bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development of a portable electronic device for the detection and indication of fireworks and firecrackers for security personnel
Authors: Africa Aaron Don Munsayac , Alberto Stephanie Claire , Tan Travis Evan
Published: June 2020

The use of fireworks and firecrackers to celebrate festivities is a very common activity in the Philippines. But due to the lack of strict control and regulation, there are unwanted risks of accidents from occurring due to the poor handling and storage conditions of these devices. Proper monitoring is important to reduce any unnecessary risks imposed on human life and property. While existing storage monitoring devices exist, the developed prototype is designed to contain sensors that are more suited in monitoring the ideal conditions of where the fireworks are stored. Monitoring the climate conditions on these devices may seem trivial at first, but such climate change can involve a rapid rise in temperature that can accidentally ignite the fireworks and deal with catastrophic damage. Another concern is the rise of humidity that may alter that chemical characteristics of the gunpowder stored in the fireworks.  Such changes may not have any noticeable effects until it arrives in the consumer, that may experience an unwanted and unintended change in the performance of the fireworks leading to accidents. Therefore, it is important for this device to properly monitor the surrounding area then indicate various forms of alarms as a method of redundancy.
Modelling and PID control system integration for quadcopter DJI F450 attitude stabilization
Authors: Salma N. M. , Osman Khairuddin
Published: June 2020

In this paper we focus on the overall overview of the mathematical modelling of the DJI F450 UAV quadcopter, the hardware and software system integration based on PID control system for the attitude feedback. The parameter specification of the DJI F450 is fed into the mathematical model and implement a basic PID for the system. Future research using the DJI F450 model can benefit from this observation by implementing the modelling and tune in their own variable that varies, such as the overall of their weight. The data of PID control system simulation using the quadcopter frame model type DJI F450 parameter. The mathematical model for the quadcopter modelled DJI F450 is developed using Newton-Euler method. Altitude data for the control system is obtain from the analysis data of the Simulink simulation. The simulation is done using the Simulink toolbox inside the MATLAB software. From this paper, we can more understand the step involves in making a full control system of a quadcopter. The mathematical model for other type of quadcopter model can be implemented using the steps with their own parameter and achieve fast development.
Development of solar panel cleaning robot using Arduino
Authors: Noh Faridah Hanim Binti Mohd , Yaakub Muhamad Faizal , Nordin Ili Najaa Aimi Mohd , Sahari Norain , Zambri Nor Aira , Yi Sim Sy , Saibon Muhammad Syukri Mohd
Published: June 2020

Solar power is mainly harnessed from photovoltaic (PV) panels which are arranged in multiple arrays in a solar farm or solar system. Though, power generation from PV solar system is characterised by uncertain efficiency, many countries with high insolation prefer solar as an alternative way of generating clean energy. However, the efficiency of energy generated from PV panels is affected by the accumulation of dust and debris, even on one panel in an array. This condition leads to the need for regular cleaning of the surface of PV panels. Current labour-based cleaning methods for photovoltaic arrays are costly in time, water and energy usage as well as lacking in automation capabilities. To overcome this problem, a fully automatic solar panel cleaning system with/without water is proposed. Hence, in this paper, the design of a robot for automated cleaning of the surface of PV panel is presented. The design utilizes an Arduino controller system to control the robot movement during the cleaning process. In addition, it is equipped with two rough sponge and a water pump system that can be used to clean dust or debris found on PV panel surfaces. The efficiency of the PV panels before and after the cleaning process is also observed. The result shows that the developed solar panel cleaning robot is able to clean the panel effectively and increase back the output current as well as the maximum power of the panel by 50%, after the dust on the PV panel is cleaned.
To the theory of electromagnetic radiation by fast moving body
Authors: Gladkov Sergey
Published: June 2020

The problem of finding out the connection between the flight speed of a metal object and the length of electromagnetic radiation that accompanies its movement has been solved. The calculations are based on the application of Lienar-Vihert's potential theory. Based on the assumption of the dipole mechanism of radiation, the intensity of electromagnetic radiation was calculated and its distribution by coordinates was found. 
Investigation of iris segmentation techniques using active contours for non-cooperative iris recognition
Authors: Akinfende Akinola Samuel , Imoize Agbotiname Lucky , Ajose Olumide Simeon
Published: June 2020

Iris image segmentation process based on graphical user interface (GUI) to accurately localize the iris structure is presented in this paper. The major challenge confronting the precision of an iris recognition model is how to determine the accuracy of the iris segmentation and localization. There are varying parameters that introduce constraints during feature extraction and these greatly affect the matching performance during iris localization. To this end, the Integro-differential operator, which involves the detection of inner and outer regions of the iris, and the circular hough transform, which is capable of detecting the circular boundary from the edge mapping were investigated, and an active contour model was evolved. In the evolved model, an emerging curve mapped with the zeros of the data set function is experimentally exploited. To demonstrate the suitability of the model for precise iris recognition, its parameters were compared against other related models. Simulation results show that the model has higher flexibility of substitution of images, and the images could be analyzed more accurately with less false rejections (FR) and false acceptance (FA) in comparison with the integro-differential operator. This implies that images could be analyzed faster using the evolved model, and easily substituted especially in situations where the need to care for numerous eye patients occur.
Increasing the efficiency of information transmission in communication channels
Authors: Zhurakovskyi Bohdan , Boiko Juliy , Druzhynin Vladymir , Zeniv Irina , Eromenko Oleksander
Published: June 2020

