The importance of this study may be defined by using the smart techniques to earned value indicators of residential buildings projects in Republic of Iraq, only one development intelligent forecasting model was presented to predict Schedule Performance Index (SPI), Cost Performance Index (CPI), and To Complete Cost Performance Indicator (TCPI) are defined as the dependent. The approach is principally influenced by the determining numerous factors which effect on the earned value management, that involves Iraqi historical data. In addition, six independent variables (F1: BAC, Budget at Completion., F2: AC, Actual Cost., F3, A%, Actual Percentage., F4: EV, Earned Value. F5: P%, Planning Percentage., and F6: PV, Planning Value) were arbitrarily designated and satisfactorily described for per construction project. It was found that ANN has the capability to envisage the dust storm with a great accuracy. The correlation coefficient (R) has been 90.00%, and typical accuracy percentage has been 89.00%.

This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the performance of the hormone treatment protocols, determine the factors associated with pregnancy success after hormone treatment, and compare the cost-efficiencies of two types of hormone treatment among cyclic and noncyclic anestrous dairy cows. The clinical records of 279 anestrous cows who received hormone treatment for artificial insemination (AI) from 64 herds in the western region of Thailand were obtained from Kasetsart University Veterinary Teaching Hospital from January to August 2017. The performance of the hormone treatment protocols, fixed-time AI (TAI) and estrus detection before AI (EAI), showed that the pregnancy risk for the TAI protocol was higher than for the EAI protocol, but pregnancy per AI did not differ significantly between the two protocols in cyclic and noncyclic cows. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that cows receiving the TAI protocol were more likely to be pregnant compared to those treated with the EAI protocol. Cows with a 3.00 body condition score (BCS) <3.75 after treatment and loose-housing cows were more likely to become pregnant. Treatment during winter showed higher pregnancy success than in the summer and rainy seasons. The cost-efficiency analysis showed that the TAI protocol was the most cost-efficient option for noncyclic cows, whereas the EAI protocol was the most cost-efficient option for cyclic cows.

In the last two decades, the continuous ever growing demand for energy has determined a significant development in the production of photovoltaic (PV) modules. Anyway, a critical and very important issue in the module design process is the adoption of suitable encapsulant materials and technologies for cell embedding. Therefore, adopted encapsulants have a significant impact on modules efficiency, stability and reliability, and to ensure the unchanged performance of PV modules in time, the encapsulant materials must be selected properly. The selection of encapsulant materials must maintain a good balance between the encapsulant performance in time and costs, related to materials production and technologies for cells embedding. However, the encapsulants must ensure excellent isolation of active photovoltaic elements by the environment, preserving accurately the PV cells against humidity, oxygen and accidental causes that may compromise the PV modules function. This review provides an overview of different encapsulant materials, their main advantages and disadvantages in adoption for PV production, and also in relation to used encapsulant technologies for cell embedding, additives and the interaction of these materials with other PV components.

The aim of this study was to introduce a new activity-based balance index by using accelerometer data. Twenty-seven junior soccer players from the Iranian premier league were selected. Four functional tests, consisting of one leg stance, dynamic Y balance, running and dribbling tests, were conducted to assess the players’ balance, activity and skill. During these four tests, besides their relative scores, the acceleration of their body center was also recorded. Activity-based balance index (ABI) was calculated using these acceleration data. The results showed positive correlations between ABI and both static and dynamic balance scores. Additionally, negative correlations were found between ABI and dribbling scores, which demonstrate the agility required for this skill. It seems that this new index achieves the evaluation of both the balance and the skill level of soccer players. Perhaps this is a new way of talent identification and also a re-development of balance tests from traditional to modern.

Motor functions are deteriorated by aging. Some conditions may magnify this deterioration. To examine whether hemodialysis (HD) process would negatively impact gait and balance beyond diabetes condition among mid-age adults (48-64 years) and older adults (65+ years). One hundred and ninety-six subjects (age=66.2±9.1 years, body-mass-index=30.1±6.4 kg/m², female=56%) in 5 groups were recruited: mid-age adults with diabetes undergoing HD (Mid-age HD+, n=38) and without HD (Mid-age HD-, n=40); older adults with diabetes undergoing HD (Older HD+, n=36) and without HD (Older HD-, n=37); and non-diabetic older adults (Older DM-, n=45). Gait parameters (stride velocity, stride length, gait cycle time, and double support) and balance parameters (ankle, hip, and center of mass sways) were quantified using validated wearable platforms. Groups with diabetes had overall poorer gait and balance compared to the non-diabetic group (p<0.050). Among people with diabetes, the HD+ had significantly worsened gait and balance when comparing to the HD- (Cohen’s effect size d=0.63-2.32, p<0.050). Between-group difference was more pronounced among older adults with the largest effect size observed for stride length (d=2.32, p<0.001). Results suggested that deterioration in gait speed among the HD+ was correlated with age (r=-0.440, p<0.001), while this correlation was diminished among the HD-. Interestingly, results also suggested that poor gait in the Older HD- related to poor balance, while no correlation was observed between poor balance and poor gait among the Older HD+. Using objective assessments, results confirmed that the presence of diabetes can deteriorate gait and balance, and this deterioration can be magnified by HD process. Among non-HD people with diabetes, poor static balance described poor gait. However, among people with diabetes undergoing HD, age was a dominate factor describing poor gait irrespective of static balance. Results also suggested feasibility of using wearable platforms to quantify motor performance during routine dialysis clinic visits. These objective assessments may assist in identifying early deterioration in motor function, which in turn may promote timely intervention.

This paper introduces an advanced method that integrates contingent valuation and machine learning (CVML) to estimate residents’ demand for reducing or mitigating environmental pollutions and climate change. To be precise, CVML is an innovative hybrid machine-learning model, and it can leverage a limited amount of survey data for prediction and data enrichment purposes. The model comprises of two interconnected modules: Module I, an unsupervised learning algorithm, and Module II, a supervised learning algorithm. Module I is responsible for grouping the data into groups based on common characteristics, thereby grouping the corresponding dependent variable, whereas Module II is in charge of demonstrating the ability to predict and the capacity to appropriately assign new samples to their respective category based on input attributes. Take a survey on the topic of air pollution in Hanoi in 2019 as an example, we found that CVML can predict households’ willingness– to– pay for polluted air mitigation at a high degree of accuracy (i.e., 98%). We found that CVML can help users reduce costs or save resources because it makes use of secondary data that is available on many open data sources. These findings suggest that CVML is a sound and practical method that could be widely applied in a wide range of fields, particularly environmental economics and sustainability science. In practice, CVML could be used to support decision-makers in improving the financial resources to maintain and/or further support many environmental programs in years to come.

Almost all single-family detached house in Canada consume huge electricity for space heating and domestic hot water (DHW) purposes. There are many possibilities to design an energy-efficient house. A solar water heating system can be used for domestic water and space heating. Water temperature can be kept constant always by connecting a heat pump or oil burner because solar energy is intermittent. Proper and optimized solar photovoltaic and collector design, tank design, heat pump selection, house insulation, total demand calculation in each section are essential. Energy-Efficient house design has been proposed with water heating and space heating system and compared with the existing system, solar PV based systems, and solar collector based system. The tracking and non-tracking based solar thermal collector based and the solar photovoltaic based system has been compared in this paper and investigate the suitable one for practically applicable and acceptable by the people. Simulation has been done by using the PolySun software. It found that by implementing the proposed PV based system with tracking is highly suitable considering lower cost, high output power, flexibility, easy installation.

A lack of trust in Energy Service Company (ESCo) is the most critical factor affecting the development of Energy Performance Contracting (EPC) in China compared with other constraints. One cannot easily estimate the energy-saving performance of an EPC project. Under that condition, lack of trust may cause the Energy-Consuming Unit (ECU) to suspect the energy-saving performance promised by the ESCo, thus leaving potentially profitable projects without necessary funding. Currently, specific studies taking an across-projects viewpoint on annual energy-saving performance of EPC projects in multiple subsectors objectively and quantitatively are lacking. This paper studies the regression relationships of annual energy-saving quantity in terms of revamping cost and the regression relationships of annual cost saving in terms of revamping cost. The regression results show that there are statistically significant correlations in the above relationships in the nine subsectors investigated. This is significant for ESCos and ECUs because knowledge on energy-saving performance could contribute to EPC investment decisions and trust relationships between ESCos and ECUs. Then a multiple linear regression model of revamping cost is set up to analyze its influencing factors. The model indicates that the subsector the sample belongs to, financing, registered capital of the ESCo, and contract period have significant effects on revamping cost. Thus, policy implications regarding innovation of EE promotion technology, clarifying ESCos’ exit mechanism, innovation of financing mechanism, and improving the market credit environment for promoting investment in EPC projects are provided.

Using the World Bank Global Findex Database for 91 countries in 2014, 2017, and 2021, we examine whether fintech levels influence bank performance and whether fintech’s interaction with GDP per capita causes differential effects on bank performance globally. Since fintech levels were already very high for rich countries when the World Bank started providing fintech development statistics in 2014, we estimate AbFintech by regressing fintech levels on GDP per capita by year. AbFintech is the difference between the fintech level and its fitted values. Then, using multiple regression analyses, we investigate the impact of AbFintech on bank performance worldwide, focusing on the differential effects of AbFintech and GDP levels on bank performance. We find AbFintech significantly increases bank performance, primarily in less developed countries. Specifically, AbFintech increases banks’ ROA in the least developed countries and net interest margin in the 75th percentile countries. Also, AbFintech decreases the cost-to-income ratio in the 75th percentile countries, while it increases the ratio in the most developed countries. AbFintech does not affect the ratio of noninterest income to total income, regardless of the level of economic development.

The airline sector is critical in today's globalized society, supporting the efficient movement of people and products worldwide. Airlines are continuously looking for methods to enhance their operational performance to remain competitive in the face of increased competition. This study focuses on the application of Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) techniques to improve low-cost carrier (LCC) also known or low-cost (budget) airlines' ground operational performance. MCDM techniques have gained considerable attention in recent years to address complex decision problems with multiple conflicting goals. This research aims to bridge this gap by proposing a comprehensive framework that combines MCDM techniques to enhance airline operational strategies to increase performance. The study utilizes qualitative and quantitative data, drawing on previously published materials on MCDM techniques in the aviation sector. It utilizes fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and fuzzy Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) methodologies. A case study is conducted to evaluate the ground operational performance of three airline companies based in Türkiye, considering five main criteria and 18 sub-criteria. The findings of this research will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of operational performance in the airline sector. It also highlights the implications and limitations of the research and suggests future research directions.

Pacing strategy refers to the distribution of effort and speed throughout the race to achieve optimal performance. The study aims to understand whether the choice of pacing strategy in swimming depends on the length of competitions and how sex, age, and performance level influence this strategy. Participants were the finalists of the 800-meter and 1500-meter freestyle events at the elite and junior world championships in 2022-2023. Race outcomes and pacing parameters were compared between the two distances and across different groups of swimmers. Swimmers in both distances did not break world records. Pacing strategy generally followed a U-shape with significant differences in the frequency and duration of speed changes between the two distances. The 800-meter exhibited more frequent changes in acceleration while the 1500-meter events generally followed a more consistent time series pattern. There were differences in pacing strategies between males and females and between junior and elite swimmers. Swimmers closer to world records showed more consistent pacing patterns compared to those farther from records. The study suggests that pacing strategies are influenced by race distance, sex, age, and performance level. The research highlights the complex interplay between physiological and psychological factors that shape a swimmer's decision-making during a race.

The building and construction sector has a significant impact on CO2 emissions and pollutants released into the atmosphere, which contribute to climate change. The EPDB Directive mandates the achievement of a minimum energy class E for all residential buildings by 2030 and an energy class D by 2033. Particularly, in Italy, about 86% of the existing building stock predates the enactment of any energy laws and regulations, making it imperative to apply the energy efficiency interventions. This paper provides a support decision tool for the identification of standardized interventions on the envelope, air conditioning system and domestic hot water production. The study is focused on a specific construction period class (1976 - 1990) in six different climatic zones. The methodological approach is based on a cataloguing phase and definition of Ante Operam energy classes, on the case study identification, the energy requalification interventions identification, solutions simulations, cost estimation. By simulating standardized interventions for each climatic zone, a range of possible combinations will be identified. The most advantageous ones will be determined based on a cost-benefit analysis, considering the potential class jump achieved. The research result is a matrix of energy efficiency interventions that is applicable to each climatic zone and can be extended to the existing housing stock.

