bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
KARAKTERISTIK BATANG PENTANAHAN SISTEM ARANG-GARAM (SIGARANG) SEBAGAI UPAYA PERBAIKAN SISTEM PENTANAHAN
Authors: Abidin Zainal
Published: March 2019

Penelitian yang dilakukan di daerah Kabupaten Lamongan sebelah selatan tepatnya di Desa Sarirejo dan Kecamatan Mantup Kabupaten Lamongan yang merupakan sampel dari kebanyakan kondisi tanah di daerah tersebut yang kering dengan kedalaman mata air rata-rata 100 m, sehingga dalam kasus pentanahan listrik menjadi kurang ideal. Menurut PUIL 2000 bahwa pentanahan pada insatalasi rumah yang anjurkan minimal 5Ω dan maksimal 10Ω. Penggunaan model pentanahan sistem garam-arang (SIGARANG) menjadi alternatif  pentanahan yang dapat digunakan untuk pentanahan sistem instalasi rumah tangga.

Berdasarkan hasil penelitian disimpulkan bahwa pentanahan air, garam dan arang dengan ukuran 5:2:1 menghasilkan rata-rata nilai tahanan 1,52 Ω pada tanah padas kondisi tanah basah pada tabel 4.1, dan rata-rata 2,43Ω  pada tanah kapur kondisi basah pada tabel 4.3. dibandingkan dengan metode tanpa Sigarang pentanahan nilai rata- rata pada tanah padas 3Ω dan pada tanah kapur 3,5Ω. Pentanahan menggunakan air, garam dan arang (SIGARANG) dapat menghasilkan efisiensi pentanahan sebesar 75% pada tanah kapur. Efisiensi pentanahan pada tanah padas rata-rata  65% dibandingkan pentanahan tanpa SIGARANG.
Effects of rehabilitation on the patients with chronic low back pain
Authors: Shakoor Md. Abdus , Islam M. Tariqul , Salek A. K. M. , Moyeenuzzaman Md.
Published: March 2019

This study was done to observe the effects of rehabilitation on chronic low back pain on 139 patient. They were divided into two groups:  a) One group (n=71) received naproxen (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, NSAID) with selective rehabilitation and b) another group (n= 68) treated with NSAID only. The patients were followed up weekly for eight weeks. The improvement was found in both groups after treatment. In patients with rehabilitation, the pre-treatment and post-treatment mean scores (Oswastry Disability Index, Visual Analogue Scale and Modified Zung Index) were 34.3 ± 9.8 and 9.9 ± 8.0 respectively (p<0.001). Treatment with NSAID only reduced the mean scores from 34.9 ± 13.5 to 16.0 ± 14.4 (p<0.001) after treatment. There was no significant difference in clinical improvement between the groups in pre-treatment compare with week one, rehabilitation group (29.7 ± 8.7) vs NSAID group (31.5 ± 13.8). While significant improvement was found in rehabilitation group in comparison to NSAID group after 8th week, rehabilitation group vs NSAID group scores were 10.0 ± 7.9 vs 15.9 ± 14.5 respectively (p= 0.004). In conclusion, rehabilitation can be used as an adjunct to NSAID for better improvement.
Off-pump versus on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting in patient of impaired renal function
Authors: Alauddin Md. , Hossain Aslam , Hoque Rezwanul , Adhikary Asit Baran
Published: March 2019

The purpose of this study was to compare the renal function in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting in off-pump and on-pump having pre-operative impaired renal function. In the on-pump, the serum creatinine and urea levels were significantly increased on post-operative day 1, 3 and 7. On day 1, it was maximum, then gradually decreased but not reached to pre-operative level. In case of off-pump, serum creatinine and urea levels were significantly increased on post-operative day 1 and 3. On day 1, it was maximum. Then decreased and the serum creatinine reached below pre-operative level on day 7. In case of on-pump, the creatinine clearance rate was significantly decreased on post-operative day 1, 3 and 7. On day 1, it was minimum. Then gradually increased but not reached the pre-operative level. In case off-pump, the creatinine clearance rate was significantly decreased on day 1 and 3. On day 1, it was minimum, then gradually increased and reached above the pre-operative level. A significant low level creatinine clearance rate was observed in on-pump group. Renal function was better preserved in patients undergoing off-pump in comparison to on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting.
PEMBELAJARAN MATEMATIKA DENGAN MENGGUNAKAN MEDIA GAMBAR DI KELAS 1 SDN 017 SEBERANG CENGAR KECAMATAN KUANTAN MUDIK
Authors: Rosmayanti Rosmayanti
Published: March 2019

This research is motivated by the low learning result of mathematics. The purpose of the study is to improve thelearning outcomes of mathematics through the use of image media. The design of this research is a classroomaction research by using the media of images in learning mathematics. The results of this research are teacherobservation data at meeting 1 of 65%, meeting 2 by 75%, meeting 3 by 85%, and meeting 4 by 90%. Studentactivity data at meeting 1 is 55%, meeting 2 is 60%, meeting 3 is 75%, and meeting 4 is 85%. Results ofmathematics learning seen from the results of the average class on the initial data of student learning outcomesof 62.05 after used the image media in learning on the daily test 1 student learning outcomes with an average of77.56, and increased in daily repeat 2 to 88,03 average class. The conclusion of this research is the use of imagemedia in learning can improve the learning result of mathematics.
UPAYA MENINGKATKAN KEMAMPUAN PASSING BAWAH BOLA VOLI PADA MATA PELAJARAN PJOK MELALUI MODIFIKASI ALAT SISWA KELAS IV SDN 027 PARIT BARU KECAMATAN TAMBANG KABUPATEN KAMPAR
Authors: Darmilis Darmilis
Published: March 2019

