bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recent Advances of Nanocarriers for Effective Delivery of Therapeutic Peptides
Authors: Atabakhshi-Kashi Mona , Geranpayehvaghei Marzieh , Wang Yazhou , Akhbariyoon Hamidreza , Taleb Mohammad , Zhang Yinlong , Khajeh Khosro , Nie Guangjun
Published: June 2020

Precisely selective interactions of peptides with their unique binding partners represent an out-standing starting point for designing novel therapeutics. It is well established that peptides with a variety of critical physiological functions and specific mechanisms of action offer distinct ad-vantages, including excellent safety and higher efficiency over traditional small molecule thera-peutics. Certain intrinsic weaknesses of naturally occurring peptides such as negligible plasma half-life, low bioavailability, and potential immunogenicity have limited their administration as medicines. Nanotechnology has expanded several promising strategies to address the limitations associated with therapeutic peptides. This review aims to perform a state-of-the-art summary of the strategies that are actively used to develop efficient formulations of nanosystem based pep-tide medicines. We first focus on the recent advances and updates on peptide-based nanomedi-cines. Then we indicate how nanosystems improved the functionality of therapeutic peptides and what the future opportunities and challenges of developments in the field of therapeutic pep-tides are. Potential noninvasive delivery platforms for peptide incorporated nanoparticles through alternative administration routes are also discussed.
AN EXAMINATION OF TEACHERS’ SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AWARENESS IN TERMS OF BRANCHES, GENDERS, AGES AND YEARS OF SERVICE
Authors: Atmaca Ayse Ceren , Kiray Seyit Ahmet , Colakoglu Mustafa Hilmi
Published: June 2020

Sustainable development is an interdisciplinary structure that includes the dimensions of environment, economy and society. The aim of this research was to determine the sustainable development awareness of science, social studies and primary school teachers. The research designed with the survey approach was carried out with 2982 teachers working in different regions of Turkey in 2019. In the research, Sustainable Development Awareness Scale consisting of 3 sub-dimensions and 36 items developed by Atmaca, Kiray and Pehlivan (2019) was used. Significance level was taken as .05 in the analyses that examined the signification between the groups. As a result of the research, no significant difference was found between the teachers’ sustainable development awareness and their branches and years of service, while a significant difference was found between the teachers’ ages and gender and their sustainable development awareness scores.
Keywords: descriptive research, science education, sustainable development.
THE EFFECTS OF INDEXING PROMPTS ON PROBLEM-SOLVING IN CASE LIBRARY LEARNING
Authors: Park Jongchan , Lee Jinju , Kim Dongsik
Published: June 2020

Researchers have suggested that case library learning is an effective instructional method that promotes argumentation skills for ill-structured problem-solving. However, little research has examined scaffolding strategies to implement effective case library learning. The aim of this research was to examine the effects of indexing prompts as scaffolds on argumentation skills during problem-solving in case library learning. A quasi-experimental design was employed for the research. A total of 111 first-year students in a university across three sections in a career development course participated in the experiment. Participants were provided with three different indexing prompts: explanation-based indexing prompts (focused on self-explaining anomalies of individual cases), difference-based indexing prompts (focused on self-explaining similarities and differences between cases), and no prompts (allowing spontaneous self-explanations when studying cases). Learners’ argumentation essays comprising initial arguments, counterarguments, and rebuttals were collected. The results found that learners who were prompted to generate mental indices outperformed the learners in the control group when constructing argumentation. More specifically, explanation-based indices were beneficial in making counterarguments and rebuttals, and difference-based indices were helpful when making rebuttals. These findings suggest that indexing cases based on both exploration of the anomalies of each case and comparisons between cases improves argumentation by facilitating case retention, retrieval, and reuse.
Keywords: argumentation skills, case library learning, case-based reasoning, indexing prompts.
AN ANALYSIS OF CONVERSATIONAL IMPLICATURE STRATEGY IN A DRAMA “THE BEAR” BY ANTON CHEKHOVAND ITS APPLICATION IN ELT
Authors: Suryadi Hendra , Muslim Muslim
Published: June 2020

This study was aimed at finding analysis of conversational implicature in a drama “the bear” by Anton Chekhov and its application in English language teaching". This research was conducted in a descriptive qualitative method. The source of data is a script of drama, The sampling technique used was purposive for the sample is chosen based on a certain purpose to reach the objective of this research. The data analyzed based on the theory’s Grace (1975), Yule (2005), Levinson (1992), Jacob L. Mey (1998) and Paltridge (2000). And then each Extract was analyzed based on Types and functions of conversational implicature. After that, the real data are displayed using table and particular. Here, the researcher analyzed several applications of conversational implicature in drama. In analyzing the data the researcher finds the idea from the drama that can be used for improving speaking the students in English language teaching. Based on the analysis, the outcome of this study indicated that all Grice’s proposed conversational implicatures applied to the drama entitled “The Bear”. 28 utterances are consisting of 9 types of generalized conversational implicature, 5 types of particularized conversational implicature, 2 functions of self-protections, 6 functions of power and politeness, 3 functions of giving information, 1 function of entertain the audience and 2 functions of lack specific information. The study was enriching the knowledge of conversational implicature for the teachers and students who should be able to improve speaking skill in teaching-learning activity.
INVESTIGATING STUDENTS ERRORS IN DESCRIPTIVE WRITING AT SECOND SEMESTER STUDENTS AT STIKES YARSI MATARAM
Authors: Aristiawan Danul
Published: June 2020

