Directory Of Databases Research Articles

Concepts, Characterizations, and Cautions: A Public Health Guide and Glossary for Planning Food Environment Measurement.

There is no singular approach to measuring the food environment suitable for all studies. Understanding terminology, methodology, and common issues is crucial to choosing the best approach. This review is designed to support a shared understanding so diverse multi-institutional teams engaged in food environment measurement can justify their measurement choices and have informed discussions about reasons for measurement strategies to vary across projects. This guide defines key terms and provides annotated resources identified as a useful starting point for exploring the food environment literature. The writing team was an academic-practice collaboration, reflecting on the experience of a multi-institutional team focused on retail environments across the US relevant to cardiovascular disease. Terms and annotated resources are divided into three sections: food environment constructs, classification and measures, and errors and strategies to reduce error. Two examples of methods and challenges encountered while measuring the food environment in the context of a US health department are provided. Researchers and practice professionals are directed to the Food Environment Electronic Database Directory (https://www.foodenvironmentdirectory.com/) for comparing available data resources for food environment measurement, focused on the US; this resource incorporates updates informed by user input and literature reviews. Measuring the food environment is complex and risks oversimplification. This guide serves as a starting point but only partially captures some aspects of neighborhood food environment measurement. No single food environment measure or data source meets all research and practice objectives. This shared starting point can facilitate theoretically grounded food environment measurement.

Performance evaluation of a multinational data platform for critical care in Asia

Background: The value of medical registries strongly depends on the quality of the data collected. This must be objectively measured before large clinical databases can be promoted for observational research, quality improvement, and clinical trials. We aimed to evaluate the quality of a multinational intensive care unit (ICU) network of registries of critically ill patients established in seven Asian low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: The Critical Care Asia federated registry platform enables ICUs to collect clinical, outcome and process data for aggregate and unit-level analysis. The evaluation used the standardised criteria of the Directory of Clinical Databases (DoCDat) and a framework for data quality assurance in medical registries. Six reviewers assessed structure, coverage, reliability and validity of the ICU registry data. Case mix and process measures on patient episodes from June to December 2020 were analysed. Results: Data on 20,507 consecutive patient episodes from 97 ICUs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam were included. The quality level achieved according to the ten prespecified DoCDat criteria was high (average score 3.4 out of 4) as was the structural and organizational performance -- comparable to ICU registries in high-income countries. Identified strengths were types of variables included, reliability of coding, data completeness and validation. Potential improvements included extension of national coverage,optimization of recruitment completeness validation in all centers and the use of interobserver reliability checks. Conclusions: The Critical Care Asia platform evaluates well using standardised frameworks for data quality and equally to registries in resource-rich settings.

Performance evaluation of a multinational data platform for critical care in Asia

Background: The value of medical registries strongly depends on the quality of the data collected. This must be objectively measured before large clinical databases can be promoted for observational research, quality improvement, and clinical trials. We aimed to evaluate the quality of a multinational intensive care unit (ICU) network of registries of critically ill patients established in seven Asian low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: The Critical Care Asia federated registry platform enables ICUs to collect clinical, outcome and process data for aggregate and unit-level analysis. The evaluation used the standardised criteria of the Directory of Clinical Databases (DoCDat) and a framework for data quality assurance in medical registries. Six reviewers assessed structure, coverage, reliability and validity of the ICU registry data. Case mix and process measures on patient episodes from June to December 2020 were analysed. Results: Data on 20,507 consecutive patient episodes from 97 ICUs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam were included. The quality level achieved according to the ten prespecified DoCDat criteria was high (average score 3.4 out of 4) as was the structural and organizational performance -- comparable to ICU registries in high-income countries. Identified strengths were types of variables included, reliability of coding, data completeness and validation. Potential improvements included extension of national coverage, optimization of recruitment completeness validation in all centers and the use of interobserver reliability checks. Conclusions: The Critical Care Asia platform evaluates well using standardised frameworks for data quality and equally to registries in resource-rich settings.

