Abstract: This paper is concerned with the ways in which
Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ARTs) affect women’s lives
and perceptions regarding their infertility, contraception and
reproductive health. The paper is based on a qualitative feminist
survey study to explore and analyze issues arising from the use of
ARTs by women in New Delhi, the capital of India. A rapid growth in
the number of fertility clinics has been noticed recently. A critical
analysis of interviews revealed that these technologies are used and
developed for making profits at the cost of women’s lives. In this
way, these technologies are influencing and changing the traditional
patterns of motherhood requiring a rethinking about new ways of
reproduction introduced through the use of ARTs.
Abstract: Various nanomaterials can be used as a drug delivery
vehicles in nanomedicine, called nanocarriers. They can either be
organic or inorganic, synthetic or natural-based. Although synthetic
nanocarriers are easier to produce, they can often be toxic for the
organism and thus not suitable for use in treatment. From naturalbased
nanocarriers, the most commonly used are protein cages or
viral capsids. In this work, virus bacteriophage λ was used for
delivery of different cytotoxic drugs (cisplatin, carboplatin,
oxaliplatin and doxorubicin). Large quantities of phage λ were
obtained from phage λ-producing strain of E. coli cultivated in
medium with 0.2% maltose. After killing of E. coli with chloroform
and its removal by centrifugation, the phage was concentrated by
ultracentrifugation at 130 000×g and 4°C for 3 h. The encapsulation
of the drugs was performed by infusion method and four different
concentrations of the drugs were encapsulated (200; 100; 50; 25
μg·mL-1). Free drug molecules were removed by filtration. The
encapsulation was verified using the absorbance for doxorubicin and
atomic absorption spectrometry for platinum cytostatics. The amount
of encapsulated drug linearly increased with the increasing
concentration of applied drug with the determination coefficient
R2=0.989 for doxorubicin; R2=0.967 for cisplatin; R2=0.989 for
carboplatin and R2=0.996 for oxaliplatin. The overall encapsulation
efficiency was calculated as 50% for doxorubicin; 8% for cisplatin;
6% for carboplatin and 10% for oxaliplatin.
Abstract: Recovering resources from water purification sludge
(WPS) have been gradually stipulated in environmental protection
laws and regulations in many nations. Hence, reusing the WPS is
becoming an important topic, and recovering alum from WPS is one of
the many practical alternatives. Most previous research efforts have
been conducted on studying the amphoteric characteristic of aluminum
hydroxide for investigating the optimum pH range to dissolve the
Al(III) species from WPS, but it has been lack of reaction kinetics or
mechanisms related discussion. Therefore, in this investigation, water
purification sludge (WPS) solution was broken by ultrasound to make
particle size of reactants smaller, specific surface area larger.
According to the reaction kinetics, these phenomena let the dissolved
aluminum salt quantity increased and the reaction rate go faster.
Abstract: According to IR, 13C and 1H NMR, APT, 1D NOE,
2D heteronuclear 1H/13C HSQC and 2D DOSY experiments the main
chemical constituent of high-molecular preparations from Symphytum
asperum, S. caucasicum, S. officinale and Anchusa italica
(Boraginaceae) was found to be caffeic acid-derived polyether,
namely poly[3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)glyceric acid] (PDPGA) or
poly[oxy-1-carboxy-2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)ethylene]. Most
carboxylic groups of this polymer of A. italica are methylated.
Abstract: Millions of girls are forcibly married during the
transitional period between puberty and adulthood. At a stage of
vulnerability cultural practices, religious rights and social standards
place her in a position where she is catapult into womanhood. An
advocate against forced child marriage could argue that child rights,
cultural rights, religious rights, right to marry, right to life, right to
health, right to education, right to be free from slavery, right to be
free from torture, right to consent to marriage are all violated by the
practice of child marriage. The author is this advocate and this paper
will present how some of these rights are violated and establish the
need for change.
