Journal articles on the topic 'Bioengineering – Social aspects'
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1
Rip, Arie. "The challenge of including social and ethical aspects in the development of nanobiotechnology." NanoBiotechnology 1, no. 3 (September 2005): 310. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12030-005-0056-2.
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Karpenstein-Machan, Marianne, and Peter Schmuck. "Bioenergy Village—Ecological and Social Aspects in Implementation of a Sustainability Project." Journal of Biobased Materials and Bioenergy 1, no. 1 (April 1, 2007): 148–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1166/jbmb.2007.1988.
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In the project described here the electricity and heat supply of an entire German village has been changed from conventional to biomass energy sources in 2005. This lighthouse project, the first "bioenergy village" in Germany, has been initiated by a scientist team from the Universities of Göttingen, Kassel, and Berlin and was realized by the active participation of the population of the village Juehnde in Southern Lower Saxony (800 inhabitants). The ongoing ecological, economical, and social changes are analyzed to enable the transfer of the model to other interested villages in Germany and worldwide. The technical concept consists of three components: (1) An anaerobic digestion plant (supplied by energy crops and liquid manure) with a combined heat and power generator (CHP) producing electricity and heat energy, (2) a central heating plant fired by locally produced wood chips for additional heat demand during the winter, and (3) a hot water pipeline distributing the heat energy to the connected households. The history of the project, the social implementation, and the first results of the ecological and social changes in the village are reported.
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Wright, Walter. "Historical Analogies, Slippery Slopes, and the Question of Euthanasia." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 28, no. 2 (2000): 176–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-720x.2000.tb00008.x.
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The German Nazi regime has become a standard model for unspeakable things that one should reject. Contemporary people will characterize political opponents, benighted policies, and other undesirable things as “fascist” or “Nazi.” In ethics, and medical ethics in particular, this analogy arises regularly. Therefore, it is not surprising that German people are particularly sensitive about their history. For example, the German high court regularly refers to the Nazi era in its reluctance to accept lethal social activities. This sensitivity surfaced again in 1988, when influential applied ethicist Peter Singer accepted a German invitation to speak to a Symposium on “Bioengineering, Ethics, and Mental Disability.” Singer had also agreed to deliver a separate lecture on the topic “Do severely disabled newborn infants have a right to life?”
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ROTELLAR, EMILIO. "Social, Ethical, and Economic Aspects of the Treatment for End-Stage Renal Failure in Spain." Artificial Organs 18, no. 12 (December 1994): 942–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1594.1994.tb03347.x.
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Toole, Jameson L., Carlos Herrera-Yaqüe, Christian M. Schneider, and Marta C. González. "Coupling human mobility and social ties." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 12, no. 105 (April 2015): 20141128. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2014.1128.
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Studies using massive, passively collected data from communication technologies have revealed many ubiquitous aspects of social networks, helping us understand and model social media, information diffusion and organizational dynamics. More recently, these data have come tagged with geographical information, enabling studies of human mobility patterns and the science of cities. We combine these two pursuits and uncover reproducible mobility patterns among social contacts. First, we introduce measures of mobility similarity and predictability and measure them for populations of users in three large urban areas. We find individuals' visitations patterns are far more similar to and predictable by social contacts than strangers and that these measures are positively correlated with tie strength. Unsupervised clustering of hourly variations in mobility similarity identifies three categories of social ties and suggests geography is an important feature to contextualize social relationships. We find that the composition of a user's ego network in terms of the type of contacts they keep is correlated with mobility behaviour. Finally, we extend a popular mobility model to include movement choices based on social contacts and compare its ability to reproduce empirical measurements with two additional models of mobility.
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Żurek, Jagoda, Mariusz Rudy, Magdalena Kachel, and Stanisław Rudy. "Conventional versus Ritual Slaughter–Ethical Aspects and Meat Quality." Processes 9, no. 8 (August 8, 2021): 1381. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr9081381.
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Social pressure on increased protection and welfare of animals results mainly from the initiative of people living in the urbanized parts of the world. The respect for the right to freedom of religion, which is indisputably one of the fundamental liberal rights, must be taken into account. The right to freedom to religion also includes the right to follow a religion’s dietary recommendations. The aim of the literature analysis was to systematize the knowledge on the ethical aspects and quality of meat obtained from carcasses of animals subjected to conventional and ritual slaughter. Consistent with the importance of ritual slaughter for humans of two major faiths (Islam and Judaism), it is important that scientists be objective when evaluating these practices from an animal welfare and meat quality point of view. To evaluate the welfare of the slaughtered animal, it is necessary to openly discuss ritual slaughter and the improvement of its methods. The quality of meat and the degree of bleeding of animals do not always correlate with the ritual slaughter method used.
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Catravas, P., K. Bubriski, M. D. Frey, M. E. Hagerman, B. Cohen, J. J. McGee, and S. S. Bowser. "NanoGrande: Electron Microscopy Education and Outreach Through a Collaboration of Scientists and Artists." Microscopy Today 21, no. 2 (March 2013): 42–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1551929513000023.
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NanoGrande is the culmination of an art-science effort that brought undergraduate students and faculty from science, engineering, and the visual arts together with professional microscopists of the Capital District Microscopy and Microanalysis Society for electron microscopy education and outreach. Students from two independent undergraduate courses, an advanced photography course and a microscopy laboratory course, collaborated on the project. The participants represented a wide range of majors, including chemistry, biology, electrical engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, bioengineering, psychology, neuroscience, sociology/social sciences, history, and the visual arts. Emphasis was placed on both the scientific and the artistic aspects of the imaging process. The creation of electron microscopy images that were at the same time scientifically meaningful and visually compelling depended critically on communication of insights and ideas between paired students. The collaboration generated an art-science exhibition, NanoGrande, that has been presented to over four-thousand K through 12 students.
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Goldin, Ilya M., Rosa Lynn Pinkus, and Kevin Ashley. "Validity and Reliability of an Instrument for Assessing Case Analyses in Bioengineering Ethics Education." Science and Engineering Ethics 21, no. 3 (March 28, 2015): 789–807. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11948-015-9644-2.
