bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Ubiquitous Issue of Cross-Mass Transfer: Applications to Single-Use Systems
Authors: Nguyen Phuong-Mai , Dorey Samuel , Vitrac Olivier
Published: September 2019

The leaching of chemicals by materials has been integrated into risk management procedures of many sectors where hygiene and safety are important, including food, medical, pharmaceutical, and biotechnological applications. The approaches focus on direct contact and do not usually address the risk of cross-mass transfer of chemicals from one item or object to another and finally to the contacting phase (e.g., culture medium, biological fluids). Overpackaging systems, as well as secondary or ternary containers, are potentially large reservoirs of non-intentionally added substances (NIAS), which can affect the final risk of contamination. This study provides a comprehensive description of the cross-mass transfer phenomena for single-use bags along the chain of value and the methodology to evaluate them numerically on laminated and assembled systems. The methodology is validated on the risk of migration i) of ϵ-caprolactam originating from the polyamide 6 internal layer of the overpackaging and ii) of nine surrogate migrants with various volatilities and polarities. The effects of imperfect contacts between items and of an air gap between them are particularly discussed and interpreted as a cutoff distance depending on the considered substance. A probabilistic description is suggested to define conservative safety-margins required to manage cross-contamination and NIAS in routine.
Interaction of Immune Cells and Tumor Cells in Gold Nanorod–Gelatin Composite Porous Scaffolds
Authors: Wang Xiuhui , Kawazoe Naoki , Chen Guoping
Published: September 2019

Composite porous scaffolds prepared by immobilization of photothermal nano-agents into porous scaffold have been used for both cancer therapy and tissue regeneration. However, it is not clear how the host immune cells and ablated tumor cells interact and stimulate each other in the composite scaffolds. In this research, a gold nanorod-incorporated gelatin composite scaffold with controlled spherical large pores and well interconnected small pores was fabricated by using ice particulates as a porogen. The composite porous scaffold was used for investigating the interaction between dendritic cells and photothermally ablated breast tumor cells. The composite scaffold demonstrated excellent photothermal property and the temperature change value could be adjusted by irradiation time and laser power density. The composite scaffold showed excellent photothermal ablation ability towards breast tumor cells. The photothermally ablated tumor cells induced activation of dendritic cells when immature dendritic cells were co-cultured in the composite scaffold. Consequently, the gold nanorod–incorporated gelatin composite porous scaffold should provide a useful platform for simultaneous photothermal-immune ablation of breast tumor.
Catalytic Effect of Facile Synthesized TiH1.971 Nanoparticles on the Hydrogen Storage Properties of MgH2
Authors: Zhang Liuting , Lu Xiong , Ji Liang , Yan Nianhua , Sun Ze , Zhu Xinqiao
Published: September 2019

Catalytic doping plays an important role in enhancing the hydrogen storage performance of MgH2, while finding an efficient and reversible catalyst remains to be a great challenge in enhancing the de/rehydrogenation properties of MgH2. Herein, a bidirectional nano-TiH1.971 catalyst was prepared by a wet chemical ball milling method and its effect on hydrogen storage properties of MgH2 was studied. The results showed that all the TiH1.971 nanoparticles were effective in improving the de/rehydrogenation kinetics of MgH2. The MgH2 composites doped with TiH1.971 could desorb 6.5 wt % H2 in 8 min at 300 °C, while the pure MgH2 only released 0.3 wt % H2 in 8 min and 1.5 wt % H2 even in 50 min. It was found that the smaller the size of the TiH1.971 particles, the better was the catalytic effect in promoting the performance of MgH2. Besides, the catalyst concentration also played an important role and the 5 wt %-c-TiH1.971 modified system was found to have the best hydrogen storage performance. Interestingly, a significant hydrogen absorption amount of 4.60 wt % H2 was evidenced for the 5 wt %-c-TiH1.971 doped MgH2 within 10 min at 125 °C, while MgH2 absorbed only 4.11 wt% hydrogen within the same time at 250 °C. The XRD results demonstrated that the TiH1.971 remained stable in cycling and could serve as an active site for hydrogen transportation, which contributed to the significant improvement of the hydrogen storage properties of MgH2.
Prevalence of Various Vaccine Candidate Proteins in Clinical Isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae: Characterization of the Novel Pht Fusion Proteins PhtA/B and PhtA/D
Authors: Kawaguchiya Mitsuyo , Urushibara Noriko , Aung Meiji Soe , Shinagawa Masaaki , Takahashi Satoshi , Kobayashi Nobumichi
Published: September 2019

