bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimisation of Data Management System: Development of Requirements
Authors: Zivitere Marga , Almar Nika
Published: August 2020

The paper deals with the management of product information in a cosmetics retail and information interaction of a retailer with distributors and manufacturers. We developed a list of requirements for the types of information for a product catalogue. Using a survey and questionnaire of employees of the retailer, we determined what information the departments needed. We made sure that one standard to the structure of information did not exist and proposed our own scheme. Based on the survey results, we created a list of requirements for the information management system and proposed a scheme of system components. We conducted a comparative analysis of the costs of the company (about 2000 employees) for the salary of employees involved in entering information before and after the implementation of our system. For evaluation of the effectiveness of the integration of the developed system, we defined the cost indicators: PP, NPV and IRR.
Re-Evaluation of World Population Figures: Politics and Forecasting Mechanics
Authors: Shobande Olatunji Abdul , Shodipe Oladimeji Tomiwa
Published: August 2020

This paper forecasts the world population using the Autoregressive Integration Moving Average (ARIMA) for estimation and projection for short-range and long-term population sizes of the world, regions and sub-regions. The study provides evidence that growth and population explosion will continue in Sub-Saharan Africa, tending the need to aggressively promote pragmatic programmes that will balance population growth and sustainable economic growth in the region. The study argued that early projections took for granted the positive and negative implications of population growth on the social structure and offset the natural process, which might have implication(s) on survival rate. Given the obvious imbalance in population growth across continents and regions of the world, a more purposeful inter-regional and economic co-operation that supports and enhances population balancing and economic expansion among nations is highly recommended. In this regard, the United Nations should compel member states to vigorously and effectively implement domestic and international support programmes with this objective in view.
Job Search With Legal and Illegal Workers: A Comparative Static Analysis
Authors: Ogbeifun Lawrence
Published: August 2020

This paper incorporates government immigration policy variables in a job search and match framework to examine its implication on labour market outcomes. The main assumption is that illegal workers can be penalized by receiving lower equilibrium wages or face possible deportation; and government can regulate illegal workers by introducing a “caught variable”, η, in the model. By a comparative statics analysis, the study has revealed that changes in the wages of illegal workers have both direct and indirect effect on wages of legal workers. Also, an important finding is that η has positive impact on most of the labour market parameters considered in the study.
Changes in the transcriptional activity of the entero-insular axis genes in streptozotocin-induced diabetes and after the administration of TNF-α non-selective blockers
Authors: Degen Anna S. , Krynytska Inna Y. , Kamyshnyi Aleksandr M.
Published: August 2020

Objective. The aim of the present study was to investigate the transcriptional activity of the GLP-1R, DPP-4, SGLT-1, INSR, and IGF-1R genes in GALT cells of rats with streptozotocin-induced diabetes in both untreated and treated with pentoxifylline, as a non-specific blocker of TNF-α.

Methods. The expression of GLP-1R, DPP-4, SGLT-1, INSR, and IGF-1R genes in GALT cells of rats was studied by real time quantitative polymerase chain reaction.

Results. It was shown that the development of diabetes was accompanied by the decrease of GLP-1R and an increase of DPP-4 genes expression in rat ileum. The administration of pentoxifyl-line to diabetic animals led to an increase in the transcriptional activity of GLP-1R on the 4th week and decrease in transcriptional activity of DPP-4 on the 2nd and 4th weeks of the experiment. An increase in the normalized expression of SGLT-1 on the 4th week of the experimental diabetes was also noted, while the administration of pentoxifylline to diabetic animals did not lead to significant changes in this index. The transcriptional activity of the INSR and IGF-1R genes was reduced in diabetic rats and the administration of the non-specific TNF-α blocker – pentoxifylline led to a significant increase only for INSR gene in animals on the 4th week of the experimental diabetes.

Conclusions. The expression of incretins, glucose transporters, and pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g. TNF-α) in immune cells may be used as markers of several autoimmune pathologies progression such as type 1 diabetes due to their effect on the balance of pro- and anti-inflammatory factors.
Aldosterone synthase deficiency type II: an unusual presentation of the first Greek case reported with confirmed genetic analysis
Authors: Papailiou Stayroula , Vlachopapadopoulou Elpis Athina , Sertedaki Amalia , Maritsi Despoina , Syggelos Nikolaos , Syggelou Angeliki
Published: August 2020

Objective. Aldosterone synthase deficiency (ASD) is a rare, autosomal recessive inherited disease with an overall clinical phenotype of failure to thrive, vomiting, severe dehydration, hyperkalemia, and hyponatremia. Mutations in the CYP11B2 gene encoding aldosterone synthase are responsible for the occurrence of ASD. Defects in CYP11B2 gene have only been reported in a limited number of cases worldwide. Due to this potential life-threatening risk, comprehensive hormonal investigation followed by genetic confirmation is essential for the clinical management of offsprings.