This paper discusses compression methods focused on data transmission over communication channels. The characteristics of different algorithms for different types of incoming data are analyzed. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the speed of operation of each of the compression algorithms for different types of information and different compression parameters, on the basis of the obtained results to make recommendations for the application of compression methods in systems critical to the performance of the algorithm. Based on the results of the analysis, the methods of compression that can be used in communication channels are selected: LZW, LZH, Vitter and matrix. The practical research of the selected methods on different information flows (text, graphics, measurement data, combined data) was carried out, their comparative analysis was performed. Research has highlighted compression methods that give the most optimal results in each case. Comparative evaluation of algorithms for different parameters is made, the possibility of data compression implementation in systems running in real time is analyzed. Based on the results of the study, recommendations are made for the application of particular compression methods in specific conditions.
Quality and texture analysis of biometric images compressed with second-generation wavelet transforms and SPIHT-Z encoder
Authors: Bouida Ahmed , Beladgham Mohammed , Bassou Abdesselam , Benyahia Ismahane
Published: June 2020

In biometric systems, compression takes important place especially in order to reduce the size of the information stored or transmitted through the distributed biometric systems. It is also noted that the compression techniques induce loss of information in the compressed images that can affect the effectiveness of biometric systems. The main objective of our contribution is to examine the efficacy of the used method to offer an optimal compression quality in these kind of images without considerable distortion. In order to evaluate the efficacy of the compression process, we use two kinds of evaluation, full-reference image quality assessment and a new proposed textural quality analysis of the compressed images. In this paper, we use a second-generation wavelet transform to improve the compression study in biometric images. The basic idea of this algorithm is the quincunx wavelet transform coupled to a modified progressive encoder called SPIHT-Z encoding.
Power density of rectangular microstrip patch antenna arrays for 5G indoor base station
Authors: Ibrahim Nor Adibah , Abd Rahman Tharek , Ngah Razali , Abd Aziz Omar , Elijah Olakunle
Published: June 2020

The fifth-generation (5G) network has been broadly investigated by many researchers. The capabilities of 5G include massive system capacity, incredibly high data rates everywhere, very low latency and the most important point is that it is exceptionally low device cost and low energy consumption. A key technology of 5G is the millimeter wave operating at 28 GHz and 38 GHz frequency bands which enable massive MIMO and small cell base station densification. However, there has been public concern associated with human exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) from 5G communication devices. Hence, this paper studies the power density of a 5G antenna array that can be used for the indoor base station. The power density is the amount of power or signal strength absorbed by a receiver such as the human body located a distance from the base station. To achieve this, the design of array antennas using CST software at 28 GHz, fabrication and measurement were carried out in an indoor and hallway environment. The measurement processes were set up at IC5G at UTM Kuala Lumpur in which the distance of the transmitter to receiver where 1 m, 4 m, 8 m, and 10 m. In this study, the measured power density is found to be below the set limit by ICNIRP and hence no health implication is feared. Regardless, sufficient act of cautionary has to be applied by those staying close to small cell base stations and more studies are still needed to ensure the safety of use of 5G base stations.
Miniaturized ultra-wideband coplanarwaveguide lowpass filter with extended stop band
Authors: Sghir Elmahjouby , Errkik Ahmed , Zbitou Jamal , Oulhaj Otman , Lakhssassi Ahmed , Latrach Mohamed
Published: June 2020

In this article, we propose a novel design of large rejected band of miniaturized ultra wide band (UWB) of a planar CPW low pass filter “LPF” based on the use of periodic elements of ‘e’ slots. The goal of this work is to develop a new structure of Low Pass Filter with the following criterion: Miniature, Compact and Easy for Fabrication. The Miniaturization of this structure is achieved by entering the 'e' slot  in etching area in the ground of CPW line, to save the standard gap of the adapted coplanar line. The designed coplanar LPF is a compact filter having a large band pass and extended stop band, with the possibility to associate easily with others RF and microwave planar circuits. The entire area of the proposed structure of CPW LPF is 14.3x20 mm2.
A novel feature engineering algorithm for air quality datasets
Authors: Usmani Raja Sher Afgun , Binti Wan Azmi Wan Nurul Farah , Abdullahi Akibu Mahmoud , Hashem Ibrahim Abaker Targio , Pillai Thulasyammal Ramiah
Published: June 2020