Global Dam Watch: curated data and tools for management and decision making

Abstract Dams, reservoirs, and other water management infrastructure provide benefits, but can also have negative impacts. Dam construction and removal affects progress toward the UN sustainable development goals at local to global scales. Yet, globally-consistent information on the location and characteristics of these structures are lacking, with information often highly localised, fragmented, or inaccessible. A freely available, curated, consistent, and regularly updated global database of existing dams and other instream infrastructure is needed along with open access tools to support research, decision-making and management needs. Here we introduce the Global Dam Watch (GDW) initiative (www.globaldamwatch.org ) whose objectives are: (a) advancing recent efforts to develop a single, globally consistent dam and instream barrier data product for global-scale analyses (the GDW database); (b) bringing together the increasingly numerous global, regional and local dam and instream barrier datasets in a directory of databases (the GDW directory); (c) building tools for the visualisation of dam and instream barrier data and for analyses in support of policy and decision making (the GDW knowledge-base) and (d) advancing earth observation and geographical information system techniques to map a wider range of instream structures and their properties. Our focus is on all types of anthropogenic instream barriers, though we have started by prioritizing major reservoir dams and run-of-river barriers, for which more information is available. Our goal is to facilitate national-scale, basin-scale and global-scale mapping, analyses and understanding of all instream barriers, their impacts and their role in sustainable development through the provision of publicly accessible information and tools. We invite input and partnerships across sectors to strengthen GDW’s utility and relevance for all, help define database content and knowledge-base tools, and generally expand the reach of GDW as a global hub of impartial academic expertise and policy information regarding dams and other instream barriers.

Performance evaluation of a multinational data platform for critical care in Asia.

Background: The value of medical registries strongly depends on the quality of the data collected. This must be objectively measured before large clinical databases can be promoted for observational research, quality improvement, and clinical trials. We aimed to evaluate the quality of a multinational intensive care unit (ICU) network of registries of critically ill patients established in seven Asian low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Methods: The Critical Care Asia federated registry platform enables ICUs to collect clinical, outcome and process data for aggregate and unit-level analysis. The evaluation used the standardised criteria of the Directory of Clinical Databases (DoCDat) and a framework for data quality assurance in medical registries. Six reviewers assessed structure, coverage, reliability and validity of the ICU registry data. Case mix and process measures on patient episodes from June to December 2020 were analysed. Results: Data on 20,507 consecutive patient episodes from 97 ICUs in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam were included. The quality level achieved according to the ten prespecified DoCDat criteria was high (average score 3.4 out of 4) as was the structural and organizational performance -- comparable to ICU registries in high-income countries. Identified strengths were types of variables included, reliability of coding, data completeness and validation. Potential improvements included extension of national coverage,optimization of recruitment completeness validation in all centers and the use of interobserver reliability checks. Conclusions: The Critical Care Asia platform evaluates well using standardised frameworks for data quality and equally to registries in resource-rich settings.

The relationship between teacher academic optimism and student academic achievement: A meta-analysis

This meta-analysis of 13 studies examines the relationship between teacher academic optimism and student academic achievement. The studies have been reached from Web of Science, ERIC, Proquest Digital Dissertations, Turkish Academic Network and Information TR Directory, Google Academic and Council of Higher Education Thesis Center databases. The correlation scores of the studies included in the meta-analysis were computed by the Fisher z method and Comprehensive Meta-Analysis V3 (CMA) Program was used. As a result, the relationship between teacher academic optimism and student academic achievement has a strong effect size with a value of 0.513 according to the random effects model. Additionally, the moderator analysis was performed for verbal and non-verbal courses. There was no statistically significant difference observed and no publication bias in the meta-analysis study. Education policy makers and school administrators can put on their agenda the strengthening of teacher academic optimism for student academic achievement.