This research was motivated by the low ability of low-tide volleyball students in grade IV SDN 027 Parit BaruKecamatan Tambang. This study aims to improve the ability of pasing under PJOK subject volleyball throughmodification of tools. The subjects of this study were all fourth grade students of SDN 027 Parit Baru,Kecamatan Tambang, totaling 20 people. The form of research is classroom action research. This researchinstrument consists of performance instruments and data collection instruments in the form of observation sheetsof teacher activities and student activities. Based on the results of the study, it can be seen that the students'completeness before the action reached 40%, while the first cycle achieved completeness by 70% and in thesecond cycle the students' mastery increased to 85%, so that with this result the students' completeness hadreached 80% of the success in class actions. Based on the results of the study it can be concluded that throughmodification of the tool can improve the ability to pass under the fourth grade students of SDN 027 Parit Baru,Kecamatan Tambang.
PENINGKATAN KETERAMPILAN MENGAJAR GURU PADA MATA PELAJARAN IPS MELALUI SUPERVISI AKADEMIK SD NEGERI 038 PULAU KIJANG
Authors: Jurianti Jurianti
Published: March 2019

The background of this study is the low teacher teaching skills in social studies subjects. To overcome this problemresearchers conduct research through the application of academic supervision. This research is a school action researchconducted at SD Negeri 038 Pulau Kijang. The subjects of this study were 10 teachers. The results of the study show thatteacher teaching skills have improved after the implementation of academic supervision. This can be seen in the pre-cycleteacher teaching skills included in the sufficient category with an average score of 56.02. In the first cycle the teacherteaching skills were included in the good category with an average score of 71.02. And in cycle II teacher teaching skills areincluded in the good category with an average score of 76.34. Based on this acquisition it can be concluded that teacherteaching skills in social studies subjects have increased after academic supervision has been applied.
Optimization of Region of Interest (ROI) Image of Malaria Parasites
Authors: Rosnelly Rika , Wahyuni Linda , Kusanti Jani
Published: March 2019

The stage of region of interest (ROI) is the determining part to the next stage in image processing. ROI is a process of taking certain parts or regions in an image. ROI can be done by manual and automatic cropping. Some previous studies still use cropping manually for detection of malaria parasites. This study uses cropping automatically for detection of malaria parasites. The types of malaria parasites used were falciparum, vivax and malariae with ring stages, tropozoite, schizon and gametocytes. Data from malaria parasites were obtained at the North Sumatra Provincial Health Laboratory. The results show that the ROI image can crop the malaria parasite region. Keyword - malaria parasite, ROI.
Pemanfaatan Metode Certainty Factor dalam Sistem Pakar Diagnosa Penyakit pada Anak
Authors: Indriani Amanah Febrian , Rachmawati Eka Yuni , Fitriana Jevita Dwi
Published: March 2019

Dibandingkan dengan orang dewasa, bayi dan balita jauh lebih rentan terhadap penyakit. Kondisi geografis Indonesia yang berada di daerah tropis menjadikan variasi mikroorganisme penyebab penyakit lebih beragam. Diperlukan pengetahuan penyakit-penyakit yang biasa menyerang sang anak agar orang tua dapat bertindak secara cepat dan tepat dalam mencegah dan menanggulangi kondisi tersebut. Maka dari itu perlu adanya sebuah sistem yang membantu para orang tua untuk mendeteksi secara dini penyakit dari anak. Salah satu cabang ilmu komputer yang dapat membantu orang tua dalam menangani deteksi penyakit pada anak adalah sistem pakar. Pada penelitian ini, pembuatan sistem pakar diagnosa penyakit pada anak menggunakan metode certainty factor. Aplikasi diagnosa penyakit anak dapat melakukan diagnosa terhadap pasien berdasarkan gejala-gejala yang di alami sehingga dapat diperoleh sebuah kemungkinan penyakit yang didertita pasien. Adapun tingkat akurasi sistem yang telah dilakukan oleh 23 pasien terdapat 22 kasus yang sesuai dan 1 kasus yang tidak sesuai. Jadi tingkat akurasi sistem setelah dilakukan pengujian terhadap 23 pasien adalah 96%.
MORBIDADE E MORTALIDADE POR DOENÇAS RELACIONADAS AO SANEAMENTO AMBIENTAL INADEQUADO EM BELÉM DO PARÁ
Authors: Lima Jarleson Dos Santos , Dos Santos Geovanna Carolina Santos , Rodrigues Rodrigo Silvano Silva , Dos Santos Filippe Vilhena
Published: March 2019