Feature engineering (FE) is one of the most important steps in data science research. FE provides useful features to be used later in the study. Due to climate change, the research focus is moving towards air quality estimation and the impacts of air pollution on health in Malaysia. Malaysia has 66 air quality monitoring (AQM) stations, and the air quality data for research is provided in an excel worksheet format by the Department of Environment, Malaysia. The data generated by the AQM stations is in a raw custom format, and it is virtually impossible to clean and engineer this data manually due to the sheer number of files. Hence, we propose a novel feature engineering algorithm to transform and combine this data into a useable format. The results show that the proposed feature engineering algorithm was able to efficiently extract and combine the hourly and daily values for pollutant and meteorological variables in useful row format. This algorithm will help all the researchers using the data from the AQM station in Malaysia as well as other countries using the same AQM station. The implementation of the feature engineering algorithm is also available to use at GitHub (https://github.com/rajasherafgun/featureengineeringaq) under AFL-3.0 license.
3D model retrieval using MeshSIFT descriptor and fuzzy C-means clustering
Authors: Hamza Najlaa Abd , Jafer Shatha Habeeb , Hadi Raghad Mohammed
Published: June 2020

A huge number of three-dimensional models exists on the internet, due to the fact that there are now more three-dimensional modelling and digitizing tools available for ever-increasing applications. The procedures for retrieval of three-dimensional models have thus become even more essential. The subject of this paper is a shape retrieval of 3D models that are signified as triangle meshes. We propose a new method which first computes the descriptor of 3D models through extracting its features, and then divides a model into clusters depending on a descriptor which is invariant to scale and orientation. A Fuzzy C-means clustering method is utilized for dividing the model into clusters. The superior performance and benefits of our method are shown in the results.
Design and implementation hamming neural network with VHDL
Authors: Mezher Liqaa Saadi
Published: June 2020

Hamming Neural Network is type of artificial neural network consist of two types of layers (Feed Forward Layers and Recurrent Layer). In this paper, two inputs of patterns in bianary number were used. In the first layer, two neurons and pure line function were used. In the second layer, three neurons and positive line function were used. Also applied Hamming Neural networks algorithm in three simulation methods (Logical gate method, software program coding method and instant block diagram method). In this work in VHDL software program was used and FPGA hardware used.
Systematic review on event prediction models
Authors: Jamaludin Fakhruzy Shakirin , Ramasamy R Kanesaraj
Published: June 2020

Predicting an event can comes as a huge advantage for a lot of people, especially if it involves profits that a company can make. In this paper, matters that were discussed were the algorithms used for the event prediction systems, the type of algorithms and the comparison between different types of algorithm. Two main categories that were compared was the single algorithm for the prediction model and hybrid algorithms which is a combination of two or more algorithms in the model. Hybrid algorithm shows signs of better efficiency when data used were complex and large but a smaller dataset is more suitable with a single algorithm as the base as it is easier to apply with satisfactory results.
Automatic control system based on iot data identification
Authors: Kim Hankil , Park Jaehyun , Jung Hoekyung
Published: June 2020

Recently, as the Internet of Things (IoT) technology has developed, researches are rigorously conducted to construct smart environments such as smart home, smart grid, and industrial IoT. However, currently existing systems consists of a series of events, and even if an existing task is running, unnecessary work still occurs as both works happen simultaneously. In this paper, we propose an automatic work control system to solve this problem. The proposed system transmits the data measured by the sensor to the server and identifies non - real - time tasks such as real - time work which is related to the dangerous situations, ventilation and temperature control. In addition, priority among the tasks is set in a way that existing tasks are stopped when high priority tasks occur. Accordingly, this can reduce the unnecessary waste of power, and the user is able to receive a proactive service.
Improvement of cluster-based WSN protocol using fuzzy logic
Authors: Lee Jong-Yong , Lee Daesung
Published: June 2020

A wireless sensor network is a collection of wireless nodes with sensor devices that can collect data from the real world. This is because sensor nodes usually use limited-powered batteries. Therefore, if the battery on the sensor node is exhausted, the node will no longer be available. If the battery on some nodes is discharged, the sensor network will not work properly. To maintain sensor network system, there are many wireless sensor network protocols to increase energy efficiency of nodes. One of the energy-efficient methods is cluster-based protocols. These protocols divide the sensor fields into clusters and send and receive data between nodes. Thus, depending on how the cluster is constructed, the network's lifetime may be reduced or increased. Cluster-based protocols cannot always be optimal cluster configurations. These problems have been improved using fuzzy logic. In general, fuzzy logic is used to elect cluster heads based on node residual energy, node concentration and node centrality. However, it is possible that nodes close to each other at a high density area are elected as cluster heads. In this paper, we propose a method to consider the number of adjacent cluster heads instead of Node Concentration to improve the problem.
Development of marine observation system using LPWA communication system for marine IoT service
Authors: Kim Se-Hoon , Jeon Min-Ho , Jo Yeon-Ju , Oh Chang-Heon
Published: June 2020

