Animating the Ethical Demand:Exploring user dispositions in industry innovation cases through animation-based sketching

This paper addresses the challenge of attaining ethical user stances during the design process of products and services and proposes animation-based sketching as a design method, which supports elaborating and examining different ethical stances towards the user. The discussion is qualified by an empirical study of Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) in a Triple Helix constellation. Using a three-week long innovation workshop, UCrAc, involving 16 Danish companies and organisations and 142 students as empirical data, we discuss how animation-based sketching can explore not yet existing user dispositions, as well as create an incentive for ethical conduct in development and innovation processes. The ethical fulcrum evolves around Løgstrup's Ethical Demand and his notion of spontaneous life manifestations. From this, three ethical stances are developed; apathy, sympathy and empathy. By exploring both apathetic and sympathetic views, the ethical reflections are more nuanced as a result of actually seeing the user experience simulated through different user dispositions. Exploring the three ethical stances by visualising real use cases with the technologies simulated as already being implemented makes the life manifestations of the users in context visible. We present and discuss how animation-based sketching can support the elaboration and examination of different ethical stances towards the user in the product and service development process. Finally we present a framework for creating narrative representations of emerging technology use cases, which invite to reflection upon the ethics of the user experience.</jats:p

Special oils for halal and safe cosmetics

Three types of non conventional oils were extracted, analyzed and tested for toxicity. Date palm kernel oil (DPKO), mango kernel oil (MKO) and Ramputan seed oil (RSO). Oil content for tow cultivars of dates Deglect Noor and Moshkan was 9.67% and 7.30%, respectively. The three varieties of mango were found to contain about 10% oil in average. The red yellow types of Ramputan were found to have 11 and 14% oil, respectively. The phenolic compounds in DPKO, MKO and RSO were 0.98, 0.88 and 0.78 mg/ml Gallic acid equivalent, respectively. Oils were analyzed for their fatty acid composition and they are rich in oleic acid C18:1 and showed the presence of (dodecanoic acid) lauric acid C12:0, which reported to appear some antimicrobial activities. All extracted oils, DPKO, MKO and RSO showed no toxic effect using prime shrimp bioassay. Since these oils are stable, melt at skin temperature, have good lubricity and are great source of essential fatty acids; they could be used as highly moisturizing, cleansing and nourishing oils because of high oleic acid content. They are ideal for use in such halal cosmetics such as Science, Engineering and Technology 75 skin care and massage, hair-care, soap and shampoo products

The effect of educational video intervention on the knowledge of folic acid supplementation among International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) female undergraduates

Knowledge regarding folic acid supplementation remains unsatisfactory among women of child-bearing age in Malaysia. Despite official recommendations to begin supplementation prior to conception to prevent Neural Tube Defects (NTD), many women remain unaware until the first antenatal check-up, losing the crucial time window of prevention. Educational videos could be a promising tool to address this issue. The objective of this pilot study was to assess the effectiveness of an educational video in increasing knowledge regarding folic acid supplementation among IIUM female undergraduates. This pilot intervention study was carried out in the IIUM Kuantan campus. IIUM female undergraduates (n=31) were recruited through convenient sampling. Inclusion criteria included being actively enrolled and of childbearing age. Participants were excluded if they were under the age of 18, married, pregnant, or have had experience of pregnancy. The educational video developed for the study was content validated by 6 experts (CVI > 0.83). Participants were first requested to complete a questionnaire to assess baseline knowledge, after which they were shown the educational video. Participants were then requested to complete the same questionnaire one week later to observe changes in knowledge scores post-intervention. Data was analysed in SPSS Version 12.0.1 using descriptive analysis, ANOVA, and Paired t-test (p<0.05). Mean baseline knowledge was found to be poor. Participants’ main source of knowledge was found to be the internet, and no significant difference was found in baseline knowledge between different study backgrounds. The mean knowledge scores significantly increased from 6.61 preintervention to 12.77 post-intervention (p<0.001). The educational video was found to be effective in increasing knowledge regarding folic acid supplementation among IIUM female undergraduates. Our findings point towards the need for intervention among this demography and greater investment in public education regarding folic acid supplementation through online video platforms

Dementia friendly flying: investigating the accessibility of air travel for people living with Dementia

A diagnosis of dementia should not mean the end of a person’s ability to participate in meaningful activities. However, accessibility for people living with dementia requires improvement across a range of settings. Anecdotal evidence and critical incident reporting suggests that air travel is not meeting the needs of people with dementia, although evidence-based research into air travel and dementia is extremely limited. This research bridges the gap in the evidence-base on the accessibility of air travel for people living with dementia from within the United Kingdom by: 1) Exploring the experiences of air travel of 10 people living with dementia and 10 travel companions of people living with dementia through a series of in-depth phenomenological interviews. Findings identified the importance of a positive social environment, airport special assistance as both a barrier and a facilitator, challenges within the general airport environment and the need for continuity of support at transit points and upon arrival at the destination. 2) Conducting a realist synthesis of the best practice elements of dementia awareness and support training outside of the field of healthcare. Core training components included the importance of sector specific leadership to facilitate engagement, the need for contact education to reduce fear of the unknown and to challenge stigma and the inclusion of ongoing peer support and evaluation to facilitate long-term change. The findings from both studies are presented within a series of recommendations for how the air travel experience can be improved for people living with dementia and those who travel with them in the future. A detailed framework for the future design of context specific dementia awareness and support training is also outlined. The framework not only identifies what key mechanisms may work in such training, but also provides a rationale as to why these mechanisms may work

