Working Day Research Articles

Climate impact, toxicological risks and economic efficiency of conventional and new weed control methods in sugar beet

The aim of this study was to assess the toxicological risks, the climate impact and the economic efficiency of conventional and new weed control methods with reduced herbicide use. For this purpose, i) resource consumption, CO2 emissions, number of field work days, costs and labor hours were calculated for 11 weed control methods; ii) the toxicological risk for non-target organisms was modeled for 4 methods with reduced herbicide use and for conventional spraying with SYNOPS-GIS. The results showed that no method is fully environmentally friendly. Although the use of the FarmDroid hoeing robot is toxicologically harmless, it is disadvantageous in terms of CO2 emissions and overall costs compared to broadcast spraying. Equipping a FarmDroid with spot spraying would reduce the toxicological risk by 90% and CO2 emissions by 5% compared to conventional broadcast spraying. The costs would be only slightly higher than for conventional surface spraying. Although the new CONVISO method has the highest aquatic toxicity, it is the most favorable in terms of climate friendliness, energy consumption, terrestrial toxicity and cost-effectiveness.

Artificial Neural Network-Based Model for Assessing the Whole-Body Vibration of Vehicle Drivers

Musculoskeletal disorders, which are epidemiologically related to exposure to whole-body vibration (WBV), are frequently self-reported by workers in the construction sector. Several activities during building construction and demolition expose workers to this physical agent. Directive 2002/44/CE defined a method of assessing WBV exposure that was limited to an eight-hour working day, and did not consider the cumulative and long-term effects on the health of drivers. This study aims to propose a methodology for generating individualised models for vehicle drivers exposed to WBV that are easy to implement by companies, to ensure that the health of workers is not compromised in the short or long term. A measurement campaign was conducted with a professional driver, and the collected data were used to formulate six artificial neural networks to predict the daily compressive dose on the lumbar spine and to assess the short- and long-term WBV exposure. Accurate results were obtained from the developed artificial neural network models, with R2 values above 0.90 for training, cross-validation, and testing. The approach proposed in this study offers a new tool that can be applied in the assessment of short- and long-term WBV to ensure that workers’ health is not compromised during their working life and subsequent retirement.

Two-Dimensional Amphibian Diversity along a 3500 m Elevational Gradient at the Eastern Edge of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau.

Amphibians serve as reliable indicators of ecosystem health and are the most threatened group of vertebrates. Studies on their spatial distribution pattern and threats are crucial to formulate conservation strategies. Gongga Mountains, with a peak at 7509 m a.s.l. and running latitudinally, are in the center of the Hengduan Mountains Range and at the eastern steep edge of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, providing heterogeneous habitats and varied niches for amphibians. In this study, we combined 83 days of field work with information from 3894 museum specimens that were collected over the past 80 years, and identified twenty amphibian species belonging to seven families and twelve genera by morphology. Of these species, seven were listed in the threatened categories of the Red List of China's Biodiversity and thirteen were endemic to China. Ten species were found on the plateau side (western slope) and eleven species were found on the other side close to the Sichuan Basin (eastern slope). Only one species was found on both sides, indicating different community structures horizontally. The species richness was unimodal vertically and peaking at mid elevation on both sides, with the maximum number (ten vs. nine) of species occurring at 3300-3700 vs. 1700-1900 m a.s.l. and in different types of vegetation. The elevation span and body length of species distributed on both slopes did not show significant differences. These findings help to understand the horizontal and vertical distribution pattern of amphibian diversity, laying a foundation for future biogeographical and conservation research in this area.

