Gender dimensions of child labor and street children in Brazil

The authors review child labor and the situation of street children in Brazil from a gender perspective. Relying primarily on Brazil's national household survey for 1996, the authors examine various dimensions of child labor by gender, including participation, intensity, and type of activities; the relationship between child labor, education, and future earnings; and the risks of child labor to health and well-being. They also summarize approaches to prevent and eliminate child labor and street children in Brazil. The authors find that more boys than girls work in Brazil especially in rural areas where boys are concentrated in the agricultural sector, that many children both work and attend school, and that girls attain higher levels of education than boys on average, even when considering number of hours worked. The exception is the 11-14 category. They also find that an individual's earnings are correlated with age of entry into the labor market. The earlier a child begins to work, the lower his or her earnings. And girls are more adversely affected by early labor force entry than boys, with the gender differential increasing the earlier a child begins to work. Taking poverty as the primary contributor to child labor, government programs to combat child labor are well designed in that they compensate families for a child's foregone earnings and address family factors that lead to poverty. However, programs could be improved by explicitly considering the gender dimensions of child labor. The authors point to the need for analysis of the impact of child labor on health, and specifically to the gender and sex-differentiated impacts. They suggest the need to address gender in intervention strategies for street children, as well as research on child labor in domestic service where girls are overrepresented.Children and Youth,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Gender and Development,Public Health Promotion,Street Children,Street Children,Youth and Governance,Children and Youth,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Adolescent Health

Tracking a table tennis ball for umpiring purposes

This study investigates tracking a table-tennis ball rapidly from video captured using low-cost equipment for umpiring purposes. A number of highly efficient algorithms have been developed for this purpose. The proposed system was tested using sequences capture from real match scenes. The preliminary results of experiments show that accurate and rapid tracking can be achieved even under challenging conditions, including occlusion and colour merging. This work can contribute to the development of an automatic umpiring system and also has the potential to provide amateur users open access to a detection tool for fast-moving, small, round objects

A systems biology analysis of brain microvascular endothelial cell lipotoxicity.

BackgroundNeurovascular inflammation is associated with a number of neurological diseases including vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease, which are increasingly important causes of morbidity and mortality around the world. Lipotoxicity is a metabolic disorder that results from accumulation of lipids, particularly fatty acids, in non-adipose tissue leading to cellular dysfunction, lipid droplet formation, and cell death.ResultsOur studies indicate for the first time that the neurovascular circulation also can manifest lipotoxicity, which could have major effects on cognitive function. The penetration of integrative systems biology approaches is limited in this area of research, which reduces our capacity to gain an objective insight into the signal transduction and regulation dynamics at a systems level. To address this question, we treated human microvascular endothelial cells with triglyceride-rich lipoprotein (TGRL) lipolysis products and then we used genome-wide transcriptional profiling to obtain transcript abundances over four conditions. We then identified regulatory genes and their targets that have been differentially expressed through analysis of the datasets with various statistical methods. We created a functional gene network by exploiting co-expression observations through a guilt-by-association assumption. Concomitantly, we used various network inference algorithms to identify putative regulatory interactions and we integrated all predictions to construct a consensus gene regulatory network that is TGRL lipolysis product specific.ConclusionSystem biology analysis has led to the validation of putative lipid-related targets and the discovery of several genes that may be implicated in lipotoxic-related brain microvascular endothelial cell responses. Here, we report that activating transcription factors 3 (ATF3) is a principal regulator of TGRL lipolysis products-induced gene expression in human brain microvascular endothelial cell

Tracking a table tennis ball for umpiring purposes using a multi-agent system

Tracking a table tennis ball for umpiring purposes is a challenging task as, in real-match scenarios, the ball travels fast and can become occluded or merged with other background objects. This paper presents the design of a multi-view based tracking system that can overcome the challenges of tracking a ball in real match sequences. The system has been tested on a complete table tennis rally and the results are very promising. The system is able to continuously track the ball with only marginal variations in detection. Furthermore, the initialization of the multi-camera system means it is both a portable and cost-effective solution for umpiring purposes

Evaluation of Solid State Fermetation by Aspergillus Niger to Improve the Nutritive Value of Palm Kernel Cake for Broilers

A study was conducted to examine the effects of solid-state fermentation (SSF) by Aspergillus niger on the nutrient contents of palm kernel cake (PKC). The effects of different types and levels of alcohols were investigated on the enzyme activity and nutrient contents of fermented PKC+ rice bran (RB). The results showed that the neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF) contents of fermented substrate (FS) (PKC+RB) were decreased by 47.3% and 22.6% respectively, while the crude protein (CP) was increased by 28.7% after 8 days of fermentation and the activity of mannanase was 109.7 U/g at 6 days of fermentation. There were no significant effects (P>0.05) of ethanol and methanol on the nutrient contents and citric acid production in the fermented substrate. An experiment was conducted to improve the fermentation process of A. niger on PKC. Rice bran was added to PKC in varying proportions. Three different proportions of rice bran (lo%, 20% and 30% of total substrate) were used and the fermentation was carried out for 8 days. The results showed that the nutrient contents of FS were not significantly (P>0.05) affected by the RB added. Nevertheless, among the different substrate groups used, 70% PKC+ 30% RB showed the lowest concentration of ochratoxin (43.3ppb). The ochratoxin level of 100% PKC substrate group was 49.8 ppb. Therefore, based on the ochratoxin level, the substrate group consisting of 70% PKC + 30% RB was used as the substrate for SSF. The fermented substrate was used as an ingredient in the broiler ration. Four experimental diets were used in the feeding trial. They were: 1) control diet (without PKC), 2) diet containing 20% PKC, 3) diet containing 20% FS and 4) diet containing 25% FS. A total of 60 birds, 15 birds per treatment, 3 weeks old Arbor Acre were used. The birds were placed in individual cages. The growth trial was continued up to 42 days. The results showed poor (Pc0.05) growth performances of birds fed diets containing FS and the best performance was recorded in birds fed control diet. There were no significant (P>0.05) differences in the performance of birds fed diet containing 20% PKC and those fed control diet. Cumulative FCR of birds fed control diet was 1.85 whereas that of birds fed dietary treatment 4 was 2.42. The study on histopathological examination of visceral organs of chickens fed diet containing FS showed some lesions of ochratoxicosis where the immune organ (bursa of Fabricius) was adversely affected. The lesions in liver were less than those of the kidney. An attempt was carried out to delay sporulation of hngal culture. In this study, 14% ammonium sulphate was observed as the best concentration to add in culture during SSF of substrate (PKC+RB) by A. niger to delay sporulation. The digestibility of fibre was improved by adding ammonium sulphate in the culture. Although the nutritive value of fermented PKC was enhanced by SSF with A. niger, the feeding trial carried out in broilers showed no beneficial effect of using the fermented substrate as a ration component in poultry feed. Nevertheless, the information obtained in this study would be beneficial in the understanding of the biochemical changes that occur in PKC during SSF with A. niger

