Biotechnology to develop innovative syntheses using CO2

We present an overview of possible biotechnological applications for using carbon dioxide for the synthesis of chemicals. These approaches are very appealing as they contribute to the implementation of new synthetic methodologies that reduce waste and make a better use of carbon and energy. Several synthetic approaches will be considered including both the incorporation of the whole COO moiety or its reduction to other C1 molecules. Each option will be discussed making a comparison between the natural and artificial process in order to highlight the possibility to learn from Nature and develop useful mimetic or enzymatic systems

Pengaruh Pemberian Jus Pare (Momordica Charantia L.) Dan Jus Jeruk Nipis (Citrus Aurantifolia) Terhadap Kadar Kolesterol Total Tikus Sprague Dawley Hiperkolsterolemia

Latar Belakang : Hiperkolesterolemia merupakan faktor utama dan faktor risiko independen penyakit kardiovaskuler. Penurunan kolesterol total merupakan salah satu strategi dalam terapi penyakit kardiovaskuler. Buah pare dan jeruk nipis memilki potensi menurunkan kolesterol total. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui pengaruh jus pare, jus jeruk nipis dan kombinasi kedua buah dalam menurunkan kolesterol total.Metode : Penelitian ini merupakan true experimental dengan rancangan pre-post test randomized control group design. Sampel terdiri dari 28 tikus jantan Sprague Dawley hiperkolesterolemia yang dibagi menjadi 4 kelompok. Intervensi dilakukan selama 14 hari dengan kelompok kontrol hanya diberi pakan standar, perlakuan 1 (P1) diberi jus pare 2 ml/ekor/hari, perlakuan 2 (P2) diberi jus jeruk nipis 2 ml/ekor/hari dan perlakuan 3 (P3) diberi kombinasi jus pare dan jus jeruk nipis sebanyak 4 ml/ekor/hari. Kadar kolsterol total dianalisis dengan metode CHOD-PAP. Data dianalisis dengan uji Paired t-test dan one way Anova.Hasil : Penelitian ini menunjukkan terjadi penurunan kolesterol total setelah pemberian jus pare (22,51%), jus jeruk nipis (28,93%) dan kombinasi jus pare+jeruk nipis (24,04%) (p<0,05). Namun tidak terdapat perbedaan rerata Perubahan kadar kolesterol total antara kelompok kontrol dan perlakuan dengan p=0,105 (p>0,05)Simpulan : Tidak terdapat perbedaan pengaruh pemberian pare, jus jeruk nipis dan kombinasi jus pare+jeruk nipis terhadap penurunan kolesterol total tikus hiperkolesterolemia

Marriage Satisfaction on Young Women with Premarital Pregnancy

Marriage due to premarital pregnancy become increasingly more common in Indonesia, although the behaviour is still deemed as inappropriate by the society and tend to be negatively stigmatized. This might affect the marriage satisfaction which could harm the overall quality of the marriage. The purpose of this study was to determine marital satisfaction on youth with premarital pregnancy. Participants in this study were nine young women who were married due to premarital pregnancy and residing in Kupang City. Data was collected using interviews and analysed with thematic analysis approach that revealed three main themes. The results showed that marital satisfaction varied in participants, in which six participants were more satisfied and enjoyed their current married life, while the other three participants were not satisfied due to dissatisfaction with aspects of equality of roles in household, parenting and sexual life. Implications from this results were discussed further in the article

Synthesis and characterization of p-n junction ternary mixed oxides for photocatalytic coprocessing of CO2 and H2O