Pneumococcal proteins unrelated to serotypes are considered to be candidates of antigens in next-generation vaccines. In the present study, the prevalence of vaccine candidate protein genes, along with serotypes and antimicrobial resistance determinants, was investigated in a total of 57 isolates obtained from a tertiary care hospital in Japan. All of the pediatric isolates and 76.6% of the adult isolates did not belong to PCV13 (a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine) serotypes, and 70.2% of all isolates showed multidrug resistance. All of the isolates had ply, pavA, nanA, and nanB, and high prevalence was noted for the pspA and pspC genes (96.5% and 78.9%, respectively). Detection rates for the pneumococcal histidine triad protein (Pht) genes phtA, phtB, phtD, and phtE were 49.1%, 26.3%, 61.4%, and 100%, respectively. Two fusion-type genes, phtA/B and phtA/D, were identified, with a prevalence of 36.9% and 14.0%, respectively. These fusion types showed 78.1–90.0% nucleotide sequence identity with phtA, phtB, and phtD. The most prevalent pht profile was phtA + phtD + phtE (26.3%), followed by phtA/B + phtE (19.3%) and phtA/B + phtD + phtE (17.5%), while pht profiles including phtD and/or phtA/phtD were found in 71.9% of isolates. The present study revealed the presence of two fusion types of Pht and their unexpectedly high prevalence. These fusion types, as well as PhtA and PhtB, contained sequences similar to the B cell epitopes that have been previously reported for PhtD.
Generation of a Triple-Transgenic Zebrafish Line for Assessment of Developmental Neurotoxicity during Neuronal Differentiation
Authors: Koiwa Junko , Shiromizu Takashi , Adachi Yuka , Ikejiri Makoto , Nakatani Kaname , Tanaka Toshio , Nishimura Yuhei
Published: September 2019

The developing brain is extremely sensitive to many chemicals. Exposure to neurotoxicants during development has been implicated in various neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders, including autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. Various screening methods have been used to assess the developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) of chemicals, with most assays focusing on cell viability, apoptosis, proliferation, migration, neuronal differentiation, and neuronal network formation. However, assessment of toxicity during progenitor cell differentiation into neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes often requires immunohistochemistry, which is a reliable but labor-intensive and time-consuming assay. Here, we report the development of a triple-transgenic zebrafish line that expresses distinct fluorescent proteins in neurons (Cerulean), astrocytes (mCherry), and oligodendrocytes (mCitrine), which can be used to detect DNT during neuronal differentiation. Using in vivo fluorescence microscopy, we could detect DNT by 6 of the 10 neurotoxicants tested after exposure to zebrafish from 12 h to 5 days’ post-fertilization. Moreover, the chemicals could be clustered into three main DNT groups based on the fluorescence pattern: (i) inhibition of neuron and oligodendrocyte differentiation and stimulation of astrocyte differentiation; (ii) inhibition of neuron and oligodendrocyte differentiation; and (iii) inhibition of neuron and astrocyte differentiation, which suggests that reporter expression reflects the toxicodynamics of the chemicals. Thus, the triple-transgenic zebrafish line developed here may be a useful tool to assess DNT during neuronal differentiation.
Targeted Topical Delivery of Retinoids in the Management of Acne Vulgaris: Current Formulations and Novel Delivery Systems
Authors: Latter Gemma , Grice Jeffrey E. , Mohammed Yousuf , Roberts Michael S. , Benson Heather A. E.
Published: September 2019

Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory pilosebaceous condition that affects 80–90% of adolescents. Since the introduction of tretinoin over 40 years ago, topical retinoid products have been a mainstay of acne treatment. The retinoids are very effective in addressing multiple aspects of the acne pathology as they are comedolytic and anti-inflammatory, and do not contribute to antibiotic resistance or microbiome disturbance that can be associated with long-term antibiotic therapies that are a common alternative treatment. However, topical retinoids are associated with skin dryness, erythema and pain, and may exacerbate dermatitis or eczema. Thus, there is a clear need to target delivery of the retinoids to the pilosebaceous units to increase efficacy and minimise side effects in surrounding skin tissue. This paper reviews the current marketed topical retinoid products and the research that has been applied to the development of targeted topical delivery systems of retinoids for acne.
High Efficiency Fabrication of Chitosan Composite Nanofibers with Uniform Morphology via Centrifugal Spinning
Authors: Li Zhen , Mei Shunqi , Dong Yajie , She Fenghua , Kong Lingxue
Published: September 2019

While electrospinning has been widely employed to spin nanofibers, its low production rate has limited its potential for industrial applications. Comparing with electrospinning, centrifugal spinning technology is a prospective method to fabricate nanofibers with high productivity. In the current study, key parameters of the centrifugal spinning system, including concentration, rotational speed, nozzle diameter and nozzle length, were studied to control fiber diameter. An empirical model was established to determine the final diameters of nanofibers via controlling various parameters of the centrifugal spinning process. The empirical model was validated via fabrication of carboxylated chitosan (CCS) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) composite nanofibers. DSC and TGA illustrated that the thermal properties of CCS/PEO nanofibers were stable, while FTIR-ATR indicated that the chemical structures of CCS and PEO were unchanged during composite fabrication. The empirical model could provide an insight into the fabrication of nanofibers with desired uniform diameters as potential biomedical materials. This study demonstrated that centrifugal spinning could be an alternative method for the fabrication of uniform nanofibers with high yield.
Bell-X, An Opportunistic Time Synchronization Mechanism for Scheduled Wireless Sensor Networks
Authors: Vera-Pérez Jose , Todolí-Ferrandis David , Silvestre-Blanes Javier , Sempere-Payá Víctor
Published: September 2019

