Lack Of Appropriate Standards Research Articles

Framework for development of digital records preservation in the cloud in Botswana

The deployment of digital systems in the delivery of public services by the Government of Botswana has seen an increase in the generation of digital records. Without preservation efforts over time, the continued availability of digital records is not guaranteed. The reverse side of this is that a focused records preservation regime ensures access to and accurate digital records in the long term, regardless of the challenges of media failure and technological change. Lack of an adequate legal and policy framework on digital material preservation; gaps in human resources in terms of knowledge, skills, and competencies to drive digital material preservation; lack of appropriate standards for digital records preservation; and limited collaborative efforts towards digital records preservation are some of the challenges in digital records preservation in Botswana. Despite these challenges related to digital records preservation, developing countries in Africa are increasingly embracing the use of cloud computing technology for the management and preservation of digital records due to its benefits. In the developed world, cloud computing has matured into a viable option for the management and preservation of digital records. This study utilised a review of literature, supplemented by document analysis, to propose a framework for digital preservation of records in the cloud in the context of e-government in the Botswana public sector. It is guided by concepts from the Policy, Strategy and Resources troika model as a lens to frame the study. The model provides the key elements of policy, strategy, and resources as necessary for the preservation of records in Botswana’s public sector, using cloud computing as a platform. The proposed framework for the preservation of digital records may benefit public sector organisations that endeavour to adopt cloud computing for records preservation.

Bricks Using Clay Mixed with Powder and Ashes from Lignocellulosic Biomass: A Review

The production of fired or stabilized bricks from lignocellulosic biomass ash is thoroughly examined in this article. Bricks are typically made through the high-temperature firing process or by stabilizing the mixture with binders such as lime and cement. These bricks have a large carbon footprint and high levels of grey energy. In many parts of the world, the excessive use of clay as a natural raw material for the production of conventional bricks will lead to its scarcity. The mixing of clay with lignocellulosic ash during brick manufacturing leads to a better and more reliable solution that conserves scarce natural resources and reduces the impact of environmental pollution. This study aims to review the state of the art in the production of bricks based on lignocellulosic ashes and their physical, thermal, and mechanical properties. The most recent data in the literature related to the manufacture of lignocellulosic ash-based bricks either by firing, cementing or geopolymerization, the design of mixtures, as well as the identification of the main factors influencing the performance and durability of these bricks are presented and discussed. Despite extensive research, there is still very little commercial use of waste bricks in general and lignocellulosic biomass ash in particular. Various toxicity issues of lignocellulosic ash used in brick production limit their use on an industrial scale due to a lack of appropriate standards. In order to achieve practical production of bricks from lignocellulosic ash, research is still needed on standardizing and sustaining biomass ash recycling.

"ANALYSIS OF STATIC STIFFNESS OF MACHINE TOOLS FOR RAILWAY AND SHIPBUILDING INDUSTRIES "

The article presents static stiffness investigation of a rather specific group of machine tools characterized by a unique construction type which are made for railway and shipbuilding industries. Machines of that type are rarely tested in terms of their static stiffness, so consequently the knowledge about their static stiffness properties is fairly limited. The investigation was conducted involving two methods, traditional (conventional) one and the other originally developed method using dynamically changeable signal (DDSS). The results obtained represented stiffness characteristics and stiffness indicators. The static stiffness tests of the machine tools presented in the article are very rare. Therefore, in this case, the knowledge base is very poor. Based on the results obtained, the machining accuracy can be predicted. In many cases, the obtained results are the only source of information needed to validate FEM calculation models, compare similar machines, verify and optimize the stiffness of the structure at the design stage. In addition, due to the lack of appropriate standards for conducting this type of research, the presented unique procedures are helpful for subsequent researchers of this issue.

