An Automatic Handheld Device for Firmness Measurement of Fruit with Edible Peel Based on Resistance Sensing: A Case Study of Peaches

2021 ◽  
Vol 64 (6) ◽  
pp. 1895-1905
Author(s):  
Dachen Wang ◽  
Zhe Feng ◽  
Di Cui
Keyword(s):  
3D Models ◽  
Initial Slope ◽  
List Type ◽  
Fruit Firmness ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Handheld Device ◽  
Relative Standard ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Measurement Results

HighlightsA handheld device was developed for automatic on-site measurement of fruit firmness.The prototype device achieved better performance than a typical commercial penetrometer.Two commonly used firmness-related parameters could be predicted based on the prototype readings.The distribution and changes of firmness could be visualized based on 3D models of the prototype readings.Abstract. Firmness is an important indicator of fruit quality. The devices for on-site fruit firmness measurement need to be portable, low-cost, lightweight, reliable, and flexible. Existing portable devices can provide firmness-related parameters, but their measurement results cannot be converted to each other. Their measurement results are also susceptible to operator error due to the manual measurement process. To solve this problem, a prototype handheld device was developed based on sensing fruit resistance to achieve automatic on-site firmness measurement of fruit with edible peel and provide commonly used firmness-related parameters. The prototype’s precision was verified by analyzing the repeatability and reproducibility of the measurement results with four Shore hardness blocks. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) of the results obtained by the same operator were less than 0.61%, and there was no significant difference among the results obtained by different operators (p < 0.05), which indicated that the prototype could provide reliable measurement results. A case study of peaches was performed, and the results showed that (1) the prototype had better performance than a commercial penetrometer, (2) two commonly used firmness-related parameters could be predicted based on regression models between a texture analyzer and the prototype readings (R2P = 0.908 and RMSEP = 4.191 N for maximum force; R2P = 0.923 and RMSEP = 1.613 N mm-1 for initial slope), (3) changes in the prototype readings for peaches during growth corresponded with the growth characteristics, and (4) the distribution and changes of peach firmness over time could be visualized based on 3D models of the prototype readings. Keywords: Automatic, Fruit firmness, Handheld device, High precision, Peach.

COMPARISON OF THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF PATIENTS IN THE LOCALY ADVANCED BREAST CANCER FORMS AFTER SYSTEM AND INTRALYMPHATIC POLYCHEMOTHERAPY

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 3-13
Author(s):  
Yuriy Dumanskiy ◽  
Oleksandr Bondar ◽  
Oleksandr Tkachenko ◽  
Evhenii Stoliachuk ◽  
Vasilii Ermakov
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Locally Advanced ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Preoperative Treatment ◽  
Discrete Elements ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Significant Difference

In recent years, breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer pathology and the most common cause of disability among women in developed countries. Finding the most effective ways of interaction between the patient and the doctor creates the preconditions for the necessary analysis of the treatment process from an objective and subjective point of view. Therefore, an important indicator to be taken into account is the quality of life of a patient. To compare the indicators of a comprehensive assessment of the quality of life of patients to the adverse locally advanced forms (LA) of breast cancer before and after systemic intravenous polychemotherapy (SPCTx) and selective endolymphatic polychemotherapy (ELPCTx) in neoadjuvant mode. The study was conducted on the basis of a random analysis of outpatient cards from 112 patients with LA BC T4A-DN0-3M0 who received a comprehensive antitumor treatment on the basis of the Donetsk regional antitumor center and the University Clinic of the Odessa National Medical University from 2000 to 2017, which was proposed a questionnaire at various stages of preoperative treatment. The first (control) group consisted of 65 patients (58 %) with inoperable forms of LA BC, which was performed in neoadjuvant mode by SPCTx. The second (study group) included 47 patients (42 %) with inoperable forms of LA BC, which was performed as a neoadjuvant course ELPCTx. According to the integral indicators of quality of life and quality of health between patients in the control and study groups, there was no statistically significant difference. In a detailed analysis of the indicators of symptomatic scales, the difference between the groups did not exceed the critical. Based on the results of a study conducted among patients receiving endolymphatic chemotherapy in a neoadjuvant mode, the subjective evaluations of treatment in absolute numbers have better reference values without statistical superiority. The study of the integrative indicator of quality of life and its discrete elements is an ergonomic and economical means of heuristic assessment of the health of patients in order to further develop more rational and convenient ways of solving urgent issues of modern oncology by increasing compliance and finding a compromise between the physician and the patient.

scholarly journals Changes of Walking Activity During the First Cycle Phases of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Case Study of Seoul, Korea