Organization Culture and Quality Management System: A Systematic Literature Review

Purpose – Aiming to fulfill the need to consolidate and carry out a critical analysis of the studies developed on Organizational Culture and Quality Management Systems, this study aims to understand the relationship between these concepts through a systematic review of the literature.Design/methodology/approach – This study is descriptive and is predominantly classified as a quantitative approach. Using the systematic literature review technique, publications contained in the Materials Science & Engineering Database, Emerald Insight, OneFile (GALE), Taylor & Francis Online - Journals, ScienceDirect Journals (Elsevier), Elsevier (CrossRef), Directory of databases were analyzed Open Access Journals (DOAJ), MEDLINE / PubMed (NLM), Library & Information Science Collection and Springer (CrossRef) and 22 studies that deal with the topics in an integrated manner were used.Findings – The analysis shows that the Cameron and Quinn (2011) and Hofstede (2003) models are the most used. Regarding the business sectors in which studies were carried out, no research relating to the topics studied in utilities companies had been carried out, with most of the studies (38%) carried out in companies in the industrial sector.Originality/value – With regard to aspects of quality management relating to organizational culture, there is a balance between the hard and soft elements in the literature and that most studies put forward the management levels of companies as the target audience for the data source.Keywords - Organizational Culture, Management System, Quality Management System, Systematic Literature Review.

Effects of Black Cumin (Nigella sativa L.) on patients with cancer and tumor: A systematic Review

Experimental studies demonstrated a positive effect of administration of Nigella sativa L. (Back cumin) and its active chemical components on cancer and tumor through the antioxidant and anti-cancer activity. This study aimed to determine the beneficial effect of the use of black cumin in patients with cancer and tumor. This systematic review includes 4 randomized controlled trials that investigated the effect of the administration of black cumin in human cancer. Articles were searched in PubMed, Cochrane library, Semantic scholar and directory of open access journal (DOAJ), open grey and grey literature report databases for studies from 1983 to 2020 before May using the following keywords, Nigella sativa , black cumin, cancer, tumor, etc. The results examined that N. sativa is much effective in treating breast cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, brain tumor, and acute myeloid leukemia. According to the limited evidence from the study, black cumin may have favorable effects on cancer and tumor. However, more research is needed on different types of cancer to confirm and establish the above findings.

Spatial distribution of gambling: two indexes in support of the reduction of health inequalities

Abstract Background Many studies have showed that disadvantaged areas residents have greater access to gambling sites and are more affected by gambling. Our research proposes an innovative method to characterize gambling environments in Quebec and addresses social inequality with respect to gambling exposure. Methods This cross-sectional ecological study was carried out in 3 stages: a Gambling Exposure Index (GEI) was built and is composed of 3 dimensions: spatial accessibility to gambling sites, density of gambling places, and relative risk associated with the types of game. The two-step floating catchment area (2SFCA) method was used to combine these dimensions into an overall GEI index. Data was retrieved from a geocoded directory of gambling sites and commercial databases. The relative risk of games is expressed by prevalence rates for those specific games in a Quebec population prevalence survey. A Vulnerability to Gambling Index (VGI) was produced based on 6 socio-economic proxies of problem gambling from the 2016 Canadian census, which were weighted and aggregated at the dissemination area (DA) level. Spatial and descriptive statistical analyses were conducted to explore the relationship between VGI and GEI, and to identify highly exposed and vulnerable areas. Results Our analyzes reveal significant associations between the GEI and the VGI in 2 599 out of 13 420 Quebec DAs (p < 0.05). Sectors with a high GEI show an average distance to the closest gambling sites of 2.8 km compared with 13.5 km for more advantaged sectors. Conclusions The interactive online mapping of the two indexes and statistical analysis of the results are beneficial to the professionals working in several fields such as risk monitoring, management of zoning, licensing and gambling distribution, prevention and treatment services. The method and the associated tools can be adapted to address the problem of increased accessibility to other unhealthy products in vulnerable neighborhoods. Key messages Two innovative ecological indexes show that increased accessibility to gambling correlates with a higher vulnerability to gambling in many Quebec regions. The online interactive map on gambling exposure and vulnerability provides reliable criteria to municipal, regional and governmental bodies for a safer distribution of gambling offer.

The prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection in \u03b2-thalassemia patients in Pakistan: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundHepatitis C virus infection is the most commonly reported bloodborne infection in Pakistan. Frequent blood transfusions in β-thalassemia patients expose them to a high risk of HCV infection. The purpose of this paper is to summarise the current data on the prevalence of HCV infection in β-thalassemia patients in Pakistan by using a systematic review and meta–analysis.MethodsPubMed, EMBASE, Web of Sciences, the Cochrane Library, Directory of Open Access Journal and local databases were systematically searched for studies published between January 1st, 1995 and May 31st, 2019. Meta-analysis was performed using the DerSimonian and Laird random-effects models with inverse variance weighting. The presence of publication bias was tested by Egger test, and the methodological quality of each included article was evaluated by the STROBE.ResultsWe identified a total of 229 potential studies, of which 27 studies were finally considered in the meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of HCV in β-thalassemia patients in Pakistan was 36.21% (95% CI: 28.98–43.75%) based on 5789 β-thalassemia patients, but there was considerable heterogeneity. Meta-analysis estimated the HCV prevalence among the β-thalassemia patients at 45.98% (95% CI: 38.15–53.90%) in Punjab, 31.81% (95% CI: 20.27–44.59%) in Sindh, and 28.04% (95% CI: 13.58–45.26%) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Meta–regression analysis showed that geographical location was a key source of heterogeneity.ConclusionsThe pooled prevalence of HCV in β-thalassemia patients in Pakistan was more than one in three, and higher than in neighbouring countries. It varies regionally within the country. With the use of standard prevention procedures during blood transfusion, the risk of HCV transmission in β-thalassemia patients could be controlled and the prevalence of HCV in β-thalassemia patients reduced.

A Literature Review—<i>Khaya senegalensis, Anacardium ouest</i> L., <i>Cassia sieberiana</i> DC., <i>Pterocarpus erinaceus</i>, <i>Diospyros mespiliformis</i>, <i>Ocimum gratissimum</i>, <i>Manihot esculenta</i>, <i>Vernonia amygdalina</i> Delile, <i>Pseudocedrela kotschyi</i> and <i>Daniellia oliveri</i> Possess Properties for Managing Infectious Diarrhea

The rise in antimicrobial resistance increases researchers’ interest in medicinal plants used for traditional treatment of infectious diseases. The study is based on ten (10) medicinal plants mostly cited in the treatment of diarrhea in West Africa: Khaya senegalensis, Anacardium ouest L., Cassia sieberiana DC., Pterocarpus erinaceus, Diospyros mespiliformis, Ocimum gratissimum, Manihot esculenta, Vernonia amygdalina Delile, Pseudocedrela kotschyi, Daniellia oliveri. The objective is to make a review on ethnopharmacological, pharmacological, toxicological and chemical data that enhance these medicinal plants in the fight against diarrheal infections. Specific keywords were used for bibliographic research in Google Scholar, Science Direct, PubMed Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) and other databases. Generalities relating to diarrheal infections and scientific data on the ten selected plants in the fight against diarrheal infections were sought. From the results, it emerges that each of the ten plants has been listed as useful in the traditional treatment of diarrheal infections. Antibacterial tests showed their effectiveness on several bacterial strains responsible for bacterial infections. The chemical components identified as responsible for the activity of medicinal plants belong to the groups of saponins, flavonoids, alkaloids, tannins and others. An optimal use of these medicinal plants in the fight against diarrheal infections requires deep pharmacological, chemical and toxicological studies.

Painful Bladder Syndrome’s Diagnostic and Therapeutic Controversies: A Review

Painful Bladder Syndrome (PBS) is a controversial disease with no consensus on its nomenclature, diagnostic criteria, or aetiology. Interstitial Cystitis (IC), PBS, chronic pelvic pain syndrome, and Hypersensitive Bladder Syndrome (HBS) are closely related clinical diseases. Hence, underdiagnosis or misdiagnosis of PBS and consequent failure of disease management may occur. This review aims to explore the established and emerging controversies regarding the epidemiology, aetiology, pathogenesis, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnostic criteria, workup and management strategies of PBS. A literature search was carried out in the following electronic databases, PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Google Scholar, Directory of Open Access Journals and Cochrane electronic databases from starting of May to first week of June 2020. Keywords including Bladder Pain Syndrome (BPS), aetiology, histopathology, management and diagnosis were used to search these various databases. Accurate data on the prevalence of PBS is scarce, primarily as there is no standardised definition. Furthermore, there are there no fixed criteria for diagnosis, leading to variability in the reported prevalence of PBS in the literature. Management approaches in patients with PBS must be individualised and tailored to each case in terms of aetiology, diagnosis, and treatment.