A ineficácia no fornecimento e investimento em serviços de saneamento básico influencia diretamente na saúde da população e em sua qualidade de vida, os expondo a Doenças Relacionadas ao Saneamento Ambiental Inadequado (DRSAI) e provocando consequentes gastos com a saúde pública. A pesquisa analisa por meio de coeficientes de mortalidade e morbidade as ocorrências de DRSAI no município de Belém do Pará, no período de 2007 a 2016; tal município ocupa a 98ª colocação no Ranking do Saneamento Básico do Instituto Trata Brasil 2018 das 100 maiores cidades brasileiras. A metodologia aplicada considerou dados obtidos na plataforma DATASUS - Departamento de Informática do Sistema Único de Saúde - sobre óbitos e internações, ocasionados em decorrência de Diarreia e Gastroenterite, Leptospirose, Hanseníase e Dengue hemorrágica. Por meio de dados demográficos do Instituto Nacional de Geografia e Estatística foram calculados Indicadores de Morbidade e Mortalidade associados aos dados coletados no Sistema Nacional de Informações sobre Saneamento (SNIS) e do Instituto Trata Brasil.  Confirma-se que determinadas doenças estão diretamente associadas as condições sanitárias e ambientais em Belém/PA; associado ao crescimento desestruturado, o precário saneamento ambiental no município deixa os habitantes mais suscetíveis a doenças infecto-parasitárias, sendo essencial à saúde investimentos no setor de saneamento básico.
ESTIMATIVA DAS CONTRIBUIÇÕES DE CARGA ORGÂNICA DOMÉSTICA E IMPACTOS AMBIENTAIS DAS LIGAÇÕES INADIMPLENTES DE ESGOTO EM JUAZEIRO DO NORTE - CEARÁ
Authors: Freire Letícia Lacerda , Santos Yannice Tatiane da Costa
Published: March 2019

A matéria orgânica é um dos principais indicadores da poluição por esgoto doméstico nos corpos aquáticos e pode ser utilizada para mensurar falhas nas eficiências de estações de tratamento de esgoto de grau secundário. Com o intuito de determinar a carga orgânica doméstica de Juazeiro do Norte - CE foram realizadas estimativas de carga total e de outras parcelas, definidas em seis grupos, contemplando dados de DBO 5,20, vazão de produção de esgoto e vazão de operação do afluente da ETE local, considerando período seco e chuvoso, entre os anos de 2014 e 2015. As cargas médias calculadas, para cada grupo, foram: Grupo A (Total) = 11.895,6 KgDBO/d; Grupo B (com acesso à rede) = 4.592,9 KgDBO/d; Grupo C (sem acesso à rede) = 7.302,7 KgDBO/d; Grupo D (Ligações inadimplentes) = 2.158,9 KgDBO/d; Grupo E (remanescente da ETE) = 496,3 KgDBO/d; Grupo F (retida pela ETE) = 1.937,7 KgDBO/d. Com os valores obtidos estima-se que a produção per capita para o município é de 0,047 KgDBO/hab.d. A carga orgânica da população desassistida é considerável. A ETE Malvas consegue reter 78,5% da carga afluente, esse valor seria mais representativo caso todas as ligações inadimplentes fossem adeptas. Os valores de carga orgânica tratada são aproximadamente seis vezes menores do que o montante produzido, não obstante, o risco evidente de contaminação do aquífero de abastecimento exige medidas emergenciais como a educação sanitária, para interligação dos imóveis inadimplentes, a ampliação do sistema coletor de esgoto e das próprias alternativas de tratamento. Foram listados os principais impactos ambientais negativos decorrentes do quadro verificado, como a alteração da qualidade dos corpos aquáticos, o déficit financeiro municipal e do prestador de serviço e problemas de saúde pública.
The Effect of Salary Satisfaction, Work Satisfaction and Organizational Commitment To Work Intention
Authors: Indrasari Meithiana , Raditya Purnomo Bambang , Yunus Eddy , Haryati Eny , Hashmi Abdul Razzak
Published: March 2019

High rate of turnover leads to adverse effect to an organization. Such problem is likely generating instability and uncertainty towards employment condition and human resources cost rise in forms of training invested to them, recruitment and newly built training programs. High turnover, in addition, also results in organizational ineffectiveness because it loses experienced employees as well as spends much times in training new, inexperienced employees.

This study aims to analyze the effect of salary satisfaction, work satisfaction and organizational commitment on withdrawal intention and to analyze the most affective variable on withdrawal intention. There are 115 respondents for the samples and data analysis during the research is held by using SEM and AMOS 5 program.

According to the analysis, it is concluded as the followings: work satisfaction has a positive effect on organizational commitment (CR = 6.052); salary satisfaction has a negative effect on turnover (CR = -4.306); job satisfaction has a negative effect on turnover (CR = -4.846); and organizational commitment has a negative effect on turnover (CR = -2.822).
Note on History of Age Replacement Policies
Authors: Nakagawa Toshio , Chen Mingchih , Zhao Xufeng
Published: March 2019

This paper tries to trace our research history briefly from Barlow and Proschan to attain general replacement models. We begin with a random age replacement policy that is planned at a random time Y and call it as random replacement. When the distribution of Y becomes a degenerate distribution placing unit mass at T, age replacement is formulated. We obtain the general formulas for optimum replacement times. We next suppose the unit works for a job with random works, and replacement policies with N cycles are discussed. As follows, we combine age and random replacement models and discuss replacement first, replacement last, replacement overtime, replacement overtime first and replacement overtime last. By formulating the distributions of replacement times with n variables, general replacement models with n replacement times are obtained.
Velocity and Acceleration of NavIC Satellites using Broadcast Ephemeris
Authors: Gogoi Bidyut B. , Kumar Akhilesh , Kartik A. , S. Nirmala
Published: March 2019

