Search results for: cutting distance

Authors: Nihal Kartaltepe Behram, Göksel Ataman, Dila Okçu

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With the development of foreign direct investments, the social, cultural, political and economic interactions between countries and institutions have become visible and they have become determining factors for the strategic structuring and market goals. In this context the purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of cultural distance and institutions on foreign direct investment choices in terms of location and investment model. For international establishments, the concept of culture, as well as the concept of cultural distance, is taken specifically into consideration, especially in the selection of methods for entering the market. In the researches and empirical studies conducted, a direct relationship between cultural distance and foreign direct investments is set and institutions and effective variable factors are examined at the level of defining the investment types. When the detailed calculation strategies and empirical researches and studies are taken into consideration, the most common methods for determining the direct investment model, considering the cultural distances, are full-ownership enterprises and joint ventures. Also, when all of the factors affecting the investments are taken into consideration, it was seen that the effect of institutions such as Government Intervention, Intellectual Property Rights, Corruption and Contract Enforcements is very important. Furthermore agglomeration is more intense and effective on the investment, compared to other factors. China has been selected as the target country, due to its effectiveness in world economy and its contributions to developing countries, which has commercial relationships with. Qualitative research methods are used for this study conducted, to measure the effects of determinative variable factors in the hypotheses of study, on the direct foreign investors and to evaluate the findings. In this study in-depth interview is used as a data collection method and the data analysis is made through descriptive analysis. Foreign Direct Investments are so reactive to institutions and cultural distance is identified by all interviews and analysis. On the other hand, agglomeration is the most strong determiner factor on foreign direct investors in Chinese Market. The reason of this factors, which comprise the sectorial aggregate, are not the strongest factors as agglomeration that the most important finding. We expect that this study became a beneficial guideline for developed and developing countries and local and national institutions’ strategic plans.

Keywords: China, cultural distance, Foreign Direct Investments, institutions

Procedia PDF Downloads 418

Authors: Muhammad Waleed Asfandyar, Akhtar Ahmed, Syed Adib-ul-Hasan Rizvi

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Objective: To evaluate the ability of serum concentration of prostate specific antigen between two cutting points considering it as a predictor of skeletal metastasis on bone scintigraphy in men with prostate cancer. Settings: This study was carried out in department of Nuclear Medicine at Sindh Institute of Urology and Transplantation (SIUT) Karachi, Pakistan. Materials and Method: From August 2013 to November 2013, forty two (42) consecutive patients with prostate cancer who underwent technetium-99m methylene diphosphonate (Tc-99mMDP) whole body bone scintigraphy were prospectively analyzed. The information was collected from the scintigraphic database at a Nuclear medicine department Sindh institute of urology and transplantation Karachi Pakistan. Patients who did not have a serum PSA concentration available within 1 month before or after the time of performing the Tc-99m MDP whole body bone scintigraphy were excluded from this study. A whole body bone scintigraphy scan (from the toes to top of the head) was performed using a whole-body Moving gamma camera technique (anterior and posterior) 2–4 hours after intravenous injection of 20 mCi of Tc-99m MDP. In addition, all patients necessarily have a pathological report available. Bony metastases were determined from the bone scan studies and no further correlation with histopathology or other imaging modalities were performed. To preserve patient confidentiality, direct patient identifiers were not collected. In all the patients, Prostate specific antigen values and skeletal scintigraphy were evaluated. Results: The mean age, mean PSA, and incidence of bone metastasis on bone scintigraphy were 68.35 years, 370.51 ng/mL and 19/42 (45.23%) respectively. According to PSA levels, patients were divided into 5 groups < 10ng/mL (10/42), 10-20 ng/mL (5/42), 20-50 ng/mL (2/42), 50-100 (3/42), 100- 500ng/mL (3/42) and more than 500ng/mL (0/42) presenting negative bone scan. The incidence of positive bone scan (%) for bone metastasis for each group were O1 patient (5.26%), 0%, 03 patients (15.78%), 01 patient (5.26%), 04 patients (21.05%), and 10 patients (52.63%) respectively. From the 42 patients 19 (45.23%) presented positive scintigraphic examination for the presence of bone metastasis. 1 patient presented bone metastasis on bone scintigraphy having PSA level less than 10ng/mL, and in only 1 patient (5.26%) with bone metastasis PSA concentration was less than 20 ng/mL. therefore, when the cutting point adopted for PSA serum concentration was 10ng/mL, a negative predictive value for bone metastasis was 95% with sensitivity rates 94.74% and the positive predictive value and specificities of the method were 56.53% and 43.48% respectively. When the cutting point of PSA serum concentration was 20ng/mL the observed results for Positive predictive value and specificity were (78.27% and 65.22% respectively) whereas negative predictive value and sensitivity stood (100% and 95%) respectively. Conclusion: Results of our study allow us to conclude that serum PSA concentration of higher than 20ng/mL was the most accurate cutting point than a serum concentration of PSA higher than 10ng/mL to predict metastasis in radionuclide bone scintigraphy. In this way, unnecessary cost can be avoided, since a considerable part of prostate adenocarcinomas present low serum PSA levels less than 20 ng/mL and for these cases radionuclide bone scintigraphy could be unnecessary.

