深海环境海洋生态系统监测与修复新技术

The United Nations(UN)’s call for a decade of“ecosystem restoration”was prompted by the need to address the extensive impact of anthropogenic activities on natural ecosystems.Marine ecosystem restoration is increasingly necessary due to increasing habitat degredation in deep waters(>200 m depth).At these depths,which are far beyond those accessible by divers,only established and emerging robotic platforms such as remotely operated vehicles(ROVs),autonomous underwater vehicles(AUVs),landers,and crawlers can operate through manipulators and multiparametric sensor arrays(e.g.,optoacoustic imaging,omics,and environmental probes).The use of advanced technologies for deep-sea ecosystem restoration can provide:①high-resolution three-dimensional(3D)imaging and acoustic mapping of substrates and key taxa,②physical manipulation of substrates and key taxa,③real-time supervision of remote operations and long-term ecological monitoring,and④the potential to work autonomously.Here,we describe how robotic platforms with in situ manipulation capabilities and payloads of innovative sensors could autonomously conduct active restoration and monitoring across large spatial scales.We expect that these devices will be particularly useful in deep-sea habitats,such as①reef-building cold-water corals,②soft-bottom bamboo corals,and③soft-bottom fishery resources that have already been damaged by offshore industries(i.e.,fishing and oil/gas).

Overview on Mangrove Forest Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Functions

This paper provides a comprehensive overview on coastal protection and hazard mitigation by mangroves.Previous stud-ies have made great strides to understand the mechanisms and influencing factors of mangroves’protection function,including wave energy dissipation,storm surge damping,tsunami mitigation,adjustment to sea level rise and wind speed reduction,which are sys-tematically summarized in this study.Moreover,the study analyzes the extensive physical models,based on indoor flume experi-ments and numerical models,that consider the interaction between mangroves and hydrodynamics,to help our understanding of mangrove-hydrodynamic interactions.Additionally,quantitative approaches for valuing coastal protection services provided by man-groves,including index-based and process-resolving approaches,are introduced in detail.Finally,we point out the limitations of previous studies,indicating that efforts are still required for obtaining more long-term field observations during extreme weather events,to create more real mangrove models for physical experiments,and to develop numerical models that consider the flexible properties of mangroves to better predict wave propagation in mangroves having complex morphology and structures.

Enhancing Private Healthcare Effectiveness in Lagos State, Nigeria: An Overview of the Effect of Quality Improvement Initiatives and Implications for Sustainable Healthcare Delivery

Background: Nigeria, a nation grappling with rapid population growth, economic intricacies, and complex healthcare challenges, particularly in Lagos State, the economic hub and most populous state, faces the challenge of ensuring quality healthcare access. The overview of the effect of quality improvement initiatives in this paper focuses on private healthcare providers in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study assesses the impact of donor-funded quality improvement projects on these private healthcare facilities. It explores the level of participation, perceived support, and tangible effects of the initiatives on healthcare delivery within private healthcare facilities. It also examines how these initiatives influence patient inflow and facility ratings, and bring about additional benefits and improvements, provides insights into the challenges faced by private healthcare providers in implementing quality improvement projects and elicits recommendations for improving the effectiveness of such initiatives. Methods: Qualitative research design was employed for in-depth exploration, utilizing semi-structured interviews. Private healthcare providers in Lagos involved in the SP4FP Quality Improvement Project were purposively sampled for diversity. Face-to-face interviews elicited insights into participation, perceived support, and project effects. Questions covered participation levels, support perception, changes observed, challenges faced, and recommendations. Thematic analysis identified recurring themes from interview transcripts. Adherence to ethical guidelines ensured participant confidentiality and informed consent. Results: Respondents affirmed active involvement in the SP4FP Quality Improvement Project, echoing literature emphasizing private-sector collaboration with the public sector. While acknowledging positive influences on facility ratings, respondents highlighted challenges within the broader Nigerian healthcare landscape affecting patient numbers. Respondents cited tangible improvements, particularly in staff management and patient care processes, validating the positive influence of quality improvement projects. Financial constraints emerged as a significant challenge, aligning with existing literature emphasizing the pragmatic difficulties faced by private healthcare providers. Conclusions: This study illuminates the complex landscape of private healthcare provision in Lagos State, emphasizing the positive impact of donor-funded quality improvement projects. The findings provide nuanced insights, guiding policymakers, healthcare managers, and practitioners toward collaborative, sustainable improvements. As Nigeria progresses, these lessons will be crucial in shaping healthcare policies prioritizing population well-being.

