Abstract: Improving resources for medical autonomy of astronauts in prolonged space missions, such as a Mars mission, requires not only technology development, but also decision-making support systems. The Advanced Crew Medical System - Medical Condition Requirements study, funded by the Canadian Space Agency, aimed to create knowledge content and a scenario-based query capability to support medical autonomy of astronauts. The key objective of this study was to create a prototype tool for identifying medical infrastructure requirements in terms of medical knowledge, skills and materials. A multicriteria decision-making method was used to prioritize the highest risk medical events anticipated in a long-term space mission. Starting with those medical conditions, event sequence diagrams (ESDs) were created in the form of decision trees where the entry point is the diagnosis and the end points are the predicted outcomes (full recovery, partial recovery, or death/severe incapacitation). The ESD formalism was adapted to characterize and compare possible outcomes of medical conditions as a function of available medical knowledge, skills, and supplies in a given mission scenario. An extensive literature review was performed and summarized in a medical condition database. A PostgreSQL relational database was created to allow query-based evaluation of health outcome metrics with different medical infrastructure scenarios. Critical decision points, skill and medical supply requirements, and probable health outcomes were compared across chosen scenarios. The three medical conditions with the highest risk rank were acute coronary syndrome, sepsis, and stroke. Our efforts demonstrate the utility of this approach and provide insight into the effort required to develop appropriate content for the range of medical conditions that may arise.
Abstract: The information of the impact cutting behavior of plants stalk plays an important role in the design and fabrication of plants cutting equipment. It is difficult to investigate a theoretical method for defining cutting properties of plants stalks because the cutting process is complex. Thus, it is necessary to set up an experimental approach to determine cutting parameters for a single stalk. To measure the shear force, shear energy and shear strength of plant stalk, a special impact cutting tester was fabricated. It was similar to an Izod impact cutting tester for metals but a cutting blade and data acquisition system were attached to the end of pendulum's arm. The apparatus was included four strain gages and a digital indicator to show the real-time cutting force of plant stalk. To measure the shear force and also testing the apparatus, two plants’ stalks, like buxus and privet, were selected. The samples (buxus and privet stalks) were cut under impact cutting process at four loading rates 1, 2, 3 and 4 m.s-1 and three internodes fifth, tenth and fifteenth by the apparatus. At buxus cutting analysis: the minimum value of cutting energy was obtained at fifth internode and loading rate 4 m.s-1 and the maximum value of shear energy was obtained at fifteenth internode and loading rate 1 m.s-1. At privet cutting analysis: the minimum value of shear consumption energy was obtained at fifth internode and loading rate: 4 m.s-1 and the maximum value of shear energy was obtained at fifteenth internode and loading rate: 1 m.s-1. The statistical analysis at both plants showed that the increase of impact cutting speed would decrease the shear consumption energy and shear strength. In two scenarios, the results showed that with increase the cutting speed, shear force would decrease.
Abstract: Selenium (Se) is an essential micro-nutrient for human and animals but it is highly toxic. Its organic compounds play an important role in biochemistry and nutrition of the cells. Concentration levels of this element in the different regions of the world vary considerably. This study aimed to compare the availability and levels of the Se in some rural areas of the Balkan Peninsula and relationship with the concentrations of other trace elements. For this purpose soil samples and wheat grains from different regions of Bulgaria, Serbia, Nord Macedonia, Romania, and Greece situated far from large industrial centers have been analyzed. The main methods for their determination were the atomic spectral techniques – atomic absorption and plasma atomic emission. As a result of this study, data on microelements levels from the main grain-producing regions of the Balkan Peninsula were determined and systematized. The presented results confirm the low levels of Se in this region: 0.222– 0.962 mg.kg-1 in soils and 0.001 - 0.005 mg.kg-1 in wheat grains and require measures to offset the effect of this deficiency.