Abstract: Chatter vibrations, occurring during cutting process,
cause vibration between the cutting tool and workpiece, which
deteriorates surface roughness and reduces tool life. The purpose of
this study is to investigate the influence of cutting parameters and
tool construction on surface roughness and vibration in turning of
aluminum alloy AA2024. A new design of cutting tool is proposed,
which is filled up with epoxy granite in order to improve damping
capacity of the tool. Experiments were performed at the lathe using
carbide cutting insert coated with TiC and two different cutting tools
made of AISI 5140 steel. Taguchi L9 orthogonal array was applied to
design of experiment and to optimize cutting conditions. By the help
of signal-to-noise ratio and analysis of variance the optimal cutting
condition and the effect of the cutting parameters on surface
roughness and vibration were determined. Effectiveness of Taguchi
method was verified by confirmation test. It was revealed that new
cutting tool with epoxy granite has reduced vibration and surface
roughness due to high damping properties of epoxy granite in
toolholder.
Abstract: Noninvasive diagnostics of diseases via breath
analysis has attracted considerable scientific and clinical interest for
many years and become more and more promising with the rapid
advancements in nanotechnology and biotechnology. The volatile
organic compounds (VOCs) in exhaled breath, which are mainly
blood borne, particularly provide highly valuable information about
individuals’ physiological and pathophysiological conditions.
Additionally, breath analysis is noninvasive, real-time, painless, and
agreeable to patients. We have developed a wireless sensor array
based on single-stranded DNA (ssDNA)-functionalized single-walled
carbon nanotubes (SWNT) for the detection of a number of
physiological indicators in breath. Seven DNA sequences were used
to functionalize SWNT sensors to detect trace amount of methanol,
benzene, dimethyl sulfide, hydrogen sulfide, acetone, and ethanol,
which are indicators of heavy smoking, excessive drinking, and
diseases such as lung cancer, breast cancer, and diabetes. Our test
results indicated that DNA functionalized SWNT sensors exhibit
great selectivity, sensitivity, and repeatability; and different
molecules can be distinguished through pattern recognition enabled
by this sensor array. Furthermore, the experimental sensing results
are consistent with the Molecular Dynamics simulated ssDNAmolecular
target interaction rankings. Thus, the DNA-SWNT sensor
array has great potential to be applied in chemical or biomolecular
detection for the noninvasive diagnostics of diseases and personal
health monitoring.
Abstract: High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC)
method was developed and validated for simultaneous estimation of
6-Gingerol(6G) and 6-Shogaol(6S) in joint pain relief gel containing
ginger extract. The chromatographic separation was achieved by
using C18 column, 150 x 4.6mm i.d., 5μ Luna, mobile phase
containing acetonitrile and water (gradient elution). The flow rate
was 1.0 ml/min and the absorbance was monitored at 282 nm. The
proposed method was validated in terms of the analytical parameters
such as specificity, accuracy, precision, linearity, range, limit of
detection (LOD), limit of quantification (LOQ), and determined
based on the International Conference on Harmonization (ICH)
guidelines. The linearity ranges of 6G and 6S were obtained over 20-
60 and 6-18 μg/ml respectively. Good linearity was observed over the
above-mentioned range with linear regression equation Y= 11016x-
23778 for 6G and Y = 19276x-19604 for 6S (x is concentration of
analytes in μg/ml and Y is peak area). The value of correlation
coefficient was found to be 0.9994 for both markers. The limit of
detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) for 6G were
0.8567 and 2.8555 μg/ml and for 6S were 0.3672 and 1.2238 μg/ml
respectively. The recovery range for 6G and 6S were found to be
91.57 to 102.36 % and 84.73 to 92.85 % for all three spiked levels.
The RSD values from repeated extractions for 6G and 6S were 3.43
and 3.09% respectively. The validation of developed method on
precision, accuracy, specificity, linearity, and range were also
performed with well-accepted results.
Abstract: This research paper portrays a comparative analysis of
thermomechanical behaviour of Shielded Metal Arc Welding
(SMAW) and Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) of low carbon
steel of AISI 1020 grade butt joints. The thermal history has been
obtained by experimental work. We have focused on temperature
dependent cooling rate as depicted by Adam’s two-dimensional
model. The effect of moving point heat source of SMAW and GTAW
on mechanical properties has been judged by optical and scanning
electron micrographs of different regions in weld joints. The
microhardness study has been carried to visualize the joint strength
due to formation of different phases.
