was tested by using Cornbrash’s Alpha coefficient. The type of this study is hypothesis testing ant it was conducted in the natural setting with the minimum interference of the researcher. The study is a cross-sectional in time and the primary data were collected by using random sampling technique and sample size was 100 production assistant employees who are working in Noritake Lanka (Pvt) Ltd in Matale District. The unit analysis was at individual level. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire. The offline method was use to gather the data and the primary data set was used. The correlation and regressions methods were performed to test hypotheses and analyzed data. Finding revealed that on-the-job training has a significant impact on employee performance. Correlation analysis shows that on-the-job training has a strong positive relationship on employee performance. As a significant factor, this would mean that it is very significant to pay a high attention regarding the on-the-job training methods, because it directly affects to the performance of the employees in addition to that proper and well-structured on-the-job training are required to meet with the desired outcomes of the organization. Plenty of benefits can be obtained from on-the-job training method for the both employees and the organization.
A Comparative Study between Truview PCD Video Laryngoscope and Macintosh Laryngoscope with Respect to Intubation Quality and Hemodynamic Changes
Authors: Samal Rajiba Lochan , Swain Sumita , Samal Soumya
Published: August 2021

Background and Aims:

Video laryngoscopes resemble traditional laryngoscopes, but they have a video chip embedded in the tip of laryngoscope blade. This enables the operator to “look around the corners” which is not possible with conventional direct laryngoscopes. The present study was undertaken to compare Truview video laryngoscope and Macintosh laryngoscope for glottis visualization, ease of tracheal intubation, and associated hemodynamic response.

Setting:

The study was conducted in operation theater in a medical college.

Study Design:

It was a randomized prospective observational study.

Materials and Methods:

Sixty patients of American Society of Anesthesiologists Grade 1 and 2 of either sex aged 18–60 years who were scheduled to undergo elective surgery requiring general anesthesia with orotracheal intubation were selected. In patients of Group T (n = 30), intubation was done using Truview video laryngoscope, while in Group M (n = 30), intubation was done using Macintosh laryngoscope. Various airway and hemodynamic parameters were assessed and compared.

Statistical Analysis:

Statistical analysis was done using Chi-square test, paired and unpaired Student's t-test, and ANOVA test. P < 0.05 is considered statistically significant.

Results:

Distribution of modified Mallampati Class (MMPC), ease of laryngoscopic blade insertion, and size of cuffed endotracheal tube used were statistically comparable in both the groups. The time to intubation was more in Group T (37.16 ± 8.23 s) as compared to Group M (29.80 ± 6.75 s). There was a statistically significant better modified Cormack and Lehane (CL) grading view obtained in Group T as compared to Group M (P = 0.025). CL Grades 2 and 3 were not seen in any of either of the group. The mean intubation difficulty score (IDS) was significantly lower in Group T (0.3 ± 0.60) as compared to Group M (0.73 ± 0.86). In both the Groups T and M, the mean heart rate, systolic blood pressure (BP), and diastolic BP were significantly increased from baseline for up to 3 min after laryngoscopy, but they were comparable between the two groups all the time.

Conclusion:

Truview propaganda cum distribution laryngoscope provides a better glottis view than the Macintosh laryngoscope. Although it requires a longer time to intubate using Truview, the overall IDS score was lower as compared to Macintosh laryngoscope. Hemodynamic changes remained similar in both the groups.
Left Common Iliac Vein Compression in Patients with May-Thurner Syndrome
Authors: Clements Warren , Kuang Ronny J D , Seah Jarrel , Moriarty Heather K , Vasudevan Thodur , Davis Amanda , Koukounaras Jim
Published: August 2021

Objectives:

This study aimed to assess what diameter constitutes clinically-significant left common iliac vein (LCIV) compression in patients with May-Thurner syndrome (MTS).

Materials and Methods:

Nineteen patients with MTS were over a 10-year period. Minimum LCIV diameter was compared to 100 asymptomatic controls and 27 age- and gender-matched controls.

Results:

Mean LCIV diameter in MTS group was 3.82 mm (standard deviation [SD] 1.38), control group (mean 7.17 mm SD 3.19,P< 0.0001), and matched control group (mean 6.86 mm SD 3.03,P= 0.007). Statistical threshold analysis showed in MTS patients, a LCIV diameter of 4.7mm or less had an 87.5% sensitivity and 72.7% specificity for the diagnosis.

Conclusions:

Patients with MTS had a minimum LCIV diameter threshold of 4.7mm, and this can be used in correlating the diagnosis of MTS on computed tomography. However, minimum diameters less than 4.7 mm are also seen in the general population and as such compression alone does not constitute a diagnosis of MTS.