140 research outputs found
In the light of science: our ancient quest for knowledge and the measure of modern physics
No full textThe birth of science in ancient Greece had a historical impact that is still being felt today. Physicist Demetris Nicolaides examines the epochal shift in thinking that led pre-Socratic philosophers of the sixth and fifth centuries BCE to abandon the prevailing mythologies of the age and, for the first time, to analyze the natural world in terms of impersonal, rationally understood principles. He argues not only that their conceptual breakthroughs anticipated much of later science but that scientists of the twenty-first century are still grappling with the fundamental problems raised twenty-five hundred years ago. Looking at the vast sweep of human history, the author delves into the factors that led to the birth of science: urbanization, the role of religion, and in Greece a progressive intellectual curiosity that was unafraid to question tradition. Why did the first scientific approach to understanding the world take place in Greece? The author makes a convincing case that, aside from factors of geography and politics, the power of the Greek language and a cultural proclivity for critical thinking played a large role. In the Light of Science is a unique approach to the history of science revealing the important links between the ancient past and the present scientific endeavor to understand the universe
A response to Philip Hyland, Demetris Katsikis, and Chrysoula Kostogiannis on the debate point concerning the binary theory of emotional distress.
No full textWe were pleased that our paper “Applying the REBT cognitive disputation technique to the binary theory of emotional distress” (Turner, Jones, & Wood, 2018) sparked interest and debate within the REBT community. Our original paper was conceived to draw out the opinions of those who read it, and when we approached the three commentators, Philip Hyland, Demetris Katsikis, and Chrysoula Kostogiannis, we anticipated an insightful and engaging discussion. Our expectations were exceeded, as three different types of responses were developed by the three learned commentators. Hyland’s paper offers a rather categorical rebuttal of the binary theory of emotional distress (BTED), Katsikis’ offers a balanced and critical perspective, whilst Kostogiannis’s paper offers support for the BTED. All three approach the issue in different ways, and all three commentators draw on their own values and experiences to guide their points. It is impossible to do every element of each commentary sufficient justice, so we will focus on key points made by the commentators in our response here. In the spirit of scientific debate, we invite Hyland, Katsikis, and Kostogiannis to respond to the current paper with their further rebuttals and comments
A comparison of risk analysis approaches: Performance assessment of cost and time estimating on a real project
No full textRisk management is undoubtedly a precious component of the overall project management field. It assists in identifying, assessing and mitigating the uncertainties that are present in a project. These uncertainties affect important measures of a project, of which cost and schedule are the most prominent, and consequently put project success under pressure. Risk analysis, especially in its quantitative form, is a core process of risk management that provides valuable insights regarding these uncertainties. Numerous different procedures for quantitative risk analysis exist, but generally, they can be classified in two types based on the way they treat the cost and schedule components of a project. In the Separated Approach two risk analyses are performed, one for schedule and one for cost, which are independent of each other. In the Integrated Approach one risk analysis is performed, where schedule and cost components are simultaneously analyzed, and are no longer independent of each other. The advantages and disadvantages for each approach are well described in literature. However, there is little empirical evidence of the performance of different approaches when they are applied on real projects. This research tries to fill this gap by comparing the outcomes of different approaches when they are implemented on a real project, against the actual outcomes of the project to get an indication of their relative performance. Particularly, the Proposed Separate Approach, the Proposed Integrated Approach and the Company’s Separated Approach are applied on a completed project and their outcomes regarding cost and schedule contingency are compared to each other and to the actual project outcomes. Based on this comparison, a conclusion is drawn, and an answer is given on which approach is more accurate. Regarding cost contingency estimate, the Proposed Integrated Approach was the more accurate, while for schedule contingency estimate, the Company’s Separated Approach was the most accurate. A similar research should be conducted on a large number of projects to be able to generalize this conclusion though.Civil Engineering | Construction Management and Engineerin
Characterization of 2D material/DNA origami interactions for studies of origami conformational dynamics
No full textThe discovery of DNA origami nanotechnology has opened new opportunities in this field due to the versatility of the shapes and sizes that can be generated, the ease of modification and functionalization with molecular resolution, and its biocompatibility. Using Watson-Crick base pairing as the main driver in the self-assembly procedure, DNA origami’s simple assembly process has paved the way for the design of static and dynamic nanostructures. The main methods of characterization are AFM and TEM. While AFM allows the characterization of static and dynamic nanostructures, TEM is only limited to static. However, the TEM’s dynamic imaging ability might be enhanced due to a new technique known as Liquid Cell Electron Microscopy. Graphene, the primary material for the fabrication of Liquid Cells, enables reduced electron scattering, reduced radiation damage and allows enhanced contrast compared to conventional carbon supports. If successful, liquid cell microscopy could enable higher lateral resolution and reduced invasiveness related to AFM measurements while imaging the sample in physiological conditions. However, graphene has been a hostile substrate for DNA origami nanostructures. Due to π−π bonding of graphene, DNA bases react with the delocalized π electrons of graphene and are denatured, causing unwanted deformations in the nanostructures. Additionally, other 2D materials with π −π bonds like MoS2, which was also involved in liquid cell microscopy, have shown similar deformations with DNA origami structures. Various functionalizations have enhanced the biocompatibility of graphene and MoS2 surfaces, reducing the degree of deformation of DNA origami nanostructures. A drawback of all these studies is the lack of similarity between the substrates and the methodologies used for the transfer of 2D materials. This impedes the comparison of the interaction of DNA origami with pristine and functionalized 2D materials. This project aims to qualitatively assess the interaction of DNA origami with pristine and functionalized 2D materials. First, measurements on mica were taken as a baseline for comparison. It was found that the location where the measurement was taken affects the surface’s cleanliness due to the morphology of the cleaved mica. A reduced amount of salt was found present in the centre of the mica compared to the side, which allowed an accurate characterization of DNA origami nanostructures. In addition, rinsing 2-3 times reduced the roughness, increased the adhesion of DNA origami nanostructures and diminished the concentration of salt on the mica substrate. Next, the deposition of DNA origami on graphite substrates has shown a shrinking of DNA origami triangles (≈ 10 nm) due to the melting of dsDNA to ssDNA. A similar deformation was observed in hBN substrates that have a similar shape to graphene but have localized π electrons. Functionalization with poly-l-lysine decreases the degree of deformation of DNA origami nanoarchitectures. However, the values still do not match the ones experienced on mica. Conclusionally, pristine graphite and hBN supports cannot serve as an alternative substrate for imaging DNA origami nanostructures. The optimization of the functionalization protocol might enable the use of graphite as TEM grids.Mechanical Engineerin
Free spirit : a historical novel on the life of Nikos Kazantzakis.