Because oceans account for 70.8% of the Earth's surface, various Internet-of-Things (IoT) applications for the marine industry are being researched and developed. The success of an IoT technology in the maritime industry depends on the location tracking technology used and how far it can communicate. In this study, we implemented a marine observation system using low power wide area (LPWA) communication technology to provide maritime IoT services. The proposed marine observation system consists of a marine IoT module and an ocean observation monitoring system. The information collected is GPS information and communication signal reception strength. As a result of an actual field test, we were able to obtain the distance to the gateway by measuring the position through the marine IoT module, and we found that the intensity of communication was proportional to the change in sea level.
Implementation of a bit permutation-based advanced encryption standard for securing text and image files
Authors: Gamido Heidilyn V
Published: June 2020

The paper proposes a modification of the Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) to address its high computational requirement steaming from the complex mathematical operations in the MixColumns Transformation which makes the encryption process slow. Bit Permutation was used instead of the MixColumns Transformation since the use of bit permutation in an encryption algorithm achieves efficiency by providing minimum encryption time and memory requirement. Results of the study showed that the modified AES algorithm exhibited faster encryption by 18.47% and faster decryption by 18.77% for text files. The modified AES algorithm also resulted to 16.53% higher avalanche effect compared with the standard AES thus improving the security performance. Application of the modified AES in encrypting images in Cipher Block Chaining mode showed that the modified algorithm also exhibited 16.88% faster encryption and 11.96% decryption compared with the standard AES. Likewise, modifying the algorithm achieved the ideal result in the histogram analysis, information entropy, the correlation coefficient of adjacent pixels to resist statistical attack.  The ideal value in number of pixels change rate and unified average change intensity were also achieved making the modified algorithm resistant to differential attack. These results show that modifying AES by using bit permutation to replace MixColumns Transformation was able to address the high computational requirement of the algorithm resulting in a faster and more secure encryption algorithm for text files and images.
High-speed video observations on fork lightning events in Malaysia
Authors: Ramlee Nor Asrina Binti , Ahmad N. A. , Baharudin Z. A. , Mohamed A. R.
Published: June 2020

Malaysia is one of the countries with the highest lightning strikes incidence in the world. Yet, Malaysians are still taking a proper lightning protection indifferent manner. This might be due to lack of knowledge on lightning characteristics in Malaysia. Therefore, this study presents an unusual lightning phenomenon with multiple grounding points that might cause a disastrous event, called fork lightning. Between November and December 2018, there were three different patterns of fork lightning mechanism successfully recorded by using high speed camera with 2800 frame per second. Temporal analysis of the lightning progress had been done on the samples based only on the camera records which then played back by using Wondershare Filmora video editor. These three samples of fork lightning images were acquired among 37 lightning events recorded in this study. The first sample of fork lightning fully established the forked branch 0.35 ms before the return stroke occurred. On the contrary, second fork lightning established its forked branch 0.35 ms after the return stroke. Both forked branches for third sample simultaneously fully established with the return stroke event. Obviously, these events had striking the ground in up to ten milliseconds of time duration. Thus, there is always a possibility that they might cause serious damage and should not be neglected in designing a lightning protection system.
Temperature effect of electronic nose sampling for classifying mixture of beef and pork
Authors: Laga Sinarring Azi , Sarno Riyanarto
Published: June 2020

Strong demand and strong price of raw foodstuffs like beef was commonly used in conventional markets by beef dealers to commit fraud in order to gain larger income. The fraud has been in the form of combining beef and pork. In Indonesia, this has been a issue of food health in recent years. Via scent, some food safety concerns can be expected. By using electronic nose that is equipped with electrochemical and air sensors  such as temperature sensors, strain, and humidity to find the pure beef or mixed beef. According to its selectivity, the sensor can detect gas to make small icurrents that are the result of chemical sensor and gas interactions with oxygen .In this study, the classification method k-NN, SVM, Naïve Bayes, and Random Forest was used in 5 different meat variations with a ratio of 0%, 10%, 50%, 90% and 100% with temperatures of -22°C, Room Temp., And 55 ° C. The results showed the effect of temperature on increasing the accuracy, which is at a temperature of -22 ° C. The lower the temperature, the more stable the value obtained by electronic nose. At a temperature of -22 ° C, the method that produces the highest accuracy is the Random Forest method.
Home appliances recommendation system based on weather information using combined modified k-means and elbow algorithms
Authors: Amer Jaafar Basim , Talib Gaata Methaq , Nsaif Jasim Mahdi
Published: June 2020