Case presentation. We herein describe an unusual case of ASD type II in a neonate with faltering growth as a single presenting symptom. To our knowledge, this is the first Greek case of ASD type II reported with confirmed genetic analysis. Next generation sequencing of her DNA revealed the homozygous mutation p.T185I (ACC-ATC) (c.554C>T) (g.7757C>T) in exon 3 of the CYP11B2 gene in the neonate, inherited from both parents who were heterozygotes for the mutation.

Conclusions. Physicians handling neonates with faltering growth, particularly in the initial six weeks of life, should be suspicious of mineralocorticoid insufficiency either as isolated hypoaldosteronism or in the context of congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Essential investigations should be performed and appropriate treatment should be administered promptly without awaiting for the hormonal profile results. Interpretation of the clinical picture and the hormonal profile will guide the analysis of candidate genes. Primary selective hypoaldosteronism is a rare, life threatening disease, but still with an unknown overall population impact. Thus, reporting cases with confirmed gene mutations is of major importance.
Socio-Economic Potential of Regions – Theory and Practice
Authors: Filipiak Beata Zofia , Tarczyńska-Łuniewska Małgorzata
Published: August 2020

Research background: The paper refers to the social and economic potential of regions and their level of development. The crucial issue is not only how to measure the level of development but also their potential and what are the ways of defining this.

Purpose: The principal aim of this paper is an analysis and evaluation of the social and economic potential of poviats of the West Pomeranian Province through the prism of their level of development.

Research methodology: The measurements of the level of development were carried out using a synthetic measure of development. The level of poviats development was examined in aggregate for all specified factors and broken down into economic, socio-demographic, infrastructure and environmental protection factors. Data selection was made by using a factor analysis. As part of the study, a statistical analysis of potential factors was also carried out. The analysis refers to the following selected periods: 2008, 2014 and 2018 which allowed for an observation of phenomena over time in the investigated period. The research used the Central Statistical Office’s annual statistics for the specific districts.

Results: The research results confirm the complexity of the study of the phenomenon of the level of socioeconomic development of LGUs, the large diversity of surveyed units regardless of the study period and their low level of development.

Novelty: The novelty is that the analysis was conducted in stages, which allowed learning about the potential’s nature on the one hand and the factors forming it on the other.

A material element of the research was also identifying possible directions for the use of the findings.
Modelling Unpaid Housework Time in Poland on the Basis of a Time Use Survey
Authors: Hozer-Koćmiel Marta , Kuźmiński Wojciech
Published: August 2020

Research background: The paper introduces an econometric analysis of unpaid household work in Poland.

Purpose: The purpose is a quantitative analysis of the relations between the time spent on unpaid housework and some selected demographic, economic and social variables.

Research methodology: In the survey, the respondents were grouped by gender and type of locality. It was hypothesized that there are strong differences in the determinants of housework time by gender and type of locality. Multiple regression models for housework time and 23 demographic, social and economic variables were estimated and verified. The analysis was conducted on the basis of individual data from the Time Use Survey conducted by the Statistics Poland in 2013.

Results: The empirical study found no differences in the key determinants of housework time between women and men depending on the type of locality. The main factors of influence were: paid work time, time spent meeting physiological needs (sleeping, eating, washing), time spent on learning, the number of children and, finally, economic activity.

Novelty: The theoretical part outlines barely known economic theories that addressed the issue of unpaid housework. The authors describe the care economy, humanistic economics, economics of happiness, time allocation theory as well as a two-dimensional approach to poverty research. Housework (which means the unpaid activity of household members aimed at satisfying the needs of individuals forming the household) has also been out of economic mainstream categories. Even though unpopular, it has an economic value and can be replaced by market goods and services or offered by the state. The authors have been persuaded that there are tangible and intangible benefits resulting from this type of work.
Clustering Poland Among Eu Countries in Terms of a Sustainable Development Level in the Light of Various Cluster Stability Measures
Authors: Rozmus Dorota
Published: August 2020

Research background: Recently in the context of taxonomy methods a lot of attention has been paid to the issue of stability of these methods, i.e. the answer to the question: do the groups that were created as a result of clustering really occur (the structure is stable), or did they appear accidentally.

Purpose: The article is inspired by the Reviewers of the author’s previous publications on this subject and will be a summary of research to date which has followed two paths. On one hand, they recognize ways of measuring cluster stability proposed in the literature (e.g. Rozmus, 2017). On the other, they use these measures to cluster Poland among the EU members in terms of sustainable development level (e.g. Rozmus, 2019).

Research methodology: The literature proposes a number of different ways for measuring stability. Theoretical considerations have also led to the development of computer tools for the practical implementation of the proposed ways to study stability. The practical tools are available within several R packages, e.g.: clv, clValid, fpc, which are used in this research

Results: The results, however, showed that different measures of stability lead to different results.