This study aims to develop a performance evaluation system that can facilitate performance evaluation at region, hospital, and department levels to enable better cost management for sustainable development. A multi-level system of performance evaluation informs a hierarchical assessment of cost management from regions to hospitals to departments using diagnosis-related group (DRGs). Various metrics are developed employing the variances between targets and actuals where targets are determined from two perspectives: benchmarking using external regional prices and change management using internal data. Targets for the latter are statistically based and specifically incorporate variability. The model is applied to two hospitals, twenty departments, nine DRGs and 1071 inpatients. The analyses indicate that the approach can provide a practical evaluation tool that allows for particular characteristics at multiple levels. The system provides macro-micro and external-internal perspectives in performance, enabling high-level variances to be decomposed thereby identifying sources of performance variability and financial impact.

Background: Significant national and global costs were incurred from recent emerging infectious disease outbreaks, notably H1N1 highly pathogenic influenza, Zika and Severe Acute Respiratory Disease (SARS), both in the medical sphere and within the socioeconomic context around it. With forecasts expecting an increase in direct and indirect burden of novel infectious disease events, costs of future outbreak events are likely to be exacerbated. In this scope, it is critical for countries to identify this trend and work towards minimizing costs while continuing to improve prevention, treatment and mitigation. Objectives: The impacts of the West Africa Ebola crisis have largely focused on the response to the outbreak abroad. The aim of this paper was to determine the direct and indirect domestic costs of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) introduction into the United States (U.S.), compare the economic consequences of the epidemic with other disease outbreaks and identify the primary drivers of such costs to leverage more global health preparation to prevent, prepare for, and respond to disease threats more effectively. Methods: I conducted a literature review of 1) EVD cases documented by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), 2) scientific articles identifying the costs of Ebola for the U.S. and countries around the world and 3) grey literature on treatments and public reactions. Extrapolating data from these sources, I then performed a cost-analysis of direct costs (preparation, treatment and contact tracing) and indirect costs (loss of productivity owing to disease, death, and risk avoidance behaviors) of the disease. Findings: The country spent between $300-$700 million in direct costs. Additionally, roughly $200-$340 million were forgone as results of loss of productivity from to disease, death or social risk avoidance behaviors. The cost-per-case for the United States was vastly higher than for any other country. Conclusions: High direct costs suggest that either the United States took disproportionate preparative measures to mitigate a potential American outbreak or were unprepared for a potential outbreak of this magnitude. The significant risk avoidance behavior estimates hint that forces having the ability to shape social attitudes and norms – namely traditional and online media – played a significant role in driving social behavior towards fear of exposure to others. The findings reinforce that outbreaks occurring in a single part of the world can have dramatic economic effects globally, even in areas with existing public health capacity and other preventive measures, highlighting the need for change in global health systems to shift from a passive responder and incorporate other societal actors to effectively reduce the ever-increasing costs of disease threats.

Supplier selection/replacement strategies and optimized purchasing policies play a key role in efficient supply chain management in today’s dynamic market. Here we study supplier replacement in a one-level assembly system (OLAS) producing one type of finished product. To assemble the product, we need to provide multi-type components, but assembly will be interrupted if any single component is missing, and incoming units will get hoarded until the missing component arrives. The assembly process can be interrupted by various sources of uncertainty, including delays in component deliveries. There is consequently a non-negligible risk that the assembly process may get stopped any moment. This brings inventory-related costs, which should be minimized. Here we consider discrete lead-time distributions to mimic industry-world reality. We present a model that takes into account not only optimal assignment of component order release dates but also replacement of a critical supplier. For a given unit, we model several alternative suppliers with alternative pricing and lead-time uncertainties, and we evaluate the impact on the total assembly system. For a more general case where several suppliers may be replaced, we propose a genetic algorithm.

This study addresses the pressing energy constraints in nations like Bangladesh by proposing the implementation of photovoltaic (PV) microgrids. Given concerns about environmental degrada-tion, limited fossil fuel reserves, and volatile product costs, renewable energy sources are gaining momentum globally. Our research focuses on a grid-connected solar PV system model at Char Jazira, Lalpur, Natore, Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Through PVsyst simulation software, we assess the performance ratio (PR) and system losses, revealing an annual solar energy potential of 3375 MWh at Standard Test Condition (STC) efficiency. After considering losses, the system generates 2815 MWh annually, with 2774 MWh exported to the grid. We analyze an average PR of 78.63% and calculate a levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of 2.82 BDT/kWh [1 USD = 110 BDT]. The financial assessment indicates a cost-effective LCOE for the grid-connected PV system, with an annual gross income of 27744 BDT from selling energy to the grid and operating costs of 64060.60 BDT/year. Remarkably, this initiative can prevent 33074.061 tCO2 emissions over the project’s 25-year lifespan.

In order to evaluate the economy of superhighway, on the basis of the analysis of the cost of the ordinary expressway and high speed railway, the cost of superhighway is estimated. On this basis, the standard of the toll of superhighway at all levels is determined by reference to the standard of the construction cost and the toll collection standard of the ordinary expressway. According to the toll collection standard of superhighway and the fuel consumption cost of superhighway at all levels, the cost of single car and the single person cost of superhighway are calculated. Based on the analysis of highway passenger transport, railway passenger transport and civil aviation ticket price, the single person cost per kilometer of the above travel modes is calculated and compared with the single person travel cost per kilometer of superhighway. The results show that the single person cost of superhighway is between 0.29 and 0.47 yuan /km, which is 0.28 yuan /km higher than the highway bus, 0.18 yuan /km higher than the ordinary expressway self driving and 0.23 yuan /km higher than the express train, but 0.78 yuan/km lower than that of the first class seat of high-speed train, and is 0.92 yuan/km far lower than that of civil aviation flight economy class and 2.42 yuan/km lower than the business class. Therefore, the superhighway trip has certain advantages in economy.

Elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) over prime fields relies on scalar point multiplication realized by point addition and point doubling. Point addition and point doubling operations consist of many modular multiplications of large operands (256 bits for example), especially in projective and Jacobian coordinates which eliminate the modular inversion required in affine coordinates for every point addition or point doubling operation. Accelerating modular multiplication is therefore important for high-performance ECC. This paper presents the hardware implementations of modular multiplication algorithms, including 1) Interleaved modular multiplication (IMM), 2) Montgomery modular multiplication (MMM), 3) Shift-sub modular multiplication (SSMM), 4) SSMM with advance preparation (SSMMPRE), and 5) SSMM with CSAs and sign detection (SSMMCSA) algorithms, and evaluates their execution time (the number of clock cycles and clock frequency) and required hardware resources (ALMs and registers). Experimental results show that SSMM is 1.76 times faster than IMM, and SSMMCSA is 3.21 times faster than IMM. We also present the ECC hardware implementations based on the Secp256k1 protocol in affine, projective, and Jacobian coordinates using the IMM, SSMM, SSMMPRE, and SSMMCSA algorithms, and investigate their cost and performance. Our ECC implementations can be applied to the design of hardware security module systems.

The aim of this study was to measure one-year total cost of stroke and to investigate the value of stroke care, defined as cost per QALY. The study population included 892 patients with first ever acute stroke, hemorrhagic and ischemic, (ICD-10 codes: I61, I63 and I64) admitted within 48 hours of symptoms onset to nine public hospitals located in six cities. We conducted a bottom-up cost analysis from the societal point of view. All cost components including direct medical costs, productivity losses due to morbidity and mortality and informal care costs were considered. We used an annual time horizon, including all costs for 2021 irrespective of the time of disease onset. The average cost (direct and indirect) was extrapolated in order to estimate the national annual burden associated with stroke. We estimated the total cost of stroke in Greece at €343.1 mil a year in 2021, (€10,722/patient or €23,308 per QALY). Out of €343.1 mil., 53.3% (€182.9 mil) consisted direct healthcare cost representing 1.1% of current health expenditure in 2021. Overall, productivity losses were calculated at €160.2 mil. The mean productivity losses were estimated to 116 work days with 55.1 days lost due to premature retirement and absenteeism from work, 18.5 days lost due to mortality and 42.4 days lost due to informal caregiving by family members.This study highlights the burden of stroke and underlines the need for stakeholders and policy makers to re-organize stroke care and promote interventions that have been proved as cost-effective

For the majority of the contractual arrangements used in construction projects, the owner is not responsible for the cost deviations due to the variability of labor productivity or material price, amongst many other aspects. Consequently, the cost performance of a project may be entirely distinct for the owner and the contractor. Since the majority of the quantitative research on cost estimation and deviation found in the literature adopts the owners’ perspective, this research provides a contribution towards modelling costs and cost deviation from a contractors’ perspective. From an initial sample of 13 residential building and 10 office building projects, it was possible to develop models for cost estimation at the early stage of development including both endogenous and exogenous variables. Although the sample is relatively small, the authors were able to fully analyze all the cost data, using no secondary sources of data (very frequent in cost modelling studies). The statistically significant variables in the cost estimation models were the areas above and below ground and the years following the 2008 financial crisis, including the international bailout (2011-2014) period. For estimating the unit cost, a nonlinear model was obtained with the number of underground and total floor, the floor ratio and the years following the 2008 financial crisis, including the international bailout (2011-2014) period as predictors. For the office buildings, it was also found a statistically significant correlation between the cost deviation and the number of underground floors.

Banking sector is generally taken out of sample while the sustainability performance, and the financial performance are compared with each other. The core aim of this study is to analyze the effect of the declarations made in the cope of sustainability reports on the financial performance in the banking sector. Seven banks were included in the study which were placed at least one time in BIST Sustainability Index in between 2010-2017 years. Environment, human resources, product liability and community involvement were determined as sustainability criteria and return on assets, return on equity and net interest margin were determined as financial performance criteria. Non-Parametric Statistic Tests and Panel Data Analysis were used for analysis and types, and the sizes of banks were selected as dummy variables. As a result, it is found that the declarations of sustainability reports have a significant effect only on return on assets and have no significant effect on return on equity and net interest margin. And also, when we analyzed the relationship of sustainability criteria and return on assets, we found that the declarations about environment and human resources have negative effects on return on assets.

This paper presents a theoretical evaluation of the prices of mixed briquettes produced from co-conut shells (CCS), banana peels (BNP), rattan waste (RWT), and sugarcane bagasse (SGC), and, on the other hand, an analysis of the economic viability of their use as a replacement for conventional household fuels (Liquefied Petroleum Gas, fuelwood, and wood charcoal) in house-holds in Cameroon. The investigation was carried out using the Life Cycle Cost method on a typical household over a ten-year period with annual cooking energy requirements of 950 kWhth. The SGC-CCS and SGC-RWT mixed briquettes with a ratio higher than 7.75% and 11.1%, respectively, have prices lower than 0.063 €/kWhth. The Present Value of the Net Benefit is posi-tive for the use of SGC-CCS and SGC-RWT mixed briquettes. The results show that by making the right mixes of residues, it is possible to obtain biomass briquettes that are less expensive than conventional fuels.

This study empirically analyzes the effectiveness of resource optimization utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) within cloud computing environments. It compares systems that have been transitioned from a Monolithic structure to Microservices Architecture (MSA) with those adopting a simple Rehost strategy, to validate the operational efficiency of two systems whose resource efficiency has been enhanced compared to traditional legacy systems. The research is based on systems that determined resource efficiency post-cloud migration using APM tools. It points out the limitations of traditional heuristic operation methods in resource optimization, which lead to issues such as application performance degradation, resource over-allocation, and increased operational costs. This study aims to overcome the conventional resource optimization standards that depended on the average peak usage of CPU and memory infrastructure, by introducing AI-based optimization tools, and applying on-premise standards to cloud and container environments to achieve resource optimization. The paper emphasizes the importance of resource optimization through AI-based automation tools, exploring the possibilities of resolving real-world application performance issues in cloud environments, reducing unnecessary resource usage costs, and cutting down on labor risks and operational expenses. Through this, it presents strategic directions on how AI technology can offer financial and operational advantages in managing cloud resources.

