Bilingual Publishing Co. (BPC): E-Journals
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Expert Review on Usefulness of an Integrated Checklist-based Mobile Usability Evaluation Framework
No full textPrevious mobile usability studies are only pertinent in the context of ergonomics, physical user interface, and mobility aspects. In addition, much of the previous mobile usability conception was built on desktop computing measurements, such as desktop and web application checklists, or scarcely addressed the mobile user interface. Moreover, the studies focus mainly on interface features for desktop applications and do not reflect comprehensive mobile interface features such as navigation drawers and spinners. Therefore, conducting usability evaluation using conventional usability measurement would result in irrelevant results. In addition, the resulting works are tailored for usability testing, which requires highly skilled evaluators and usability specialists (e.g., usability testers and user experience designers), who are rarely integrated into a development team. The lack of expertise could lead to unreliable usability evaluations. This paper presents a review from industrial experts on a comprehensive and feasible usability evaluation framework developed in our previous work. The framework is dedicated to smartphone apps, which integrate evaluator skills and design concerns. However, there is no evidence of its usefulness in practice. Therefore, the usefulness of the framework measurement for evaluating apps' usability in the eyes of non-usability specialists is empirically assessed in this paper through an expert review. The expert review involved eleven industrial developers and was complemented by a semi-structured interview. The method is replicated in comparison with a framework from another study. The findings show that the formulated framework significantly outperformed the framework (p = 0.0286) from other studies with large effect sizes (r = 1.81) in terms of usefulness
Satellite Image Enhancement Using Histogram Equalization
No full textImage enhancement is an indispensable technique in improving the quality, brightness, contrast and clarity of satellite images. The object that appears in images and variation caused by shadow, occlusion, camouflage in satellite images are the fundamental challenges posed by image enhancement techniques. The aim of this research work was to enhance satellite images of Sambisa using histogram equalization technique. MATLAB 2021 was used to implement the experiment. The results show that histogram equalization method has an excellent processing effect and it improved the brightness, contrast and clarity of the images as compared original images and the enhanced images
Profitability Level and Determinants of Tea Intercropping in Taraba State
No full textIntercropping involves the cultivation of more than one crop on a plot of land at a particular time. Tea intercropping with other crops can increase the profitability of farmers and the development of tea plants. The study estimated the profitability level of intercropped tea farms and determined the factors affecting the profitability of tea intercropping systems in the study area. Information was obtained from two hundred and four tea farmers using a well-structured questionnaire. The analytical techniques used in the study were descriptive analysis and linear regression. The results revealed that the majority (95.6%) of the farmers are from Kakara and Nyiwa towns. There are few (2.9%) women involved in tea farming in Taraba State. 29% of the tea farmers are young less than 30 years and old above 60 years. Fifteen percent of the farmers are single, 83.8% are married and 1.5% are divorced. About 40% of the tea farmers had no formal education, 21% have between 1-6 years of education, 19% had 7-12 years of education and 21% had greater than 12 years of education. The gross margin is ₦289,900,581.9 and the gross margin per farmer is ₦1,421,081.28. The net income is ₦2,879,055,533.3 and the net income per farmer is ₦1,411,301.63. The amount of profit tea farmers make in Taraba State is ₦1,425,001 and the profit per farmer is ₦6,985.30. Labour costs (weeding, pruning, application of insecticide, watering) and cost of materials (cutlass, file, chemical, bag and others) are significant determinants of the profit level of the tea intercropping system in Taraba State. Tea intercropping farming is profitable in Taraba State Nigeria
On the Possible Cometary Nature of the Uchur Cosmic Body (Fall 3.08. 1993)
No full textAn expeditionary study of the area of the alleged impact event that occurred on 3.08.1993 in the area of the Lower Konkuli River (southeast of the Aldan Highlands, Lurikan Range, Russia) was carried out. According to the materials of remote sensing, the places of collision with the earth of a cosmic body are determined. In the area of the impact of the shock wave on the Earth’s surface, peat samples were selected, the micro probe analysis of which showed the presence of a cosmogenic substance in concentrations 6-8 times higher than the background. Silicate and magnetite micro spheres, native iron, moissanite, and carbon micro tubes coated with a film consisting of pure nickel were found. Of particular interest were the findings of specific Ni film micro structures that allow us to make an assumption about the cometary nature of the Uchur cosmic body. Most researchers associate the observed flights of fireballs with the subsequent fall of meteorites. Researchers are trying to find the massive body of the fallen space body. However, often, even after many years of searching, a massive cosmic body cannot be found. This happened when studying the site of the fall of the Tunguska cosmic body. In this case, it remains to be assumed that the cosmic body contained microscopic dust particles. The structure and composition of such particles can only be studied using microscopic research methods. When studying the Uchur cosmic body, the authors concluded that it could be of a cometary nature due to the findings of specific particles—thin films of pure nickel on the surface of plant remains of terrestrial origin. This hypothesis arose from the recent discovery of atomic nickel vapors in comets
Eco-Friendly Knit Garments Washing Implementation and Its Impact
No full textEnvironment pollution is one of the major threats to today’s world and researchers say most of the pollution comes from the washing industry. So, the study aims to find out an alternative way to the existing chemical wash process of the washing industry to save the environment. To conduct this study, one knit washing factory has been selected that has eco-friendly wash facilities. The eco-friendly wash process samples have been developed and finally show the comparison in respect of time, per day production and test result to the conventional chemical wash processes along with the impact of production cost on the garment. For all eco-friendly process, it has been found that water consumptions are too less in comparison with conventional process potentials which is partially related to Sustainable Development Goals 13 (Climate Action). This study might help to find out a new era of doing washed knitted product business without polluting the environment
