Mixed Media Research Articles

The Night Before Eid: A Muslim Family Story by Aya Khalil

Reviewed by: The Night Before Eid: A Muslim Family Story by Aya Khalil Kara Forde Khalil, Aya The Night Before Eid: A Muslim Family Story; illus. by Rashin Kheiriyeh. Ottaviano/Little, 2023 [40p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780316319331 $18.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 4-8 yrs When Teita finally arrives from Egypt on the night before Eid, young Zain is eager to help her bake a special cookie called ka’ak to share with his classmates. As Zain unpacks Teita’s suitcase and finds various ingredients needed for making the sweet treats—ghee, honey, and dates—Teita explains that the traditional sweets are as ancient as the pharaohs, with recipes found in the Egyptian pyramids. Zain has never made ka’ak before, and he wants them to be perfect to impress his teacher and friends at school. His expectations, however, add pressure to the delicate process of baking and decorating, and Zain grows frustrated until Teita reminds him that patience is beautiful. With an exuberant color palette dominated by teal, magenta, and orange, Kheinyeh’s mixed media illustrations use dappled backgrounds and crayon-textured lines to capture the essence of youthful excitement and anticipation. Rhythmic onomatopoeia in the text mimics the sensory pleasures of baking: “Plop! Plop!” and “Swish! Swish!” The narrative focuses more on the family’s baking than the religious celebration of Eid, but un-italicized cultural terms and Arabic phrases are smoothly mixed into the story. End matter includes an overview of the Islamic holidays of Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, a descriptive timeline of the history of ka’ak, a note about the author’s personal experiences growing up as one of the only Muslims in a midwestern American town, and a recipe for ka’ak, preserved within the author’s family. Copyright © 2023 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

Identity Politics as a Political Tool

Carlson considers their mixed media project that reflects identity politics and the ways in which identity is used as a political tool.

Chasing Shadows

Abstract Drawing on the influential concept of postmemory first mooted by Marianne Hirsch, and on the links between photography and mortality first explored by Susan Sontag and Roland Barthes, this article analyses the work of ten largely UK-based visual artists who, as members of the so-called second generation (namely, the descendants of Holocaust survivors and refugees), make use of the photographic medium to engage creatively and conceptually – and often in a conspicuously gendered way – with the legacy of their families’ traumatic histories. Some of the artists (Halter, Tucker) base their handcrafted imagery directly on pre-war family photographs; others (Winckler, Brunstein, Petzal, Gorney, Kerr, Davidmann) incorporate actual photographs, past and present, into mixed media artworks, frequently manipulating and even doing violence to them. Others again (Garbasz) use photographs taken in the present to reach out to an inaccessible past, while yet others (Markiewicz) employ a more abstract and allusive approach to the medium.

Experimental study of oil shale separation using binary medium by pulsed fluidized bed

ABSTRACT A large amount of the<6 mm fine particle oil shale created during mining and processing is frequently discarded, creating waste and an environmental hazard. A suitable fluidized dry separation technology would allow that fine particle to be de-ashed and improve the oil shale quality for effective utilization. This paper studies pulsed fluidized beds to determine the effectiveness of pulsation frequency, fines content and operating gas velocity on fluidization and separation of the fine oil shale. It was found that the introduction of fine particles could significantly improve the fluidization quality. When the content of fine particles is 5%, the average density of the bed is~2.3 g/cm3. The effective separation of the 6–3 mm oil shale was achieved using a mixed medium, with optimal separation conditions of 5% fine particle content, 4 Hz pulsation frequency, and 1.5U mf gas velocity. Finally, high efficiency dry beneficiation of 6-3 mm oil shale in pulsed fluidized bed was achieved, which is of great significance for future industrial applications.