The current manuscript describes a methodology to derive velocity and acceleration of NavIC satellites from the broadcast ephemeris. A fourth-order central differencing formula is used to derive NavIC satellites’ Earth-Centred-Earth-Fixed (ECEF) velocity from the ECEF positions that are calculated using the standard IRNSS-SIS-ICD algorithm. The proposed methodology is quite simpler and straight forward than the conventional rotation matrix method and therefore it can be a very good alternative to the existing approaches. The same differencing formula has been further implemented to derive the ECEF acceleration form the ECEF velocities. Results obtained demonstrated that the satellites’ ECEF velocity can be approximated upto an accuracy of 0.6 mm/s while the ECEF acceleration can be of the further accuracy of within 0.06 mm/sec2 in each axis.
Toward Precision in Crop Yield Estimation Using Remote Sensing and Optimization Techniques
Authors: Awad Mohamad M.
Published: March 2019

Many crop yield estimation techniques are being used, however the most effective one is based on using geospatial data and technologies such as remote sensing. However, the remote sensing data which are needed to estimate crop yield are insufficient most of the time due to many problems such as climate conditions (% of clouds), and low temporal resolution. There have been many attempts to solve the lack of data problem using very high temporal and very low spatial resolution images such as Modis. Although this type of image can compensate for the lack of data due to climate problems, they are only suitable for very large homogeneous crop fields. To compensate for the lack of high spatial resolution remote sensing images due to climate conditions, a new optimization model was created. Crop yield estimation is improved and its precision is increased based on the new model that includes the use of the energy balance equation. To verify the results of the crop yield estimation based on the new model, information from local farmers about their potato crop yields for the same year were collected. The comparison between the estimated crop yields and the actual production in different fields proves the efficiency of the new optimization model.
Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Multidrug-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae on Portuguese Livestock Manure
Authors: Amador Paula , Fernandes Ruben , Prudêncio Cristina , Duarte Isabel
Published: March 2019

The exposure of both crop fields and humans to antibiotic-resistant bacteria in animal excreta is an emergent concern of the One Health initiative. This study assessed the contamination of livestock manure from poultry, pig, dairy farms and slaughterhouses in Portugal with resistance determinants. The resistance profiles of 331 Enterobacteriaceae isolates to eight β-lactam (amoxicillin, cefoxitin, cefotaxime, cefpirome, aztreonam, ceftazidime, imipenem and meropenem) and to five non-β-lactam antibiotics (tetracycline (TET), trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (SXT), ciprofloxacin (CIP), chloramphenicol (CHL) and gentamicin) was investigated. Forty-nine integron and non-β-lactam resistance genes were also screened for. Rates of resistance to the 13 antibiotics ranged from 80.8% to 0.6%. Multidrug resistance (MDR) rates were highest in pig farm samples (79%). Thirty different integron and resistance genes were identified. These were mainly associated with resistance to CHL (catI and catII), CIP (mainly, qnrS, qnrB and oqx), TET (mainly tet(A) and tet(M)) and SXT (mostly dfrIa group and sul3). In MDR isolates, integron presence and non-β-lactam resistance to TET, SXT and CHL were positively correlated. Overall, a high prevalence of MDR Enterobacteriaceae was found in livestock manure. The high gene diversity for antibiotic resistance identified in this study highlights the risk of MDR spread within the environment through manure use.
A New Approach to the Study of Multi-Pass Welds–Microstructure and Properties of Welded 20-mm-Thick Superduplex Stainless Steel
Authors: Valiente Bermejo Maria Asuncion , Hurtig Kjell , Eyzop Daniel , Karlsson Leif
Published: March 2019

Type 2507 superduplex stainless steel 20 mm in thickness was multi-pass-welded with Gas Metal Arc Welding (GMAW) and Flux-Cored Arc Welding (FCAW) processes. Recommended and higher arc energies and inter-pass temperatures were used. Thermal cycles were monitored using a recently developed procedure involving the successive instrumentation of the multi-pass welds, pass by pass, by addition of thermocouples in each weld pass. The repeatability of temperature measurements and survival rate of more than 90% of thermocouples confirmed the reliability of the procedure. Reheating by subsequent passes caused a progressive increase in the austenite content of the weld metal. The as-deposited GMAW passes with higher-than-recommended arc energy showed the lowest presence of nitrides. Therefore, the cooling rate—and not the time exposed at the critical temperature range—seems to be the key factor for nitride formation. The welding sequence layout also plays an important role in the distribution of secondary phases. A larger amount and concentration of secondary austenite and σ-phase was found for a larger number of subsequent passes in the immediate vicinity of a specific weld pass. The impact toughness exceeded requirements for all welds. Differences in absorbed energies were related to the amount of micro-inclusions found with the FCAW weld showing the lowest absorbed energies and highest amount of micro-inclusions. Pitting corrosion preferentially initiated in locations with secondary austenite and σ-phase. However, in the absence of these secondary phases, the HAZ containing nitrides was the weakest location where pitting initiated. The results of this work have implications on practical welding for superduplex stainless steels: the current recommendations on maximum arc energy should be revised for large thickness weldments, and the importance of the welding sequence layout on the formation of secondary phases should be considered.
A Multi–Level Approach for Simulation of Storage and Respiration of Produce
Authors: Elhalwagy Mahmoud , Dyck Nolan , Straatman Anthony G.
Published: March 2019