In the present paper, we report the synthesis and characterization of both binary (Cu2 O, Fe2 O3, and In2 O3 ) and ternary (Cu2 O-Fe2 O3 and Cu2 O-In2 O3 ) transition metal mixed-oxides that may find application as photocatalysts for solar driven CO2 conversion into energy rich species. Two different preparation techniques (High Energy Milling (HEM) and Co-Precipitation (CP)) are compared and materials properties are studied by means of a variety of characterization and analytical techniques UV-Visible Diffuse Reflectance Spectroscopy (UV-VIS DRS), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and Energy Dispersive X-Ray spectrometry (EDX). Appropriate data elaboration methods are used to extract materials bandgap for Cu2 O@Fe2 O3 and Cu2 O@In2 O3 prepared by HEM and CP, and foresee whether the newly prepared semiconductor mixed oxides pairs are useful for application in CO2-H2 O coprocessing. The experimental results show that the synthetic technique influences the photoactivity of the materials that can correctly be foreseen on the basis of bandgap experimentally derived. Of the mixed oxides prepared and described in this work, only Cu2 O@In2 O3 shows positive results in CO2-H2 O photo-co-processing. Preliminary results show that the composition and synthetic methodologies of mixed-oxides, the reactor geometry, the way of dispersing the photocatalyst sample, play a key role in the light driven reaction of CO2 –H2 O. This work is a rare case of full characterization of photo-materials, using UV-Visible DRS, XPS, XRD, TEM, EDX for the surface and bulk analytical characterization. Surface composition may not be the same of the bulk composition and plays a key role in photocatalysts behavior. We show that a full material knowledge is necessary for the correct forecast of their photocatalytic behavior, inferred from experimentally determined bandgaps

Affective Contagion: How Attitudes Expressed by Others Influence Our Perception of Actions

Vitality forms represent a fundamental aspect of social interactions by characterizing how actions are performed and how words are pronounced on the basis of the attitude of the agent. Same action, such as a handshake, may have a different impact on the receiver when it is performed kindly or vigorously, and similarly, a gentle or rude tone of voice may have a different impact on the listener. In the present study, we carried out two experiments that aimed to investigate whether and how vocal requests conveying different vitality forms can influence the perception of goal-directed actions and to measure the duration of this effect over time. More specifically, participants were asked to listen to the voice of an actor pronouncing “give me” in a rude or gentle way. Then, they were asked to observe the initial part of a rude or a gentle passing action, continue it mentally, and estimate the time of its completion. Results showed that the perception of different vitality forms expressed by vocal requests influenced the estimation of action duration. Moreover, we found that this effect was limited to a certain time interval (800 ms), after which it started to decay

Comparative life cycle assessment study on environmental impact of oil production from micro-algae and terrestrial oilseed crops

In this study the LCA methodology is applied in order to satisfy two goals: i) to evaluate the hot spots in site-specific production chain of biodiesel from terrestrial and micro-algae feedstock; ii) to compare quantitatively, utilizing primary data, the impacts of the first generation in respect to the third generation bio-fuels. Results show that micro-algae are neither competitive yet with traditional oil crops nor with fossil fuel. The use of renewable technologies as photovoltaics and biogas self production might increase the competitiveness of micro-algae oil. Further investigations are however necessary to optimize their production chain and to increase the added value of co-products

Blockchain-based diploma information system development

A diploma is a document of recognition of learning achievement from a level of education obtained after completing the study period after passing the final exam. The importance of the certificates' existence for working purposes has resulted in the proliferation of making and using fake certificates for various purposes such as applying for jobs, fulfilling the requirements to become members of the legislature, etc. The Diploma Information System using blockchain-based distributed computing can be one way to maintain the diploma's authenticity and validity. This study uses the waterfall method with several applications, ethereum remix ideas, ganache, and metamask, aiming to develop blockchain-based diploma information on STMIK Indonesia Padang by utilizing blockchain technology.A diploma is a document of recognition of learning achievement from a level of education obtained after completing the study period after passing the final exam. The importance of the certificates' existence for working purposes has resulted in the proliferation of making and using fake certificates for various purposes such as applying for jobs, fulfilling the requirements to become members of the legislature, etc. The Diploma Information System using blockchain-based distributed computing can be one way to maintain the diploma's authenticity and validity. This study uses the waterfall method with several applications, ethereum remix ideas, ganache, and metamask, aiming to develop blockchain-based diploma information on STMIK Indonesia Padang by utilizing blockchain technology