Thermal cultivation of halophilic Cyanobacterium aponinum for C-phycocyanin production and simultaneously reducing carbon emission using wastewater

A newly halophilic Cyanobacteria aponinum PCC10605 is first explored as a robust blue alga compared to Chlorella sorokiniana (CS), Chlorella vulgaris (CV) and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (CC400) that can be cultured at high salinity and mesophilic condition. The Logistic and Gompertz models were applied to evaluate cell growth of four algal strains under mixotrophic and autotrophic cultivation, thus the optimal condition for PCC10605 was indicated in autotrophic and 20 g/L seawater at 39°C. When nitrogen and phosphorus concentration was at the ratio of 3:1, PCC10605 grew fast and had the better C-phycocyanin (C-PC) productivity, achieving to 1.53 g/L of biomass and 0.492 g/L of C-PC under 25% light intensity and 12:12 light period. Finally, a feasible and negative carbon emission via PCC10605 which cultured in the mixed medium and wastewater at 1:2 vol ratio (i.e., M1W2), reaching to 1.227 g/L of biomass concentration, 0.503 g/L C-PC production, reducing 40.5% of chemical oxygen demand (COD), and capturing 1.71 g-CO2 simultaneously in a Photo System Instruments (PSI).

Supplementary effect of whey components on the monascin productivity of Monascus sp.

Monascus sp. has been used in fermented foods for centuries. It can synthesize yellow, red, and orange pigments as secondary metabolites. Here, we focused on yellow pigment monascin, responsible for anti-inflammation and antidiabetic effects, and investigated whether whey could be a suitable substrate with or without rice powder for monascin production using M. purpureus AHU 9085, M. pilosus NBRC 4520 and M. ruber NBRC 32318. The growth and monascin production of the three Monascus strains were dependent on three liquid media consisting of whey and/or rice. All strains showed the best growth in a rice and whey mixed medium, in which M. ruber NBRC 32318 exhibited the highest total monascin production. Subsequent investigation of the effects of whey components indicated that a mineral cocktail in whey was particularly effective in stimulating the monascin production efficiency of M. ruber NBRC 32318. However, this recipe exhibited less stimulation, or even inhibition, for M. pilosus NBRC 4520 and M. purpureus AHU 9085, respectively. In terms of total monascin production, rice with whey provided the highest amount due to growth promotion along with relatively high production efficiency. The effect of whey on growth and monascin production was strongly dependent on the Monascus strains. Even a mineral cocktail in whey could regulate monascin productivity in a strain-specific manner. Further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanism behind the diverse responses by the minerals in the production of monascin from Monascus. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Investigation of the Spatial Structure of Flufenamic Acid in Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Media via 2D NOESY

The search for new forms of already known drug compounds is an urgent problem of high relevance as more potent drugs with fewer side effects are needed. The trifluoromethyl group in flufenamic acid renders its chemical structure differently from other fenamates. This modification is responsible for a large number of conformational polymorphs. Therefore, flufenamic acid is a promising structural modification of well-known drug molecules. An effective approach in this field is micronization, employing "green" supercritical fluid technologies. This research raises some key questions to be answered on how to control polymorphic forms during the micronization of drug compounds. The results presented in this work demonstrate the ability of two-dimensional nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy to determine conformational preferences of small molecular weight drug compounds in solutions and fluids, which can be used to predict the polymorphic form during the micronization. Quantitative analysis was carried out to identify the conformational preferences of flufenamic acid molecules in dimethyl sulfoxide-d6 medium at 25 °C and 0.1 MPa, and in mixed solvent medium containing supercritical carbon dioxide at 45 °C and 9 MPa. The data presented allows predictions of the flufenamic acid conformational preferences of poorly soluble drug compounds to obtain new micronized forms.