Abstract: Emotional intelligence (EI) is a well-established personal characteristic. It has been viewed as a critical factor which can influence an individual's academic achievement, ability to work and potential to succeed. When working in a group, EI is fundamentally connected to the group members' interaction and ability to work as a team. The ability of a group member to intelligently perceive and understand own emotions (Intrapersonal EI), to intelligently perceive and understand other members' emotions (Interpersonal EI), and to intelligently perceive and understand emotions between different groups (Cross-boundary EI) can be considered as Group emotional intelligence (Group EI). In this research, a more representative Group EI measurement approach, which incorporates the information of the composition of a group and an individual’s role in that group, is proposed. To demonstrate the claim of being more representative Group EI measurement approach, this study adopts a multi-method research design, involving a combination of both qualitative and quantitative techniques to establish a metric of Group EI. From the results, it can be concluded that by introducing the weight coefficient of each group member on group work into the measurement of Group EI, Group EI will be more representative and more capable of understanding what happens during teamwork than previous approaches.
Abstract: Intersection is a critical area on a highway which is a place of conflict points and congestion due to the meeting of two or more roads. Conflicts that occur at the intersection include diverging, merging, weaving, and crossing. To deal with these conflicts, a crossing control system is needed, at a plot of intersection there are two control systems namely signal intersections and non-signalized intersections. The control system at a plot of intersection can affect the intersection performance. In Indonesia there are still many intersections with poor intersection performance. In analyzing the parameters to measure the performance of a plot of intersection in Indonesia, it is guided by the 1997 Indonesian Road Capacity Manual. For this reason, this study aims to develop laboratory diagnostics at plot intersections to analyze parameters that can affect the performance of an intersection. The research method used is research and development. The laboratory diagnosis includes anamnesis, differential diagnosis, inspection, diagnosis, prognosis, specimens, analysis and sample data analysts. It is expected that this research can encourage the development and application of laboratory diagnostics at a plot of intersection in Indonesia so that intersections can function optimally.
Abstract: This study was designed to examine mass participation and elite football performance in Nigeria with reference to advance international football management practices. Over 200 sources of literature on sport delivery systems were analyzed to construct a globally applicable model of elite football integrated with mass participation, comprising of the following three levels: macro- (socio-economic, cultural, legislative, and organizational), meso- (infrastructures, personnel, and services enabling sport programs) and micro-level (operations, processes, and methodologies for development of individual athletes). The model has received scholarly validation and showed to be a framework for program analysis that is not culturally bound. The Smolianov and Zakus model has been employed for further understanding of sport systems such as US soccer, US Rugby, swimming, tennis, and volleyball as well as Russian and Dutch swimming. A questionnaire was developed using the above-mentioned model. Survey questions were validated by 12 experts including academicians, executives from sport governing bodies, football coaches, and administrators. To identify best practices and determine areas for improvement of football in Nigeria, 120 coaches completed the questionnaire. Useful exemplars and possible improvements were further identified through semi-structured discussions with 10 Nigerian football administrators and experts. Finally, content analysis of Nigeria Football Federation’s website and organizational documentation was conducted. This paper focuses on the meso-level of Nigerian football delivery, particularly infrastructures, personnel, and services enabling sport programs. This includes training centers, competition systems, and intellectual services. Results identified remarkable achievements coupled with great potential to further develop football in different types of public and private organizations in Nigeria. These include: assimilating football competitions with other cultural and educational activities, providing favorable conditions for employees of all possible organizations to partake and help in managing football programs and events, providing football coaching integrated with counseling for prevention of antisocial conduct, and improving cooperation between football programs and organizations for peace-making and advancement of international relations, tourism, and socio-economic development. Accurate reporting of the sports programs from the media should be encouraged through staff training for better awareness of various events. The systematic integration of these meso-level practices into the balanced development of mass and high-performance football will contribute to international sport success as well as national health, education, and social harmony.