This study assessed the relationship between body posture displacements and cardiopulmonary function test (CPET) and skill related physical fitness tests. One hundred male (60%) and female collegiate athletes (22.2 ± 4yrs) with a normal body mass index (BMI up to 24.9) were assessed via the PostureScreen Mobile app to quantify postural displacements as head, thorax and pelvis rotations and translations. CPET and physical performance tests including the agility T-test, the vertical jump test, the stork static balance test (SSBT) and the dynamic Y-balance test (YBT) were performed. Spearman correlation (r) and p-values are reported. Postural parameters were found to have moderate-to-high associations with CPET and the agility test, moderate correlations with the vertical jump test and the SSBT (head and pelvic postures only), and weak correlations with the YBT. As postural parameters were more asymmetric, both CPET and performance skills scores were worse. For examples: 1) a medium positive correlation was found between cranio-vertebral angle (CVA) and vertical jump test (r = 0.54; p-value &lt; 0.001) and SSBT (r = 0.57; p-value &lt; 0.001), while a strong negative correlation was found between CVA and agility test (r = -0.86; p-value &lt; 0.001). 2) A strong positive correlation was found between CVA and oxygen uptake efficiency slope, load watts VO2 at VT, VO2 / kg, load watts at respiratory compensation point (RCP), (r = 0.65 and r = 0.71; p &lt; 0.001). Conversely, a significant negative correlation was found between CVA and VE / VO2 at VT (r = -0.61; p &lt; 0.001). Postural rotations and translations of the head, thorax and pelvis were statistically correlated with physical performance skills and CPET in young collegiate athletes. There were moderate-to-high associations with cardiopulmonary functions and agility tests, moderate correlations with the vertical jump test, and weak correlations with the YBT. Postural alignment may be important for optimal physical performance and optimal cardiopulmonary function. Further research is necessary to elucidate reasons for these correlations as found in our sample of young and healthy athletes.

The purpose of this research is to determine if the tradeoffs that Kissick proposed among cost containment, quality, and access remain as rigidly interconnected as originally conceived in the contemporary health care context. Although many have relied on the Kissick model to advocate for health policy decisions, to our knowledge, the model has never been empirically tested. Some have called for policy makers to come to terms with the premise of the Kissick model tradeoffs, others have questioned the model given the proliferation of quality enhancing initiatives, automation, and information technology in the health care industry. One wonders whether these evolutionary changes alter or disrupt the originality of the Kissick paradigms themselves. Methods: Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to evaluate the Kissick hypothetical relationships among the unobserved constructs of cost, quality, and access in hospitals for the year 2018. Hospital data were obtained from Definitive Healthcare a subscription site which contains Medicare data as well as non-Medicare data for networks, hospitals, and clinics (final n= 2,766). Results: Reporting significant net effects as defined by our chosen study variables, we find that as quality increases costs increase, as access increases quality increases, and as access increases, costs increase. Policy and Practice Implications: Our findings lend continued relevance to a balanced approach to health care policy reform efforts. Simultaneously bending the health care cost curve, increasing access to care, and advancing quality of care is as challenging now as it was when the Kissick model was originally conceived.

There is a paucity of data on the progression of track cycling sprinters, and the evolution of training and performance over a training cycle. Following prior research showing relationships between sprint cycling power and endurance cycling power, we compared these relations over a 3-month period. Our hypothesis is large improvements in power would come from training either for sprint power or sprint capacity, and this would be reflected in the data. A total of publicly available 25 datasets. These data were plotted against the line of best fit for 30-s and 2-min power to assess if training towards the line led to better 30-s power. We observe the best performances came from riders who start below the 30-s vs 2-min power line of best fit, with greater capacity and ability to ride fast over a sprint series, and progressing towards focusing on specific power in the final block leading into a competition. These results support the hypothesis of combined capacity and power training based on rider-specific relationship to the line of best fit between these measures versus a strictly maximal power training focus.

In this paper, it is defined that how the IPOs are affected by the underwriter reputation. What will happen to IPOs who are backed by reputed underwriter and who is not? And evaluate the IPOs short-run and long-run performance. Also try to explain the relationship between IPOs and underwriter. Also tried to compare some of the international return and Pakistani returns. Also determine the relation of the investor to the underwriter. There is a set of investors who have there own relationship with the underwriters how they will affect on the IPOs in the market.

Derivatives products have become essential in portfolio diversification, price discovery and risk hedging. Derivatives are complex instruments; their role is twofold, risk management and speculation, and their actual Impact on the underlying assets’ behaviours are not well understood. Little is documented empirically on how these instruments’ two-edged roles influence firms’ financing decisions, firm risk exposures, and stability. Given the growing interest in using derivatives in risk management and portfolio engineering, this study examines the practical impact of derivatives usage on the underlying firm’s financing policy and stability. The paper uses data from South African listed non-financial firms for the period 2000 to 2019. The study employs a dynamic panel model estimated with System Generalised Methods of Moments (GMM). The initial analysis shows that derivatives use reduces the cost of capital and increases firm stability. However, further in-depth analysis provides evidence that extensive use of derivatives increases firms’ capital costs and negatively impacts financial stability. These findings imply that the risk embedded in derivatives’ speculation dominates their risk management function. The results are subjected to numerous controls for robustness, including financial leverage, firm size, cashflows and asset tangibility.

Legacy risks from infrastructures and industrial installations often reveal themselves when a potential for failure has been discovered much later than at the stage of the design and construction of a structure. In which case, there might already be a problem with the legacy installation, or even a crisis, without having had an accident. When the hazard cannot be taken away, the question arises as to how much effort, if any, should be spent on improving the situation. The usefulness of the three archetypical approaches to this problem: setting a standard, the As Low As Reasonably Practicable approach and a case-by-case discourse approach are discussed for their applicability for these legacy risks. Although it would be desirable to retrofit legacy risks to previously set legal requirements as is the case when acceptability limits are set in law or demonstration of ALARP is demanded, it may be impossible to reduce the residual risk to an otherwise acceptable level without taking away or replacing the infrastructure, which is not acceptable either. Therefor in conclusion the only available solution to persistent legacy risk problems seems to be to have a thorough discussion with all relevant stakeholders until an agreement is in some way found.

Estimation of the worth of continuity of electricity supply is of interest of industry, authorities and research society. There are numerous methods to calculate the Customer Interruption Costs (CICs). Each method has its advantages and disadvantages. This paper approaches the problem from Distribution System Operators’ (DSOs) point of view and adopts two existing analytical models. One model is used by the Finnish Energy Market Authority and the second one was proposed by the authors at a previous study. The model suggested by the authors as an alternative to the one used by the Finnish Energy Market Authority proposes a simple and straightforward methodology which will provide credible and objective estimations by only utilizing publicly available analytical data. We made use of cost and reliability indices data of 78 DSOs in Finland from the year 2016. In addition to cost estimations, this paper highlights regional differences in CIC estimations in different parts of Finland and critically overviews the existing standard customer compensation scheme in Finland.

In recent years, with the increasing prominence of environmental and social issues, investors have been paying more attention to the ESG performance of enterprises, highlighting the importance of ESG factors in the financial field. This study is based on the theories of banking business models, stakeholder theory, risk management theory, and ESG investment theory. It uses the financial data and ESG scores of Chinese listed banks to deeply analyze the ESG factors and explore their impact on the liquidity risk of commercial banks. The research found that (1) good ESG performance can reduce the liquidity risk commercial banks face by improving bank value and financial performance. (2) ESG factors can also enhance the liquidity management level of commercial banks through standardization and sustainable business principles, thereby reducing the occurrence and impact of liquidity risk. Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the liquidity risk of banks and promote the sustainable development of commercial banks from four aspects: ESG performance and management, bank value, financial performance, and policy regulation.

The purpose of this study is to examine the match-related performance (scores and penalties) of the athletes in the Junior EJC (European Judo Championship) and U23 EJC categories before and immediately after the Covid-19 quarantine, according to gender and weight category groups. Our sample was based on the junior and U23, male and females, 2019-2020 Junior European Judo Championships and 2019-2020 U23 European Judo Championships. A total of 1431 matches in these tournaments were analyzed: male (n=812) and female (n=619). The main findings of this study showed that most matches in both the male and female categories resulted in ippon (2019-2020 average: 64,35% for Junior male, 70,55% for U23 male and 69,3% for Junior female, 64,4% for U23 female). No significant differences (p &gt; 0.05) were observed between gender and age groups concerning the match scores. In the formation phase of the technique, considerations of high- and low-intensity actions, and analysis of the speed of athletes during matches in official competitions can help to better understand the dynamics of the variability of movements in judo matches. In addition, suggestions are presented to be applied to athletes in different age categories who are on the way to become Olympic athletes.

Low-cost personal exposure monitors (PEMs) to measure personal exposure to air pollution are potentially promising tools for health research. However, their adoption requires robust validation. This study evaluated the performance of twenty-one Plume Lab Flow2 (PLF) by comparing its air pollutant measurements, particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5), 10 μm or less (PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), against several high-quality air pollution monitors under field conditions (at indoor, outdoor, and roadside locations). Correlation and regression analysis were used to evaluate measurements obtained by different PLFs against reference instrumentation. For all measured pollutants, the overall correlation coefficient between the PLFs and the reference instruments was often weak (r<0.4). Moderate correlation was observed for one PLF unit at indoor location and two units at roadside location, when measuring PM2.5, but not for PM10 and NO2 concentration. During periods of particularly higher pollution, 11 PLF tools showed stronger regression results (R2 values > 0.5) with one-hour and 9 PLF units with one-minute time interval. Results show that the PLF cannot be used robustly to determine high and low exposure to poor air. Therefore, the use of PLFs in research studies should be approached with caution if data quality is important to the research outputs.

In this age of global warming, academics and policymakers are increasingly concerned about firm environmental sustainability success. Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) performance impacts sustainability performance through the mediating effect of firm innovation. To this end, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was deployed to analyze data collected from the employees of manufacturing industries in an emerging economy like Bangladesh. The results revealed that ESG performance significantly enhances the innovation and sustainability performance of manufacturing industries, indicating that the higher the ESG performance of a firm, the greater its innovation and sustainability performance. Furthermore, the results confirmed that firm innovation performance fully mediates the relationship between ESG initiatives and sustainability performance. The findings of this study provide policymakers and industry authorities with valuable insight into the role of ESG and innovation performance in improving sustainability performance. Specifically, the study sheds knowledge on how firm ESG initiatives and innovation performance impact sustainability performance in the manufacturing sector of an emerging economy like Bangladesh.

The objective of this paper was to give an overview of the expressed preference (EP) techniques of environmental valuation. These methods offer estimation of the value of a resource not necessarily willingness to pay (WTP) or willingness to Accept (WTA) compensation rather upper and lower values. The method of measuring individuals’ willingness to pay is usually based on contingent valuation method (CVM). This research focuses on defining, categorizing, and applicability of various environmental valuation techniques that have been and can be applied in attaching value to a given resource using expressed/Revealed preference methods. The study serves as a supplementary synthesis and discussion to the board of knowledge of resource valuation methods. More specifically, selected methods to discussed herein include; contingent valuation method, hedonic pricing model, travel cost method, trade-off game method, the costless-choice method, Delphi method, Replacement Cost Method, Relocation Cost Method, Opportunity cost method, and Cost-benefit Method. In the last part, applicability of the methods is fully illustrated to support future studies on resource valuation.

Ice and snow on roads in winter endanger traffic safety. The existing methods of snow and ice removal have various drawbacks, which need further research. Aiming at solving limitations about high labor intensity, low efficiency, serious environmental pollution of traditional snow and ice removal methods, the anti-icing coating technology of high-voltage conductors is used for reference, and in view of the characteristics of asphalt pavement deicing, an ice-suppressing material that can effectively reduce the adhesion between snow, ice and pavement is successfully developed. As there is no perfect evaluation index and method for ice-suppressing materials at present, this paper further evaluates the performance of ice-suppressing materials from the aspects of deicing performance, durability, adhesion and the impact of ice-suppressing materials on pavement performance. The test results show that the ice-suppressing material can effectively reduce the adhesion between the ice layer and the specimen, making it easier to remove. The ice-suppression material has good slow-release performance, and the specimens still have good deicing performance after 7 cycles of tests.