Application of microwave digestion for complete dissolution of igneous silicate rock samples: A simple and quick sample preparation procedure

In the area of geochemical analyses of rock solutions, achieving a complete sample dissolution is a fundamental prerequisite for obtaining accurate, precise and reliable analytical results. The challenge posed by the presence of resistant minerals such as zircon, rutile, corundum, spinel, tourmaline, beryl, chromite, and cassiterite in different silicate rocks is a well-recognized challenge in geological studies. These minerals, due to their resilient nature, demand additional efforts to ensure complete dissolution during sample preparation. The prevailing conventional sample digestion methods require several days of laboratory work and the handling of large amounts of multiple types of acids, which also increase sample blanks. Until recently, there was a widely held belief that microwave-assisted digestion, where microwave radiation is transformed to heat, faced limitations in achieving complete dissolution of refractory minerals. This prevailing opinion led to skepticism about the applicability of microwave-assisted digestion for sample preparation of e.g. igneous rock samples containing these minerals. This study introduces a novel, universal and quick closed-vessel (pressurized) high-temperature microwave-assisted digestion method appropriate for dissolution of all major types of igneous silicate rock samples, including rocks containing refractory minerals. This streamlined and expeditious procedure, comprising three steps, requires only a total time of ∼9 h. The method proves its versatility by successfully dissolving both, mafic igneous samples (e.g., basalt) with low-content of resistant minerals, and felsic igneous samples (e.g., granite) with relatively high-content of resistant minerals. To validate the reliability of this procedure, 36 trace elements were analyzed: Li, Be, Sc, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Cs, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, Hf, Ta, Pb, Th and U in several geological Certified Reference Materials (CRMs). The CRMs including basalts JB-3, BCR-2, BHVO-2; andesites JA-2, AGV-2; granodiorite GSP-2; granite JG-2 and alkaline granite MGL-OShBO, were digested and analyzed using triple quadrupole Inductively Coupled-Plasma-Mass Spectrometer (ICP-QQQ). The results of the analysis demonstrate remarkable consistency, closely aligning with both certified and literature values.

The exposure analysis of the long-term broadband EMF monitoring in the campus area of the University of Novi Sad.

Due to wide prevalence of electromagnetic field (EMF) sources in human surrounding, EMF-level measurements and corresponding exposure assessment have imposed as an important topic. With an intention to present an approach to the long-term exposure assessment in EMF RATEL network, this paper conveys a high-level statistical analysis of the high-frequency exposure data, acquired during the 5-y time period, for the case study of monitoring sensor installed in the area of the Novi Sad University campus. Time series of exposure values were averaged on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis, and their yearly comparison was performed. Results showed clear differences between the day and night hours, as well between working and weekend days. Regarding exposure values, averaged on the monthly basis, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021 can be noticed. Finally, the highest obtained exposure values (electric field squared) were 22 times below the maximal allowable level, according to the Serbian legislation.

A delay in entering invoice charges is associated with a decrease in total invoice amount in equine practice.

To evaluate the relationship in equine practice between the time delay for charge entry (time between when work was performed and when the invoice charges were entered) and the total amount of the invoice. A total of 67,597 invoices from 3 hospitals were included for analysis. Analysis of 67,597 invoices from 49 doctors working out of 3 hospitals was performed. Variables collected included invoice total, date of work, date of invoice entry, month of work, invoice category (A = ambulatory daytime, E = after-hours, I = hospital), and veterinarian. Time delay to invoice entry was the difference between the day of work and the day of charge entry. A generalized additive model was used to describe the relationship between the time delay for invoice entry and the invoice type, month of work, and invoice category. The best model was selected using the Akaike information criterion. In the selected model, total invoice amount was associated with time delay for charge entry and invoice category. Invoices entered on the same day of work were 299 ± $345, as compared to those entered the next day (255 ± $271) and those entered > 1 day after the work was performed (193 ± $196; P < .0001). If the observed relationship between time delay (time between work performed and invoice entry) and total invoice amount is causal, equine practitioners may have significant opportunity to improve revenues by simply entering charges on the same day the work is performed.

