bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Diagnóstico del uso de las tecnologías en el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje en la educación superior / Diagnosis of the use of technologies in the teaching and learning process in Higher Education
Authors: Cavazos Salazar Rosario Lucero , Torres Flores Sergio Guadalupe
Published: January 2017

Dentro de la perspectiva de las tendencias globales en la educación de incorporar las tecnologías emergentes en el proceso de enseñanza–aprendizaje, los procesos de comunicación en la educación han propiciado nuevos planteamientos. Organismos a nivel mundial como la Unesco promueven un modelo educativo sustentado en tres pilares: aprender a aprender (conocimiento), aprender a hacer (habilidades) y aprender ser (actitudes y valores). La presencia de las tecnologías en el aula exige cambios en la dinámica educativa. Es importante conocer los elementos que permiten una eficiente comunicación del saber, donde confluyen docente, mensaje, canal y alumno.Esta investigación está fundamentada en la necesidad de describir y explicar un modelo educativo-comunicativo de aplicación de los recursos digitales dentro de una nueva dinámica en el proceso enseñanza-aprendizaje. El estudio se desarrolló mediante una estrategia cualitativa —de enfoque fenomenológico, exploratorio y descriptivo—, diseñada para compilar información mediante un instrumento de captación con preguntas cerradas en escala de Likert.Los resultados obtenidos dieron pauta para respaldar la propuesta de un modelo tecno-pedagógico en los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje, dirigido a los docentes que imparten sus cursos de manera presencial por medio de los recursos educativos digitales, lo que favorece el aprendizaje significativo. Como producto de esta investigación se plantean las siguientes recomendaciones: desarrollar una estrategia de capacitación y actualización del profesorado en todos sus niveles mediante el Diplomado de Formación Continua y Superación Profesional, apoyar al docente para que logre un perfil deseable ante los nuevos escenarios educativos en presencia de las TIC en el aula, y asimilar la nueva dinámica didáctica.
La trayectoria escolar en la formación inicial de profesores de matemáticas / The educational career in the initial training of mathematics teachers
Authors: Mendivil Rosas Gricelda , Ponce Ceballos Salvador
Published: January 2017

El presente trabajo documenta avances de una investigación en proceso, relacionada con la trayectoria escolar y el proceso de enseñanza aprendizaje de los futuros profesores de matemáticas de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California.La implicación del análisis de trayectoria escolar consiste en identificar los conocimientos y habilidades que el estudiante de docencia de la matemática posee y qué es lo que necesita mejorar para llegar a ser un profesor competente, que forme a estudiantes capaces de resolver problemas y tomar decisiones con base en el pensamiento matemático.
Prevalencia de consumo de drogas en alumnos del último semestre de la carrera de medicina y su repercusión académica / Prevalence of drug use in Senior Medical Students and their academic impact
Authors: Fuentes Aguilar Elías
Published: January 2017

El uso de drogas en las escuelas ha ido en aumento; en el nivel secundaria ya se ha detectado este problema, pero en el nivel superior no se han realizado suficientes estudios.Para el presente estudio se aplicó una encuesta a 108 alumnos del último semestre de la carrera de medicina del Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias de la Salud, Unidad Milpa Alta del Instituto Politécnico Nacional.Los resultados son los siguientes: 40 alumnos (37 %) son del sexo masculino y 68 (63 %) del sexo femenino, en total 97 alumnos consumen alcohol (89.8 %), de los cuales 58 son mujeres y 39 hombres. Con respecto al consumo de tabaco, 52 consumen tabaco (48 %), 27 son mujeres y 25 hombres. En cuanto al consumo de otras drogas, 16 alumnos (14%) admitieron que las han probado (siempre en fiestas), de los cuales 8 son hombres y 8 son mujeres, mientras que los 16 alumnos restantes solo han probado marihuana.Por otro lado, 15 alumnos aceptaron tener algún problema debido al consumo de alguna droga, siendo el de mayor frecuencia el escolar; de entre estos alumnos, 3 bajaron su promedio y 2 consideran que el consumo de drogas les quita demasiado tiempo.Las campañas de prevención de la drogadicción deberían realizarse también en alumnos de nivel superior y no solo de nivel medio.
Impacto de los programas de movilidad internacional en la adquisición de competencias académicas para el ingreso al mercado laboral: México
Authors: González Jaimes Elvira Ivone , Salgado Vargas Christian Karel
Published: January 2017

El objetivo es realizar un análisis de las competencias académicas que influyen en la adquisición y conservación del empleo de los estudiantes y egresados de una universidad estatal. Dichas variables fueron estudiadas a través de realizar un análisis comparativo entre estudiantes y egresados con y sin participación en el Programa de Movilidad Universitaria Internacional (PMUI). El método utilizado es de diseño no experimental, comparativo en formato de encuesta, corte transversal, selección de la muestra al azar (estudiantes o egresados con y sin movilidad internacional como empleadores) para realizar un análisis estadístico de tipo descriptivo e inferencial.Las poblaciones son: 1 391 estudiantes y egresados, 68 empleadores. Muestras al azar: 372 estudiantes y egresados como 54 empleadores. Material: encuesta electrónica del cuestionario de competencias para estudiantes, egresados y empleadores. En los resultados se observa el desarrollo de más competencia académica en alumnos que asistieron en programas de movilidad que los que no asistieron. Sus diferencias se acentuaron en competencias de contextos internacionales y responsabilidad social y compromiso ciudadano.
Object Segmentation on UAV Photo Data to Support the Provision of Rural Area Spatial Information
Authors: Sari Nurwita Mustika , Kushardono Dony
Published: January 2017