Novelty: The innovation of this approach is the use of stability measures to such a problem (i.e. clustering EU members in terms of the sustainable development level). In addition, the article will report a synthesis and comparative analysis of the results obtained using various stability measures.
Calculus for the intermediate point associated with a mean value theorem of the integral calculus
Authors: Pop Emilia-Loredana , Duca Dorel , Raţiu Augusta
Published: August 2020

If f, g: [a, b] → 𝕉 are two continuous functions, then there exists a point c ∈ (a, b) such that

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\int_a^c {f\left(x \right)} dx + \left({c - a} \right)g\left(c \right) = \int_c^b {g\left(x \right)} dx + \left({b - c} \right)f\left(c \right).

In this paper, we study the approaching of the point c towards a, when b approaches a.
A refinement of Grüss inequality for the complex integral
Authors: Dragomir Silvestru Sever
Published: August 2020

Assume that f and g are continuous on γ, γ ⊂ 𝔺 is a piecewise smooth path parametrized by z (t), t ∈ [a, b] from z (a) = u to z (b) = w with w ≠ u and the complex Čebyšev functional is defined by

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{{\cal D}_\gamma}\left({f,g} \right): = {1 \over {w - u}}\int_\gamma {f\left(z \right)} g\left(z \right)dz - {1 \over {w - u}}\int_\gamma {f\left(z \right)} dz{1 \over {w - u}}\int_\gamma {g\left(z \right)} dz.

In this paper we establish some Grüss type inequalities for 𝒟 (f, g) under some complex boundedness conditions for the functions f and g.
Generalized Briot-Bouquet differential equation based on new differential operator with complex connections
Authors: Ibrahim Rabha W.
Published: August 2020

Inequality study is a magnificent field for investigating the geometric behaviors of analytic functions in the open unit disk calling the subordination and superordination. In this work, we aim to formulate a generalized differential-difference operator. We introduce a new class of analytic functions having the generalized operator. Some subordination results are included in the sequel.
Certain subclasses of univalent and bi-univalent functions related to shell-like curves connected with Fibonacci numbers
Authors: Singh Gurmeet , Singh Gagandeep , Singh Gurcharanjit
Published: August 2020

This paper is concerned with certain subclasses of univalent and bi-univalent functions related to shell-like curves connected with Fibonacci numbers. We find estimates of the initial coefficients |a
2| and |a
3| for the functions in these classes. Also we investigate upper bounds for the Fekete-Szegö functional and second Hankel determinant for these classes.
Phymosia (Malvaceae) a new genus for the flora of Africa, with nomenclatural notes
Authors: Iamonico Duilio , El Mokni Ridha
Published: August 2020

As part of ongoing studies of Tunisian Malvaceae, a population of Phymosia umbellata was discovered in Monastir city. It represents the first generic record for the national and continental flora. Morphological characters, as well as ecological data are given. A list of all the accepted names in Phymosia, their synonyms and types is also provided, with nomenclatural notes about some accepted Phymosia species.
Heat and Mass Transfer Effects on MHD Flow Past an Inclined Porous Plate in the Presence of Chemical Reaction
Authors: Sandhya A. , Reddy G.V. Ramana , Deekshitulu G.V.S.R.
Published: August 2020

The impact of heat and mass transfer effects on an MHD flow past an inclined porous plate in the presence of a chemical reaction is investigated in this study. An effort has been made to explain the Soret effect and the influence of an angle of inclination on the flow field, in the presence of the heat source, chemical reaction and thermal radiation. The momentum, energy and concentration equations are derived as coupled second order partial differential equations. The model is non-dimensionalized and shown to be controlled by a number of dimensionless parameters. The resulting dimensionless partial differential equations can be solved by using a closed analytical method. Numerical results for pertaining parameters, such as the Soret number (Sr), Grashof number (Gr) for heat and mass transfer, the Schmidt number (Sc), Prandtl number (Pr), chemical reaction parameter (Kr), permeability parameter (K), magnetic parameter (M), skin friction (τ), Nusselt number (Nu) and Sherwood number (Sh) on the velocity, temperature and concentration profiles are presented graphically and discussed qualitatively.
Effect of Convective Heat and Mass Conditions in Magnetohydrodynamic Boundary Layer Flow with Joule Heating and Thermal Radiation
Authors: Sharma R.P. , Tinker Seema , Gireesha B.J. , Nagaraja B.
Published: August 2020

A free convection viscous MHD flow over a semi-infinite vertical sheet with convective heat and mass conditions has been considered. The effects of thermal radiation, chemical reaction and Joule heating on flow are also accounted. The governing nonlinear partial differential equations have been transformed into a set of highly non-linear coupled ordinary differential equations (ODEs) using appropriate similarity transformations. Numerical solutions of transformed equations are obtained by employing the 5th order Runge-Kutta Fehlberg technique followed by the shooting technique. The influences of different flow parameters on the momentum, energy and mass field are discussed and shown graphically. Results reveal that temperature and concentration profiles enhance due to increasing heat and mass Biot number parameters.
Analytical Solutions for a General Mixed Boundary Value Problem Associated with Motions of Fluids with Linear Dependence of Viscosity on the Pressure
Authors: Vieru D. , Fetecau C. , Bridges C.
Published: August 2020