A produce gas respiration model and fruit-stack geometric digital generation approach is used with commercial CFD software (ANSYS CFXTM) to conduct shape-level simulations of the fluid flow, heat and respiration processes that occur during the storage of produce, with the ultimate purpose of providing detailed information that can be used to develop closure coefficients for volume-averaged simulations. A digital generation procedure is used to develop an accurate representation of the shapes of the different produce. The produce shapes are then implemented into a discrete element modelling tool to generate a randomly-distributed stack of produce in a generic container, which is then utilized as a representative elementary volume (REV) for simulations of airflow and respiration. Simulations are first conducted on single pieces of produce and compared to a recently published experimental data for tomatoes and avocadoes to generate coefficients for the respiration model required for the shape-level simulations on the REV. The results of the shape-level simulation are then processed to produce coefficients that can be used for volume-averaged (porous-continuum-level) calculations, which are much more practical for simulations of large areas of storage comprised of hundreds or thousands of boxes of different commodities. The results show that the multi-level approach is a viable means for developing the simulation parameters required to study refrigeration, ripening and storage/transport of produce.
Older Adults’ Usability and Emotional Reactions toward Text, Diagram, Image, and Animation Interfaces for Displaying Health Information
Authors: Fang Yu-Min , Chun Lin , Chu Bo-Cheng
Published: March 2019

Technology can facilitate the provision of healthcare to older adults. Wearable devices are thus increasingly prevalent amidst perpetual component miniaturization and cost reduction. This study aimed to determine whether existing application (app) interfaces are suitable for older adults by comparing the perceived usability and emotional reactions of younger users and older users to the health information display formats of wearable interfaces. Based on the outcomes of a literature review and expert recommendations, four health display interfaces—text, diagram, image, and animation—were developed and revised. Thirty respondents in Miaoli, Taiwan, were invited to participate in a questionnaire and interviews. The collected data were analyzed and discussed to develop design recommendations. The findings of this study were as follows: (1) the diagram interface had the lowest performance; (2) the respondents preferred the animation interface, which produced strong affective valence, thereby suggesting that animation generated positive emotions, yielding a result consistent with expert views and existing design principles; and (3) older users were more accepting of the text interface than the younger users, who exhibited negative emotions toward the text interface, highlighting a significant generation gap.
Making Shopping Easy for People with Visual Impairment Using Mobile Assistive Technologies
Authors: Elgendy Mostafa , Sik-Lanyi Cecilia , Kelemen Arpad
Published: March 2019

People with visual impairment face various difficulties in their daily activities in comparison to people without visual impairment. Much research has been done to find smart solutions using mobile devices to help people with visual impairment perform tasks like shopping. One of the most challenging tasks for researchers is to create a solution that offers a good quality of life for people with visual impairment. It is also essential to develop solutions that encourage people with visual impairment to participate in social life. This study provides an overview of the various technologies that have been developed in recent years to assist people with visual impairment in shopping tasks. It gives an introduction to the latest direction in this area, which will help developers to incorporate such solutions into their research.
Hunger and Obesity as Symptoms of Non-Sustainable Food Systems and Malnutrition
Authors: Steiner Gerald , Geissler Bernhard , Schernhammer Eva
Published: March 2019

Among the great challenges the world faces are how to ensure food security for its growing population—projected to rise to around 10 billion by 2050—so it can meet their nutritional needs for a healthy life. Current regulations and literature on food security mainly focus on food quantity (i.e., portion sizes), daily calorie intake and methods for increasing food production and too little on food and diet quality and the holistic effects of (mal)nutrition. From a systems perspective, in order to promote innovation policies for more sustainable food systems, food security cannot be viewed independently; rather, it is characterized by the interplay of an extensive network of economic, environmental and social dimensions that should all be taken into account in a comprehensive resilient and sustainable global food system. Here, we highlight one aspect of this vast network that we consider a particular challenge—yet also a great opportunity—for innovative policies geared toward more sustainable food systems: the interplay of hunger and obesity, including resulting policy strategies beyond potential efficiency improvements in farming practices. Future studies need to emphasize the importance of an in-depth understanding of the interdependencies within the global food system and its interrelatedness with societal and natural systems as part of coupled human-environment systems and in the face of continuing population growth and food demand globally. Recommended strategies for achieving sustainable food security systems include innovative educational approaches and stakeholder-driven innovation policies based on mutual learning processes between society, science, industry and policymakers, as well as fostering increased responsibility of all members of society along the agriculture and food value chain.
Regenerative Medicine: A Review of the Evolution of Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (ACI) Therapy
Authors: Davies Rebecca L , Kuiper Nicola J
Published: March 2019

Articular cartilage is composed of chondrons within a territorial matrix surrounded by a highly organized extracellular matrix comprising collagen II fibrils, proteoglycans, glycosaminoglycans, and non-collagenous proteins. Damaged articular cartilage has a limited potential for healing and untreated defects often progress to osteoarthritis. High hopes have been pinned on regenerative medicine strategies to meet the challenge of preventing progress to late osteoarthritis. One such strategy, autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI), was first reported in 1994 as a treatment for deep focal articular cartilage defects. ACI has since evolved to become a worldwide well-established surgical technique. For ACI, chondrocytes are harvested from the lesser weight bearing edge of the joint by arthroscopy, their numbers expanded in monolayer culture for at least four weeks, and then re-implanted in the damaged region under a natural or synthetic membrane via an open joint procedure. We consider the evolution of ACI to become an established cell therapy, its current limitations, and on-going strategies to improve its efficacy. The most promising developments involving cells and natural or synthetic biomaterials will be highlighted.
Understanding Housing Management by Low-income Homeowners: Technical, Organisational and Sociocultural Challenges in Chilean Condominium Housing
Authors: Vergara Luz María , Gruis Vincent , van der Flier Kees
Published: March 2019

