bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Optimal variables for retrieval products
Authors: Ceccherini Simone
Published: April 2023

Abstract. The increase of satellite instruments sounding the atmosphere will make it very likely that several instruments simultaneously measure either the same vertical profile or vertical profiles related to nearby geo-locations, and users will consult fused products rather than individual measurements. Therefore, the retrieval products should be optimized for the use in data fusion operations, rather than for the representation of the profile. This change of paradigm raises the question if a more functional representation of the retrieval products exists. New variables for the retrieval products are proposed that have several advantages with respect to the standard retrieval products. These variables, in the linear approximation of the forward model, are independent of the a priori information used in the retrieval, allow to represent the profile with any a priori information and can directly be used to perform the data fusion of a set of measurements. Furthermore, the use of these variables allows to reduce to about one third the stored data volume with respect to the use of standard retrieval products.
Opinion: The strength of long-term comprehensive observations to meet multiple grand challenges at different environments and in the atmosphere
Authors: Kulmala Markku , Lintunen Anna , Lappalainen Hanna , Virtanen Annele , Yan Chao , Ezhova Ekaterina , Nieminen Tuomo , Riipinen Ilona , Makkonen Risto , Tamminen Johanna , Sundström Anu-Maija , Arola Antti , Hansel Armin , Lehtinen Kari , Vesala Timo , Petäjä Tuukka , Bäck Jaana , Kokkonen Tom , Kerminen Veli-Matti
Published: April 2023