Adaptive support of it solutions (on the example of 1C: Enterprise 8.3 configurations)

The article is devoted to the results of an actual study, the purpose of which was to develop and implement design solutions for adaptively supporting configurations of the “1C: Enterprise 8.3” platform for subsequent practical application in the development of typical configurations for solving applied problems of small and medium-sized enterprises. The relevance of the study is determined by several positions. Firstly, the introduction of information technologies in the most important sectors of the economy helps to increase labor productivity, improve the overall investment climate in Russia, and helps to reduce the dependence of the country’s economy on commodity exports. Secondly, the low degree of realization of the potential of boxed solutions is due to the fact that many enterprises relate to the implementation and subsequent maintenance of such solutions as technical projects, not taking into account their business component. Thirdly, in some cases, when purchasing a replicated solution, it needs to be adapted to business requirements and the new IT infrastructure. Adaptation is carried out at the implementation stage or at the stage of supporting the implemented solution. However, the success of such work depends not only on the implementation and support specialists, but also on the availability of descriptions of specific rules, actions, and work that must be performed. At the same time, a lack of logically structured recommendations on their adaptation after acquisition and implementation is noticeable. The study took place in two stages. At the theoretical and methodological stage, a study of the subject area was carried out. The use of structural and object-oriented analysis and design tools made it possible to analyze the business processes of transferring data from the existing BOSS-Kadrovik automated system (AS) to 1C: ZUP, as well as the process of writing off material balances from account 10 to “1C: Accounting 3.0”, identify problem areas (analysis of IDEF0 functional models) and formulate the image and boundaries of the project (requirements model in the form of a use case diagram – Use Case). Selected adaptive support options were determined in accordance with the support rules recommended by 1C when implementing standard implementation technology. For the “1C: Salary and Enterprise Management 3.1” configuration, it was decided to develop a configuration extension, for adapting the “1C: Accounting 3.0” configuration, the creation of external processing. The design phase of work on the topic of this study involved the development of design solutions for the adaptation of the indicated configurations. At the same time, data models were developed at the logical and physical levels, the requirements for information support in the form of database directories were formulated. In addition, the dynamic component of the solutions being developed was examined, namely, the transitions of some objects from one state to another when fulfilling the selected precedents and the results of the state change. For these purposes, a special type of UML diagram technique was used – activity diagrams. Implementation of design solutions for adaptive configuration support was carried out on the 1C: Enterprise 8.3 platform. Testing the implemented solutions yielded positive results. In addition, the cost of adaptive support was calculated. In the calculation, the time norms for the configuration stage proposed by 1C were taken into account.

Denoising and Analysis of ECG Signal using Wavelet Transform for Detection of Arrhythmia

Electrocardiography is fundamental in the observation of heart function and diagnosis of diseases related to it. It involves measurement of very small bioelectric signals (in millivolts) produced by the human heart during its opening and closing of valves in atria and ventricle and is represented on a scaled paper. P, QRS, and T wave annotations by cardiologists then help in the diagnosis of the patient. Due to the electrical activity of muscles (EMG), instability of electrode-skin contact and patient movement, the noise gets induced during the plotting of the electrocardiogram (ECG). It is important to remove the noise from this signal as it is a signal having very small amplitude and different frequencies repeated almost every second. For such nonstationary biosignals, Wavelet Transform (WT) can be used. In this study, Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) and Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) are used to denoise and extract features from the ECG, respectively. The features extracted from DWT are used as input to Artificial Neural Network (ANN) for the classification of normal and abnormal ECG. Abnormal ECGs are further classified into tachycardia and bradycardia. The results show that ANN can classify ECGs with high accuracy. The data used for this study is from the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia Database Directory.