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De Vecchi, A., A. Scalamogna, C. Castelnovo, K. Artuso, and A. Brancadoro. "Incidence, Possible Causes and Social Aspects of the Symptomatic Introduction of Disinfectant into the Peritoneal Cavity in CAPD." International Journal of Artificial Organs 17, no. 5 (May 1994): 265–71. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/039139889401700504.
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The frequency and characteristics of episodes of accidental symptomatic introduction of Amuchina in CAPD patients has been retrospectively analyzed in patients treated with three different CAPD systems with disinfectant (two reusable Y set and one disposable Y set). The rate of accidental introduction of Amuchina was 1 episode every 8981 exchanges (1/8620 with the log Baxter Y set, 1/11060 exchanges with the short Baxter Y set and with the Bieffe L3 system). One to 15 fresh dialysis exchanges were required to relief pain due to the introduction of disinfectant. Four patients were hospitalized and one had a long lasting impairment in peritoneal ultrafiltration. There were no significant correlations between the episodes and age, sex or time when the exchange was performed.
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Merryman, W. David. "Development of a Tissue Engineered Heart Valve for Pediatrics: A Case Study in Bioengineering Ethics." Science and Engineering Ethics 14, no. 1 (February 12, 2008): 93–101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11948-008-9053-x.
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Flack, Andrea, Dora Biro, Tim Guilford, and Robin Freeman. "Modelling group navigation: transitive social structures improve navigational performance." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 12, no. 108 (July 2015): 20150213. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2015.0213.
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Collective navigation demands that group members reach consensus on which path to follow, a task that might become more challenging when the group's members have different social connections. Group decision-making mechanisms have been studied successfully in the past using individual-based modelling, although many of these studies have neglected the role of social connections between the group's interacting members. Nevertheless, empirical studies have demonstrated that individual recognition, previous shared experiences and inter-individual familiarity can influence the cohesion and the dynamics of the group as well as the relative spatial positions of specific individuals within it. Here, we use models of collective motion to study the impact of social relationships on group navigation by introducing social network structures into a model of collective motion. Our results show that groups consisting of equally informed individuals achieve the highest level of accuracy when they are hierarchically organized with the minimum number of preferred connections per individual. We also observe that the navigational accuracy of a group will depend strongly on detailed aspects of its social organization. More specifically, group navigation does not only depend on the underlying social relationships, but also on how much weight leading individuals put on following others. Also, we show that groups with certain social structures can compensate better for an increased level of navigational error. The results have broader implications for studies on collective navigation and motion because they show that only by considering a group's social system can we fully elucidate the dynamics and advantages of joint movements.
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Read, Jonathan M., Ken T. D. Eames, and W. John Edmunds. "Dynamic social networks and the implications for the spread of infectious disease." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 5, no. 26 (March 4, 2008): 1001–7. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2008.0013.
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Understanding the nature of human contact patterns is crucial for predicting the impact of future pandemics and devising effective control measures. However, few studies provide a quantitative description of the aspects of social interactions that are most relevant to disease transmission. Here, we present the results from a detailed diary-based survey of casual (conversational) and close contact (physical) encounters made by a small peer group of 49 adults who recorded 8661 encounters with 3528 different individuals over 14 non-consecutive days. We find that the stability of interactions depends on the intimacy of contact and social context. Casual contact encounters mostly occur in the workplace and are predominantly irregular, while close contact encounters mostly occur at home or in social situations and tend to be more stable. Simulated epidemics of casual contact transmission involve a large number of non-repeated encounters, and the social network is well captured by a random mixing model. However, the stability of the social network should be taken into account for close contact infections. Our findings have implications for the modelling of human epidemics and planning pandemic control policies based on social distancing methods.
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Leung, Yu-Fai, and Glenn Catts. "The Joy of Bioresources: Sustainable Forest-Recreation Connections." BioResources 8, no. 1 (November 3, 2012): 1–2. http://dx.doi.org/10.15376/biores.8.1.1-2.
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Forests have long-standing relationships with humanity beyond the material aspects. Recreation is an essential human need, and forests possess intrinsic values to support such a need in direct, authentic, and emotional ways. Quality recreation experiences can lead to a greater appreciation of bioresources and deeper support for forest conservation. The forest-recreation connections should be celebrated and sustained in this age of rapid social, environmental, and technological changes.
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O'Hara, Kieron, Richard Morris, Nigel Shadbolt, Graham J. Hitch, Wendy Hall, and Neil Beagrie. "Memories for life: a review of the science and technology." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 3, no. 8 (April 13, 2006): 351–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2006.0125.
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This paper discusses scientific, social and technological aspects of memory. Recent developments in our understanding of memory processes and mechanisms, and their digital implementation, have placed the encoding, storage, management and retrieval of information at the forefront of several fields of research. At the same time, the divisions between the biological, physical and the digital worlds seem to be dissolving. Hence, opportunities for interdisciplinary research into memory are being created, between the life sciences, social sciences and physical sciences. Such research may benefit from immediate application into information management technology as a testbed. The paper describes one initiative, memories for life, as a potential common problem space for the various interested disciplines.
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Asher, Lucy, Lisa M. Collins, Angel Ortiz-Pelaez, Julian A. Drewe, Christine J. Nicol, and Dirk U. Pfeiffer. "Recent advances in the analysis of behavioural organization and interpretation as indicators of animal welfare." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 6, no. 41 (September 9, 2009): 1103–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2009.0221.
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While the incorporation of mathematical and engineering methods has greatly advanced in other areas of the life sciences, they have been under-utilized in the field of animal welfare. Exceptions are beginning to emerge and share a common motivation to quantify ‘hidden’ aspects in the structure of the behaviour of an individual, or group of animals. Such analyses have the potential to quantify behavioural markers of pain and stress and quantify abnormal behaviour objectively. This review seeks to explore the scope of such analytical methods as behavioural indicators of welfare. We outline four classes of analyses that can be used to quantify aspects of behavioural organization. The underlying principles, possible applications and limitations are described for: fractal analysis, temporal methods, social network analysis, and agent-based modelling and simulation. We hope to encourage further application of analyses of behavioural organization by highlighting potential applications in the assessment of animal welfare, and increasing awareness of the scope for the development of new mathematical methods in this area.