2021 ◽  
pp. 193758672110265
Author(s):  
Youngjun Park ◽  
Haekwon Chung ◽  
Sohyun Park
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Physical Inactivity ◽  
Voluntary Participation ◽  
Walking Activity ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Acceleration And Deceleration ◽  
Preliminary Study ◽  
The Government

Aim: This study explores the changes in regular walking activities during the phases of the pandemic. Background: With the spread of COVID-19 transmission, people are refraining from going out, reducing their physical activity. In South Korea, COVID-19 broke out in the 4th week of 2020 and experienced the first cycle phases of the pandemic, such as outbreak, widespread, and decline. In response to the pandemic, the government encouraged voluntary participation in social distancing campaigns, and people reduced their outside activities. Methods: This article examines the decrease and increase of the Prevalence of Regular Walking (≥30 min of moderate walking a day, on ≥5 days a week) by the COVID-19 phases. This study is based on weekly walking data for 15 weeks in 2020, via the smartphone healthcare app, which is managed by 25 public health offices of the Seoul government. Results: According to the findings, the level of prevalence of regular walking (PRW) has a significant difference before and after the outbreak, and every interval of the four-stage COVID-19 phases, that is, pre-pandemic, initiation, acceleration, and deceleration. The level of PRW sharply decreased during initiation and acceleration intervals. In the deceleration interval of COVID-19, the PRW kept increasing, but it has not yet reached the same level as the previous year when the COVID-19 did not exist. Conclusions: As a preliminary study, this study explains empirically how COVID-19 changed PRW in Seoul. It would be helpful to enhance our understanding of the changes in physical inactivity in the pandemic period.

Effects of Different Methods Used to Take Blood Samples on Blood Glucose Measurements

2021 ◽  
pp. 105477382110247
Author(s):  
Eda Ergin ◽  
Ayten Zaybak
Keyword(s):  
Blood Glucose ◽  
Glucose Tolerance Test ◽  
Venous Blood ◽  
Tolerance Test ◽  
Capillary Blood ◽  
Oral Glucose ◽  
Blood Samples ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Measurement Results ◽  
Quasi Experimental

The purpose of this study is to compare whether or not there is a difference between venous and capillary blood samples in blood glucose measurements and investigate the effects of different aseptic methods used in skin cleaning before collecting blood samples on measurement results. This quasi-experimental study was conducted with 109 patients. The capillary first and second blood drop values taken from the patients after fasting and at 2 hours following 75 g oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and capillary and venous blood glucose values were compared. There was no significant difference between the median venous blood glucose value and the capillary second blood drop value taken after wiping the finger with alcohol. There was no significant difference between the first and second blood drop values of capillary blood glucose 2 hours after OGTT.

scholarly journals The effect of flexural–torsional buckling on the stability of timber members: a case study

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Osama A. B. Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Axial Compression ◽  
Bending Moment ◽  
List Type ◽  
Torsional Buckling ◽  
Solution Methods ◽  
Simplified Solution ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Flexural Torsional Buckling ◽  
Building Engineering

Abstract This study investigates the stability of timber members subjected to simultaneously acting axial compression and bending moment, with possible risk for torsional and flexural–torsional buckling. This situation can occur in laterally supported members where one side of the member is braced but the other side is unbraced. In this case, the free side will buckle out of plane while the braced side will be prevented from torsional and flexural–torsional buckling. This problem can be evident for long members in timber-frame structures, which are subjected to high axial compression combined with bending moments in which the member is not sufficiently braced at both sides. This study is based on the design requirement stated in Eurocode 5. Solution methods discussed in this paper can be of interest within the framework of structural and building Engineering practices and education in which the stability of structural elements is investigated. Article Highlights This case study investigates some design situations where the timber member is not sufficiently braced. In this case, a stability problem associated with combined torsional buckling and flexural buckling can arise. The study shows that the torsional and/or flexural–torsional buckling of timber members can be important to control in order to fulfil the criteria of the stability of the member according to Eurocode 5 and help the structural engineer to achieve safer designs. The study investigates also a simplified solution to check the effect of flexural torsional buckling of laterally braced timber members.

scholarly journals Artificial life and ‘nature’s purposes’: The question of behavioral autonomy

Human Affairs ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 587-596
Author(s):  
Elena Popa
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Life ◽  
Life Forms ◽  
Behavioral Traits ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Autonomous Behavior ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Behavioral Autonomy ◽  
Synthetic Life ◽  
Biological Organisms

AbstractThis paper investigates the concept of behavioral autonomy in Artificial Life by drawing a parallel to the use of teleological notions in the study of biological life. Contrary to one of the leading assumptions in Artificial Life research, I argue that there is a significant difference in how autonomous behavior is understood in artificial and biological life forms: the former is underlain by human goals in a way that the latter is not. While behavioral traits can be explained in relation to evolutionary history in biological organisms, in synthetic life forms behavior depends on a design driven by a research agenda, further shaped by broader human goals. This point will be illustrated with a case study on a synthetic life form. Consequently, the putative epistemic benefit of reaching a better understanding of behavioral autonomy in biological organisms by synthesizing artificial life forms is subject to doubt: the autonomy observed in such artificial organisms may be a mere projection of human agency. Further questions arise in relation to the need to spell out the relevant human aims when addressing potential social or ethical implications of synthesizing artificial life forms.