Preoperative radiosurgery for brain metastases (PREOP-1): A feasibility trial

PurposePreoperative radiosurgery (SRS) of brain metastases (BM) aims to achieve cavity local control with a reduction in leptomeningeal relapse (LMD) and without additional radionecrosis compared to postoperative SRS. We present the final results of a prospective feasibility trial of linac-based stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) prior to neurosurgical resection of a brain metastasis (PREOP-1). MethodsEligibility criteria included a BM up to 4 cm in diameter for elective resection. The primary endpoint was the feasibility of delivering linac-based preoperative SRS in all patients prior to anticipated gross tumour resection. Secondary endpoints included rates of LMD, local control and overall survival. Exploratory endpoints were the level of expression of immunological and proliferative markers. ResultsThirteen patients of median age 65 years (range 41–77) were recruited. Twelve patients (92 %) received preoperative radiosurgery and metastasectomy and one patient went directly to surgery and received postoperative SRS, thus the primary endpoint was not met. The median time between referral and preoperative SRS was 6.5 working days (1–10) and from SRS to neurosurgery was 1 day (0–5). The median prescribed dose was 16 Gy (14–19) to a median planning target volume of 12.7 cm3 (5.9–26.1). Five patients completed 12-month follow-up after preoperative SRS without local recurrence or leptomeningeal disease. The patient who received postoperative FSRT developed LMD after six months. There was one transient toxicity (grade 2 alopecia) and nine patients have died from extracranial causes. Patients reported significant improvement in motor weakness at 6 months (P = 0.04). No pattern in changes of marker expression was observed. ConclusionIn patients with large brain metastasis without raised intracranial pressure, linac-based preoperative SRS was feasible in 12/13 patients and safe in 12/12 patients without any surgical delay or intracranial complications.

Tingkat Kepuasan Konsumen Pada Bungkoez Cafe Kota Manado

This study aims to analyze the level of customer satisfaction at Bungkoez Cafe Manado City seen from the aspects of product, price, promotion, place and service. This research was conducted for 4 months, from October 2023 to February 2024, at Bungkoez Cafe Manado City. The data collection method was collected using primary data obtained through direct observation in the field, by conducting observations and interviews with cafe owners, employees and consumers, as well as giving questionnaires to consumers to fill out. Secondary data is obtained from internet sites, books, articles, research journals and various other documents related to the research. The sampling method for Bungkoez Cafe consumers used accidental sampling method, the number of samples obtained was 45 consumers based on a time limit of 5 days consisting of 3 working days and 2 holidays with respondents around 7-9 people per day. The analysis method used in this research is descriptive analysis, analyzing the answers obtained from the questionnaire, calculating the Likert Scale method, and analyzing the characteristics of each research variable using the index formula in each aspect of the marketing mix. The results showed that the results of the index number of customer satisfaction levels at Bungkoez Cafe Manado City in terms of product, price, location, promotion and service were at 80.86%, this shows that overall the manager of Bungkoez Cafe Manado City has reached the level of customer satisfaction even though there are still several indicators that need attention.

Pemeriksaan Serta Pemeliharaan Pada Rel 1 Bay Saketi

This research aims to find out about the main substation, good rails (busbars) in the substation system, and inspection and maintenance of the 1 bay Saketi rail. The place and time for industrial practice is carried out at PT. PLN Persero ULTG Rangkasbitung Jl. Rawasari, West Rangkasbitung, District. Rangkasbitung District. Lebak, Banten Province. The implementation time is from 28 November to 28 December 2022 with 5 working days. In this research it was found that rails (busbars) require protection if used in open areas. This avoids a short circuit if a metal object falls on the positive or negative busbar. At one substation there are several types of busbar configurations, including: (1) single bus; (2) double bus-double breaker; (3) main and transfer buses; (4) double bus-single breaker; (5) ring bus; and (6) break and a half.

“This School is Part and Parcel of Myself”: Workplace Attachment Promotes Positive Affect Among Teachers through Work Engagement

The current paper examines the relationship between teachers’ attachment to their institution and positive affect, through work engagement. In addition, the hypothesized path model considers two predictors of workplace attachment, namely teaching experience in the current institution and the frequency of communication with colleagues in an ordinary working day. Data were gathered from 289 primary school teachers employed in Turkish public schools through convenience sampling. A structural equation modelling method was applied for testing the hypothesized path model. Findings demonstrated teachers who frequently communicated with their colleagues had a high workplace attachment. Furthermore, primary school teachers who had a stronger attachment to their institution more engaged to their work, which in turn leads to higher levels of positive affect and lower levels of negative affect. Although previous literature emphasized the importance of the workplace on employee well-being and work engagement, previous work on teachers’ attachment to their institutions and its consequences is limited. With these findings, the current paper made important theoretical and practical contributions (e.g., examining the predictors and well-being outcomes of emotional and cognitive bonding to work environments in a non-WEIRD sample) considering attachment to work environments is a less-studied topic in the place attachment literature as compared to other contexts (e.g., neighborhoods, cities).