The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to take aerial photographs is increasing in recent years. Photo data taken by UAV become one of reliable detailed-scale  remote sensing data sources. The capability to obtain cloud-free images and the flexibility of time are some of the advantages of UAV photo data compared to satellite images with optical sensor. Displayed area at the data shows the objects clearly. Rural area has certain characteristics in its land cover namely ricefield. To delineate the area correctly there is an object-based image analysis methods (OBIA) that could be applied. In this  study, proposed a novel method to  execute the separation of objects that exist in the data with segmentation method. The result shows an effective segmentation method to separate different objects in rural areas recorded on UAV image data. The accuracy obtained is 90.47% after optimization process. This segmentation can be a valid basis to support the provision of spatial information in rural area.
Morphometry Characteristics of Riverbed Sediment Grains as Basic Indicator Management of River Valley Environment (Case Study of Bogowonto River, Central Java)
Authors: Dibyosaputro Suprapto
Published: January 2017

This research aims to propose the usage of riverbed sediment grains roundness/flatness as basic indicator of river valley management. It is based on the evaluation of anomalous morphometry condition of sediment grains and valley condition along the river as one indicator of the stability of the riverbank of the river valley. This stability express the physical condition of the river valleys. In this paper, we provide methodological explanation as well as a case study in Bogowonto River. Analysis of the morphometry of sediment grain on riverbed from upstream to downstream as well as the relationship between the distance of the upstream and morphometry of sediment grains along Bogowonto River were conducted. Finally, we evaluated the anomalous condition as indicator of different environmental condition of the riverbank. We conducted three stages survey processes: preparation, fieldwork, and post-fieldwork. The preparation phase includes site selection, depiction of the main river channel of Bogowonto River, and the determination of the sample location. The distance between each sampling site was 5 km along Bogowonto River. The results show that there is anomalous morphometry of sediment grains found in the study area. The reason is that the channel of the segment of the river flowing over rocky riverbed of breccia along the 7.5 km, with hard and sharps edge grained of rock particles. This is accompanied by landslide the occurrence in the upper segment of the river. This is why the value of roundness and flatness indexes are changed significantly become lower value than the previous segment. This condition can be implemented to be used as indicator to basic management of landslide along a certain segment which indicated by the changing in roundness and flatness index values of the sediment grains.
Geothermal Energy Utilization in the Kamojang Nature Reserve, West Java, Indonesia
Authors: Dahlan Endes N , Putiksari Vella , Prasetyo Lilik Budi
Published: January 2017

Geothermal energy activities are allegedly disturbing Kamojang Nature Reserve by clearing the forest. Actually, the national park according to the Law No. 41 of 1999, must not jeopardize the preservation of germplasm in it. Meanwhile, the utilization of geothermal power plant in the area is also required to meet the electricity demand in Indonesia. Land clearing as one of the activity of exploration and exploitation of geothermal coupled with the increasing of human’s activity inside the forest caused widespread deforestation. Since there is a geothermal energy project inside the Kamojang Nature Reserve, then the aim of this study is to analysis the land cover change at Kamojang Nature Reserve from year 2000 until 2011. The research showed that the type of land cover was dominated by forest for about 4231.3 ha with forest cover percentage around 51.17%. Aside of that, the land cover change caused by exploration and exploitation of Pertamina Geothermal Energy was 60.2 ha (8.90 %), while the changes caused by human activities was 614.46 ha (91.10 %). Based on these results, replanting had been done to overcome the worse effect from each activities. The extent of reforestation and enrichment conducted by PGE was 680.58 ha by involving the society who live in surrounding area.
Analysis Physical Characteristics of Land for Estimated Runoff Coefficient as Flood Control Effort in Comal Watershed, Central Java
Authors: Miardini Arina , Susanti Pranatasari Dyah
Published: January 2017