The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is having an ever greater impact on industrial processes and the manufacturing sector, due the capabilities of massive data collection and interoperability with plant processes, key elements that are focused on the implementation of Industry 4.0. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) are one of the enabling technologies of the IIoT, due its self-configuration and self-repair capabilities to deploy ad-hoc networks. High levels of robustness and reliability, which are necessary in industrial environments, can be achieved by using the Time-Slotted Channel Hopping (TSCH) medium access the mechanism of the IEEE 802.15.4e protocol, penalizing other features, such as network connection and formation times, given that a new node does not know, a priori, the scheduling used by the network. This article proposes a new beacon advertising approach for a fast synchronization for networks under the TSCH-Medium Access Control (MAC) layer and Routing Protocol for Low-Power and Lossy Networks (RPL). This new method makes it possible to speed up the connection times of new nodes in an opportunistic way, while reducing the consumption and advertising traffic generated by the network.
True Random Number Generator (TRNG) Utilizing FM Radio Signals for Mobile and Embedded Devices in Multi-Access Edge Computing
Authors: Lee Kyungroul , Lee Manhee
Published: September 2019

As transmissions of data between mobile and embedded devices in multi-access edge computing (MEC) increase, data must be protected, ensuring confidentiality and integrity. These issues are usually solved with cryptographic algorithms systems, which utilize a random number generator to create seeds and keys randomly. Their role in cryptography is so important that they need to be generated securely. In this paper, a true random number generator (TRNG) utilizing FM radio signals as a source is proposed. The proposed method can generate random numbers with high entropy, increased by at least 118% and up to 431% compared to existing generators.
Visual Measurement of Water Level under Complex Illumination Conditions
Authors: Zhang Zhen , Zhou Yang , Liu Haiyun , Zhang Lili , Wang Huibin
Published: September 2019

Image-based water level measurement is a visual-sensing technique which automatically inspects the reading of the water line via image processing instead of the human eye. It can be realized easily on an existing video surveillance system and has advantages like low cost, non-contact, as well as results that are verifiable. It has the potential to be widely used in flood and waterlogging monitoring, while facing the challenge that water-line detection under complex natural or artificial illumination conditions is quite difficult in field applications. To handle this problem, a method is proposed assuming that the water line is generally located on the row with the largest local change of gray or edge features in the image of the water gauge. The water line is determined by coarse-to-fine detection of the position of the maximum mean difference (MMD) of the horizontal projections of gray and edge images. Image-based flow-level measurement systems were developed at two measurement sites. In situ comparative experiments were conducted with the float-type stage gauge and other image-based methods. The results show that the fusion of gray and edge features can overcome the shortcomings of single feature methods under complex illumination conditions such as dim light, glares, shadows and artificial night lighting. A coarse-to-fine strategy utilizes the periodicity of the surface pattern distribution of the standard bicolor water gauge, which improves the reliability of water-line detection. The resolution and accuracy of water-level measurement are 1 mm and 1 cm, respectively. In particular, the MMD value is efficient at identifying extremely unfavorable conditions and reducing gross errors.
Optimization of a New High Rotary Missile-Borne Stabilization Platform
Authors: Wei Xiaokai , Li Jie , Zhang Debiao , Feng Kaiqiang , Zhang Jiayu , Li Jinqiang , Lu Zhenglong
Published: September 2019

The passive semi-strapdown roll stabilized platform is an inertial platform, which can isolate the rolling of a projectile body by a special mechanical device. In the passive semi-strapdown roll stabilized platform, the bearing device plays an important role in isolating the rolling of the projectile body. The smaller the friction moment of bearing, the smaller the swing angular velocity of the platform, the smaller the range of inertial sensors required, the higher the accuracy of the navigation solution. In order to further reduce the swing angular velocity of the platform and improve the navigation accuracy, the bearing nested structure that could reduce the friction torque is proposed. Combined with the working principle of the passive semi-strapdown roll stabilized platform, the mechanical calculation model of friction at the moment of bearing the nested structure was established. A series of simulation analysis and tests showed that the output stability value of the friction moment was 47% that of a single bearing; the roll rate of the platform based on the bearing nested structure decreased to 50% of that based on the single bearing structure; the position and attitude errors measured of the platform based on the bearing nested structure decreased to more than 50% of that based on the single bearing structure. It showed that the bearing nested structure could effectively reduce the friction moment, improve the axial reliability of the bearing, and provide a more stable working environment for the passive semi-strapdown roll stabilized platform.
An Efficient and Robust Unsupervised Anomaly Detection Method Using Ensemble Random Projection in Surveillance Videos
Authors: Hu Jingtao , Zhu En , Wang Siqi , Liu Xinwang , Guo Xifeng , Yin Jianping
Published: September 2019