In the current study, we assessed the effects of conventional and Ultra High Dose Rate (UHDR) irradiation on behavioral and cognitive performance one month following exposure and assessed whether these effects were associated with alterations in the number of immune cells in the hippocampus using flow cytometry. Conventional- and UHDR-irradiated mice showed impaired novel object recognition. During fear learning, conventional- and UHDR-irradiated mice moved less during the inter-stimulus-interval (ISI) and UHDR-irradiated mice also moved less during the baseline period (prior to the first tone). In irradiated mice, reduced activity levels were also seen in the home cage; conventional- and UHDR-irradiated mice moved less during the light period and UHDR-irradiated mice moved less during the dark period. Following behavioral and cognitive testing, infiltrating immune cells in the hippocampus were analyzed by flow cytometry. The percent Ly6G+ CD45+ cells in the hippocampus was lower in conventional- and UHDR-irradiated than sham-irradiated mice, suggesting that neutrophils might be particularly sensitive to radiation. The percent of Ly6G+ CD45+ cells in the hippocampus was positively correlated with the time spent exploring the novel object in the object recognition test, suggesting that the reduced percent Ly6G+ CD45+ cells in the hippocampus might mediate some of the detrimental radiation-induced cognitive effects.

The Inefficient water use, varying and low productivity in Kenya public irrigation schemes is a major concern. It is therefore necessary to periodically monitor and evaluate the performance of public irrigation schemes. The performance of public irrigation in western Kenya was assessed by combining benchmarking methodology and principal component analysis. The aim was to quantify and rank the performance of pumped public irrigation schemes in Kenya. Eleven benchmarking indicators were computed for the period from 2012 to 2016 and compared to global benchmark values. The indicators used fall under agricultural productivity, water supply and financial performance categories. The computed agricultural productivity was 36%–51% in Ahero, 23%–42% in West Kano and 26%–50% Bunyala irrigation scheme. Water supply performance in Ahero, West Kano and Bunyala irrigation schemes varied from 24% to 58%, 3% to 49% and 19% to 43% respectively. Financial performance varied from 46% to 54% in Ahero, 25% to 32% in West Kano and 54%–56% in Bunyala irrigation scheme. An average overall performance efficiency of 46%, 39% and 31% was obtained in Ahero, Bunyala and West Kano irrigation schemes respectively. The performance of the irrigation schemes is very poor and measures on improving performance are needed.

Tropical rock lobsters (Panulirus ornatus) are a highly cannibalistic species with intermoult animals predominantly attacking animals during ecdysis (moulting). Rapid, positive characterisation of pre-ecdysis lobsters may open a pathway to disrupt cannibalism. Ecdysial suture line development is considered for pre-ecdysis recognition with suture line definition compared for lobsters emerged and immerged, using white, near ultraviolet (365 nm), near infrared (850 nm) and spe-cialty Osram SFH 4737 broadband IR LEDs against a reference of intermoult lobsters with no suture line development. An alternative pre-ecdysis recognition strategy used a novel low-cost spectral camera composed of the Sony IMX219, AMS AS7265x spectral sensors and Osram SFH 4737 broadband infrared LEDs. Images and data using the novel low-cost spectral camera was acquired from intermoult, pre-ecdysis, and post-ecdysis lobsters. Compared with the white light appear-ance, suture line definition was enhanced under 850 nm, 365 nm, and SFH 4737 LEDs for immerged lobsters, while the 850 nm LED achieved the best suture line definition of emerged lobsters. The spectral camera was unable to characterise pre-ecdysis. A least squares regression for binary classification decision boundary successfully separated 86.7% of post-moult lobsters. Achieving post-moult characterisation validated the speculative exploratory approach in developing this novel low-cost spectroscopy tool.

GNSS is nowadays a standard tool for monitoring and studying the Earth’s dynamic environment. However, the development of dense GNSS measurements remains limited in many experiments by the cost of geodetic-class equipments allowing to achieve the high precision required by many applications. Recently, multi-constellation, multi-frequency, low-power and, above all, less expensive GNSS electronic chips have become available. We present a prototype of a low-cost, open-source multi-GNSS station. Our prototype comprises a dual-frequency GNSS chip, a calibrated antenna, a Raspberry Pi card and a 4G key for data transmission. The system is easy to deploy in the field and allows precise positioning in real time and post-processing. We assess the performance of our prototype in terms of raw data quality, and quality of the obtained high rate and daily position one-year-long time series. Our results demonstrate a quality equivalent to geodetic-class equipment and better quality than other low-cost systems proposed so far.

Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), a highly contagious viral disease, causes significant economic losses in sheep and goats. Laboratory diagnosis is crucial to disease control and eradication. Since PPRVs have recently adopted new hosts, genetic diversity within isolates of the same lineage is more likely than if they were host-specific, sheep and goats most often. ELISA detects antibodies and antigens in serology. However, mishandling, environmental conditions (temperature and humidity), storage, and sensitivity issues of commercially available ELISA kits prevent rapid PPR virus detection in third-world countries like Pakistan. In the 2020-21 outbreaks in Pakistan, 325 blood samples, 19 swabs, and 6 virus tissue samples of sheep and goats were collected from Gilgit, Islamabad, and Fateh Jang. These virus isolates were submitted to NCBI for partial N gene sequencing. Antigen was prepared from indigenous virus Using semi-purified antigen from PPRV, an indirect ELISA for the detection of PPR antibodies in goat and sheep serum was developed using MW600922 grown in Vero cells. Dilutions of 1:200 serums and 1:32 antigens improve antibody detection. The N-gene-based analysis revealed a better understanding of PPRV genetic characterization. This study develops an RT-PCR assay to detect PPRV by targeting the N-protein gene. This assay offers an accurate and affordable diagnostic tool for PPRV and partial genome sequencing. Results described that PPRV isolates from the current study have 99.73% and 99.4% similarity to previously published Lahore and Faisalabad isolates from Pakistan, respectively. Compared to previous isolates from NCBI data, the virus showed high divergence rates with the Turkish strain. The comparative analysis between Commercial kit (c-ELISA) and I-ELISA revealed that the former had a high sensitivity of 90.60% and specificity of 85.23% compared with the cELISA kit. By comparing I-ELISA and VNT, we find that the current assay is 100% specific and 82.14 % sensitive. Based on these results, serological surveys for PPR antibodies, on a larger scale, in small ruminants can be conducted with indirect ELISA rather than competitive ELISA. Furthermore, the cost and storage efficiency was highly significant because the currently developed method has a low production cost, which is much lesser than the commercially available kit. Our findings demonstrated a significant breakthrough in terms of cost-effectiveness and storage efficiency, and they are highly recommended for developing countries.

This paper presents high-resolution digital measurements at low cost, combining oversample and averaging. Experiments of processing data between samples and between multiple temperature sensors in the same environment are conducted. They provide results with effective increase in the analog to digital converter bits, in correspondence with the minimization on the effects of noise. It is shown that averaging a set of small, low-cost sensors at a small microcontroller can give flexible access to improved measurement accuracy.

We review some semantical aspects of probability bounds from Boole’s “conditions on possible experience” violated by quantum mechanics. We also speculate about emerging space-time categories as an epiphenomenon of quantization and the resulting breakdown of relativity theory by non-unitary and non-linear processes.

OBJETIVES: During the COVID-19 pandemic, the risk of collapse of the health system created great difficulties. We will demonstrate that Intermediate Respiratory Care Units (IRCU) provide adequate management of patients with non-invasive respiratory support, which is particularly important in patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia. METHODS: A prospective observational study of patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU of a tertiary hospital. Sociodemographic data, comorbidities, pharmacological, respiratory support, laboratory and blood gas variables were collected. The overall cost of the unit was subsequently analyzed. RESULTS: 991 patients were admitted, 56 to the IRCU (of the 81 a critical care unit). Mean age was 65 years (SD 12.8), Barthel Index 75 (SD 8.3), Charlson 3.1 (SD 2.2), HTN 27%, COPD 89% and obesity 24%. Significant relationship (p <0.05) with higher mortality of the following: fever greater than or equal to 39oC [OR 5.6; 95% CI (1.2-2.7); p = 0.020], protocolized pharmacological treatment [OR 0.3; 95% CI (0.1-0.9); p = 0.023] and IOI [OR 3.7; 95% CI (1.1-12.3); p = 0.025]. NIMV showed less of a negative impact [OR 1.8; 95% CI (0.4-8.4); p = 0.423] than IOI. The total cost of the IRCUs amounted to €66,233. The cost per day of stay in the IRCU was €164 per patient. The total cost avoided was €214,865. CONCLUSION: The pandemic has highlighted the importance of IRCUs in facilitating the management of a high patient volume. The treatment carried out in IRCUs is effective and efficient, reducing both admissions to and stays in the ICU.

The domain of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) education has garnered significant consideration in recent times. However, several challenges are inherent to this area of study, including monetary expense, temporal factors, pedagogical environment, teacher training programs, incentive, syllabus design, and health-related concerns. This paper presents an analysis of the difficulties encountered in the realm of ICT education in Japan, taking into account ten different perspectives.

The aim of this article is to propose a core game theory model of transaction costs wherein it is indicated how direct costs determine the probability of loss and subsequent transaction costs. The existence of optimum is proven, and the way in which exposure influences the location of the optimum is demonstrated. The decisions are described as a two-player game and it is discussed how the transaction cost sharing rule determines whether the optimum point of transaction costs is the same as the equilibrium of the game. The dispute between actors regarding changing the share of transaction costs to be paid by each party is modeled by a non-cooperative bargaining game. Requirements of efficient transaction cost sharing rules are defined, and it is posited that solution exists which is not unique. Policy conclusions are also devised based on principles of design of institutions to influence the nature of transaction costs.

The present work studies the concept of productivity in shipbuilding and how it should be measured. The existing metrics, shipbuilding process and shipyard organization were studies in order to choose the most adequate metrics which would allow the measuring of a shipyard productivity in a systematic and holistic way. This is achieved by gathering the man-hours spent in each ship organized by cost centre and using Compensated Gross Tonnages as the measure of output from the shipyard. Data was gathered for thirty ships built in the same European yard organized by cost centre. From the data collected it was found that the ratio of hours spent in outfitting to the hours spent in structures is proportional to the complexity of the ship. There was also opportunity to study the work reduction resulting from building ships in series and the shares of labour for ships series and across ship types.

The present work aimed to validate a low-cost passive monitoring procedure. For its validation, the monitoring of atmospheric organic pollutants - polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) was carried out in a capital of the central-western region of Brazil. The sensors were fixed on poles intended for electrification during the dry season. After 15 days, samples were extracted by solvent extraction and analysed by High-Resolution Gas Chromatography with Flame Ionization Detector (HRGC-FID). For the validation of the procedure, PAHs monitored and standardised by the American Environmental Agency (EPA), a benchmark for environmental monitoring of air quality by several countries, were analysed. The results demonstrated that the low-cost passive monitoring method was effective in the quantification of PAH in the environment-air, capable of being used by countries that do not have many resources for monitoring air quality.