Professional Standard “Demographer” as a Key Mechanism for Managing the Development of Human Resources in the Field of People Saving

The article substantiates the usefulness of the development and adoption of the professional standard “Demographer” in the aspect of its significance for scientific-methodological, expert-analytical support for the development and implementation of priority national projects and programs in the field of demographic and socio-economic development of Russia. The purpose of the article is to reveal the directions and mechanisms of the development and application of the professional standard “Demographer”. The implemented content analysis of the approved / current regulations and documents revealed a vacuum in the field of training demographers, which is determined by the lack of appropriate standards, both professional and educational. Generalization, analysis and synthesis of fundamental knowledge about the subject area gave strong grounds to believe that in modern conditions of aggravation of demographic threats to the national security of the country, it is extremely necessary to train professional personnel – “demographers” who own specialized demographic technologies and are able to scientifically soundly develop effective measures in the field of ensuring demographic security. Factological and structural-functional analysis, a systematic approach to identifying the specifics of demography as a science and practical activity made it possible to more substantively present the conceptual foundations for the formation of a new model of human resources in the field of demographic development, people-saving, which is based on the professional standard “Demographer”. In January 2021, on an initiative basis, the developers represented by IDI FCTAS RAS and the Scientific Council “Demographic and Migration Problems of Russia” launched the process of developing the professional standard “Demographer” and formed a working group. The presented mechanism for the development of the draft professional standard “Demographer” includes the current state of research on this issue; analysis of the existing demographic situation, information on the prospects for the development of the type of professional activity of the demographer; discussion of comments and suggestions received from the expert community in the process of public discussion in a professional environment; finalization of the draft professional standard, taking into account the comments of the Council on professional qualifications in the field of labor safety, social protection and employment of the population.

Plant-pollinator Vocabulary - a Contribution to Interaction Data Standardization

Human demands on resources such as food and energy are increasing through time while global challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss are becoming more complex to overcome, as well as more widely acknowledged by societies and governments. Reports from initiatives like the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) have demanded quick and reliable access to high-quality spatial and temporal data of species occurrences, their interspecific relations and the effects of the environment on biotic interactions. Mapping species interactions is crucial to understanding and conserving ecosystem functioning and all the services it can provide (Tylianakis et al. 2010, Slade et al. 2017). Detailed data has the potential to improve our knowledge about ecological and evolutionary processes guided by interspecific interactions, as well as to assist in planning and decision making for biodiversity conservation and restoration (Menz et al. 2011). Although a great effort has been made to successfully standardize and aggregate species occurrence data, a formal standard to support biotic interaction data sharing and interoperability is still lacking. There are different biological interactions that can be studied, such as predator-prey, host-parasite and pollinator-plant and there is a variety of data practices and data representation procedures that can be used. Plant-pollinator interactions are recognized in many sources from the scientific literature (Abrol 2012, Ollerton 2021) for the importance of ecosystem functioning and sustainable agriculture. Primary data about pollination are becoming increasingly available online and can be accessed from a great number of data repositories. While a vast quantity of data on interactions, and on pollination in particular, is available, data are not integrated among sources, largely because of a lack of appropriate standards. We present a vocabulary of terms for sharing plant-pollinator interactions using one of the existing extensions to the Darwin Core standard (Wieczorek et al. 2012). In particular, the vocabulary is meant to be used for the term measurementType of the Extended Measurement Or Facts extension. The vocabulary was developed by a community of specialists in pollination biology and information science, including members of the TDWG Biological Interaction Data Interest Group, during almost four years of collaborative work. The vocabulary introduces 40 new terms, comprising many aspects of plant-pollinator interactions, and can be used to capture information produced by studies with different approaches and scales. The plant-pollinator interactions vocabulary is mainly a set of terms that can be both understood by people or interpreted by machines. The plant-pollinator vocabulary is composed of a defining a set of terms and descriptive documents explaining how the vocabulary is to be used. The terms in the vocabulary are divided into six categories: Animal, Plants, Flower, Interaction, Reproductive Success and Nectar Dynamics. The categories are not formally part of the vocabulary, they are used only to organize the vocabulary and to facilitate understanding by humans. We expect that the plant-pollinator vocabulary will contribute to data aggregation from a variety of sources worldwide at higher levels than we have experienced, significantly amplify plant-pollinator data availability for global synthesis, and contribute to knowledge in conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