Abstract. To be able to meet global grand challenges (climate change; biodiversity loss; environmental pollution; scarcity of water, food and energy supplies; acidification; deforestation; chemicalization; pandemics), which all are closely interlinked with each other, we need comprehensive open data with proper metadata. The large data sets from ground-base in situ observations, ground and satellite remote sensing and multiscale modelling need to be utilized seamlessly. In this opinion paper, we describe the SMEAR (Station for Measuring Earth surface – Atmosphere Relations) concept. We also demonstrate its power via several examples, such as detection of new particle formation and their subsequent growth, quantifying atmosphere-ecosystem feedback loops, combining comprehensive observations with emergency science and services, as well as studying the effect of COVID restrictions on different air quality and climate variables. The future needs and the potential of comprehensive observations of the environment are summarized.
Influence of acidity on liquid−liquid phase transitions of mixed SOA proxy–inorganic aerosol droplets
Authors: Chen Yueling , Pei Xiangyu , Liu Huichao , Meng Yikan , Xu Zhengning , Zhang Fei , Xiong Chun , Preston Thomas C. , Wang Zhibin
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Phase state and morphology of aerosol particles play a critical role in determining their effect on climate. While aerosol acidity has been identified as a key factor affecting the multiphase chemistry and phase transitions, the impact of acidity on phase transition of multicomponent aerosol particles has not been extensively studied in situ. In this work, we employ an aerosol optical tweezer (AOT) to probe the impact of acidity on the phase transition behavior of levitated aerosol particles. Our results reveal that higher acidity decreases the separation relative humidity (SRH) of aerosol droplets mixed with ammonium sulfate (AS) and secondary organic aerosol (SOA) proxy, such as 3-methylglutaric acid (3-MGA), 1,2,6-hexanetriol (HEXT) and 2,5-hexanediol (HEXD) across aerosol pH in atmospheric condition. Phase separation of organic acids was more sensitive to acidity compared to organic alcohols. We found the mixing relative humidity (MRH) was consistently higher than the SRH in several systems. Phase-separating systems, including 3-MGA/AS, HEXT/AS, and HEXD/AS, exhibited oxygen-to-carbon ratios (O:C) of 0.67, 0.50, and 0.33, respectively. In contrast, liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) did not occur in the high O:C system of glycerol/AS, which had an O:C of 1.00. Additionally, the morphology of 38 out of the 40 aerosol particles that underwent LLPS was observed to be a core-shell. Our findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the pH-dependent LLPS in individual suspended aerosol droplets and pave the way for future research on phase separation of atmospheric aerosol particles.
GEDI DATA WITHIN GOOGLE EARTH ENGINE: PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS OF A RESOURCE FOR INLAND SURFACE WATER MONITORING
Authors: Hamoudzadeh A. , Ravanelli R. , Crespi M.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Freshwater is one the most important renewable water resources of the planet but, due to climate change, surface freshwater available in the form of lakes, rivers, reservoirs, snow, and glaciers is becoming significantly threatened. As a result, surface water level monitoring is fundamental for understanding climatic changes and their impact on humans and biodiversity.This study evaluates the accuracy of the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) instrument for monitoring inland water levels. Four lakes in northern Italy were selected for comparison with gauge station measurements. To evaluate the accuracy of GEDI altimetric data, two steps of outlier removal are proposed. The first stage employs GEDI metadata to filter out footprints with very low accuracy. Then, a robust version of the standard 3σ test using a 3NMAD (Normalized Median Absolute Deviation) test is iteratively applied.After the outlier removal, which led to the elimination of between 80% to 87% of the data, the remaining footprints show an average standard deviation of 0.36 m, a mean NMAD of 0.38 m, and a Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.44 m, proving the promising potentialities of GEDI L2A altimetric data for inland water monitoring.
FOREST FIRE SUSCEPTIBILITY ASSESSMENT WITH MACHINE LEARNING METHODS IN NORTH-EAST TURKIYE
Authors: Kantarcioglu O. , Schindler K. , Kocaman S.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Forest fires have devastating effects on biodiversity, climate, and humans. Producing detailed and reliable forest fire susceptibility maps is crucial for disaster management. Data-driven machine learning methods can be applied for forest fire susceptibility mapping, and learning data required for this purpose can be obtained from high-resolution satellite imagery along with a fire inventory. In this study, we assessed the performances of Random Forest (RF) and artificial neural network (ANN) classifiers for producing forest fire susceptibility maps of a region in north-east Türkiye covering Trabzon, Gümüşhane, Rize, and Bayburt provinces using freely available Earth observation data and forest inventory provided by the regional directorate. Forest type, EU-DEM v1.1 (25 m), and tree cover density were retrieved from Copernicus Land Monitoring Service. Sentinel-2 images were utilized for calculating spectral indices such as normalized difference vegetation index and modified normalized difference water index to assess surface water and vegetation characteristics. Thus, a total of twelve variables including topographic, anthropogenic, hydrologic, vegetation and land use data were used as input. The RF and ANN illustrated similar prediction performances based on receiver operating characteristics (ROC) area under the curve (AUC) values, which were 0.89 and 0.88, respectively. The RF performed better in terms of overall accuracy and F-1 score. The susceptibility maps with 25 m resolution were also investigated visually. The ANN results predicted higher susceptibility levels and larger areas were found prone to wildfire. Leave-one-out analysis results indicated that elevation was the most influential factor based on the achieved OA.
ASSESSMENT OF LAND DEFORMATION AND LAND USE RELATIONSHIP IN GARMSAR ALLUVIAL FAN USING SENTINEL-1 DATA
Authors: Rafiei F. , Gharechelou S. , Hosseinpoor M.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Differential Synthetic Aperture Radar Interferometry (DInSAR) allows displacements to be detected with millimeter accuracy as well as more advanced methods, such as Persistent Scatterer Interferometry (PSI). Sentinel-1 data have been collected systematically under the COPERNICUS program at a high temporal resolution with global coverage, helping us to build a wide user community and develop miscellaneous SAR-based applications. In the Garmsar alluvial fan, the long-term groundwater overexploitation due to agricultural and urban demands, the utilization of urban space, and erosion have led to land deformation. In this study, the analysis of land subsidence in Garmsar fan was assessed by using the Differential Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (DInSAR) technique based on 20 Sentinel-1 SAR images from January 2019 to June 2022. Distinct variations of land subsidence were found in the study regions however, it can be seen in most land use types. The maximum annual land subsidence rate has occurred in urban areas with an average rate of 95.2 mm/year from 2019 to 2022. Analysis showed that serious land subsidence mainly occurred in the following land use types: urban areas, agricultural lands, and bare lands.
TECHNIQUES FOR COMPARING MULTI-TEMPORAL ARCHIVE AERIAL IMAGERY FOR GLACIER MONITORING WITH POOR GROUND CONTROL
Authors: Scaioni M. , Malekian A. , Fugazza D.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. The measurement of geometric changes in Alpine glaciers is an essential aspect to assess their reaction to climate change effects. Archive aerial images may integrate valuable information to this purpose at times when other types of remotely sensed data are not available. The application of photogrammetric techniques such as Structure-from-Motion (SfM) and Multi-View-Stereo matching allows the extraction of dense point clouds to model the glacier environment. The comparison of multiple datasets requires to setup a stable reference system, a task that in archive photos is generally carried out by means of ground control points (GCPs). This paper would like to propose and assess some techniques to cope with the lack of ground control. Multitemporal SfM (MSfM) is presented and tested on a dataset including six different aerial blocks collected by means of analogue (PAN/RGB) and digital airborne cameras from 1967 to 2006. These images have been downloaded from the IGNF online repository and cover the area of the Val Veny (Brenva and Miage glaciers) in the Mount Blanc massif, at the border between Italy and France. Coupled with other solutions (i.e., extraction of GCPs from maps and DTMs and ICP co-registration of point clouds), MSfM has revealed as a suitable technique for coregistration of multiple photogrammetric blocks of aerial photos with minimum ground control. Some tests carried out in the case study area demonstrated that the integration of MSfM and ICP coregistration for refinement may significantly improve the comparison between multiple point clouds, which is a fundamental pre-requisite for the analysis of glacier changes over time.
ADAPTATION OF DEEPLAB V3+ FOR DAMAGE DETECTION ON PORT INFRASTRUCTURE IMAGERY
Authors: Scherff M. , Hake F. , Alkhatib H.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Regular inspection and maintenance of infrastructure facilities are crucial to ensure their functionality and safety for users. However, current inspection methods are labor-intensive and can vary depending on the inspector. To improve this process, modern sensor systems and machine learning algorithms can be deployed to detect defects based on rapidly acquired data, resulting in lower downtime. A quality-controlled processing chain allows to provide hence informed uncertainty assessments to inspection operators. In this study, we present several Deeplab V3+ models optimized to predict corroded segments of the quay wall at JadeWeserPort, Germany, which is a dataset from the 3D HydroMapper research project. Our models achieve generally high accuracy in detecting this damage type. Therefore, we examine the use of a Region Growing-based weakly supervised approach to efficiently extend our model to other common types in the future. This approach achieves about 90 % of the results compared to corresponding fully supervised networks, of which a ResNet-50 variant peaks at 55.6 % Intersection-over-Union regarding the test set’s corrosion class.
ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE MAPPING BY USING IPHONE 14 PRO: AN ACCURACY ASSESSMENT
Authors: Suleymanoglu B. , Tamimi R. , Yilmaz Y. , Soycan M. , Toth C.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. Vital aspects of transportation networks, such as the extraction of road information and analysis of road conditions, have become increasingly important research topics as they outline the foundation of many applications such as high-precision mapping, infrastructure planning and maintenance, intelligent transportation, or road design analysis. Therefore, regularly obtaining accurate high-density point cloud data of infrastructures supports many transportation-based applications and provides up-to-date information for smart cities or digital twins. Low-cost smartphone platforms equipped with a variety of sensors provide new and powerful data acquisition capabilities that can be exploited in the geospatial field. For example, mobile phones are now capable of collecting valuable data to generate accurate models to support digital reconstruction of infrastructures. These platforms can provide simple and effective data acquisition, while offering useful geospatial data that can be an alternative to traditional measurement techniques. However, the sensor performance with respect to spatial accuracy of point clouds generated in different applications have not yet been fully investigated. Thus, this paper evaluates the feasibility of using the point clouds generated by the built-in camera and LiDAR sensors integrated into iPhone 14 Pro for extracting road-related information. Additionally, the use of the viDoc RTK Rover on the iPhone 14 Pro increases the platform positioning accuracy, consequently improving the georeferencing accuracy of the point clouds. To validate the performance of the point clouds obtained by the iPhone 14 Pro, a reference dataset of the road features was obtained by measuring with a single-point RTK-GNSS receiver, receiving corrections from the Turkish CORS network (TUSAGA-Aktif) which provides two to three centimetres of accuracy. In addition, reference point cloud data over the same area was obtained from different platforms such as Mobile LiDAR and UAS, and the road features were extracted from these dataset and performance validated. The data acquired by the iPhone 14 Pro was processed and evaluated with respect to the reference datasets. The advantages and disadvantages of using iPhone 14 Pro are analysed in detail and the findings are reported.
LAND COVER DYNAMIC CHANGE MODES ANALYSIS BASED ON EMPIRICAL MODE DECOMPOSITION
Authors: Tang L. , Yang H. , Tang P. , Li Z. , Tang Y.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. The dynamic change mode of land cover not only reflects the change characteristics of the land cover itself, but also reflects the influence exerted by external factors. Empirical mode decomposition is an effective time-frequency analysis method for nonlinear and nonstationary signals. In this paper, empirical mode decomposition firstly uses to each pixel time series to get its intrinsic mode functions, each intrinsic mode function relates to change mode with some time scale, clustering those intrinsic mode functions over the image, and different land cover change modes are obtained. The experimental dataset used is MODIS subset from the Jan 2011 to Dec 2020, located in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. The clustering results of half-annual cycle and one-year cycle of intrinsic mode functions show the influence of local climate and policy factors on land cover change.
CANOPY NITROGEN ESTIMATION ON COTTON PLANT USING SATELLITE IMAGERY
Authors: Chew B. J. , Wiratama W. , Goh M. H.
Published: April 2023