가능성을 확신으로 만든 시간: 휴넷의 주4.5일제와 행복경영모델

This case study deals with the process of implementing Hunet's 4.5-day work week system. The system was not just a welfare initiative to increase the number of rest days, but was established to improve productivity by providing sufficient rest to employees. The study analyzes that a productivity improvement system can be established even if it deviates from the traditional 5-day work week system. Through Hunet's case, we can infer and observe the necessary preparations required for the 4.5-day work week system to function effectively as a productivity improvement program. Hunet's 4.5-day work week is based on its happiness management model, which was established based on the founder's leadership, philosophy, and entrepreneurial ideology. This study sheds light on the company policies and core values that make Hunet's happiness management model possible. The case study was written based on interviews with company officials, company-provided data, and existing materials.

The utility of computed tomography at a district-level public hospital in Cape Town.

Computed tomography (CT) has become an invaluable aid in medical diagnostic workup, and its global usage has been shown to be consistently increasing across all departments. While typically located in regional or central hospitals in South Africa, its recent introduction at the district level has many foreseeable benefits. We evaluated its utility at one of the first district hospitals in the Western Cape to obtain a CT suite. This study aimed to describe the type of CT scans ordered, the clinical indications, the prevalence of significant abnormal findings and the agreement between the clinical opinion and radiological diagnosis. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted over a 1-year period at Khayelitsha Hospital, an entry-level hospital just outside of Cape Town. A total of 3242 CT scans were analysed. The mean age of patients was 46 years; 51.4% were males. A mean of 13 scans were performed per working day. The head and neck area were the most scanned region (n= 1841, 52.3%). Predominantly requested by the Emergency Centre (n= 1382, 42.6%), indications were mainly for general medical conditions workup (n= 2151, 66.4%). Most scans showed abnormalities (n= 2710, 83.6%), with 2115 (65.2%) considered relevant ('positive yield'). Clinical and CT diagnoses agreed in 1610 (49.7%) cases. Computed tomography usage at the district level demonstrated positive yield rates comparable to that of tertiary centres. This implies an appropriate utilisation of the service with a potential decrease in the burden on the referral centre.Contribution:Computed tomography scanners at district-level facilities are appropriately utilised and can provide greater access to care while potentially decreasing the burden on referral centres.

Microfiber emission from a municipal wastewater treatment plant in Hungary.

Since the ingestion of both natural and anthropogenic microfibers produces a deleterious effect on aquatic organisms, it is crucial to explore the emission of these pollutants by WWTPs into the receiving water bodies, such as rivers. Cellulose- and petroleum-based microfibers, as well as microplastic particles, were collected from the effluent of a municipal WWTP operating with activated sludge technology in Budapest, Hungary. During two sampling campaigns organized in February and April of 2023 on different working days and at different times of the day, 123-145 L of effluent was sieved and filtered. The organic matter was removed by hydrogen-peroxide treatment. All fibers and particles larger than 10µm were counted, and using a fluorescence microscope, the fibers were geometrically characterized in terms of length and diameter. Each fiber was individually identified by transflection-FT-IR method. The fiber concentration varied in the range of 1.88-2.84 and 4.25-6.79 items/L during the 7th and the 16th week of 2023, respectively. In February and April, the proportion of microfibers in the solid particles was 78.3 and 94.7%, respectively. In the effluent the cellulose-based microfibers were dominant (53-91%), while among the petroleum-based microfibers, polyester occurred most often. The median length of cellulose-based fibers was considerably higher in April than in February (650 vs. 1250µm), and simultaneously the median diameter also increased from 21 to 29µm. This behaviour was also seen, albeit to a lesser extent, in connection to microfibers derived from petroleum. The treated wastewater's daily microfiber transport to the Danube River varied between 0.44 -0.69 and 0.94-1.53 billion in February and April 2023, respectively.