Analyzing the errors is one of the appropriate ways to use to show the true proficiency level of the target language that students learn at a particular time. By conducting analysis on grammatical errors, the teacher can conclude the most frequent of errors which are often made by students then, teachers can arrange the more effective and interesting strategies in teaching grammatical rules. This research was aimed to elaborate on kinds of students errors and possible causes of in writing a descriptive text. The instruments used for this research are writing tasks and questioner. This research was a descriptive qualitative method because the data of this research is in the form of sentences and paragraphs. The data gotten were then analyzed by using surface taxonomy strategy. The result of this research, It was found four types of errors in the students writing. Those are omission error, addition error, misformation error, and misordering error. Omission and misformation error is the most frequent of errors found in the text. Whereas, the sources of error found in this research are interlingual transfer, intralingual transfer, the context of learning and communication strategies. Based on the analysis researcher found that interlingual and context learning is the dominant cause of the error. The researcher can deliver suggestion especially to the teacher, they should give the clear explanation about the different rules both Indonesian and English, the teacher should emphasize the concepts of the verb tenses because the most frequent of errors relate to use subject-verb agreement.
EXAMINING THE EFFECT OF CONTEXTUAL TEACHING-LEARNING AND ANXIETY TOWARDS STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILLS
Authors: Suadiyatno Taufik , Firman Edi , Hanan Ahmad , Sumarsono Dedi
Published: June 2020

This research was aimed at finding out whether: (1) Contextual Teaching Learning has better effect than conventional method towards students speaking skill; (2) the students having low anxiety have better speaking skill than those who have high anxiety; and (3) there is an interaction between CTL and anxiety towards students speaking skill. This research was experimental study within quantitative approach. The total samples of this study were 66 students of tour and travel class of SMKN 2 Mataram that consist of two classes that determined by cluster random sampling technique. The instruments that were used to collect the data were test and questionnaire. The data was analyzed by using multifactor analysis of variance 2x2 and tuckey test. The result of this research revealed that the level of students anxiety that taught by CTL is lower than conventional, while students’ speaking skill score that taught by contextual method was higher than conventional method. The level of anxiety has significant effect toward students’ speaking skill. Therefore, it can be concluded that: 1) Contextual Teaching Learning method has better effect than Convetional method towards students speaking skill of the tour and travel students’ class of SMKN 2 Mataram; 2) The students who have low speaking anxiety have better speaking skill than those who have high speaking anxiety at the tour and travel students’ class of SMKN 2 Mataram; 3) There is an interaction between CTL and students’ anxiety towards students speaking skill of the tour and travel students’ class of SMKN 2 Mataram.
WHAT LIES BEHIND THE STUDENTS’ NEED IN ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES: A REFLECTION OF NEEDS ANALYSIS
Authors: Rachmawati Umi
Published: June 2020

This study was a need analysis study as a part of the research and development of instructional materials for English for Business (EFB) at Universitas Muhammadiyah Magelang. This study was aimed at finding the students’ needs on their EFB course in terms of their personal characteristics, English proficiency assumption, learning motivation, and personal interest in their learning English. This study was conducted in a qualitative study that involved the nature of the qualitative study in nature. The findings of the study indicated that (1) the students’ were adolescents that were ready and conscious to get the lesson, (2) the students felt that they did not have good English mastery, (3) the students’ motivation in learning individually was not as high as learning in groups though they realized that they needed to master the target language, and (4) the students’ preferred to have more topics on Islamic values and functions in English and teacher’s roles are planner, information provider, and resource developer.
İLKOKUMA YAZMA ÖĞRETİMİNDE BİTİŞİK EĞİK YAZIDAN DİK TEMEL YAZIYA GEÇİŞİN SINIF ÖĞRETMENLERİNİN GÖRÜŞLERİNE GÖRE DEĞERLENDİRİLMESİ
Authors: KARAMAN Hamdi , YILAR Rabia
Published: June 2020