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Parent, Brendan, Bruce Gelb, Stephen Latham, Ariane Lewis, Laura L. Kimberly, and Arthur L. Caplan. "The ethics of testing and research of manufactured organs on brain-dead/recently deceased subjects." Journal of Medical Ethics 46, no. 3 (September 28, 2019): 199–204. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2019-105674.
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Over 115 000 people are waiting for life-saving organ transplants, of whom a small fraction will receive transplants and many others will die while waiting. Existing efforts to expand the number of available organs, including increasing the number of registered donors and procuring organs in uncontrolled environments, are crucial but unlikely to address the shortage in the near future and will not improve donor/recipient compatibility or organ quality. If successful, organ bioengineering can solve the shortage and improve functional outcomes. Studying manufactured organs in animal models has produced valuable data, but is not sufficient to understand viability in humans. Before risking manufactured organ experimentation in living humans, study of bioengineered organs in recently deceased humans would facilitate evaluation of the function of engineered tissues and the complex interactions between the host and the transplanted tissue. Although such studies do not pose risk to human subjects, they pose unique ethical challenges concerning the previous wishes of the deceased, rights of surviving family members, effective operation and fair distribution of medical services, and public transparency. This article investigates the ethical, legal and social considerations in performing engineered organ research on the recently deceased.
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Wu, Kun, and Kaiyan Da. "The Impact of Intelligent Society on Human Essence and the New Evolution of Humans." Proceedings 47, no. 1 (May 15, 2020): 44. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/proceedings47010044.
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When we enter intelligent society, we need to rethink about the topic of human essence. As we know, human beings have no absolute, fixed essence. The essence of human beings is the combination of an innate substrate and acquired creation. As the degree of machine intelligence in the development of human society continues to increase, human beings are constantly changing and creating their own essence, and they are also constantly liberated from the bondage of a certain single old essence, creating and enriching the richer and more diverse aspects of its essence. The transformation of labor from its alienation to its return is also a transformation of labor from the centralized form to the non-centralized form of human essence according to Karl Marx. The new fusion of artificial intelligence and bioengineering will lead to a new track of evolution that “reshapes and regenerates” life itself. This new evolutionary path will fuse the two-track evolution, biological evolution and cultural evolution, which have been relatively isolated in the traditional sense. If human beings are able to work hard together to design and implement a new social system that adapts to the future intelligent development, then the comprehensive development of intelligence that human beings bring about would be not a disaster, but a bright future.
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Wu, Kun, and Kaiyan Da. "The Impact of Intelligent Society on Human Essence and the New Evolution of Humans." Proceedings 47, no. 1 (May 15, 2020): 44. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2020047044.
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When we enter intelligent society, we need to rethink about the topic of human essence. As we know, human beings have no absolute, fixed essence. The essence of human beings is the combination of an innate substrate and acquired creation. As the degree of machine intelligence in the development of human society continues to increase, human beings are constantly changing and creating their own essence, and they are also constantly liberated from the bondage of a certain single old essence, creating and enriching the richer and more diverse aspects of its essence. The transformation of labor from its alienation to its return is also a transformation of labor from the centralized form to the non-centralized form of human essence according to Karl Marx. The new fusion of artificial intelligence and bioengineering will lead to a new track of evolution that “reshapes and regenerates” life itself. This new evolutionary path will fuse the two-track evolution, biological evolution and cultural evolution, which have been relatively isolated in the traditional sense. If human beings are able to work hard together to design and implement a new social system that adapts to the future intelligent development, then the comprehensive development of intelligence that human beings bring about would be not a disaster, but a bright future.
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Duché, Geneviève, Pall Thordarson, and Matthew Kearnes. "The importance of reflecting on treatment and post-treatment care when assessing the social aspects of cosmetic nanomedicine and transdermal delivery system." Nanomedicine: Nanotechnology, Biology and Medicine 28 (August 2020): 102214. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nano.2020.102214.
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Shizuka, Daizaburo, and David B. McDonald. "The network motif architecture of dominance hierarchies." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 12, no. 105 (April 2015): 20150080. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2015.0080.
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The widespread existence of dominance hierarchies has been a central puzzle in social evolution, yet we lack a framework for synthesizing the vast empirical data on hierarchy structure in animal groups. We applied network motif analysis to compare the structures of dominance networks from data published over the past 80 years. Overall patterns of dominance relations, including some aspects of non-interactions, were strikingly similar across disparate group types. For example, nearly all groups exhibited high frequencies of transitive triads, whereas cycles were very rare. Moreover, pass-along triads were rare, and double-dominant triads were common in most groups. These patterns did not vary in any systematic way across taxa, study settings (captive or wild) or group size. Two factors significantly affected network motif structure: the proportion of dyads that were observed to interact and the interaction rates of the top-ranked individuals. Thus, study design (i.e. how many interactions were observed) and the behaviour of key individuals in the group could explain much of the variations we see in social hierarchies across animals. Our findings confirm the ubiquity of dominance hierarchies across all animal systems, and demonstrate that network analysis provides new avenues for comparative analyses of social hierarchies.
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Kuo, Tsai-Chi, Muniroh Muniroh, and Kristin Halisa Fau. "An Integrated Kano Model, Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process, and Decision Matrix for Sustainable Supplier Selection in Palm Oil Industries Indonesia, a Case Study." Processes 9, no. 6 (June 21, 2021): 1078. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr9061078.
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Industries have to integrate environmental, social, and economic aspects into their supply chain management to achieve sustainability. Hence, the industry needs to take appropriate actions in choosing the right suppliers. The aim of this study is to develop a framework for selecting sustainable suppliers by integrating quality management tools using the Kano model, Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process, and Decision Matrix Method. To identify the critical sustainability criteria, the Kano model by the clustering the criteria for sustainable selection supplier was used. We then used the Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process to determine the weight of each criterion and applied the Decision Matrix Method to select the most sustainable supplier. Afterward, the appropriate proposed framework was implemented in one of the palm oil industries in Indonesia to validate that the framework is applicable and useful. The study shows that the environmental dimension is the most sustainable supplier criteria followed by economy and social dimension. Quality, pollution control, and information disclosures were found to be important sub-dimensions for sustainable supplier selection.