The recommendation system is an intelligent system gives recommendations to users to discover the best interesting items. The purpose of this proposed recommendation system is to develop a system to find the best electrical devices according to weather conditions and user preferences. The proposed solution relies on the characteristics of electrical appliances and their suitability to weather conditions in any city. The proposed solution is the first recommendation system combines devices properties, weather conditions, and user preferences using a new combination of algorithms. The clustering algorithms are the most applicable in the field of recommendation system. The proposed solution relies on a combination of Elbow method, pro­­posed modified K-means and Silhouette algorithm to find the best number of clusters before starting the clustering process. Then calculate the weights for each cluster and compare them with the weather weights to find the required clusters sorted from the near to far according to a computed threshold. The empirical results showed that the proposed solution demonstrated a 94% accuracy to match the characteristics of the recommended devices with the climatic characteristics of the region and user preferences. The accuracy is measured using Silhouette algorithm.
Status of the Critically Endangered Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis (Gmelin, 1789) in Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal
Authors: Baral Hem Sagar , Bhatt Tek Raj , Giri Sailendra Raj , Ashok Kumar Ram  , Shyam Kumar Shah  , Laxman Prasad Poudyal  , Dhiraj Chaudhary  , Gitanjali Bhattacharya  , Rajan Amin
Published: June 2020

The Bengal Florican is one of the rarest bustard species and is listed ‘Critically Endangered’ by the IUCN.  The species is restricted to the lowland grasslands of India, Nepal, and Cambodia with fewer than 1,000 mature individuals.  To assess the species status in Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal, we repeated our first comprehensive survey conducted during the 2012 breeding season.  In spite of a larger area coverage we recorded only 41 adult Bengal Floricans in 2017 compared to 47 individuals in 2012.  Detectability of this rare species is low in its Imperata-Saccharum grasslands.  We, therefore, used a long pole with black and white clothing to mimic Bengal Florican’s display flight to stimulate male Bengal Florican.  The number of adult males recorded was the same as in the 2012 survey and the adult male density remains one of the highest in the Indian subcontinent. Management recommendations for the long-term conservation of the species in Koshi Tappu include maintenance of Imperata-Saccharum grasslands in the reserve favoured by the Bengal Florican and working with farmers and communities adjacent to the reserve where the birds breed in order to maintain some agricultural lands with vegetation height suitable for the species especially during the species’ breeding season.
GELİR EŞİTSİZLİĞİ ile MÜCADELEDE MİKROKREDİ UYGULAMALARININ ETKİSİ: PANEL VERİ ANALİZİ
Authors: İZGİ ŞAHPAZ Kadriye , SAVAŞAN Fatih
Published: June 2020

Düşük miktarlı kredi hizmeti sunan mikrokredi
uygulamaları yoksul bireylerin gelir ve kaynaklarındaki yetersizlikten dolayı
içinde bulundukları eşitsizliklere çözüm olmayı hedeflemektedir. Mikrokredi
uygulamalarının bu hedefindeki başarısını değerlendirebilmek için bu çalışmada
2002-2013 döneminde 16 ülkeye ait mikrokredi göstergeleri ile gelir
eşitsizlikleri arasındaki ilişki panel veri analizi ile araştırılmıştır.
Analizde mikrokredi göstergesi olarak toplam reel mikrokredi miktarları ve
borçlu başına düşen ortalama reel mikrokredi miktarları; gelir eşitsizliği
göstergesi olarak GINI katsayısı kullanılmıştır. Gelir eşitsizliğini etkilemesi
beklenen değişkenlerin seçiminde ilgili teori ve literatür dikkate alınarak
mikrokredi değişkenlerinin yanı sıra kişi başına düşen gelir, ihracat,
istihdam, enflasyon ve kamu sağlık harcamaları kontrol değişken olarak modele
eklenmiştir. Elde edilen sonuçlara göre reel mikrokredi miktarının GINI
katsayısı üzerinde anlamlı bir etkisinin olduğu fakat kontrol değişkenler
modele eklendiğinde net etkisinin ortadan kalktığı görülmüştür. Borçlu başına
düşen ortalama reel mikrokredi miktarları ile GINI katsayısı arasında tüm
modellerde düşük de olsa anlamlı bir ilişki bulunmuştur. Buna göre borçlu
başına düşen ortalama mikrokredi miktarındaki %1’lik artışın gelir eşitsizliğinde
ortalama %0.02’lik bir azalış meydana getirdiği yani GINI katsayısının
mikrokredi esnekliğinin 0.02 olduğu tespit edilmiştir.
The Unshakable Kingdom through the Shaking of Heaven and Earth in Heb 12:26–29
Authors: Lee Jihye
Published: June 2020

In Heb 12:26–29, the author envisages the unshakable kingdom that will be established through the shaking of heaven and earth. The image of the cosmic shaking caused many interpreters to understand the present passage as the vision of the immaterial, ideal world, which will come after the destruction of the creation, reflecting the background of the Platonic dualism. Nevertheless, the usages of the main terms, χρηµατίζω and µετάθεσις, and the OT citations in the present passage suggest that this understanding is not indisputable. In this article, it is argued that some Jewish apocalyptic texts provide an alternative background of the text, offering a vision of the eschatological kingdom established by the revealed heavenly realm and the renewed creation.
The vocal repertoire of an African colobine, Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii: a multi-level society compared to congeners in stable groups
Authors: Poirier-Poulin Samuel , Teichroeb Julie A.
Published: June 2020