Toward unified trust and reputation messaging in ubiquitous systems

The fifth mobile generation (5G) will enable massive distributed applications that run on various platforms and cater diverse and interacting entities. If such interactions are to be successful, the entities will have to learn to trust each other and one way of addressing this is to use trust and reputation systems. These systems estimate the trustworthiness of potential interaction partners and are now being increasingly deployed. However, their inability to share information across applications is concerning: as entities traverse application boundaries their trust and reputation information does not. Instead, it is kept in silos forcing entities to remake it in every application they join. The lack of appropriate standards further impedes such sharing attempts. To address this, we propose a general framework for facilitating the exchange of trust and reputation information. The framework defines messages and a protocol that allows trust and reputation systems to query each other for ratings, provide responses, and signal errors. We analyze the proposal and provide an implementation as free software.

Conformity assessment of information on crushing equipment for agricultural raw materials: consequences of the lack of appropriate standards

The paper reviews the analysis of information about hammer (rotary) crushers for the production of compound feedstuff. It is shown that for the majority of crushers studied, the information is incomplete or unreliable, which is misleading for consumers purchasing this equipment. Measures to improve the quality of information on crushing equipment are proposed.

Tetraspanin-decorated extracellular vesicle-mimetics as a novel adaptable reference material

ABSTRACTFeatures like small size, low refractive index and polydispersity pose challenges to the currently available detection methods for Extracellular Vesicles (EVs). In addition, the lack of appropriate standards to set up the experimental conditions makes it difficult to compare analyses obtained by different technical approaches. By modifying synthetic nanovesicles with recombinant antigenic regions of EV-enriched tetraspanins, we aimed to construct an EV-mimetic that can be used as a suitable standard for EV analyses.To this end, the sequences of the large extracellular loops of the tetraspanins CD9, CD63 and CD81 were tagged with a target sequence for the biotin ligase BirA, and co-transformed with a BirA expression plasmid into Escherichia coli. GST fusion proteins were then isolated by affinity chromatography and released using thrombin. Biotinylated recombinant tetraspanin-loops were then coupled to (strept)avidin-coated synthetic nanovesicles and analysed and characterised by Dot-blot, Western-blot, Nanoparticle Tracking Analysis, Flow Cytometry and Transmission Electron Microscopy.With this method, we were able to efficiently produce tetraspanin-domain decorated nanovesicles that share biophysical properties with natural EVs, can be detected using specific antibodies against common EV markers such as tetraspanins, and can be used as robust reference materials for detection techniques that are often used in the EV field.

Foundations for Spread Page: review of existing concepts, solutions, technologies capabile of improving effectiveness of conveying knowledge

Spread Page is our code name for a new, more efficient way of conveying technical information and scientific knowledge – freed form the text-centered mindset and focused on graphical, interactive, multidimensional representation. The article presents an overview of current concepts and solutions that seem applicable in crafting the idea of Spread Page. In our discussion we begin with novel, abstract, organizational ideas regarding the process of creating and disseminating scientific knowledge, that break up with the traditional model of (paper) publishing. Then we turn to analyzing methods and conventions used in (graphically) modeling real and abstract constructs, and finally review existing software solutions, technologies and exemplary, concrete products that implement certain functionalities instrumental to our cause. We reach the conclusion that, in certain areas (dealing with read-world entities, e.g. mechanics or anatomy), such desired “Spread-Page” way of representing knowledge is already within our reach. In more abstract fields, like law and legislature, political science, etc. we are still far off, mostly due to lack of appropriate standards and (graphical) notation. The paper is as a part of a larger set of articles presenting the proposed concept of Spread Page.

Identification and Quantification of N-Acyl Homoserine Lactones Involved in Bacterial Communication by Small-Scale Synthesis of Internal Standards and Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Mass Spectrometry.