Who continues to stock oral artemisinin monotherapy? Results of a provider survey in Myanmar.

BackgroundArtemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) is a key strategy for global malaria elimination efforts. However, the development of artemisinin-resistant malaria parasites threatens progress and continued usage of oral artemisinin monotherapies (AMT) predisposes the selection of drug resistant strains. This is particularly a problem along the Myanmar/Thailand border. The artemisinin monotherapy replacement programme (AMTR) was established in 2012 to remove oral AMT from stocks in Myanmar, specifically by replacing oral AMT with quality-assured ACT and conducting behavioural change communication activities to the outlets dispensing anti-malarial medications. This study attempts to quantify the characteristics of outlet providers who continue to stock oral AMT despite these concerted efforts.MethodsA cross-sectional survey of all types of private sector outlets that were stocking anti-malarial drugs in 13 townships of Eastern Myanmar was implemented from July to August 2014. A total of 573 outlets were included. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regressions were conducted to assess outlet and provider-level characteristics associated with stocking oral AMT.ResultsIn total, 2939 outlets in Eastern Myanmar were screened for presence of any anti-malarial drugs in August 2014. The study found that 573 (19.5 %) had some kind of oral anti-malarial drug in stock at the time of survey and among them, 96 (16.8 %) stocked oral AMT. In bivariate analyses, compared to health care facilities, itinerant drug vendors, retailers and health workers were less likely to stock oral AMT (33.3 vs 12.9, 10.0, 8.1 %, OR = 0.30, 0.22, 0.18, respectively). Providers who cut blister pack or sell partial courses (40.6 vs 11.7 %, OR 5.18, CI 3.18-8.44) and those who based their stock decision on consumer demand (32.8 vs 12.1 %, OR 3.54, CI 2.21-5.63) were more likely to stock oAMT. Multivariate logistic regressions produced similar significant associations.ConclusionPrivate healthcare facilities and drug shops and providers who prioritize consumers' demand instead of recommended practices were more likely to stock oral AMT. Malaria elimination strategies should include targeted interventions to effectively reach those outlets

Advanced Car Security System Using GSM

Abstract- This system proposes the design and construction of an advanced car security system using GSM. It uses the GSM mobile communication networks to transmit alarm signal and control instruction. The control and communication between the user and the proposed system are achieved through a short message services (SMS) protocol available in the mobile phone. If the car door is illegally opened or the car is vibrated, an alarm will be activated and it send SMS message to the owner’s mobile phone immediately and automatically. The user could easily protect and control their car anywhere at any time. The proposed system consists both hardware and software parts. The hardware components include vibration sensors, a PIC microcontroller, a GSM modem, LCD and buzzer. The software part includes a program controller interface. PIC MikroC programming language is used for this control system. The control system is based on the PIC16F877A microcontroller and AT COMMAND

Motivation and challenges for use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests among informal providers in Myanmar: a qualitative study

BACKGROUND: Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) for malaria enable proper diagnosis and have been shown to reduce overuse of artemisinin combination therapy. Few studies have evaluated the feasibility and use of RDTs in the private sector in Myanmar. The objectives of the study were to: 1) understand the acceptability of using RDTs in the informal sector in Myanmar; 2) examine motivations for use among informal providers; and, 3) highlight decision-making and knowledge of providers for diagnostic testing and treatment. METHODS: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 30 informal providers. Purposeful sampling was used to enrol study participants in the Mon and Shan State in Myanmar. All interviews were conducted in Burmese, translated into English, and two researchers coded all interviews using Atlas ti. RESULTS: Major themes identified included: 1) informal provider and outlet characteristics, including demographic and background characteristics; 2) the benefits and challenges of using RDTs according to providers; 3) provider experiences with using RDTs, including motivations for using the RDT; 4) adherence to test results, either positive or negative; and, 5) recommendations from informal providers to promote increased use of RDTs in their communities. This study found that introducing RDTs to informal providers in Myanmar was feasible, resulting in improved provider empowerment and patient-provider relationships. Specific challenges included facility infrastructure to use and dispose RDTs and provider knowledge. This varied across the type of informal provider, with itinerant drug vendors more comfortable and knowledgeable about RDTs compared to general retail sellers and medical drug representatives. CONCLUSIONS: This study found informal providers in Myanmar found the introduction of RDTs to be highly acceptable. Providers discussed improvement in service quality including provider empowerment and patient-provider relationships. The study also highlighted a number of challenges that informal providers face which may be used for future development of interventions