Acetylcholine esterase as a possible marker for the detection of halal way of slaughtering

Introduction: Different methods of slaughtering are being practiced because of differences in religious guidelines and environmental issues (use of electricity) or convenience of handling etc. Variation in methods of slaughtering results in different conditions namely, release of varying amount of blood and different degree of movement of its body parts prior to death. These issues are related to the release of neurotransmitter (NT) at the neuro-muscular junction (NMJ) eventually is subject to be released from the body through the blood flow. Experimental design: Muscle samples from chicken in small pieces were collected immediately after slaughtering. Slaughtering was carried out using sharp knife. Two different conditions pertaining to the Islamic guidelines of slaughtering were investigated. such as whether the neck was severed (S+) or not (S-) from the body during slaughtering and whether the animal just after slaughtering was released (R+) or not (R-). The level of acetylecholine esterase mRNA involved in the degradation of acetylecholine, a NT at NMJ was investigated by RT-PCR. Results: The level of acetylecholine esterase mRNA was not detected in the sample obtained from the chicken slaughtered following Islamic guidelines i.e., neck should not be severed and body should be released just after the slaughtering (R+S-). Conclusions: Level of acetylcholine or acetylcholine esterase can be used as a biomarker to identify if the slaughtering is performed following Islamic guidelines

Calophyllum canum : antibacterial and anticancer plant

Human have used plants as a source of medicine throughout the world since time immemorial. Today there are at least 120 distinct chemical substances derived from plants that are considered as important drugs currently in use in one or more countries in the world. In particular, 60% drugs currently in clinical use for treatment of cancer were found to be of natural origin. Calophyllum canum is a large tree which grows in South East Asia and which is popular for its timber. This plant belongs to the family Guttiferae; a family that boasts species which are rich in bioactive phytochemicals. Some species are believed to having medicinal values and are used against several diseases including anti-inflammatory, anti infectious, astringent and antipyretic. We have successfully isolated two compounds from the methanol extract of Calophyllum canum stembarks that active inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213 and ATCC 25923). The cytotoxic study on the extracts revealed that the n-hexane extract had the strongest antiproliferation activity, followed by the methanol extract. n-hexane strongly inhibited the growth of TE1 and MCF7 cell lines. IC50 for n-hexane and methanol extract activity on the A549 cell line was found to be 27.96 μg/mL and 78.9 μg/mL respectively.The compounds (CE0 - CE5) isolated from ethyl acetate extract of C. canum are active to inhibit cell proliferation of human cervix adenocarcinoma cells

New Vision 2050: A Platinum Society

This book presents the "New Vision 2050," which adds the concept of the “platinum society” to the “Vision 2050”. The 20th century was a century in which energy led the development of material civilization, resulting in deletion of resources, global warming and climate change. What form should sustainable material and energy take to protect the Earth? The "Vision 2050" was established 20 years ago as a model that we should pursue for the next half century. Fortunately, the world is on course for the Vision 2050. The 21st century will be a century in which we seek qualitative richness, with the Vision 2050 as the material basis. That is, a “platinum society” that has resource self-sufficiency and resource symbiosis, and where people remain active throughout their lives and have a wide range of choices and opportunities for free participation. Since the author presented the concept of "Vision 2050" in 1999, the idea has been introduced in two books entitled Vision 2050: Roadmap for a Sustainable Earth (2008) and Beyond the Limits to Growth: New Ideas for Sustainability from Japan (2014). The latter includes a chapter that sheds light on the concept of a “platinum society”. In this publication, the author presents the "New Vision 2050" in more detail

The brain in society: public engagement with neuroscience

The early years of the 21st century were marked by the increasing prominence of neuroscientific ideas in wider society. The proliferation of neuroscience has been accompanied by lively debate, alternately excited and apprehensive, about its societal significance. However, consideration of neuroscience’s cultural implications has largely remained speculative due to a paucity of research that directly examines how publics engage with neuroscientific ideas. Drawing on Social Representations Theory and the principles of embodied phenomenology, this thesis aims to map the contours of the neuroscientific knowledge that surfaces in ordinary, everyday life in contemporary Britain. Its investigation focuses upon two empirical contexts, cataloguing the representations of brain research that materialise in (i) the mainstream print media, and (ii) the common-sense understanding revealed by a series of semi-structured interviews with London residents. A content analysis of 3,630 newspaper articles confirms that the period 2000-2012 saw a steady expansion of neuroscience’s prominence in public dialogue, primarily within appeals to readers to optimise their brain function by moderating their mental activity, nutritional intake and lifestyle choices. Thematic analysis of 48 interviews, however, suggests that laypeople have remained largely unaware of the media attention afforded to neuroscience, with the brain occupying a negligible space in people’s day-to-day thought and conversation. Interview respondents situated brain research within the socially distant ‘other worlds’ of science and medicine, characterising direct experience of brain-related pathology as the only context that would motivate them to engage with neuroscientific knowledge. However, more latent meanings attached to the brain surfaced as the interviews progressed: the brain was also constituted as a tool over which individuals can exert control, and as a source of human variation, invoked to articulate and explain social differences. Through rigorous analysis of original empirical data, this thesis traces the paths by which neuroscientific ideas travel through the public sphere, distinguishes how they are elaborated and re-constituted en route, and explores the implications this may have for social life