Keywords: bone scan, cut off value, prostate specific antigen value, scintigraphy

Procedia PDF Downloads 319

Authors: Meduranda Marco

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This paper aimed to discuss the Integrative Assessment (IA) initiative of the Schools Division Office - Navotas City. The introduction provided a brief landscape analysis of the current state of education, the context of SDO Navotas, and the rationale for the administration of Integrative Assessment (IA) in schools. The IA methodology, procedure, and implementation activities were also shared. Feedback and reports on IA showed positive results as all schools in the Division were able to operationalize IA and consequently foster academic ease for learners and parents. Challenges met after compliance were also documented and strategies to continuously improve the Integrative Assessment process were proposed.

Keywords: distance learning assessment, integrative assessment, academic ease, learning outcomes evaluation

Procedia PDF Downloads 142

Authors: Adnan A. Y. Mustafa

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Image matching is a fundamental problem that arises frequently in many aspects of robot and computer vision. It can become a time-consuming process when matching images to a database consisting of hundreds of images, especially if the images are big. One approach to reducing the time complexity of the matching process is to reduce the search space in a pre-matching stage, by simply removing dissimilar images quickly. The Probabilistic Matching Model for Binary Images (PMMBI) showed that dissimilarity detection between binary images can be accomplished quickly by random pixel mapping and is size invariant. The model is based on the gamma binary similarity distance that recognizes an image and its inverse as containing the same scene and hence considers them to be the same image. However, in many applications, an image and its inverse are not treated as being the same but rather dissimilar. In this paper, we present a comparative analysis of dissimilarity detection between PMMBI based on the gamma binary similarity distance and a modified PMMBI model based on a similarity distance that does distinguish between an image and its inverse as being dissimilar.

Keywords: binary image, dissimilarity detection, probabilistic matching model for binary images, image mapping

Procedia PDF Downloads 153

Authors: Biji Jacob

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Vector quantization algorithm which uses minimum distance calculation for codebook generation, a time consuming calculation performed on each pixel values leads to computation complexity. The codebook is updated by comparing the distance of each vector to their centroid vector and measure for their closeness. In this paper vector quantization is modified based on vector difference algorithm for image enhancement purpose. In the proposed scheme, vector differences between the vectors are considered as the new generation vectors or new codebook vectors. The codebook is updated by comparing the new generation vector with a threshold value having minimum error with the parent vector. The minimum error decides the fitness of each newly generated vector. Thus the codebook is generated in an adaptive manner and the fitness value is determined for the suppression of the degraded portion of the image and thereby leads to the enhancement of the image through the adaptive searching capability of the vector quantization through vector difference algorithm. Experimental results shows that the vector difference scheme efficiently modifies the vector quantization algorithm for enhancing the image with peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR), mean square error (MSE), Euclidean distance (E_dist) as the performance parameters.

Keywords: codebook, image enhancement, vector difference, vector quantization

Procedia PDF Downloads 267

Authors: Min Woo Park, Jin Do Chung, Kyu Yeol Kim, Byoung Uk Im, Jang Woo Kim, Hae Yeul Ryu

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Nine representative species of trees among all the street trees were selected to estimate the absorption amount of carbon dioxide emitted from street trees in Seoul calculating the biomass, amount of carbon saved, and annual absorption amount of carbon dioxide in each of the species. Planting distance of street trees in Seoul was 1,851,180 m, the number of planting lines was 1,287, the number of planted trees was 284,498 and 46 species of trees were planted as of 2013. According to the result of plugging the quantity of species of street trees in Seoul on the absorption amount of each of the species, 120,097 ton of biomass, 60,049.8 ton of amount of carbon saved, and 11,294 t CO2/year of annual absorption amount of carbon dioxide were calculated. Street ratio mentioned on the road statistics in Seoul in 2022 is 23.13%. If the street trees are assumed to be increased in the same rate, the number of street trees in Seoul was calculated to be 294,823. The planting distance was estimated to be 1,918,360 m, and the annual absorption amount of carbon dioxide was measured to be 11,704 t CO2/year. Plans for improving the annual absorption amount of carbon dioxide from street trees were established based on the expected amount of absorption. First of all, it is to improve the annual absorption amount of carbon dioxide by increasing the number of planted street trees after adjusting the planting distance of street trees. If adjusting the current planting distance to 6 m, it was turned out that 12,692.7 t CO2/year was absorbed on an annual basis. Secondly, it is to change the species of trees to tulip trees that represent high absorption rate. If increasing the proportion of tulip trees to 30% up to 2022, the annual absorption rate of carbon dioxide was calculated to be 17804.4 t CO2/year.