Abstract: The effects of the contact ball-lens on the soda lime
glass in laser thermal cleavage with a cw Nd-YAG laser were
investigated in this study. A contact ball-lens was adopted to generate
a bending force on the crack formation of the soda-lime glass in the
laser cutting process. The Nd-YAG laser beam (wavelength of 1064
nm) was focused through the ball-lens and transmitted to the soda-lime
glass, which was coated with a carbon film on the surface with a
bending force from a ball-lens to generate a tensile stress state on the
surface cracking. The fracture was controlled by the contact ball-lens
and a straight cutting was tested to demonstrate the feasibility.
Experimental observations on the crack propagation from the leading
edge, main section and trailing edge of the glass sheet were compared
with various mechanical and thermal loadings. Further analyses on the
stress under various laser powers and contact ball loadings were made
to characterize the innovative technology. The results show that the distributions of the side crack at the
leading and trailing edges are mainly dependent on the boundary
condition, contact force, cutting speed and laser power. With the
increase of the mechanical and thermal loadings, the region of the side
cracks might be dramatically reduced with proper selection of the
geometrical constrains. Therefore the application of the contact
ball-lens is a possible way to control the fracture in laser cleavage with
improved cutting qualities.
Abstract: The paper is focused on the application of the security
audit method on the selected objects of the critical infrastructure. The
emphasis is put on security audit method to find gaps in the critical
infrastructure security. The theoretical part describes objects of the
critical infrastructure. The practical part describes using of the
security audit method. The main emphasis was put on the protection
of the critical infrastructure in the Czech Republic.
Abstract: The customers use the best compromise criterion
between price and quality of service (QoS) to select or change
their Service Provider (SP). The SPs share the same market and
are competing to attract more customers to gain more profit. Due
to the divergence of SPs interests, we believe that this situation is a
non-cooperative game of price and QoS. The game converges to an
equilibrium position known Nash Equilibrium (NE). In this work, we
formulate a game theoretic framework for the dynamical behaviors
of SPs. We use Genetic Algorithms (GAs) to find the price and
QoS strategies that maximize the profit for each SP and illustrate
the corresponding strategy in NE. In order to quantify how this NE
point is performant, we perform a detailed analysis of the price of
anarchy induced by the NE solution. Finally, we provide an extensive
numerical study to point out the importance of considering price and
QoS as a joint decision parameter.
Abstract: Fading noise degrades the performance of cellular
communication, most notably in femto- and pico-cells in 3G and 4G
systems. When the wireless channel consists of a small number of
scattering paths, the statistics of fading noise is not analytically
tractable and poses a serious challenge to developing closed
canonical forms that can be analysed and used in the design of
efficient and optimal receivers. In this context, noise is multiplicative
and is referred to as stochastically local fading. In many analytical
investigation of multiplicative noise, the exponential or Gamma
statistics are invoked. More recent advances by the author of this
paper utilized a Poisson modulated-weighted generalized Laguerre
polynomials with controlling parameters and uncorrelated noise
assumptions. In this paper, we investigate the statistics of multidiversity
stochastically local area fading channel when the channel
consists of randomly distributed Rayleigh and Rician scattering
centers with a coherent Nakagami-distributed line of sight component
and an underlying doubly stochastic Poisson process driven by a
lognormal intensity. These combined statistics form a unifying triply
stochastic filtered marked Poisson point process model.
Abstract: The increase of technogenic and natural accidents,
accompanied by air pollution, for example, by combustion products,
leads to the necessity of respiratory protection. This work is devoted to the development of a calorimetric method
and a device which allows investigating quickly the kinetics of
carbon dioxide sorption by chemisorbents on the base of potassium
superoxide in order to assess the protective properties of respiratory
protective closed circuit apparatus. The features of the traditional approach for determining the
sorption properties in a thin layer of chemisorbent are described, as
well as methods and devices, which can be used for the sorption
kinetics study. The authors developed an approach (as opposed to the traditional
approach) based on the power measurement of internal heat sources
in the chemisorbent layer. The emergence of the heat sources is a
result of exothermic reaction of carbon dioxide sorption. This
approach eliminates the necessity of chemical analysis of samples
and can significantly reduce the time and material expenses during
chemisorbents testing. Error of determining the volume fraction of adsorbed carbon
dioxide by the developed method does not exceed 12%. Taking into
account the efficiency of the method, we consider that it is a good
alternative to traditional methods of chemical analysis under the
assessment of the protection sorbents quality.