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Fritzen, Katharina, Lutz Heinemann, and Oliver Schnell. "Modeling of Diabetes and Its Clinical Impact." Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology 12, no. 5 (July 13, 2018): 976–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1932296818785642.
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Understanding all aspects of diabetes treatment is hindered by the complexity of this chronic disease and its multifaceted complications and comorbidities, including social and financial impacts. In vivo studies as well as clinical trials provided invaluable information for unraveling not only metabolic processes but also risk estimations of, for example, complications. These approaches are often time- and cost-consuming and have frequently been supported by simulation models. Simulation models provide the opportunity to investigate diabetes treatment from additional viewpoints and with alternative objectives. This review presents selected models focusing either on metabolic processes or risk estimations and financial outcomes to provide a basic insight into this complex subject. It also discusses opportunities and challenges of modeling diabetes.
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Kropat, Marcel, Martin A. Hubbe, and Frederik Laleicke. "Natural, accelerated, and simulated weathering of wood: A Review." BioResources 15, no. 4 (October 20, 2020): 9998–10062. http://dx.doi.org/10.15376/biores.15.4.kropat.
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This review considers three aspects of the weathering of wood – natural weathering, accelerated weathering, and simulated weathering. Natural weathering begins when unprotected wood, such as an unpainted board, is exposed to cycles of solar radiation and rain. Unpainted barns and fenceposts take on a gray coloration and their surfaces may become rough, loosened, or checked with the passage of time. The underlying causes of such changes involve ultraviolet light, the effects of cyclic wetting and drying, and the action of certain fungi. Accelerated weathering tests have been used not only to evaluate the effectiveness of varnishes and paints, but also to aid in the understanding of factors affecting natural weathering. Simulated weathering usually has the goal of quickly and conveniently changing the appearance of fresh wood to give the impression of weathering. This might increase its appeal for various decorative purposes. Information about simulated weathering, though largely absent from the scientific literature, is very much alive in social media. This article considers the science behind all three types of weathering in the light of published accounts.
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Gravish, Nick, Mateo Garcia, Nicole Mazouchova, Laura Levy, Paul B. Umbanhowar, Michael A. D. Goodisman, and Daniel I. Goldman. "Effects of worker size on the dynamics of fire ant tunnel construction." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 9, no. 77 (August 22, 2012): 3312–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2012.0423.
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Social insects work together to complete tasks. However, different individuals within a colony may vary in task proficiency. We investigated if fire ant ( Solenopsis invicta ) worker body size influenced the ability to construct tunnels—a key component of subterranean nests. We monitored excavation by worker groups in a substrate of small wetted glass particles in quasi-two-dimensional arenas. Morphological and network features of the tunnel system were measured. Total tunnel area did not differ significantly between groups of large and small workers, although the tunnel area of control sized workers was significantly larger than that of large workers. Moreover, large workers created wider but shorter tunnels, with slower growth rate of tunnel number. However, edge–vertex scaling and degree distribution of the tunnel network were similar across all treatments. In all cases, the amount of excavated material was correlated with the number of active workers. Our study reveals that morphological features of excavated tunnels show modest variation when constructed by workers of varying sizes, but topological features associated with the tunnel network are conserved. These results suggest that important behavioural aspects of tunnel construction—and thus nest building—are similar among morphologically distinct members of fire ant societies.
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Freudenmann, Thomas, Hans-Joachim Gehrmann, Krasimir Aleksandrov, Mohanad El-Haji, and Dieter Stapf. "Hybrid Models for Efficient Control, Optimization, and Monitoring of Thermo-Chemical Processes and Plants." Processes 9, no. 3 (March 12, 2021): 515. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr9030515.
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This paper describes a procedure and an IT product that combine numerical models, expert knowledge, and data-based models through artificial intelligence (AI)-based hybrid models to enable the integrated control, optimization, and monitoring of processes and plants. The working principle of the hybrid model is demonstrated by NOx reduction through guided oscillating combustion at the pulverized fuel boiler pilot incineration plant at the Institute for Technical Chemistry, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology. The presented example refers to coal firing, but the approach can be easily applied to any other type of nitrogen-containing solid fuel. The need for a reduction in operation and maintenance costs for biomass-fired plants is huge, especially in the frame of emission reductions and, in the case of Germany, the potential loss of funding as a result of the Renewable Energy Law (Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz) for plants older than 20 years. Other social aspects, such as the departure of experienced personnel may be another reason for the increasing demand for data mining and the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
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Perc, Matjaž. "Beauty in artistic expressions through the eyes of networks and physics." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 17, no. 164 (March 2020): 20190686. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0686.
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Beauty is subjective, and as such it, of course, cannot be defined in absolute terms. But we all know or feel when something is beautiful to us personally. And in such instances, methods of statistical physics and network science can be used to quantify and to better understand what it is that evokes that pleasant feeling, be it when reading a book or looking at a painting. Indeed, recent large-scale explorations of digital data have lifted the veil on many aspects of our artistic expressions that would remain forever hidden in smaller samples. From the determination of complexity and entropy of art paintings to the creation of the flavour network and the principles of food pairing, fascinating research at the interface of art, physics and network science abounds. We here review the existing literature, focusing in particular on culinary, visual, musical and literary arts. We also touch upon cultural history and culturomics, as well as on the connections between physics and the social sciences in general. The review shows that the synergies between these fields yield highly entertaining results that can often be enjoyed by layman and experts alike. In addition to its wider appeal, the reviewed research also has many applications, ranging from improved recommendation to the detection of plagiarism.
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Hanson, J. W., S. G. Ortman, and J. Lobo. "Urbanism and the division of labour in the Roman Empire." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 14, no. 136 (November 2017): 20170367. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2017.0367.