N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHL) are small signal molecules involved in the quorum sensing of many gram-negative bacteria, and play an important role in biofilm formation and pathogenesis. Present analytical methods for identification and quantification of AHL require time-consuming sample preparation steps and are hampered by the lack of appropriate standards. By aiming at a fast and straightforward method for AHL analytics, we investigated the applicability of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). Suitable MALDI matrices, including crystalline and ionic liquid matrices, were tested and the fragmentation of different AHL in collision-induced dissociation MS/MS was studied, providing information about characteristic marker fragments ions. Employing small-scale synthesis protocols, we established a versatile and cost-efficient procedure for fast generation of isotope-labeled AHL standards, which can be used without extensive purification and yielded accurate standard curves. Quantitative analysis was possible in the low pico-molar range, with lower limits of quantification reaching from 1 to 5 pmol for different AHL. The developed methodology was successfully applied in a quantitative MALDI MS analysis of low-volume culture supernatants of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Mass Spectrometry Characterization of Peroxycarboxylic Acids as Proxies for Reactive Oxygen Species and Highly Oxygenated Molecules in Atmospheric Aerosols.

A significant fraction of atmospheric aerosol particles is composed of organic material with a highly complex but poorly characterized composition. For a better understanding of aerosol effects and processes in the atmosphere, a more detailed knowledge of aerosol components at a molecular level is needed. Peroxy acids might play a significant role in particle toxicity, due to their oxidizing properties, and they were recently found to be involved in particle formation. Because of the lack of appropriate standards, the identification and quantification of peroxy acids is often highly uncertain. Mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful tool to characterize unidentified compounds in complex mixtures. However, so far there is only little information regarding the ionization and fragmentation behavior of peroxy acids in mass spectrometers. To study their fragmentation patterns, we synthesized 12 peroxy acids with C8 to C10 carbon backbones and mono- or diperoxy acid functionality. The peroxy acids were separated using liquid chromatography, detected via negative mode electrospray ionization high-resolution MS, and their fragmentation patterns (MS/MS spectra) were identified. The MS/MS spectra of the peroxy acids showed fragmentation patterns clearly different from the corresponding acid, with a strong similarity between compounds of different chain length but analogous functional groups. Neutral loss of CH2O2 was observed for all investigated linear peroxy acids but not for carboxylic acids and could therefore serve as a diagnostic ion for peroxy acids. The obtained results are a large step toward unambiguous characterization of peroxy acids in the atmosphere.

APPLICATION OF EARTH AND STRAW MIXTURES IN MODERN BUILDING

<p>Building with earth is widespread and still mostly based on traditional experiences. Increasing demands in energy consumption reduction during the construction and exploitation of buildings put more and more in the focus the good features of houses built with earth.Testing of earth mixtures with other natural materials showed that it can get even a quality of bricks, which indicates the lack of appropriate standards for this type of construction.</p><p>Testing are performed with mixes of earth and straw intended forrammed earth and adobe construction. This method of preparation and construction applies in alternate construction with straw bales and it is also used in the construction of prefabricated panels with wooden frame filled with a mixture earth and straw where it is possible to build prefabricated structures or as a filling of wall screens in skeletal structural system of larger dimensions and number of floors.</p><p>Laboratory tests have shown that the mechanical and thermal properties of this material fulfilled the high demands for the construction of modern buildings. Based on the presented results it can proceed the development and testing of structural elements for that kind of building.</p><p>Also, based on results, in the article the authors presented possibilities of architectural design of various building possibilities of objects, as practical examples of prefabrication applied in some countries.</p>

The quality of resource condition targets in regional natural resource management in Australia

Natural resource management organisations in Australia routinely establish resource condition targets in their regional plans and catchment strategies. We reviewed biodiversity, water and community resource condition targets set by Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) in Victoria and New South Wales (NSW) over planning cycles since 1997 against criteria of being specific, measurable and time-bound (SMT). The overall quality of targets is poor, with less than 30 per cent of targets meeting the three criteria. Disturbingly, there are no SMT targets in the most recent NSW CMA catchment strategies. We identify three major reasons for poor target setting: a lack of appropriate standards and guidelines from governments to enable high quality target setting; a lack of realism about the budgetary and technical feasibility of ambitious environmental targets amongst those involved in natural resource management; and a lack of adequate focus on outcomes by both CMAs and governments. Improvements to target setting can be achieved through stronger signals and commitment by governments, including by rewarding performance of regional bodies practising outcome-focused accountability.