Video anomaly detection is widely applied in modern society, which is achieved by sensors such as surveillance cameras. This paper learns anomalies by exploiting videos under the fully unsupervised setting. To avoid massive computation caused by back-prorogation in existing methods, we propose a novel efficient three-stage unsupervised anomaly detection method. In the first stage, we adopt random projection instead of autoencoder or its variants in previous works. Then we formulate the optimization goal as a least-square regression problem which has a closed-form solution, leading to less computational cost. The discriminative reconstruction losses of normal and abnormal events encourage us to roughly estimate normality that can be further sifted in the second stage with one-class support vector machine. In the third stage, to eliminate the instability caused by random parameter initializations, ensemble technology is performed to combine multiple anomaly detectors’ scores. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that unsupervised ensemble technology is introduced to video anomaly detection research. As demonstrated by the experimental results on several video anomaly detection benchmark datasets, our algorithm robustly surpasses the recent unsupervised methods and performs even better than some supervised approaches. In addition, we achieve comparable performance contrast with the state-of-the-art unsupervised method with much less running time, indicating the effectiveness, efficiency, and robustness of our proposed approach.
Comparative Study of Comfort Indicators for School Constructions in Sustainability Methodologies: Schools in the Amazon and the Southeast Region of Brazil
Authors: Saraiva Tatiana Santos , da Silva Edson Martins , Almeida Manuela , Bragança Luís
Published: September 2019

In the 1970s and 1980s, the effects of pollution in the atmosphere grew from a local to a global scale, affecting the entire planet. Consequently, economic and social issues began to be increasingly more connected with environmental protection. Several measures were taken towards environmental preservation, many of those related to the sustainable construction of buildings. This work intended to make a parallel between comfort indicators among different schools in Brazil, beginning with the specific analyses of schools in Juiz de Fora (Minas Gerais, MG), in the Southeast region, and in Macapá (Amapa, AP), in the Amazon or Northern region. This comparison between schools is made to demonstrate the need to adapt methodologies and certifications that promote sustainability in school buildings for each region of Brazil. Questionnaires about ergonomic, thermal, visual and acoustic comfort, and air quality, were applied in two high-school buildings in Juiz de Fora, Academia School and Santa Catarina School, and in two high schools in Macapá, Tiradentes School and Professor Gabriel Almeida Café school, to understand the difference between these two regions of Brazil regarding comfort conditions. A comparison between the results of the four schools was made, proving the necessity of the elaboration of a specific methodology for each Brazilian region.
Opportunities and Challenges for Meeting the UN 2030 Agenda in the Light of Global Change—A Case Study of Swedish Perspectives
Authors: Eliasson Karin , Wibeck Victoria , Neset Tina-Simone
Published: September 2019

This study explores how geopolitical aspects can affect actors’ sense of agency to achieve the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its ambition to transform the world sustainably by studying the linkages between global change and the 2030 Agenda as described by Swedish change agents. Sweden has a self-declared ambition for leadership in the 2030 Agenda. The world’s high-income countries, including Sweden, have been given a specific responsibility to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The results of this focus group study show that the geopolitical landscape encompasses a multitude of actors and roles whose relationships are filled with tension, creating dichotomies between them. The analysis indicates that Sweden is assessed to be dependent on functioning ecosystems, both locally and globally, as well as causing global environmental change. Two narratives have emerged: (i) the narrative of the 2030 Agenda, referring to deliberate societal transformations that can be controlled and steered, and that have a direction; and (ii) the narrative of geopolitics, indicating perceptions of emergent transformations that appear uncontrollable, drifting aimlessly towards an unknown future. These narratives might influence the understanding of societal transformations, and need to be considered in the facilitation of platforms for deliberative transformations or responses to emerging transformations.
Determinants and Differences of Grain Production Efficiency Between Main and Non-Main Producing Area in China
Authors: Chen Furong , Zhao Yifu
Published: September 2019

This paper investigated the determinants, especially labor transformation, and differences of technical efficiency between main and non-main grain-producing area in China based on a panel data from 30 provinces in the period of 2001–2017. Stochastic frontier production function was used to estimate the level of technical efficiency and the marginal productivity of different inputs. The estimated results showed that land is the most important factor to improve China’s grain output, followed by fertilizers, labor, and machinery inputs. There was a significant 4.6 percent gap of production efficiency between main and non-main producing provinces. Influence of rural labor transformation was confirmed to be positive to improve technical efficiency.
Does the “Belt and Road Initiative” Promote the Economic Growth of Participating Countries?
Authors: Sun Qipeng , Zhang Xiaodong , Xu Xiaoqing , Yang Qi , Wang Sijie
Published: September 2019

With the slowdown of global economic growth, how to stimulate economic growth has become a hot topic in recent years. The “Belt and Road (B&R) Initiative,” as a newly proposed global economic stimulus plan, has attracted widespread attention from scholars. In this study, the research used the propensity score matching difference in difference (PSM-DID) method to evaluate whether the “B&R” Initiative has promoted the economic growth of the countries along the route. Objectively assessing the effect of its implementation is not only important for its completion and improvement in the future but also to verify whether the “B&R” Initiative promotes economic growth in participating countries. A logistic regression is constructed using the statistical data obtained by the World Bank on 110 countries from 2011 to 2016. The results show that the “B&R” Initiative has effectively promoted the rapid growth of the GDP of participating countries but the improvement of per capita GDP growth is not significant. Through the analysis of the selected variables, corresponding policy recommendations are proposed. Moreover, objective proofs are provided to encourage all the countries in the world to participate in the “B&R” Initiative.
Integrating Hydrogeological and Microbiological Data and Modelling to Characterize the Hydraulic Features and Behaviour of Coastal Carbonate Aquifers: A Case in Western Cuba
Authors: Hernàndez-Diaz Rebeca , Petrella Emma , Bucci Antonio , Naclerio Gino , Feo Alessandra , Sferra Gabriella , Chelli Alessandro , Zanini Andrea , Gonzalez-Hernandez Patricia , Celico Fulvio
Published: September 2019