2017 yılında Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı ilkokuma yazma öğretimi sürecinde bitişik eğik yazı öğretiminin yanında dik temel yazının da kullanılabilmesini kararlaştırmıştır. Yani yazı stilinin seçimi öğretmenlere bırakılmıştır. 2019 yılında ise okuma yazma öğretiminde sadece dik temel yazının kullanılması kararlaştırılmıştır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, ilkokul birinci sınıfta görev yapan ve ilkokuma yazma öğretiminde dik temel yazıyı kullanan, diğer ilkokul sınıflarında ise bitişik eğik yazı kullanmakta iken dik temel yazıya geçiş yapan sınıf öğretmenlerinin görüşlerinin incelenmesidir. Çalışma nitel olarak tasarlanmış ve desen olarak özel durum yöntemi seçilmiştir. Çalışma grubu 2017-2018 eğitim öğretim yılında Ağrı ili Patnos ilçesindeki ilkokullarda görev yapan 17 sınıf öğretmeni tarafından oluşturulmuştur. Araştırmacılar verilerin toplanabilmesi amacıyla yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme formu hazırlamışlardır. Verilerin analizinde NVİVO 9 bilgisayar destekli nitel analiz programı kullanılmıştır. 17 öğretmenle yapılan yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler sonucunda, öğretmenlerin toplamda 8 görüş etrafında birleştiği görülmüştür. Buna göre katılımcı öğretmenlerin tamamı dik temel yazıya geçişi olumlu bulmakta ve öğrenci için daha uygun olarak görmektedirler. Öğretmenlerin çoğunluğuna göre dik temel yazının uygulanışı bitişik eğik yazıya göre daha kolaydır ve yazma becerilerini olumlu yönde etkilemektedir. Öğretmenlere göre öğrenciler dik temel yazıya karşı daha olumlu tutumlara sahipken, dik temel yazının hayatımızın her alanında karşılaşacağımız yazı stili olduğunu vurgulamışlardır. Öğretmenlerin düşük bir oranına göre, geçiş sürecinde bir takım zorluklar olmaktadır ve bitişik eğik yazı bütünün görülmesinin sağlamaktadır.
Uncertainty relation for modulated broadband laser pulses
Authors: Yushkov K B , Molchanov V Ya , Khazanov E A
Published: June 2020

The shaping of picosecond laser pulses with complicated amplitude and phase modulations is applied in various problems concerning the interaction of radiation with matter. Such pulses are generated by modulating femtosecond laser pulses with the help of programmable spectral filters with a complex transmission function based on spatial light modulators or acousto-optic dispersion delay lines. It is shown that the number of resolved elements and their contrast upon modulating chirped laser pulses satisfy the uncertainty relation, and the optimal bandwidth of the filter is twice the frequency range of the laser pulse. The results are experimentally confirmed for a femtosecond Ti:Sapphire laser with a high-resolution dispersion delay line.
TÜMCE İŞLEMLEME SÜREÇLERİ
Authors: ÖZGE Duygu
Published: June 2020

Bu çalışma, sözlü tümce anlama süreç ve mekanizmasını oluşturan bileşenleri ve bu bileşenlerin birbirleri ile etkileşimlerini ortaya koyan belli başlı kuramları derlemeyi hedeflemektedir. Bu derleme, özellikle yapısal çözümleme süreçlerine dair varolan kuramların tartışmalarının yanı sıra, bu kuramların üzerinde anlaştığı belli başlı bulguları özetleyerek, insan dil işleme mekanizmasının doğasına dair güncel bilgi sunmayı amaçlamaktadır. İlk bölüm tümce anlama mekanizmasının doğasını, ikinci bölüm ise dil anlama süreçlerine dair kuramsal sorular ve bu sorular için alanyazındaki çözümleri ele almaktadır.
Larinkste Verruka Vulgaris: Olgu Sunumu
Authors: PAKSOY Serpil , TURAN Gülay , TULACI Kamil
Published: June 2020

Verruka vulgaris HPV ile ilişkili sık görülen bir deri lezyonudur. Larinkste nadir görülür. Larinkste görülen verruka vulgaris, deride görülen verruka vulgaris ile histolojik olarak benzer özelliklere sahiptir. Benign bir lezyondur ve malign bir lezyon olan verruköz karsinomdan ayrımı tedavi açısından önem taşımaktadır. Biz burada ses kısıklığı şikâyeti ile gelen 59 yaşındaki erkek hastayı sunduk. Lezyon cerrahi olarak çıkarıldıktan sonra patoloji sonucu verruka vulgaris olarak tespit edildi.
Local Comparison between Two Ninth Convergence Order Algorithms for Equations
Authors: Regmi Samundra , Argyros Ioannis K. , George Santhosh
Published: June 2020

A local convergence comparison is presented between two ninth order algorithms for solving nonlinear equations. In earlier studies derivatives not appearing on the algorithms up to the 10th order were utilized to show convergence. Moreover, no error estimates, radius of convergence or results on the uniqueness of the solution that can be computed were given. The novelty of our study is that we address all these concerns by using only the first derivative which actually appears on these algorithms. That is how to extend the applicability of these algorithms. Our technique provides a direct comparison between these algorithms under the same set of convergence criteria. This technique can be used on other algorithms. Numerical experiments are utilized to test the convergence criteria.
Blood L-Lactate Concentration as an Indicator of Outcome in Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus) Admitted to a Wildlife Rescue Center
Authors: Di Lorenzo Elena , Rossi Riccardo , Ferrari Fabiana , Martini Valeria , Comazzi Stefano
Published: June 2020

Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) are among the most frequent patients of rescue centers in Italy. Three outcomes are possible: natural death, euthanasia, or treatment and release. The aim of the present study is to propose blood L-lactate concentration as a possible prognostic biomarker that may assist veterinarians in the decision-making process. Sixty-three roe deer, admitted to one rescue center in the period between July 2018 and July 2019, were sampled and divided into 4 groups according to their outcome: (1) spontaneous death (17 cases), (2) humanely euthanized (13 cases), (3) fully recovered and released (13 cases), and (4) euthanized being unsuitable for release (20 cases). In addition, blood samples from 14 hunted roe deer were analyzed as controls. Whole blood lactate concentrations were measured with a point of care lactate meter. Differences among groups were close to statistical significance (p = 0.51). A cut-off value of 10.2 mmol/L was identified: all the animals with higher values died or were humanely euthanized. The results suggest that roe deer with lactatemia higher than 10.2 mmol/L at admission, have a reduced prognosis for survival during the rehabilitation period, regardless of the reason for hospitalization and the injuries reported. Therefore, humane euthanasia should be considered for these animals.
Effect of Dietary Forage: Concentrate Ratio on Pre-Caecal and Total Digestive Tract Digestibility of Diverse Feedstuffs in Donkeys as Measured by the Mobile Nylon Bag Technique
Authors: Liu Li-Lin , Zhou Xiao-Ling , Yang Hong-Jian
Published: June 2020

The domestic donkey is a unique equid species with specific nutritional requirements, however, limited laboratory evidences are available to address the digestibility contribution of the prececum in relation to the total digestive tract. In the present study, six caecum-fistulated adult female Xinjiang donkeys served as the experimental animals in a 3 × 3 Latin square design, and mobile nylon bag technique was applied to determine the effect of dietary F:C ratio on pre-caececum and total digestive tract digestibility of rice straw, alfalfa hay, corn meal, and soybean meal. The dietary treatments included: (1) HF, a high-fiber ration (F:C = 80:20), (2) MF, a medium-fiber ration (F:C = 55:45), and (3), LF, a low-fiber ration (F:C = 35:65). The experiment consisted of three consecutive Latin square periods, and each period lasted 25 days. In each period, the animals were administrated naso-gastrically nylon bags (38 μm pore size) containing aforementioned feeds. After 1.5 h intubation, the bags were checked once an hour and collected at the ileo-caecal junction (small intestine bag, D1) and in the feces (fecal bag, D2). Regardless whatever feeds were introduced, the percentage of bag collected (BC) was quadratically (HF) or linearly (MF and LF) increased against different fixed bag collection time. The highest BC occurred in MF (73.8%), but no significant difference was observed between HF (62.3%) and LF (50.8%). The lowest mean bag retention time was observed in HF (2.7 h), and no significant difference occurred between MF (4.6 h) and LF (5.0 h) diets. For each feed, D1 and D2 digestibility for DM, CP, NDF, and ADF did not differ among three dietary treatments (p > 0.05). Regardless of whatever diets were fed to the donkeys, D2 digestibility for DM and CP among the feeds ranked as: soybean meal > corn meal > alfalfa hay > rice straw (p < 0.01). D1 digestibility for DM among the feeds ranked as: corn meal > soybean meal > alfalfa hay > rice straw (p < 0.01). D1 digestibility for CP among the feeds ranked as: soybean meal > corn meal > alfalfa hay > rice straw (p < 0.01). In summary, dietary forage: concentrate ratio did not affect pre-caecal or total tract nutrient digestibility. The fiber level in feeds was the main limiting factor to affect the digestibility contribution of the pre-caecum in relation to the total digestive tract.
Data-Augmented Hybrid Named Entity Recognition for Disaster Management by Transfer Learning
Authors: Kung Hung-Kai , Hsieh Chun-Mo , Ho Cheng-Yu , Tsai Yun-Cheng , Chan Hao-Yung , Tsai Meng-Han
Published: June 2020

This research aims to build a Mandarin named entity recognition (NER) module using transfer learning to facilitate damage information gathering and analysis in disaster management. The hybrid NER approach proposed in this research includes three modules: (1) data augmentation, which constructs a concise data set for disaster management; (2) reference model, which utilizes the bidirectional long short-term memory–conditional random field framework to implement NER; and (3) the augmented model built by integrating the first two modules via cross-domain transfer with disparate label sets. Through the combination of established rules and learned sentence patterns, the hybrid approach performs well in NER tasks for disaster management and recognizes unfamiliar words successfully. This research applied the proposed NER module to disaster management. In the application, we favorably handled the NER tasks of our related work and achieved our desired outcomes. Through proper transfer, the results of this work can be extended to other fields and consequently bring valuable advantages in diverse applications.
Structure-Based Drug Design for Tuberculosis: Challenges Still Ahead
Authors: Bruch Eduardo M. , Petrella Stéphanie , Bellinzoni Marco
Published: June 2020

Structure-based and computer-aided drug design approaches are commonly considered to have been successful in the fields of cancer and antiviral drug discovery but not as much for antibacterial drug development. The search for novel anti-tuberculosis agents is indeed an emblematic example of this trend. Although huge efforts, by consortiums and groups worldwide, dramatically increased the structural coverage of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis proteome, the vast majority of candidate drugs included in clinical trials during the last decade were issued from phenotypic screenings on whole mycobacterial cells. We developed here three selected case studies, i.e., the serine/threonine (Ser/Thr) kinases—protein kinase (Pkn) B and PknG, considered as very promising targets for a long time, and the DNA gyrase of M. tuberculosis, a well-known, pharmacologically validated target. We illustrated some of the challenges that rational, target-based drug discovery programs in tuberculosis (TB) still have to face, and, finally, discussed the perspectives opened by the recent, methodological developments in structural biology and integrative techniques.
Earnings Drivers of Slovak Manufacturers: Efficiency Assessment of Innovation Management
Authors: Durana Pavol , Zauskova Anna , Vagner Ladislav , Zadnanova Silvia
Published: June 2020

