DESIGN OF INDOOR ROBOT PROTOTYPE GUIDED BY RFID BASED POSITIONING AND NAVIGATION SYSTEM

In this study, a robot prototype was designed for indoor spaces guided by an RFID-based positioning and navigation system. First, the work area was prepared from cardboard material and RFID cards were placed at predetermined points in the work area. The unique ID number of each RFID card was defined and the coordinates of their location in the work area are known. The RFID reader in the robot prototype reads from less than 5 cm. With a basic approach, when the robot reads an RFID card that it passes over while in motion, the position of the robot is considered the same as the position of the card it is currently reading. The route is defined for the robot prototype whose location is known before starting the movement. When the robot reads a new RFID card during movement, it must move forward or turn left or right to reach the point where the next RFID card is located according to the route. This decision was predetermined and defined according to its location. Alphabot was used as the prototype. Arduino board and additional auxiliary sensors such as gyro sensor, speed sensors, distance sensors are placed on the prototype. The prototype robot is left at any point in the work area and arrives at a target point determined by the user. The required road route to reach the destination is calculated with the shortest path algorithm depending on the road network on the working area and the route is defined. Thus, it is ensured that the prototype reaches the target without any external intervention by the user other than target determination.

Copper technology in the Arabah during the Iron Age and the role of the indigenous population in the industry

Following the Egyptian withdrawal in the mid-12th century BCE from their involvement in the Arabah copper production, and after an additional period of organization, the degree of copper efficiency and production at Timna and Faynan increased in the Early Iron Age (11th–9th centuries), rendering the region the largest and most advanced smelting centre in the Levant. The existing paradigm offered as an explanation for this technical and commercial success is based on extraneous influence, namely, the campaign of Pharaoh Sheshonq I near the end of the 10th century BCE that spurred a renewed Egyptian involvement in the Arabah copper industry. An alternative paradigm is suggested here, viewing the advances in Arabah copper technology and production as a linear development and the outcome of continuous and gradual indigenous improvements on the part of local craftsmen, with no external intervention. Behind these outstanding technical achievements stood excellent managerial personnel, supported by an innovative technical team. They employed two techniques for copper-production optimization that can be defined based on concepts taken from the world of modern industrial engineering: (i) "trial and error", in which the effect of each production variable was tested individually and separately, and (ii) "scaling-up", in which the size of some production elements (i.e., tuyère) was increased by using existing techniques which required minimum developmental costs and experimental risks.

Understanding the influence of development interventions on women beneficiaries' perceptions of empowerment: A case study in South Sulawesi, Indonesia

<p>This thesis argues that international development interventions influence the way women perceive empowerment. It does so by looking at aid relationships and the relevance of development interventions. It involves a case study of Oxfam’s Restoring Coastal Livelihoods Project (2010-2015) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Efforts to empower women have been channeled through various approaches. However, little has been said about the practice of aid relations within projects and how aid relations work through the ‘aid chain’ and influence women’s perceptions of empowerment. Also, there has not been much said about how, in the intersectionality of aid relationships, women make ‘empowerment’ their own, appropriate it, transform it, adapt it to their stories and needs through their active engagement in projects. The qualitative research which involved a five-month period of ethnographic research found that women beneficiaries perceived empowerment mostly based on their experiences in the project. However, the degree of empowerment is relative to the types of women’s engagement, the nature of activities, and their general understanding of gender relations. The project has brought economic-driven gender awareness by facilitating women’s practical and strategic needs through economic groups. It has also brought empowerment consequences which went beyond the economic dimension. The research highlights the importance of personal, relational, and multidimensional aspects of empowerment in women’s perceptions of empowerment. Efforts to empower women seem to still rely on external intervention to facilitate the process and to deal with existing dynamics of power relations. The findings reassert that women’s empowerment requires enabling internal and external environments to promote women’s awareness of, and capacity for, empowerment. Finally, the thesis underlines that empowerment depends highly on women’s personal experiences, awareness, agency, resources, choice, willingness, and commitment. This research contributes to our understanding of women, aid, and development as it highlights the multidimensional and multi-layered aspects of aid relations and women’s empowerment.</p>

Understanding the influence of development interventions on women beneficiaries' perceptions of empowerment: A case study in South Sulawesi, Indonesia

<p>This thesis argues that international development interventions influence the way women perceive empowerment. It does so by looking at aid relationships and the relevance of development interventions. It involves a case study of Oxfam’s Restoring Coastal Livelihoods Project (2010-2015) in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Efforts to empower women have been channeled through various approaches. However, little has been said about the practice of aid relations within projects and how aid relations work through the ‘aid chain’ and influence women’s perceptions of empowerment. Also, there has not been much said about how, in the intersectionality of aid relationships, women make ‘empowerment’ their own, appropriate it, transform it, adapt it to their stories and needs through their active engagement in projects. The qualitative research which involved a five-month period of ethnographic research found that women beneficiaries perceived empowerment mostly based on their experiences in the project. However, the degree of empowerment is relative to the types of women’s engagement, the nature of activities, and their general understanding of gender relations. The project has brought economic-driven gender awareness by facilitating women’s practical and strategic needs through economic groups. It has also brought empowerment consequences which went beyond the economic dimension. The research highlights the importance of personal, relational, and multidimensional aspects of empowerment in women’s perceptions of empowerment. Efforts to empower women seem to still rely on external intervention to facilitate the process and to deal with existing dynamics of power relations. The findings reassert that women’s empowerment requires enabling internal and external environments to promote women’s awareness of, and capacity for, empowerment. Finally, the thesis underlines that empowerment depends highly on women’s personal experiences, awareness, agency, resources, choice, willingness, and commitment. This research contributes to our understanding of women, aid, and development as it highlights the multidimensional and multi-layered aspects of aid relations and women’s empowerment.</p>