The Place of Human Resource Management in Lagos State Healthcare Delivery: A Statistical Overview

Background: Behind every great system is an organized team;this is especially true in the healthcare industry, where a dedicated human resources team can effectively recruit employees, train staff, and implement safety measures in the workplace. The importance of human resources in the healthcare industry cannot be overstated, with benefits ranging from providing an orderly and effectively run facility to equipping staff with the most accurate and up-to-date training. Proper human resources management is critical in providing high-quality health care. A refocus on human resources management in healthcare requires more research to develop new policies. Effective human resources management strategies are greatly needed to achieve better outcomes and access to health care worldwide. Methods: This study leveraged NOI Polls census data on Health Facility Assessment for Lagos State. One thousand two hundred fifty-six health care facilities were assessed in Lagos State;numbers of Health workers were documented alongside their area of specialization. Also, demographic characterizations of the facilities, such as LGA, Ownership type, Facility Level Care, and Category of the facility, were also documented. Descriptive statistics alongside cross tabulation was done to present the various area of specialization of the health workers. Multiple response analysis was done to understand the distribution of human resources across the health facilities. At the same time, Chi-square and correlation tests were conducted to test the independence of various categories recorded while understanding the relationships among selected specialties. Results: The study revealed that Nurses were the most common health specialist in the Lagos State health facilities. At the same time, Gynecologists and General surgeons are the two medical specialists mostly common in health facilities. Midwives are the second most common health specialist working full time, while Generalist medical doctors make up the top three health specialists working full time. Nurses and Midwives had the highest number in Lagos State, while Pulmonologists were currently the lowest human resource available in Lagos State health care system. It was also noted that health facility distribution across Lagos’s urban and rural areas was even. In contrast, distribution based on other factors such as ownership type, Facility level of care, and facility category was slightly skewed. Conclusion: The distribution of health workers in health facility across LGA in Lagos State depend on Ownership type, Facility level of care, and category of the facility.

Lagos State Hospital Waste Management Practices: A Descriptive Overview with Stakeholders’ Role and Key Recommendations

Background: Waste generation and its disposal is an essential issue in the sustainability of the environment and the planet’s future. Waste management is essential across sectors, likewise the health sector. Therefore, there is a need to employ extra care and attention to handling waste generated from healthcare facilities to avoid the dangers of poor biomedical waste management. We carried out this study to examine the waste management practice in healthcare facilities in Lagos State. Methods: The study was a descriptive survey carried out in one-thousand two hundred and fifty-six (1256) healthcare facilities in Lagos State. Nine hundred sixty-nine (969) of these facilities are located in urban areas, while two hundred and eighty-seven (287) are rural. The facilities studied are government/public health facilities (15.45%), private-for-profit facilities (82.88%), NGOs, Mission/Faith-Based medical facilities (1.67%). The data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Specifically, we utilized bar charts, frequency, and percentage. Result: The result shows that 98.4% (1236) of the studied facilities are registered with the Lagos State Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), while 1.6% (20) are not registered. 98.5% (191) of the 194 government-owned facilities, 98.5% (1025) of the 1041 private-for-profit facilities, and 98.2% (20) of the 21 NGOs/faith-based health facilities are registered with Lagos State Waste Management Authority. The result also shows that 94% of the healthcare facilities studied in Lagos State use color-coded waste bags to segregate waste at the point of origin. 58.7% of the facilities use red-colored bags, 33.3% use yellow-colored bags, 10.7% use black-colored bags, and 1.3% use brown biohazard bags for segregating Infectious waste. Also, 34.2% of the health facilities in Lagos state use red-colored bags, 36.9% use yellow-colored bags, 11% use black-colored bags, and 4.1% use brown-colored bags to segregate their hazardous waste. Conclusion: Some healthcare facilities in Lagos State do not follow the recommended guidelines for medical waste segregation. Waste generated is not appropriately segregated at the point of origin into the recommended colored bags/bins in some facilities. Thus, a policy and procedure regulating healthcare waste are mandatory. It is important to regularly train healthcare workers on proper waste management practices and encourage staff to read and apply WHO rules in managing healthcare waste. Healthcare personnel should realize that hazardous material is a potential cause of a public disaster.