Abstract. The optimization of nitrogen (N) management is becoming a key challenge to enhance crop yield production while protecting the environment. Analysis of canopy N content in crop plants is used as insights for fertilization management, in which actions can be taken to optimize N fertilizer usage. Traditionally, lab chemical processing is used to measure the crop plant’s nutrient content. However, the collection of leaf samples from the field is labour intensive, and it would be costly to increase sampling frequency. Thus, this approach may not be the most optimal for large plantations. Remote sensing applications in agriculture have been widely studied. This study aims to evaluate the potential of using Sentinel 2 imagery to predict canopy N content, as an alternative wide scale method as compared to traditional methods. A cotton plantation with about 50 square km area in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, was used as the case study. About 180 samples across the cotton plantation were collected between March and April 2022 and the N contents of the crop plants were measured using lab chemical processes. Sentinel 2 images within 15 days of the sampling dates were retrieved from ESA’s Copernicus Open Access Hub. This study proposes a Random Forest (RF) regression algorithm for the generation of an N prediction model. About 52 vegetation indices (VIs) were extracted as the features for model training, such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI). RF model allows easy measurement of the relative importance of each feature with respect to the prediction to achieve a good performance. Validation is done by using mean absolute error (MAE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) to evaluate the prediction accuracy against the ground truth, which resulted to be 3.418 g/kg and 9.29% respectively. Finally, this study analyses the performance of the canopy N prediction model and assesses its ability as an alternative to traditional lab chemical sampling processes.
Numerical Prediction of the Aerodynamics and Aeroacoustics of a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine
Authors: Wang Wen-Yu , Ferng Yuh-Ming
Published: April 2023