Abstract: The quality control procedures of a radiopharmaceutical include the assessment of its chemical purity. The method suggested by international pharmacopeias consists of a thin layer chromatographic run. In this paper, the method proposed by the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) is compared to a direct method to determine the final concentration of aminopolyether in Fludeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) preparations. The approach (no chromatographic run) was achieved by placing the thin-layer chromatography (TLC) plate directly on an iodine vapor chamber. Both methods were validated and they showed adequate results to determine the concentration of aminopolyether in 18F-FDG preparations. However, the direct method is more sensitive, faster and simpler when compared to the reference method (with chromatographic run), and it may be chosen for use in routine quality control of 18F-FDG.
Abstract: Operating Urban Bus Transit System is a phenomenon that has a major role in transporting passengers in cities. There are many factors involved in planning and operating an Urban Bus Transit System, one of which is selecting optimized number of stops and scheduling of bus fleet departure. In this paper, we tried to introduce desirable methodology to select number of stops and schedule properly. Selecting the right number of stops causes convenience in accessibility and reduction in travel time and finally increase in public preference of this transportation mode. The achieved results revealed that number of stops must reduce from 33 to 25. Also according to scheduling and conducted economic analysis, the number of buses must decrease from 17 to 11 to have the most appropriate status for the Bus Organization.
Abstract: Prediction of wall shear stress in a rectangular channel, with non-homogeneous roughness distribution, was studied. Estimation of shear stress is an important subject in hydraulic engineering, since it affects the flow structure directly. In this study, the Genetic Algorithm Artificial (GAA) neural network is introduced as a hybrid methodology of the Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and modified Genetic Algorithm (GA) combination. This GAA method was employed to predict the wall shear stress. Various input combinations and transfer functions were considered to find the most appropriate GAA model. The results show that the proposed GAA method could predict the wall shear stress of open channels with high accuracy, by Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) of 0.064 in the test dataset. Thus, using GAA provides an accurate and practical simple-to-use equation.
Abstract: In this study, a spectral element method (SEM) is employed to predict the free vibration of a Euler-Bernoulli beam resting on a Winkler foundation with elastically restrained ends. The formulation of the dynamic stiffness matrix has been established by solving the differential equation of motion which was transformed to frequency domain. Non-dimensional natural frequencies and shape modes are obtained by solving the partial differential equations, numerically. Numerical comparisons and examples are performed to show the effectiveness of the SEM and to investigate the effects of various parameters, such as the springs at the boundaries and the elastic foundation parameter on the vibration frequencies. The obtained results demonstrate that the present method can also be applied to solve the more general problem of the dynamic analysis of structures with higher order precision.
Abstract: China's aging tendency is becoming increasingly severe, which leads to the embarrassing situation of "getting old before getting wealthy". The traditional pension model does not comply with the need of today. Relying on "Internet Plus", it can efficiently integrate information and resources and meet the personalized needs of elderly care. It can reduce the operating cost of community elderly care facilities and lay a technical foundation for providing better services for the elderly. The key for providing help for the elderly in the future is to effectively integrate technology, make good use of technology, and improve the efficiency of elderly care services. The effective integration of traditional home care, community care, intelligent elderly care equipment and medical resources to create the "Internet Plus" community intelligent pension service mode has become the future development trend of aging care. The research method of this paper is to collect literature and conduct theoretical research on community pension firstly. Secondly, the combination of suitable aging design and "Internet Plus" is elaborated through research. Finally, this paper states the current level of intelligent technology in old-age care and looks into the future by understanding multiple levels of "Internet Plus". The development of community intelligent pension mode and content under "Internet Plus" has enormous development potential. In addition to the characteristics and functions of ordinary houses, residential design of endowment housing has higher requirements for comfort and personalization, and the people-oriented is the principle of design.