Watershed conditions in Indonesia have been degraded over time, which is marked by increasing area of critical land. The vast area of critical land was evidenced to be a serious threat for watershed carrying capacity which eventually affected the hydrology imbalance in the watershed area. One among watershed with degraded lands which seriously requires priority handling is Comal watershed. The purpose of this study is to identify the physical characteristics of Comal watershed which have significant influence in determining the runoff and calculating the runoff coefficient by taking into account the parameters of watershed’s physical characteristics. The method used in this analysis is Cook method, which is done through the estimation of runoff coefficient by evaluating the parameters of slope, infiltration, vegetation cover, and drainage density.  The unit of analysis in this study is land mapping unit. Results of the four parameters are classified and the classification is done so that the scores of the runoff coefficient are figured out, while the peak discharge determination is performed by using the Rational method. The analysis showed that runoff coefficient of Comal watershed is 61.63%, which can be categorized as high. The runoff coefficients and peak discharge calculations of each sub watershed, respectively, Comal Hilir of 52.65% with peak discharge 505.68 m3/sec, Genteng of 65.04% with peak discharge 542.44 m3/sec, Lomeneng of 64.00% with peak discharge 194.23 m3/sec, Srengseng of 64.10% with peak discharge 270.46 m3/sec, and Wakung Hulu of 62.34% with peak discharge 686.64 m3/ sec. The most influential runoff coefficient factors are, respectively, infiltration rate, slope, vegetation cover, and drainage density. Flood control priority in Comal watershed should be preoccupied to increase the infiltration rate through a combination of three conservation techniques of mechanical, vegetative, and biology.
Evaluation of Satellite Image Correction Methods Caused by Differential Terrain Illumination
Authors: Santosa Purnama Budi
Published: January 2017

The problem due to differential terrain illumination on satellite imagery is experienced by most of areas which are on mountainous terrain. This may cause variations in reflectance of similar ground features which lead to a misclassification of land cover classes due to different topographic positions. This phenomenon most commonly occurred in the areas which are located on southern and northern hemisphere because of the low sun inclination. This problem has been a major interest for researchers to be solved prior to the land cover classification process. For satellite images which experience this kind of problem, topographic correction need to be applied in order to reduce the illumination effects prior to land cover classification process. This research is aimed at conducting topographic correction of multi spectral SPOT satellite data as well as evaluating the three topographic correction methods. They are Cosine which is based on Lambertian reflectance assumption, as well as Minnaert correction and C correction methods which are based on non-Lambertian reflectance assumption. The data used in this study are two scenes of SPOT images of forested mountainous area of Miyazaki Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan. Research steps had been conducted in this study including geometric correction, sample data collection for calculating Minnaert constants and C constants at location which represents the whole study area, topographic correction for two scenes SPOT images, and results analysis. The results show that Cosine method did not show good performance for the study area which is topographically dominated by rugged terrain. Whereas Minnaert method and C method gave satisfactory results as is indicated by the statistical data as well as visual interpretation. However the Minnaert correction method showed slightly better performance than the C correction method.
An Estimation of Earthquake Impact to Population in Makassar by Probabilistic Approach
Authors: Sunardi Bambang , Sulastri Sulastri
Published: January 2017

Makassar is one of Indonesian big cities with rapid growth rate, but not totally safe from earthquake hazard. This condition led study on affected population by earthquakes in this city are important to do. This paper estimated the population of Makassar City threatened by the probabilistic earthquake hazard. In this current study, earthquake hazard in the forms of peak ground acceleration (PGA) and spectral acceleration,  estimated by using Probabilistic Seismic Hazards Analysis (PSHA). The PSHA result then overlaid with administration map and population data to obtain distribution and percentage of population threatened by the probabilistic earthquake hazard. The results showed the smallest value of ground acceleration located in the south-west (Tamalate sub district), further north increased and reached the highest value in the northeast (Biring Kanaya sub district). Both Tamalate and Biringkanaya can be classified as rural area with low population density.  The urban area of Makassar, which is the concentration of population, located in the centre of Makassar, got the middle earthquake hazard.
Tránsito de la fenomenología a la hermenéutica. Heidegger lector de Confesiones X, 1-23
Authors: Calabrese Claudio César
Published: January 2017

Recibido: 16/11/2015 • Aceptado: 01/09/2016

 En este artículo, hacemos un seguimiento de la lectura que hiciera el joven Heidegger del libro X (capítulos 1-23) de Las Confesiones ; en ella se presenta, por un lado, la refutación de aquellos planteamientos que intentan alcanzar síntesis de épocas y que por ello desrealizan necesariamente el ahora y el yo de Agustín, en este caso. Luego seguimos de cerca los distintos pasos del procedimiento de lectura de Heidegger y sus resultados.
Religious feelings in pre-school children in their own and their mothers’ perception
Authors: Tatala Małgorzata , Mańkowska Maria
Published: January 2017

The aim of the study was to compare the expression of religious feelings in pre-school children and the perception of these feelings by the children’s’ mothers. Ninety Polish children from Catholic families aged 4, 5 and 6 participated in the study. A picture method along with interviews with children’s mothers were employed to gather the data. Data from the two sources was compared, taking into consideration the content and ways of expression of the described feelings. Relations between positive and negative feelings were investigated and further statistical analyses were focused mainly on negative feelings. It was found that structure of negative religious feelings obtained directly from the children bears significant similarity to the mothers’ perception.
Religiosity as a factor protecting against problem behaviour in adolescence
Authors: Niewiadomska Iwona , Bartczuk Rafał P. , Chwaszcz Joanna , Fel Stanisław , Augustynowicz Weronika , Palacz-Chrisidis Agnieszka , Wiechetek Michał
Published: January 2017