Keywords: absorption of carbon dioxide, source of absorbing carbon dioxide, trees in city, improving species

Procedia PDF Downloads 362

Authors: Aleksandra Szurlej-Kielanska, Lucyna Pilacka, Dariusz Górecki

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The dynamic development of wind energy requires the simultaneous implementation of effective systems minimizing the risk of collisions between birds and wind turbines. Wind turbines are installed in more and more challenging locations, often close to the natural environment of birds. More and more countries and organizations are defining guidelines for the necessary functionality of such systems. The minimum bird detection distance, trajectory tracking, and shutdown time are key factors in eliminating collisions. Since 2020, we have continued the survey on the validation of the subsequent version of the BPS detection and reaction system. Bird protection system (BPS) is a fully automatic camera system which allows one to estimate the distance of the bird to the turbine, classify its size and autonomously undertake various actions depending on the bird's distance and flight path. The BPS was installed and tested in a real environment at a wind turbine in northern Poland and Central Spain. The performed validation showed that at a distance of up to 300 m, the BPS performs at least as well as a skilled ornithologist, and large bird species are successfully detected from over 600 m. In addition, data collected by BPS systems installed in Spain showed that 60% of the detections of all birds of prey were from individuals approaching the turbine, and these detections meet the turbine shutdown criteria. Less than 40% of the detections of birds of prey took place at wind speeds below 2 m/s while the turbines were not working. As shown by the analysis of the data collected by the system over 12 months, the system classified the improved size of birds with a wingspan of more than 1.1 m in 90% and the size of birds with a wingspan of 0.7 - 1 m in 80% of cases. The collected data also allow the conclusion that some species keep a certain distance from the turbines at a wind speed of over 8 m/s (Aquila sp., Buteo sp., Gyps sp.), but Gyps sp. and Milvus sp. remained active at this wind speed on the tested area. The data collected so far indicate that BPS is effective in detecting and stopping wind turbines in response to the presence of birds of prey with a wingspan of more than 1 m.

Keywords: protecting birds, birds monitoring, wind farms, green energy, sustainable development

Procedia PDF Downloads 76

Authors: Gautam, Arjun, V. R. Sharma

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In the civil construction steel and concrete plays a different role but the same purposes dealing with the design of structures that support or resist loads. Concrete has been used in construction since long time from now. Being brittle and weak in tension, concrete is always reinforced with steel bars for the purposes in beams and columns etc. The paper deals with idea of special designed 3D materials which we named as “BUM629” to be placed/anchored in the structural member and mixed with concrete later on, so as to resist the developments of cracks due to shear failure , buckling,tension and compressive load in concrete. It had cutting edge technology through Draft, Analysis and Design the “BUM629”. The results show that “BUM629” has the great results in Mechanical application. Its material properties are design according to the need of structure; we apply the material such as Mild Steel and Magnesium Alloy. “BUM629” are divided into two parts one is applied at the middle section of concrete member where bending movements are maximum and the second part is laying parallel to vertical bars near clear cover, so we design this material and apply in Reinforcement of Civil Structures. “BUM629” is analysis and design for use in the mega structures like skyscrapers, dams and bridges.

Keywords: BUM629, magnesium alloy, cutting edge technology, mechanical application, draft, analysis and design, mega structures