Forecast the Influenza Pandemic Using Machine Learning

Forecasting future outbreaks can help in minimizing their spread.Influenza is a disease primarily found in animals but transferred to humans through pigs.In 1918,influenza became a pandemic and spread rapidly all over the world becoming the cause behind killing one-third of the human population and killing one-fourth of the pig population.Afterwards,that influenza became a pandemic several times on a local and global levels.In 2009,influenza‘A’subtype H1N1 again took many human lives.The disease spread like in a pandemic quickly.This paper proposes a forecasting modeling system for the influenza pandemic using a feed-forward propagation neural network(MSDII-FFNN).This model helps us predict the outbreak,and determines which type of influenza becomes a pandemic,as well as which geographical area is infected.Data collection for the model is done by using IoT devices.This model is divided into 2 phases:The training phase and the validation phase,both being connected through the cloud.In the training phase,the model is trained using FFNN and is updated on the cloud.In the validation phase,whenever the input is submitted through the IoT devices,the system model is updated through the cloud and predicts the pandemic alert.In our dataset,the data is divided into an 85%training ratio and a 15%validation ratio.By applying the proposed model to our dataset,the predicted output precision is 90%.

Challenges in Processing Diamond Wire Cut and Black Silicon Wafers in Large-Scale Manufacturing of High Efficiency Solar Cells

Texturing of diamond wire cut wafers using a standard wafer etch process chemistry has always been a challenge in solar cell manufacturing industry. This is due to the change in surface morphology of diamond wire cut wafers and the abundant presence of amorphous silicon content, which are introduced from wafer manufacturing industry during sawing of multi-crystalline wafers using ultra-thin diamond wires. The industry standard texturing process for multi-crystalline wafers cannot deliver a homogeneous etched silicon surface, thereby requiring an additive compound, which acts like a surfactant in the acidic etch bath to enhance the texturing quality on diamond wire cut wafers. Black silicon wafers on the other hand require completely a different process chemistry and are normally textured using a metal catalyst assisted etching technique or by plasma reactive ion etching technique. In this paper, various challenges associated with cell processing steps using diamond wire cut and black silicon wafers along with cell electrical results using each of these wafer types are discussed.

SpikeGoogle:Spiking Neural Networks with GoogLeNet-like inception module

Spiking Neural Network is known as the third-generation artificial neural network whose development has great potential.With the help of Spike Layer Error Reassignment in Time for error back-propagation,this work presents a new network called SpikeGoogle,which is implemented with GoogLeNet-like inception module.In this inception module,different convolution kernels and max-pooling layer are included to capture deep features across diverse scales.Experiment results on small NMNIST dataset verify the results of the authors’proposed SpikeGoogle,which outperforms the previous Spiking Convolutional Neural Network method by a large margin.

Internet of Ships: The Future Ahead

There are many advantages of using Computer Aided Design (CAD) Systems in a shipbuilding environment: ease of design, speed of construction, use and reuse of information, etc. It is expected that in future CAD tools will advance further and allow greater information management and virtual access through smart devices. The authors of this paper talk about a new concept in shipbuilding, the Internet-of-Ships (IoS) which would have a deep impact on the ship design and production, with a huge diversity of present and potential applications.