This article explores the question, to what degree religiosity contributes, as a protecting factor against a broad category of socially deviant adolescent and youth behaviours. It also tests the hypothesis that gender plays a moderating role in the relationship between religiosity and problem behaviour. It employs a modified version of the Problem Behaviour Syndrome Measure (PBSM), in concert with Jessor and Jessor’s conceptual work. It also makes use of the Duke Religion Index (DUREL) to assess religiosity. The empirical study deals with a representative group of 960 students of upper-secondary schools in the Lubelskie province, Poland. The results were analyzed using canonical analysis and ANOVA. The achievements of the article are twofold. First, it identifies significant correlations between the different levels of religiosity among youth, and the occurrence and intensification of problem behaviours, particularly in regard to organized activity. Organized and intrinsic religiosity play principal protective roles, while the impact of personal religious practices is less significant. Secondly, while analyzing the moderating role of gender in the relationship between religiosity and the intensity of problem behaviour, it was found that gender does not have a significant interactive impact. An affirmative conclusion was confirmed in only two instances.
Faith and Belief, Importance, Community, Address in Care spiritual history tool by C. M. Puchalski as an instrument for an interdisciplinary team in patient car
Authors: Krakowiak Piotr , Fopka-Kowalczyk Małgorzata
Published: January 2017

Being aware of the tradition of research on spirituality in theology and the existence of detailed publications and research concerning psychology of religion and religiosity in psychology as well as other sciences in Poland, the authors propose the recognition and adaptation of the FICA tool for spirituality research. The belief in the importance of deepening the knowledge and providing tools to research spirituality of human existence results from a long practice of the authors in palliative and hospital care. Understanding a difficulty in operationalizing the category of spirituality, they attempted at searching for a method that would be applicable to persons at the end of their lives as well as to all the suffering. Having analyzed the research tools built by Polish science as well as available ones on religiosity and spirituality the following paper aims at presenting the unknown FICA tool (F – Faith and Believe, I – Importance, C – Community, A – Address in Care) in Poland by Prof. Dr. Christina M. Puchalski, USA, being adapted to Polish practice. The tool presented allows for the evaluation of spiritual experience of persons taken medical and social care of by every member of multidisciplinary team of professionals. Since the FICA tool is a qualitative scale it does not need a normalization and standardization methodology. However, a cultural adaptation is crucial in order to make the practical tool become help in answering spiritual and existential questions posed by patients to workers and voluntaries engaged in the process of Care.
Relationship of Glycated Haemoglobin with Lipid Profile among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Authors: Samdani Tasrina Shamnaz , Mitra Palash , Rahim Muhammad Abdur
Published: January 2017

Background: Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is widely used as an index of mean glycaemia, a measure of risk for the development of diabetic complications and a measure of the quality of diabetes care. Patients with type 2 diabetes have an increased prevalence of dyslipidemia. Treatment of dyslipidaemia improves cardiovascular outcomes. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of glycemic control on lipid profile.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 300 type 2 diabetic patients admitted in BIRDEM General Hospital from November 2013 to April 2015. Fasting blood samples were collected and different lipid fractions along with fasting blood glucose and HbA1c were estimated. Pearsons correlation test was applied to evaluate the correlation between HbA1c and components of lipid profile.Results: The mean value of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDLC), fasting blood glucose (FBG) and HbA1c were higher and high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) was lower in females when compared with these values for males. HbA1c had significant positive correlation with LDL-C (p=0.045) and negative correlation with HDL-C (p=0.024). Serum lipid profile and glycaemic controls were significantly (p=0.000) better in older age group (age ? 50 years).Conclusions: Significant positive correlation of HbA1c with lipid profiles specially LDL-C suggested that HbA1c can also be used as predictor of dyslipidemia in addition to glycemic control.Birdem Med J 2017; 7(1): 43-47
Forbes Disease: A Case Report
Authors: Ara Rowsan , Alam Md Zahid , Ahmed Sharmin
Published: January 2017

Glycogen storage disease (GSD) type 3 (Forbes disease) is an autosomal recessive inborn error of metabolism caused by loss of function mutations of the glycogen debranching enzyme (Amylo- 1, 6-glucosidase [AGL]) and (oligo-1,4-1,4-glucanotransferase) gene, which is located at chromosome band 1p21.2. GSD 3 is characterized by the storage of structurally abnormal glycogen, termed limit dextrin, in both skeletal and cardiac muscle and/or liver, with great variability in resultant organ dysfunction. Here we describe a 16 yearold boy diagnosed as a case of epilepsy at the ageof 8. He presented to us with inadequately controlled seizure, profound proximal weakness, hepatosplenomegaly and right-sided ballotable kidney. The final diagnosis of glycogen storage disease was made by clinical features, lab reports and liver histopathology that revealed PAS positive diastase labile glycogen accumulation within swollen hepatocytes. The particular interest of this paper is to present a case of glycogen storage disease and demonstrate the difference between that entity and other storage diseases.Birdem Med J 2017; 7(1): 60-63
Intestinal Phytobezoar: A Rare Case Report
Authors: Ahmed Mousumi , Afroze Nazma , Rahman AJE Nahar , Sabiha Mahjabin
Published: January 2017