This study aimed to analyze the effect of a flow training program based on mindfulness applied to young and adult elite handball athletes. A quantitative, quasi-experimental, descriptive data analysis approach was carried out. The sample included 105 athletes (51 female and 54 male). The athletes were divided into two groups: i) experimental (n = 53) and ii) control (n = 52). The results of the repeated ANOVA indicated that the experimental group achieved significant improvements compared to the control group in decision making (n2p=.086), mental well-being (n2p=.045), dispositional flow state (n2p=.103), non-judgment (n2p=.040), refocusing (n2p=.052) and mindful trait in daily life (n2p=.058). In the linear regression test, the factor non-judgment was identified as a predictor of decision making (F(103)=7.99, p=.006) and the predictor for the mental well-being were dispositional flow state (F(102)=29.2, p

Risk management strategies protect the company as a whole as well as employees from unforeseen financial impacts. As in the case of personal finance, preparing for certain scenarios helps to face any difficulties that the company may encounter and allows it to get out of this impasse.For any project to be successful, the way the project executing agency will deal with potential risks must be determined so that it can identify, mitigate or avoid problems when it needs to do so. Successful project managers realize that risk management is important, because the achievement of project objectives depends on planning, preparation, results and evaluation that contribute to the achievement of strategic goals, especially the sustainable development of societies.Risk management strategies work to protect the company as a whole as well as employees from unexpected financial effects, and as is the case in personal finance, preparing for certain scenarios helps to face any difficulties that the company may face and allows it to get out of this impasse.To ensure the success of your project, determine how you will handle potential risks so that you can identify, mitigate or avoid problems when you need to do so. Successful project managers understand that risk management is important, because the achievement of project objectives depends on planning, preparation, results, and evaluation that contribute to the achievement of strategic objectives.

Covid-19 is a disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, which has spread worldwide since the beginning of 2020. Several pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical strategies were proposed to contain the virus dissemination, including vaccination and lockdowns. One of the consequences of the pandemic was the denial or delay of access to convenient health care services, but also potentially the increase of adverse events within those services, like the number of hospital infections. Therefore, the main question here is: What happened to the performance and sustainability of hospitals? The main goal of this work was to test if the Portuguese public hospitals' performance has been affected by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. We used the Benefit-of-Doubt method integrated with the Malmquist Index to analyze the performance evolution over time. Then, we employed a multiple regression model to test whether some pandemic-related variables could explain the performance results. We considered a database of 40 Portuguese public hospitals evaluated from January 2017 to May 2022. The period 2017 to 2019 corresponds to the baseline (pre-pandemic), against which the remaining period will be compared (during the pandemic). We also considered fourteen variables characterizing hospital quality, divided into three main performance definitions (efficiency and productivity; access; safety and care appropriateness). As potential explanatory variables, we consider seven dimensions, including vaccination rate and the need for intensive care for Covid-19 infected people. Results suggest that Covid-19 pandemic features help explain the drop on access after 2020, but not the evolution of safety and appropriateness of care, which surpris-ingly increased the whole time.

The paper deals with the design of a systematic procedure for implementing strategy changes into internal business processes for a project-oriented production type of organization. In the first part of the contribution, a summary of the theoretical starting points for the field of strategic management and change management is presented. In the second part, the contribution deals with the analysis of the current situation in the area of the impact of the change of strategy on the management of business processes. In the last part, the proposal of the procedure for implementing strategy changes into internal business processes and the verification results are presented. The proposed procedure includes steps where the selection and verification of key performance indicators at individual levels of management plus the quantification of the impact of the change in strategy on the processes takes place. The management can thus monitor and evaluate the chosen processes in accordance with the fulfilment of the chosen strategy of the company. The last chapter presents the verification of the proposal for the systematic introduction of changes into the processes.

This paper presents preliminary operational performance results of a pilot grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) system designed and installed on the rooftop of the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy and Mining headquarter in Nouakchott (latitude of 18.1°N and the longitude of 16.0°W), Mauritania. The aim is for the government to demonstrate the relevance of using solar energy and to encourage the uptake of solar PV technology for commercial and residential building applications in Mauritania.. In this study, the grid-connected PV system has a peak power of 48 kW and the performance monitoring was carried out during one year, with a system that allow to measure DC power, inverter and system conversion efficiency, energy generated by the PV arrays, solar radiation in the inclination plane of panels, ambient temperature and module temperature. During this period, the PV plant was found to supply 65,668 kWh to the grid. The final yield ranged from 3.91 to 5.09 kWh/kWp/day. The performance ratio was found to vary from 69.69% to 89.35% and the annual capacity factor was found to be 19%. Finally, performance parameters were compared with other PV plants installed in the same region of Northern Africa. The outcome of this work is deemed important in assisting accurate PV system design and decision-making.

Thailand has formulated her climate change policy and updated relevant plans and policies to align with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality and net zero GHG emissions. This study investigates the optimal level of GHG mitigation in Thailand, taking into account the marginal abatement cost (MAC) and social cost of carbon (SCC). It evaluates how energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies influence GHG reduction in the power and industrial sector and illustrates policy recommendations that align with the 2020 to 2050 policy and plan period. The findings indicate that there may be instances where GHG mitigation potential is insufficient to reach the national mile-stone. In such cases, it becomes imperative to leverage all technologies within the marginal abatement cost curve (MACC) and also utilization of the social cost of carbon for policy decision making and meeting the desired goals. In certain scenarios, the adoption of additional technologies or measures may be necessary, such as flexible power generation and deploying carbon capture and storage or hydrogen which are high-cost technologies. Furthermore, preparations should be made for multiple levels of climate change policies and plans beyond 2030.

This paper aims at trying to answer the question of whether a low cost drone equipped with a regular camera can serve as a simple device to estimate the size of objects. Ad-ditionally, it assesses if the accuracy of measurement is good enough for using a drone for measurements, relying solely on GPS position and camera. A review of the literature pertaining to ground object measurements was conducted. The availability of such in-struments was evaluated in terms of purchase and rental costs, the number of instru-ments on the market, and the time to obtain them. The most common measurement methods were considered and their unit costs were reviewed. The cost of professional surveying and measuring equipment was compared to the possibility of using low-cost, non-commercial drones to measure objects and surfaces. The quality of the images ob-tained was compared with high-resolution satellite systems. Is an ordinary drone with a standard camera suitable for length measurement without professional measuring equipment? Should the results be considered only in the category of size estimation?

This study investigated the impact of sustainability reporting on financial performance, with a focus on companies in the Turkish food, beverage and tobacco and textile, wearing apparel and leather sectors. The sustainability reports of 48 companies listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange for 2022 were studied, and the quality of sustainability practices was determined by using a general index (Sustainability Reporting Disclosure Quality Index (SRDQI)) and three partial indices (Environmental Disclosure Quality Index, Social Disclosure Quality Index, and Corporate Governance Disclosure Quality Index (CGDQI)). To analyze the relationships between financial performance and sustainability practices two types of regression models were developed, based on which eight models were directly examined. The results indicate the complete absence of a statistically significant impact of SRDQI on all financial performance measures used. Among the partial indices, only CGDQI has a significant positive effect on the Assets Turnover Ratio. An analysis of the influence of control variables shows a multidirectional dependence of individual financial performance measures on the size of companies, their age, industry affiliation, as well as on the structure of capital used. Finally, this study provides directions for improving the institutional environment of sustainability reporting for Turkish companies.

Asphalt binder is a temperature sensitive material, whose performance is greatly affected by the climate change of the environment. Improper selection of asphalt will cause a lot of damage and affect the durability of the road. The establishment of asphalt pavement performance zoning in Xinjiang, a vast area with great temperature difference, will provide reference for the selection of asphalt suitability, the refinement of pavement design and the sustainable development of road engineering. In this study, 11 years of temperature data in Xinjiang region were collected and analyzed, and 98% reliability of pavement design temperature was used to draw a performance grading map of asphalt pavement in Xinjiang region based on ArcGIS platform. Finally, Xinjiang region was divided into 9 performance zones. At the same time, the performance grade (PG) of five kinds of asphalt binders in Karamay were explored. The result shows that there is little difference in continuous PG span between different matrix asphalt binders, the lower penetration grade, the better high temperature performance, the worse low temperature performance. After adding SBS modifier, the continuous PG span can be higher than the matrix asphalt in 20 ℃. All these provide the basis for reasonable selection of asphalt binders in different areas of Xinjiang.

Performance appraisal is a fundamental indicator in public accountability to achieve the good governance principles. Hence, this study aims to analyze the performance measurement that can improve performance on government agencies in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The study was conducted in qualitative approach. The research found that non-integrated models of performance measurement in South Sulawesi are inefficient and ineffective. Inefficiency happens because it uses time and cost resources separately, while being ineffective is because both models focuses on each goal instead on performance goals and the process is not supported by the actual management.

Clustering is an important task in data mining that has become more challenging due to the ever-increasing size of available datasets. To cope with these big data scenarios, a high-performance clustering approach is required. Sparse grid clustering is a density-based clustering method that uses a sparse grid density estimation as its central building block. The underlying density estimation approach enables the detection of clusters with non-convex shapes and without a predetermined number of clusters. In this work, we introduce a new distributed and performance-portable variant of the sparse grid clustering algorithm that is suited for big data settings. Our compute kernels were implemented in OpenCL to enable portability across a wide range of architectures. For distributed environments, we added a manager-worker scheme that was implemented using MPI. In experiments on two supercomputers, Piz Daint and Hazel Hen, with up to 100 million data points in a 10-dimensional dataset, we show the performance and scalability of our approach. The dataset with 100 million data points was clustered in 1198s using 128 nodes of Piz Daint. This translates to an overall performance of 352TFLOPS. On the node-level, we provide results for two GPUs, Nvidia's Tesla P100 and the AMD FirePro W8100, and one processor-based platform that uses Intel Xeon E5-2680v3 processors. In these experiments, we achieved between 43% and 66% of the peak performance across all compute kernels and devices, demonstrating the performance portability of our approach.

This review examines the quality of capital investment. It explores the essential components and analysis involved in financially assessing an engineering project, including an assessment of various associated risks. Additionally, the review delves into the historical progression of current capital budgeting practices and surveys academic research in the field. The evaluation of investments has been a recognized challenge for the past thirty years, but it has recently gained renewed attention from both management and scholars. Investments constitute a significant and growing portion of organizations’ capital expenditures. However, assessing the impact of investments on pursued goals is challenging. Consequently, there is a strong demand for methods and techniques that can aid in evaluating investments during the proposal stage. This paper explores several investment strategies and Examines the criteria for investment.

Background: The clinical impact of withdrawal of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2i) on the all-cause readmission in patients with heart failure remains unknown. Methods: Consecutive 212 patients who were hospitalized for heart failure and received SGLT2i during the index hospitalization between February 2016 and July 2022 were evaluated. Of these, 51 patients terminated SGLT2i during or after their index hospitalization. The primary outcome was defined as an all-cause readmission rates/times. Results: Over a median of 23.2 months, an all-cause readmission occurred in 38 of 51 patients (74.5%) withdrawn from SGLT2i and 93 of 161 patients (57.8%) with continuation of SGLT2i (p = 0.099). The total number of all-cause readmissions per year was 0.97 [0-1.50] in patients withdrawn from SGLT2i and 0.50 [0-1.03] in patients with continuation of SGLT2i (p = 0.030). There was no significant difference in total medical cost (62,906 [502-187,246] versus 29,236 [7,920-180,305] JPY per month, p = 0.866) between both patient groups. Conclusions: Termination of SGLT2i may be associated with incremental all-cause readmission and no benefit in reducing total medical costs.

Background: Alopecia areata is a skin disease that affects patients’ quality of life and social participation. Objective: To quantify the economic burden of alopecia areata and to map health services utilization among patients with alopecia areata.Materials and methods: Prospective and retrospective data sources, using both top-down and bottom-up approaches to estimate direct and indirect costs and to map health service utilization associated with alopecia areata in Romania in 2022.Results: In our study, the total cost of alopecia areata in Romania for 2022 was estimated at 46.289 million EUR for adult patients and 1.89 million EUR for pediatric patients, encompassing both mild and severe cases. The breakdown reveals that both mild and severe cases incurred the highest costs due to associated expenses, medical services, and treatment. As for children, the highest alopecia-related expenses were represented by associated expenses and treatment costs (for both severity levels).Conclusion: This is the first study to quantify the burden of alopecia areata in Romania. Additional studies are needed due to a low sample size. However, considering our estimations based on external data sources, alopecia areata should be considered when planning health service distribution.