An unsteady flow of incompressible Newtonian fluids with linear dependence of viscosity on the pressure between two infinite horizontal parallel plates is analytically studied. The fluid motion is induced by the upper plate that applies an arbitrary time-dependent shear stress to the fluid. General expressions for the dimensionless velocity and shear stress fields are established using a suitable change of independent variable and the finite Hankel transform. These expressions, that satisfy all imposed initial and boundary conditions, can generate exact solutions for any motion of this type of the respective fluids. For illustration, three special cases with technical relevance are considered and some important observations and graphical representations are provided. An interesting relationship is found between the solutions corresponding to motions induced by constant or ramptype shear stresses on the boundary. Furthermore, for validation of the results, the steady-state solutions corresponding to oscillatory motions are presented in different forms whose equivalence is graphically proved.
Browser Fingerprint Coding Methods Increasing the Effectiveness of User Identification in the Web Traffic
Authors: Gabryel Marcin , Grzanek Konrad , Hayashi Yoichi
Published: August 2020

Web-based browser fingerprint (or device fingerprint) is a tool used to identify and track user activity in web traffic. It is also used to identify computers that are abusing online advertising and also to prevent credit card fraud. A device fingerprint is created by extracting multiple parameter values from a browser API (e.g. operating system type or browser version). The acquired parameter values are then used to create a hash using the hash function. The disadvantage of using this method is too high susceptibility to small, normally occurring changes (e.g. when changing the browser version number or screen resolution). Minor changes in the input values generate a completely different fingerprint hash, making it impossible to find similar ones in the database. On the other hand, omitting these unstable values when creating a hash, significantly limits the ability of the fingerprint to distinguish between devices. This weak point is commonly exploited by fraudsters who knowingly evade this form of protection by deliberately changing the value of device parameters. The paper presents methods that significantly limit this type of activity. New algorithms for coding and comparing fingerprints are presented, in which the values of parameters with low stability and low entropy are especially taken into account. The fingerprint generation methods are based on popular Minhash, the LSH, and autoencoder methods. The effectiveness of coding and comparing each of the presented methods was also examined in comparison with the currently used hash generation method. Authentic data of the devices and browsers of users visiting 186 different websites were collected for the research.
A Novel Drift Detection Algorithm Based on Features’ Importance Analysis in a Data Streams Environment
Authors: Duda Piotr , Przybyszewski Krzysztof , Wang Lipo
Published: August 2020

The training set consists of many features that influence the classifier in different degrees. Choosing the most important features and rejecting those that do not carry relevant information is of great importance to the operating of the learned model. In the case of data streams, the importance of the features may additionally change over time. Such changes affect the performance of the classifier but can also be an important indicator of occurring concept-drift. In this work, we propose a new algorithm for data streams classification, called Random Forest with Features Importance (RFFI), which uses the measure of features importance as a drift detector. The RFFT algorithm implements solutions inspired by the Random Forest algorithm to the data stream scenarios. The proposed algorithm combines the ability of ensemble methods for handling slow changes in a data stream with a new method for detecting concept drift occurrence. The work contains an experimental analysis of the proposed algorithm, carried out on synthetic and real data.
Evaluation of localization precision by proposed quasi-spherical nested microphone array in combination with multiresolution adaptive steered response power
Authors: Firoozabadi Ali Dehghan , Irarrazaval Pablo , Adasme Pablo , Zabala-Blanco David , Azurdia-Meza Cesar
Published: August 2020

Multiple sound source localization in noisy and reverberant conditions is one of the important challenges in the speech signal processing. The aim of this article is three-dimensional sound source localization in undesirable scenarios. For the localization algorithms, the spatial aliasing is one of the destructive factors in reducing the accuracy. Firstly, a 3D quasi-spherical nested microphone array (QSNMA) is proposed for eliminating the spatial aliasing. Since the speech signal has the windowed-disjoint orthogonality property, the speech information differs in terms of the frequency bands. Then, the Gammatone filter bank is introduced for the speech subband processing. In the following, the multiresolution steered response power (SRP) algorithm is adaptively implemented on subbands with the phase transform (PHAT)/maximum likelihood (ML) weighted functions based on the levels of the noise and reverberation. The peaks of the multiresolution adaptive SRP (MASRP) algorithm are extracted in each subband based on the number of speakers for continuous time frames. Finally, the distribution of these peaks are calculated in each subband and they are merged by the use of weighted averaging method. The final 3D speakers locations are estimated by extracting the peaks in the final distribution. The proposed QSNMAMASRP(PHAT/ML) algorithm is evaluated on real and simulated data for 2 and 3 simultaneous speakers in noisy and reverberant conditions. The proposed method is compared with SRP-PHAT, spectral source model-deep neural network, and spherical harmonic temporal extension of multiple response model sparse Bayesian learning algorithms on different range of signal-to-noise ratio and reverberation time. The mean absolute estimation error, averaged standard deviation for absolute estimation error, and computational complexity results show the superiority of the proposed method.
Wide-area damping control using signal restoration under communication uncertainties
Authors: Ngamroo Issarachai
Published: August 2020