In innovation management, it is crucial to know the incentives or factors that, in many cases, provide the fundamental drivers of earnings, competitive advantage and the sustainable growth of businesses while also measuring their effectiveness. The study deals with the evaluation of the efficiency of investments in innovations utilizing constant returns to scale models of small- and medium-sized industrial enterprises in Slovakia. It is industrial production that includes enterprises that are the creators of new products, the appliers of the latest knowledge of science, and the creators of innovations. The main objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of invested finances in the innovation of small- and medium-sized production enterprises in Slovakia, as it is a very demanding and neglected role in management. The method to assess the efficacy that was used is called Data Envelopment Analysis. CCR-I also CCR-O models were run, where it was essential to determine the inputs and outputs. The indicators R&D expenditures and employee training costs were selected based on a detailed analysis of articles with similar issues. The final sample contained 132 manufacturing enterprises within industrial production that were classified according to the official Slovak categorization because of their relevance. We assessed the effectiveness of food producers, beverage manufacturers, textile and clothing manufacturers, manufacturers of rubber plastic products, metal manufacturers, PC, electronic and optical equipment manufacturers, machine and equipment manufacturers, and furniture manufacturers to identify the enterprises that own earnings drivers caused by innovation. It was detected that the most efficient units in the industrial production are the rubber plastic products manufacturers. The least effective units were found in beverage and furniture manufacturers.
Short-Term Spatio-Temporal Drought Forecasting Using Random Forests Model at New South Wales, Australia
Authors: Dikshit Abhirup , Pradhan Biswajeet , Alamri Abdullah M.
Published: June 2020

Droughts can cause significant damage to agriculture and water resources, leading to severe economic losses and loss of life. One of the most important aspect is to develop effective tools to forecast drought events that could be helpful in mitigation strategies. The understanding of droughts has become more challenging because of the effect of climate change, urbanization and water management; therefore, the present study aims to forecast droughts by determining an appropriate index and analyzing its changes, using climate variables. The work was conducted in three different phases, first being the determination of Standard Precipitation Evaporation Index (SPEI), using global climatic dataset of Climate Research Unit (CRU) from 1901–2018. The indices are calculated at different monthly intervals which could depict short-term or long-term changes, and the index value represents different drought classes, ranging from extremely dry to extremely wet. However, the present study was focused only on forecasting at short-term scales for New South Wales (NSW) region of Australia and was conducted at two different time scales, one month and three months. The second phase involved dividing the data into three sample sizes, training (1901–2010), testing (2011–2015) and validation (2016–2018). Finally, a machine learning approach, Random Forest (RF), was used to train and test the data, using various climatic variables, e.g., rainfall, potential evapotranspiration, cloud cover, vapor pressure and temperature (maximum, minimum and mean). The final phase was to analyze the performance of the model based on statistical metrics and drought classes. Regarding this, the performance of the testing period was conducted by using statistical metrics, Coefficient of Determination (R2) and Root-Mean-Square-Error (RMSE) method. The performance of the model showed a considerably higher value of R2 for both the time scales. However, statistical metrics analyzes the variation between the predicted and observed index values, and it does not consider the drought classes. Therefore, the variation in predicted and observed SPEI values were analyzed based on different drought classes, which were validated by using the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC)-based Area under the Curve (AUC) approach. The results reveal that the classification of drought classes during the validation period had an AUC of 0.82 for SPEI 1 case and 0.84 for SPEI 3 case. The study depicts that the Random Forest model can perform both regression and classification analysis for drought studies in NSW. The work also suggests that the performance of any model for drought forecasting should not be limited only through statistical metrics, but also by examining the variation in terms of drought characteristics.
Cluster Analysis of IR Thermography Data for Differentiating Glass Types in Historical Leaded-Glass Windows
Authors: Hillen Michaël , Legrand Stijn , Dirkx Yarince , Janssens Koen , Van der Snickt Geert , Caen Joost , Steenackers Gunther
Published: June 2020

Infrared thermography is a fast, non-destructive and contactless testing technique which is increasingly used in heritage science. The aim of this study was to assess the ability of infrared thermography, in combination with a data clustering approach, to differentiate between the different types of historical glass that were included in a colorless leaded-glass windows during previous restoration interventions. Inspection of the thermograms and the application of two data mining techniques on the thermal data, i.e., k-means clustering and hierarchical clustering, allowed identifying different groups of window panes that show a different thermal behavior. Both clustering approaches arrive at similar groupings of the glass with a clear separation of three types. However, the lead cames that hold the glass panes appear to have a substantial impact on the thermal behavior of the surrounding glass, thus preventing classification of the smallest glass panes. For the larger panes, this was not a critical issue as the center of the glass remained unaffected. Subtle visual color differences between panes, implying a variation in coloring metal ions, was not always distinguished by IRT. Nevertheless, data clustering assisted infrared thermography shows potential as an efficient and swift method for documenting the material intervention history of leaded-glass windows during or in preparation of conservation treatments.
Finding Minimal Optimal Indent Separation for Polystyrene via Instrumental Nanoindentation and FEA Method
Authors: Jiang Chulin , Davis Michael , Zekonyte Jurgita
Published: June 2020

