Should Individualized Music Therapy be Considered as an "Essential Medicine" to Treat Elderly with Dementia as Defined by the World Health Organization?

The World Health Organization (WHO) biennially maintains a list of essential medicines that countries and organizations use to establish internal pharmaceutical supplies and to develop healthcare policies. Despite its effort to provide a comprehensive list, the essential medicines list lacks many other potentially beneficial treatments, such as individualized music therapy. The prevalence of dementia increases each year in many developed and developing countries. Individualized music therapy has been shown to be an effective form of treatment for dementia. Unfortunately, many still lack access to this treatment due to unpopular views regarding complementary medicines and a lack of insurance coverage for such therapies. However, this could potentially be altered if individualized music therapy is added to the essential medicine list. This thesis aims to provide evidence showing the current state of individualized music therapy as a treatment for dementia. It considers the six criteria used by the WHO to determine essential medicine status and details the deficits in the current peer-reviewed research of music therapy that would need further attention in order to be considered by the WHO as an essential medicine in the adults list for dementia. Based on extensive literature review and personal data collection, it was concluded that criteria 1 and 2 have been met, criteria 4 and 5 may need further data, and criteria 3a and 3b definitely need more evidence. This thesis shows that existing evidence to date does not objectively meet criteria 3a, 3b, 4, and 5. Future studies should focus on further developing evidence in these categories before individualized music therapy can be considered to be a core essential medicine for the adults list in treating dementia.Chemistr

Integrating Vehicle-to-Grid Technologies in Autonomous Electric Vehicle Systems

Electrochemical Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technologies in autonomous electric vehicles (EVs) offer immense potential to revolutionize energy management and optimize the utilization of EVs. By enabling bidirectional energy flow between EVs and the electric grid, V2G allows EVs not only to consume electricity but also to contribute power back to the grid when necessary. When combined with autonomous capabilities, V2G can provide even greater benefits and flexibility. This research abstract highlights key points concerning V2G technologies in autonomous EVs. Firstly, autonomous EVs equipped with V2G technology can function as mobile energy storage units, aiding in grid stabilization and balancing high electricity demand. Secondly, V2G-enabled autonomous EVs can participate in demand response programs, optimizing charging schedules to off-peak hours and reducing strain on the grid during peak demand. Moreover, V2G facilitates the integration of renewable energy sources by allowing autonomous EVs to store and inject excess renewable energy into the grid when needed. Furthermore, V2G-enabled autonomous EVs act as backup power sources during emergencies or power outages, ensuring uninterrupted electricity supply to critical infrastructure. By participating in V2G programs, autonomous EV owners can generate revenue by selling stored energy to the grid and providing grid services, offsetting EV ownership costs. Additionally, autonomous EVs with V2G technology can intelligently manage their charging and discharging based on factors like electricity prices, grid demand, and user preferences, thereby optimizing energy usage and reducing charging costs. While the widespread adoption of V2G technologies in autonomous EVs hinges on infrastructure development, standardization, regulatory frameworks, and user acceptance, their integration is poised to play a significant role in future sustainable energy and transportation systems. As autonomous and electric vehicle technologies continue to evolve, V2G capabilities hold tremendous promise in transforming energy management, promoting grid reliability, and maximizing the benefits of EVs for both consumers and the grid

Synthesis and Characterization of Paintable Bi2Te3-based Thermoelectric Materials