Procedia PDF Downloads 384

Authors: Marie Alexandre, Jean Bernatchez

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This paper focuses on the complexity of the face-to-face-to-distance learning transition process. Our research action aims to support the process of transition from classroom to distance learning for teachers in higher education with regard to pedagogical practices that can meet the various needs of students using digital learning environments. In Quebec and elsewhere in the world, the advent of digital education is helping to transform teaching, which is significantly changing the role of teachers. While distance education implies a dissociation of teaching and learning to a variable degree in space and time, distance education (DE) is becoming more and increasingly becoming a preferred option for maintaining the delivery of certain programs and providing access to programs and to provide access to quality activities throughout Quebec. Given the impact of teaching practices on educational success, this paper reports on the results of three research objectives: 1) To document teachers' knowledge of teaching in distance education through the design, experimentation and production of a repertoire of the determinants of pedagogical practices in response to students' needs. 2) Explain, according to a gendered logic, the adequacy between the pedagogical practices implemented in distance learning and the response to the profiles and needs expressed by students using digital learning environments; 3) Produce a model of a support approach during the process of transition from classroom to distance learning at the college level. A mixed methodology, i.e., a quantitative component (questionnaire survey) and a qualitative component (explanatory interviews and living lab) was used in cycles that were part of an ongoing validation process. The intervention includes the establishment of a professional collaboration group, webinars training webinars for the participating teachers on the didactic issue of knowledge-teaching in FAD, the didactic use of technologies, and the differentiated socialization models of educational success in college education. All of the tools developed will be used by partners in the target environment as well as by all teacher educators, students in initial teacher training, practicing teachers, and the general public. The results show that access to training leading to qualifications and commitment to educational success reflects the existing links between the people in the educational community. The relational stakes of being present in distance education take on multiple configurations and different dimensions of learning testify to needs and realities that are sometimes distinct depending on the life cycle. This project will be of interest to partners in the targeted field as well as to all teacher trainers, students in initial teacher training, practicing college teachers, and to university professors. The entire educational community will benefit from digital resources in education. The scientific knowledge resulting from this action research will benefit researchers in the fields of pedagogy, didactics, teacher training and pedagogy in higher education in a digital context.

Keywords: action research, didactics, digital learning environment, distance learning, higher education, pedagogy technological, pedagogical content knowledge

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Carol S. Binnekade, Deon Scott, Christina C. Shuttleworth, Annelien A. Van Rooyen

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Higher education institutions are constantly challenged to deliver skilled graduates into the workplace. Employers expect graduates to have the required technical knowledge as well as various pervasive skills. This also applies to accountants who need to know the technical requirements of financial reporting and be able to communicate with individuals, teams and clients at a high level. Accountants need to develop effective business conversational skills and use these skills to communicate up, down and across organizations, taking into consideration cultural and gender diversity. In addition, they need to master business writing and presentation skills. However, providing students with these skills in a distance-learning environment where interaction between students and instructors is limited, is a challenge for academics. The study on which this paper reports, forms part of a larger body of research, which explored the perceptions of accounting practitioners of the communication skills (or lack thereof) of recently qualified accounting students. Feedback (qualitative and quantitative) was obtained from various accounting practitioners in South Africa. Taking into consideration that distance learners communicate mainly with their instructors via email communication and their assignments are submitted using various word processor software, the researchers were of the opinion that the accounting graduates would be capable of communicating effectively once they entered the workplace. However, the research findings, inter alia, suggested that the accounting graduates lacked communication skills and that training was needed to differentiate between business and social communication once they entered the workplace. Recommendations on how these communication challenges may be addressed by higher education institutions are provided.

Keywords: accounting practitioners, communication skills, distance education, pervasive skills

Procedia PDF Downloads 204

Authors: Amy M. Kwon

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Support vector machine (SVM) is a well-known algorithm in machine learning due to its superior performance, and it also functions well in multiple-instance (MI) problems. Our study proposes a schematic algorithm to select instances based on Hausdorff distance, which can be adapted to SVMs as input vectors under the MI setting. Based on experiments on five benchmark datasets, our strategy for adapting representation outperformed in comparison with original approach. In addition, task execution times (TETs) were reduced by more than 80% based on MissSVM. Hence, it is noteworthy to consider this representation adaptation to SVMs under MI-setting.

Keywords: support vector machine, Margin, Hausdorff distance, representation selection, multiple-instance learning, machine learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 34

Authors: Sajjad Ali Khan Sajjad Ali Khan, Gohar Ayub, Khalil Ur Rahman, Muhammad Sajid, Mumtaz Farooq, Mohammad Irshad, Haider Ali

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A trail was carried out to know the effect of different soil media and planting time on the cuttings of cherry (Prunus avium L.) rootstock Colt at Agriculture Research Institute (ARI) Mingora swat, during winter 2011. The experiment was laid out in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with split plot arrangement and was replicated three times. Soil media (Silt, Garden soil and Silt+Garden soil+FYM) were assigned to main plots whereas, planting Dates (1st Jan, 11th Jan, 21st Jan, 1st Feb, 11th Feb, 21st Feb and 2nd March) subjected to sub plots. The data recorded on sprouting percentage, shoot diameter cutting-1, number of leaves cutting-1, rootstock height (cm), survival percentage, number of roots, root length (cm), root volume (cm3) and root weight (gm) were significantly affected by different soil media. Maximum sprouting percentage (100%), shoot diameter (1.72 mm), number of leaves cutting-1 (76.74), rootstock height (104.36 cm), survival percentage (41.67%), number of roots (76.35), root length (11.28 cm), root volume (4.43 cm3) and root weight (4.64 gm) were recorded in media M3 (Garden soil+silt+FYM). A significant response to various planting dates were observed for most of vegetative and rooting attributes of cherry rootstock Colt. 1st January plantation showed maximum sprouting percentage (100%), shoot diameter (1.99 mm), number of leaves (81.46), rootstock height (126.24 cm), survival percentage (58.12%), whereas 11th January plantation showed more number of roots (94.43), root length (10.60 cm), root volume (3.68 cm3) and root weight (3.71 gm). Based on the results from the experimental work, it is recommended that cherry cuttings should be planted in early January in soil media (Silt+Garden soil+ FYM) for better growth and development under the agro climatic conditions of temperate region.