Abstract: Yi is an ethnic group mainly living in mainland China, with its own spoken and written language systems, after development of thousands of years. Ancient Yi is one of the six ancient languages in the world, which keeps a record of the history of the Yi people and offers documents valuable for research into human civilization. Recognition of the characters in ancient Yi helps to transform the documents into an electronic form, making their storage and spreading convenient. Due to historical and regional limitations, research on recognition of ancient characters is still inadequate. Thus, deep learning technology was applied to the recognition of such characters. Five models were developed on the basis of the four-layer convolutional neural network (CNN). Alpha-Beta divergence was taken as a penalty term to re-encode output neurons of the five models. Two fully connected layers fulfilled the compression of the features. Finally, at the softmax layer, the orthographic features of ancient Yi characters were re-evaluated, their probability distributions were obtained, and characters with features of the highest probability were recognized. Tests conducted show that the method has achieved higher precision compared with the traditional CNN model for handwriting recognition of the ancient Yi.
Abstract: This paper includes experimental results and analytical studies about increasing resistance of single-span reinforced concreted frames against impact factor and their modeling according to optimization methods and optimizing the behavior of these frames under impact loads. During this study, about 30 designs for different frames were modeled and made using specialized software like ANSYS and Sap and their behavior were examined under variable impacts. Then suitable strategies were offered for frames in terms of concrete mixing in order to optimize frame modeling. To reduce the weight of the frames, we had to use fine-grained stones. After designing about eight types of frames for each type of frames, three samples were designed with the aim of controlling the impact strength parameters, and a good shape of the frame was created for the impact resistance, which was a solid frame with muscular legs, and as a bond away from each other as much as possible with a 3 degree gradient in the upper part of the beam.
Abstract: Concrete Damaged Plasticity Model (CDPM) is capable of modeling the stress-strain behavior of confined concrete. Nevertheless, the accuracy of the model largely depends on its parameters. To date, most research works mainly focus on the identification and modification of the parameters for fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) confined concrete prior to damage. And, it has been established that the FRP-strengthened concrete behaves differently to FRP-repaired concrete. This paper presents a modified plastic damage model within the context of the CDPM in ABAQUS for modelling of a uniformly FRP-confined repaired concrete under monotonic loading. The proposed model includes infliction damage, elastic stiffness, yield criterion and strain hardening rule. The distinct feature of damaged concrete is elastic stiffness reduction; this is included in the model. Meanwhile, the test results were obtained from a physical testing of repaired concrete. The dilation model is expressed as a function of the lateral stiffness of the FRP-jacket. The finite element predictions are shown to be in close agreement with the obtained test results of the repaired concrete. It was observed from the study that with necessary modifications, finite element method is capable of modeling FRP-repaired concrete structures.
Abstract: The neural network quantization is highly desired
procedure to perform before running neural networks on mobile
devices. Quantization without fine-tuning leads to accuracy drop of
the model, whereas commonly used training with quantization is done
on the full set of the labeled data and therefore is both time- and
resource-consuming. Real life applications require simplification and
acceleration of quantization procedure that will maintain accuracy of
full-precision neural network, especially for modern mobile neural
network architectures like Mobilenet-v1, MobileNet-v2 and MNAS. Here we present a method to significantly optimize training with
quantization procedure by introducing the trained scale factors for
discretization thresholds that are separate for each filter. Using the
proposed technique, we quantize the modern mobile architectures of
neural networks with the set of train data of only ∼ 10% of the
total ImageNet 2012 sample. Such reduction of train dataset size and
small number of trainable parameters allow to fine-tune the network
for several hours while maintaining the high accuracy of quantized
model (accuracy drop was less than 0.5%). Ready-for-use models and
code are available in the GitHub repository.