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One of the hallmarks of human agglomeration is an increase in the division of labour, but the exact nature of this relationship has been debated among anthropologists, sociologists, economists, and historians and archaeologists. Over the last decade, researchers investigating contemporary urban systems have suggested a novel explanation for the links between the numbers of inhabitants in settlements and many of their most important characteristics, which is grounded in a view of settlements as social networks embedded in built environments. One of the remarkable aspects of this approach is that it is not based on the specific conditions of the modern world (such as capitalism or industrialization), which raises the issue of whether the relationships observed in contemporary urban systems can also be detected in pre-modern urban or even non-urban systems. Here, we present a general model for the relationship between the population and functional diversity of settlements, where the latter is viewed as an indicator of the division of labour. We then explore the applicability of this model to pre-modern contexts, focusing on cities in the Roman Empire, using estimates of their numbers of inhabitants, numbers of documented professional associations, and numbers of recorded inscriptions to develop an index of functional diversity. Our results are consistent with theoretical expectations, adding further support to the view that urban systems in both contemporary and pre-modern contexts reflect a common set of generative processes.
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Pop-Jordanova, Nada D., and Momir H. Polenakovic. "Psychological Characteristics of Patients Treated by Chronic Maintenance Hemodialysis." International Journal of Artificial Organs 36, no. 2 (January 18, 2013): 77–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.5301/ijao.5000188.
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Studies related to psychological aspects of dialysis patients show that depression and anxiety are the most common characteristics. The aim of our study was to analyze the personality profile in patients on chronic maintenance dialysis and to evaluate more specifically the level of depression. The total number of patients was 68 (30 females and 38 males), with mean age 62.3 and 56.5 for females and males respectively. Mean duration of dialysis was 6.73 years for females and 6.68 years for men (the period varied from 0.5 to 18 years). For the evaluation of psychological characteristics, we used two psychometric instruments: Minnesota Multiphase Personality Inventory (MMPI- 201) and Beck Depression Inventory. The obtained results confirmed the presence of depression in patients treated with hemodialysis. The level of depression is variable (minimal is present in 21.43%; mild in 35.71%; moderate in 17.85% and severe in 14.28% of patients). The depression is significantly positively correlated with age (p<0.05) as well as with educational level, and negatively with the duration of dialysis. Specific characteristics of personality obtained with MMPI are hypersensitivity, depressive mood, and withdrawal from friends and relatives. More specific emotional traits are the accentuated anxiety, low level of hostility, but very high passive aggression which destroys their social communications. Some response measures for depression such as relaxation training, psychological support, music therapy, or peripheral biofeedback are recommended.
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Duca, Daniele, Giuseppe Toscano, Ester Foppa Pedretti, and Giovanni Riva. "Sustainability of sunflower cultivation for biodiesel production in central Italy according to the Renewable Energy Directive methodology." Journal of Agricultural Engineering 44, no. 4 (February 28, 2014): 175. http://dx.doi.org/10.4081/jae.2013.222.
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The use of renewable energies as alternative to fossil fuels has value from different points of view and has effects at environmental, social and economic level. These aspects are often connected to each other and together define the overall sustainability of bioenergy. At European level, the Directive 2009/28/EC gives the basic criteria for the estimation of sustainability of biofuels and indicates a minimum threshold of 35% of greenhouse gas saving for a biofuel in order to be considered sustainable. The Directive gives the possibility to identify standard regional values for the cultivation steps that could be utilized for the certification. This paper aims to give a contribution to the definition of these values considering the RED methodology applied to the sunflower cropped in central Italy which is characterized by a hilly landscape and not-irrigated crops. To determine input and output of sunflower cultivation in the central Italy, the results of PROBIO project, carried out by the Authors, were used. The sustainability of biodiesel produced from sunflower grown in central Italy is variable and depends on the nitrogen input and seasonal climatic conditions that affect the yields. The greenhouse gases savings of the Italian chain is 40% in average, greater than the required 35% and would be possible to assign this value as standard to the biofuel chain <em>biodiesel from sunflower cultivated in central Italy</em>. Using an averaged regional standard value guards against the possibility of considering unsustainable harvesting in unfavourable years and seeing it overestimated in the favourable ones.
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Siani, Alessandro, and Sarah Anne Marley. "Impact of the recreational use of virtual reality on physical and mental wellbeing during the Covid-19 lockdown." Health and Technology 11, no. 2 (February 14, 2021): 425–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12553-021-00528-8.
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AbstractThe Covid-19 pandemic has brought about significant changes to most aspects of our lives. As a result of the quarantine enforced by governments and authorities worldwide, people had to suddenly adapt their daily routines, including work, study, diet, leisure and fitness activities to the new circumstances. A growing body of research indicates that the engagement with virtual reality (VR) activities can have a positive impact on users’ mental and physical wellbeing. This study aims to evaluate the impact of VR activities on users under lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. An online survey was carried out to investigate the recreational use of VR during the lockdown period and to gather users’ opinions on its impact on their physical and mental health. Non-parametric tests were used to evaluate the statistical significance of the responses provided by the 646 participants. The results of the survey show that VR use has significantly increased during the lockdown period for most participants, who expressed overwhelmingly positive opinions on the impact of VR activities on their mental and physical wellbeing. Strikingly, self-reported intensity of physical activity was considerably more strenuous in VR users than in console users. Given the current uncertainty as to the duration and course of the pandemic, as well as the possibility of intermittent lockdown in the upcoming years, the outcomes of this study could have a significant impact towards the development and deployment of VR-based strategies aimed at helping the population cope with prolonged social distancing, with particular regards to vulnerable individuals.
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Gaworski, Marek, Chloé de Cacheleu, Clémentine Inghels, Lucie Leurs, Camille Mazarguil, Bertille Ringot, and Chiu Tzu-Chen. "The Topic of the Ideal Dairy Farm Can Inspire How to Assess Knowledge about Dairy Production Processes: A Case Study with Students and Their Contributions." Processes 9, no. 8 (August 2, 2021): 1357. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr9081357.