AI-Based Culture Independent Pervasive M-Learning Prototype Using UI Plasticity Design

This paper explains the development of a culturally inclusive ubiquitous M-Learning platform(“Mobile Academy”)with an AI-based adaptive user interface.The rationale and need for this research and development are justified by the continuing widespread adoption of the Internet and Internet enabled devices,especially smartphones.The M-learning platform was designed from the onset for the global traveller.The characteristics and limitations of the application are also discussed.The Mobile Academy,proof of concept prototype,was created to facilitate teaching and learning on the move or in environments where the use of a desktop computer is inconvenient or simply impossible.The platform’s primary objective was cross-cultural usability through the use of a combination of AI and plasticity of user interface design techniques.The usability evaluation plan was comprehensive and the results obtained were studied in detail.This also included consideration of the results of the SVM(Support Vector Machine)classifiers’performance and cross-device evaluation.The AI-based adaptive interface prototype has been tested and evaluated to show its merits and capabilities in terms of its usability,inclusivity and effectiveness of the interface.From the results,it was concluded that such a culture independent application was also affordable.

Additional Space Dimension in Bound Spaces Created by a Central Object

Space is a common entity in any static or dynamic system of objects whether the system is a bound system or an open system. Space is described by either measured or abstract dimensions. All motions, momentum and energy transfers take place in space in any given system of objects. By understanding space we understand many physical phenomena happening in space. One method is to observe similarities among phenomena, deduce possible relations and validate the relations through known results. De Broglie wavelength for matter waves is a typical theorized abstract dimension existence of which is established through experiments later. In this paper, the author studies two bound spaces in two bound systems, namely, atomic bound systems and gravitationally bound systems. Both these bound systems have similar characteristics;they have inertial masses in motion with constant kinetic energies for a given orbital distance around the respective central object. In atomic bound space, the central object is the central positive charge which plays the role of creating the bound space around it. In gravitationally bound space, it is the central mass that plays the same role. Thus for these two bound systems a common constitutive relation between the energies of inertial masses in kinetic state, their distance from central object could be present. By noticing the similarities of the two systems, the author proposes such a relation through introduction of an additional space dimension. The existence of the proposed additional dimension is proved in this paper by considering hydrogen atom for atomic bound space and by considering any gravitational system for gravitationally bound space. Though the magnitude of the additional space dimension is different in both the situations, the additional space dimension exists. It is observed that in hydrogen atom the additional space dimension is a constant for the given positive charge of hydrogen atom when electron is in any energy state having principal quantum number of any value from 1 to 5 and with the orbital quantum number zero. For other quantum numbers additional space dimension exists. In the case of gravitational bound space, the additional space dimension is constant for a given mass of the central object for any energy of orbiting inertial mass. The author concludes that total mass energy of an inertial mass having a constant kinetic energy in any bound space is related to an additional space dimension defined by the constitutional property of the central object creating that bound space. As the relation is generic, it throws opportunity to examine other known similar macro, micro or quantum bound spaces created by central objects with different constitutive properties.

Derivation of Specific Velocity of Body Moving under Gravity with Zero Total Energy

Mathematical solutions predict abstract conditions that indicate limits or bounds for physical processes. Generally, experimental verifications and physical observations on physical processes validate the mathematical predictions. Sometimes these predictions lead to new theories and concepts that form basis of better understanding of the natural processes. Gravitational interactions between bodies are natural physical processes. A smaller body moves under the influence of gravity, due to the gravitational effect of another large body. Newton’s classical gravitational theory addresses the interactions at low velocities. Einstein’s general relativity provides firm basis for gravitational interactions. Observations over past 100 years prove the mathematical precision and predictions of general relativity. Einstein’s special relativity forms the foundation of quantum physics. In this paper, the author applies concepts of special relativity to classical two body Newtonian gravitational problem. The study predicts a new mathematically viable condition that when a body moves at a specific velocity derived in this paper, the total energy of the moving body is zero. The specific velocity is a constant. At velocities far less than specific velocity, the total energy is negative and is equal to classical value of half the potential energy. At velocities, greater the specific velocity the total energy is positive. The specific velocity condition also enables determination of specific mass of gravitating body, as well as the specific distance of the moving body from gravitating body, at which the total energy of moving body is zero.