Abstract: This paper presents open-loop vector control method of induction motor with space vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) technique. Normally, the closed loop speed control is preferred and is believed to be more accurate. However, it requires a position sensor to track the rotor position which is not desirable to use it for certain workspace applications. This paper exhibits the performance of three-phase induction motor with the simplest control algorithm without the use of a position sensor nor an estimation block to estimate rotor position for sensorless control. The motor stator currents are measured and are transformed to synchronously rotating (d-q-axis) frame by use of Clarke and Park transformation. The actual control happens in this frame where the measured currents are compared with the reference currents. The error signal is fed to a conventional PI controller, and the corrected d-q voltage is generated. The controller outputs are transformed back to three phase voltages and are fed to SVPWM block which generates PWM signal for the voltage source inverter. The open loop vector control model along with SVPWM algorithm is modeled in MATLAB/Simulink software and is experimented and validated in TMS320F28335 DSP board.
Abstract: Introduction: Medical malpractice can be defined as health workers neglecting the expected standard or intentionally not implementing it, doing it wrong and/or incomplete, not being able to implement the accurate practice due to personal or systemic reasons despite desiring to do it correctly and the condition that causes permanent or temporary damage to the patient as a result. If the training periods in which health workers improve their knowledge and skills are passed efficiently, they are expected to have a low rate of error in their professional lives. Aim: Aim of the study is to determine the medical malpractice tendencies of students studying in nursing department. Material and Methods: This descriptive research has been performed with 454 students who study in 3rd and 4th years in the Nursing Department of the Faculty of Health Sciences in a state university in normal and evening education and go out for clinical practice during the 2017-2018 academic year. The sample consisted of 454 students who agreed to participate in the study. Ethics committee approval, the permission of the institution and the verbal consent of the participants were obtained. In collection of data, ‘Personal Information Form’ developed by the researchers and the Malpractice Tendency Scale (SMT) were used. The data were analyzed using SPSS 20 package program. 0.05 was used as the level of significance. Results: The Cronbach’s alpha internal consistency coefficient of the scale was 0.94 and the total mean value of the scale was 211.69 ± 22.14. The mean age of the participants was 22,08 ± 1,852 years; 165 (36,4%) were male and 288 (63,6%) were female. Their mean General Point Average (GPA) was 2.65 ± 0.454 (min 1.03 - max 3.90). Students' average duration of self study per week was 2.89 ± 3.81 (min 0 - max 30) hours. The mean score (80.73) of the 4th year students in the sub-dimension of Drug and Transfusion Applications was significantly higher than the mean score (79.20) of 3rd year students (p < 0.05). The mean score (81.01) of the Drug and Transfusion Applications sub-dimension of those who willingly chose the profession was higher than the mean score (78.88) of those who chose the profession unwillingly. The mean average score (21.48) of Fallings sub-dimension of students who cared for 3 to 4 patients per day was lower than the mean score (22.41) of those who cared for 5 patients and over daily on average (p < 0.05). Conclusion: As a result of this study, it was concluded that malpractice tendency of nursing students was low, and an inverse relationship was found between the duration of education and malpractice tendency.
Abstract: Today, with the development and growth of technology and extreme environmental changes, organizations need to identify opportunities and create creativity and innovation in order to be able to maintain or improve their position in competition with others. In this regard, it is necessary that the resources and assets of the organization are coordinated and reviewed in accordance with the orientation of the strategy. One of the competitive advantages of the present age is knowledge management, which is to equip the organization with the knowledge of the day and disseminate among employees and use it in the development of products and services. Therefore, in the forthcoming research, the impact of dynamic capabilities components (sense, seize, and reconfiguration) has been investigated on knowledge management processes (acquisition, integration and knowledge utilization) in the MAPNA Engineering and Construction Company using a field survey and applied research method. For this purpose, a questionnaire was filled out in the form of 15 questions for dynamic components and 15 questions for measuring knowledge management components and distributed among 46 employees of the knowledge management organization. Validity of the questionnaire was evaluated through content validity and its reliability with Cronbach's coefficient. Pearson correlation test and structural equation technique were used to analyze the data. The results of the research indicate a positive significant correlation between the components of dynamic capabilities and knowledge management.