In large-scale power systems, the wide-area damping controller (WADC) using remote input signals is an effective device that can be applied to deal with poor inter-area oscillation damping. However, its control effect will be degraded by communication uncertainties such as variable time delays in both input and output sides of WADC, partial and complete communication failures. This paper focuses on a new WADC design by regarding communication uncertainties. Such uncertainties are mathematically formulated and analyzed in order to signify its impact on the oscillatory stability. The signal restoration of input and output pairs of WADC is proposed to alleviate an adverse effect of communication uncertainties. Simulation study in an IEEE 50-machine 145-bus test system elucidates that the proposed WADC is superior to that of the conventional WADC without considering communication uncertainties in both performance and robustness.
Acute Fatty Liver of Pregnancy
Authors: Pop Lucian Gheorghe , Suciu Ioan Dumitru , Suciu Nicolae , Toader Oana Daniela
Published: August 2020

Acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP) is a rare but life-threatening condition that develops in the third trimester of pregnancy. AFLP shares similar clinical features with other more common pregnancy-associated conditions. However, early correct diagnosis is important for maternal and fetal survival. Once the diagnosis has been established, immediate delivery and maternal intensive support should be undertaken. Both parents and the infant should be tested for deficiencies of the mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation, especially for long-chain 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase (LCHAD) deficiency, as many cases of AFLP are related to disruption of this physiological enzymatic pathway.
Changes in direct CO2 and N2O emissions from a loam Haplic Luvisol under conventional moldboard and reduced tillage during growing season and post-harvest period of red clover
Authors: Horák Ján , Igaz Dušan , Aydin Elena , Šimanský Vladimír , Buchkina Natalya , Balashov Eugene
Published: August 2020

The objectives of the study were to: (1) assess the strength of associations of direct CO2 and N2O emissions with the seasonal variations in the relevant soil properties under both tillage systems; 2) evaluate how CT and RT affect magnitudes of seasonal CO2 and N2O fluxes from soil. Field studies were carried out on plots for conventional tillage (up to 0.22–0.25 m) and reduced tillage (up to 0.10–0.12 m) during the growing season and post-harvest period of red clover. The results showed that daily CO2 emissions significantly correlated only with soil temperature during the growing season under conventional and reduced tillage. Soil temperature demonstrated its highest influence on daily N2O emissions only at the beginning of the growing season in both tillage systems. There were no significant inter-system differences in daily CO2 and N2O emissions from soil during the entire period of observations. Over the duration of post-harvest period, water-filled pore space was a better predictor of daily CO2 emissions from soils under CT and RT. The conventional and reduced tillage did not cause significant differences in cumulative N2O and CO2 fluxes from soil.
Effect of climate warming on a change in thermal and ice conditions in the largest lake in Poland – Lake Śniardwy
Authors: Ptak Mariusz , Sojka Mariusz , Nowak Bogumił
Published: August 2020

Lake Śniardwy is the largest among more than 7000 Polish lakes. So far, it has not been a subject of detailed investigations concerning long-term changes in water temperature or ice regime. A considerable change in thermal and ice conditions has been observed in the period 1972–2019. Mean annual water temperature increased by 0.44°C dec−1 on average, and was higher than an increase in air temperature (0.33°C dec−1). In the monthly cycle, the most dynamic changes occurred in April (0.77°C dec−1). In the case of ice cover, it appeared increasingly later (5.3 days dec−1), and disappeared earlier (3.0 days dec−1). The thickness of ice cover also decreased (2.4 cm dec−1). Statistical analysis by means of a Pettitt test showed that the critical moment for the transformations of the thermal and ice regime was the end of the 1980’s. In addition to the obvious relations with air temperature for both characteristics, it was evidenced that the occurrence of ice cover depended on wind speed and snow cover. The recorded changes in the case of Lake Śniardwy are considered unfavourable, and their consequences will affect the course of physical, chemical, and biological processes in the largest lake in Poland.
Effect of sand burial on the subcritical water repellency of a dominant moss crust in a revegetated area of the Tengger Desert, Northern China
Authors: Jia Rongliang , Gao Yanhong , Liu Lichao , Yang Haotian , Zhao Yang
Published: August 2020

