ABSTRACT
SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) invades the human body by binding to major receptors such as ACE2 via its S-spike protein, so the interaction of receptor-binding sites has been a hot topic in the development of coronavirus drugs. At present, the clinical progress in monoclonal antibody therapy that occurred early in the pandemic is gradually showing signs of slowing. While recombinant soluble ACE2, as an alternative therapy, has been modified by many engineering methods, both the safety and functional aspects are approaching maturity, and this therapy shows great potential for broadly neutralizing coronaviruses, but its progress in clinical development remains stalled. Therefore, there are still several key problems to be considered and solved for recombinant soluble ACE2 to be approved as a clinical treatment as soon as possible.
Subject(s)
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 , COVID-19 , SARS-CoV-2 , Humans , Carrier Proteins , Recombinant ProteinsABSTRACT
Investment in education technology (EdTech) is a complex decision problem for universities during the post-Covid era. With the objective to assess the quality and adoptability of education supply chain, a novel analytical evaluation model approach is proposed, based on quality function deployment and combinative distance-based assessment. To deal with uncertainty in the evaluation process, fuzzy theory is integrated into the model. To establish the house of quality matrix, technology-based stakeholders' requirements were identified and classified in four dimensions: economic and financial, technology adoption, sustainability, competencies. Moreover, nine supplier criteria were assumed. Based on expert evaluations, the results suggest that financial credit and supplier collaboration are the most prominent attributes to evaluate suppliers, while environmental commitment is sorted as the least important criterion. The results reveal that the three dominant suppliers, which provide the best response to the identified criteria, are providers of cloud service technology. © 2022
ABSTRACT
In 2020, the COVID-19 epidemic broke out and since then civil engineering systems all over the world have been deeply influenced. The epidemic prevention policies directly made most of conventional works not feasible and new ways of working for civil system are needed like telecommuting and other remote technologies. In this paper, the approaches of system engineering are used to divide normal civil engineering system into many phases from the perspective of civil system development and list impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on each phase. The system analysis make us have a more comprehensive understanding of the problem in civil system and make it possible to optimize a specific phase in more targeted way. Moreover, in this way, we can not only comprehend the characteristics of every phase, but also clarify the relationships between them. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
ABSTRACT
Understanding the interactions among climate change, carbon emission allowance trading, crude oil and renewable energy stock markets, especially the role of climate change in this system is of great significance for policy makers, energy producers/consumers and relevant investors. The present paper aims to quantify the time-varying connectedness effects among the four factors by using the TVP-VAR based extensions of both time- and frequency-domain connectedness index measurements proposed by Antonakakis et al. (2020) and Ellington and Barunik (2021) [8,48]. The empirical results suggest that, firstly, the average total connectedness among climate change, carbon emission allowance trading, crude oil and renewable energy stock markets is not so strong for the heterogenous fundamentals underlying them. Nevertheless, the time-varying total connectedness fluctuates fiercely through May 2005 to September 2021, varying from about 8% to 30% and rocket to very high levels during the global subprime mortgage crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, the total connectedness mainly centers on the short-term frequency, i.e., 1–3 months. Secondly, climate change is generally the leading information contributor among the four factors, although not particularly strong, and its leading role also performs mainly on the short-term frequency (1–3 months). Thirdly, renewable energy stock market and crude oil market show tight interactions between them and they are the two major bridges of information exchanges across various time frequencies (horizons) in this system. Finally, we confirm the evidence that the primary net connectedness contributor and receiver switch frequently across different time frequencies, implying that it is extremely essential for policy makers, energy producers/consumers and investors to make time-horizon-specific regulatory, production/purchasing or investment decisions when facing the uncertain effects of climate change on the interactions among carbon emission allowance, crude oil and renewable energy stock markets. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd
ABSTRACT
Remote communication is not new for the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry and academia. Organisations started using what was common, called "conference rooms” with sophisticated technological equipment prepared for "conference calls” when face-to-face meetings were not possible, and the industries culture and work practices were rooted in face-to-face meetings. This was current practice until the beginning of 2020, with the emergence of the global COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic forced people to have safe distances between them, to be isolated for long periods of time, and several restrictions to travel not being possible to meet face-to-face. This situation rapidly created a new need to find ways to communicate as alternatives to traditional face-to-face meetings, for "conference call rooms” anywhere and accessible at any time by everyone. The extended duration of the pandemic made organisations adapt to that new normal and remarkable new opportunities arose in a new way. This article explores recent situations in academia and industry that can highlight potential guidance towards the new normal in remote communication for learning–teaching and the AEC industry sectors. In conclusion, appropriate use of these electronic processes provides opportunities to significantly improve remote communication in future. It is expected that the number of opportunities to develop international relationships and partnerships can be boosted to another level of accessibility. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: Using total interpretive structural modelling (TISM), this paper aims to "identify”, "analyse” and "categorise” the sustainable-resilience readiness factors for healthcare during the Covid-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach: To obtain the data, a closed-ended questionnaire was used in addition to a scheduled interview with each respondent. To identify how the factors interact, the TISM approach was employed and the cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to a classification method was used to rank and categorise the sustainable-resilience readiness factors. Findings: This study identified ten sustainable-resilience readiness factors for healthcare during the Covid-19 pandemic. The study states that the major factors are environmental scanning, awareness and preparedness, team empowerment and working, transparent communication system, learning culture, ability to respond and monitor, organisational culture, resilience engineering, personal and professional resources and technology capability. Research limitations/implications: The study focused primarily on sustainable-resilience readiness characteristics for the healthcare sector. Practical implications: This research will aid key stakeholders and academics in better understanding the factors that contribute to sustainable-resilience in healthcare. Originality/value: This study proposes the TISM technique for healthcare, which is a novel attempt in the subject of readiness for sustainable-resilience in this sector. The paper proposes a framework including a mixture of factors for sustainability and resilience in the healthcare sector for operations. © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited.
ABSTRACT
This paper reviews research in ocean engineering over the last 50+ years with the aim to (I) understand the technological challenges and evolution in the field, (II) investigate whether ocean engineering studies meet present global demands, (III) explore new scientific/engineering tools that may suggest pragmatic solutions to problems, and (IV) identify research and management gaps, and the way forward. Six major research divisions are identified, namely (I) Ocean Hydrodynamics, (II) Risk Assessment and Safety, (III) Ocean Climate and Geophysics: Data and Models, (IV) Control and Automation in the Ocean, (V) Structural Engineering and Manufacturing for the Ocean, and (VI) Ocean Renewable Energy. As much as practically possible research sub-divisions of the field are also identified. It is highlighted that research topics dealing with ocean renewable energy, control and path tracking of ships, as well as computational modelling of wave-induced motions are growing. Updating and forecasting energy resources, developing computational methods for wave generation, and introducing novel methods for the optimised control of energy converters are highlighted as the potential research opportunities. Ongoing studies follow the global needs for environmentally friendly renewable energies, though engineering-based studies often tend to overlook the longer-term potential influence of climate change. Development and exploitation of computational engineering methods with focus on continuum mechanics problems remain relevant. Notwithstanding this, machine learning methods are attracting the attention of researchers. Analysis of COVID-19 transmission onboard is rarely conducted, and 3D printing-based studies still need more attention from researchers.