Influence of Bionic Waveform Leading Edge Blade on Drag Reduction Characteristics of Mixed Pump

Because the helical axial flow gas-liquid mixing pump has the great advantage of conveying gas-liquid two-phase mixed medium, it has become the main core equipment for deep-sea oil and natural gas exploitation. The gas phase aggregation and bubble movement trajectory in the impeller channel have been widely studied, but the increase of medium flow resistance caused by flow separation has not been deeply discussed. Combined with the Euler multiphase flow model and the SST k-ω turbulence model, the numerical calculation of the helical axial flow gas-liquid mixed pump is carried out. Under design flow conditions Q = 100 m3/h, head H = 30 m, speed n = 4500 r/min, specific speed ns =213.6 r/min, and under different inlet gas content conditions, the influence of the bionic waveform leading edge blade on drag reduction characteristics of the helical axial flow gas-liquid mixed pump was investigated. By designing the blade with a leading-edge structure with different heights and pitches, the separation of the mixed medium and the suction surface is effectively suppressed, and the flow resistance of the medium in the 1/10 area of the inlet end of the blade is reduced. The results show that when the height A is 0.25%L and the pitch λ is 12.5%h, the maximum drag reduction rate in this region is 52.6%, the maximum increase in efficiency of the mixed pump is 2.2%, and the maximum increase in head is 4.8%. This study can provide technical support for flow drag reduction in gas-liquid mixed pump.

Healing, Empowering, Engaging, Learning, and Decolonizing Through Culture: Living Wellness, Resilience, and Resurgence in the Classroom Through Creative Arts

Art and Indigenous culture are inseparable. From the immaculately decorated lodges and war shirts of thousands of years to contemporary mixed and digital media images, Indigenous arts are expressions of survivance. Creative arts have sustained Indigenous ways of knowing, being, doing, and healing through attempted cultural genocide. Research has shown that art engages youth in life skill-building, learning, emotional regulating, and spiritual healing, supporting art as an intervention for wellness. Culturally-based artistic expression and the process of creating promotes wellness among Indigenous youth. As primary sites of assimilation and colonialism, educational institutions have a responsibility to enact reconciliation through culturally-rooted arts-based approaches to wellness. School psychologists are wellpositioned to support these approaches. This study took place in Kainaiwa in Southern Alberta and explored Niitsitapi artists’ and educators’ perspectives on the impacts of culturally-rooted arts-based interventions with Niitsitapi middle school students in the classroom. Over 2 days, professional Indigenous artists shared their art practices with students at a middle school in Kainai First Nation in Alberta. We had research conversations with 12 Niitsitapi community members involved in the event using a decolonizing, community-based approach. Indigenous storywork was used to understand research conversations, highlighting information and guidance for school psychologists to inform their engagement with Indigenous students and community members in schools. Findings emphasized art as healing, particularly given its connection to culture. Further, cultural engagement through art supports student wellness and educational engagement. Art can be used to empower voice, overcome deficit narratives, create new stories, and cope with disharmony. Art can also engage youth in discovery and learning, providing an alternative to a lecture style of learning, increasing enjoyment in the classroom experience. These findings have practical implications for future interventions and the integration of art pedagogically. This paper offers recommendations that highlight stark distinctions between culturally-rooted art practice and conventional Eurocentric art approaches in education.

Emperor of the Ice by Nicola Davies

Reviewed by: Emperor of the Ice by Nicola Davies Kate Quealy-Gainer, Editor Davies, Nicola Emperor of the Ice; illus. by Catherine Rayner. Candlewick, 2023 [32p] Trade ed. ISBN 9781536228397 $18.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 5-9 yrs As winter sets in Antarctica, the emperor penguins begin their trip to the solidly frozen ice of Halley Bay, where they will find a mate and safely raise their chicks. Young readers may be somewhat familiar with the generalities: dad takes care of the baby, mom goes off to hunt, and baby is a cute ball of fluff. Davies, however, brings in details that give a sharper picture of the penguins’ experience in this harsh climate; ice, for example, must be “low enough to leap up onto from the ocean . . . smooth enough to walk over and slide on, and . . . last through early winter into early summer—just long enough to raise a chick!” The focus on the penguin family garners a fair amount of readerly investment, so when the ending pages give some scant information on climate change, the direness of the threat is felt if not totally explained. The mixed media art has the dappled textures of watercolors and the richness of pastels, and it wisely avoids anthropomorphizing the (admittedly cute) animals, instead highlighting their regal forms and the serene setting. A bittersweet note ends the book: Halley Bay is now too warm to be a safe breeding ground, but the penguins have continued to adapt and find places for their families further north. Copyright © 2022 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

