Oil palm waste: An abundant and promising feedstock for microwave pyrolysis conversion into good quality biochar with potential multi-applications

Oil palm waste (OPW), comprising mainly of empty fruit bunch, mesocarp fiber, frond, trunk, and palm kernel shell generated from palm oil industry, was collected, characterized, and then pyrolyzed to evaluate their potential to be converted into biochar with desirable properties for use in multi-applications. The OPW was detected to have considerable amounts of carbon (43–51 wt%) and fixed carbon (30–39 wt%), showing potential to be converted into carbon-rich biochar. Microwave pyrolysis of palm kernel shell as the selected OPW produced a biochar with zero sulphur content and high heating value (23–26 MJ/kg) that is nearly comparable to conventional coal, thus indicating its potential as an eco-friendly solid fuel. The biochar obtained was also showed low moisture (<3 wt%) and ash (3 wt%), and a highly porous structure with high BET surface area (210 m2/g), indicating the presence of many adsorption sites and thus showing desirable characteristics for potential use as pollutant adsorbent in wastewater treatment, or bio-fertilizer to absorb nutrient and promote plant growth. Our results demonstrate that OPW is a biowaste that shows exceptional promise to be transformed into high-grade biochar rather than simply disposed by landfilling or burned as low-grade fuel in boiler

An analysis of the effect between firm's performance and determinant of liquidity ratio of Revlon Incorporation in cosmetic industry

The reason why I conduct this analysis is to identify the corporate governance and company performance of the Revlon Incorporation using the dependent variable (ROA) and plus the independent variable (current ratio) involve the internal factor and external factor. The data is collected through the Revlon Incorporation’s annual report from the year of 2014 until 2018. The variable that are using during this analysis which is dependent variable and independent variable using ROA and current ratio for the purpose to analyze the Revlon Incorporation’s corporate governance and company performance. Return on assets (ROA) is prove of how profitable of a certain company about their total assets. ROA help manager, investor on how to conduct an efficient of a company’s management to generate earnings. Since Revlon Incorporation company asset’s main and important purpose is to earn huge amount of profits, the Revlon Incorporation is manage to manage successfully in converting the investments from assets into profits. The ROA is a profit to the Revlon Incorporation from the investment when the Revlon Incorporation’s assets are the most imperative investment for every companies in the world. A higher the Return On Assets prove that the management of Revlon Incorporation is using the Revlon Incorporation company’s assets to make more profit. The current ratio is the medium to help in measuring for the liquidity which is the higher the ROA, the higher the current ratio to solve the company’s financial obligations

Social Europe. No 2/87

BACKGROUND: DNA methylation is an important type of epigenetic modification involved in gene regulation. Although strong DNA methylation at promoters is widely recognized to be associated with transcriptional repression, many aspects of DNA methylation remain not fully understood, including the quantitative relationships between DNA methylation and expression levels, and the individual roles of promoter and gene body methylation. RESULTS: Here we present an integrated analysis of whole-genome bisulfite sequencing and RNA sequencing data from human samples and cell lines. We find that while promoter methylation inversely correlates with gene expression as generally observed, the repressive effect is clear only on genes with a very high DNA methylation level. By means of statistical modeling, we find that DNA methylation is indicative of the expression class of a gene in general, but gene body methylation is a better indicator than promoter methylation. These findings are general in that a model constructed from a sample or cell line could accurately fit the unseen data from another. We further find that promoter and gene body methylation have minimal redundancy, and either one is sufficient to signify low expression. Finally, we obtain increased modeling power by integrating histone modification data with the DNA methylation data, showing that neither type of information fully subsumes the other. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that DNA methylation outside promoters also plays critical roles in gene regulation. Future studies on gene regulatory mechanisms and disease-associated differential methylation should pay more attention to DNA methylation at gene bodies and other non-promoter regions. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13059-014-0408-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Effects and mechanisms of a home-based action observation and motor imagery intervention on cognitive function and depression in spinal cord injury: a pilot randomized controlled trial protocol

Background: Cognitive impairment and depression frequently occur after spinal cord injury (SCI) and adversely affect functional independence and quality of life. There is a lack of research in addressing this important area in SCI rehabilitation/care. The home-based Action Observation and Motor Imagery (AOMI), a form of neurorehabilitation, was developed grounded in theoretical foundations and practical evidence, rendering it especially suitable for adults with SCI. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effects of this innovative intervention on SCI adults’ cognitive function and depression, while also exploring the underlying neural mechanisms through multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Methods: This is an assessor-blinded, two-arm pilot randomized controlled trial with repeated measures (pre-, post-intervention, and 1-month follow-up). In total, 46 participants will be randomly assigned to either the intervention group, which will receive an 8-week AOMI intervention combined with basic wheelchair exercises, or the control group, which will watch landscape videos and perform basic wheelchair exercises. The feasibility of study procedures will be assessed by examining the recruitment, dropout, and retention rates. The acceptability of interventions will be evaluated by the adverse events record, satisfaction, and adherence rate. The primary outcomes of intervention effectiveness include global cognitive function and depression; secondary outcomes include neurocognitive domains, multimodal MRI findings, chronic pain, self-efficacy for exercise, and motor imagery ability. Conclusion: The study findings will preliminarily determine the effects of AOMI in SCI rehabilitation. Multimodal MRI data will elucidate the neuroplastic changes and functional reorganization occurring in the brains of the SCI population following the intervention.published_or_final_versio

