The Measurements of Natural Radioactivity, (Radon and Gamma concentrations), around the old fertilizer factory in Basrah/Iraq

Radon concentration, exhalation rate, annual effective dose, radium activity, thorium, uranium potassium and radium equivalent have been measured in the present investigation for soil in the area around the old fertilizer factory in southern of Basrah Governorate. The measurements based on CR39 track detector for passive method, RAD7 for active method and NaI(Tl) for gamma concentration measurements. Average values for radon concentration in soil were 112.04±10.76 Bq/m3 using passive technique and 104.56±6.05 Bq/m3 using RAD7. From the result of the passive technique, area and mass exhalation rates and the annual effective dose were calculated. Gamma ray spectroscopy for the soil samples were performed and found that the average concentrations of 226Ra, 232Th and 40K were 50.89 Bq/kg, 21.74 Bq/kg and 640.4 Bq/kg respectively. Gamma ray hazard indices were calculated and found they are within the world average

The Effect of Mandatory Employer-Sponsored Insurance (ESI) on Health Insurance Coverage and Labor Force Utilization in Hawaii: Evidence from the Current Population Survey (CPS) 1994-2004

Using data from the Current Population Surveys, we examine the impact of Hawaii’s mandatory employer-sponsored insurance on health insurance coverage and employment structure in Hawaii. We find empirical evidence of three phenomena. First, private employer-sponsored insurance coverage for full-time workers (more than 20 hours per week) is more prevalent in Hawaii, other things held constant, than in other states and the U.S. as a whole. Second, there is avoidance of the employer-mandate in Hawaii by skirting the 20 hour rule, which changes the both the distribution of employment and the distribution of employment-based insurance coverage by hours worked. Third, Hawaii workers who match with part-time jobs without employer-sponsored health insurance obtain publicly provided health insurance or military coverage with higher probability than their counterparts elsewhere in the U.S. These results suggest that employer mandates induce both higher rates of coverage and labor market sorting.health insurance, employee sponsored insurance, Hawaii's labor market

Spider monkey optimization routing protocol for wireless sensor networks

Uneven energy consumption (UEC) is latent trouble in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) that feature a multiple motion pattern and a multi-hop routing. UEC often splits the network, reduces network life, and leads to performance degradation. Sometimes, improving energy consumption is more complicated because it does not reduce energy consumption only, but it also extends network life. This makes energy consumption balancing critical to WSN design calling for energy-efficient routing protocols that increase network life. Some energy-saving protocols have been applied to make the energy consumption among all nodes inside the network equilibrate in the expectancy and end power in almost all nodes simultaneously. This work has suggested a protocol of energy-saving routing named spider monkey optimization routing protocol (SMORP), which aims to probe the issue of network life in WSNs. The proposed protocol reduces excessive routing messages that may lead to the wastage of significant energy by recycling frequent information from the source node into the sink. This routing protocol can choose the optimal routing path. That is the preferable node can be chosen from nodes of the candidate in the sending ways by preferring the energy of maximum residual, the minimum traffic load, and the least distance to the sink. Simulation results have proved the effectiveness of the proposed protocol in terms of decreasing end-to-end delay, reducing energy consumption compared to well-known routing protocols

Adoption pathways for new agricultural technologies: An approach and an application to Vertisol management technology in Ethiopia

The literature on technology adoption distinguishes between diffusion (generally viewed as a dynamic process) and adoption (usually seen as static and specific to a point in time). Consistent with this, empirical studies on agricultural technology adoption generally divide a population into adopters and non-adopters, and analyse the reasons for adoption and non-adoption at a point in time, principally in terms of the socio-economic characteristics of the studied population. This study discusses the deficiencies of static approaches to technology adoption, particularly at the early stages of diffusion. It proposes a dynamic approach to technology adoption in which information gathering, learning and experience play pivotal roles. The characteristics of both the user and the technology are considered important in explaining adoption behaviour and the resultant pathway of adoption. The proposed approach has implications for the time frame and potential impact of new technology adoption

A rare case report of ectopic tooth in submandibular salivary gland's duct

This case report highlights mandibular tooth in an ectopic position in the floor of the mouth, associated with submandibular salivary gland, which was completely obliterating the Wharton duct. Very few such cases have been reported in the literatures. Since ectopic tooth may lead to pain, discomfort sensation upon mastication, and even infection (sialadenitis), its diagnosis and treatment is essentia