Sand burial is a ubiquitous disturbance that influences the ecological and hydrological properties of moss crusts in many sandy desert areas. There is little available information regarding the effect of sand burial on the water repellency (WR) of moss crusts in desert areas. Therefore, this study evaluated the effects of sand burial (sand depths of 0 (control), 0.5, 1, 2, 4 and 10 mm) followed by three simulated precipitation regimes (through applying 4 and 6 mm, 2 and 3 mm, and 1 and 1.5 mm of distilled water at 8-day intervals in spring and autumn, respectively) on the WR of a widespread moss crust dominated by Bryum argenteum Hedw. in a revegetated area of the Tengger Desert, China. The results showed moss crust WR remained subcritical during the whole experiment, and that it considerably decreased immediately after sand burial, even though the values of WR were significantly higher in autumn than those in spring under the same treatment (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the depth threshold (TD) values for sand burials that reduced WR to zero were 1 and 2 mm in spring and autumn, respectively. After a recovery period of nearly one-season (72 days), the WR of the moss crust significantly increased (p < 0.05). In addition, sand burial had two separate effects on moss crust WR. Specifically, shallower sand burial (burial depth less than 0.5 mm) increased moss crust WR, whereas deeper sand burial (burial depth exceeds 0.5 mm) decreased it. The TD values also significantly increased to 2 and 4 mm in spring and autumn, respectively. These findings about the effects of sand burial on moss crust WR provide additional information that can be used to better understand the influence of sand burial on moss crust colonization and maintenance in arid sand-burial-stressed ecosystems, and to help explain why there are some contrasting viewpoints on biocrust WR.
Integrated assessment of climate and human contributions to variations in streamflow in the Ten Great Gullies Basin of the Upper Yellow River, China
Authors: Liu Tong , Huang He Qing , Shao Ming an , Cheng Jiong , Li Xiang Dong , Lu Jian Hua
Published: August 2020

Climate change and human activity are two linked factors that alter the spatiotemporal distribution of the available water. Assessing the relative contribution of the two factors on runoff changes can help the planners and managers to better formulate strategies and policies regarding regional water resources. In this work, using two typical sub-basins of the Yellow River as the study area, we first detected the trend and the breakpoint in the annual streamflow data with the Pettitt test during the period 1964–2011. Next, a Budyko-based climate elasticity model and a monthly hydrological model were employed as an integrated method to distinguish the relative contributions of climate change and human activities to the long-term changes in runoff. The results showed that a significant decline in the annual runoff occurred in the two sub-basins during the study period, and the abrupt change point in the annual runoff at the two sub-basins both occurred in 1997. The conceptual hydrological model performed well in reproducing monthly runoff time series at the two sub-basins. The Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) between observed and simulated runoff during the validation period exceeds 0.83 for the two sub-basins. Climate elasticity method and hydrological model give consistent attribution results: human activities are the major drivers responsible for the decreased annual runoff in the Ten Great Gullies Basin. The relative contributions of climate change and human activities to the changes in the annual runoff were 22–32% and 68–78%, respectively.
Construction Waste Reduction Awareness: Action Research
Authors: Omeje Hyginus Osita , Okereke Godwin Keres , Chukwu Daniel Uchenna
Published: August 2020

The study focused on construction waste reduction awareness as a step within Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. The method of collaborative action research was used with a questionnaire as an instrument. Data collected from 61 participants were analyzed using descriptive statistics (percentage, mean, and t-test) and multiple regressions. Results revealed that there were graduates of different degree levels and non-graduates working at the construction sites, where 4.9 % and 27.9 % had PhD and Master degrees, respectively. Improper material storage was agreed to be the main cause of construction waste, while the most effective reduction measure was applying source reduction through the calculated procurement. Multiple regressions revealed that awareness was significantly positively predicted by gender, qualification and status. However, both cause and reduction of construction waste were noted to be human related, thereby necessitating a campaign against construction waste at various sites, with the aim of raising motivated and inspired change agents.
Sustainable Development from the Viewpoint of Iranian English Teachers: Practicing what they do not Preach
Authors: Ganji Mansoor , Arshadi Elnaz Kargar , Mahbubzadeh Sogand
Published: August 2020

Considering the importance of sustainable development (SD) in developing countries and lack of research on this topic among Iranian English teachers, this study aims at investigating the Iranian English teachers’ awareness and understanding of this concept and the effects of demographic features on their understanding. To this end, a researcher-made 48-item validated Questionnaire that consisted of eight scales was administered among 233 English teachers teaching at high schools, private language institutes, and universities. The data were analyzed through content analysis of the open-ended question and quantitative analysis of the Likert-scale items. One-way ANOVA was used to find out about the effects of gender, workplace, teaching experience, and academic degree on teachers’ understanding and awareness. The results revealed that although some teachers could not define the term, or provided a general or wrong definition of the term, more than half of the teachers rightly emphasized the economic aspect, protecting natural resources, and caring for present and future lives of people. It was also found that Iranian English teachers highly supported equity, appreciated and protected the nature, enjoyed diversity, asked for education for sustainable development, and led a frugal life. Finally, it was revealed that none of the demographic features influenced teachers’ awareness of SD, except for academic degree and workplace factor that affected three out of eight scales measuring SD. The study ends with several implications for materials developers, English teachers, and syllabus designers.
Corrosion-fatigue failure of tractor trailers metal materials in aggressive environments
Authors: Popovych P. , Poberezhny L. , Shevchuk O. , Murovanyi I. , Poberezhna L. , Hrytsanchuk A. , Koval Y.
Published: August 2020