Sterols and triterpenoids in selected plant species of the family Cyperaceae

Triterpenes and sterol fractions were isolated from the herb Scirpus maritimus L. and Carex Paradoxa Willd. by typical extraction with petroleum ether. The fraction of sterols was investigated us ing Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) techniques. The occurrence of cholesterol, campesterol, stigmasterol, and β-sitosterol 5α-stigmast-7EN-3α-ol has been observed in the Carex paradoxa Willd. Their percentage in the herb has been determined by quantitative analysis. The presence of campesterol, stigmasterol and a mixture of sitosterols in the herb Scirpus maritimus L. was indicated and its percentage in the herb was determined. Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) was carried out to identify triterpenoids contained in investigated plants. By comparison with the standards of lupeol and β-amyrine the presence of lupeol and an unknown compound in Scirpus maritimus Willd. has been indicated. In the separation of triterpenoids Column Chromatography (CC) was used. Melting point of an unknown compound was marked, but it was unidentified because of lack of appropriate standards.

International Labour and Social Security Standards: A Developing Country Critique

Emphasizing the need for international standards to appreciate the realities of developing countries, the contribution highlights some of the problems experienced in this context: weak ratification of international labour and social security instruments, the lack of appropriate standards and coverage as regards informal economy workers, inadequacies in the material sphere of coverage emanating from these standards, and deficiencies in respect of standard-setting and -enforcement. It suggests that there is need for a reorientation and reconceptualization of international labour and social security standards, supported by a change in approach to assist developing countries in achieving outcomes that are aligned with international standards, and involving those affected by the extension debate in the design of appropriate standards and interventions.

Construction and application of formal ontology for mine

Digital mine is the only way for the development of mining industry in China. Due to lack of appropriate standards and norms, and different awareness in the field of digital mine among academia and industry insiders, the meaning for digital mine is still unclear. Starting from the nature of mining and removing of views of specialized fields, this paper constructs formal ontology for digital mine and proposes the four levels for it. The ontology clarifies the concept world for digital mine, defines the meaning of concepts and relations clearly, provides a reference for the standard construction for digital mine and provides a unified semantic framework for the integration of heterogeneous mine data. Meanwhile, it can provide formal reasoning knowledge for expert system of digital mine and improve the intelligence and automation while the machine automatically interpreting and processing mine spatial data.

Improving biodiversity monitoring

AbstractEffective biodiversity monitoring is critical to evaluate, learn from, and ultimately improve conservation practice. Well conceived, designed and implemented monitoring of biodiversity should: (i) deliver information on trends in key aspects of biodiversity (e.g. population changes); (ii) provide early warning of problems that might otherwise be difficult or expensive to reverse; (iii) generate quantifiable evidence of conservation successes (e.g. species recovery following management) and conservation failures; (iv) highlight ways to make management more effective; and (v) provide information on return on conservation investment. The importance of effective biodiversity monitoring is widely recognized (e.g. Australian Biodiversity Strategy). Yet, while everyonethinksbiodiversity monitoring is a good idea, this has not translated into a culture of sound biodiversity monitoring, or widespread use of monitoring data. We identify four barriers to more effective biodiversity monitoring in Australia. These are: (i) many conservation programmes have poorly articulated or vague objectives against which it is difficult to measure progress contributing to design and implementation problems; (ii) the case for long‐term and sustained biodiversity monitoring is often poorly developed and/or articulated; (iii) there is often a lack of appropriate institutional support, co‐ordination, and targeted funding for biodiversity monitoring; and (iv) there is often a lack of appropriate standards to guide monitoring activities and make data available from these programmes. To deal with these issues, we suggest that policy makers, resource managers and scientists better and more explicitly articulate the objectives of biodiversity monitoring and better demonstrate the case for greater investments in biodiversitymonitoring. There is an urgent need for improved institutional support for biodiversity monitoring in Australia, for improved monitoring standards, and for improved archiving of, and access to, monitoring data. We suggest that more strategic financial, institutional and intellectual investments in monitoring will lead to more efficient use of the resources available for biodiversity conservation and ultimately better conservation outcomes.