Carbonate aquifers are the primary source of freshwater in Cuba. Unfortunately, coastal groundwater is often contaminated by seawater intrusion. The main aim of the present study was to test the efficacy of an experimental modelling approach, ranging from hydrogeology/geomorphology to microbiology, to better characterise both the hydraulic features and behaviour of a coastal carbonate aquifer and acquire useful information to prevent groundwater salinization. The interdisciplinary approach was an effective tool in order to understand (i) the hydraulic role played by some fault zones; (ii) the influence of discontinuous heterogeneities on groundwater flow and saltwater wedge shape; (iii) mixing processes between different water bodies (groundwater, surface water, seawater); (iv) the role of karst conduits in influencing the step-like halocline within the mixing zone between fresh groundwater and seawater.
Identifying the Drivers of Water Consumption in Single-Family Households in Joinville, Southern Brazil
Authors: Garcia Janine , Salfer Luis Ricardo , Kalbusch Andreza , Henning Elisa
Published: September 2019

This study aims to identify the factors that may influence water consumption in single-family households in the city of Joinville, Southern Brazil. Through questionnaires, data were collected from 108 households in several neighborhoods of the city. The questionnaires contained open-ended and closed-ended questions involving the surrounding infrastructure, socio-economic and demographic characteristics, constructive characteristics, installed plumbing fixtures, and water-use habits, totaling 57 variables. The independent variables were correlated to monthly water consumption (m3/month/household) and per capita consumption (liters/person/day) of each household. The statistically significant variables that affected households water consumption were related to demographic characteristics such as number of residents and educational level, construction features (i.e., number of bathrooms, building age, and built area), the presence of water-efficient appliances and water conservation habits. The results obtained can contribute to the development of new studies on water consumption and sustainable policies and awareness on the importance of water conservation.
"So Much for Darwin" - An Analysis of Stormfront Discussions on Race
Authors: Dentice Dianne
Published: September 2019

Even though people who actively participate in the white nationalist movement appear to be a relatively small percentage of the global population, it appears that racist and anti-Semitic attitudes continue to inform a new generation of white nationalists, many of whom populate discussion forums on Stormfront, online since 1995 and billed as the first Internet site in the hate genre. Membership in extremist groups and support for sites like Stormfront embody specific attitudes about race, the importance of the existence of biological races, intellectual superiority of whites, and justification for these beliefs that is sometimes framed with a religious perspective such as Christian Identity. This project is based on a content analysis of Stormfront discussion forums posted online between the years 2010 and 2017. The findings indicate that some discussants are willing to admit the existence of small percentages of mixed DNA without giving up their white identity. They understand the concept of mass migration and human breeding patterns. Others stand ready to argue these points and discredit DNA testing whenever possible. Hatred of Jews is a recurrent theme throughout Stormfront forums, no matter the topic of discussion and both William Pierce and Wesley Swift are gaining currency with younger discussants on the site. Additionally and maybe most importantly, a mentoring system is in place where more mature and seasoned white racialists share race science anecdotes and articles from J. Philippe Rushton and Arthur Jensen, among others. They also provide information and answer questions about Christian Identity ideology in an effort to build bridges from one generation of racists to the next.
Flashpoint: The Church and Law Enforcement in Poor Black and White Communities
Authors: Atchison Samuel K
Published: September 2019

This paper seeks to “connect-the-dots,” linking recent police shootings of African Americans, including several in suburban communities, with emerging research linking the migration to the suburbs of poor, mostly black and Latino urban dwellers with “suburban poverty” and crime. Also discussed are the increase in poverty, crime and incarceration among whites in rural communities. Contrary to popular belief, poor white communities contain the fastest growing segment of the U.S. prison population. Poor whites are also the victims of police violence more often than blacks. As one civil rights leader has written, “While African-Americans are at disproportionate risk from the structural and human biases of our criminal justice system, we should not forget that working and poor people of all races suffer from police excessive use of force. Police kill more whites than blacks.” (Jackson, 2015, para. 11)In an age of draconian and (in the opinion of many) hate-filled reversals in criminal justice and immigration policy, due in large measure to these demographic shifts, the power and moral witness of the church are sorely needed to assist the poor, both black and white. This assistance must go beyond the “outreach ministries” typically seen in churches. Rather, as society’s principal moral voice, the church must see and understand the demographic and cultural changes happening around it, effectively seeing through a moral lens the changes law enforcement often finds threatening. And, within the context of providing pastoral care to the wealthy and the poor, the black and the white, the law enforcer and the ostensible law breaker,assist in brokering relationships that are beneficial to the individuals, families and communities it serves.
Hemoglobinopati, Asetil Salisilik Asit Kullanimi Ve Üreminin İmmünoturbidimetrik Ve HPLC Hemoglobin A1c Ölçümleri Üzerine Etkileri
Authors: ŞAHİNGÖZ ERDAL Gülçin , KOŞER Murat , KASAPOĞLU Pınar , IŞIKSAÇAN Nilgün
Published: September 2019