Abstract. This study used low-frequency-based numerical methods to predict noise radiating from rotating horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) blades. ANSYS FLUENT was used to calculate flow parameters in the vicinity of blade surfaces, as required for the Ffowcs Williams–Hawkings (FW–H) equation. The numerical model was validated against the experimental results from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory Phase VI wind turbine blades. The coupling analysis was integrated with four Reynolds-averaged Navier–Stokes turbulence models and the FW–H equation under different boundary conditions. The SST k-ω and V2f turbulence models produced results in agreement with the available experimental pressure-coefficient and relative-velocity-distribution data. An INER 25-kW HAWT was employed to predict noise frequency distribution at nine points from the tower on the windward and leeward sides under different operating conditions. Noise frequency distributions on the windward and leeward sides showed little differences, whereas those on the left and right sides with respect to the tower were different owing to wind-shear influence. The peak amplitude of the noise was inversely proportional to the increasing distance from the tower but proportional to the wind and rotation speeds.
Design and development of a contextualised interaction-aware trajectory prediction system
Authors:   , Khakzar Mahrokh
Published: April 2023

The rapid progression of technology, exemplified by collision avoidance systems, has presented novel opportunities for reducing the incidence and severity of road crashes. Effective delivery of driver collision warnings, in a timely manner, is a critical factor for improving driver responses and acceptance. This research contributes valuable knowledge regarding the parameters that significantly impact the design of Vehicle Trajectory Prediction (VTP) systems. Results highlight the effectiveness of integrating driving performance and environmental features in the design of VTP systems. Specifically, an interaction-aware VTP system is proposed, which yields a 10% increase in the accuracy of the VTP system.
Improving the designing of mechanical technologies through optimized dimensional structures
Authors: Stroncea Aurel
Published: April 2023

Modern trends in technological development related to the use of numerical control machine tools are manifested by minimizing the number of technological operations, installations, operation elements. One of the most effective ways to improve the design of mechanical processing technologies is to create optimal technological dimensional structures. In the paper, optimality requirements are formulated in relation to the elementary dimensional structures and the entire structure. It is shown that a technological dimensional structure is optimal if it is similar to the constructive dimensional structure. Real constructive dimensional structures are very complex and varied, so that the optimality of some sequences of the structure excludes ensuring the optimality of other sequences. Reciprocal structural adaptations are required, which can be done by constructively resizing the equivalent part. As a criterion for the resizing, the non-admission of the increase in the tolerance of the machining allowance is manifested.
Republic of Moldova: Assessment of energy poverty
Authors: Arion Valentin , Leu Vasile , Hlusov Viorica
Published: April 2023

Energy poverty is a topic addressed every time when it comes to supplying residential customers with energy - either from traditional or from renewable sources. In the context of the preparations of the Republic of Moldova for the accession to the EU, it is relevant to evaluate the structure of energy consumption of households in the country, the level of related costs, as well as the level of energy poverty. The paper presents data on the evolution of household energy consumption for the period 2010-2020. For a reference year (2019), the level of poverty in the country was assessed under different aspects (by living environment – urban and rural, by socio-economic status (5 categories), by household size (5 cat.) etc.). From the calculations, the average value of the level of energy poverty, characteristic to the Republic of Moldova, as a whole, for the year 2019, was equal to 15.7 % and a slightly higher value for the urban area. The paper also presents the new government initiative to support energy-vulnerable households - the "Help at the meter" program.
IDENTIFICATION AND MITIGATION OF BIAS USING EXPLAINABLE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (XAI) FOR BRAIN STROKE PREDICTION
Authors: Mohammed K. , George G.
Published: April 2023

Stroke is a time-sensitive illness that without rapid care and diagnosis can result in detrimental effects on the person. Caretakers need to enhance patient management by procedurally mining and storing the patient's medical records because of the increasing synergy between technology and medical diagnosis. Therefore, it is essential to explore how these risk variables interconnect with each other in patient health records and understand how they each individually affect stroke prediction. Using explainable Artificial Intelligence (XAI) techniques, we were able to show the imbalance dataset and improve our model’s accuracy, we showed how oversampling improves our model’s performance and used explainable AI techniques to further investigate the decision and oversample a feature to have even better performance. We showed and suggested explainable AI as a technique to improve model performance and serve as a level of trustworthiness for practitioners, we used four evaluation metrics, recall, precision, accuracy, and f1 score. The f1 score with the original data was 0% due to imbalanced data, the non-stroke data was significantly higher than the stroke data, the 2nd model has an f1 score of 81.78% and we used explainable AI techniques, Local Interpretable Model-agnostic Explanations (LIME) and SHapely Additive exPlanation (SHAP) to further analyse how the model came to a decision, this led us to investigate and oversample a specific feature to have a new f1 score of 83.34%. We suggest the use of explainable AI as a technique to further investigate a model’s method for decision-making.
Трансформация внешнеэкономических связей приграничных регионов Российской Федерации в условиях геополитической и геоэкономической турбулентности
Authors: Савенкова Ирина Викторовна , Добродомова Татьяна Николаевна , Матвеева Ольга Петровна
Published: April 2023