Abstract: Sub-Saharan Africa is described as the second fastest
growing in mobile phone penetration in the world more than in the
United States or the European Union. Mobile phones have been used
to provide a lot of opportunities to improve people’s lives in the
region such as in banking, marketing, entertainment, and paying for
various bills such as water, TV, and electricity. However, the
potential of mobile phones to enhance teaching and learning has not
been explored. This study presents an experience of developing and
delivering SMS based quiz questions used to assess mastery of
subject content knowledge of science and mathematics secondary
school teachers in Tanzania. The SMS quizzes were used as a follow
up support mechanism to 500 teachers who participated in a project
to upgrade subject content knowledge of teachers in science and
mathematics subjects in Tanzania. Quizzes of 10-15 questions were
sent to teachers each week for 8 weeks and the results were analyzed
using SPSS. Results show that teachers who participated in chemistry
and biology subjects have better performance compared to those who
participated in mathematics and physics subjects. Teachers reported
some challenges that led to poor performance, This research has
several practical implications for those who are implementing or
planning to use mobile phones in teaching and learning especially in
rural secondary schools in sub-Saharan Africa.
Abstract: This paper focuses on the questions raised through the
work of Unit 5: ‘In/Out Crisis, emergent and adaptive’; an
architectural research-based studio at [ARC] University of Nicosia. Students were asked to delve into state of Art Technologies in
order to propose sustainable Emergent and Adaptive Architectures
and Urbanities, the resulting unprecedented spatial conditions and
atmospheres of the emergent new ways of living are deemed to be the
ultimate aim of the investigation. Students explored a variety of sites
and crisis conditions seen through their primary ingredient identified
as soil, water and air and their paired combination. Within this
methodology, crisis is seen as a mechanism for allowing an
emergence of new and fascinating ultimate sustainable future cultures
and cities by taking advantage of the primary materiality of the sites.
Abstract: The paper will focus on the strategic development
deriving from the evolution of the traditional courtyard spatial
organization towards a new, contemporary sustainable way of living.
New sustainable approaches that engulf the social issues, the notion
of place, the understanding of weather architecture blended together
with the bioclimatic behavior will be seen through a series of
experimental case studies in the island of Cyprus, inspired and
originated from its traditional wisdom, ranging from small scale of
living to urban interventions. Weather and nature will be seen as co-architectural authors with
architects. Furthermore, the building will be seen not as an object but
rather as a vessel of human activities. This will further enhance the
notion of merging the material and immaterial, the built and unbuilt,
subject-human, and the object-building. This eventually will enable
to generate the discussion of the understanding of the building in
relation to the place and its inhabitants, where the human topography
is more important than the material topography. The specificities of
the divided island and the dealing with sites that are in vicinity with
the diving Green Line will further trigger explorations dealing with
the regeneration issues and the social sustainability offering
unprecedented opportunities for innovative sustainable ways of
living. Opening up a discourse with premises of weather-nature, materialimmaterial,
human-material topographies in relation to the contested
sites of the borders will lead us to develop innovative strategies for a
profound, both technical and social sustainability, which fruitfully
yields to innovative living built environments, responding to the ever
changing environmental and social needs. As a starting point, a case study in Kaimakli in Nicosia, a
refurbishment with an extension of a traditional house, already
engulfs all the traditional/ vernacular wisdom of the bioclimatic
architecture. The project focusses on the direct and quite obvious
bioclimatic features such as south orientation and cross ventilation.
Furthermore, it tries to reinvent the adaptation of these parameters in
order to turn the whole house to a contemporary living environment.