Amaç: Tip II Diabetes
Mellitus (T2DM) en sık endokrin hastalıktır. Yüksek glikolize hemoglobin
(HbA1c) düzeylerinin kardiyovasküler hastalıklarda (KVH) risk faktörü olduğu ve
KVH'ların da diyabetik hastalarda ölüm ve sakatlığa neden olduğu bilinmektedir.
HbA1c düzeylerinin doğru ölçülmesi, hastaların tanı ve tedavi süreçlerinin
değerlendirilmesinde son derece önemli rol oynamaktadır.

 

Ülkemizde başta talasemi minör olmak üzere hemoglobin varyantları
yaygın olarak görülmektedir. Diyabetin kardiyovasküler etkileri nedeniyle de
asetilsalisilikasit (ASA) sıklıkla diyabetik hastalar tarafından
kullanılmaktadır. Diyabetik nefropati ise son dönemde hemodiyaliz gerektiren
böbrek yetmezliğine ve üremiye neden olmaktadır. Bu çalışmada
immünoturbidimetri ve yüksek performanslı sıvı kromatografi (HPLC)
yöntemlerinin 3 hasta grubunda HbA1c düzeylerini ölçmek üzere karşılaştırılması
amaçlanmıştır.

 

Gereç-Yöntem: Bu çalışmaya her biri 20
hastadan oluşan üç grup dahil edilmiştir. Bu çalışmaya 20’şer kişilik 3 hasta
grubu dahil edilmiştir. İlk grup hemoglobin elektroforezi kullanılarak
“hemoglobinopati” tanısı alan hastalardan, ikinci grup en az 6 aydır günde 100
mg veya üzerinde ASA alan hastalardan ve üçüncü grup  kronik hemodiyalize giren hastalardan
oluşmaktadır. Hastalardan alınan EDTA içeren tüplere toplanan venöz kan
örnekleri,  Premier Hb 9210 (Trinity
Biotech –USA) ve Cobas c501 (Roche –Almanya) cihazları kullanılarak analiz
edilmiştir.

 

Sonuç: Her 3 grupta immünoturbidimetri ile
HPLC yöntemi karşılaştırıldığında grupların içinde HbA1c düzeyleri arasında
anlamlı bir istatistiksel fark bulunamamıştır (p=0,462, p=0,065 p=0,062).

 

Tartışma: İmmünoturbidimetri ve HPLC,
HbA1c ölçümlerinde yaygın olarak kullanılan yöntemlerdendir.  İmmünoturbidimetrik yöntemin HbA1c
ölçümlerinde HPLC yöntemi ile arasında güçlü bir korelasyon olduğu
gösterilmiştir. HbA1c analizini etkileyebilecek 
hastalıklar ve ilaçlar göz önünde bulundurulmalıdır.
Feeding Possibilities for Influencing the Fatty Acid Composition of Broiler Body
Authors: Pálfy Tamás , Gungel János
Published: September 2019

The experiment was conducted to assess the effect of feeding lard, linseed oil, sunflower oil and soya oil on performance, chemical and fatty acid composition of broilers. The experiment was carried out with 1200 Ross-308 male broilers. They were fed 3 phase diets. These diets were isonitrogenous, isoenergetic and contained 6% oil. The result of the experiment shows no effect of different oil sources on growth performance in male broilers, however the fatty acid composition differed (p<0,05).
Prevalencia de alteraciones visuales en los pacientes que asistieron a la Clínica de Simulación de la Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Portoviejo-Ecuador en el año 2018
Authors: Vinces Chancay Jairo Enrique , Zamora Loor Gema , Sanchez Castillo Ligbel
Published: September 2019

Recibido: 12 de abril de 2019Aprobado: 25 de mayo de 2019La investigación busca determinar la prevalencia de patologías, defectos refractivos y alteraciones oculomotoras que presentaron los pacientes en el área de Optometría Integral, en la Clínica de Simulación de la Universidad Técnica de Manabí, Portoviejo-Ecuador, en el año 2018. Metodología: Se realizó un estudio descriptivo retrospectivo, en donde se valoraron 452 pacientes en el año 2018, por lo cual se revisaron las fichas clínicas para realizar el análisis estadístico. Resultados: La prevalencia de los errores refractivos presenta un 61% con astigmatismo (276/452); la prevalencia de alteraciones oculomotoras alcanza un 10% con insuficiencia de acomodación (46/452), mientras la prevalencia de patologías oculares es de 26% (127/452). Conclusiones: La prevalencia que se encontró al analizar las fichas del área de Optometría Integral de la Clínica de Simulación, indican que el astigmatismo representa el 61% de los 452 pacientes que se valoraron durante el año 2018, contradiciendo lo encontrado en la literatura.
Características sociodemográficas del paciente diabético en el contexto rural de la provincia de Manabí, Ecuador
Authors: Vite Solorzano Franklin Antonio , Macias Alvia Aida Monserrate , Santana Sornoza Johnny Willian , Cedeño Holguin Dolores Mirella
Published: September 2019