A bezoar is the result of the ingestion of indigestible or poorly digestible substances that accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract in the form of a mass. Among different types of bezoars phytobezoars is the most common type and formed by excessive consumption of herbal nutrients containing high amounts of indigestible fibers. There are some predisposing factors for gastrointestinal phytobezoars formation such as loss of pyloric function, decreased gastric motility, malabsorption, inadequate chewing and excessive consumption of herbal indigestible fibers. Small bowel obstruction is the most common major complication of phytobezoars. We present a rare case of intestinal obstruction in a middle aged man who was previously diagnosed to have malabsorption and used to take herbal medicine. He was treated successfully by right hemicolectomy under general anesthesia. On histopathological examination a large phytobezoar was found in the terminal part of ileum.Birdem Med J 2017; 7(1): 64-67
Herpes Associated Erythema Multiforme: A Case Report
Authors: Rahman Md Raziur , Shahriar Rakib , Afroze Samira Rahat , Khan M Moniruzzaman , Uddin Khwaja Nazim , Islam Mir Nazrul
Published: January 2017

Herpes associated erythema multiforme (HAEM) is an acute exudative dermatic and mucosal disease caused by the Herpes simplex virus (HSV). It is the result of cell mediated immune reaction due to HSV antigen and has a presentation quite similar to Steven Johnsons Syndrome (SJS). Unlike SJS, use of steroids is not recommended in HAEM as it can aggravate the condition. Here we report a case of HAEM in a 35-year- old gentleman, who presented with fever, rash and sore throat. The clinical findings were in favour of HAEM and patient showed optimum response to symptomatic treatment.Birdem Med J 2017; 7(1): 72-75
Medical Quiz: SBA  Answers Vol.7(1)
Authors: Uddin Khwaja Nazim
Published: January 2017

Abstract not availableBirdem Med J 2017; 7(1): 81-82
Geoffrey Chaucer (ca. 1340-1400) and Thomas More (1477-1535)
Authors: Marc’hadour Germain
Published: January 2017

These two Londoners have often been compared as belonging to the middle class with connections in government, especially through diplomatic service abroad ; also for their mental and spiritual kinship, their genial optimism and indulgence. The author’s parallel centres on their poetry, their shared indebtedness to the Bible, which they both read in the Latin Vulgate, and to Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy. More’s English poems abound in verbal echoes of Chaucer, which give his rhymes an archaic flavour. The extended Spanish quotation constitutes a careful diptych attentive to character as well as to literary matter and manner.
Vivès Éducateur dans le sillage d’ Érasme et de More
Authors: Marc’hadour Germain
Published: January 2017

Ceci est une étude comparative d’ouvrages parus à des dates diverses et en plusieurs langues. La pièce de résistance est le De institutione feminae christianae (1524). Vivès constitue avec Érasme et More le triumviral des humanistes chrétiens les plus influents: il a été beaucoup plus édité, traduit, et copié que Budé. Il se place dans le sillage des ses aînés: Érasme lui confia le commentaire de La Cité de Dieu, et More lui commanda une déclamation, l’accueillit sous son toit, lui obtint des emplois à la Cour et à Oxford, et patronna la version anglaise de son traité. Sa pédagogie s’appuie sur une métaphysique. Son exaltation de la chasteté féminine le rend timide à l’égard des classiques païens.
Thomas More in the Subtext of Shakespeare and Fletcher’s Henry VIII
Authors: Murphy Clare M.
Published: January 2017

Since the dominant theme of the play is that of “The King’s Great Matter” (his divorce of Katherine and marriage to Anne) it would be difficult for a viewer or reader not to think of Thomas More as the play unfolds, so much was he involved in this event. But Sir Thomas More—which also had Shakespeare among its authors—was not approved by the Master of the Revels, and the playwrights no doubt wished to avoid a similar rejection. A solution for them was to suggest More in the subtext, particularly since his cult was by then well established. This article studies the relationship of the absent More to several of the characters present on stage.
Geometries of power: from Palmanova to the American grid
Authors: Munteán László
Published: January 2017

The circle and the square are archetypal forms of city layouts. The various patterns and combinations of these forms also reflect on inherent power relations within the social network. I start this paper with the exploration of a peculiar example of the circular layout, the fortified city of Palmanova which, in many ways, epitomizes Renaissance conceptions of ideal city planning. With the help of Michel Foucault’s Panopticon-theory, as well as Kevin Lynch’s principles on legible urban form. I trace implications of the geometric patterns of Palmanova and compare the “perfection” of its forms to plans of “ideal cities” in America. From the Puritan settlements of New England that combine circular and grid based structures I move on to explore manifestations of the Roman and the Greek-inspired grids and attempt to apply Foucault’s formulae of surveillance so as to gain insight into the power-mechanisms involved in the various layouts.
The shifting cities of More: The stations of a lifelong pilgrimage
Authors: Tóta Benedek Péter
Published: January 2017