In order to succeed this, evolutions of traditional architectural
elements and spatial conditions are integrated in a way that does not
only respond to some certain weather conditions, but they integrate
and blend the weather within the built environment. A series of
innovations aiming at maximum flexibility is proposed. The house
can finally be transformed into a winter enclosure, while for the most
part of the year it turns into a ‘camping’ living environment. Parallel to experimental interventions in existing traditional units,
we will proceed examining the implementation of the same
developed methodology in designing living units and complexes.
Malleable courtyard organizations that attempt to blend the
traditional wisdom with the contemporary needs for living, the
weather and nature with the built environment will be seen tested in
both horizontal and vertical developments. Social activities are seen as directly affected and forged by the
weather conditions thus generating a new social identity of people where people are directly involved and interacting with the weather.
The human actions and interaction with the built, material
environment in order to respond to weather will be seen as the result
of balancing the social with the technological sustainability, the
immaterial, and the material aspects of the living environment.
Abstract: A solar receiver is designed for operation under
extremely uneven heat flux distribution, cyclic weather, and cloud
transient cycle conditions, which can include large thermal stress and
even receiver failure. In this study, the effect of different oil velocity
on convection coefficient factor and impact of wind velocity on local
Nusselt number by Finite Volume Method will be analyzed. This
study is organized to give an overview of the numerical modeling
using a MATLAB software, as an accurate, time efficient and
economical way of analyzing the heat transfer trends over stationary
receiver tube for different Reynolds number. The results reveal when
oil velocity is below 0.33m/s, the value of convection coefficient is
negligible at low temperature. The numerical graphs indicate that
when oil velocity increases up to 1.2 m/s, heat convection coefficient
increases significantly. In fact, a reduction in oil velocity causes a
reduction in heat conduction through the glass envelope. In addition,
the different local Nusselt number is reduced when the wind blows
toward the concave side of the collector and it has a significant effect
on heat losses reduction through the glass envelope.
Abstract: The fundamental issue in understanding the origin and
growth mechanism of nanomaterials, from a fundamental unit is a big
challenging problem to the scientists. Recently, an immense attention
is generated to the researchers for prediction of exceptionally stable
atomic cluster units as the building units for future smart materials.
The present study is a systematic investigation on the stability and
electronic properties of a series of bimetallic (semiconductor-alkaline
earth) clusters, viz., BxMg3 (x=1-5) is performed, in search for
exceptional and/ or unusual stable motifs. A very popular hybrid
exchange-correlation functional, B3LYP along with a higher basis
set, viz., 6-31+G[d,p] is employed for this purpose under the density
functional formalism. The magic stability among the concerned
clusters is explained using the jellium model. It is evident from the
present study that the magic stability of B4Mg3
cluster arises due to
the jellium shell closure.
Abstract: Experience is what makes a man perfect. Though we
tend to learn many a different things in life through practice still we
need to go an extra mile to gain experience which would be profitable
only when it is integrated with regular practice. A clear phenomenal
idea is that every teacher is a learner. The centralized idea of this paper would focus on the integrated
practices carried out among the students of Jizan University which
enhances learning through experiences. Integrated practices like
student-directed activities, balanced curriculum, phonological based
activities and use of consistent language would enlarge the vision and
mission of students to earn experience through learning. Students
who receive explicit instruction and guidance could practice the skills
and strategies through student-directed activities such as peer tutoring
and cooperative learning. The second effective practice is to use
consistent language. Consistent language provides students a model
for talking about the new concepts which also enables them to
communicate without hindrances. Phonological awareness is an
important early reading skill for all students. Students generally have
phonemic awareness in their home language can often transfer that
knowledge to a second language. And also a balanced curriculum
requires instruction in all the elements of reading. Reading is the
most effective skill when both basic and higher-order skills are
included on a daily basis. Computer based reading and listening skills
will empower students to understand language in a better way.
English language learners can benefit from sound reading instruction
even before they are fully proficient in English as long as the
instruction is comprehensible. Thus, if students have to be well
equipped in learning they should foreground themselves in various
integrated practices through multifarious experience for which
teachers are moderators and trainers. This type of learning prepares
the students for a constantly changing society which helps them to
meet the competitive world around them for better employability
fulfilling the vision and mission of the institution.