Aprobado: 15 de mayo de 2019Recibido: 15 de junio de 2019La diabetes mellitus (DM) es un problema de salud con gran impacto que preocupa a profesionales sanitarios y a la sociedad en su conjunto. Con base a este precepto se evaluaron las características  demográficas de los pacientes con Diabetes mellitus tipo 2 que se atiende en los subcentros rurales de Manabí en Ecuador. La metodología fue de tipo descriptivo, transversal y prospectivo.La población la constituyeron 90  pacientes mayores de 18 años de edad.  Se utilizó como instrumento la primera parte del  Cuestionario sobre Capacidades de Autocuidado validado por Rodríguez y col (2º14). Los resultados presentan que el  75% tienen hasta 5 hijos; el 54% son del sexo femenino  y el 22% no alcanzaron a culminar la secundaria. Dentro de sus conclusiones se evidencio un predominio del sexo femenino y en muy alto porcentaje apenas poseen culminada la primaria y en el mejor de los casos no han culminado la secundaria completa.
Mariqual Model: A Survey Instrument Developed For Marital Quality Conceptualized From Servqual Model
Authors:   Putra Business Schoo, UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia, Tat Huam Hon , Arokiasamy Anantha Raj A ,   Xiamen University Malaysia,Sepang,Selangor, Malaysia,, Soon Ng Kim ,   Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Johor, Malaysia
Published: September 2019

Marriage has been described as the most important and fundamental human relationship in our lives. Indeed, marital adjustment, happiness, satisfaction and other terminologies that related to the relationship subjective quality of marriage have been some of the most popular topics of these fields. Research on the marital relationship has been one of the most frequently studied areas of investigation in the family and marriage field. The literature about marital quality reveals that scholars have endeavored to gauge and describe variation in a construct that is itself barely grasped. Despite a plethora of adequate instruments available as measures of marital quality, however, there is still lacking an approach, which can increase theoretical simplicity and at the same time prevents some of the perplexes apparent in the experimental literature. This paper describes the development of an instrument called MARIQUAL conceptualized from the 22-item instrument (called SERVQUAL) used for evaluating customer experiences of service quality in business organizations. Even though there have been many criticisms of the SERVQUAL model, service quality literature still suggests that SERVQUAL model has been the main standard model applied to assess and operate service quality around various service locales and numerous cultural environments and is prized by scholars and experts. Additionally, it has good reliability and provides a suitable measurement for perceived service quality. The paper concludes with a recommended survey instrument for marital quality conceptualized from the SERVQUAL Model
Personality Traits, Entrepreneurial Self Efficacy And Financial Capability Effects On Entrepreneurial Intention
Authors:   Universitas Ngurah Rai, Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, Adiandari Ade Maharini , Yuliani  ,   Universitas Sriwijaya, Palembang, Indonesia, Winata Hendra ,   Universitas Brawijaya, Malang , Indonesia
Published: September 2019

This study objectives to show the effect of personality traits on entrepreneurial target by using entrepreneurial self-efficacy as a mediating variable and the financial capability as a moderating variable. The research was conducted on students as representatives of the young generation. Currently, many regions need the creation of new economic resources to improve the community welfare where one of the strategies is by creating young entrepreneurs. For that reason, the involvement of higher education institutions in shaping the student’s mindsets and encouraging their entrepreneurial intention is very important. This study focuses on personality traits accompanied by incorporating elements of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and financial capability as variables that are believed to play a role in encouraging student entrepreneurial objective as a representative of the young generation. The study involved 112 students of the Faculty of Economics who were undergoing their third year of education at the University of Ngurah Rai, Denpasar, Bali. Data was collected through questionnaires and processed using SPLS statistical tools. The findings illustrates that personality traits and entrepreneurial self-efficacy have an important influence on entrepreneurial goal. The discoveries also produce evidence that financial capability does not moderate the effect of personal behaviors on entrepreneurial target, which means that if someone does not have a financial capability, it will not prevent him from entrepreneurship because he has personality traits and/or self-efficacy as an entrepreneur. This finding also shows that higher education institutions could play a part in shaping personality traits and student entrepreneurial self-efficacy early with the preparation of a comprehensive curriculum between theory and practice in order to be able to encourage entrepreneurial intention after students graduate from their college.
Effect Of Multimedia-Based Gymnastics Method And Obesity Of Fat Reduction At The Waist
Authors:   S.Pd., M.Or., Physical education Pascasarjana Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia Faculty of Sport Sciences, Universitas Negeri Medan, Indonesia, Faridah Eva , KS Prof. Dr. Soegiyanto ,   MS, Physical education Pascasarjana Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia, Dr. Nasuka  ,   M.Kes, Physical education Pascasarjana Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia, Dr. Sulaiman  ,   M.Pd, Physical education Pascasarjana Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
Published: September 2019