Department of Materials Science EngineeringThe thermoelectric (TE) effect has attracted considerable attention from a number of different research areas, as its ability to directly convert between thermal and electrical energy offers a unique solution for sustainable power generation from waste heat sources. The power generation performance of solid-state TE devices largely depends on the characteristics of the TE materials from which they are made, such as the energy conversion efficiency. This efficiency is estimated from a dimensionless figure-of-merit: ZT = (S2σT/κ), where S, σ, κ, and T are the Seebeck coefficient, electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and temperature, respectively. The shape and dimensions of TE materials are also crucial to efficient energy conversion in system-level TE modules with minimum heat loss. Typically, TE legs chipped into planar-structured TE devices are fabricated by means of a top-down dicing process to produce cube or cuboid-shaped TE blocks, in which TE ingots are synthesized through energy intensive processes such as zone-melting or hot-pressing. Although these conventional technologies can produce bulk-scale TE legs with well-established TE properties and moderately high ZT values, a key constraint lies in the difficulty in engineering the shapes and dimensions of the TE legs. This restricts the flexibility in designing TE devices for efficient thermal energy transfer from heat sources with various shapes. A few attempts have been made to design and fabricate ring-shaped TE legs chipped into tubular TE devices for energy harvesting from exhaust pipes, but achieving suitable performance and process simplicity remains a challenge. This dissertation describes the synthesis and characterization of Bi2Te3-based TE paints. In particular, the bulk-level TE properties of the painted materials are reported. In addition, the power generating performance of TE devices fabricated on curved heat sources via the painting process is discussed. First, the background of TE research area is briefly described. The basic principles of TE phenomenon such as the Seebeck effect, the Peltier effect, and the Thompson effect are described. Furthermore, the structural and TE characteristics of Bi2Te3-based TE materials, arguably the best TE materials at near room temperature are discussed. Finally, the measurement methods of TE devices and their types are described. Second, it has been described that the Bi2Te3-based TE paints aided by Sb2Te3-based molecular chalcogenidometalate (ChaM) are synthesized and their TE properties are characterized. ChaM ions are known for soluble precursor and widely utilized these molecules as inorganic ligands and solders for nano- and meso-scale semiconductor particles, and so I simply expand this concept to TE paints. Molecular Sb2Te3 based ChaM is used as a solder or a sintering aid for n-type BiTeSe and p-type BiSbTe TE particles. The Sb2Te3-ChaM easily fills the voids and interfaces between these TE particles, forming interconnecting crystalline phases without the need for external pressure. The soldering effect substantially influence TE properties of the painted materials, of which ZT values increase up to 1.21 and 0.69 for p-and n-type materials. Furthermore, the fabricated in-plane TE power generators via the painting process exhibits remarkably high output power density of 4.0 mW/cm2 under the temperature difference of 50 oC. In particular, the thourgh-plane TE power generator chipped with the molded TE blocks shows ~30 mW/cm2 under the temperature difference of 50 oC, competing the commercial planar-structured TE module. This painting approach therefore provides a simple and cost-effective way to design and fabricate TE devices directly onto any shaped heat source using a brush, thereby eliminating the need for additional equipment. What makes this painting process suitable for preparing TE devices is the fact that they are less sensitive to the resolution of the mm-scale TE legs than other electronic devices.ope

A study of the causal relationship between IT governance inhibitors and its success in Korea enterprises

노트 : Proceedings of the 41st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences - 2008 행사명 : 41st Hawaii International Conference on System Sc

Continuous Tip Widening Technique for Roll-to-Roll Fabrication of Dry Adhesives

In this study, we reported continuous partial curing and tip-shaped modification methods for continuous production of dry adhesive with microscale mushroom-shaped structures. Typical fabrication methods of dry adhesive with mushroom-shaped structures are less productive due to the failure of large tips on pillar during demolding. To solve this problem, a typical pillar structure was fabricated through partial curing, and tip widening was realized through applying the proper pressure. Polyurethane acrylate was used in making the mushroom structure using two-step UV-assisted capillary force lithography (CFL). To make the mushroom structure, partial curing was performed on the micropillar, followed by tip widening. Dry adhesives with properties similar to those of typical mushroom-shaped dry adhesives were fabricated with reasonable adhesion force using the two-step UV-assisted CFL. This production technology was applied to the roll-to-roll process to improve productivity, thereby realizing continuous production without any defects. Such a technology is expected to be applied to various fields by achieving the productivity improvement of dry adhesives, which is essential for various applications

Efficiency Analysis of Project Management Offices for Large-scale Information System Projects: Insights for Construction Megaprojects

In this study, the efficiencies of Project Management Offices (PMOs) in large-scale information system (IS) projects are addressed by using data envelopment analysis. Moreover, the potential improvement levels for each input and output factors of inefficient PMOs are examined. The effects of performance levels of PMO functions on project outcomes with respect to efficiency levels are also analyzed. A total of forty-nine PMOs are analyzed for this study. The result shows that twenty-four PMOs are found to be efficient. As a result of analyzing the impact of efficiency on project performance depending on the functional levels of PMOs, those groups with a high degree of efficiency show higher outcomes compared with the groups with a low degree of efficiency regardless of the functional levels of PMOs. Furthermore, the gap in outcome between the groups with a high degree of efficiency and the groups with a low degree of efficiency is maintained at almost the same level, regardless of the functional levels of PMOs, with the exception of the case of practice management. This indicates that even those groups with a low degree of efficiency could expect high outcomes in terms of schedule and cost compliance if their level of practice management is high