The processes of corrosion-fatigue failure of materials in contact with mineral fertilizers are insufficiently studied. As a result of joint influence of atmospheric corrosion and mechanical loads, about 70 to 80 % of machine parts get out of order, 20 to 25 % of which are failures caused by operating overload due to the strength loss because of atmospheric corrosion. A large part of metal structures of agricultural vehicles used to transport mineral fertilizers is under the direct influence of aggressive environments and dynamic loads that occur during the motion by field roads. Saturated solutions of the most aggressive working environments used in agricultural production, in particular ammonium sulphate and nitrophosphate are investigated to reduce fatigue resistance of ordinary steels groups – St3 and St5 and quality steels – 10 Steel, 15 Steel, 20 Steel, 25 Steel when loaded at all levels. The fatigue endurance limit decreases in comparison with air up to 2.02 times in a solution of ammonium sulphate, and to 2.32 times in a solution of nitrophosphate. In organic fertilizer environments, compared to distilled water, the conditional fatigue endurance limit increased to 9 %. The properties of the given materials as an inhibitor of corrosion-fatigue failure were discovered and proved.
Orthographic neighbourhood in Czech language and its use in research of reading impairment
Authors: Ptáčková Monika , Vitásková Kateřina
Published: August 2020

Reading is a complex function that affects our daily living. It requires the cooperation of many structures and functions and is influenced by many different factors. One of the factors influencing the word reading process may be the characteristics of the word, such as its frequency of use in the language, its length, orthographic neighbourhood, and others. These characteristics can affect the speed and accuracy of reading in readers with and without learning disability. The following paper presents some aspects of our current research focused on the influence of the properties of the word on their reading in the Czech language environment. The concept of orthographic neighbourhood will be explained in more detail including some specifics in its calculation and use in the Czech language.
The use of numerical methods in the design of a formula that returns the surface of the leaves ofPhragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. Ex Steud.
Authors: Krzyżanowska Katarzyna , Krzyżanowski Paweł
Published: August 2020

The paper presents the results of calculations and a verification of numerical models developed for estimating the surface of leaves of the common reed (Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. Ex Steud.). The research sample consisted of 137 leaves collected from the rush zone of Lake Raduńskie Górne in 2018. The total area of leaves obtained for testing was 1932.3 cm2. To derive a formula that returns the surface of common reed foliage regression models were used – MLR (Multiple Linear Regression) and SLR (Stepwise Linear Regression). It has been shown that the measurement of basic leaf dimensions (i.e. length – L, mid-width – WM and maximum width – WX) makes it possible to define an empirical formula which, with an average accuracy of 99.9%, allows the real surface of leaves to be estimated. The modelling results were compared with formulas currently used in practice, and the measurement errors were determined using these formulas. It has been shown that the formulas used to date are subject to RMSE to the value of 1.19-2.52. The application of the developed formula (A = 0.4486 – 0.046 L + 7.9267 WM – 5.8121 WX + 0.5853 L • WX) will significantly reduce errors in leaf surface estimation (RMSE = 0.86) and thus the amount of reed transpiration and evapotranspiration, especially in the case of handling small samples (number of leaves and measurements).
Rapid monitoring of cyanobacteria in lakes – a case study in the Wel River catchment, Poland
Authors: Pasztaleniec Agnieszka , Hutorowicz Andrzej , Napiórkowska-Krzebietke Agnieszka
Published: August 2020

The purpose of the study was to ascertain the effect of cyanobacterial abundance and its taxonomic structure on the results of measurements made by a fluorometric device designed to detect in situ chlorophyll a and phycocyanin. A multiparameter water quality probe was tested at 10 lakes located in the Wel River catchment. We found a strong correlation between the chlorophyll a concentration determined by laboratory procedure (CHL-a) and that obtained as a result of the probe measurements (YSI CHL-a) (R=0.78) as well as between the YSI CHL-a and the total phytoplankton biomass (R=0.73), whereas YSI CHL-a was not a good predictor of cyanobacterial biomass (R=0.24). The phycocyanin recorded by the probe was proportional to the total biomass of cyanobacteria (R=0.86); however, this cyanobacterial taxonomic structure influenced the fluorometric signal. Nevertheless, our study showed significant differentiation of phycocyanin measurement distribution at different levels of cyanobacterial abundance (<2 mg L−1, between 2 and 10 mg L−1, and >10 mg L−1), which indicates that the PC-YSI measurements are valuable in the detection of increased risk of exceeding health alert thresholds recommended by the WHO.
Severe Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia divergens Concomitant Infection in Imported Captive Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)
Authors: Romanos Lola , Maillard Renaud Pierre
Published: August 2020