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The dairy farm and on-farm production processes are the subject of numerous evaluations. These are not only evaluations of the economic efficiency of milk production. Opinions expressed by various social groups are also an important contribution to improving the approach to milk production on the farm. As a result of such opinions, a vision of an ideal dairy farm may be formed. The aim of the study was to develop the thematic area of an ideal dairy farm in the opinion of two groups of students who were learning remotely (in the distance learning system) due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The first group consisted of six Erasmus+ students. The second group consisted of 70 full-time Polish students. As part of their homework, the students answered three questions about the ideal dairy farm. Students had 4 weeks to do their homework. Erasmus+ students’ homework was used to propose a ranking method for assessing the answers to three questions by the students themselves. Homework of Polish students was used to analyze the frequency of using certain keywords. Polish students, in their homework on the ideal dairy farm, mainly used the basic concepts related to dairy production. Unfortunately, a very small number of students used terms that represent a responsible approach to dairy production, including ethical aspects, freedom, sustainability, animal pain, antibiotics, and organic milk production. In conclusion, it was indicated that the curriculum should be structured in such a way as to raise students’ awareness of dairy production and its current challenges.
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Shrestha, Shiva Kumar. "Sustainable soil management practices." World Journal of Science, Technology and Sustainable Development 12, no. 1 (January 5, 2015): 13–24. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/wjstsd-07-2014-0015.
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Purpose – Temporary and permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land due to natural and human-induced activities such as soil erosion, changing cropping practices and less use of organic matter (OM) has been the greatest challenge faced by mankind in recent years, particularly in the hills and mountains of Nepal. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effectiveness of sustainable soil management practices to mitigate desertification process in the hills of Nepal. Design/methodology/approach – Promotion of sustainable soil management (SSM) practices through a decentralised agriculture extension approach by involving all the stakeholders in a participatory way. Findings – SSM practices mainly: OM management, fodder and forage promotion, increased biomass production systems, integrated plant nutrition systems, and bioengineering for soil and water conservation are identified as the most appropriate and relevant technologies in mitigating the desertification process without deteriorating land quality, particularly conserving the top-soils effectively and efficiently in the hills and mountains of the country. Research limitations/implications – This research is focus on the overall effect of SSM practices due to time and budget constraints. There is scope for doing research on the different aspects of SSM practices and the extent of their effect on different soil parameters (chemical, biological and physical). Practical implications – SSM interventions clearly indicated that there is significant impact in increasing soil fertility, conserving fertile top-soils and mitigating physical, chemical and biologic desertification processes. These are possible through maintaining and improving the soil organic matter, which is the most important indicator for soil health. SSM practices have resulted in an increase of up to 30 per cent in crop yield compared to yields without SSM practices. This might be due to the improvement in SOC which improves soil texture, increases nutrient supply from organic source and conserves water quality, thus, improving soil quality. Social implications – This has created awareness among farmers. Hence, farmers are mitigating pH through increased use of organic manures, where there is less availability of agriculture lime and they are far from road access. Originality/value – SSM practices significantly contributes to combat soil desertification in the hills of Nepal.
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Grimaldi, Giuliana, Mario Manto, and Yassin Jdaoudi. "Quality parameters for a multimodal EEG/EMG/kinematic brain-computer interface (BCI) aiming to suppress neurological tremor in upper limbs." F1000Research 2 (December 20, 2013): 282. http://dx.doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.2-282.v1.
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Tremor is the most common movement disorder encountered during daily neurological practice. Tremor in the upper limbs causes functional disability and social inconvenience, impairing daily life activities. The response of tremor to pharmacotherapy is variable. Therefore, a combination of drugs is often required. Surgery is considered when the response to medications is not sufficient. However, about one third of patients are refractory to current treatments. New bioengineering therapies are emerging as possible alternatives. Our study was carried out in the framework of the European project “Tremor” (ICT-2007-224051). The main purpose of this challenging project was to develop and validate a new treatment for upper limb tremor based on the combination of functional electrical stimulation (FES; which has been shown to reduce upper limb tremor) with a brain-computer interface (BCI). A BCI-driven detection of voluntary movement is used to trigger FES in a closed-loop approach. Neurological tremor is detected using a matrix of EMG electrodes and inertial sensors embedded in a wearable textile. The identification of the intentionality of movement is a critical aspect to optimize this complex system. We propose a multimodal detection of the intentionality of movement by fusing signals from EEG, EMG and kinematic sensors (gyroscopes and accelerometry). Parameters of prediction of movement are extracted in order to provide global prediction plots and trigger FES properly. In particular, quality parameters (QPs) for the EEG signals, corticomuscular coherence and event-related desynchronization/synchronization (ERD/ERS) parameters are combined in an original algorithm which takes into account the refractoriness/responsiveness of tremor. A simulation study of the relationship between the threshold of ERD/ERS of artificial EEG traces and the QPs is also provided. Very interestingly, values of QPs were much greater than those obtained for the corticomuscular module alone.
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Grimaldi, Giuliana, Mario Manto, and Yassin Jdaoudi. "Quality parameters for a multimodal EEG/EMG/kinematic brain-computer interface (BCI) aiming to suppress neurological tremor in upper limbs." F1000Research 2 (April 30, 2014): 282. http://dx.doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.2-282.v2.
Full textAbstract:
Tremor is the most common movement disorder encountered during daily neurological practice. Tremor in the upper limbs causes functional disability and social inconvenience, impairing daily life activities. The response of tremor to pharmacotherapy is variable. Therefore, a combination of drugs is often required. Surgery is considered when the response to medications is not sufficient. However, about one third of patients are refractory to current treatments. New bioengineering therapies are emerging as possible alternatives. Our study was carried out in the framework of the European project “Tremor” (ICT-2007-224051). The main purpose of this challenging project was to develop and validate a new treatment for upper limb tremor based on the combination of functional electrical stimulation (FES; which has been shown to reduce upper limb tremor) with a brain-computer interface (BCI). A BCI-driven detection of voluntary movement is used to trigger FES in a closed-loop approach. Neurological tremor is detected using a matrix of EMG electrodes and inertial sensors embedded in a wearable textile. The identification of the intentionality of movement is a critical aspect to optimize this complex system. We propose a multimodal detection of the intentionality of movement by fusing signals from EEG, EMG and kinematic sensors (gyroscopes and accelerometry). Parameters of prediction of movement are extracted in order to provide global prediction plots and trigger FES properly. In particular, quality parameters (QPs) for the EEG signals, corticomuscular coherence and event-related desynchronization/synchronization (ERD/ERS) parameters are combined in an original algorithm which takes into account the refractoriness/responsiveness of tremor. A simulation study of the relationship between the threshold of ERD/ERS of artificial EEG traces and the QPs is also provided. Very interestingly, values of QPs were much greater than those obtained for the corticomuscular module alone.