Gymnastics is a gesture carried out in a certain way at a certain speed to train members of the entire body. Multimedia learning is presented visually in the form of moving images that can display gymnastics in order to decrease fat at the waist. The purpose of this study is to compare and evaluate between Pilates gymnastic methods and hula hoop gymnastic methods and obesity levels to reduce fat at the waist. The research method used was Pilates gymnastics method and hula gymnastic method that uses multimedia. This study is expected to produce the availability of guidance in the form of text, audio, visual and video for someone who will carry out gymnastics. So that it can be concluded that gymnastics using multimedia as an additional device can more quickly achieve the desired results.
The Implementation of Communicative Language Teaching by Iraqi English language Teachers
Authors:   School of Education, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai, Johor, Malaysia, Fattah A. , Saidalvi A. ,   Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai, Johor, Malaysia
Published: September 2019

The implementation of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) has been debated by many researchers in the field of language teaching methodology. Much is done in this regard and literature confirms that the implementation of CLT in teaching English as a foreign language is challenging. Even though there are studies investigating the issue in Iraqi schools, little has been done in exploring the classroom practices of Communicative Language Teaching by the teachers. Thus, this study hopes to investigate how Iraqi English language teachers implement CLT in their classrooms. A qualitative method is used to collect data through classroom observation of 3 in-service English language teachers. The research question that is addressed is (to what extent the classroom practices of Iraqi English language teachers comply with the principles of Communicative Language Teaching?). The data collected from the observations are analyzed based on a checklist to compare them to the basic principles of communicative approach. The results of the study show that Iraqi English language teachers do not fully implement communicative approach in their classroom practices and their teachings mostly focus on grammar and vocabulary rather than meaningful communication. The results from this study will contribute to the field of knowledge about Communicative Language Teaching, particularly in Iraqi public schools. The outcome of this study will support teachers to overcome the current challenges in language teaching and provide better recommendation for them to improve their teaching and implementation of CLT approach.
The Narrative Structure and Ideational Meaning of Malay Short Stories
Authors:   Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor, Malaysia., Azmi Siti Norashikin , Hassan Hanita ,   Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor, Malaysia., Fakhruddin Wan Farah Wani Wan ,   Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor, Malaysia.
Published: September 2019

Short stories are structured in a way to engage readers to the stories being told. This paper discusses the compatibility between Narrative Structure of Malay Short Stories and Labov and Waletzky’s (1967) Narrative Structure of Casual Conversation. The narrative analysis was conducted on the literary works of a prominent Malaysian Female Writer, Zurinah Hassan entitled “Catatan di Meja Makan” (Notes at the Dining Table), “Anita” and “Perjalanan Sendiri” (Own Journey). The findings suggest that the narrative structure of Malay Short Stories has the same stages as outlined by Labov and Waletzky’s, and the stages are Orientation, Complication, Evaluation, Resolution and Coda. Following that, the Orientation stage was further analysed using Transitivity analysis as introduced by Halliday’s SFL (1994). The analysis shows that the most frequent process found in the Malay short stories is Action Process with 63 occurrences and followed by Mental Process with 24 occurrences. These two process types connote the active actions of the characters of the short stories either physically or mentally. In relation to the process types, participant types of Action process which are Actor and Goal have the highest occurrences, 46 and 44 respectively, whilst participant types of Mental process, Senser and Phenomenon with 20 and 17 occurrences. The findings suggest that the main aim of Orientation stage in Malay short stories is to foreground the characters, as doers and sensers, and and highlight their physical and mental activities.
A New Pedagogy for Training the Pre-service Mathematics Teachers Readiness in Teaching Integrated STEM Education
Authors:   Department of Science Education, Sokoto State University, Sokoto, Nigeria, Galadima Usman , Ismail Zaleha ,   Department of Science, Mathematics and Creative Multimedia Education, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia., Ismail Norulhuda ,   Department of Science, Mathematics and Creative Multimedia Education, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
Published: September 2019

The development of any country in the world depends largely on its escalating focus on integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (iSTEM). Over the years in Nigeria, there are calls for action to integrate STEM disciplines as the pre-service teachers are only receiving training in the separate field of STEM. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the iSTEM course as a new pedagogy for training the pre-service mathematics teachers’ readiness in teaching the iSTEM disciplines in Sokoto State, Nigeria. The study utilised one group quasi-experimental research design. Purposive sampling was used in choosing all the 54 pre-service mathematics teachers in their 300-level undergoing a teacher training programme in Sokoto State University, Nigeria. The participants underwent a 5-week iSTEM course organised by the researchers that focused on the five levels of integration that include: Single, Combine, Multiple, Engineering Projects, and Fully Integrated STEM disciplines. Data was collected through the iSTEM pre- and post-survey Questionnaire (iSTEM-SQ) and analysed using descriptive statistics. The bar graph and non-parametric Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test were also used in describing the effectiveness of the pre- and post-survey test. The findings indicated that the iSTEM course was effective in preparing and empowering the pre-service mathematics teachers’ pedagogical strategy for teaching integrated STEM in their future classroom instruction. The paper also recommends for incorporation of the iSTEM approach in the curriculum of pre-service mathematics teachers at the various institutions of learning in Nigeria.