Vocal behaviour offers a window into understanding the social life and evolution of animals. Colobine monkeys show great interspecific and interpopulation variation in their social organization and behaviour. Recent research has shown that Rwenzori Angolan colobus (Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii) differ substantially from other black-and-white colobus in forming a multi-level society. No previous research has been conducted on the communication of C. a. ruwenzorii, but the social complexity hypothesis for communication suggests that more complex societies should evolve more complex communication repertoires. Our objective was to catalogue the vocal repertoire of C. a. ruwenzorii at Nabugabo, Uganda, and to compare it with the data available on congeners regarding intergroup tolerance, vocal repertoire size, and acoustic and behavioural features of vocal communication. Vocalizations were subject to spectrographic and behavioural analysis, and a descriptive analysis of each vocalization type was made. The influence of a few environmental and social factors on calling rates was also examined. We describe five vocalizations (i.e., the snort, roar, squeak, scream and pok) and one non-vocal signal (i.e., the tongue click) in this subspecies and their contexts. Distinct alarm calls are made for dogs, and these are given more often near the edge of the forest where humans frequent. We did not find that C. a. ruwenzorii showed a greater vocal repertoire than C. guereza or C. polykomos, which do not live in multi-level societies. Further, preliminary data do not indicate greater calling rates in larger core units of C. a. ruwenzorii compared to smaller units. These findings support the view that these primates’ vocalizations tend to be relatively conserved despite large differences in social organization.
Concepción Arenal and the place of women in modern international law
Authors: de la Rasilla Ignacio
Published: June 2020

This article examines the long-forgotten first book-length treatise on international law ever published by a woman in the history of international law. The first part places Concepción Arenal’s Ensayo sobre el Derecho de gentes (1879) in the historical context of the dawn of the international legal codification movement and the professionalisation of the academic study of international law. The second part surveys the scattered treatment that women as objects of international law and women’s individual contributions to international law received in international law histories up to the early twentieth century. It then draws many parallels between Arenal’s work and the influential resolutions of the first International Congress of Women in 1915 and surveys related developments during the interwar years. The conclusion highlights the need of readdressing the invisibility of women in international legal history.
Diachronic evidence against source-oriented explanation in typology
Authors: Seržant Ilja A. , Rafiyenko Dariya
Published: June 2020

Source-oriented explanation in typology challenges a number of well-established universals, including the correlational universals of harmonic ordering of heads and dependents. It dispenses with functional or cognitive explanations of these because harmonic orders may simply be explained as one order emerging from the other and thus as historical accidents. We provide twofold evidence against this approach and show that (i) universally preferred structures may emerge without any preconditions in the grammaticalization source and (ii) that universally dispreferred structures of the source disappear in the course of time. First, we demonstrate that the development of the three harmonic, head-first word orders (VO, AdpN, NGen) in Postclassical Greek can hardly be considered a historical coincidence, because they match chronologically and, at the same time, are entirely unrelated etymologically, and because neither of these had a bias for ordering heads before dependents in the source. The emergence of the three harmonic word orders is extremely improbable under the null hypothesis of a development by chance (odds 0.037). Secondly, we provide evidence for the reverse case: cross-linguistically dispreferred properties inherited from the source are abandoned in the course of the development.
Violence in Elizabeth’s England: Tudors and Turbervilles
Authors: Levin Carole , Kracl C. J.
Published: June 2020

Throughout her life Elizabeth Tudor was aware of the perennial violence that threatened her, threats that were also reflected in the England she ruled over. The experiences of the prominent Turberville family paralleled the type of violence Elizabeth faced, violence in which familial, political, and religious interests intersected. The most well-known of the Turbervilles was the writer George, whose Catholicism may have been the reason that Robert Jones attempted to murder him. Perhaps even more terrifying than religious violence was family violence. In her sister’s reign Elizabeth greatly feared that Mary would execute her. Shockingly, George’s older brother Nicholas was murdered by his brother-in-law. Elizabeth knew intimately the complex dangers of the time and so did her subjects.
Sovereignty at Bridewell Palace: Gender in the Architectural Designs of Hans Holbein the Younger
Authors: Meyer Alicia
Published: June 2020

This essay examines the representation of gender and sovereignty in a little examined design for a royal fireplace created by Hans Holbein the Younger during the reign of Henry viii. When Henry sought to divorce Catherine and to establish the Church of England, the Bridewell precinct became a site for political upheaval. As Holinshed’s Chronicle details and William Shakespeare and John Fletcher’s 1613 All Is True or Henry viii
would later dramatize, Bridewell and the neighboring Blackfriars staged the divorce trial and removal of Catherine’s sovereignty as Queen. By examining Holbein’s design that Bridewell palace became a palimpsest upon which the crown continually cultivated its dynastic desires –desires that Holbein’s design prove to be imbricated with questions of gender and sovereignty. Gender, sex, and reproduction are central to Holbein’s representation of the Tudor dynasty. Yet, alongside this gendered discourse is a legal one. Holbein depicts the law and justice as mechanisms which can redefine a sovereign woman’s subjectivity and curb her agency in submission to her King and husband. Thus, from Holbein’s fireplace emerges an ideology of familial dynasty and imperial aspirations built atop the legal subjection of women.
Dedicated to the Tudors: Thomas Gemini and a Shifting Book Dedication
Authors: Schutte Valerie
Published: June 2020