Aplikasi Fuzzy Linear Programming untuk Produksi Bola Lampu di PT XYZ

PT XYZ merupakan Perusahaan yang memproduksi bola lampu. Permintaan pasar yang tinggi menyebabkan Perusahaan tidak dapat memenuhi permintaan tersebut dikarenakan perencanaan produksi yang tidak optimal. Dari data, diketahui bahwa Perusahaan tidak dapat memenuhi permintaan pasar pada produk bola lampu merek Stanlee Star G-20 sebesar 8% dan S-25 sebesar 18,32% sedangkan bola lampu merek Dai-Ichi G40 diproduksi melebihi permintaan pasar sebesar 9,1%. Hal ini menyebabkan Perusahaan kehilangan opportunity profit. Perencanaan produksi bola lampu diteliti dengan tujuan agar Perusahaan dapat memenuhi permintaan pasar sesuai dengan keterbatasan sumber daya yang tersedia. Metode perencanaan produksi yang digunakan adalah metode fuzzy linear programming dengan metode simpleks. Dengan menggunakan Fuzzy Linear Programming dapat diperoleh nilai optimum jumlah produk bola lampu yang diproduksi sesuai permintaan pasar dan sesuai dengan keterbatasan sumber daya produksi. Sumber daya yang diteliti adalah kapasitas produksi, waktu kerja, dan bahan baku. Nilai interval logika fuzzy yang digunakan adalah t = 0 dan t = 1. Penyelesaian metode simpleks dilakukan dengan menggunakan software LINGO 13. Hasil penilitian menunjukkan bahwa permintaan pasar terpenuhi untuk ketiga merek bola lampu. Kapasitas produksi mencukupi sehingga tidak diperlukan penambahan jumlah mesin, sedangkan waktu kerja dan bahan baku tidak mencukupi. Perusahaan dapat menentukan jumlah bahan baku dan waktu kerja yang diperlukan dengan menggunakan nilai λ yaitu sebesar 0,536. Nilai λ digunakan untuk menentukan skala terbesar nilai interval t untuk setiap kendala bahan baku dan waktu kerja yaitu 0,464. Aplikasi fuzzy linear programming meningkatkan keuntungan sebesar 7,39% dari konsep linear programming biasa

An Attempt to Find Suitable Parameters for Coagulation-Flocculation Processes for the Treatment of Water

تعتبر عكورة المياه من المحددات الفيزيائية المهمة لقياس نوعية المياه كونها مؤشر جيد لتحديد المعالجة المطلوبة لمياه الشرب.في الدراسة الحالية ,فحوصات الجرة القياسية ستجرى للحصول على افضل المحددات لتصميم عمليات التخثير- التلبيد.اثبتت النتائج بأن افضل زمن للخلط السريع (t1),  ولزمن الخلط البطيئ  (t2), ولزمن الترسيب (t3)   كان  1, 50 ,60 على التوالي اذ ان اعلى كفاءة ازالة للعكورة كانت (99.31, 98.56 , 94.72)% لزمن خلط سريع مقداره 5 دقائق وزمن خلط بطيئ مقداره 50 دقيقة وزمن ترسيب مقداره 60 دقيقة لقيم حامضية تتراوح (3.7 - 8.9). تم تمثيل القيم المقاسة لنسب ازالة العكورة بأستخدام تقنية الشبكات العصبية الصناعية ...اذ اوضحت النتائج تقارب جيد بين القيم المقاسة والقيم المخمنة بقيمة معامل تحديد (R2) وقيمة معدل الخطأ  0.932 , 0.5501 على التوالي.Water turbidity is considered as an important physical parameter of water quality. It is a good indicator for assessing the required treatment for the drinking water. In the present study, a standard jar tests were conducted to obtain the most suitable parameters for the design of coagulation-flocculation process. Results proved that the best rapid mixing time (t1), slow mixing time (t2), and settling time (t3) are 1, 50 and 60 min respectively. The maximum removal efficiencies of turbidity were 99.31, 98.56 and 94.72% at t1,  t2 and t3 equal to  5, 50 and 60 min respectively, with pH values ranged from 3.7 to 8.9. The measured values of water turbidity removal perecentage were represented using an artificial neural network (ANN) technique and the results signified that there is a remarkable agreement between experimental and predicted values with coefficient of determination (R2) and root mean squared error (RMSE) equal to 0.932 and 0.5501 respectively