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Mabrouk, Mai S., Samir Y. Marzouk, and Heba M. Afify. "INVESTIGATION OF QUALITY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGIES WITHIN EGYPTIAN DENTAL CLINICS." Biomedical Engineering: Applications, Basis and Communications 31, no. 01 (February 2019): 1950006. http://dx.doi.org/10.4015/s1016237219500066.
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There is a demand to evaluate the quality of dental clinics for improving the healthcare of dentistry sector. The American Dental Education Association (ADEA) presented the quality factors in a dental career which are technical skills, ethics, expertise and cost in the light of the international criterions of dental instruments. There is the low possibility that is still untapped in the aspect of the quality program for dental clinics because of lack of awareness, unapplied of total quality management (TQM) principles and fabrication of a mismatch between the patient needs and the services provided. Therefore, this study described a framework of TQM application for Egyptian dental clinics in the view of clinical engineer that based on random questionnaires from doctors, patients and quality control supervisors at different medical entities under study. All blinding data that obtained from statistical measurements are analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Science program (SPSS) to provide some recommendations that related to risk management, infection control and thus reduce the spread of diseases in the clinics. The findings of this study elucidated the methodology of clinical engineering in development the quality program among dental clinics through the design of clinic, equipment maintenance and dissemination of quality standard guidelines. This work is considered as the first survey of dental clinics quality in Egypt that will represent a preliminary step in the application of quality standards to promote the level of patient safety.
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Lima, Eduardo José, Marcelo Henrique Souza Bomfim, and Miguel Augusto de Miranda Mourão. "POLIBOT – POwer Lines Inspection RoBOT." Industrial Robot: An International Journal 45, no. 1 (January 15, 2018): 98–109. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ir-08-2016-0217.
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Purpose Several studies have aimed to develop robotic systems which move in transmission lines. Until this moment, all of them have a high weight and cost associated with the equipment and reduced battery autonomy time. In this context, this paper aims to propose the POLIBOT (POwer Lines Inspection roBOT) with low cost and weight, enabling the movement over the lines and an easier installation and remove. Design/methodology/approach The designed robot uses the Profiles Manufacturing Methodology (PMM). The construction of the robot mechanical structure uses modularized aluminum parts built through square profiles. Thus, it’s possible a drastic reduction in production time as well as cost reduction and weight when comparing this method with other manufacturing processes like foundry, for example. For hardware and software systems, the use of free and open source software causes a significant reduction in cost and project execution time. The benefits of using open source systems are immeasurable, both from academic and industrial applications. Findings The POLIBOT platform is one solution to the problem of inspection in power lines. With this robot, more lines are maintained with lower time. In its constructive aspect, the robotic mechanism is designed using principles of bioengineering. The use of this principle was successful, considering that obstacle transposition is performed with stability and low energy consumption. Research limitations/implications The suggestion for future researches is to replace the battery for solar energy and construction in polymeric material to avoid high magnetic fields. Practical implications The commercial application is evident because manual inspections are inefficient, very expensive and dangerous. Thus, it is growing the number of researches that develop mechatronics systems for this kind of inspection. Social implications The impact is the reduction of accidents because the present procedure requires precision of movements, where the pilot and electrical technician are close to high electrical and magnetic fields. In addition, for some tasks, the worker has to walk on the line to reach some important points. Thus, those tasks involve high risk of death. Originality/value The PMM methodology represents an innovation to the state of the art because others robotic mechanisms proposed for inspection tasks present total structure mass between 50 and 100 kg and POLIBOT has only 9 kg. Other fact is its price for implementation as this robot used the robot operating system (ROS) framework, what dispense the use of licenses. Other important features are that the robot performs the tasks autonomously, which reduces errors introduced by the operator and its low manufacturing cost as compared with other projects.
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Pattrick, Jonathan G., Hamish A. Symington, Walter Federle, and Beverley J. Glover. "The mechanics of nectar offloading in the bumblebee Bombus terrestris and implications for optimal concentrations during nectar foraging." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 17, no. 162 (January 2020): 20190632. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2019.0632.
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Nectar is a common reward provided by plants for pollinators. More concentrated nectar is more rewarding, but also more viscous, and hence more time-consuming to drink. Consequently, theory predicts an optimum concentration for maximizing energy uptake rate, dependent on the mechanics of feeding. For social pollinators such as bumblebees, another important but little-studied aspect of foraging is nectar offloading upon return to the nest. Studying the bumblebee Bombus terrestris , we found that the relationship between viscosity ( µ ) and volumetric transfer rates ( Q ) of sucrose solutions differed between drinking and offloading. For drinking, Q ∝ µ −0.180 , in good agreement with previous work. Although offloading was quicker than drinking, offloading rate decreased faster with viscosity, with Q ∝ µ −0.502 , consistent with constraints imposed by fluid flow through a tube. The difference in mechanics between drinking and offloading nectar leads to a conflict in the optimum concentration for maximizing energy transfer rates. Building a model of foraging energetics, we show that including offloading lowers the maximum rate of energy return to the nest and reduces the concentration which maximizes this rate by around 3%. Using our model, we show that published values of preferred nectar sugar concentrations suggest that bumblebees maximize the overall energy return rather than the instantaneous energy uptake during drinking.
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Arcila Rios, Catherine, Vanessa Paola Montes Buelvas, and Juan Guillermo Barreneche Ospina. "Application of a Vital Signs Monitor Usage Training Model." Revista Ingeniería Biomédica 11, no. 22 (October 18, 2017). http://dx.doi.org/10.24050/19099762.n22.2017.1182.