Thomas Gemini dedicated Compendiosa totius anatomie delineatio to Henry viii in 1545, Edward vi in 1553, and then Elizabeth in 1559, with that to Elizabeth differing greatly from those to Henry and Edward. Elizabeth received a gender-appropriate dedication that focused on spirituality and virtue, while Henry and Edward were offered dedications that focused on the need for medical knowledge and training to be spread within England. The 1559 edition also has an engraved image of Elizabeth that some scholars have even considered to be an adaptation of an image of Mary, meaning that the text may have had an association with four Tudor monarchs. This essay suggests that the shifting dedications by Gemini are evidence of a man who remained loyal to the crown, when he easily could have kept the dedication to Henry in all editions or even removed the dedication altogether when printing under later monarchs.
Interfacial Modification of Hemp Fiber Reinforced Composites Using Fungal and Alkali Treatment
Authors: Pickering K. L. , Li Y. , Farrell R. L. , Lay M.
Published: June 2020

Increasing worldwide environmental awareness is encouraging scientific research into developing cheaper, more sustainable materials. Industrial hemp fiber is one of the strongest and stiffest available natural fibers [K. L. Pickering, M. Priest, T. Watts, G. Beckermann, and S. N. Alam,
J. Adv. Mater. 37, 15 (2005)] and therefore has great potential in composite materials. Incorporated into a thermoplastic matrix, it gives a structural material that is cheap, lightweight, and recyclable. However, natural fibers are commonly incompatible with common molding thermoplastics
such as polypropylene, which limits the performance of the composites produced. The main objective of the current work was to investigate the use of fungi to treat hemp fiber to create better bonding characteristics in natural fiber reinforced polypropylene composites. X-ray diffraction (XRD),
ζ-potential, lignin testing, thermal analysis, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to characterize the effect of treatment on hemp fibers. A combined alkali and fungi treated fiber composite produced the highest tensile strength of 48.3 MPa, an increase of 32% compared
to composites with untreated fiber.
Effects of Compatibilizers on the Flexural Properties of Grass Straw–Polyethylene Composites
Authors: Saputra Hartono A. , Simonsen John , Li Kaichang
Published: June 2020

A number of grass straw–polyethylene composites were fabricated using Oregon rye grass (Lolium spp.) straw, high density polyethylene, and a number of compatibilizers: poly(diphenylmethane diisocyanate), maleic anhydride-modified polyethylene, stearic acid, and combinations
of them. Grass straw–polyethylene composites with one of the previously mentioned compatibilizers had a higher modulus of rupture and modulus of elasticity than those without a compatibilizer. Combinations of poly(diphenylmethane diisocyanate) and one of the other compatibilizers resulted
in a higher modulus of rupture and modulus of elasticity than poly(diphenylmethane diisocyanate) alone. The greatest improvement in modulus of rupture and modulus of elasticity as well as the lowest water uptake were observed in the composites containing a mixture of stearic acid and poly(diphenylmethane
diisocyanate). Scanning electron microscopy showed the compatibilizers improved the interfacial adhesion of the resultant grass straw–polyethylene composites.
Education for Sustainability
Authors: Baillie Caroline , Remenda Victoria
Published: June 2020

Courses which are intended to help students learn 'attitudes' or ways of thinking, as well as or instead of the more common 'knowledge' and 'skills,' are notoriously difficult to get right—particularly for younger students. Most courses relating to environmental issues or sustainability
are electives within general science or engineering programs or they are within specialized environmental degree programs. In this paper, we examine two compulsory core courses designed to help students develop an appreciation of sustainability of the environment, one within a common first-year
program of 600 students and one within a second-year geological engineering program of 35 students. In the first-year course, the sustainability component is situated within a course on 'Professional Skills,' which is taught in an innovative week-long intensive module. Students in this course
have difficulties with the teaching and learning approach as much as with the subject matter. In the second-year course the main focus is on sustainability and the environment, taught using enquiry-based learning, a similar, interactive, innovative approach. In this course students respond
much better to the concepts and appear to enhance or transform their perspectives. Students may be considered to pass through a 'threshold.' We examine the factors which seem to prevent students from passing through the threshold and consider possible strategies for aiding the pathway.
The Provision of Acute Pediatric Surgical Care by Adult Acute Care General Surgeons
Authors: Knotts Chelsea M. , Prange Edward J. , Orminski Krysta , Thompson Stephanie , Richmond Bryan K.
Published: June 2020

Background

At our hospital, acute surgical care of children aged 6 and older is managed by adult acute care surgeons. Previously published data from a 10-year experience with this model demonstrated no differences in outcomes when compared with pediatric surgical benchmark data. This study assesses for the effects of a learning curve in the care of pediatric patients by comparing outcomes of patients treated in the first three years with those treated in the last 3 years during a 10-year experience with this model.