Nanoindentation became a standard non-destructive technique to measure mechanical properties at the submicron scale of various materials. A set of empirical rules were established to guarantee the validity of the results. One of those rules is the separation between individual indents that should be 20–30 times maximum indentation depth. This paper investigates the influence of the distance between indents on the accuracy of mechanical properties for polystyrene with a view to determine minimum optimal separation that is needed to measure various material properties. A series of different depths with three different orientations was considered through both the experimental and finite element method to explore the relationship between the distance and indentation depth. Both methods demonstrated that hardness and modulus values for polystyrene keep stable with the distance approximately 15 times the maximum indentation depth for the matrix type set up, and nominal separation of 10 is enough when indents are executed in a single row or column.
An Efficient Method for Calculating the Lightning Electromagnetic Field Over Perfectly Conducting Ground
Authors: Liu Xin , Ge Tianping
Published: June 2020

In the implementation of the Cooray–Rubinstein formula, the calculation of a lightning electromagnetic field over perfectly conducting ground accounted for most of the computation time. Commonly, evaluating the ideal lightning electromagnetic field is based on the numerical integration method. In practice, only a sufficiently small discretization step is essential to get an accurate result, which leads to a relatively large number of calculations and results in a lengthy computation time. Besides, the programming is relatively complicated because the propagation of the lightning current along the channel must be considered. In order to increase the efficiency and simplify the programming, an improved method is proposed in this paper. In this method, the evaluation of the ideal lightning electromagnetic field is equated with a summation of analytical formulae and a simple integral operation, so it would be more efficient and easily programmed. The validation of the proposed method is demonstrated by some simulation examples.
Experimental Study of Entrainment and Mixing of Renewable Active Particles in Fluidized Beds
Authors: Szucs Botond , Alagha Mohamed Sobhi , Szentannai Pal
Published: June 2020

Fluidized bed combustors were initially designed and built basically for the utilization of fossil fuels, mostly coal. The actual worldwide trend of transitioning from fossil fuels to renewables requires sufficient knowledge on the fluid mechanics of these new particle types because of the significant differences in their shapes, sizes, densities, and homogeneities. This article presents experimental results on the particle entrainment and mixing of some industrially relevant fuels such as solid refused fuel/refuse derived fuel (SRF/RDF), bark, sunflower shell, and wheat shell. The measurements were performed on a lab-scale fluidized bed experimental facility. The results show that sunflower shell is entrained in the highest degree; however, at very low velocity, the entrainment of wheat shell is the most intensive. The entrainment behaviors of the investigated SRF and bark samples are similar. On the other hand, the mixing results showed that the SRF has relatively high mass fractions in the bottom and centeral regions of the fluidized bed at low superficial velocities, while at elevated velocities, the entire mass of this fuel is shifted upwards. Interestingly, just the opposite tendency can be observed in cases of all other investigated biomass fuels. Finally, the nonspherical renewable active particles have markedly higher concentrations in the bottom region of the bed compared to spherical ones.
Vision-Based Sorting Systems for Transparent Plastic Granulate
Authors: Peršak Tadej , Viltužnik Branka , Hernavs Jernej , Klančnik Simon
Published: June 2020

Granulate material sorting is a mature and well-developed topic, due to its presence in various fields, such as the recycling, mining, and food industries. However, sorting can be improved, and artificial intelligence has been used for this purpose. This paper presents the development of an efficient sorting system for transparent polycarbonate plastic granulate, based on machine vision and air separation technology. The developed belt-type system is composed of a transparent conveyor with an integrated vision camera to detect defects in passing granulates. The vision system incorporates an industrial camera and backlight illumination. Individual particle localization and classification with the k-Nearest Neighbors algorithm were performed to determine the positions and conditions of each particle. Particles with defects are further separated pneumatically as they fall from the conveyor belt. Furthermore, an experiment was conducted whereby the combined performances of our sorting machine and classification method were evaluated. The results show that the developed system exhibits promising separation capabilities, despite numerous challenges accompanying the transparent granulate material.
Identification and Model Update of the Dynamic Properties of the San Silvestro Belfry in L’Aquila and Estimation of Bell’s Dynamic Actions
Authors: Aloisio Angelo , Capanna Ilaria , Cirella Riccardo , Alaggio Rocco , Di Fabio Franco , Fragiacomo Massimo
Published: June 2020