With the global supply of LNG experiencing unprecedented growth, the industry is on the brink of a programmed glut, further exacerbated by the challenges posed by weaker energy pricing. In light of this, it is expected that marginal programs will be deferred temporarily, yet continuously assessed to enhance their economic potential in the future. Moreover, recent setbacks in LNG programs, such as cost overruns and delays, highlight the critical need for a unique conceptual design master plan. This plan will serve as a powerful tool to evaluate and optimize new programs, ensuring improved economic viability and boosting rates of return. By leveraging advanced analytical frameworks, innovative technologies, and comprehensive risk assessments, this study aims to develop a transformative approach that drives sustainable growth and profitability in the dynamic landscape of LNG program development." "This paper centers around the development of a comprehensive conceptual design master plan aimed at optimizing the total program economics across various areas, including sub-sea, offshore, and onshore advancements. The master plan serves as a crucial framework for identifying opportunities to reduce costs and enhance program definition, drawing insights from selective benchmarks derived from recent successful LNG programs. The ultimate objective is to boost the program rate of return while improving overall program definition, thereby mitigating the risks of cost overruns and schedule delays that have plagued the industry. By implementing this master plan, marginal programs stand a greater chance of becoming economically viable, fostering sustainable growth and enabling stakeholders to make informed decisions in the highly dynamic LNG landscape.

Forest harvesting generates variable amounts of residue that represent a fire hazard and a hindrance to regeneration and must be managed accordingly. In South Africa, burning is the most common residue management method, but there is an interest in introducing safer and more effective techniques, such as mulching. For that reason, a productivity study was conducted in the Eastern Cape province to gather information on the productivity, cost, and work quality of the three main alternatives: manual broadcasting, manual broadcasting followed by mulching with an adapted farm tractor and mulching with a purpose-built mulcher. Manual broadcasting required 16 h/ha, mulching with a farm tractor 3.6 h/ha, and mulching with a purpose-built mulcher 0.9 h/ha (one pass). Manual broadcasting was the cheapest option, at a cost of 400 ZAR/ha. Mulching with a farm tractor and a purpose-built mulcher incurred a cost of 3 267 ZAR/ha and 4 083 ZAR/ha, respectively. Manual broadcasting achieved a minimal reduction of residue size, with 50% of the slash (branches and stem wood) having a mean length above 40 cm. When mulching with a farm tractor was applied, 49% of the slash (branches and stem wood) length reduced to about 30 cm. When a purpose-built mulcher was used, only 10% of the slash elements exceeded 40 cm length.

Regulatory monitoring networks are often too sparse to support community-scale PM2.5 exposure assessment while emerging low-cost sensors have the potential to fill in the gaps. Recent advances in air quality monitoring have produced portable, easy-to use, low-cost, sensor-based monitors, which has given a new dimension to the air pollutant monitoring and has democratized the air quality monitoring process by making monitors and results directly available at community level. This study used PurpleAir(c) sensors for PM2.5 assessment in California, USA. Evaluation of PM2.5 from sensors included Quality Assurance &amp; Quality Control (QAQC) procedures, assessment with respect to reference monitored PM2.5 concentrations, and formulation of a decision support system integrating these observations using geostatistical techniques. The hourly and daily average observed PM2.5 concentrations from PurpleAir monitors followed the trends of observed PM2.5 at regulatory monitors. PurpleAir monitored PM2.5 also captured the peak PM2.5 concentrations due to incidents like forest fire. In comparison with reference monitored PM2.5 levels, it was found that PurpleAir PM2.5 concentrations were mostly higher. The most important reason for PurpleAir higher PM2.5 concentrations was the inclusion of moisture or water vapor as aerosol in contrast to measurements of PM2.5 excluding water content in FEM/FRM and non-FEM/FRM monitors. On long term assessment (2016-2020), R2 was between 0.54 and 0.86 at selected collocated PurpleAir and regulatory monitors for hourly PM2.5 concentrations. Past research studies have been conducted for mostly shorter time periods (&lt;3-4 months) that resulted in higher R2 values between 0.80 to 0.98. This study aims to provide reasonable estimations of PM2.5 concentrations with high spatiotemporal resolutions based on statistical models using PurpleAir measurements. The methods of Kriging and IDW, geostatistical interpolation techniques, showed similar spatio-temporal patterns. Overall, this study revealed that low-cost, sensor based PurpleAir sensors could be effective and reliable tools for episodic and long-term ambient air quality monitoring.

The COVID-19 pandemic has expanded globally and caused serious consequence in both health system and the economy. MPV is one of two oral antivirals for COVID-19 with mild-to-moderate symptoms that have received FDA approval so far. This study aims to evaluate the cost-utility of using MPV in COVID-19 treatment. To compare the utility costs of MPV and non-MPV treatments for COVID-19 patients, we used a decision tree model. Data on clinical efficacy, cost, and quality of life were gathered from previous studies. The incremental effective cost ratio (ICER) calculated based on costs incurred and quality-adjusted life years (QALY), was considered as primary out-come. The total cost of MPV treatment and not using MPV was 15,362,516 VND (618 USD) and 15,771,262 VND (634 USD), respectively. The estimated QALY with using-MPV was 28.33, while without MPV was 19.72. The ICER was dominant, resulting in savings of 47,453 VND/QALY (1.9 USD). MPV is a cost-effective medication used to treat COVID-19. In mild-to-moderate COVID-19 patients, MPV considerably lowers costs and improves quality of life. However, several clinical factors of the drug still need to be taken into account.

The paper explores the potential of a low-cost advanced video-based technique for the assessment of structural damage induced to buildings by seismic loading. A low-cost high-speed video camera was utilized for motion magnification (MM) processing of footages of a two-story reinforced concrete frame building subjected to shaking table tests. The damage after seismic loading was estimated by analyzing the dynamic behavior (i.e. in terms of modal parameters) and the structural deformations of the building in the MM videos. The results by MM were compared for method validation to damage assessment obtained by the analyses of conventional accelerometers and high-precision optical markers tracked by a passive 3D motion capture system. Also, 3D laser scanning to obtain an accurate survey of the building geometry before and after the seismic tests was carried out. In particular, accelerometers were also processed and analyzed by using several stationary and non-stationary techniques with the aim to analyze the linear behavior of the undamaged structure and the nonlinear structural behavior during damaging shaking table tests. The proposed MM-based procedure provided accurate estimate of the main modal frequency and the damage location through the analysis of modal shapes, which were confirmed by advanced analyses of accelerometric data.

Species dispersal from a territorial zone is a complex process. The reasons for species dispersal are determined by both natural and human factors. The purpose of this study is to develop a cost surface for a hypothetical landscape that accounts for various species dispersion features. With tigers (Panthera Tigris Tigris) as the focal species, a model for a hypothetical landscape has been built to predict the dispersion patterns of the species' individuals from one habitat patch to another. Initially, four major factors influencing tiger dispersal are explored. Following that, Game Theory assigns a score to each grid in the landscape matrix based on the landscape features in the focal landscape. Specific predefined ratings are also utilized for scenarios that are very complex and may change depending on variables, such as the interaction of the dispersing tiger with co-predators. The two scores mentioned above are combined to create a cost matrix that is shown across a landscape complex to estimate the impact of each landscape component on tiger dispersal. This approach helps wildlife managers develop conservation plans by recognizing important characteristics in the landscape. The results of the model like the one described in this work might be beneficial for a wide range of wildlife management activities such as corridor management, smart patrols, and so on. A cost surface over any focal landscape may serve as a basis for policy and purpose design based on current landscape conditions.

A disaster wrecks those affected. It spares many in the affected areas, yet those spared may be indirectly impacted. Specific risks are often inherent within a social system or physical location, but they can also be created due to unavoidable natural or technological hazards. The consequences, however, can be similar in that they wreak havoc in communities and destroy economic systems. The analytical framework of deterrence and coping has ascertained beneficial in many circumstances, but a cost benefit calculation is a must to infer the feasibility of planning strategy and resource allocation. This study points to the Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) of flood management by District Disaster Management Kulgam. The assessment is established on secondary pooled data collected from administration offices, NGOs, published Journals, and local and national newspapers. It also characterised the strategy, the technique adopted, and the sources of flood damage cost information. The totalled benefits report for 78686.18 lakh of rupees, and that of total costs account for 2218.75lakh of rupees. The Benefit-Cost ratio greater than one (>1) indicates that Flood Management in District Kulgam was economically feasible and successfully governed. The State of Jammu and Kashmir put up with necessary prevention and administration measures to break the spell of devastation due to floods to significant status.

The object of this work is to report some preliminary results on the mechanical harvesting of blueberry fruits of cv. Cargo® in the Piedmont region, one of the most productive areas of Italy that is specialized for fresh blueberry production. The automatization of harvesting operations could represent a competitive advantage for the investigated area’s blueberries supply chain, but could act as a limitation to maintaining the quality of fresh berries. A prototype machine and a commercial harvester (Easy Harvester®) were compared to manual picking, considering harvest efficiency (share of loss), labor productivity and harvesting cost. In the indicated context, the cost of labor exceeds 2.00 euros per kg of sellable product. The use of the prototype allowed a 37% re-duction of this cost, and the use of the Easy Harvester® allowed a reduction of about two thirds. It should be emphasized that these positive performances do not consider two other aspects: the re-duction in the marketable volume (attributable to losses in the harvest and post-harvest phase), and the reduction in the net sale price by 0.30 euros due to the sorting/selection costs in the ware-house. In this study, we highlight how the transition to mechanical harvesting requires the trans-formation of several farming and warehouse operations, such as new crop varieties, new field configurations, and new packaging processes. However, a possible technical improvement of the Easy Harvester® machine could represent an opportunity for Italian companies in the planning of the production and marketing of berries, involving all actors of the supply chain. Further research on the use of mechanization in the sector must still be continued and supported.

Three Dimensional Variational data assimilation or analysis (3DVAR) is one of most classical methods for providing the initial values for numerical models. In this method, the dimensions of the background error covariance and the observational error covariance matrices are large. Therefore, it is difficult to get the inverse of the covariance matrices and to reduce the orders of these matrices without information loss. With the use of the Sylvester Equation, on the basis of a new linear regression, a new cost function for 3DVAR was given. For the first-guess m×n field, there is an approximate 1−(m²+n²)/(mn×mn) reduction with m>1 & n>1 by using the cost function. The results of the numerical experiments show that the effect of this algorithm is no worse than that of the old cost function for 3DVAR.

Background: Chronic lower limb ulcers (CLLU) have an important burden to the individual and the healthcare system. However, there is a lack of information about the cost of CLLU in Argentina.Objective: To determinate the number and cost of consultation and hospitalization associated to CLLU in a public hospital in Argentina. Methods: Retrospective observational study. Cost estimation were calculated based on days of stay, treatments and laboratory tests in a inpatient population and the number of consultations, treatments and laboratory tests, in a outpatient population. Results: In 2013 and 2014, the overall number of consultation with ICD-10 codes was 7,224 and the number of inpatient was 359. The mean age for male and female outpatient consultations was 59.53(±13.06) years and 59.04(±10.93), respectively. For CLLU male and female inpatient, the mean age was 63.9(±10.4) years and 54.5(±8.6) years, respectively. The length of stay was 22.88 days. There was a mean of 0.41 surgeries per patient where 25% were amputations. The mean annual cost in a single public hospital was US$4,053.65 per inpatient and US$3,589.24 per outpatient. Conclusion: Cost information allows new public health policies to reduce socioeconomic burden due to CLLU.

Despite the success of recent efforts to increase access to improved water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) globally, approximately one-third of schools around the world still lack adequate WASH services. A lack of WASH in schools can lead to the spread of preventable disease and increase school absences, especially among women. Inadequate financing and budgeting has been named as a key barrier for integrating successful and sustainable WASH programs into school settings. For this reason, the purpose of this review is to describe the current knowledge around the costs of WASH components as well as financing models that could be applied to WASH in schools. Results show a lack of information around WASH costing, particularly around software elements as well as there is a lack of data overall for WASH in school settings as compared to community WASH. This review also identifies several key considerations when designing WASH budgets or selecting financing mechanisms. Findings may be used to advise future WASH in school programs.