Synthesis of deuterium and C‐13‐labelled ethyl glycolate and their subsequent use in the synthesis of labelled analogues of the DNA adduct O6‐carboxymethyl‐2′‐deoxyguanosine

The adduct O6‐carboxymethyl‐2′‐deoxyguanosine (O6CMdG) is of importance as it has been previously linked to high red meat diet in humans, and as yet, a liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry (LC‐MS) method has not been developed due to lack of appropriate standards. The synthesis of the deuterated and C‐13 analogues required the use of [2H2]‐ and [13C2]ethyl glycolate to label the carboxymethyl moiety of O6CMdG. [2H2]Ethyl glycolate was synthesised via acid hydrolysis of ethyl diazoacetate using deuterated solvents (59% yield), whilst [13C2]ethyl glycolate was synthesised from [13C2]glycine in a three‐step procedure (35% yield). The labelled ethyl glycolates were then used to synthesise [2H2]‐ and [13C2]O6CMdG for future use as internal standards in the LC‐MS analysis of biological samples. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

An Evaluation Method of the Visual Elements of the NC Machine Operation Panel Based on RBFN

The Numerical Control (NC) machine has not yet improved its Human Machine Interface (HMI) quality, which has deep influence on the operating efficiency. Besides, the operation panel design is the lack of appropriate standards and evaluation systems. Therefore, this paper establishes an evaluation model of the visual elements of the NC machine operation panel, and it could propose a reasonable and reliable basis of operation panel design after analyzing the existing panels’ interface according to Radial Basis Function Network (RBFN) theory.

The WHO perspective on integration of traditional medicine into health system

The reality of health care systems is that there is a strong demand for traditional medicine (TM), as shown in the WHA 56.31 resolution on traditional medicine in 2003 the popular use of TM demonstrates that it is widely accessible, affordable, and culturally accepted in large parts of developing countries, especially in Africa, Asia and Latin America, where TM is often deeply rooted in the local culture. In Europe and North America, people are increasingly using TM as complementary to or as an alternative for western medicine (WM) treatments. TM has a distinct appeal to broad populations of people. TM systems often have specific theories, diagnoses and treatments which may be different than the methods and treatments of WM. Recognizing these differences, it is essential to understand that both systems of TM and WM have their advantages and weakness. The advantage of TM may be found in their utilization for chronic diseases, improving quality of life and health maintenance, as well as for some health conditions that could not be treated well with WM. There are significant challenges facing this integration. There is lack of appropriate standards and measures to control the quality of TM, especially herbal medicines. There is also a lack of appropriate accepted research methodology to evaluate TM based on TM characteristics. Therefore, the cooperation and collaboration between the experts of both TM and WM is necessary. WHO encourages countries to integrate TM into health systems so that patients will obtain the health benefits from both TM and WM. In support of integrating TM into their existing health systems, WHA 62.13 resolution on TM adopted in May 2009 urges the Member States to respect, preserve and communicate, as appropriate, the knowledge of traditional medicine, treatments and practices, appropriately based on the circumstances in each country, and on evidence of safety, efficacy and quality; to consider, where appropriate, including traditional medicine into their national health systems based on national capacities, priorities, relevant legislation and circumstances, and on evidence of safety, efficacy and quality; to further develop traditional medicine based on research and innovation, giving due consideration to the specific actions related to traditional medicine in the implementation of the Global strategy and plan of action on public health, innovation and intellectual property resolution which was adopted in 2008. This abstract can be surmised by a statement made by Dr. Margaret Chan, Director-General of WHO, during the WHO Congress on Traditional Medicine in 2008. “The two systems of traditional and western medicine need not clash. Within the context of primary health care, they can blend together in a beneficial harmony, using the best features of each system, and compensating for certain weaknesses in each.”