ABSTRACT
We investigate the dynamic connectedness among health-tech equity and medicine prices (producer and consumer) and Medicare cost indices for the US market. In doing so, we apply Cross-Quantilogram Dynamic Connectedness based on Time-Varying Parameter Vector Autoregression (TVP-VAR) approaches to analyse historical high-frequency time-series data. TVP-VAR results show that health-tech equity is the highest volatility transmitter while Medicare price is the highest volatility receiver. We also find medicine producer price is the net volatility contributor while the retail price of medicine is the net volatility receiver. The Cross-Quantilogram analysis confirms a strong bivariate quantile dependence between respective markets at a higher quantile of each market. Cross-quantilogram demonstrates a higher level of connectedness among the markets when considering medium and long memory. We observe health-tech equity turned to be a profound volatility contributor, while medicine price (both producer and retail prices) and Medicare appeared to net volatility receiver during the time of COVID19 Pandemic. The financial performance of health-tech equity returns elevates the price volatility of medicine and eventually Medicare cost, which imply that equity return should be incorporated forming medicine prices. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd
ABSTRACT
Corona Virus (COVID-19) is a virus that is endemic almost all over the world, including Indonesia. COVID-19 was first confirmed by the World Health Organization (WHO) on December 31, 2019, in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, and then rapidly expanded outside of China. To suppress the Covid-19 case, medical volunteers are needed as the main actors in efforts to handle Covid-19 patients. This makes health care facilities also need to focus on the principles of health worker safety, not only focus on the principles of patient safety. This also makes health care facilities also need to focus on the principles of health worker safety, not only focus on the principles of patient safety. The use of hazmat clothes is one of the efforts to protect health workers when in contact with Covid-19 patients. Hazmat clothes are technically referred to as "encapsulated waterproof protective clothing” which is PPE that must be used for officers from the risk of contracting the Covid-19 virus through airborne droplets and contact with patients and patient body fluids. Although hazmat clothing is an important PPE for health workers to stay protected, the use of hazmat clothing for a long time often makes medical personnel feel uncomfortable when providing services. Based on the problems above, the researchers conducted a study on the heat pipe - thermoelectric hazmat suit cooling vest. This technology can absorb more heat than other methods by simply applying the principle of capillarity to the wicks on the pipe walls. schematic of testing a cooling vest on a hazmat suit. The loading on the thermoelectric is given through the DC - Power supply. The temperature data read by the sensor will be detected by the computer system using the NI 9123 and C-DAQ 9174 modules. The test results can be viewed using the NI LabView 2017 software. The temperature used in this experiment is the result of tests carried out for 30 min. Based on the tests that have been carried out, the heat pipe-based thermoelectric hazmat suit cooling vest has been able to reach the lowest thermoelectric temperature of 24,42 ∘C, which is distributed through heat pipes to body parts. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.
ABSTRACT
Aloe vera plant is known worldwide for its medicinal properties and application in gel-based products such as shampoo, soap, and sunscreen. However, the demand for these gel-based products has led to a surplus production of Aloe vera processing waste. An Aloe vera gel processing facility could generate up to 4000 kg of Aloe vera waste per month. Currently the Aloe vera waste is being disposed to the landfill or used as fertilizer. A sustainable management system for the Aloe vera processing waste should be considered, due to the negative societal and environmental impacts of the currents waste disposal methods. Therefore, this review focuses on various approaches that can be used to valorize Aloe vera waste into value-added products, such as animal and aquaculture feeds, biosorbents, biofuel and natural polymers. Researchers have reported Aloe vera waste for environmental applications biosorbents used for wastewater treatment of various pollutants. Several studies have also reported on the valorization of Aloe vera waste for production of biofuels such as bioethanol, mixed alcohol fuels, biogas and syn-gas. Aloe vera waste could also be valorized through isolation and synthesis of natural polymers for application in wound dressing, tissue engineering and drug delivery systems. Aloe vera waste valorization was also reviewed through extraction of value-added bioactive compounds such as aloe-emodin, aloin and aloeresin. These value-added bioactive compounds have various applications in the cosmetics (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory, tyrosinase inhibitors) and pharmaceutical (anticancer agent and COVID 19 inhibitors) industry. © 2023, Tech Science Press. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Building Information Modelling is being adopted worldwide and universities are thus expected to provide the market with new professionals with BIM knowledge and skills. However, introduction of this theme into the curriculum can be challenging to teaching staff. Having successful implementation examples can help carrying on this task. This paper presents the structure, syllabus, adopted tools and activities of an introductory BIM course offered to first-year engineering students. Implemented with only 2 credits, it covers BIM fundamental concepts and develops collaboration skills and abilities with BIM software tools. It was effectively deployed on big classes and successfully offered both in face-to-face and remote modes, adopting a practice focus. An innovative organization for student group projects was adopted, enabling student participation on several projects, performing a different role in each one. Perceived benefits to students' development are reported. The covid-19 pandemics impact is discussed. Future improvements in the course are suggested. Overall results achieved were considered very good. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
Before the pandemic, distance learning was not a widely adopted option for science and engineering programs where in some courses, such as chemistry, electromagnetism, or fluid mechanics, etc., attending to laboratories and workshops was in most cases mandatory. The lockdown forced us to innovate, searching alternative ways to teach experimental phenomena, suddenly replaced with simulation science and technology, subjects that although rely on computers, also suffered changes from the transition. In this contribution, we propose an undergraduate course on simulation for chemical engineering, departing from the fact that modeling, and simulation are multipurpose and multidisciplinary tools. The course aims to reinforce the concepts of dynamical systems by using analogies between process engineering examples and other disciplines, particularly, epidemiology. For this purpose, a final project on modeling the dynamics of the COVID 19 pandemic in Mexico was designed and validated with a public database from the Mexican Secretariat of Health. By doing this, the students got in touch with the evolution of the dynamics outside of school hours, since it was common to see weekly updates and extrapolation trends of the pandemic, thus applying their skills to the final project. It was found that success factors were the use of official data, the use of Graphical User Interfaces to explore diverse simulation scenarios and the final project. The transition to the Distance Learning faced several challenges that were partially coped with the redesign of the course. © 2023 Institution of Chemical Engineers
ABSTRACT
Our daily lives have been transformed by mobile smart devices. Due to the sudden impact of the coronavirus (Covid-19) on education, the importance of mobile devices for communicating with teachers and students has risen to a new level of prominence. The Web of Science and Scopus databases were used to conduct a systematic review of the research on mobile collaborative learning in engineering education. The purpose of this review is to ascertain the degree to which research on mobile collaborative learning has been conducted in the field of engineering education between 2010 and 2020. A total of 48 articles were reviewed to ascertain the research methodologies and area of study, as well as to provide an updated review of studies on mobile collaborative applications, particularly in the field of engineering education. Among the most significant findings is that the majority of publications make use of augmented reality and mobile application development. According to the review, the majority of studies were conducted in the fields of computer sciences, electronic engineering, and artificial intelligence. © 2022, Beijing Normal University.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: This study aims to identify critical online teaching effectiveness factors from instructors' perspectives and experiences during COVID-19. Design/methodology/approach: This study used a qualitative phenomenology approach. In addition, the research used a snowball sample to identify faculty in the engineering and engineering technology fields with experience in online teaching and learning. All interviews were conducted online by the researchers. The interview questions were based on findings in the current literature. Further, the questions were open-ended. Findings: The analysis identified eight major themes that impact online teaching effectiveness: class recordings;course organization;collaboration;engagement;exam, assignment and quiz grades;games;valuable course content;and student timely feedback and response. Research limitations/implications: The study was not designed to be generalizable to the entire population of professors who teach online classes but to gain insights from faculty who taught online courses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Practical implications: Faculty can use the factors identified for online teaching effectiveness to enhance their course design and delivery while teaching online or blended courses. Originality/value: This research provides insights into factors that impact online teaching effectiveness during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.