Keywords: soil media, cherry rootstock, planting dates, growth parameters

Procedia PDF Downloads 98

Authors: Ping Tan, Xiaomeng Su, Yi Shen

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The motion intention in the motor imagery braincomputer interface is identified by classifying the event-related desynchronization (ERD) and event-related synchronization ERS characteristics of sensorimotor rhythm (SMR) in EEG signals. When the subject imagines different limbs or different parts moving, the rhythm components and bandwidth will change, which varies from person to person. How to find the effective sensorimotor frequency band of subjects is directly related to the classification accuracy of brain-computer interface. To solve this problem, this paper proposes a Minimum Distance to Riemannian Mean Classification method based on Non-Uniform Filter Banks. During the training phase, the EEG signals are decomposed into multiple different bandwidt signals by using multiple band-pass filters firstly; Then the spatial covariance characteristics of each frequency band signal are computered to be as the feature vectors. these feature vectors will be classified by the MDRM (Minimum Distance to Riemannian Mean) method, and cross validation is employed to obtain the effective sensorimotor frequency bands. During the test phase, the test signals are filtered by the bandpass filter of the effective sensorimotor frequency bands, and the extracted spatial covariance feature vectors will be classified by using the MDRM. Experiments on the BCI competition IV 2a dataset show that the proposed method is superior to other classification methods.

Keywords: non-uniform filter banks, motor imagery, brain-computer interface, minimum distance to Riemannian mean

Procedia PDF Downloads 126

Authors: Artiya Sopharak, Tosaphol Ratniyomchai, Thanatchai Kulworawanichpong

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This paper presents an energy-saving study of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) using an optimal train coasting operation. For the dynamic train movement with four modes of operation, including accelerating mode, constant speed or cruising mode, coasting mode, and braking mode are considered in this study. The acceleration rate, the deceleration rate, and the starting coasting point are taken into account the optimal train speed profile during coasting mode with considering the energy saving and acceptable travel time comparison to the based case with no coasting operation. In this study, the mathematical method as a Quadratic Search Method (QDS) is conducted to carry out the optimization problem. A single train of MRT services between two stations with a distance of 2 km and a maximum speed of 80 km/h is taken to be the case study. Regarding the coasting mode operation, the results show that the longer distance of costing mode, the less energy consumption in cruising mode and the less braking energy. On the other hand, the shorter distance of coasting mode, the more energy consumption in cruising mode and the more braking energy.

Keywords: energy saving, coasting mode, mass rapid transit, quadratic search method

Procedia PDF Downloads 302

Authors: Husain A. Murad, Ali A. Dashti, Ali Al-Kandari

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The outbreak of Coronavirus during the Spring semester of 2020 brought new challenges for the teaching of vocational mass communication courses at universities in Kuwait. Using the Media Richness Theory (MRT), this study examines the response of 252 university students on mass communication programs. A questionnaire regarding their perceptions and preferences concerning modes of instruction on vocational courses online, focusing on the four factors of MRT: immediacy of feedback, capacity to include personal focus, conveyance of multiple cues, and variety of language. The outcomes show that immediacy of feedback predicted all criterion variables: suitability of distance learning (DL) for teaching vocational courses, sentiments of students toward DL, perceptions of easiness of evaluation of DL coursework, and the possibility of retaking DL courses. Capacity to include personal focus was another positive predictor of the criterion variables. It predicted students’ sentiments toward DL and the possibility of retaking DL courses. The outcomes are discussed in relation to implications for using DL, as well as constructing an agenda for DL research.