Host and backpacker perceptions of environmental impacts of backpacker tourism: A case study of the Yasawa Islands, Fiji

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 203-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Supattra Sroypetch ◽  
Neil Carr ◽  
Tara Duncan
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Impacts ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Less Developed Countries ◽  
Significant Difference

This paper examines host and backpacker perceptions of the environmental impacts of backpacker tourism on local communities in less-developed countries. The discussion is based on data collected in 2011 via surveys and interviews with host and backpacker populations in the Yasawa Islands of Fiji. The results suggest that there is a significant difference between the perceptions of hosts and their guests towards the environmental impacts of backpacker tourism. Backpackers believe that they generate a higher extent of negative environmental impacts on the destination than those perceived by their hosts. This study broadens the understanding of the impacts of backpacker tourism from dual perspectives – both the hosts and guests.

scholarly journals Quantitative analysis of folds by means of orthorectified photogrammetric 3D models: a case study from Mt. Catria, Northern Apennines, Italy

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (160) ◽  
pp. 480-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amerigo Corradetti ◽  
Stefano Tavani ◽  
Mario Russo ◽  
Pau Cazo Arbués ◽  
Pablo Granado
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Analysis ◽  
3D Models ◽  
Northern Apennines

Determination of Blood Flow in Superficial Arteries of Human Face using Doppler Ultrasonography in Young Adults

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nedal Iqbal ◽  
Khubaib Shahid ◽  
Muhammad Imtiaz ◽  
Faiqua Yasser ◽  
Ayesha Ashraf ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Peak Systolic Velocity ◽  
Vascular Diseases ◽  
Facial Artery ◽  
Categorical Variables ◽  
Human Face ◽  
Important Indicator ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Diseased State

Background: Human face is highly vascular region and vascularity to the skin and other organs is an important indicator of health and disease. Change in blood flow is affected by aging, diabetes, high blood triglycerides, cigarette smoking etc. With so many factors that can alter blood flow in the skin, normal blood flow is important to know for comparison to diseased state. Blood flow in superficial arteries of face has not yet been described, therefore this study was designed to establish baseline blood flow values in arteries of face. Materials and Methods: Blood flow of right and left side was assessed at level of facial and infraorbital artery. Categorical variables were presented in form of frequency and percentages was done by using Mann-Whitney U. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks test was used to compare left and right facial and infra orbital arteries. Results: Peak systolic velocity of right and left facial artery had a significant difference having right side mean of 67.02±12.48 and left side mean as 72.67±11.69. Facial artery diameter of right and left side also had significant difference with mean of 0.14±0.02 and 0.15±0.02 respectively. Conclusion: No difference was found between vascularity in male & female and left or right side. The study might be useful to establish normal baseline values of various parameters on both sides of face in male and female adults. This study may become important reference for future studies measuring blood flow and even progression of vascular diseases may be assessed by indexes developed on the basis of these studies.

Perbandingan harga saham, volume transaksi dan return saham sebelum dan sesudah terjadi pandemi covid-19 pada PT Agung Podomoro Land, Tbk

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 720
Author(s):  
Anggun Putri Romadhina ◽  
Eka Kusuma Dewi
Keyword(s):  
Stock Returns ◽  
Stock Prices ◽  
Stock Price ◽  
Research Data ◽  
Paired Sample ◽  
First Case ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Stock Transaction

The first Covid-19 case in Indonesia was announced on March 2, 2020. This study aims to determine whether there is a significant difference in stock prices, stock transaction volume and stock returns due to the COVID-19 pandemic (case study at PT. Agung Podomoro Land, Tbk). This research data was taken 90 days before and 90 days after the announcement of the first case of COVID-19 in Indonesia. The data was processed by paired sample t-test, using SPSS version 20. From the results of data processing, it was shown that there was a significant difference in stock prices before and after the announcement of the first case of covid-19 in Indonesia. This is indicated by a significance value of 0.000 < 0.05 where the stock price has decreased compared to before the Covid-19 case. Meanwhile, the volume of stock transactions also showed a significant difference with a significance value of 0.007 <0.05, where the volume of stock transactions after the announcement showed a decrease. Likewise, stock returns show a significant difference with a significance value of 0.025 < 0.05 where stock returns have decreased after the announcement of the first case of covid-10 in Indonesia.  

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