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On one hand, technological training on medical devices is a major aspect of the requirements in decree #4725 of 2005 issued by the Invima [1], also health training protocols are an aspect of the resolution 2003 of 2014 issued by the Colombian Ministry of Social Protection [2]. Several Colombian and international regulations indicate the need to perform training on medical devices oriented to clinic users and other personnel. An important aspect to implement user training on medical devices in different health centers is to promote the correct use of these devices, that implies the performing a safe and quality patient care as well as other aspects attending patients. Another aspect to take into account, is the equipment preservation. This article aims to analyze previous reviews on training models and to implement some variations on methodological practices to develop a training model based on the results training a group of bioengineering students.
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Galesic, Mirta, Henrik Olsson, Jonas Dalege, Tamara van der Does, and Daniel L. Stein. "Integrating social and cognitive aspects of belief dynamics: towards a unifying framework." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 18, no. 176 (March 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2020.0857.
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Belief change and spread have been studied in many disciplines—from psychology, sociology, economics and philosophy, to biology, computer science and statistical physics—but we still do not have a firm grasp on why some beliefs change more easily and spread faster than others. To fully capture the complex social-cognitive system that gives rise to belief dynamics, we first review insights about structural components and processes of belief dynamics studied within different disciplines. We then outline a unifying quantitative framework that enables theoretical and empirical comparisons of different belief dynamic models. This framework uses a statistical physics formalism, grounded in cognitive and social theory, as well as empirical observations. We show how this framework can be used to integrate extant knowledge and develop a more comprehensive understanding of belief dynamics.
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Zappavigna, Paolo, and Andrea Brugnoli. "Farms as a resilience factors to land degradation in peri-urban areas." Journal of Agricultural Engineering 44, no. 2s (September 8, 2013). http://dx.doi.org/10.4081/jae.2013.406.
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The purpose of this study was the analysis of the effects induced by urban pressures on the socio-economic and territorial characteristics of the rural peri-urban areas in order to identify planning and intervention strategies aimed at enhancing the quality of agriculture and landscape. A survey was conducted in the surroundings of Parma on farms located in the vicinity of urban areas. The structural, productive and social characteristics of the family-farm units were analyzed. The survey updated an identical survey, carried out in 1986, in which it was examined a sample of 208 farms. The units surveyed were evaluated in two aspects: the “vitality”, which takes into account the structural characteristics (size, production, labour force, etc.), and the “stability”, in which a crucial role is played by the age of the conductor and the presence of a successor. It was found that only 28% of the original farm sample is still alive, one third has disappeared, 30% was absorbed by existing farms, 8% has been abandoned. The factors most favourable to the survival resulted those referred to the vitality, especially the physical and economic size of the farm, the presence of cattle, the percentage of land in property, the presence of young labour. Among the factors that predispose to the abandonment, the urbanization processes were found to be determinants, in terms of expansion of both the built-up area and of that planned as urbanisable. The research has highlighted the importance of the vitality of the farms together with a context that has maintained its original rural features. These combined aspects can better define what we call the resiliency of the landfarms system i.e. the capability of positively reacting to the variable modifications of the internal and external conditions.
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Zhang, Ying, Pan Guo, Zhe Ma, Peng Lu, Dereje Kebebe, and Zhidong Liu. "Combination of cell-penetrating peptides with nanomaterials for the potential therapeutics of central nervous system disorders: a review." Journal of Nanobiotechnology 19, no. 1 (August 23, 2021). http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12951-021-01002-3.
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AbstractAlthough nanomedicine have greatly developed and human life span has been extended, we have witnessed the soared incidence of central nervous system (CNS) diseases including neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease), ischemic stroke, and brain tumors, which have severely damaged the quality of life and greatly increased the economic and social burdens. Moreover, partial small molecule drugs and almost all large molecule drugs (such as recombinant protein, therapeutic antibody, and nucleic acid) cannot cross the blood–brain barrier. Therefore, it is especially important to develop a drug delivery system that can effectively deliver therapeutic drugs to the central nervous system for the treatment of central nervous system diseases. Cell penetrating peptides (CPPs) provide a potential strategy for the transport of macromolecules through the blood–brain barrier. This study analyzed and summarized the progress of CPPs in CNS diseases from three aspects: CPPs, the conjugates of CPPs and drug, and CPPs modified nanoparticles to provide scientific basis for the application of CPPs for CNS diseases.
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Bassanelli, Chiara, Gian Battista Bischetti, Enrico Antonio Chiaradia, Lorenzo Rossi, and Chiara Vergani. "The contribution of chestnut coppice forests on slope stability in abandoned territory: a case study." Journal of Agricultural Engineering 44, no. 2s (September 8, 2013). http://dx.doi.org/10.4081/jae.2013.254.
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Sweet chestnut has been for many centuries fundamental for the Italian mountainous economies, where this kind of forest was traditionally managed in short rotation to rapidly produce wood biomass. Due to the social and economic changes, which made such management scheme unprofitable especially on the steep and remote slopes, such practice has been mainly abandoned and most of chestnut forests became over-aged and very dense, causing an increase of localized slope instability. In this work the effect of over-aged chestnut coppice forests on shallow landslides was analysed by evaluating and comparing mechanical contribution to soil shear strength provided by root systems in differently managed chestnut stands. The study area is located in Valcuvia (Lombardy Prealps) where three different stands, one managed and the others abandoned (over 40 year aged), established on cohesionless slopes (quaternary moraine deposits) were chosen having care to select homogeneous conditions in terms of substrate, aspect and elevation. As slope steepness strongly affects forestry practices and steeper stands are more frequently abandoned, the considered stands have different terrain inclination, 30-35° in abandoned stands and 13° in the managed one. Slope stability of the three sites was evaluated by applying the infinite slope approach accounting for additional root cohesion and tree surcharge. Additional root cohesion was estimated through the Fiber Boundle Model approach by collecting roots in the field and measuring their resistance in laboratory, and by measuring root diameter and density distribution with depth by the wall technique method. The results, as expected, showed that over-aging does not affect root mechanical properties, whereas it significantly affects root distribution within the soil. In terms of slope stability, when steepness exceeds 35°, instability phenomena can be triggered by high level of soil saturation in the case of over-aged forests, whereas for less extreme cases chestnut forests, although over-aged, are able and fundamental to guarantee safe conditions.