The Application of Classroom Teaching Implementation of Chinese Painting in Primary and Secondary Schools in Art Teachers' Teaching Strategies

At present, the problem of emotional disorders in college student has attracted more and more attention from the society, and mental health problems have become a common problem in the process of young people’s growth, learning and life. Especially, the physiological characteristics of growth and development during university leads to the occurrence of anxiety, which require external intervention and guidance. Now, mental health education in China is generally absent, and the treatment of mental health is incomplete. There is a lack of scientific method guidance for mental health intervention and guidance for college students. The college students have just gone through the learning in universities. After entering the society, they are in a relatively relaxed state both in body and mind. This phase is also a stage when problems are easy to occur. This paper studies the relevant literature, analyzes the mechanism of college students' emotional disorder, and puts forward reasonable sports intervention programs.

Research Progress on the Mechanism of College Students' Emotional Disorder and Sports Intervention Program

At present, the problem of emotional disorders in college student has attracted more and more attention from the society, and mental health problems have become a common problem in the process of young people’s growth, learning and life. Especially, the physiological characteristics of growth and development during university leads to the occurrence of anxiety, which require external intervention and guidance. Now, mental health education in China is generally absent, and the treatment of mental health is incomplete. There is a lack of scientific method guidance for mental health intervention and guidance for college students. The college students have just gone through the learning in universities. After entering the society, they are in a relatively relaxed state both in body and mind. This phase is also a stage when problems are easy to occur. This paper studies the relevant literature, analyzes the mechanism of college students' emotional disorder, and puts forward reasonable sports intervention programs.

illusion of the Oracle:

The familiar face of empires is external intervention as opposed to local culture. We follow Michel Onfray's thesis about the oracular illusion when one more individual or country tries to avoid the fulfillment of a nefarious prediction, which materializes as a catastrophe. Algeria conquered in 1830 was incorporated into French territory. In 1954 the FLN rebelled, and in 1961, General Charles de Gaulle negotiated the independence of Algeria, causing the disastrous departure of 750,000 French settlers and the death of French supporters. From 1962 to 2021, the withdrawals of imperial powers from their colonies, France from Algeria, the United States in Afghanistan, resulted in catastrophes and uncertainties. The imperial power of the United States aimed to defeat its bipolar antagonist, the USSR when it invaded Afghanistan. They conducted an inconsequential policy to beat their rival, arming and financing the Taliban's victorious resistance, the freedom fighters. The oracular illusion led the United States to support the future antagonist, Islamic fundamentalism, destined for the world caliphate. After the departure of the USSR, American power despised the Taliban, who harbored al Qaeda, leading to 9/11. In 2001 the United States invaded Afghanistan and abandoned it after 20 years of war without the precaution of obtaining plans or safeguards for the government in Kabul. After the disastrous retreat, the victorious Taliban demonstrated, like the FLN in Algeria, the fulfillment of the oracular illusion.

Tourism recovery amid COVID-19: The case of Lombardy, Italy

Travel restrictions and social distancing imposed to curb the spread of the new coronavirus have been strongly hitting tourism since March 2020. Tourism forecasting literature addressed the effects of shocks in contexts characterized by a predictable route to recovery. COVID-19 is without precedents. In this article, monthly overnight stays for the period January 2010 to December 2020 are used to estimate the impact of the pandemic in Lombardy, Italy’s most affected region. A model-based approach is implemented, and the number of overnight stays up to December 2023 is forecasted. Four models are compared. Estimation results from an augmented SARIMA model suggest that, provided a new lockdown is averted, the domestic segment will recover in a relatively short period of time, whereas international tourism might need an external intervention to speed up its recovery process.

Pollutant Degrading Enzyme: Catalytic Mechanisms and Their Expanded Applications

The treatment of environmental pollution by microorganisms and their enzymes is an innovative and socially acceptable alternative to traditional remediation approaches. Microbial biodegradation is often characterized with high efficiency as this process is catalyzed via degrading enzymes. Various naturally isolated microorganisms were demonstrated to have considerable ability to mitigate many environmental pollutants without external intervention. However, only a small fraction of these strains are studied in detail to reveal the mechanisms at the enzyme level, which strictly limited the enhancement of the degradation efficiency. Accordingly, this review will comprehensively summarize the function of various degrading enzymes with an emphasis on catalytic mechanisms. We also inspect the expanded applications of these pollutant-degrading enzymes in industrial processes. An in-depth understanding of the catalytic mechanism of enzymes will be beneficial for exploring and exploiting more degrading enzyme resources and thus ameliorate concerns associated with the ineffective biodegradation of recalcitrant and xenobiotic contaminants with the help of gene-editing technology and synthetic biology.