Tick-borne diseases are highly prevalent in domestic and wild ruminants and they may be distributed in wide geographical ranges by animal transportation. The aim of the current study was to investigate the presence of European strains of Babesia spp. and/or Anaplasma spp. in oversea imported reindeer specimens. Imported specimens (n=7) were hospitalized with visible tick infestation (Ixodes ricinus) and signs of cachexia, anemia, and hemoglobinuria. Using blood smears, PCR, and BLAST comparisons, it was confirmed that the animals were infected with a French strain of Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Babesia divergens which is considered to be absent in the USA. We conclude that oversea importation of reindeers must be followed with a routine check for geographically-specific strains of pathogens from the place of origin. This monitoring process must be dynamic and according to recent reports of tick-borne pathogens.
Exploring human resources, marketing and promotion activities towards the sustainable tourism development in Phu Quoc islands, Vietnam
Authors: Hieu Vu , Vu Ngo , Nwachukwu Chijioke
Published: August 2020

Phu Quoc island of Kien Giang Province in Vietnam is endowed with resources for tourism development. The study explored the human resources, tourism marketing and promotion efforts of businesses towards the sustainable tourism development in Phu Quoc tourism. The authors used secondary and primary data to elicit information from respondents. Secondary data was collected from Kien Giang department of tourism, Statistical departments of Kien Giang and Phu Quoc. We administered questionnaires to 230 local residents, 150 businesses, and 530 tourists. Furthermore, interviews were conducted in Phu Quoc with local residents, businesses, tourists, local authorities’ officers, and 12 experts. The results suggest that Phu Quoc tourism sector lack quality workforce and marketing and promotion initiative is not well developed. The study proposes recommendations to stakeholders of Phu Quoc tourism sectors and more of that, the limitation and further research is suggested.
Analysis of determinants of the inflow of foreign direct investment to Poland. Part II – research results
Authors: Wyrwa Joanna
Published: August 2020

This study contains an analysis of the main determinants of the inflow of foreign direct investment to Poland. This article is devoted to the analysis of the main motives determining the inflow of foreign direct investment to Poland. It is the second part of the series and presents the scale and dynamics of FDI inflow to Poland between 2010 and 2018, as well as the results of own research carried out using structural equation modeling. This study focused on determining the cause-and-effect relationship between the scale of inflow of foreign direct investment and selected macroeconomic parameters of the economy. Based on the theories and results from previous research, a model was developed in which the variables and the nature of their relationship were determined. The model is based on four latent exogenous variables describing FDI determinants and one latent endogenous variable describing FDI inflow. In the article, structural equation modeling was indicated as a method for analyzing the factors conditioning the inflow of foreign direct investment. The proposed research concept will allow supplementing and extending the analysis of FDI determinants in Poland.
Wear Resistance Improvement of Equipment for Production of Building Ceramics by Hardfacing with Flux-Coerd Electrodes based on Fe-Ti-B-C System
Authors: Prysyazhnyuk Pavlo , Ivanov Oleksandr , Lutsak Dmytro , Lutsak Lyubomyr
Published: August 2020

In this work were analyzed factors that leads to wearing of equipment of production engineering, construction, oil and gas, woodworking, tillage industries. Was established that traditional hardfacing materials based on the Fe-Cr-C system are not effective for improvement of abrasion resistance of elements of equipment for production of ceramic building materials due to working conditions. The aim of this work was to increase a durability of that equipment by using of flux cored electrodes with reaction components that provide “in-situ” synthesis, which leads to fine-grained structure of refractory borides and carbides and their solid solutions with increased hardness. Powders of Ti, Mo, B4C and their combinations were used. Structure of the hardfacing coatings were investigated by method of metallography, scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Using of pure metal powders led to forming a fine-grained structure with refractory borides and carbides and their solid solutions. It was investigated that the offered material based on Fe-Ti-Mo-C-B system used for increasing the wear resistance of extruder-screw for production of ceramic building material can increase the TBO period in 2.2-2.4 times in comparison with serial hardfacing materials based on Fe-Cr-C system.
3D Object Digitization Devices in Manufacturing Engineering Applications and Services
Authors: Palka Dorota , Sobota Marcin , Buchwald Paweł
Published: August 2020

The rapid development of CAD 3D systems has led to the development of solutions enabling the physical achievement of the designed object, already at the design stage. Such a solution is the rapid prototyping method, intended for fast, precise and repeatable production thanks to additive technology. The first basic step of this method is a 3D scan. It is a technique that analyzes a real object in order to collect data about its basic (geometric) and additional (e.g. color) features. The collected data is used to generate three-dimensional, virtual models. Scanning can be performed in various ways using different devices. The aim of the article is to review the available technologies for digitizing 3D objects and to compare them in the context of individual application areas. It presents selected tools and software that will economically and efficiently increase the range of applications of digitization methods in the production process and offering various services on the market.