In searching for the idea of a city in Thomas More’s oeuvre the fundamental pattern is prefigured in The Life of Pico that matches the model of Saint Augustine’s City of God. The dual structure of the earthly city and the Heavenly City served as an expedient research instrument in connection with all the tested cities: London. Amaurotum. Buda, and the New Jerusalem. Putting into operation Saint Augustine’s work we can have a glance at More’s use of this patristic guidebook throughout the progress of his life calling at these cities as the stations of a pilgrimage.
A Novel Yeast Surface Display Method for Large-Scale Screen Inhibitors of Sortase A
Authors: Wu Lin , Li Huijun , Tang Tianle
Published: January 2017

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer substrates of sortase A are too expensive to be used to roughly screen high-throughput sortase A inhibitors. This makes therapeutic strategies difficult to realize in a clinical therapeutic use. Instead, we design here an LPETG-EGFP (leucine, proline, glutamic, threonine and glycine-enhanced green fluorescence) protein displayed on a yeast surface as a substrate by adaptively reducing the cost. We do this by optimizing the induction conditions of sortase A expression in Escherichia coli DE3(BL21) and catalyzing LPETG proteins, which are displayed on surface of Pichia pastoris. Different expression conditions of sortase A include: induction temperature (22 °C, 28 °C, 37 °C and 40 °C), induction time (4 h, 5 h, 6 h and 7 h) and induction concentration of isopropyl β-d-thiogalactoside IPTG (0.25 mmol/L, 0.5 mmol/L, 1 mmol/L, and 2 mmol/L). The fluorescence change of the LPETG-EGFP protein on the surface of P. pastoris over time was detected by flow cytometry and fluorescence spectrophotometry, and then the sensitivities of the two methods were compared. Using berberine chloride as an inhibitor, the activity of sortase A was investigated with the substrates of LPETG-EGFP protein, and compared to Dabcyl-QALPETGEE-Edans. A high yield of sortase A was achieved by inducing 1.0 mmol/L IPTG at 28 °C for 6 h. The intensity of green fluorescence of substrates displayed on the yeast surface was increased over time, while the stability was decreased slightly. Both fluorescence spectrophotometery and flow cytometry were fit for detection because of their high sensitivity. We utilized two different substrates of sortase A to investigate sortase A activity, which resulted in the increase of fluorescence intensity with respect to the increased time of growth. However, the method with Dabcyl-QALPETGEE-Edans as its substrate was more robust. Thus, the method described in this paper is a simple and cheap method which is very suitable for high-throughput analysis, but the conventional method is much more sensitive. The method described in this paper is expected to lead to large-scale screening of sortase A inhibitors which can be used to decrease the risk of drug resistance development.
HHV Predicting Correlations for Torrefied Biomass Using Proximate and Ultimate Analyses
Authors: Nhuchhen Daya , Afzal Muhammad
Published: January 2017

Many correlations are available in the literature to predict the higher heating value (HHV) of raw biomass using the proximate and ultimate analyses. Studies on biomass torrefaction are growing tremendously, which suggest that the fuel characteristics, such as HHV, proximate analysis and ultimate analysis, have changed significantly after torrefaction. Such changes may cause high estimation errors if the existing HHV correlations were to be used in predicting the HHV of torrefied biomass. No study has been carried out so far to verify this. Therefore, this study seeks answers to the question: “Can the existing correlations be used to determine the HHV of the torrefied biomass”? To answer this, the existing HHV predicting correlations were tested using torrefied biomass data points. Estimation errors were found to be significantly high for the existing HHV correlations, and thus, they are not suitable for predicting the HHV of the torrefied biomass. New correlations were then developed using data points of torrefied biomass. The ranges of reported data for HHV, volatile matter (VM), fixed carbon (FC), ash (ASH), carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) contents were 14.90 MJ/kg–33.30 MJ/kg, 13.30%–88.57%, 11.25%–82.74%, 0.08%–47.62%, 35.08%–86.28%, 0.53%–7.46% and 4.31%–44.70%, respectively. Correlations with the minimum mean absolute errors and having all components of proximate and ultimate analyses were selected for future use. The selected new correlations have a good accuracy of prediction when they are validated using another set of data (26 samples). Thus, these new and more accurate correlations can be useful in modeling different thermochemical processes, including combustion, pyrolysis and gasification processes of torrefied biomass.
Vasculature-On-A-Chip for In Vitro Disease Models
Authors: Kim Seunggyu , Kim Wanho , Lim Seongjin , Jeon Jessie
Published: January 2017

Vascularization, the formation of new blood vessels, is an essential biological process. As the vasculature is involved in various fundamental physiological phenomena and closely related to several human diseases, it is imperative that substantial research is conducted on characterizing the vasculature and its related diseases. A significant evolution has been made to describe the vascularization process so that in vitro recapitulation of vascularization is possible. The current microfluidic systems allow elaborative research on the effects of various cues for vascularization, and furthermore, in vitro technologies have a great potential for being applied to the vascular disease models for studying pathological events and developing drug screening platforms. Here, we review methods of fabrication for microfluidic assays and inducing factors for vascularization. We also discuss applications using engineered vasculature such as in vitro vascular disease models, vasculature in organ-on-chips and drug screening platforms.
Energy Saving Assessment of Semi-Transparent Photovoltaic Modules Integrated into NZEB
Authors: Cornaro Cristina , Basciano Giulia , Puggioni Valerio , Pierro Marco
Published: January 2017

