Austronesian Lights the Way: The Origins of the Words for ‘Sun’ and Other Celestial Voca bulary in Old Ryukyuan

This paper examines the evidence for historical contacts between Ryukyuans and Austronesians and uses this as a starting point to explore the borrowing of celestial vocabulary from Austronesian languages into Proto or Old Ryukyuan. The previous hypotheses for the etymology of Proto-Ryukyuan *tenda ‘sun’ are discussed in detail, and this is followed by discussions on Old Ryukyuan words meaning ‘sun’, ‘sun, light’, ‘heaven’ and ‘moon’. In all of these cases it is argued the most plausible source languages are Austronesian, based on strong phonetic and semantic correspondences, geographic proximity to the Ryukyus or the Old Ryukyuan trade route, shared celestial worship, as well as the lack of cognates in Japanese.

Variation of pH and Composite Dosage on the Photocatalytic Activity for ZnO/epoxy Nanocomposites

In this research, Zinc oxide (ZnO)/epoxy nanocomposite was synthesized by simple casting method with 2wt. % ZnO concentration. The aim of this work was to study the effect of pH and composite dosage on the photocatalytic activity of ZnO/ epoxy nanocomposite. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) technique images proof the homogeneous distribution of ZnO nanoparticles in epoxy. A synthesized nanocomposite samples were characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometer (FTIR) measurements. Two spectra for epoxy and 2wt.% ZnO/epoxy nanocomposites were similar and there are no new bonds formed from the incorporation of ZnO nanoparticles. Using HCl and NaOH were added to Methylene blue (MB) dye (5ppm) to gat pH values 3 and 8. The degradation of the dye was 90.816% were pH =8 after 180 min. under sun-light. The degradation was 6.131% were pH=3 after 240 min. under sun-light irradiation. It is found that the base solution help in accelerating the photocatalytic process, pH with high value provides greater concentration of hydroxyl ions which interact with h+ to form hydroxyl radicals OH- that give an enhancement degradation rate of dyes. The dose of ZnO was increased from 3g to 6g with Methylene blue MB (5ppm) the degradation was 94.3755% after 240 min. under sun-light irradiation. This means that increasing the dose of ZnO, the photocatalytic activity will be increased.

Solar observation with the Fourier transform spectrometer I : Preliminary results of the visible and near-infrared solar spectrum

The Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS) is a core instrument for solar observation with high spectral resolution, especially in the infrared. The Infrared System for the Accurate Measurement of Solar Magnetic Field (AIMS), working at 10–13 μm, will use an FTS to observe the solar spectrum. The Bruker IFS-125HR, which meets the spectral resolution requirement of AIMS but simply equips with a point source detector, is employed to carry out preliminary experiment for AIMS. A sun-light feeding experimental system is further developed. Several experiments are taken with them during 2018 and 2019 to observe the solar spectrum in the visible and near infrared wavelength, respectively. We also proposed an inversion method to retrieve the solar spectrum from the observed interferogram and compared it with the standard solar spectrum atlas. Although there is a wavelength limitation due to the present sun-light feeding system, the results in the wavelength band from 0.45–1.0 μm and 1.0–2.2 μm show a good consistency with the solar spectrum atlas, indicating the validity of our observing configuration, the data analysis method and the potential to work in longer wavelength. The work provided valuable experience for the AIMS not only for the operation of an FTS but also for the development of its scientific data processing software.

Tom Pouce III, an Electronic White Cane for Blind People: Ability to Detect Obstacles and Mobility Performances

We present a protocol for evaluating the efficiency of an electronic white cane for improving the mobility of blind people. The electronic cane used during the test is the Tom Pouce III, made of LIDAR sensors (light detection and ranging) with tactile feedback. The protocol comprises two parts. The first part, the “detection test”, evaluates the efficiency of the sensors in the Tom Pouce III for detecting the obstacles found in everyday life (thin and large poles, apertures) under different environmental conditions (darkness, sun light, rain). The second part of the test, the “mobility test”, compares the ability of blind participants to cross a 25 m path by avoiding obstacles with the simple white cane and the electronic cane. The 12 blind participants had between 2 and 20 years of experience of everyday usage of Tom Pouce devices. The results show a significant improvement in the capacity to avoid obstacles with the electronic cane relative to the simple white cane, and there was no speed difference. There was no correlation between the results and the years of experience of the users.

Development of Photocatalytic 3D-Printed Cementitious Mortars: Influence of the Curing, Spraying Time Gaps and TiO2 Coating Rates

This work evaluated the photocatalytic activity of 3D-printed cementitious mortar specimens functionalized with TiO2 nanoparticles to obtain a multifunctional and smart concrete. This research aims to assess the influence of different parameters related to the functionalization process such as adsorption, coating time gaps, and coating rates on the degradation efficiency of the functionalized cementitious specimens. Each specimen was evaluated under the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) in an aqueous solution using a sun-light simulation. The obtained results showed a decrease in adsorption (under dark condition) with increasing the sample curing age. The highest photocatalytic efficiency was observed for coated samples aged 7 days. By increasing the coating rates, the photocatalytic efficiency is enhanced. Nonetheless, regardless of the coating rates, all the specimens showed an increase in photocatalytic efficiency for longer time periods of light exposition, i.e., after 8 h of irradiation.