The social dimension and indicators of sustainability in agrifood supply chains

Several organizations aim to establish and manage cooperative and collaborative actions in order to incorporate the principles related to sustainable management in supply chains. The indicators related to the social dimension are still barely explored in academic research, since the perceived business practices are still emerging in the contemporary world and in the organizational relations. The opposite of the financial and environmental dimensions, which are already rooted in the business environment. In agrifood chains, social aspects are essential when suppliers are often impoverished farmers, and labor practices are generally painful and exploitative. This paper aims to identify, in the international literature, the state-of-the-art research related to social sustainability in agrifood supply chains. To achieve this goal, a systematic literature review covering papers published in the Science Direct, Directory of Open Access Journals and Emerald Insight databases was carried out. Results indicate that academic production is still low, despite its growth in recent years, and is limited to approaches containing indicators of social sustainability related to support communities affected by agrifood business. In addition, it evidences arrangements among members of supply chains, mostly of the cooperative type, having collaborative arrangements with more limited approaches among the analyzed works.

Qualitative subjective assessment of a high-resolution database in a paediatric intensive care unit-Elaborating the perpetual patient's ID card.

The main purpose of our study was to subjectively assess the quality of a paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) database according to the Directory of Clinical Databases (DoCDat) criteria. A survey was conducted between April 1 and June 15, 2018, among the Sainte Justine PICU research group. Every member of this group whose research activity required the use of the database and/or who was involved in the development/validation of the database. None. All 10 research team members (one Information Technology specialist, one junior medical student, and eight clinician researchers) who used the high-resolution database fulfilled the survey (100% response rate). The median quality level of the Sainte Justine PICU database across all the 10 criteria was 3 (2-4), rated on a 1 (worst) to 4 (best) numeric scale. When compared with previously assessed databases through the DoCDat criteria, we found that the Sainte Justine PICU database performance was similar. The PICU high-resolution database appeared of good quality when subjectively assessed by the DoCDat criteria. Further validation procedures are mandatory. We suggest that data quality assessment and validation procedures should be reported when creating a new database.

Overuse of antimicrobial prophylaxis in low-risk patients undergoing transurethral resection of the prostate

To evaluate the current antimicrobial prophylaxis practices for low-risk patients undergoing transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) or photoselective vaporisation of the prostate (PVP) in comparison with the antimicrobial prophylaxis recommendations of the European Association of Urology (EAU), which have been shown to effectively reduce infectious complications and antimicrobial resistance rates. In May 2017, we sent an anonymous online -survey to board-certified urologists in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, by use of the database directory of the respective urology associations. Besides demographical questions, urologists were asked about their sources of information on antimicrobial prophylaxis prescription and their prescribing patterns before, during and after surgery in patients without an indwelling catheter or significant bacteriuria undergoing TURP or PVP. Overall, 374 of 5825 urologists responded, of whom 76% (286/374) performed TURP and 16% (60/374) PVP. For TURP and PVP, respectively: (i) 42% (119/286) and 33% (20/60) reported routine use of preoperative antimicrobial prophylaxis, which does not conform to guideline recommendations; (ii) 43% (124/286) and 52% (31/60) reported prescribing non-recommended perioperative antimicrobial prophylaxis regimens; and (iii) 60% (172/286) and 65% (39/60) routinely extended antimicrobial prophylaxis after surgery for up to one week. In summary, of the urologists who responded to the questionnaire, 74% (211/286) reported nonadherence to guidelines on antimicrobial prophylaxis for TURP. A low adherence to guidelines for low-risk patients undergoing TURP or PVP was reported. Given these preliminary data, there is an urgent need to monitor adherence to antimicrobial prophylaxis guidelines in urology to reduce antimicrobial resistance rates.