Photovoltaic semi-transparent materials (STPV) integrated into glazing systems can offer good potential for energy saving to buildings, influencing heating loads, cooling loads, and lighting, as well as electricity production. Moreover, with the new stringent regulations issued by various European countries, following the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD, 2010/31/EC), the building envelope, including the glazing elements, needs to have high thermal performance to guarantee Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) behavior. This work presents an assessment of energy saving potential of 4 different types of STPV with respect to conventional double pane glass. Dye sensitized solar modules (DSM) and thin film modules were considered in the study. Simulations based on an IEA reference office building (STD) and on reference buildings prescribed by the new Italian building energy performance regulation (NZEB) were carried out. All the glazing peculiarities could be simulated using only one simulation tool, namely IDA ICE 4.7.1. Dye sensitized solar modules resulted as the best performing devices for all orientations and climate zones. The work also evidenced how the requirements of NZEB seem to be too stringent for insulation properties, especially for the climate zone of Rome.
Care at the Very End-of-Life: Dying Cancer Patients and Their Chosen Family’s Needs
Authors: Clark Katherine
Published: January 2017

The majority of cancer deaths in countries such as Australia are predictable and most likely to occur in hospital. Despite this, hospitals remain challenged by providing the best care for this fragile cohort, often believing that care with palliative intent at the very end-of-life is not the best approach to care. Given the importance that dying patients place on excellent symptom control, failing to provide good end-of-life care is likely to be contrary to the wishes of the imminently dying patient and their family. This becomes even more significant when the impact of care on the bereavement outcomes of families is considered. Given the rising numbers of predicable hospital deaths, an urgent need to address this exists, requiring health professionals to be cognisant of specific care domains already identified as significant for both patients and those closest to them in knowledge, care and affection. This non-systematic review’s aims are to summarise the symptoms most feared by people imminently facing death which is defined as the terminal phase of life, where death is imminent and likely to occur within hours to days, or very occasionally, weeks. Further, this paper will explore the incidence and management of problems that may affect the dying person which are most feared by their family. The final section of this work includes a brief discussion of the most significant issues that require attention.
A Comparison Reduction of 4-Nitrophenol by Gold Nanospheres and Gold Nanostars
Authors: Ma Tao , Yang Wenshuo , Liu Simin , Zhang Haijun , Liang Feng
Published: January 2017

In order to investigate structure-property relationships, the catalytic properties of gold nanoparticles were evaluated in the reduction of 4-nitrophenol by NaBH4. Using catalyst suspensions with identical amounts of gold, the following key results were obtained: first, the nanostars showed increased activity as compared to spherical gold nanoparticles; second, larger gold nanostars showed higher activity, likely because of the abundance of flat/spiky features on these particles, which show high metal utilization; third, treatment of the nanostar colloid with cucurbit[7]uril can be used to balance catalyst stability and activity; fourth, as expected from the decreasing surface atom fraction, the specific activity of the spherical nanoparticles decreased with increasing particle size.
Pediatric Exercise Testing: Value and Implications of Peak Oxygen Uptake
Authors: Pianosi Paolo , Liem Robert , McMurray Robert , Cerny Frank , Falk Bareket , Kemper Han
Published: January 2017

Peak oxygen uptake (peak V ˙ O 2 ) measured by clinical exercise testing is the benchmark for aerobic fitness. Aerobic fitness, estimated from maximal treadmill exercise, is a predictor of mortality in adults. Peak V ˙ O 2 was shown to predict longevity in patients aged 7–35 years with cystic fibrosis over 25 years ago. A surge of exercise studies in young adults with congenital heart disease over the past decade has revealed significant prognostic information. Three years ago, the first clinical trial in children with pulmonary arterial hypertension used peak V ˙ O 2 as an endpoint that likewise delivered clinically relevant data. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing provides clinicians with biomarkers and clinical outcomes, and researchers with novel insights into fundamental biological mechanisms reflecting an integrated physiological response hidden at rest. Momentum from these pioneering observations in multiple disease states should impel clinicians to employ similar methods in other patient populations; e.g., sickle cell disease. Advances in pediatric exercise science will elucidate new pathways that may identify novel biomarkers. Our initial aim of this essay is to highlight the clinical relevance of exercise testing to determine peak V ˙ O 2 , and thereby convince clinicians of its merit, stimulating future clinical investigators to broaden the application of exercise testing in pediatrics.
Fabrication of Efficient Cu2ZnSnS4 Solar Cells by Sputtering Single Stoichiometric Target
Authors: Cui Hongtao , Liu Xiaolei , Sun Lingling , Liu Fangyang , Yan Chang , Hao Xiaojing
Published: January 2017