In the context of social vulnerability, the house is an important social and economic resource to cope with poverty. However, low-income homeowners face constraints to maintain their houses, negatively affecting the quality of their dwellings, buildings and neighbourhoods. In the case of Chile, current studies have shown high levels of housing deterioration due to the lack of maintenance, but more knowledge is needed to understand the problems behind this poor management process. One important challenge is to consider an integral approach, beyond the technical dimension, that includes organisational and sociocultural inputs. Therefore, this paper presents the results of an exploratory study about the nature of the management problems in the context of Chilean low-income condominiums. The method considered semi-structured interviews with Chilean homeowners, researchers and professionals from the private sector, municipalities and central government. Main findings show the interdependencies between sociocultural, organisational and technical dimensions of the management problem; and the relevance of the sociocultural variables to perform technical maintenance activities. A better understanding of the nature and relationships among the management problems will provide better tools to improve current housing management models.
A Monotone Path Proof of an Extremal Result for Long Markov Chains
Authors: Wang Jia , Chen Jun
Published: March 2019

We prove an extremal result for long Markov chains based on the monotone path argument, generalizing an earlier work by Courtade and Jiao.
On the Validity of Tests for Asymmetry in Residual-Based Threshold Cointegration Models
Authors: Schild Karl-Heinz , Schweikert Karsten
Published: March 2019

This paper investigates the properties of tests for asymmetric long-run adjustment which are often applied in empirical studies on asymmetric price transmissions. We show that substantial size distortions are caused by preconditioning the test on finding sufficient evidence for cointegration in a first step. The extent of oversizing the test for long-run asymmetry depends inversely on the power of the primary cointegration test. Hence, tests for long-run asymmetry become invalid in cases of small sample sizes or slow speed of adjustment. Further, we provide simulation evidence that tests for long-run asymmetry are generally oversized if the threshold parameter is estimated by conditional least squares and show that bootstrap techniques can be used to obtain the correct size.
3D-MIMO Channel Estimation under Non-Gaussian Noise with Unknown PDF
Authors: Chen Wei , Li Feng , Peng Yiting
Published: March 2019

Three-dimensional-multiple-input-multiple-output (3D-MIMO) technology has attracted a lot of attention in the field of wireless communication. Most of the research mainly focuses on channel estimation model which is affected by additive-white-Gaussian-noise (AWGN). However, under the influence of some specified factors, such as electronic interference and man-made noise, the noise of the channel does not follow the Gaussian distribution anymore. Sometimes, the probability density function (PDF) of the noise is unknown at the receiver. Based on this reality, this paper tries to address the problem of channel estimation under non-Gaussian noise with unknown PDF. Firstly, the common support of angle domain channel matrix is estimated by compressed sensing (CS) reconstruction algorithm and a decision rule. Secondly, after modeling the received signal as a Gaussian mixture model (GMM), a data pruning algorithm is exerted to calculate the order of GMM. Lastly, an expectation maximization (EM) algorithm for linear regression is implemented to estimate the the channel matrix iteratively. Furthermore, sparsity, not only in the time domain, but in addition in the angle domain, is utilized to improve the channel estimation performance. The simulation results demonstrate the merits of the proposed algorithm compared with the traditional ones.
FPGA Based Real-Time Emulation System for Power Electronics Converters
Authors: Marguč Jaka , Truntič Mitja , Rodič Miran , Milanovič Miro
Published: March 2019

This paper deals with an emulation system for Power Electronics Converters (PEC). The emulation of PECs is performed on a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) capable of hard real-time operation. To obtain such a system, the converter operation is described using a differential equations-based model designed with the graph theory. Differential equation coefficients are changed according to the type of converter and pulse-width modulation (PWM) signals. The tie-set and incidence matrix approach for the converter modelling is performed to describe the converter operation in a general way. Such approach enables that any type of PECs can be described appropriately. The emulator was verified experimentally by synchronous operation with a real DC-AC converter built for this purposes.
Photovoltaic Power Converter Management in Unbalanced Low Voltage Networks with Ancillary Services Support
Authors: Barrero-González Fermín , Pires Victor Fernão , Sousa José L. , Martins João F. , Milanés-Montero María Isabel , González-Romera Eva , Romero-Cadaval Enrique
Published: March 2019

The proliferation of residential photovoltaic (PV) prosumers leads to detrimental impacts on the low-voltage (LV) distribution network operation such as reverse power flow, voltage fluctuations and voltage imbalances. This is due to the fact that the strategies for the PV inverters are usually designed to obtain the maximum energy from the panels. The most recent approach to these issues involves new inverter-based solutions. This paper proposes a novel comprehensive control strategy for the power electronic converters associated with PV installations to improve the operational performance of a four-wire LV distribution network. The objectives are to try to balance the currents demanded by consumers and to compensate the reactive power demanded by them at the expense of the remaining converters’ capacity. The strategy is implemented in each consumer installation, constituting a decentralized or distributed control and allowing its practical implementation based on local measurements. The algorithms were tested, in a yearly simulation horizon, on a typical Portuguese LV network to verify the impact of the high integration of the renewable energy sources in the network and the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed approach.
Variation of Petrophysical Properties and Adsorption Capacity in Different Rank Coals: An Experimental Study of Coals from the Junggar, Ordos and Qinshui Basins in China
Authors: Wang Yingjin , Liu Dameng , Cai Yidong , Li Xiawei
Published: March 2019