Emitter Quality Optimization Using Lightly Doped Phosphorus Diffusion and Thermal Oxide Anneal for Cell Efficiency Improvement in Multi-Crystalline Black Silicon Solar Cells

Improving solar cell performance by increasing solar cell efficiency by various process optimization had always been a simple straight-forward methodology followed in a R&D or in a solar cell manufacturing company. This is also the most cost-effective practice to improve a product performance using the same technology without the need to procure alternative or expensive raw materials or by adopting advanced solar cell processing techniques. Aluminium Back Surface Field (Al-BSF) technology using multi-crystalline wafers (mc-Si) had been a well-established and a dominant product in the solar industry for more than two decades. However, as the industry progresses, the demand for high efficiency solar cells and modules started going up and full area Aluminium BSF based cells suffers from a lot of inherent limitations on cell efficiency. This is primarily due to the intrinsic high density of crystal lattice defects or otherwise called as grain boundary defects present dominantly only in mc-Si wafers. These grain boundaries tends to accumulate several defects and become trap centres which cause high recombination for minority carriers thereby exhibiting lower conversion efficiency and higher dispersion in electrical parameters in batches of tested cells. Years of research using this material have helped to derive the maximum benefits using this mc-Si wafer in producing industrial full area BSF cells and we can say with certainty that the efficiency potential has reached the saturation point with this technology. An interesting development that happened in the area of improving the final product performance using mc-Si wafers at both cell and module level, is by replacing the conventional acid texturing process with an introduction of a nano-texturing process called Metal Catalysed Chemical Etching (MCCE) using specialized chemicals which improves the light trapping capabilities by creation of inverted pyramid texture on the silicon wafer surface and thereby enabling the wafers to absorb sunlight over a broader range of wavelength and incident angle. With this development done in mc-Si wafers in recent past, it is still a daunting task to surpass cell efficiencies beyond 19.0% using this wafer source. Hence for cell manufacturing lines which use mc-Si wafers, there is always a constant need to improve the cell manufacturing processes to reduce the impact of poor intrinsic quality of mc-Si wafers and improve the final product performance without adding any significant cost factor.

Generalized Kumaraswamy Generalized Power Gompertz Distribution: Statistical Properties, Application, and Validation Using a Modified Chi-Squared Goodness of Fit Test

A new six-parameter continuous distribution called the Generalized Kumaraswamy Generalized Power Gompertz (GKGPG) distribution is proposed in this study, a graphical illustration of the probability density function and cumulative distribution function is presented. The statistical features of the Generalized Kumaraswamy Generalized Power Gompertz distribution are systematically derived and adequately studied. The estimation of the model parameters in the absence of censoring and under-right censoring is performed using the method of maximum likelihood. The test statistic for right-censored data, criteria test for GKGPG distribution, estimated matrix Ŵ, Ĉ, and Ĝ, criteria test Y2n, alongside the quadratic form of the test statistic is derived. Mean simulated values of maximum likelihood estimates and their corresponding square mean errors are presented and confirmed to agree closely with the true parameter values. Simulated levels of significance for Y2n (γ) test for the GKGPG model against their theoretical values were recorded. We conclude that the null hypothesis for which simulated samples are fitted by GKGPG distribution is widely validated for the different levels of significance considered. From the summary of the results of the strength of a specific type of braided cord dataset on the GKGPG model, it is observed that the proposed GKGPG model fits the data set for a significance level ε = 0.05.

Continuous Monitoring of Mining Induced Strain in a Road Pavement Using Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors

This paper describes the application of fiber Bragg grating （FBG） based sensors for monitoring road pavement strains caused by mining induced ground subsidence as a result of underground longwall coal mining beneath a major highway in New South Wales, Australia. After a lengthy planning period, the risks to the highway pavement were successfully managed by the highway authority and the mining company through a technical committee. The technical committee comprised representatives of the mining company, the highway authority and specialists in the fields of pavement engineering, geotechnical engineering and subsidence. An important component of the management strategy is the installation of a total of 840 strain and temperature sensors in the highway pavement using FBG arrays encapsulated in glass-fiber composite cables. The sensors and associated demodulation equipment provide continuous strain measurements along the pavement, enabling on-going monitoring of the effects of mining subsidence on the pavement and timely implementation of planned mitigation and response measures to ensure the safety and serviceability of the highway throughout the mining period.