Low cost single stoichiometric target sputtering of Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) precursor has been adopted to fabricate CZTS solar cells. The effect of a series of deposition pressures and deposition durations on the device performance has been investigated. A 3.74% efficient solar cell has been achieved at a base pressure of 1 × 10−4 Torr with a stoichiometric target, which to the authors’ knowledge, is the record efficiency for such a stoichiometric target.
Wearable Food Intake Monitoring Technologies: A Comprehensive Review
Authors: Vu Tri , Lin Feng , Alshurafa Nabil , Xu Wenyao
Published: January 2017

Wearable devices monitoring food intake through passive sensing is slowly emerging to complement self-reporting of users’ caloric intake and eating behaviors. Though the ultimate goal for the passive sensing of eating is to become a reliable gold standard in dietary assessment, it is currently showing promise as a means of validating self-report measures. Continuous food-intake monitoring allows for the validation and refusal of users’ reported data in order to obtain more reliable user information, resulting in more effective health intervention services. Recognizing the importance and strength of wearable sensors in food intake monitoring, there has been a variety of approaches proposed and studied in recent years. While existing technologies show promise, many challenges and opportunities discussed in this survey, still remain. This paper presents a meticulous review of the latest sensing platforms and data analytic approaches to solve the challenges of food-intake monitoring, ranging from ear-based chewing and swallowing detection systems that capture eating gestures to wearable cameras that identify food types and caloric content through image processing techniques. This paper focuses on the comparison of different technologies and approaches that relate to user comfort, body location, and applications for medical research. We identify and summarize the forthcoming opportunities and challenges in wearable food intake monitoring technologies.
Decentralized Electric Vehicle Charging Strategies for Reduced Load Variation and Guaranteed Charge Completion in Regional Distribution Grids
Authors: Zhang Weige , Zhang Di , Mu Biqiang , Wang Le , Bao Yan , Jiang Jiuchun , Morais Hugo
Published: January 2017

A novel, fully decentralized strategy to coordinate charge operation of electric vehicles is proposed in this paper. Based on stochastic switching control of on-board chargers, this strategy ensures high-efficiency charging, reduces load variations to the grid during charging periods, achieves charge completion with high probability, and accomplishes approximate “valley-filling”. Further improvements on the core strategy, including individualized power management, adaptive strategies, and battery support systems, are introduced to further reduce power fluctuation variances and to guarantee charge completion. Stochastic analysis is performed to establish the main properties of the strategies and to quantitatively show the performance improvements. Compared with the existing decentralized charging strategies, the strategies proposed in this paper can be implemented without any information exchange between grid operators and electric vehicles (EVs), resulting in a communications cost reduction. Additionally, it is shown that by using stochastic charging rules, a grid-supporting battery system with a very small energy capacity can achieve substantial reduction of EV load fluctuations with high confidence. An extensive set of simulations and case studies with real-world data are used to demonstrate the benefits of the proposed strategies.
Phase Change Material Based Accumulation Panels in Combination with Renewable Energy Sources and Thermoelectric Cooling
Authors: Skovajsa Jan , Koláček Martin , Zálešák Martin
Published: January 2017

The article deals with the use of modern materials and technologies that can improve the thermal comfort in buildings. The article describes the design and usage of a special accumulation device, which is composed of thermal panels based on phase change materials (PCMs). The thermal panels have an integrated tube heat exchanger and heating foils. The technology can be used as a passive or active system for heating and cooling. It is designed as a “green technology”, so it is able to use renewable energy sources, e.g., photovoltaic (PV) panels, solar thermal collectors and heat pumps. Moreover, an interesting possibility is the ability to use thermoelectric coolers. In the research, measurements of the different operating modes were made, and the results are presented in the text. The measurement approves that the technology improves the thermal capacity of the building, and it is possible to use it for active heating and cooling.
Malpighian Tubules as Novel Targets for Mosquito Control
Authors: Piermarini Peter , Esquivel Carlos , Denton Jerod
Published: January 2017

The Malpighian tubules and hindgut are the renal excretory tissues of mosquitoes; they are essential to maintaining hemolymph water and solute homeostasis. Moreover, they make important contributions to detoxifying metabolic wastes and xenobiotics in the hemolymph. We have focused on elucidating the molecular mechanisms of Malpighian tubule function in adult female mosquitoes and developing chemical tools as prototypes for next-generation mosquitocides that would act via a novel mechanism of action (i.e., renal failure). To date, we have targeted inward rectifier potassium (Kir) channels expressed in the Malpighian tubules of the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti and malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae. Inhibition of these channels with small molecules inhibits transepithelial K+ and fluid secretion in Malpighian tubules, leading to a disruption of hemolymph K+ and fluid homeostasis in adult female mosquitoes. In addition, we have used next-generation sequencing to characterize the transcriptome of Malpighian tubules in the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus, before and after blood meals, to reveal new molecular targets for potentially disrupting Malpighian tubule function. Within 24 h after a blood meal, the Malpighian tubules enhance the mRNA expression of genes encoding mechanisms involved with the detoxification of metabolic wastes produced during blood digestion (e.g., heme, NH3, reactive oxygen species). The development of chemical tools targeting these molecular mechanisms in Malpighian tubules may offer a promising avenue for the development of mosquitocides that are highly-selective against hematophagous females, which are the only life stage that transmits pathogens.