Psychophysiological wellbeing in a class of dental students attending dental school: anxiety, burnout, post work executive performance and a 24 hours physiological investigation during a working day

AimTo the best of our knowledge, dental school students have never been evaluated for stress, anxiety, burnout, physiological indexes during a 24-h working day, and executive function performance post-work and post-work after returning from vacation; therefore, this research has been conducted.MethodsData were acquired at the Dental School of the University of Padua on 16 students in their 4th year, far from the exam session. While performing clinical activity on the dental chair and during a working day, electrodermal activity (EDA), heart rate variability (HRV), and heart rate (HR) were recorded. Participants’ stress was measured with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10 scale) and anxiety with the General Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-7) and State–Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Y-2), while burnout with the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI-HSS). Executive functions were evaluated using the Tower of London test (TOL-R).ResultsThree students (2F/1M) had a GAD-7 score ≥ 10. Five students (4F/1M) showed trait anxiety. Moderate levels of perceived stress were reported in 85% of participants. MBI-HSS showed that 7 participants scored high on emotional exhaustion and 7 on depersonalization. TOL-R performance (M = 15.85, SD = 4.01) was below the normative value p &amp;lt; 0.00001. A second test, after the holidays, showed normal values. EDA was higher during children’s treatment (p &amp;lt; 0.05), ANOVA showed high HR during working time (p &amp;lt; 0.001), and HRV was higher in males (p &amp;lt; 0.001).ConclusionBased on the sample size evaluated, it is reported that being a dental student has a moderate impact on stress, anxiety, and burnout while a strong impact on executive functions buffered by rest.

Embedded theoretical quality option pricing in Treasury bond futures—Starting from the definition deviation of conversion factor

AbstractUnlike ordinary futures, Treasury bond futures are a kind of complex financial derivatives with multiple Treasury bonds as the underlying, which can be settled on multiple dates. China's Treasury bond futures contract embeds a quality option, rolling timing option, and month end timing option, and these options restrict each other, making the pricing of Treasury bond futures extremely difficult. Quality option plays a dominant role in these three options. This article creatively divides quality options into theoretical quality option caused by the definition deviation of conversion factor and disturbance quality option caused by the market factors except for interest rate. Using the bond valuation method based on the yield to maturity curve, this article puts forward the embedded theoretical quality option and China's Treasury bond futures pricing models. For the empirical test, the dataset covers a 10‐year Treasury bond futures contract in 151 working days. The results show that the relative error between our model and the actual closing price of the Treasury bond futures is small compared with the cost of carry model, which excludes any embedded options. This research constructs a practical and straightforward pricing model of embedded theoretical quality option.

The Effect of the New Working Days System on Employees Productivity in Sharjah

Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Lastly, future research might consider longer-term data collection methods and more intricate ways to gauge how employees react to work-life balance based on four working days in a week. The HRM needs to reconsider the current economic climate because the employees have access to a variety of offers in the market. Therefore, it is beneficial for the organization to start providing perks to their potential employees. There is a high risk of employee turnover if they are not satisfied with the job, in this case, the implication of the four working days policy can benefit the workplace. By using relevant keywords like Work system design, job satisfaction, employee performance, productivity, and JEL codes (J24, J28, and M54) the study becomes more noticeable and accessible. Our study implications emphasized the importance of performance metrics, including productivity and job satisfaction.

Satisfaction with Remote Work Options Among Academic Library Employees: Implications for Recruitment and Retention

This article discusses results from a study of U.S. academic library employees’ satisfaction with their remote work options, the conditions under which they would consider leaving their position for one with remote work or better remote work options, and the extent to which they agree or disagree that remote work options can play a positive role in academic library employee recruitment and retention. The study’s Qualtrics-hosted survey was distributed through 18 listservs serving a range of library professional areas and was open for responses for one month in the autumn of 2022. The survey results reveal that 47% of participants were satisfied with their job’s remote work options or lack thereof and that approximately 83% of participants who do not have remote work options expressed dissatisfaction with their lack of options compared with approximately 43% of those who do have some remote work options. Also, approximately 27% of participants indicated that they would consider leaving their current position for one with remote work options or more remote work days, and a smaller percentage would even consider leaving for less pay. Further, 97% believed that providing employees with remote work options could play a positive role in academic library recruitment and retention. These findings address a gap in the academic library literature and may serve to inform recruitment and retention strategies among libraries.