ABSTRACT
With long-term impact of COVID-19 on education, online interactive live courses have been an effective method to keep learning and teaching from being interrupted, attracting more and more attention due to their synchronous and real-time interaction. However, there is no suitable method for predicting academic performance for students participating in online class. Five machine learning models are employed to predict academic performance of an engineering mechanics course, taking online learning behaviors, comprehensive performance as input and final exam scores (FESs) as output. The analysis shows the gradient boosting regression model achieves the best performance with the highest correlation coefficient (0.7558), and the lowest RMSE (9.3595). Intellectual education score (IES) is the most important factor of comprehensive performance while the number of completed assignment (NOCA), the live viewing rate (LVR) and the replay viewing rate (RVR) of online learning behaviors are the most important factors influencing FESs. Students with higher IES are more likely to achieve better academic performance, and students with lower IES but higher NOCA tend to perform better. Our study can provide effective evidences for teachers to adjust teaching strategies and provide precise assistance for students at risk of academic failure in advance.
ABSTRACT
The paper investigates the volatility spillover across China's carbon emission trading (CET) markets using the connectedness method based on the quantile VAR framework. The non-linear result shows strong volatility spillover effects in upper quantiles, resulting from major economic and political events. This is in accordance with the risk contagion hypothesis that volatility of carbon price returns is affected by the shocks of economic fundamentals and spills over to other pilots. Guangdong and Shanghai are the most significant contributors to volatility transmission because of their high liquidity and active markets. Hubei CET pilot has shifted from transmitter to receiver since the COVID-19 pandemic. Regarding the pairwise directional connectedness, geographical location and similar market attribute also matter in volatility transmission. This provides implications for policymakers and investors to attach importance to risk management given the quantile-based method rather than the average shocks. © 2023 Elsevier B.V.
ABSTRACT
Technological progress has led to the integration of technology into the practices of the learning process. The aim of this integration is to overcome the deficiencies of traditional methods to ensure greater efficiency. Despite the technology revolution, the adoption of e-learning has always been a choice in the educational process. The COVID 19 crisis has shown the need for a total transition to e-learning during the period of lockdown. According to several studies that have assessed the impact of COVID 19 on their education systems and the solutions adopted, hybrid learning represents an adequate solution to benefit from the advantages of both modes: face-to-face and distance learning. For this purpose, we propose in this paper a hybrid learning model based on an adaptive collaborative work through an intelligent assignment of the group member's roles by using Naïve Bayes algorithm and Belbin theory. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
This study investigates the impacts of crude oil-market-specific fundamental factors and financial indicators on the realized volatility of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil price. A time-varying parameter vector autoregression model with stochastic volatility (TVP-VAR-SV) is applied to weekly data series spanning January 2008 to October 2021. It is found that the WTI oil price volatility responds positively to a shock in oil production, oil inventories, the US dollar index, and VIX but negatively to a shock in the US economic activity. The response to the EPU index was initially positive and then turned slightly negative before fading away. The VIX index has the most significant effect. Furthermore, the time-varying nature of the response of the WTI realized oil price volatility is evident. Extreme effects materialize during economic recessions and crises, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings can improve our understanding of the time-varying nature and determinants of WTI oil price volatility. © 2022
ABSTRACT
This study investigates learners' viewing behaviors and engagement patterns through educational video analytics. Based on the performance of 42 instructional videos aiming to provide asynchronous help in both online and traditional Engineering laboratories in Higher Education, a comparative analysis has been performed. Data from YouTube channel's reports have been collected and processed in three time periods: the first semester of the academic year 2019–2020 and 2020–2021 in strictly remote teaching environments, and the second semester of 2021–2022 in traditional and hybrid learning modes. Even though instructor-generated educational videos have been a common tool for asynchronous support in online learning spaces, an evaluation by the available social media channels analytics has not been performed yet in an adequate level for leading to results. The most important outcome of this research is that YouTube analytics of the educational videos have shown that the social media channel can perform under different learning environments, with the same efficiency, proving the long-term viability of this construct of the learning strategy. Instructors and stake holders may profit from this study for future course planning in Engineering online and hybrid learning environments. © 2023, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.