The potential of decentralised wastewater treatment in urban and rural sanitation in South Africa: lessons learnt from a demonstration-scale DEWATS within the eThekwini Municipality

The design principles of decentralised wastewater treatment systems (DEWATS) make them a practical sanitation option for municipalities to adopt in fast-growing cities in South Africa. Since 2014, a demonstration-scale DEWATS with a modular design consisting of a settler, anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR), anaerobic filter (AF), vertical down-flow constructed wetland (VFCW) and horizontal flow constructed wetland (HFCW) has been in operation in eThekwini. A performance evaluation after the long-term operation was undertaken in 2019 by comparing the final effluent with national regulatory requirements. Despite limitations in characterising the raw wastewater, a comparison of the settler and final effluent quality indicated high (≥ 85%) removal efficiencies of total chemical oxygen demand (CODt), ammonium-N (NH4-N) and orthophosphate-P (PO4-P), 75% removal of total suspended solids (TSS) and 83.3% log10 removal of Escherichia coli. Lack of exogenous and endogenous carbon and high dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations (&gt; 0.5 mg‧L−1) inhibited denitrification in the HFCW, resulting in 12.5% of the effluent samples achieving compliance for nitrate-N (NO3-N). Moreover, mixed aggregate media and low residence times in the HFCW may have also contributed to poor NO3-N removal. During the COVID-19 lockdown, an unexpected shutdown and subsequent resumption of flow to the DEWATS indicated a 16-week recovery time based on achieving full nitrification in the HFCW. Although design modifications are necessary for the HFCW, the installation of urine diversion flushing toilets at the household will reduce the nutrient loading to the DEWATS and potentially achieve fully compliant effluent. Alternatively, the application of two-stage vertical flow constructed wetlands to improve denitrification should also be explored in the South African context. With an improved design, DEWATS has the potential to fill the gap in both urban and rural sanitation in South Africa, where waterborne sanitation is still desired but connections to conventional wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) are not possible.

Diamond Search Optimization-Based Technique for Motion Estimation in Video Compression

In video compression procedure, movement estimation is one of the key segments due to its high computation unpredictability in finding the movement vectors between the frames. The purpose of movement estimation is to diminish the storage space, data transfer capacity, and transmission cost for transmission of video in numerous mixed media administration applications by decreasing the redundancies while preserving the better quality of the video. Each algorithm has its own benefits and culpabilities. Among these, block-based movement estimation calculations are most powerful and adaptable. In this paper, diamond search-hybrid teaching and learning-based optimization (DS-HTLBO) has been proposed for motion estimation. The performance of the proposed DS-HTLBO method is analyzed by considering different performance evaluation parameters such as peak signal-to-noise ratio, mean square error, and compression ratio. The comparative outcomes reveal that the proposed DS-HTLBO method outperformed in terms of PSNR of 41% and CR of 5.47% with other DS, 4SS, and NTSS methods.

Cost-Efficient Production of the Sphingan WL Gum by Sphingomonas sp. WG Using Molasses and Sucrose as the Carbon Sources.

The polysaccharide WL gum is produced by the marine microorganism Sphingomonas sp. WG and presents great commercial utility potential in many industries especially in oil industries. However, the high fermentation cost limits its wide application. Therefore, an efficient production system at a lower cost was established using beet molasses to partially replace the commonly used carbon sources. Four different molasses were screened and their composition was investigated. One-factor design and RSM statistical analysis were employed to optimize the WL gum fermentation medium. The effects of molasses on the rheological properties and gene expression of WL gum were also investigated. The results showed that the pretreated beet molasses generated both high broth viscosity and WL gum production (12.94Pa·s and 11.16g/L). Heavy metal ions and ash were found to be the key factors in unpretreated and pretreated molasses affecting WL production. The cost-efficient production medium contained (g/L): sucrose 61.79, molasses 9.95, yeast extract 1.23, K2HPO4 1, MgSO4 0.1, ZnSO4 0.1 and the WL gum production reached 40.25 ± 1.15g/L. The WL gum product WL-molasses showed the higher apparent viscosity, and viscous modulus and elastic modulus than WL-sucrose and WL-mix, which might be related to its highest molecular mass. The higher expressional level of genes such as pgm, ugp, ugd, rmlA, welS, and welG in WL gum synthesis in the mixed carbon source medium causedthe high production and broth viscosity. This work provided a cost-efficient method for WL gum production.