: There has been an ever-increasing demand for energy from the past decades. Renewable energy technologies play a major role in satisfying the energy demand as well as in a decreased CO2 emissions. Solar and Wind energies are the major upcoming technologies in renewable energies. Decentralized power production is a system where the energy production and consumption are very close to each other. Microgrids can be decentralized or grid connected and they, with renewable energy sources, encounter a problem of storage as the power production from solar and wind is intermittent. This paper discusses the comparison between using batteries and pumped storage hydropower (PSH) as an energy storage system and the integration of wind and solar PV energy sources. HOMER software simulations are used to obtain optimized renewable energy integration in microgrid and to understand its economic analysis. Two scenarios are run with the model where one considers battery and the other considers PSH to obtain the economic and technical best results of these microgrids. The economic analysis showed a lower net present cost (NPC) and levelized cost of energy (LCOE) for the microgrid with PSH. The results show that microgrid with storage of PSH is economical with an NPC of 45.8 M€ and an LCOE of 0.379 €/kWh in comparison with batteries solution which has an NPC of 95.2M€ and an LCOE of 0.786 €/kWh. The role of storage is understood by differentiating the data into different seasons using Python for data analysis. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis is made by varying the capital cost multiplier of Solar PV and Wind Turbine to obtain optimal solutions.

Construction project management and cost management is a difficult process that affects the overall success of construction projects. The success of a construction project can be assessed according to key performance indicators (KPIs). Cost savings and cost optimization over the life of a construction project is one of these KPIs. Cost management is largely performed through intelligent information technology in the construction industry. Information systems and information technologies have seen an increase in use in the management of construction projects. The same goes for cost management. Several studies mentioned in the paper point to this increase in use in recent years also in the management of costs at various stages. Many studies point to the use of information technology and software applications in the field of cost management. Still, to a large extent, there are no surveys focused on the analysis of the impact and impact factor of information technology on cost savings or cost optimization in various phases of construction projects. The research discusses the issue of the impact of information technology on cost management in various phases of a construction project. The main goal of the research is to analyze the influence of information technology factors on cost savings and optimization in individual phases of a construction project. Several statistical methods were used in the research. The resulting model of information technology impact factor was created based on data processing and the use of the AHP method.

Accurate and reliable project cost estimates are fundamental to achieve successful municipal capital improvement (CIP) programs. Engineering cost estimates typically represent critical information for key decision makers to authorize and efficiently allocate the necessary funds for construction, budgeting, to generate a request for proposals, contract negotiations, scheduling, etc. for these reasons, cost estimators are using different estimating methods and approaches that allow for required levels of accuracy. As the project’s scope becomes more detailed and the potential risks are identified and/or the project design stage progresses these cost estimates are revised and updated. In this paper, the most common project cost estimation methods and approaches were collected and categorized into two main groups of (1) probabilistic and (2) deterministic methods. Under these groups overall ten different methods were identified and discussed addressing their requirements, advantages, and shortcomings, including the potential risk that can positively or negatively affect the project’s cost outcome. This paper will be a good resource for professionals who are in budget development and/or are seeking to a better understanding of different methods in determining an appropriate base cost margin and produce a meaningful and reliable project cost estimate.

Background: Manoeuvres esbarrada and volta sobre patas are fundamental movements in equestrian activities, yet their kinematics remain largely unexplored. Objectives: This observational study aimed to kinematically describe the movements of esbarrada and volta sobre patas in Criollo breed horses. Methods: Kinematic analysis was conducted on 31 Criollo horses executing esbarrada and volta sobre patas manoeuvres. Results: The esbarrada maneuver covered a distance of 4.28 ± 0.99m in 1.15 ± 0.11s at a velocity of 3.77 ± 0.55m/s. Angular kinematic variables revealed specific joint angles during the maneuver. In volta sobre patas, significant differences were found in spin duration and thoracic limb suspension between the first and second spins. Conclusions: Volta sobre patas demonstrated prolonged spinning duration and increased thoracic limb suspension in the second spin. Additionally, static conformation did not correlate with limb protraction angles during esbarrada.

The main purpose of the study was to study the effects of a specific rowing ergometer training program on the athletic performance of young adolescents (n=56; 11.73 ± 1.4 years old) com-pared to a workout based on general strength training. Eight-week training program was im-plemented, with four sessions per week and two-hours per session. Sample was divided in two groups: a control group (CG) that performed circuit training with exercises aimed at building general strength and an experimental group (EG) who focused on specifically training on a rowing ergometer (rowing machine). The data obtained in a rowing meter test over the compe-tition distance were analyzed to obtain the average power attained (W) at the beginning of the training, at the middle (4 weeks), at the end of the training (8 weeks) and one year after the ex-perimentation. The results show that, although both forms of training improve the average W obtained in both categories, the EG subjects (+29.94W) obtained better averages in all phases of the study compared to the CG (+5.88W). Furthermore, this increase was greater in male rowers (+ 34.06W) than in female rowers (+24.54W). These results reveal that a specific rower rowing ergometer training program has a significant effect than a general strength program and these effects can even be observed a year after the intervention.

The medical sector is of the utmost importance in every country for well-known reasons such as their economic development, national security, quality of life, and so on. Many researchers were dedicated to this topic, however, in Romania there are limited studies on this subject. One reason is that most of the businesses in this sector are individual enterprises or small family businesses. In our research paper we deploy several analysis methods to see the financial sustainability of companies operating in the medical industry. By analyzing a sample of 23931 companies and we have concluded that their performance has increase in the peak of the pandemic and that the financial stability is high. Our results are in line with other similar studies that were conducted in other regions.

Non-compliant (NC) structures are often encountered in building construction in developing countries. This is a condition whereby erected buildings do not follow regulatory standards, especially in the provision of reinforcements. Therefore, under an earthquake load, the structures do not have sufficient resistance against such load. The structural elements of the building, which often have NC conditions, are the beam-column joints because they do not contain adequate shear reinforcements due to installation difficulty. This study aims to determine the structural performance of the reinforced concrete (RC) frame, which has a reinforcement deficiency in the beam-column joints. Numerical simulation was conducted on the Kakaletsis structure model by modifying the reinforcement details at the joints to represent the NC conditions. The non-linear modeling and analysis of the structural model were carried out using ATENA software. The analysis showed that the reduction in shear reinforcements in the NC model joint caused a decrease in load-carrying capacity by about 26.04%. A shift was also observed in the collapse pattern, i.e., from the beam to the end of the column, causing global failure and reducing the undamaged but increasing more severely damaged condition. This showed that the NC structure, due to the non-conformance of reinforcement, significantly reduced the structure's performance.

This study offers a concise summary of the research that has been done on alternative methods of HRM. A survey of 47 articles on the topic of creative human resource management uncovered three primary schools of thinking. At its core, innovation in HRM entails nothing more than that. One such topic worthy of investigation is the way human resource management approaches new situations. Third, research on inventiveness in the business world has given rise to the concept of "innovative HRM." Each of these three approaches, as well as the theoretical underpinnings of each, will be covered in this article. The note wraps up with a discussion of the significance of the findings for next research as well as clinical practice.

We are in the era where various processes need to be online. However, data from digital learning platforms are still underutilised in higher education, yet, they contain student learning patterns, whose awareness would contribute to educational development. This limits development of adaptive teaching and learning mechanisms. In this paper, a model for data exploitation to dynamically study students progress is proposed. Variables to determine current students progress are defined and are used to group students into different clusters. K-means clustering is performed on real data consisting of students from a South African tertiary institution. Cluster migration is analysed and the corresponding learning patterns are revealed.

The authors propose in this study to evaluate financial performance applications for stock prices of the Indonesian Stock Exchange in manufacturing companies. The method of research used here is a quantitative descriptive method. In that statement, Indonesian Stock Exchange manufacturing companies between 2016 and 2018 are the population use in this research, using the sampling technique Purpose Sampling. This research uses secondary data from 2016 to 2018, the financial reports of Indonesian Stock Exchange manufacturing companies. The Indonesian stock exchange web site has been provided with all data sources at https://www.idx.co.id, and searching for www.google.id. Our analysis shows that book value prices and the net profit margin affect stock prices. The value of financial performance at the Indonesian Stock Bourses manufacturing companies' cost amounts to 64.5 percent, while other factors not listed in this study account for 35.4 percent.

Top performance in team sports attracts the attention from the general public. In particular, the best players became incredibly skilled and physically powerful, a fact that potentiates to deliver a product considered attractive, exciting and competitive. Not surprisingly, this is a very valuable product from an economic and social standpoint, thus, all sports professionals are extremely interested in developing new procedures to improve sports performance. Besides, the great interests of the various stakeholders (owners, CEO-s, agents, fans, media, coaches, players, families and friends) are one of the main reasons for this development of sports science umbrella and the accompanying sports industry. all their personal performances should be coordinated and put into function by the sports team. In this scientific and applied manuscript, we will deal primarily with the individual treatment of players in order to improve their personal performance and, consequently, team sport performance.

Respiratory viral infections (RVI) are common reasons for healthcare consultations. The inpatient management of RVI consumes significant resources. From 2009-2014, we assessed the costs of RVI management in 4776 hospitalized chil-dren aged 0-18 years participating in a quality improvement program, where all ILI patients underwent virologic testing at the National Reference Centre followed by de-tailed recording of their clinical course. The direct (medical or non-medical) and indirect costs of inpatient management outside the ICU (“non-ICU”) versus management requiring ICU-care (“ICU”) added up to 2,767.14€ (non-ICU) vs. 29,941.71€ (ICU) for Influenza, 2,713.14€ (non-ICU) vs. 16,951.06€ (ICU) for RSV infections, and 2,767.33€ (non-ICU) vs. 14,394.02€ (ICU) for human rhinovirus (hRV) infections, respectively. Non-ICU inpatient costs were similar for all 8 RVI studied: Influenza, RSV, hRV, ade-novirus (hAdV), metapneumovirus (hMPV), parainfluenzavirus (hPIV), bocavirus (hBoV) and seasonal coronavirus (hCoV) infections. ICU-costs for Influenza however, ex-ceeded all other RVI. At the time of the study, Influenza was the only RVI with antivi-ral treatment options available for children, but only 9.8% of Influenza patients (non-ICU) and 1.5% of ICU-patients with Influenza received antivirals; only 2.9% were vac-cinated. Future studies should investigate the economic impact of treatment and pre-vention of Influenza-, COVID-19-, and RSV post vaccine introduction.

A mathematical model that incorporates human attacks on dogs is presented to explore the dynamics of rabies transmission. The model divided the infection rate into two categories: dog-to-dog transmission rates during the prodromal phase (βdP) and the furious phase (βdF). It has been determined that the model is well-posed and that all of the solutions are positive, as well as the feasibility and positivity of the model's solutions. Both the basic reproduction number (R0) and the effective reproductive number (Re) are computed, and it is demonstrated that the model has a unique disease-free equilibrium that is globally asymptotically stable whenever Re < 1. To identify the model's most sensitive parameters and the ones that intervention efforts should focus on, sensitivity analysis of the effective reproduction number is carried out. We can construct an optimal control system using the state equations, the adjoint equations, and the optimality condition that determines the controls by applying Pontryagin's Maximum/Minimum principle. To help decision-makers in allocating funds for rabies interventions, cost-effectiveness analyses are conducted. To determine the degree to which the intervention strategies are advantageous and cost-effective, this study performs a cost-effective analysis of one or all possible combinations of the optimal rabies control strategies (pre-exposed and post-exposed vaccination for both dog and human populations) for the four different transmission settings. After arranging the techniques to increase effectiveness (total infections prevented), a cost-effective analysis using the Incremental Cost Effectiveness Ratio (ICER) was conducted. The result supports the function that the four intervention options are performing to either completely eradicate or significantly reduce rabies disease among the populations. The dynamical behavior of the system is studied through simulations using the ode45 numerical technique from MATLAB.

In this article, we present two topics related to mathematical economics. We offer an intriguing proposal for securing cost and production functions in the face of uncertainty and risk. We discuss the relationship between individual and social preferences. This is important because traditional revealed preference theory does not account for such factors.