Keywords: distance learning, media richness theory, traditional learning, vocational media courses

Procedia PDF Downloads 75

Authors: Lisbeth Amhag

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The aim of the study is to describe and analyze the design of mobile teaching for students collaborative learning in distance higher education with a focus on mobile technologies as online webinars (web-based seminars or conferencing) by using laptops, smart phones, or tablets. These multimedia tools can provide face-to-face interactions, recorded flipped classroom videos and parallel chat communications. The data collection consists of interviews with 22 students and observations of online face-to-face webinars, as well two surveys. Theoretically, the study joins the research tradition of Computer Supported Collaborative learning, CSCL, as well as Computer Self-Efficacy, CSE concerned with individuals’ media and information literacy. Important conclusions from the study demonstrated mobile interactions increased student centered learning. As the students were appreciating the working methods, they became more engaged and motivated. The mobile technology using among student also contributes to increased flexibility between space and place, as well as media and information literacy.

Keywords: computer self-efficacy, computer supported collaborative learning, distance and open learning, educational design and technologies, media and information literacy, mobile learning

Procedia PDF Downloads 358

Authors: Sulafah Basahel

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Nowadays, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) around the world are attempting to utilize Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to enhance learning process and strategies of knowledge delivery for students through Distance Education (DE) system. Stakeholders in DE system face a complex situation of different ill-defined and related issues that influence decision making process. In this study system thinking as a body of knowledge is used to explore the emergent properties that produced from these connections between issues and could have either positive or negative outcomes for the DE development. Checkland Soft System Methodology (SSM) - Mode 2 is employed in a cultural context of Saudi Arabia for more knowledge acquisition purposes among multiple stakeholders in DE rather than solving problems to achieve an overall development of DE system. This paper will discuss some political, cultural issues and connections between them that impact on effectiveness of stakeholders’ activities and relations. This study will significantly contribute to both system thinking and education fields by leading decision makers in DE to reconsider future plans, strategies and right actions for more successful educational practices.

Keywords: distance education, higher education institutions, ill-defined issues, soft system methodology-Mode 2

Procedia PDF Downloads 270

Authors: Rawinun Praserttaweelap, Somyot Kiatwanidvilai

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Obstacle avoidance is the one key for the robot system in unknown environment. The robots should be able to know their position and safety region. This research starts on the path planning which are SLAM and AMCL in ROS system. In addition, the best parameters of the obstacle avoidance function are required. In situation on Hard Disk Drive Manufacturing, the distance between robots and obstacles are very serious due to the manufacturing constraint. The simulations are accomplished by the SLAM and AMCL with adaptive velocity and safety region calculation.

Keywords: obstacle avoidance, OA, Simultaneous Localization and Mapping, SLAM, Adaptive Monte Carlo Localization, AMCL, KLD sampling, KLD

Procedia PDF Downloads 198

Authors: Sky Chou, Joseph C. Chen

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This paper focuses on using Six Sigma methodologies to improve the surface roughness of a manufactured part produced by the CNC milling machine. It presents a case study where the surface roughness of milled aluminum is required to reduce or eliminate defects and to improve the process capability index C_p and C_pk for a CNC milling process. The six sigma methodology, DMAIC (design, measure, analyze, improve, and control) approach, was applied in this study to improve the process, reduce defects, and ultimately reduce costs. The Taguchi-based six sigma approach was applied to identify the optimized processing parameters that led to the targeted surface roughness specified by our customer. A L₉ orthogonal array was applied in the Taguchi experimental design, with four controllable factors and one non-controllable/noise factor. The four controllable factors identified consist of feed rate, depth of cut, spindle speed, and surface roughness. The noise factor is the difference between the old cutting tool and the new cutting tool. The confirmation run with the optimal parameters confirmed that the new parameter settings are correct. The new settings also improved the process capability index. The purpose of this study is that the Taguchi–based six sigma approach can be efficiently used to phase out defects and improve the process capability index of the CNC milling process.

Keywords: CNC machining, six sigma, surface roughness, Taguchi methodology

Procedia PDF Downloads 242

Authors: Kgolagano Mpejane

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The study applies a New Institutional Economics (NIE) analytical framework to trade in developing economies by assessing the impacts of institutional quality and institutional quality distance on agricultural trade using a panel data of 15 Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries from the years 1991-2010. The issue of institutions on agricultural trade has not been accorded the necessary attention in the literature, particularly in developing economies. Therefore, the paper empirically tests the gravity model of international trade by measuring the impact of political, economic and legal institutions on intra SADC agricultural trade. The gravity model is noted for its exploratory power and strong theoretical foundation. However, the model has statistical shortcomings in dealing with zero trade values and heteroscedasticity residuals leading to biased results. Therefore, this study employs a two stage Heckman selection model with a Probit equation to estimate the influence of institutions on agricultural trade. The selection stages include the inverse Mills ratio to account for the variable bias of the gravity model. The Heckman model accounts for zero trade values and is robust in the presence of heteroscedasticity. The empirical results of the study support the NIE theory premise that institutions matter in trade. The results demonstrate that institutions determine bilateral agricultural trade on different margins with political institutions having positive and significant influence on bilateral agricultural trade flows within the SADC region. Legal and economic institutions have significant and negative effects on SADC trade. Furthermore, the results of this study confirm that institutional quality distance influences agricultural trade. Legal and political institutional distance have a positive and significant influence on bilateral agricultural trade while the influence of economic, institutional quality is negative and insignificant. The results imply that nontrade barriers, in the form of institutional quality and institutional quality distance, are significant factors limiting intra SADC agricultural trade. Therefore, gains from intra SADC agricultural trade can be attained through the improvement of institutions within the region.