The petrophysical properties of coal will vary during coalification, and thus affect the methane adsorption capacity. In order to clarify the variation rule and its controlling effect on methane adsorption, various petrophysical tests including proximate analysis, moisture measurement, methane isothermal adsorption, mercury injection, etc. were carried out on 60 coal samples collected from the Junggar, Ordos and Qinshui basins in China. In this work, the boundary values of maximum vitrinite reflectance (Ro,m) for dividing low rank, medium rank and high rank coals are set as 0.65% and 2.0%. The results show that vitrinite is the most abundant maceral, but the maceral contents are controlled by sedimentation without any relation to coal rank. Both the moisture content and porosity results show higher values in the low ranks and stabilized with Ro,m beyond 1%. Ro,m and VL (daf) show quadratic correlation with the peak located in Ro,m = 4.5–5%, with the coefficient (R2) reaching 0.86. PL decrease rapidly before Ro,m = 1.5%, then increase slowly. DAP is established to quantify the inhibitory effect of moisture on methane adsorption capacity, which shows periodic relationship with Ro,m: the inhibitory effect in lignite is the weakest and increases during coalification, then remains constant at Ro,m = 1.8% to 3.5%, and finally increases again. In the high metamorphic stage, clay minerals are more moisture-absorbent than coal, and the inherent moisture negatively correlates with the ratio of vitrinite to inertinite (V/I). During coalification, micro gas pores gradually become dominant, fractures tends to be well oriented and extended, and clay filling becomes more common. These findings can help us better understand the variation of petrophysical properties and adsorption capacity in different rank coals.
Integrating Spatial and Non-Spatial Dimensions to Measure Urban Fire Service Access
Authors: Xia Zelong , Li Hao , Chen Yuehong , Yu Wenhao
Published: March 2019

Assessing the access to fire service at an urban scale involves accounting for geographical impedance, demand, and supply, thus both spatial and non-spatial dimensions must be taken into account. Therefore, in this paper, an optimized two-step floating catchment area (F-2SFCA) method is proposed for measuring urban fire service access, which incorporates the effects of both spatial and non-spatial factors into fire service access. The proposed model is conducted in a case study to assess the fire service accessibility of Nanjing City, China, and then compares its differences and strengths to the existing 2SFCA (two-step floating catchment area) methods. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method effectively quantifies the actual fire service needs and reflects a more realistic spatial pattern of accessibility (i.e., high accessibility level corresponded to a low fire service needs). In addition, we teste the relationship between service accessibility and the facility busyness using the inverted 2SFCA method. The empirical findings indicate that the weighted average accessibility obtained by F-2SFCA is reciprocal to facility busyness across the study area (based on a 5-min catchment), and fits an obvious nonlinear correlation with the high R-square values. The above results further prove the effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed method in characterizing the accessibility of fire services.
Application of the Sepsis-3 Consensus Criteria in a Geriatric Acute Care Unit: A Prospective Study
Authors: Bastoni Davide , Ticinesi Andrea , Lauretani Fulvio , Calamai Simone , Catalano Maria Letizia , Catania Pamela , Cecchia Martina , Cerundolo Nicoletta , Galluzzo Claudia , Giovini Manuela , Mori Giulia , Zani Marco Davìd , Nouvenne Antonio , Meschi Tiziana
Published: March 2019

The prognostic value of quick Sepsis-related Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA) score in geriatric patients is uncertain. We aimed to compare qSOFA vs. Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) criteria for mortality prediction in older multimorbid subjects, admitted for suspected sepsis in a geriatric ward. We prospectively enrolled 272 patients (aged 83.7 ± 7.4). At admission, qSOFA and SIRS scores were calculated. Mortality was assessed during hospital stay and three months after discharge. The predictive capacity of qSOFA and SIRS was assessed by calculating the Area Under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUROC), through pairwise AUROC comparison, and multivariable logistic regression analysis. Both qSOFA and SIRS exhibited a poor prognostic performance (AUROCs 0.676, 95% CI 0.609–0.738, and 0.626, 95% CI 0.558–0.691 for in-hospital mortality; 0.684, 95% CI 0.614–0.748, and 0.596, 95% CI 0.558–0.691 for pooled three-month mortality, respectively). The predictive capacity of qSOFA showed no difference to that of SIRS for in-hospital mortality (difference between AUROCs 0.05, 95% CI −0.05 to 0.14, p = 0.31), but was superior for pooled three-month mortality (difference between AUROCs 0.09, 95% CI 0.01–0.17, p = 0.029). Multivariable logistic regression analysis, accounting for possible confounders, including frailty, showed that both scores were not associated with in-hospital mortality, although qSOFA, unlike SIRS, was associated with pooled three-month mortality. In conclusion, neither qSOFA nor SIRS at admission were strong predictors of mortality in a geriatric acute-care setting. Traditional geriatric measures of frailty may be more useful for predicting adverse outcomes in this setting.
Synthesis of Thymidine Phosphorylase Inhibitor Based on Quinoxaline Derivatives and Their Molecular Docking Study
Authors: Almandil Noor , Taha Muhammad , Farooq Rai , Alhibshi Amani , Ibrahim Mohamed , Anouar El , Gollapalli Mohammed , Rahim Fazal , Nawaz Muhammad , Shah Syed , Ahmed Qamar , Zakaria Zainul
Published: March 2019