В условиях жестких экономических антироссийских санкций Запада, военно-политической ситуации в мире и, как следствие, снижения межгосударственных контрактов Российской Федерации с недружественными странами, исследование трансформации внешнеэкономических связей не только в целом в стране, но и в приграничных регионах в особенности, приобретает особую значимость. Там, где стагнирует межгосударственный диалог особенно с сопредельными государствами, очень важен поиск новых контактов и налаживание альтернативных внешнеторговых связей. Учитывая актуальность исследуемой проблематики, несмотря на имеющиеся научные исследования, вопрос о трансформации внешнеэкономических связей приграничных регионов Российской Федерации в условиях нарастающей геополитической и геоэкономической турбулентности проработан недостаточно полно и требует более тщательного изучения. Целью данного исследования является выявление истоков и особенностей процессов трансформации развития приграничных регионов Российской Федерации во внешнеэкономической деятельности в связи с кардинальными изменениями в мировой экономике. В основу исследования положен системный подход, который обусловил применение общенаучных методов (диалектической логики, индукции, дедукции, анализа и синтеза), а также экономико-математического, сравнительного, динамического методов исследования, корреляционно-регрессионного анализа. В ходе исследования авторами проанализировано место Российской Федерации в мировой экономике как по показателю ВВП номинальному и по паритету покупательской способности, так и по показателям ресурсного и производственного потенциала; исследована динамика внешнеторгового оборота страны; определены векторы направления в изменении географии стратегического партнерства от недружественных стран к дружественным; проанализирован внешнеторговый оборот приграничных регионов и определена его взаимосвязь с ростом валового регионального продукта; исследована внешнеторговая деятельность приграничных регионов, граничащих с дружественными и недружественными странами; выявлены особенности сотрудничества приграничных регионов и тенденции его развития с сопредельными государствами. В связи с политической обстановкой в мире и усилением антироссийских санкций, особый акцент авторами был сделан на анализе, связанным с укреплением сотрудничества приграничных регионов с Китаем. Результаты исследования позволили обозначить истоки и направления процессов трансформации внешнеэкономических связей приграничных регионов Российской Федерации и определить их дальнейшие ориентиры, нацеленные на рост развития объемов внешней торговли как в рамках приграничных регионов, так и страны в целом.
Deep Learning Models for Diabetic Retinophaty Screening Program
Authors: Sanchez Abraham , Ulises Moya Eduardo , Nanclares Raul , Quevedo Alexander , Martinez Jorge , Gonzalez Gaspar
Published: April 2023

Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) in Mexico is especially challenging due to i) high prevalence of diabetes in the country, ii) low rate of ophthalmologists and iii) the lack of public policies to address the DR screening. In this context, two Mexican institutions and one international financial support a three years project, to implement a DR screening program to harness the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In this work, we present our preliminary Deep Learning (DL) models to cropping and classifying Retinal Fundus Images (RFI) from three public datasets and one private dataset. Some of our models can achieve 93% in test accuracy and up to 98% of sensitivity. We are going to perform transfer learning with a new local dataset. We expect to improve the user-experience based on AI and reduce the DR detection time.
The current practice of student’ soft skill training at Dong Thap University: From the perspectives of students and lecturers, educational managers
Authors: Tran Dai Nghia
Published: April 2023

The article is aimed at assessing the current situation of soft skills training of students at Dong Thap University. The sample was composed of 600 students from eleven departments; 180 managers, lecturers and employees of Dong Thap University. At the same time, we also designed in-depth interviews with 15 students, 10 lecturers and 5 managers about the present situation of soft skills training at Dong Thap University in the 1st semester of the school year 2021-2022 who were chosen to complete a 27-item questionnaire on a Likert scale to measure their soft skill. The results of the assessment of the current state of soft skills training show an overview of students' soft skills. Based on the results, we could have some proposals to improve soft skills for students at Dong Thap University in order to help each student self-train necessary soft skills to meet the conditions of the realities, social requirements and employers’ expectations.
Building students' learning management website to achieve the learning outcomes of Foreign Language and Informatics at Dong Thap University
Authors: Tran Van Manh , Pham Hue Minh
Published: April 2023

The article presents the current situation and necessary needs of support for academic advisors to monitor the progress of learners in achieving the foreign language and informatics learning outcomes. The paper describes the building process of this website system, its functions, results and development directions to support academic advisors in monitoring and tracking statistics on students’ learning and outcome achievement  for Foreign Languages and Informatics through exam results database for class management on the website system of Foreign Languages and Informatics Center at Dong Thap University.
Teaching Mathematics in English: Applying crucial fundamental tools to support primary students
Authors: Ha Thai Thuy Lam , Vo Tan Duyen , Nguyen Thi Kieu
Published: April 2023

In the current digital era, many international primary schools and also national primary schools have offered bilinguals subjects in students’ studies, especially Maths and Science, so that pre-school teachers should be capable of teaching Maths in English. This article examines the way to use several basic tools in order to increase motivation for Pre-service Primary Teachers  – who have been equipped academic knowledge  fully, can speak English relatively well, and are confident in self practicing and promoting vocabulary.
Literature review on local education for high school students
Authors: Danh Trung
Published: April 2023