Green and Efficient Synthesis of Spiroheterocyclic Compounds from Reactions of Isatins, 3-Amino-1-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-5(4H)-one, and Monocyclic Ketones

The reactions of isatins, 3-amino-1-pheyl-1H-pyrazol-5(4H)-one, and monocyclic ketones, have been developed for preparation of spiro[indoline-3,4'-pyrazolo[3,4-b]quinoline]-2,3'(6'H)-dione, spiro[cyclohepta[b]pyrazolo[4,3-e]pyridine-4,3'-indoline]-2′,3-dione, spiro[cycloocta[b]pyrazolo[4,3-e]pyridine-4,3'-indoline]-2′,3(6H)-dione, and spiro[cyclo dodeca[b]pyrazolo[4,3-e]pyridine-4,3'-indoline]-2′,3(6H)-dione derivatives in aqueous and acetic acid mixed medium. Studies have shown that water was an excellent medium for this reaction. The significant features of this method are wide substrate scope, high yields, operational simplicity, and minimal environment impact.

Advancing the knowledge of solute transport in the presence of bound water in mixed porous media based on low-field nuclear magnetic resonance

Bound water (BW) has significant effects on the physical and chemical properties of soils and other geologic formations. However, little is known about its effect on the non-Fickian transport of solute in porous media. This paper investigated the effect of BW on the non-Fickian solute transport characteristics in mixed porous media. Different porous media of quartz sand with variable contents of powdered minerals were prepared. The low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (LF-NMR) was used to quantitatively characterise BW and its spatial distribution. Then solute transport experiments were conducted in different prepared porous media and the measured breakthrough curves (BTCs) were analysed using the advection–dispersion equation (ADE), mobile-immobile (MIM) and continuous time random walk (CTRW) models. The results revealed that all measured BTCs exhibited the characteristics of early arrival and late-time tailing. However, stronger non-Fickian characteristics were observed as BW increased in content, indicating that BW influenced the non-Fickian transport of the solute. The optimised immobile water fraction of the MIM model consistently increased with increasing estimated BW fraction. Moreover, the coefficient of mass transfer rate (α) of MIM decreased as BW increased, meaning that the solute exchange between the mobile and immobile fluids became slower and consequently yielded strongly tailed BTCs. From the CTRW model, the solute transport velocity (vCTRW) increased with increasing BW, leading to a reduction in the breakthrough time of the solute. An increase in BW yielded a decreasing power law exponent (βCTRW) of the CTRW model, implying an enhancement of the non-Fickian transport characteristics. Furthermore, the porous media with BW<16.4% showed moderately non-Fickian solute transport whereas those with BW≥16.4% exhibited highly non-Fickian solute transport.

Artist’s Project: In Necessity and Sorry

Is it enough to speak about abortion in private? There is a paradox in asserting a political right so tied to the impulse to retreat to privacy. Privacy, although an important condition for living, has proven unable to protect abortion access in the United States. Privacy is also, in my experience, a fiction—especially when it comes to an act like abortion, which functions more like a discursive watering hole for so many speakers. The mixed media painting In Necessity and Sorry makes public the private speech involved in interpreting the events we call an abortion, such that it becomes a kind of public art. Conversely, it records the intense sociality already involved in this so-called private act.