Abstract: Packages designed for transport of radioactive material
must satisfy rigorous safety regulations specified by the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Higher Activity Waste (HAW)
transport packages have to maintain containment of their contents
during normal and accident conditions of transport (NCT and ACT).
To ensure containment criteria is satisfied these packages are required
to be leak-tight in all transport conditions to meet allowable activity
release rates. Package design safety reports are the safety cases
that provide the claims, evidence and arguments to demonstrate that
packages meet the regulations and once approved by the competent
authority (in the UK this is the Office for Nuclear Regulation) a
licence to transport radioactive material is issued for the package(s).
The standard approach to demonstrating containment in the RWM
transport safety case is set out in BS EN ISO 12807. In this
document a method for measuring a leak rate from the package
is explained by way of a small interspace test volume situated
between two O-ring seals on the underside of the package lid.
The interspace volume is pressurised and a pressure drop measured.
A small interspace test volume makes the method more sensitive
enabling the measurement of smaller leak rates. By ascertaining the
activity of the contents, identifying a releasable fraction of material
and by treating that fraction of material as a gas, allowable leak
rates for NCT and ACT are calculated. The adherence to basic
safety principles in ISO12807 is very pessimistic and current practice
in the demonstration of transport safety, which is accepted by the
UK regulator. It is UK government policy that management of
HAW will be through geological disposal. It is proposed that the
intermediate level waste be transported to the geological disposal
facility (GDF) in large cuboid packages. This poses a challenge
for containment demonstration because such packages will have
long seals and therefore large interspace test volumes. There is also
uncertainty on the releasable fraction of material within the package
ullage space. This is because the waste may be in many different
forms which makes it difficult to define the fraction of material
released by the waste package. Additionally because of the large
interspace test volume, measuring the calculated leak rates may not
be achievable. For this reason a justification for a lower releasable
fraction of material is sought. This paper considers the use of aerosol
processes to reduce the releasable fraction for both NCT and ACT. It
reviews the basic coagulation and removal processes and applies the
dynamic aerosol balance equation. The proposed solution includes
only the most well understood physical processes namely; Brownian
coagulation and gravitational settling. Other processes have been
eliminated either on the basis that they would serve to reduce the
release to the environment further (pessimistically in keeping with
the essence of nuclear transport safety cases) or that they are not
credible in the conditions of transport considered.
Abstract: In a rapid-changing world, science teachers face considerable challenges. In addition to the basic curriculum, there must be included several transversal themes, which demand creative and innovative strategies to be arranged and integrated to traditional disciplines. In Brazil, nuclear science is still a controversial theme, and teachers themselves seem to be unaware of the issue, most often perpetuating prejudice, errors and misconceptions. This article presents the authors’ experience in the development of an interdisciplinary pedagogical proposal to include nuclear science in the basic curriculum, in a transversal and integrating way. The methodology applied was based on the analysis of several normative documents that define the requirements of essential learning, competences and skills of basic education for all schools in Brazil. The didactic materials and resources were developed according to the best practices to improve learning processes privileging constructivist educational techniques, with emphasis on active learning process, collaborative learning and learning through research. The material consists of an illustrated book for students, a book for teachers and a manual with activities that can articulate nuclear science to different disciplines: Portuguese, mathematics, science, art, English, history and geography. The content counts on high scientific rigor and articulate nuclear technology with topics of interest to society in the most diverse spheres, such as food supply, public health, food safety and foreign trade. Moreover, this pedagogical proposal takes advantage of the potential value of digital technologies, implementing QR codes that excite and challenge students of all ages, improving interaction and engagement. The expected results include the education of the educators for nuclear science communication in a transversal and integrating way, demystifying nuclear technology in a contextualized and significant approach. It is expected that the interdisciplinary pedagogical proposal contributes to improving attitudes towards knowledge construction, privileging reconstructive questioning, fostering a culture of systematic curiosity and encouraging critical thinking skills.