To meet the requirements of the country's industrialization and modernization in the context of regional integration and international globalization, General Education Program 2018 has set out the goal of educating students to form and develop qualities and competencies based on educational contents and represented in all subjects and educational activities. The development of local educational models for students in high schools has become more and more urgent. Local education models for students will help teachers easily apply and choose suitable models to organize teaching activities in accordance with students’ characteristics and institutional conditions available to effectively achieve educational goals, thereby meeting the renewal of General Education Program 2018. Hence, there is a need to systematize and inherit related domestic and international research works to serve as a basis for building and proposing local education models for high school students in accordance with specific local practices.
DISTRICT-LEVEL VARIATION IN COVID-19 VACCINATION RATES AND AVAILABILITY OF VACCINATION SERVICES IN BULGARIA
Authors:   Department of Disaster Medicine and Maritime Medicine, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University – Varna, Bulgaria., Radeva Nikolina , Rohova Maria ,   Department of Health Economics and Management, Faculty of Public Health, Medical University – Varna, Bulgaria.
Published: April 2023

Purpose: Since early 2022, the COVID-19 vaccination rate in Bulgaria has remained low, with large regional differences. This study examines the association between the availability of vaccination sites and the number of administered doses, and the extent to which district-level variation is attributable to differences in vaccination services provision. Materials and Methods: Data on COVID-19 vaccine doses administered by districts were used. This data set was combined with district-level information on available vaccination sites, such as general practitioners and temporary vaccination points. The district-level differences in vaccination coverage and service provision were illustrated through country heat maps, and the association between the variables was explored using two linear regression models. Results: According to the first regression model, the number of general practitioners and temporary vaccination points accounted for only 3.8% of the district-level variation in administrated doses. As covariates in the second model, sociodemographic and economic data were included. The combined influence of these factors explained 42.2% of the variance across districts. According to the findings, the average annual gross wage is a significant determinant of the district-level differences in the number of administrated doses. Conclusion: There is no statistically significant association between administered doses and vaccination sites by districts, which does not correspond to the findings of other international studies. District-level variation in vaccination rates is associated with some sociodemographic and economic differences. The paucity of district-level data impedes further analyses of the vaccine coverage differences and their underlying determinants.
Consumer Retaliation as Political Activism
Authors: Mandel Naomi
Published: April 2023

As firms increasingly take stances on divisive political issues, it is essential to understand how consumers’ political ideology influences reactions to such firms. This research examines the effect of U.S. consumers’ political ideology on their likelihood of punishing politically activist firms. We find that liberals are more likely than conservatives to punish politically opposing (vs. supporting) firms by spreading negative word of mouth, posting negative online reviews, complaining against them, and boycotting, because liberals believe these actions will have a stronger societal impact. We also test the mediating roles of moral enhancement motives and belief strength. These findings advance existing research on corporate political activism, political ideology, and consumer retaliation.
Searching for the fountain of youth - use of PI3K inhibitors to extend life/health-span
Authors: Hedges Chris
Published: April 2023

Advancing age is a risk factor common to non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease, neurological disease and cancer. As such, there has been considerable interest in understanding, and potentially preventing, the biological causes of ageing. Data from model organisms and some rodent studies shows that genetic modification of various parts of the insulin/IGF signalling pathway can extend lifespan, suggesting this may be a promising target for intervention. Here I will present some research we conducted looking at chronic pharmacological inhibition of the enzyme PI3K, common to both insulin and IGF signalling, and the effects of PI3K inhibition on lifespan, metabolic health and physical health through ageing.
Beneficios fiscales del sector primario, agricultura, ganadería, silvicultura y pesca
Authors: Yepiz Solís Brenda Lilian , Ballesteros Grijalva Mónica
Published: April 2023

El sector primario, mismo que comprende las actividades agrícolas, ganaderas, pesqueras y silvícolas, tiene una enorme importancia en el desarrollo de la economía. Considerando lo anterior por diversos años, los legisladores y autoridades fiscales le han otorgado diversos beneficios fiscales a este sector (Pérez, 2016). La información que encontrarán en primer lugar la problemática que llevo a elegir el temas consiste en que en este sector en su mayoría se encuentra en zonas alejadas de las ciudades y derivado de eso tienen muy poca capacidad y estructura administrativa para el cumplimiento de sus obligaciones fiscales; el objetivo es  identificar los beneficios y estímulos aplicables a las empresas, tanto persona física como persona moral al tributar este régimen para la determinación de la carga tributaria, metodología cualitativa descriptiva, conoceremos los requisitos y las obligaciones conlleva, después se enfoca a conocer los beneficios que son las facilidades administrativas y los estímulos fiscales que se puede obtener, se puede observar en la investigación que existen beneficios y estímulos en materia del impuesto sobre la renta, seguridad social y también sobre la adquisición de diésel; todo esto con la intención de exponer los beneficios y determinar si es conveniente principalmente en materia económica.
E-pymes de exportación textil artesanal mexicana, en tiempos de integración virtual y economías digitales
Authors: Arellano Grajales Beatriz , Bocanegra Gastelum Carmen
Published: April 2023

El comercio electrónico trasfronterizo en el contexto de la economía  digital  y  el  regionalismo abierto permite facilitar la exportación de los productos de los artesanos mexicanos. Esto se puede lograr a través del incentivo a los emprendimientos de e-pymes artesanales, al mismo tiempo, que reactiva la economia de los propios artesanos.  En el mismo sentido, la investigación da respuesta a las siguientes interrogantes: ¿cuál es el país con mayor demanda de productos artesanales para exportar por región (TTP11, TLCUEM 2.0, T-MEC y AP)? ¿cuál es la participación del comercio electrónico y del PIB cultural en el PIB nacional? y ¿cuál es el proceso de levantamiento de capital y a dónde acudir para solicitar apoyos privados y gubernamentales?
Obligaciones de previsión social en el esquema de Outsourcing (subcontratación) en Hermosillo
Authors: Báez Juvera Mayra Alejandra , Calles Montijo Fernando , Licona López Hiram Isaak
Published: April 2023