For the last two decades, an increasing demand for low-cost adsorbents for drinking water treatment has been challenged in the rural areas of developing countries that have problems with arsenic (As) contamination. In this work, spent bleaching earth (SBE), a residual material that is formed during the process of refining vegetable oil, has been utilized to prepare the new magnetic adsorbent Fe-SBE/C by modifying its surface area through calcination and co-precipitation with iron. The experimental results demonstrate that Fe-SBE/C exhibits a substantial adsorption capacity towards both arsenite (As(III)) and arsenate (As(V)). Optimal pH conditions were found to be pH 10 for As(III) and pH 3 for As(V), resulting in adsorption percentages of 76.7% and 94.1%, respectively. Other experimental parameters such as calcination conditions, adsorbent dosage, iron-loading ratio, and the presence of co-existing ions were thoroughly investigated. The kinetic study revealed that the adsorption processes follow the Elovich and intraparticle diffusion models, suggesting a combined adsorption mechanism of boundary layer control and chemisorption. Furthermore, the isotherm followed the Langmuir model with a maximum adsorption capacity of 202.61 μg g-1 for As(III) and 187.61 μg g-1 for As(V). Through thermodynamic analysis and reinforcement by activation energy data, this research validates that the observed adsorption process is indicative through chemisorption. The regeneration study revealed the potential for multiple cycles of arsenic removal, highlighting the practical applicability of Fe-SBE/C in environmental contexts. In conclusion, the findings of this study underscore the efficacy of Fe-SBE/C in arsenic removal and present it as a promising and environmentally friendly solution for mitigating arsenic pollution.

The purpose of this study was to determine the income, costs and revenue of the Gontor Putri 3 bakery. Want to know the efficiency of the bakery business in Karangbanyu Regency. The method used in this research is analytical descriptive by conducting a survey. The data used in this research is primary data. Data collection techniques use observation, interviews and documentation, while the process of analysis is quantitative descriptive. Using the R/C ratio, a value of 1.72 per month is obtained. This value indicates that the bakery factory in Karangbanyu is efficient because the value is more than one.

The osteoarthritis (OA), the main cause of disability, is a chronic condition that most frequently affects older adults. As the population ages, the cost of treatment is placing pressure on the healthcare budget. As a result, it is imperative to evaluate the medicines' cost-effectiveness and the influence they have on health resource allocation. Hence, our study aims to summarize the cost and outcome of utilizing glucosamine in OA treatment. Authentic databases like Medline, Cochrane, and Scopus were adopted for the identification process up until July 2023. Our primary inclusion criteria centered on the economic evaluation of Glucosamine in OA treatments with provided the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) at least. The Quality of Health Economic Studies (QHES) instrument was applied to grade the quality of the studies. A total of 7 qualified studies were selected and discussed the cost-effectiveness of glucosamine with or without other formulations. All of them demonstrated that glucosamine was cost-effective. There was an in-creasement of QALY when incorporating Glucosamine into conventional care. Moreover, Crystalline Glucosamine Sulfate (pCGS) was more cost-effective than the Other Formulations of Glucosamine (OFG). In overall, utilizing pCGS was more beneficial than OFG in terms both of cost and quality of life.

Dealing with randomness is a crucial aspect that cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) tools need to address, but existing stochastic CEA tools have rarely examined risk and return from the perspective of global benefits. This paper proposes a stochastic CEA tool that supports medical decision-making from the perspective of global benefits of risk and return, the risk-adjusted incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER). The tool has a traditional form of ICER but uses the risk-adjusted expected cost. Theoretically, we prove that the tool can provide marginal medical decisions that promote the risk-return level on global benefits within any intervention structure and can also serve as a discriminating condition for the optimal intervention structure. Numerical simulations within a framework of mean-variance support the conclusions in this paper.

Student project management is becoming increasingly important in various settings such as technical clubs, planning clubs, and research laboratories. However, effective methodologies for managing student-led projects have not yet been established. This study aims to address key issues related to cost and motivation in student-led projects and propose effective improvement plans. The significance of this study lies in its potential to identify challenges faced in current student project management practices and offer solutions to mitigate risks. By sharing our findings, we aim to encourage further research on this topic and promote the adoption of effective methodologies for managing student-led projects.

The literature was scoped to help place mass spectrometric (MS) platforms in the spotlight of the life sciences, as a tool of OMICS and OMICS 2.0 technologies. Moreover, today’s appliances are so handy, that they literally place a whole lab on a single chip. Methods of OMICS (and the most recently developed term OMICS 2.0) are tackled, having in mind their aptness for educational purposes, as well as their feasibility. This same topic was highlighted in many reviews that have been periodically published. The author’s initial interest was the forensic application of MS, but since these interests changed, terms such as “biosensors” were also examined, so the review included means of discovery of efficient biomarkers and clinical therapeutic targets. Aside from simply reviewing the research status and the future perspectives, this article tackles terms such as Society 5.0 and OMICS 2.0. However, within the framework of this review, physical chemistry, bioinformatics, or specific software solutions were not specifically studied. Since the topic of generating permanent collections of digital content for retrospective analysis was also reviewed, the need for loads of data – cloud storage was discussed in the context of MS. These large quantities of data are easier to operate with if generated by MS, rather than by any other commercially available assay. In this manner, the review has strengthened an in-depth understanding of the applications of MS.

Background: Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER-2) overexpression can be found in 15-20% of breast cancers, and it strongly correlates with aggressive clinical behavior and adverse prognosis. The first-line treatment for HER-2 positive metastatic breast cancers is the combination of trastuzumab, pertuzumab, and taxane (PTH). ABP 980 is a biosimilar of the innovator trastuzumab and is characterized by highly comparable effectiveness. Methods: The group of 61 patients with HER-2 positive MBC received biosimilar ABP 980 plus pertuzumab and docetaxel from November, 18, 2018 to December, 24, 2019. The response to therapy, overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), metastases, and adverse effects among patients were determined and analyzed. Results: Initially, 42 women responded partially to the treatment and their median PFS was 27 months. Median PFS for the whole group was 18 months. Cardiotoxicity of treatment was noticed in all patients in the form of the reduction in left ventricular ejection fraction but only in 2 cases, it was the reason for withdrawing from therapy. Conclusion: Biosimilar ABP 980 is registered in the same indications as the innovator trastuzumab and their effectiveness, as well as side effects, are comparable. The costs of biosimilar make the therapy more accessible and thus more patients with MBC around the world can receive relevant treatment.

Based on the data of A-share listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen of China from 2011 to 2018 and the digital inclusive finance index of Peking University (2011-2018), this paper empirically tests the impact of digital finance development on corporate social responsibility in various provinces of China and its impact mechanism. The results show that: (1) the development of digital finance helps to promote the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility; (2) the influence mechanism of the development of digital finance to promote the fulfillment of corporate social responsibility lies in that it reduces the cost of debt financing and leads to the improvement of corporate social responsibility.(3) Further research shows that the positive relationship between digital finance and corporate social responsibility is more significant in private enterprises. At the same time, the impact is more significant in areas with poor market environment. The above research shows that the development of digital finance has a significant positive effect, which will improve the level of corporate social responsibility.

We report a very frugal microscope building method from easily realizable parts. We show a highly portable field ready compound type microscope with bright field, dark field and projection microscopy capabilities. It has good resolution and magnification for multiple aspects of education and diagnosis. We demonstrate that such a system can be built from simple lenses in laser pointers and camera modules with no specific 3d printed parts or costly lenses. We show all the parts of the system like stage, coarse and fine focussing system, microscope body, even slides can be built from commonly available materials like soda bottle and DVD disks. We list alternate, safer and easily available staining methods and chemicals. The microscope is developed with a target that it can be self-developed even in rural areas of the world with only resources at one’s disposal with very little education. This features a stable focussing and panning system for comfortable viewing through eyes and also easy imaging with a smartphone. We show its utility for microorganism analysis and potential for clinical diagnosis.

The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide pandemic in 2020. In response, most countries in the world implemented lockdowns, restricting their population’s movements, work, education, gatherings, and general activities in attempt to ‘flatten the curve’ of COVID-19 cases. The public health goal of lockdowns was to save the population from COVID-19 cases and deaths, and to prevent overwhelming health care systems with COVID-19 patients. In this narrative review I explain why I changed my mind about supporting lockdowns. First, I explain how the initial modeling predictions induced fear and crowd-effects [i.e., groupthink]. Second, I summarize important information that has emerged relevant to the modeling, including about infection fatality rate, high-risk groups, herd immunity thresholds, and exit strategies. Third, I describe how reality started sinking in, with information on significant collateral damage due to the response to the pandemic, and information placing the number of deaths in context and perspective. Fourth, I present a cost-benefit analysis of the response to COVID-19 that finds lockdowns are far more harmful to public health than COVID-19 can be. Controversies and objections about the main points made are considered and addressed. I close with some suggestions for moving forward.

The lean supply chain of construction engineering projects is to achieve the maximum satisfaction of the owners' needs in order to effectively achieve the goal of supply chain management. This paper explores an effective method of lean supply chain cost management for construction engineering projects with target cost management, so that each participating unit on the supply chain node can fully utilizes its core competencies to minimize internal consumption and waste, and achieve the optimal overall efficiency of the supply chain. According to the requirements of the goal planning theory of the construction project company, establish a lean supply chain cost planning system for the construction project, realize the basic model of the lean supply chain cost management of the construction project, and set the target cost from the lean project of the construction project. The technical decomposition is established by the process of cost decomposition and cost pressure transmission and sub-target cost planning.

Background: Trichomoniasis is the most common non-viral STI globally and yet is not a reportable disease. Trichomonas Vaginalis is an important source of reproductive morbidity and may increase risk of acquisition and transmission of HIV. WHO and CDC recommend various regimens of Nitro-Imidazoles for treatment. The common Nitro-Imidazoles used for Trichomoniasis are Metronidazole and Tinidazole, which vary in their cost, efficacy and side effect profile and it is relevant to study these factors, for better management of the patients. Objectives: This study aims to compare and study the efficacy, compliance of various treatment regimens, their outcomes and side-effects for Trichomoniasis, among STI clinic attendees in Trinidad. Methods: A clinical trial study was designed and after obtaining the informed consent a routine clinical examination was conducted and the swabs for Trichomoniasis tests were collected for diagnosis from the 692 participants. Out of 692 participants, Eighty two (82) patients with established diagnosis of Trichomonas infection were quasi-randomly treated using different regimens. Compliance to treatment, side effects and outcome were evaluated. Results: The prevalence of the Trichomoniasis in population attending our STI clinic is 11.9% and prevalence of HIV is 9%. Of the total 82 participants for the treatment, 80% were females; nearly 90% of the patients belonged to age group 15-45 years and over 60% were below 30 yrs. Among those diagnosed for Trichomonas vaginalis, 13.3% had associated HIV infection. The compliance with respect to single dose treatment was significantly better than the long duration oral regimen and has significant relation with side effects of the treatment. The outcome is generally better and comparable and shows no significant difference between different treatment regimens used in the study. Conclusions: Metronidazole and Tinidazole are commonly used drugs in various regimens. compliance is better with those treated with Tinidazole and Metronidazole stat, than with other groups. Outcome is comparable between these regimens, especially when combined with other important factors like abstinence and treatment of the partners. The treatment regimens mainly differ in the compliance and side effects profile, which suggests that to improve the compliance the drugs with less side effects, short course regimen would be a preferred choice.

One of the key areas of the International Renewable Energy Agency’s (IRENA) programme of work is the analysis of renewable technology costs and performance and the dissemination of these results to as wide an audience as possible. In addition to analysis, IRENA seeks to engage a broad range of stakeholders in the context of this work through the Renewable Costing Alliance. The Costing Alliance brings together companies, industry association, governments and researchers to share, confidentially, data for real-world renewable energy project cost and performance, helping to build further on IRENA’s costing work to date. In this context the authors analyse the current cost differentials and cost reduction potentials for solar PV in Japan compared to best practice levels and identify the reasons for higher costs in Japan and how to reduce them. This study analyses the current installed cost differentials for utility-scale, commercial and residential rooftop solar PV systems. In addition to identifying the reasons for the cost differentials, potential policy recommendations to reduce the cost differential are identified.