Design

This was a retrospective study of pediatric patients aged 6 and older who underwent an emergent or urgent, nontrauma surgical procedure by a general surgeon. Data was obtained via chart review and descriptive statistics were compared between patients operated on between January 1, 2009-January 1, 2012 and January 1, 2016-January 1, 2019.

Results

In all, 208 cases were performed in the early cohort and 192 cases in the late cohort. Appendectomy was the most common procedure in both intervals (88% early, 94.8% late). Although there was a significant decrease in open procedures in the later cohort (22.6% vs 4.7%, P < .001), there was no significant change in disease-specific complications or negative appendectomies. No consults to a fellowship-trained pediatric surgeon were required during either time period, although one was available if needed.

Conclusions

Our data demonstrated a decrease in the number of open procedures in the later cohort. This may be due to an increased comfort level with pediatric laparoscopy over time. However, no significant changes in outcomes were observed. This study supports that acute care general surgeons can provide comparable care to pediatric patients within this age demographic and that although a learning curve, appears to exist with respect to pediatric laparoscopy, it is insignificant in terms of its effect on overall outcomes.
Current Trends of Women Surgeon Speakers at National Trauma Surgery Conferences: The Trauma House Is Improving
Authors: Shaikh Saamia , Malik Ameena , Boneva Dessy , Hai Shaikh , McKenney Mark , Elkbuli Adel
Published: June 2020

Background

An invitation to speak at a national meeting represents the advancement of one’s career and indicates acceptance and the attention of the scientific community. Studies have revealed gender disparities across medical and surgical society meetings. The purpose of our study was to assess the current trend of women surgeon speakers at major national trauma surgery conferences during the last 4 years (ie, 2016-2019).

Methods

A retrospective analysis of conference programs of major trauma surgery association annual meetings including the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST), the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma (EAST), and the Western Trauma Association (WTA) was conducted. Our primary outcome was the number and proportion of women surgeon speakers at each conference each year.

Results

Twelve conference programs from three national trauma surgery association annual meetings were reviewed. A total of 2029 speakers were included; 608 (30%) of which were female and 1421 (70%) of which were male. The proportion of women speakers ranged from 22.3% to 41.4%. The number of women speakers increased each year from 2016 to 2019: (EAST: 25.2%-39.8%, P = .049; AAST: 27.1%-41.4%, P < .00001, and WTA: 27.8%-33.3%, P = . 0.573).

Conclusion

The number of women surgeon speakers at national trauma surgery conferences significantly increased from 2016 to 2019. The increase in women trauma surgeon speakers is encouraging and should be celebrated, but organizational leadership should take this information into account while extending invitations to surgeons for speaking opportunities and continue to promote diversity and inclusivity.
Social theory anew: From contesting modernity to revisiting our conceptual toolbox – the case of individualization
Authors: Araujo Kathya
Published: June 2020

This article argues why core classical sociological notions that are still extremely influential in global sociological thinking need to be reviewed and reconceptualized, as well as to present an example of how this might be done. The discussion is in two parts. First, the article outlines what the author suggests is a major problem of social and sociological theory: the common articulation between modernity, social theory and sociological research, and its negative effects for the production of knowledge in other regions, such as Latin America. The author considers some of the contemporary strategies devised to deal with the difficulties arising from this articulation and proposes a complementary way of overcoming the problem posed. Second, the author backs her argument with a critical analysis of the concept of individualization, one of the earliest and central notions of social theory, based on the results of three empirical studies carried out in Chile over the past decade.
Gendered objects and gendered spaces: The invisibilities of ‘knife’ crime
Authors: Cook Elizabeth A , Walklate Sandra
Published: June 2020

The knife is a relatively mundane, domestic and easily accessible household item. At the same time, it is the most commonly used weapon in intimate partner homicide. Recently however the knife has become an object of fear and panic in England and Wales when used in public by mostly young men on other young men. This aim of this article is to offer some reflections on the conundrums posed by these two observations. Here the ‘knife’ is considered through the integrated lenses of space, gender and materiality. Situated in this way the contemporary preoccupation with ‘knife’ crime illustrates the ongoing and deeply held assumptions surrounding debates on public and private violence. Whilst criminology has much to say on gender and violence, the gendered, spatialized and material presence of the knife remains poorly understood. In prioritizing ‘knife’ crime as a ‘public’ problem over its manifestation as an ongoing ‘private’ one, its gendered and spatialized features remain hidden thus adding to the failure of policy to tackle ‘knife’ crime in the round.