Unveiling the Carbonation Behavior and Microstructural Changes of Magnesium Slag at 0 ℃
No full textMagnesium slag (MS) is an industrial byproduct with high CO2 sequestration potential. This study investigates the carbonation behavior and microstructural changes of MS during wet carbonation at 0 °C. XRD, TG, FTIR, SEM, and BET techniques were used to characterize the phase composition, microstructure, and porosity of MS samples carbonated for different durations. The results showed that the main carbonation products were calcite, vaterite, and highly polymerized silica gel, with particle sizes around 1 μm. The low-temperature environment retarded the carbonation reaction rate and affected the morphology and crystallization of calcium carbonate. After 480 min of carbonation, the specific surface area and porosity of MS increased substantially by 740% and 144.6%, respectively, indicating improved reactivity. The microstructure of carbonated MS became denser with calcite particles surrounded by silica gel. This study demonstrates that wet carbonation of MS at 0 °C significantly enhances its properties, creating an ultrafine supplementary cementitious material with considerable CO2 sequestration capacity
Gaining Insight into Mechanisms of Nonphotochemical Quenching of Chlorophyll Fluorescence in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii via the Observation of Dark-induced State Transitions
No full textPhotosynthetic organisms are usually exposed to fluctuating light, and therefore they evolved mechanisms enabling fast acclimation to changing light conditions. Among them, two important ones are energy-dependent quenching of excited chlorophyll (qE) and state transitions (ST). qE is a photoprotective mechanism regulated by pH gradient across thylakoid membranes, in which excessive energy is dissipated as heat. ST are rearrangements of antenna systems regulated by the phosphorylation of LHC II complexes. Both of these mechanisms result in changes in NPQ parameters. In the present article, changes of NPQ in the green microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii were evaluated in the dark period, after various lengths of actinic light exposure, and after the application of the thiol reducing reagent dithiotreitol and the cyt b6f inhibitor 2' ,4' -dinitrophenyl ether of 2-iodo-4-nitro-thymol. The impact of the length of actinic light exposure on xanthophyll cycle progression in C. reinhardtii was also analysed. The obtained results enabled us to gain more insight into the nonphotochemical quenching of chlorophyll fluorescence in model organism C. reinhardtii, i.e. the role of zeaxanthin-dependent quenching and chlororespiration-induced pH gradient, and the inhibitory action of tested compounds on state transitions in this species
Geophysical Approach for Groundwater Resource Assessment: A Case Study of Oda Community Akure, Southwestern Nigeria
No full textThe geophysical investigation for groundwater was carried out at Oda town, Akure south local government area of Ondo State. Fourteen (14) points were sounded using a Schlumberger array with AB/2 of 80 m and the resulting geoelectric parameters were used in the estimation of the aquifer layer parameters of the subsurface. The first layer resistivity value ranges from 29 to 164 Ωm and thickness ranges from 0.6 to 2.5 m. The second layer has a resistivity value ranging from 21-1361 Ωm with a thickness ranging from 1.5 m to 14.6 m. The third layer resistivity value is from 68 to 297 Ωm with thickness ranging from 4 m to 12.4 m. The fourth layer which is the deepest layer has a resistivity value ranging from 180 to 4364 Ωm with depth ranging from 4 m to 19.5 m. The parameters interpreted from the geoelectric data were used to generate the aquifer thickness and resistivity maps, with bedrock relief which were combined to produce the groundwater potential map of the area. These maps were used to characterise the study area into low to high groundwater potential zones. The southwestern and eastern parts were identified as productive groundwater potential zones. The result was validated by taking water column depth from eight existing hand-dug wells. A significant correlation was obtained between the groundwater potential model and the well water column. The surveyed area is generally suitable for hand-dug well aside from the north-eastern part where groundwater potential is low and water volume is observed
Crucial, But Not Systematically Investigated: Rock Glaciers, the Concealed Water Reservoirs of the Himalayas: An Opinion
No full textThe current article is an opinion on the sensitivity of high mountain regions which are the most fragile, sensitive and vulnerable to ongoing climate change. Its impacts are especially severe on the high mountain communities owing to their weak socio-economic profile, limited livelihood resources and agricultural land. The melting of glaciers and changes in the snow cover under the climate change scenario is leading to the scarcity of freshwater supplies, affecting both local and downstream communities. Changes in the precipitation patterns have been suggested to cause droughts, impact restricted agriculture, and limit the availability of water for domestic use. Additionally, the high mountain areas contain distinct flora and fauna, and climate change is not just altering them, but also has resulted in biodiversity loss as species are unable to adapt to the changing climate. Because of its higher altitudes and semi-arid to arid climate, the consequences of climate change are more evident in the higher Himalayas. Climate change is affecting the availability of key resources, such as freshwater and agriculture and pasture lands, resulting in food and water insecurity and their reliance on imports from other regions. As a result, high mountain communities in the Himalayas are progressively shifting to higher glacier valleys in search of suitable cultivable land with adequate irrigation. People are engaging in agro-pastoral activities around thermokarst lakes (Oasis) atop rock glaciers as part of this endeavour. Such actions underscore the crucial role of rock glaciers in dealing with and adjusting to the consequences of climate change. Despite its relevance, rock glacier research in the Himalayan region is still in its infancy. The purpose of this work is to emphasise the significance of these major climate-resilient water resources, as well as the methodology that must be adopted for their systematic and compressive investigations