The authors investigated the dynamic behaviour of the San Silvestro belfry in L’Aquila (Italy). The 2009 earthquake in L’Aquila caused severe damages to the entire masonry complex. Extensive rehabilitation works, ended in 2019, repaired the structure and enhanced its seismic safety. In this paper, the authors discuss three aspects typical of masonry towers by interpreting the outcomes of Operational Modal Analysis carried out on December 2019: the interactions between the tower and the masonry complex, the dynamic effects of the bell, and the seismic reliability assessment of the tower. Specifically, the experimental mode shapes drive the estimation of an equivalent cross-section, whose principal axes of inertia match with the directions of oscillation of the mode shapes, and the parameters of an equivalent cantilevered beam roughly representative of the tower dynamics. In a second step, a two-degrees-of-freedom analytical model simulates the dynamic coupling between the tower and the more massive bell. The response of the system to a set of seven strong-motion earthquakes yields the assessment of the bell effects over the seismic performance of the masonry tower.
Optical Characterization of an Intra-Arterial Light and Drug Delivery System for Photodynamic Therapy of Atherosclerotic Plaque
Authors: Zellweger Matthieu , Xiao Ying , Jain Manish , Giraud Marie-Noëlle , Pitzschke Andreas , de Kalbermatten Matthieu , Berger Erwin , van den Bergh Hubert , Cook Stéphane , Wagnières Georges
Published: June 2020

Although the versatility of photodynamic therapy (PDT) is well established, the technical aspects of light delivery systems vary significantly depending on the targeted organ. This article describes the optical properties of a light and drug delivery system (catheter and light diffuser) suitable for intra-arterial PDT by using a planar imaging goniometer to measure the full radiance longitudinal and angular profiles at the surface of the diffuser at 652 nm. The results show that the system emits almost Lambertian and “top hat” profiles, an interesting feature to determine the light dosimetry in the many vascular applications of PDT.
Statistical Learning of the Worst Regional Smog Extremes with Dynamic Conditional Modeling
Authors: Deng Lu , Yu Mengxin , Zhang Zhengjun
Published: June 2020

This paper is concerned with the statistical learning of the extreme smog (PM 2.5 ) dynamics of a vast region in China. Differently from classical extreme value modeling approaches, this paper develops a dynamic model of conditional, exponentiated Weibull distribution modeling and analysis of regional smog extremes, particularly for the worst scenarios observed in each day. To gain higher modeling efficiency, weather factors will be introduced in an enhanced model. The proposed model and the enhanced model are illustrated with temporal/spatial maxima of hourly PM 2.5 observations each day from smog monitoring stations located in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei geographical region between 2014 and 2019. The proposed model performs more precisely on fittings compared with other previous models dealing with maxima with autoregressive parameter dynamics, and provides relatively accurate prediction as well. The findings enhance the understanding of how severe extreme smog scenarios can be and provide useful information for the central/local government to conduct coordinated PM 2.5 control and treatment. For completeness, probabilistic properties of the proposed model were investigated. Statistical estimation based on the conditional maximum likelihood principle is established. To demonstrate the estimation and inference efficiency of studies, extensive simulations were also implemented.
Odor Characteristics and Concentration of Malodorous Chemical Compounds Emitted from a Combined Sewer System in Korea
Authors: Park Sangjin
Published: June 2020

(1) Objectives: This study was carried out to investigate the characteristics of odors emitted from a combined sewer for the abatement of combined sewer odor. (2) Methods: The odor samples emitted from the combined sewer were collected at 14 sites, and the concentrations of 13 malodorous chemicals were determined by the instrumental analysis such as gas chromatography. To understand the sensory characteristic of the combined sewer odor, the on-site odor intensity (OOI) was evaluated by the direct sensory method using the human olfactory sensitivity of panelists with a normal sense of smell. The primary odor-causing compounds with high contribution were evaluated based on the converted odor concentration (COC), which was calculated by using the compound concentration and threshold limit value. Since the direct sensory method requires a lot of manpower and time, the converted odor intensity method (COI) calculated by the malodorous compound concentration was reviewed and compared with other cases. (3) Results: As a result of the instrumental analysis, four compounds which were higher than other compounds, showed an average of 325 ppb for H2S, 121 ppb for NH3, 102 ppb for CH3SH, and 108 ppb for toluene. The rest of the compounds appeared low, below 60 ppb. Based on the result of evaluating the COC, three compounds which are H2S, CH3SH, and (CH3)3N appeared to be compounds with a high contribution to combined sewer odor. Especially, it was estimated that H2S was the main odor-causing compound in this study. The on-site odor intensity of the combined sewer as judged by 5 panelists appeared to be 2.8 degrees on average, the same as COI. The correlation between the odor intensity and the H2S concentration in the combined sewer showed as the following equation: COI, degree = 1.0757 × log (H2S conc., ppb) + 0.3696. (4) Conclusions: In Korea, the odor emission standard in the atmosphere including sewer odor has adopted 20 ppb for H2S, and less than 2 degrees for odor intensity in the non-industrial area. However, since the mean observed odor intensity was 2.8 degrees and the concentration of H2S was also 325 ppb on average in this study, it was concluded that countermeasures should be prepared to reduce the complaints due to combined sewer odor in residential areas.
On a New Generalized Integral Operator and Certain Operating Properties
Authors: Guzman Paulo , Lugo Luciano , Nápoles Valdés Juan , Vivas-Cortez Miguel
Published: June 2020

In this paper, we present a general definition of a generalized integral operator which contains as particular cases, many of the well-known, fractional and integer order integrals.
A Brief Theory of Epidemic Kinetics
Authors: Louchet François
Published: June 2020