Reflective and transparent cellulose-based passive radiative coolers

Radiative cooling passively removes heat from objects via emission of thermal radiation to cold space. Suitable radiative cooling materials absorb infrared light while they avoid solar heating by either reflecting or transmitting solar radiation, depending on the application. Here, we demonstrate a reflective radiative cooler and a transparent radiative cooler solely based on cellulose derivatives manufactured via electrospinning and casting, respectively. By modifying the microstructure of cellulose materials, we control the solar light interaction from highly reflective (> 90%, porous structure) to highly transparent (≈ 90%, homogenous structure). Both cellulose materials show high thermal emissivity and minimal solar absorption, making them suitable for daytime radiative cooling. Used as coatings on silicon samples exposed to sun light at daytime, the reflective and transparent cellulose coolers could passively reduce sample temperatures by up to 15 °C and 5 °C, respectively.

EVALUASI KENYAMANAN VISUAL PADA PENCAHAYAAN RUANG KELAS MELALUI SIMULASI KOMPUTANSI ARSITEKTUR DIGITAL

Visual comfort through adequate lighting in the room is important in designing a sustainable building. In the classroom, the lighting layout and light source are very important for the comfort of student vision because they can provide the maximum distribution of lighting. Good lighting conditions are very important for students, especially at night where there is no natural sun light, while poor lighting conditions often affect the quality of learning and cause visual disturbances. As many as 90% of universities in Batam City implement night classes according to the student portfolio owned by Batam City, the same thing is also carried out by Batam International University as the largest university in Batam City which carries out 95% of lectures at night. Therefore, designing classroom lighting in accordance with the assessment of visual comfort becomes an important issue. This study will analyze visual comfort through analysis of the lighting in the Batam International University classroom using a digital architectural computing simulation. The purpose of this study is to obtain the right lighting design in the classroom in order to get the best light distribution so as to provide visual comfort for students at night using the Relux digital computing simulation.Keyword: Lighting, Visual comfort, ReluxAbstrak: Kenyaman visual melalui pencahayaan yang cukup pada ruangan merupakan hal penting pada perancangan sebuah bangunan yang berkelanjutan. Pada ruang kelas, tata letak pencahayaan dan pemilihan sumber cahaya yang tepat sangat penting untuk kenyamanan penglihatan mahasiswa karena dapat memberikan sebaran pencahayaan secara maksimal. Kondisi pencahayaan yang baik sangat penting bagi mahasiswa yang berada di kelas khususnya pada malam hari dimana tidak mendapatkan sumber pencahayaan alami dari matahari, sementara kondisi pencahayaan yang buruk sering kali memengaruhi kualitas pembelajaran dan menyebabkan gangguan penglihatan. Sebanyak 90% perguruan tinggi di Kota Batam menerapkan kelas malam sesuai dengan portfolio mahasiswa yang dimiliki Kota Batam, hal serupa juga dilaksanakan oleh Universitas Internasional Batam sebagai Universitas terbesar di Kota Batam yang melaksanakan 95% perkulihaan di malam hari. Oleh sebab itu, perancangan pencahayaan ruang kelas yang sesuai dengan penilaian kenyamanan visual menjadi isu yang penting. Penelitian ini akan menganalisis kenyamanan visual melalui analisis pencahayaan yang dimiliki pada ruangan kelas Universitas Internasional Batam menggunakan simulasi komputansi arsitektur digital. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah memperoleh perancangan pencahayaan yang tepat pada ruang kelas dalam mendapatkan penyebaran cahaya terbaik sehingga memberikan kenyamanan visual bagi mahasiswa pada malam hari dengan menggunakan simulasi komputansi digital Relux.

Execution of a smart street lighting system for energy saving enhancement

In many countries, particularly, third world countries. The common issue is saving energy. That`s why smart systems considered now primary for life requirements. This work aims to solve the energy saving problem. We prepared a street model that contains several lampposts on both sides of the street; we placed three IR sensors between the lampposts alongside the street. The IR sensors are connected to the controller (in this work we used Arduino UNO). The controller takes the signal from the IR sensor, and then it sends the command to the lamppost to turn on or off. Depending on the number of cars passed, (we took a sample of a number of cars that passed on an actual street) and through formulas we calculated the power consumed by the lampposts in two cases, the first case is when the lights is always on. The second case is when the smart system applied. We also applied fuzzy logic to the system to take the intensity of the ambient light (the sun light) under consideration. The results showed that the proposed smart lighting system is efficient and reliable in saving energy. The energy saved for both (smart and fuzzy) systems was enormous.