No full textThe novel renames Nikos Kazantzakis as Cosmas Eleftherakis and follows him during the last six months of his life. It dramatises imaginary meetings between Eleftherakis and Albert Camus, Eleftherakis' trip to China, conspiracies against him orchestrated by the Church of Greece and the Greek Writers Society. The critical component surveys the historical novel and Kazantzakis' own historical novels
Towards a Conceptual Model for E-business Deployment\ud in Libyan Universities (A Case Study of Misurata\ud University)
No full textThere is a lack of literature on technology utilization in Libyan universities and this paper\ud
attempts to make a worthwhile contribution to this literature. The paper explores e-business\ud
deployment in Libyan universities, with an initial focus on the university of Misurata, situated\ud
in the north of the country between the country’s two main cities of Tripoli and Benghazi. It\ud
examines the current and potential uses of e-business, and assesses the barriers to wider use of\ud
e-business systems and technologies. Existing models to measure e-business deployment are\ud
applied and assessed, and a new model is developed to better gauge the current situation at\ud
process level in these universities. The model will be further applied at other Libyan\ud
universities and will act as a yardstick for comparing and progressing the operational\ud
implementation of e-business in these organisations
PREHealth: Designing health into urban green and blue infrastructures – The need for action in planning, policies, and research. National Report Greece.
No full textThe present report is set to examine the connection between public health and the use of green infrastructure in Greece, and the capital Athens in particular. Specifically, the focus is placed on the role of the urban green infrastructure as spaces that provide opportunities for physical activities and sports, active recreation and active travel, thus contributing to the improvement of public health. The health profile and the physical activity trends of the Greek population are analysed with respect to the effects of the severe economic crisis in the urban population’s quality of life. The report also examines the contemporary policy and practice regarding the management of Athens’ green infrastructure towards providing opportunities for physical activity and active recreation to the city’s residents. Finally, the report goes on to identify the main issues as well as strengths in the current policy and practice, and makes proposals for the better use of open spaces and their connection to promoting a healthier lifestyle for the city residents
Joint Editorial "On the future of journal publications in hydrology"
No full textNo abstract available
RETRACTED ARTICLE: Study on the mechanical behavior of construction and demolition waste-based geopolymers under high-temperature conditions
No full textStatement of Retraction: Study on the mechanical behavior of construction and demolition waste-based geopolymers under high-temperature conditions We, the Editors and Publisher of Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, have retracted the following article: Yiming Chen (2025) Study on the mechanical behavior of construction and demolition waste-based geopolymers under high-temperature conditions, Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering, 2025; 24(2): 650–665. DOI: 10.1080/13467581.2024.2308595. Since publication, significant concerns have been raised about the fact that this article has substantial overlap with the following article, Ioanna Giannopoulou, Ponsian M. Robert, Michael F. Petrou, Demetris Nicolaides (2024) Mechanical behavior of construction and demolition waste-based alkali activated materials exposed to fire conditions, Construction and Building Materials, DOI: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2024.134994 Upon query, the author has not been able to provide a satisfactory explanation for this significant level of overlap. As this is a serious breach of our Editorial Policies, we are retracting the article from the journal. The author has been informed of this decision. We have been informed in our decision-making by our editorial policies and the COPE guidelines. The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as ‘Retracted’
PREHealth: Synthesis report of the urban open space users’ surveys in Darmstadt, Athens, Győr, and Eindhoven. International Synthesis Report.
No full textThe Synthesis Report presents the main results of the surveys that have been carried as part of the project PREHealth in the 4 participating cities. The locations where the face-to-face surveys have been carried out in selected open spaces are presented, followed by explanations regarding the specific characteristics of the face-to-face and online surveys. The main findings of the face-to-face and online surveys are presented and a detailed comparison of the differences and similarities identified is included. The main results of the correlation analysis between the profile characteristics of open space visitors and their behavioural characteristics are presented with reference to the four cities that took part in the research. Finally the conclusions are presented
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