Keywords: agricultural trade, institutions, gravity model, SADC

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Hatib Shabbir

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Student support services play an important role in providing technical and motivational support to distance learner. ICT based systems have improved the efficiency and effectiveness of support services. In distance education, students being at distant require quick responses from their institution. In the manual system, it is practically hard to give prompt response to each and every student, so as a result student has to suffer a lot. The best way to minimize inefficiencies is to use automated systems. This project involves the development of centralized automated software that would not only replace the manual degree issuance system of 1.3 million students studying at AIOU but also provide online tracking to all the students applying for Degrees. DTS is also the first step towards the paperless culture which is adopted by the major organizations of the world. DTS would not only save university cost but also save students cost and time too by conveying all the information/objection through email and SMS. Moreover, DTS also monitors the performance of each and every individual working in the exam department AIOU and generates daily, monthly and yearly reports of every individual which helps a lot in continuous performance monitoring of the employees.

Keywords: aiou dts, dts aiou, dts, degree tracking aiou

Procedia PDF Downloads 218

Authors: Irene Capecchi, Tommaso Borghini, Iacopo Bernetti

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One of the most common pieces of equipment still used today for pruning, felling, and processing trees is the chainsaw in forestry. However, chainsaw use highlights dangers and one of the highest rates of accidents in both professional and non-professional work. Felling is proportionally the most dangerous phase, both in severity and frequency, because of the risk of being hit by the plant the operator wants to cut down. To avoid this, a correct sequence of chainsaw cuts must be taught concerning the different conditions of the tree. Virtual reality (VR) makes it possible to virtually simulate chainsaw use without danger of injury. The limitations of the existing applications are as follow. The existing platforms are not symmetrical collaborative because the trainee is only in virtual reality, and the trainer can only see the virtual environment on a laptop or PC, and this results in an inefficient teacher-learner relationship. Therefore, most applications only involve the use of a virtual chainsaw, and the trainee thus cannot feel the real weight and inertia of a real chainsaw. Finally, existing applications simulate only a few cases of tree felling. The objectives of this research were to implement and test a symmetrical collaborative training application based on VR and mixed reality (MR) with the overlap between real and virtual chainsaws in MR. The research and training platform was developed for the Meta quest 2 head-mounted display. The research and training platform application is based on the Unity 3D engine, and Present Platform Interaction SDK (PPI-SDK) developed by Meta. PPI-SDK avoids the use of controllers and enables hand tracking and MR. With the combination of these two technologies, it was possible to overlay a virtual chainsaw with a real chainsaw in MR and synchronize their movements in VR. This ensures that the user feels the weight of the actual chainsaw, tightens the muscles, and performs the appropriate movements during the test allowing the user to learn the correct body posture. The chainsaw works only if the right sequence of cuts is made to felling the tree. Contact detection is done by Unity's physics system, which allows the interaction of objects that simulate real-world behavior. Each cut of the chainsaw is defined by a so-called collider, and the felling of the tree can only occur if the colliders are activated in the right order simulating a safe technique felling. In this way, the user can learn how to use the chainsaw safely. The system is also multiplayer, so the student and the instructor can experience VR together in a symmetrical and collaborative way. The platform simulates the following tree-felling situations with safe techniques: cutting the tree tilted forward, cutting the medium-sized tree tilted backward, cutting the large tree tilted backward, sectioning the trunk on the ground, and cutting branches. The application is being evaluated on a sample of university students through a special questionnaire. The results are expected to test both the increase in learning compared to a theoretical lecture and the immersive and telepresence of the platform.