In the context of the COVID-19 epidemic, and on the basis of the Theory of Dynamical Systems, we propose a simple theoretical approach for the expansion of contagious diseases, with a particular focus on viral respiratory tracts. The infection develops through contacts between contagious and exposed people, with a rate proportional to the number of contagious and of non-immune individuals, to contact duration and turnover, inversely proportional to the efficiency of protection measures, and balanced by the average individual recovery response. The obvious initial exponential increase is readily hindered by the growing recovery rate, and also by the size reduction of the exposed population. The system converges towards a stable attractor whose value is expressed in terms of the “reproductive rate” R0, depending on contamination and recovery factors. Various properties of the attractor are examined, and particularly its relations with R0. Decreasing this ratio below a critical value leads to a tipping threshold beyond which the epidemic is over. By contrast, significant values of the above ratio may bring the system through a bifurcating hierarchy of stable cycles up to a chaotic behaviour.
Development of Biodegradable Agar-Agar/Gelatin-Based Superabsorbent Hydrogel as an Efficient Moisture-Retaining Agent
Authors: Chaudhary Jyoti , Thakur Sourbh , Sharma Minaxi , Gupta Vijai Kumar , Thakur Vijay Kumar
Published: June 2020

Downgrading in the yield of crop is due to the inadequate availability of water. The way out for this trouble is to construct synthetic resources dependent on natural polymers with great water absorption and preservation limits. The present study investigated the design of agar-agar (Agr) and gelatin (GE) copolymerized methyl acrylate (MA) and acrylic acid (AA) hydrogel (Agr/GE-co-MA/AA) as a soil conditioner for moisture maintenance in agriculture. Agr/GE-co-MA/AA hydrogel was prepared by utilizing microwave-assisted green synthesis following the most suitable reaction conditions to obtain a remarkable water swelling percentage. The fabricated Agr/GE-co-MA/AA hydrogel was investigated through field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The water holding capacity of the soil and sand was examined by mixing Agr/GE-co-MA/AA hydrogel with soil and sand. The result demonstrates that the water holding time extended from 10 to 30 days for soil and 6 to 10 days for sand by using Agr/GE-co-MA/AA hydrogel. This synthesized biodegradable, low-cost and non-toxic Agr/GE-co-MA/AA hydrogel shows novelty as soil water maintaining material for irrigation in agriculture.
Biogenic Metal Oxides
Authors: Moura Hipassia M. , Unterlass Miriam M.
Published: June 2020

Biogenic metal oxides (MxOy) feature structures as highly functional and unique as the organisms generating them. They have caught the attention of scientists for the development of novel materials by biomimicry. In order to understand how biogenic MxOy could inspire novel technologies, we have reviewed examples of all biogenic MxOy, as well as the current state of understanding of the interactions between the inorganic MxOy and the biological matter they originate from and are connected to. In this review, we first summarize the origins of the precursors that living nature converts into MxOy. From the point-of-view of our materials chemists, we present an overview of the biogenesis of silica, iron and manganese oxides, as the only reported biogenic MxOy to date. These MxOy are found across all five kingdoms (bacteria, protoctista, fungi, plants and animals). We discuss the key molecules involved in the biosynthesis of MxOy, the functionality of the MxOy structures, and the techniques by which the biogenic MxOy can be studied. We close by outlining the biomimetic approaches inspired by biogenic MxOy materials and their challenges, and we point at promising directions for future organic-inorganic materials and their synthesis.
Recent Trends in Biomaterials for Immobilization of Lipases for Application in Non-Conventional Media
Authors: Alnoch Robson Carlos , Alves dos Santos Leandro , Marques de Almeida Janaina , Krieger Nadia , Mateo Cesar
Published: June 2020

The utilization of biomaterials as novel carrier materials for lipase immobilization has been investigated by many research groups over recent years. Biomaterials such as agarose, starch, chitin, chitosan, cellulose, and their derivatives have been extensively studied since they are non-toxic materials, can be obtained from a wide range of sources and are easy to modify, due to the high variety of functional groups on their surfaces. However, although many lipases have been immobilized on biomaterials and have shown potential for application in biocatalysis, special features are required when the biocatalyst is used in non-conventional media, for example, in organic solvents, which are required for most reactions in organic synthesis. In this article, we discuss the use of biomaterials for lipase immobilization, highlighting recent developments in the synthesis and functionalization of biomaterials using different methods. Examples of effective strategies designed to result in improved activity and stability and drawbacks of the different immobilization protocols are discussed. Furthermore, the versatility of different biocatalysts for the production of compounds of interest in organic synthesis is also described.
Regenerable Superhydrophobic Coatings for Biomedical Fabrics
Authors: Ferrari Michele , Cirisano Francesca , Morán M. Carmen
Published: June 2020

Coatings with high water repellence represent a promising field for biomedical applications. Superhydrophobicity (SH) can be used for preventing adhesion, controlling cell deposition, and spreading by inhibition of adsorption processes at liquid–solid interfaces. The recyclability of medical aids like fabrics can open the way for lower cost and more environmentally-friendly solutions. In this case, two different coatings form recyclable and low global warming potential materials and green solvents have been prepared and characterized based on their wettability properties. The resulting substrates have been used for the adhesion and spreading of representative skin cell lines, both tumoral and non-tumoral, showing a strong decrease in cell viability with values < 10%. The coated substrates showed a complete recovery on initial SH properties after rinsing with suitable solvents.