En el presente artículo  se destacan los puntos relevantes acerca de las obligaciones en materia constitucional, legal y social que deben sujetarse las empresas contratantes y contratistas. Se verán las obligaciones de previsión social establecidas en la Constitución de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, en la Ley Federal del Trabajo, en la Ley del Seguro Social y la Ley del Instituto del Fondo Nacional de la Vivienda para los Trabajadores. Finalmente, se analizarán las problemáticas y objetivos para el correcto análisis de las empresas de subcontratación laboral en Hermosillo, Sonora. El presente trabajo es un avance de una investigación en curso.
Retorno Social de la Inversión: Una alternativa para la evaluación de la gestión cero basura, durante y post Covid-19
Authors: Hochstrasser-Castillo Nancy , Borbón Morales Carlos Gabriel , De la Rosa-Gómez Isaías
Published: April 2023

Ante el escenario de emergencia sanitaria del síndrome respiratorio SARS COV2, la generación de residuos expuestos a COVID-19 ha aumentado, los cuales no tienen un tratamiento, por lo que requieren un manejo que implica removerlos antes de su disposición final, convirtiéndose en una fuente de riesgo para la población en general y para todos los involucrados en su manejo. El objetivo es presentar la valoración social de un proyecto de limpia pública, de Metepec Estado de México, el cual resulto de 1.27, con una tasa de retorno de 3%. Lo que implica que el proyecto tiene un efecto de valor social positivo, debido a que es mayor que 1. Se decidió utilizar la herramienta de Retorno Social de inversión (SROI) para poder comprender, medir y comunicar los valores social, medioambiental y económico que se pueden crear por medio de la organización entre el gobierno y los grupos de interés, a fin de realizar una Gestión adecuada. Respondiendo a las necesidades y circunstancias ante los problemas sanitarios que podrían afectar la salud de la población en escenarios futuros.
Globalización y regionalización: ¿Fracturas por la pandemia?
Authors: Álvarez Béjar Alejandro
Published: April 2023

La pandemia de COVID19 trajo graves costos económicos, políticos, culturales y sociales que agravaron las desigualdades preexistentes, evidenciando la necesidad de acciones multilaterales, justo porque las fórmulas neoliberales exhibían su fracaso con las carencias de los sistemas de salud, las condiciones de vivienda, de los sistemas educativos, de las pensiones, la pérdida de empleos, ingresos y posibilidades de vida tras el “distanciamiento social”. Sumando la dinámica del cambio tecnológico, viviremos otras mutaciones: una eventual desglobalización relativa, asentando el vuelco del Atlántico al Pacífico, con China como potencia en ascenso. Y una regionalización global profunda, por dos vías: una, el énfasis en respuestas nacionales a la pandemia (lo que puede afectar la producción de alimentos, a industrias como la farmacéutica, la de materiales para el sector salud, pero también las telecomunicaciones, la energía y los servicios públicos); dos, por la eventual relocalización de cadenas de oferta global industrial en previsión de disrupciones mayores por la pandemia, por razones de seguridad nacional o por razones ambientales. La regionalización, comandada por las grandes empresas tecnológicas, no será plenamente global por operar éstas con diferentes estándares y regulaciones, regímenes de derechos sobre los datos, tensiones entre derechos individuales e incentivos a la innovación, discrepancias internacionales.
大專甲組男性排球運動員下肢不對稱性與爆發力表現之探討
Authors: 楊竣傑 楊竣傑 , 張愷呈 張愷呈 , 邱金治 邱金治 , 王信民 王信民
Published: April 2023

目的：探討大專甲組男性排球運動員下肢身體組成與功能性測試的不對稱性，以及下肢不對稱性與連續爆發力之相關性。方法：共招募 20 名大專甲組男性排球運動員，測量其肌肉量、體脂率、單腳反向跳高度與巴士可 15 秒連續跳躍，以成對樣本 t 檢定比較左右腳肌肉量、體脂率及單腳反向跳高度之差異，並以皮爾森積差相關分析來檢測下肢不對稱性與巴士可連續跳躍疲勞指數之相關。結果：受試者之下肢兩側肌肉量、單次單腳反向跳躍高度達到顯著差異 (肌肉量 p = .008；單腳反向跳躍高度 p = .019)，反向跳不對稱指數與連續動力垂直跳之疲勞指數達到顯著中度相關 (p = .014, r = .545)。結論：大專甲組男性排球運動員具有下肢肌肉量與功能性測試之不對稱性，而下肢雙側不對稱越高，連續跳躍高度遞減幅度越大。未來研究可針對不同運動專項之下肢雙側不對稱性，以及雙側不對稱性對於其他功能性測試的影響進行探討。

 

