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Ensuring Fair Trials: Preserving Independence and Impartiality in Criminal Pre-Trial Investigations during War in Ukraine
Get PDFThe right to an effective investigation of the circumstances of a criminal offence must be ensured during martial law to guarantee a fair trial. The article explores the regulatory framework for effective pre-trial investigation standards under martial law. The article notes that the provisions of the current criminal procedural law are imperfect in terms of legal regulation of effective pre-trial investigation standards, which negatively affects the effectiveness of criminal proceedings during martial law. The article emphasizes that the requirement for an effective investigation must be followed during martial law, which means implementing the relevant standards for conducting effective investigations in criminal proceedings. The article underscores that the provisions of the criminal procedural law do not always contribute to the implementation of effective investigation standards. The article emphasizes that legislative provisions regarding the regulation of the identification and replacement of an investigator during the pre-trial investigation during martial law do not contribute to compliance with the "independence and impartiality" standard of effective investigation. The article determines that procedural norms regarding the legal regulation of pre-trial investigation deadlines before the notification of suspicion during martial law do not contribute to the implementation of the "exemplary conscientiousness" standard of effective investigation. The article asserts that the provisions of the criminal procedural law regarding the legal regulation of the commencement of pre-trial investigation during martial law are not aligned with the "efficiency" standard. The author concludes that changes need to be made to the provisions of the Criminal Procedural Code of Ukraine to address the problems of the regulatory framework for effective pre-trial investigation standards under martial law
Modeling and Experimental Investigation of Energy Management for Hybrid Electric Vehicle based on Variable Structure Control Strategy
Get PDFThe current study presents real-time modeling and non-linear controllers-based energy management system (EMS) for multi-energy hybrid Electric Vehicle (EV), where a detailed physics-based dynamic vehicle model has been considered. The main objective of the paper is to regulate the power flow, stabilize DC voltage for an EV driven by a brushless DC motor, and ensure effective power sharing in a hybrid electric system under complex driving circumstances. The approach is based on tracking the reference battery current by backstepping sliding mode control for optimal power distribution. Subsequently, Integral Sliding Mode Control based on barrier function (NBS-ISMC), and Fractional Order Terminal Sliding Mode Control (FOTSMC) are implemented to control the switching operation of converters for Photovoltaic (PV) and Ultra-capacitor (UC), respectively. User-defined and practical standard drive cycles are selected to test the effectiveness of proposed reference current controllers
Transitioning from green to circular procurement in developing countries: a conceptual framework for Ghana’s construction sector
Get PDFCircular procurement (CP) systems are fast evolving and recently, regarded as a ‘golden-ring’ to be leveraged in promoting the circular economy. However, it appears that the construction sector of developing countries is yet to make any significant adaptions and improvements to its existing procurement practice. In this paper, we examine the state of procurement practice in such countries for opportunities to develop and implement CP. Using case analysis from the Ghanaian context, evidence on the status quo of existing green procurement system is sought to ascertain gaps and similarities between practice, policy and targets needed for CP implementation. Qualitative methods comprising the use of secondary data and interviews with stakeholders from three public tendered projects were adopted, and results analysed to develop a conceptual framework for CP. The findings of the study reveal that government policy, circular strategy, circular sourcing and platforms are essential components that need to be developed for CP implementation. Hence, the developed framework proposes an integration of these aspects through the four-lenses of people, process, policy and technology. The output of this research provides a collective roadmap for policymakers, practitioners and academicians towards the attainment of more circular consumption patterns in emerging construction markets
Mind The Gap: A constructivist Grounded Theory Exploring the Role of Social Media in Augmenting the Professional Learning Journey of Generation Z Undergraduate Student Diagnostic Radiographers
Get PDFGeneration Z (Gen Z) have been born into a fully technological age. They are expert users of social media (SoMe) in their day to day lives yet little has been explored around the use of this same technology during the course of diagnostic radiography undergraduate studies to assist with and augment professional learning activities.
The main aim of this qualitative study was to research the gap identified in the literature by investigating the experience of Gen Z diagnostic radiography students’ use of SoMe to augment their professional learning journey.
The study used constructivist grounded theory, which led to a co-created substantive theory. Semi-structured interviews (10) were conducted to gather information about their experiences of the use of SoMe to augment their professional learning.
Data analysis identified that there is a gap in confidence levels between the students’ use of SoMe for personal and professional purposes. Personal usage confidence is high, whilst professional usage confidence is low and the intervening gap needs to be addressed if benefits of using SoMe to augment learning during the course of studies are to be realised.