PENGARUH PENGGUNAAN SARUNG TANGAN DENGAN BANTALAN DAN TAPPING TERHADAP PENURUNAN NYERI CARPAL TUNNEL SYNDROME

Carpal tunnel syndrome is a disorder that occurs in the wrist where inside the wrist there is a carpal tunnel through which the median nerve passes, as a result of excessive movement or pressure on the carpal tunnel which causes irritation of the median nerve. The aim of this study is to determine the effect of using gloves with pads and taps to reduce carpal tunnel syndrome pain, this research method used a pre and post experimental design, as many as 50 people were given gloves with pads and taps, the research subject was someone who worked more than 3 hours riding a motorbike in 1 day, in When driving, the wrist gets pressure when slowing down the vehicle and when passing through winding roads. The research subjects used gloves for 10 working days in two weeks, and used tapping for 2 weeks with a duration of 1 day on for 8 hours, 1 day off. The results of this study were 31 men and 19 women with an average age of 32.2 years and a pain average of 4.54 before and after 1.84 on the vas scale. In the statistical tests carried out, the value p=0.0001 was obtained where p&lt; 0.05 so it can be concluded that the use of gloves and taps can reduce pain in cases of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Not All Days Were Created Equal-Better Day Orientation Following the Weekend on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE).

The aim of this study was to test whether patients are better oriented to the day on the first working day following the weekend (in Israel-Sunday), compared with other weekdays, on the Mini-Mental Score Examination (MMSE). All MMSE scores from November 2016 until December 2022 in our mental health center's computerized system were collected. The proportion of correct answers to orientation to the day was compared between weekdays. The cohort consisted of 2049 MMSEs taken by 1376 patients [average age 80.3 (SD=9.3), 56.4% female]. The difference between the proportion of correct and incorrect answers was statistically significant between the days, of which Sundays showed a larger difference (53.4%) compared with the other days (χ 2 =20.77, P <0.001, Cramer V =0.104). A statistically significant odds ratio (OR) for providing a correct response was found for Sundays (OR=1.55, P =0.001) and, to a lesser extent, on Thursdays (OR=1.29, P =0.01). The difference between Sundays and other weekdays disappears as the total MMSE decreases. Day orientation on the MMSE may be better on the first day following the weekend, especially in early cognitive decline. The weekday in which the MMSE is performed may influence its results.

A new molecular method for fast differentiation of cockles Cerastoderma edule and Cerastoderma glaucum

Cerastoderma edule and C. glaucum are two species of cockles that co-exist in European waters. They are morphologically similar but exhibit remarkable differences in biological, ecological, and genetic aspects, as well as in resistance to parasites (e.g., Martellia cochilia) and in disease incidence (e.g., disseminated neoplasia). Moreover, they differ in their economic significance; while C. edule represents a highly valuable marine resource, C. glaucum is only marginally fished. The aim of this work was to develop a simple and fast method that, for the first time, uses the sequence of a mitochondrial gene for the molecular differentiation of the two cockle species. A total of 304 partial sequences of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene, retrieved from the Nucleotide database, were used to design two sets of species-specific primers to generate PCR products of different sizes (322 bp in C. glaucum and 247 bp in C. edule). The discriminatory ability of the PCR assay was tested in cockles from the Spanish, French, and Italian coasts with successful differentiation in all cases. This novel molecular identification method requires minimal technical equipment and can be carried out in one working day. For its simplicity, it can be very useful for conservation and sustainable management of the two cockle species, facilitating the assessment of distribution, abundance and relative sensitivity to viruses, parasites and diseases.