Particle swarm optimization and global sensitivity analysis for catalytic co-pyrolysis of Chlorella vulgaris and plastic waste mixtures

This study investigated on the co-pyrolysis of microalgae Chlorella vulgaris and high-density polyethylene (HDPE) waste mixtures which was performed with three types of catalysts, namely limestone (LS), HZSM-5 zeolite, and novel bi-functional LS/HZSM-5/LS. Kissinger-Kai (K-K) model-free method was coupled with Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) model-fitting method using the thermogravimetric experimental data. A global sensitivity analysis was carried out using Latin Hypercube Sampling and rank transformation to assess the extent of impact of the input kinetic parameters on the output results. Furthermore, a thermodynamic analysis was performed to obtain parameters such as enthalpy change (ΔH), Gibb’s free energy (ΔG), and entropy change (ΔS). The activation energy (EA) of the microalgae Chlorella vulgaris and HDPE binary mixture were found to be lower upon the addition of catalysts. Among the catalyst used, bi-functional LS/HZSM-5 catalyst exhibited the lowest EA (83.59 kJ/mol) and ΔH (78 kJ/mol) as compared to LS and HZSM-5 catalysts

The Association of Problematic Smartphone Use with Family Well-Being Mediated by Family Communication in Chinese Adults: A Population-Based Study

Background and aims: Few studies have investigated the effects of problematic smartphone use (PSU) in the family context. We studied the association of PSU as a predictor with family well-being and the potential mediating role of family communication in Hong Kong Chinese adults. Methods: We analyzed data of 5,063 randomly selected adults [mean age (SD) = 48.1 (18.2) years; 45.0% men] from a dual landline and mobile telephone survey in 2017. PSU was assessed by the Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version with higher scores indicating higher levels. Family well-being was assessed by three questions on perceived family health, harmony, and happiness (3Hs) with higher scores indicating greater well-being. Perceived sufficiency and quality of family communication were rated. Multivariable regression analyses examined (a) associations of PSU with family 3Hs and well-being and (b) mediating role of family communication, adjusting for sociodemographic variables. Results: PSU was negatively associated with perceived family health (adjusted β = −0.008, 95% CI = −0.016, −0.0004), harmony (adjusted β =−0.009, 95% CI = −0.017, −0.002), happiness (adjusted β =−0.015, 95% CI = −0.022, −0.007), and well-being (adjusted β= −0.011, 95% CI = −0.018, −0.004). Perceived family communication sufficiency (adjusted β = −0.007, 95% CI =−0.010, −0.005) and quality (adjusted β = −0.009, 95% CI =−0.014, −0.005) mediated the association of PSU with family well-being, with 75% and 94% of total effects having mediated, respectively. Discussion and conclusions: PSU was negatively associated with family well-being, which was partially mediated by family communication. Such findings provide insights for health programs to prevent PSU and improve family well-being

Nurse-Led Brief Intervention for Enhancing Safe Sex Practice Among Emerging Adults in Hong Kong Using Instant Messaging: Feasibility Study

Background: The incidence of sexually transmitted infections has been increasing throughout the world. Additionally, substantial changes in emerging adults' attitudes toward sex and the popularization of premarital sex could further affect the diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections. With the high acceptability and effectiveness of instant messaging (IM) interventions for health promotion, there is potential for such interventions to improve condom use knowledge and promote safer sex practice.Objective: The study evaluates the feasibility of a nurse-led IM intervention to promote safer sex practices in emerging adults.Methods: A 30-minute adaptive IM intervention and a 5-day booster dose of daily messages after 2 weeks through WhatsApp (Meta Platforms, Inc) were conducted with emerging adults in local universities in Hong Kong aged between 18 and 29 years with previous sexual experience. A questionnaire was distributed 1 week after the intervention that measured the consistency in condom use, the change in condom use knowledge and attitudes, and the acceptability of the intervention. The feasibility of the intervention was assessed by Bowen's feasibility framework.Results: A total of 20 participants completed the intervention and questionnaire. Results showed (1) high satisfaction level (mean satisfaction score: 9.10/10), (2) high demand of the intervention (retention rate: 95%), (3) smooth implementation of the intervention, (4) high practicality (13/20, 65% of the participants viewed IM to be an effective means of intervention), (5) potential integration of the intervention, and (6) significant mean increase in condom use knowledge and attitudes (mean increase 9.05; t19=3.727; 95% CI 3.97-14.13; P=.001).Conclusions: The IM intervention was feasible, acceptable, and had potential impacts on improving safer sex practices. These findings will support the future development of IM interventions in the arena of sexual health promotion.published_or_final_versio