Análise dos grupos de pesquisa em psicologia do esporte e do exercício no Brasil

The aim of this study was to analyze the geographic distribution and scientific production of research groups of Psychology of Sport and Exercise in Brazil. This is a descriptive and systematic study realized on the current database Directory of Research Groups in Brazil available on the website of the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development. Altogether, 29 research groups were located. Most of research groups are located in São Paulo (20.6%) and Minas Gerais (17.2%), Santa Catarina (13,7%) and Rio Grande do Sul (13,7%). Soccer and Volleyball were the sports most investigated by the research groups. Regarding theme, anxiety was the most published in the last five years by 10 groups, followed by motivation (9) and stress (7). There is lack of studies with sociological or historical analysis of Psychology of Sport and Exercise. We concluded that there was an increase in number of research groups of Psychology of Sport and Exercise in Brazil, especially in the last decade. However, the north and northeast regions still lack research groups in this area.

Algorithm for EMG noise level approximation in ECG signals

Abstract In this paper, we introduce an approach for Electromyogram (EMG) noise level approximation in Electrocardiogram (ECG) signals. The stationary wavelet transform (SWT) is used to find efficient translation-invariant approximation of EMG noise. This is accomplished in the form of reference signal extracted as an estimation of the signal quality vs. EMG noise. The reference signal is built and then normalized after considering different heart rates and rhythms which increases its robustness and reliability to give accurate results regardless of input signal rhythm. Additionally, four applications of the extracted reference signal are suggested in this paper. For evaluation purposes both real EMG and artificial noises were used. The tested ECG signals are from MIT-BIH Arrhythmia Database Directory. The correlation coefficient between the added noise and the reference signal were computed for moving windows over the signal. Finally, the correlation between beats detection and reference signal was computed and presented. Reference signal gave high correlation with false positive values. Most false positives caused by EMG noise occur in intervals of greater amplitude reference signal and vice versa.

Editorial: Advancing the Debate on Architecture, Planning, and Built Environment Research

With an acceptance rate that does not exceed 25% of the total papers and articles submitted to the journal, IJAR – International Journal of Architectural Research is moving forward to position itself among the leading journals in architecture and urban studies worldwide. As this is the case since the beginning of volume 5, issue 1, March 2011, one must note that the journal has been covered by several data and index bases since its inception including Avery Index to Architectural Periodicals, EBSCO-Current Abstracts-Art and Architecture, INTUTE, Directory of Open Access Journals, Pro-Quest, Scopus-Elsevier and many university library databases across the globe. This is coupled with IJAR being an integral part of the archives and a featured collection of ArchNet and the Aga Khan Documentation Centre at MIT: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA.In 2014, IJAR was included in Quartile 2 / Q2 list of Journals both in ‘Architecture’ and ‘Urban Studies.’ As of May 2015, IJAR is ranked 23 out of 83 journals in ‘Architecture’ and 59 out of 119 in ‘Urban Studies.’ Rankings are based on the SJR (SCImago Journal Ranking); an Elsevier- SCOPUS indicator that measures the scientific influence of the average article in a journal. SJR is a measure of scientific influence of scholarly journals that accounts for both the number of citations received by a journal and the importance or prestige of the journals where such citations come from. See here for more information (http://www.scimagojr.com/index.php) and (http://www.journalmetrics.com/sjr.php). While the journal is now on top of many of the distinguished journals in Elsevier- SCOPUS database, we will keep aspiring to sustain our position and move forward to Q1 group list and eventually in the top 10 journal list in the field. However, this requires sustained efforts and conscious endeavours that give attention to quality submissions through a rigorous review process. This edition of IJAR: volume 9, issue 2, July 2015 includes debates on a wide spectrum of issues, explorations and investigations in various settings. The issue encompasses sixteen papers addressing cities, settlements, and projects in Europe, South East Asia, and the Middle East. Papers involve international collaborations evidenced by joint contributions and come from scholars in universities, academic institutions, and practices in Belgium; Egypt; Greece; Italy; Jordan; Malaysia; Palestine; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Serbia; Spain; Turkey; and the United Kingdom. In this editorial I briefly outline the key issues presented in these papers, which include topics relevant to social housing, multigenerational dwelling, practice-based research, sustainable design and biomimetic models, learning environments and learning styles, realism and the post modern condition, development and planning, urban identity, contemporary landscapes, and cultural values and traditions.