ЛИНГВОПРАГМАТИЧЕСКИЕ ОСОБЕННОСТИ ВЗАИМОДЕЙСТВИЯ ВЕРБАЛЬНОГО И НЕВЕРБАЛЬНОГО КОМПОНЕНТОВ МУЛЬТИМОДАЛЬНОГО ‘ТЕКСТА’ В КОММУНИКАТИВНОМ ПРОСТРАНСТВЕ РАЗЛИЧНЫХ ТИПОВ ДИСКУРСА

The article dwells on the interaction of verbal and non-verbal components in different communicative media - painting, filmography, and art-reviews discourse. In modern art, we come across various ‘mixed media’ in creating visual or moving images, which may also include the verbal component. The power of linguistic discourse is then applied in the spheres where traditionally other modes were found to prevail. In conceptualism, the word becomes a means of reflection and in neo surrealism - it fills expressive narratives growing into illocutionary speech acts. In the article, text is considered as part of art-multimedia objects and the visual image - as incorporated into a verbal narrative. The dominant role of the verbal component is traced in the conceptual perception of art objects as well as in creating ‘potentially multimodal’ journalistic texts through concrete and abstract linguistic representation. If concrete representation is realized in referential meanings of words, abstract representation hinges on their emotive meanings. It has been observed that whatever the word’s function in art-multimedia may be, it results in broadening the word’s semantic scope and extending its conceptual potential.

A Hybrid Filtering Technique of Digital Images in Multimedia Data Warehouses

The similarity search approach used for image Data Warehouse (DW) can provide better insights into discovering the most similar images compared to the input query. Due to the later innovation improvement, the mixed media complexity is discernibly expanded and modern inquires about regions are opened depending on comparable mixed media substance recovery. Content-Based Image Retrieval (CBIR) algorithms are utilized for the retrieval of images related to the inquiry image from gigantic databases or DW. The queries that are used for DW are complex, take a lot of time to process and many give less accurate results. For these reasons, this paper needs to have an effective technique to improve the similarity search query process that reflects a more positive result. In this paper, show how to extract features from a set of images (color, shape, and texture features) by using CBIR algorithm with Color Edge Detection (CED) method. Once these features are extracted, the proposed method will minimize the distance between these features vectors and the query image one using a Genetic Algorithm (GA). This paper illustrates the extraction of endless strong and imperative features from the database of the images, therefore, the capacity of these features in storing within the frame of features vectors. Accordingly, an imaginative closeness assessment with a metaheuristic algorithm (Genetic Algorithm (GA) with Simulating Annealing (SA)) has been attained between the query image features and those having a place in the database image. This paper introduces a new algorithm CEDF (Color Edge Detection with Gaussian Blur Filter) that applies the Gaussian Blur Filter after using CED method for feature detection of the image. Experimental results show that CEDF method gives better result than the other already-known methods.

A promising mixed micellar approach to tune the oxidation of isoprenol by diperiodatoargentate(iii) in aqueous media

A green envelope of aqueous mixed micellar media composed of CPC and Brij-35 catalyzes the diperiodatoargentate(iii) governed oxidation of isoprenol.

Design study on the integrated utilization system of medium temperature waste heat and LNG vaporization cold energy for 200000 DWT LNG-powered vessels

The study object for this work is a 215000 ton very large crude carrier ? liquefied natural gas ? powered vessel, intending to integrate the use of medium temperature flue gas waste heat from the exhaust turbine and cold energy from liquefied natural gas vaporization. It proposes a Rankine cycle power generating system with a two stage booster and three stage lateral nesting following the principle of ?temperature matching, stepped utilization?, taking into account real demands and circumstances of the vessel. The study shows that in this tonnage vessel, through the design and optimization of the stepped utilization scheme, the cold energy released during the vaporization of liquefied natural gas fuel from the ME-GI host machine and the medium temperature waste heat from the exhaust turbine can be fully utilized, and the system structure is tight and simple. After the non-azeotropic mixed working media was optimized and the operational parameters were optimized using genetic algorithm, the system designed in this paper can reach 54.61% exergy efficiency and 187.83 kW net output of power generation. The annual income of the final designed system can reach CNY 1, 133, 240. The capital recovery cycle is expected to be 5.06 years if the system is put into operation.