Purpose: To examine the asymmetry of lower extremity body composition and functional tests and to investigate the relationship of lower extremity asymmetry and power in male collegiate volleyball players. Methods: Twenty Division I male collegiate volleyball players were recruited. Muscle mass, body fat, single leg countermovement jump, and the Bosco 15s vertical jump tests were performed. The paired-t test was used to compare the lower extremity muscle mass, lower extremity fat mass, and single leg countermovement jump height between the right and left legs. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient was used to analyze the relationship between the lower extremity asymmetry and the Bosco jump fatigue index. Results: The lower extremity asymmetries in muscle mass and single leg countermovement jump height were found (muscle mass: p = .008, SLCMJ: p = .019). The asymmetry index in single leg countermovement jump height was positively correlated with the Bosco jump fatigue index (p = .014, r = .545). Conclusion: The asymmetries of lower extremity muscle mass and functional tests existed in male collegiate volleyball players. Higher bilateral asymmetry resulted in greater decrease in the continuous jump height. Future study could investigate the bilateral asymmetry in different sports and the effects of bilateral asymmetry on other functional tests.

 
匹克球運動促進社區中高齡者握力、平衡及步行能力之成效初探
Authors: 田政文 田政文 , 黃俊清 黃俊清 , 吳昭蓉 吳昭蓉 , 宋貞儀 宋貞儀
Published: April 2023

目的：本研究旨在探討 12 週匹克球運動對促進社區中高齡者握力、平衡及步行能力之成效。方法：招募 19 位居住在社區之中高齡長者，於每週末介入 2 小時、為期12 週之匹克球運動。成效評估指標包括握力、靜態與動態平衡 (單腳站立及功能性手前伸) 及步行能力 (含直線步行、8 字曲線步行及跨越障礙物步行)。使用配對 t 檢定分析比較各檢測參數於課程介入前後之差異。結果：經過 12 週匹克球運動，能顯著提升中高齡者的握力、功能性手前伸、10 公尺直線及 8 字曲線步行速度(p < .05)。結論：本研究初探發現新興匹克球運動，對提升社區中高齡者握力、平衡及功能性步行能力之正面效益，可提供國內社區發展或推廣中高齡匹克球運動方案實施參考。

 

Purpose: This study was to investigate the effects of a 12-week group-based pickleball program on grip strength, balance and walking performance in middle-aged and older adults. Methods: Nineteen community-dwelling participants participated. Pickleball program was performed 2 hours per day, once per week, for 12 weeks. Handgrip strength, balance (single leg stand and functional reach) and walking performance (straight walking, curve walking and obstacle crossing) were measured and compared before and after the training program using the paired t test. Results: The pickleball program enhanced handgrip strength, functional reach, straight and curve walking performances (all p < .05). Conclusion: The preliminary findings indicate that the 12-week group-based pickleball program could enhance grip strength, balance and functional walking performances in community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults.

 
鞋加重對羽球基本步法表現之影響
Authors: 劉璟洋 劉璟洋 , 邱宏達 邱宏達
Published: April 2023

目的：本研究探討穿不同加重之羽球鞋 (加重0g、50g、100g、150g、200g、250g)，對大專羽球運動員從事基本步法表現之影響。方法：本研究招募 40 位大專羽球運動員 (男22位、女18位)，受測球員分別穿不同加重之羽球鞋執行基本步法測試，加重方法是以數個金屬棒以套袋附加於鞋後方的鞋面上。實驗過程透過分段計時器及無線心率計，分別記錄完成指定基本步法所需的時間及心跳率。結果：完成指定步法所需的時間，男性顯著比女性快 (p< .05)，當加重超過50g，完成步法時間與未加重即達顯著差異 (p< .05)，且加重愈重完成時間愈久。不同性別在心率的變化上未達顯著差異 (p> .05)，心率的變化在加重超過50g時，與未加重即達顯著差異 (p< .05)，且開始測試後10秒的心率上升變化即有顯著差異 (p< .05)。結論：運動員穿加重50g以上的羽球鞋，會對基本步法的表現產生影響，鞋子加重的介入似乎可刺激運動員生理反應的變化，以提升訓練之效果。

 

Purposes: This study investigated how varied masses (0g, 50g, 100g, 150g, 200g, and 250g) added to badminton shoes can have an effect on the basic footwork performances of college badminton players. Methods: 40 college badminton players (22 males and 18 females) were recruited to do the test, wearing shoes with varied mass to perform some designated basic footwork on the badminton court. During the experiment, the time required for the players to complete the basic footwork and their individual heart rates were recorded by a segmented timer system and a wireless heart rate meter, respectively. Results: The results showed that it required significantly less time for male players than for female players to complete the basic footwork (p < .05). When the mass added to the shoes was over 50g, the time required for players to complete the designated footwork was significantly greater from the time required when there was no mass added to the shoes (p < .05), and increased mass added to the shoes resulted in an increased amount of time for players to complete the basic footwork. On the other hand, there was no significant difference in the change of heart rate between male players and female players (p>.05). When players wore shoes with added mass of more than 50g (p<.05), they showed obvious changes of heart rate, which were significantly greater when they wore shoes without any additional mass. Moreover, there was a significant difference (p < .05) in the changes of their heart rates—a rise in 10 seconds after the test started. Conclusions: In conclusion, wearing shoes with added mass of more than 50g can have an impact on badminton players’ performances of the designated basic footwork. The intervention of weighted badminton shoes seems to have stimulated the players’ physiological responses and thus improved the training effect.

 