Having heard the participant voices that confidence is low when using SoMe for professional learning, when all other indicators of SoMe usage would point to a high level of expertise, there is scope in the future design of curricula to address this gap and seek out new and innovative ways to address it. In order to support professional learning using social media, we must not forget or fail to utilise the high level of competence that has already been developed within our fully digital native Gen Z students
Modes of action of GnRH analogues in growth and puberty disorders
Get PDFThis presentation gives a brief overview on the pharmacodynamics of GnRH analogues and how they are used in clinical practic
Education for Sustainability in UK Universities
No full textThis study examined the extent to which environmental sustainability topics are embedded in course descriptions of business-related courses offered by British universities and how these course descriptions are related to formal commitment of universities to sustainability issues and selected organisational characteristics. This study is the first study to systematically analyse descriptions of 2758 business-related courses offered by all universities in the UK and therefore adds new comprehensive knowledge to the debate on education for sustainability and organisational hypocrisy
Life Cycle Cost and Evaluation of Performance between Steel Formwork and Plastic Formwork in Concrete Structure Building
Get PDFIt is important to choose the most suitable type of formwork system material for construction projects due to the fact that formwork plays a crucial part in the construction of reinforced concrete structures. However, some parties still did not take note of important factors to consider in choosing the right type of material for formwork. This research study aims to ease the process of selecting the suitable type of formwork by surveying 5 respondents in the related field of matter located in Malaysia on the two types of formworks and by evaluating their Life Cycle Cost (LCC). Based on the respondent’s opinions and answers, the preferred formwork was more heavily on steel formwork. It shows that steel formwork is superior in the duration required for
setting up, quality of concrete and its surface finishing, cost, strength, durability, handling, and times of reusability. Meanwhile, plastic formwork shows that it is superior in the category of its resistance to leakage and less waste (concrete) production. It was concluded that 7 out of 11 questions were led by steel formwork and 3 out of 11 by
plastic formwork, and only 1 question gained the same amount of response from the 5 respondents. By doing the LCC, we obtained that plastic formwork costs RM12,639.60, and steel formwork is RM24,715.50. It shows that plastic formwork is 49% cheaper than steel formwork. Hence it can give more benefits and is more economical for the long term duration of the company. These findings will provide ease and a better
understanding of formworks that can be used based on the information gained from the research to ensure sustainability towards the environment and economy
Experimental analysis of the effect of the ramp slopes on the maximum exceedance temperature in a branched tunnel fire
Get PDFThis research aims to establish a series of small-scale experiments to analyze the effect of ramp slopes on the
temperature distribution of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) fire in a model branched tunnel under longitudinal ventilation. The heat release rate under experimental conditions reached 2.57 kW to 7.70 kW and five ramp slopes of 0 %, 3 %, 5 %, 7 % and 9 % were conducted. For a specific given bifurcation angle, the maximum exceedance temperature of the fire in the expanding region before the bifurcation angle is measured and analysed. Results show that the maximum exceedance temperature in the main tunnel increases as the ramp slope decreases, which is mainly because the stack effect enhances the entrainment of the air and accelerates the smoke flow. Furthermore, the modified model of the maximum exceedance temperature, which could consider the influence of ramp slope for a branch tunnel fire is established according to the experimental results. The predicted results agree well with those of the experimental study for the main tunnel. The results could provide a
reference and contribute to the knowledge of smoke extraction strategies designed for branched tunnels
Music and the Collective Life of the Prison
Get PDFMusic holds an ambivalent and integral character within the collective lives of prisoners, providing important sources of shared experience but also marking distinctions and providing the means for exclusion and othering. Research in this area tends to focus on the personal relation between music and the self and the processes of change that prisoners are subject to, or which they seek to effect. To apprehend the role of the music within the political dimensions of the prison it is important to include the powerful features of the collective life of the prison which is often overlooked in accounts of music in carceral institutions. This chapter considers how music can constitute part of the cultural lines of inclusion and exclusion within the prison, and how music is used collectively by prisoners within their daily lives to constitute atmospheres of shared feeling
Double-Tuned Birdcage Radio Frequency Coil for 7 T MRI: Optimization, Construction and Workbench Validation
Get PDFThe aim of the present study is the optimization, construction, and workbench validation of a double-tuned 1H- 23Na volume radio frequency (RF) coil suitable for human head imaging at
7 T, based on the birdcage geometry. The birdcage-like design which is considered is the four-ring model, in which two standard birdcage-like structures with the same diameters are nested along the longitudinal axis. Simulations based on Maxwell’s equations are performed to evaluate the RF magnetic field homogeneity and the RF coil efficiency varying the coil geometrical parameters. The RF magnetic field homogeneity is evaluated both on the transverse (z = 0) and longitudinal (y = 0) planes without performing the impedance matching procedure, so that the RF coil symmetry is not perturbed by the matching network. The RF coil efficiency is instead dependent on the effective coil input RF power, and it is evaluated after matching the coil, so that the reflected power is minimized, assuming that the stimulation power is totally delivered to the RF coil. Considering the simulation results and the target application, the useful RF coil geometrical parameters are fixed. The four-ring model, which showed the best performances, has been built and tested on a workbench, using a cylindrical phantom filled with a 0.05 M saline solution as load. This provides the first example of a four-ring realization intended 1H- 23Na for human head imaging at 7 T