We have synthesized quinoxaline analogs (1–25), characterized by 1H-NMR and HREI-MS and evaluated for thymidine phosphorylase inhibition. Among the series, nineteen analogs showed better inhibition when compared with the standard inhibitor 7-Deazaxanthine (IC50 = 38.68 ± 4.42 µM). The most potent compound among the series is analog 25 with IC50 value 3.20 ± 0.10 µM. Sixteen analogs 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 21 and 24 showed outstanding inhibition which is many folds better than the standard 7-Deazaxanthine. Two analogs 8 and 9 showed moderate inhibition. A structure-activity relationship has been established mainly based upon the substitution pattern on the phenyl ring. The binding interactions of the active compounds were confirmed through molecular docking studies.
Glycopeptides and -Mimetics to Detect, Monitor and Inhibit Bacterial and Viral Infections: Recent Advances and Perspectives
Authors: Behren Sandra , Westerlind Ulrika
Published: March 2019

The initial contact of pathogens with host cells is usually mediated by their adhesion to glycan structures present on the cell surface in order to enable infection. Furthermore, glycans play important roles in the modulation of the host immune responses to infection. Understanding the carbohydrate-pathogen interactions are of importance for the development of novel and efficient strategies to either prevent, or interfere with pathogenic infection. Synthetic glycopeptides and mimetics thereof are capable of imitating the multivalent display of carbohydrates at the cell surface, which have become an important objective of research over the last decade. Glycopeptide based constructs may function as vaccines or anti-adhesive agents that interfere with the ability of pathogens to adhere to the host cell glycans and thus possess the potential to improve or replace treatments that suffer from resistance. Additionally, synthetic glycopeptides are used as tools for epitope mapping of antibodies directed against structures present on various pathogens and have become important to improve serodiagnostic methods and to develop novel epitope-based vaccines. This review will provide an overview of the most recent advances in the synthesis and application of glycopeptides and glycopeptide mimetics exhibiting a peptide-like backbone in glycobiology.
Binding of BRACO19 to a Telomeric G-Quadruplex DNA Probed by All-Atom Molecular Dynamics Simulations with Explicit Solvent
Authors: Machireddy Babitha , Sullivan Holli-Joi , Wu Chun
Published: March 2019

Although BRACO19 is a potent G-quadruplex binder, its potential for clinical usage is hindered by its low selectivity towards DNA G-quadruplex over duplex. High-resolution structures of BRACO19 in complex with neither single-stranded telomeric DNA G-quadruplexes nor B-DNA duplex are available. In this study, the binding pathway of BRACO19 was probed by 27.5 µs molecular dynamics binding simulations with a free ligand (BRACO19) to a DNA duplex and three different topological folds of the human telomeric DNA G-quadruplex (parallel, anti-parallel and hybrid). The most stable binding modes were identified as end stacking and groove binding for the DNA G-quadruplexes and duplex, respectively. Among the three G-quadruplex topologies, the MM-GBSA binding energy analysis suggested that BRACO19′s binding to the parallel scaffold was most energetically favorable. The two lines of conflicting evidence plus our binding energy data suggest conformation-selection mechanism: the relative population shift of three scaffolds upon BRACO19 binding (i.e., an increase of population of parallel scaffold, a decrease of populations of antiparallel and/or hybrid scaffold). This hypothesis appears to be consistent with the fact that BRACO19 was specifically designed based on the structural requirements of the parallel scaffold and has since proven effective against a variety of cancer cell lines as well as toward a number of scaffolds. In addition, this binding mode is only slightly more favorable than BRACO19s binding to the duplex, explaining the low binding selectivity of BRACO19 to G-quadruplexes over duplex DNA. Our detailed analysis suggests that BRACO19′s groove binding mode may not be stable enough to maintain a prolonged binding event and that the groove binding mode may function as an intermediate state preceding a more energetically favorable end stacking pose; base flipping played an important role in enhancing binding interactions, an integral feature of an induced fit binding mechanism.
The Studies on Structure and Stability of CaBn Clusters
Authors: Han Peilin , Chai Fengli , Qiao Bolin , Liu Chunhui
Published: March 2019

Calcium-boron systems have excellent properties of hardness, strength, and chemical stability, and we studied a series of CaBn clusters to investigate their structures and relative stability. The results showed the most stable structures of CaBn clusters are not planar. The B atoms tend to get together and form the planar ring to stabilize the structure, and the Ca atoms are coordinated to the periphery of the formations. The average binding energy (Eb), fragmentation energy (EF), second-order energy difference (Δ2E), adiabatic detachment energy (ADE), and adiabatic electron affinity (AEA) of the CaBn clusters were calculated to investigate the relative stability and the ability of removing or obtaining an electron. As shown by the results, EF and Δ2E values had obvious odd-even alteration as n increased, which indicated that the formations CaB4, CaB6, and CaB8 were more stable. The ADE values for CaBn clusters with even values of n were higher than those with odd values of n, which indicated CaBn clusters with even values of n had difficultly removing an electron. The AEA values of CaB3 and CaB7 were larger than the others, which meant CaB3 and CaB7 easily obtained an electron. These results provide a useful reference for understanding the formation mechanism and stability of the alkaline earth metal boride as well as guidance for synthesizing the CaBn clusters.