Keywords: chainsaw, collaborative symmetric virtual reality, mixed reality, operator training

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Authors: Pankaj Chandna, Dinesh Kumar

Abstract:

The present work analyses different parameters of end milling to minimize the surface roughness for AISI D2 steel. D2 Steel is generally used for stamping or forming dies, punches, forming rolls, knives, slitters, shear blades, tools, scrap choppers, tyre shredders etc. Surface roughness is one of the main indices that determines the quality of machined products and is influenced by various cutting parameters. In machining operations, achieving desired surface quality by optimization of machining parameters, is a challenging job. In case of mating components the surface roughness become more essential and is influenced by the cutting parameters, because, these quality structures are highly correlated and are expected to be influenced directly or indirectly by the direct effect of process parameters or their interactive effects (i.e. on process environment). In this work, the effects of selected process parameters on surface roughness and subsequent setting of parameters with the levels have been accomplished by Taguchi’s parameter design approach. The experiments have been performed as per the combination of levels of different process parameters suggested by L9 orthogonal array. Experimental investigation of the end milling of AISI D2 steel with carbide tool by varying feed, speed and depth of cut and the surface roughness has been measured using surface roughness tester. Analyses of variance have been performed for mean and signal-to-noise ratio to estimate the contribution of the different process parameters on the process.

Keywords: D2 steel, orthogonal array, optimization, surface roughness, Taguchi methodology

Procedia PDF Downloads 544

Authors: Byeongcheol Kang, Junyi Kim, Hyungsik Jung, Hyungjun Yang, Jaewoo An, Jonggeun Choe

Abstract:

It is important to figure out reservoir properties for better production management. Due to the limited information, there are geological uncertainties on very heterogeneous or channel reservoir. One of the solutions is to generate multiple equi-probable realizations using geostatistical methods. However, some models have wrong properties, which need to be excluded for simulation efficiency and reliability. We propose a novel method of model selection scheme, based on distance-based clustering for reliable application of production optimization algorithm. Distance is defined as a degree of dissimilarity between the data. We calculate Hausdorff distance to classify the models based on their similarity. Hausdorff distance is useful for shape matching of the reservoir models. We use multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) to describe the models on two dimensional space and group them by K-means clustering. Rather than simulating all models, we choose one representative model from each cluster and find out the best model, which has the similar production rates with the true values. From the process, we can select good reservoir models near the best model with high confidence. We make 100 channel reservoir models using single normal equation simulation (SNESIM). Since oil and gas prefer to flow through the sand facies, it is critical to characterize pattern and connectivity of the channels in the reservoir. After calculating Hausdorff distances and projecting the models by MDS, we can see that the models assemble depending on their channel patterns. These channel distributions affect operation controls of each production well so that the model selection scheme improves management optimization process. We use one of useful global search algorithms, particle swarm optimization (PSO), for our production optimization. PSO is good to find global optimum of objective function, but it takes too much time due to its usage of many particles and iterations. In addition, if we use multiple reservoir models, the simulation time for PSO will be soared. By using the proposed method, we can select good and reliable models that already matches production data. Considering geological uncertainty of the reservoir, we can get well-optimized production controls for maximum net present value. The proposed method shows one of novel solutions to select good cases among the various probabilities. The model selection schemes can be applied to not only production optimization but also history matching or other ensemble-based methods for efficient simulations.

Keywords: distance-based clustering, geological uncertainty, particle swarm optimization (PSO), production optimization

Procedia PDF Downloads 144

Authors: S. Benchelha, H. C. Aoudjehane, M. Hakdaoui, R. El Hamdouni, H. Mansouri, T. Benchelha, M. Layelmam, M. Alaoui

Abstract:

The logistic regression (LR) and multivariate adaptive regression spline (MarSpline) are applied and verified for analysis of landslide susceptibility map in Oudka, Morocco, using geographical information system. From spatial database containing data such as landslide mapping, topography, soil, hydrology and lithology, the eight factors related to landslides such as elevation, slope, aspect, distance to streams, distance to road, distance to faults, lithology map and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were calculated or extracted. Using these factors, landslide susceptibility indexes were calculated by the two mentioned methods. Before the calculation, this database was divided into two parts, the first for the formation of the model and the second for the validation. The results of the landslide susceptibility analysis were verified using success and prediction rates to evaluate the quality of these probabilistic models. The result of this verification was that the MarSpline model is the best model with a success rate (AUC = 0.963) and a prediction rate (AUC = 0.951) higher than the LR model (success rate AUC = 0.918, rate prediction AUC = 0.901).

Keywords: landslide susceptibility mapping, regression logistic, multivariate adaptive regression spline, Oudka, Taounate

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Authors: Felix E. Gbenoba, Opeyemi Dahunsi

Abstract:

Self-instructional materials are at the heart of instructional delivery in Open and Distance Learning (ODL). The success of any ODL institution depends on the availability of instructional materials in quality and quantity. An ODL study material is expected to fully play the teacher plays in the face-to-face learning environment. In Nigeria, efforts to deliver ODL learning materials have been peculiarly challenging. Although researchers are unrelenting in hewing out ways to make ODL delivery in Africa generally and Nigeria in particular, meet the learners’ needs and acceptable global practices, the prospects of integrating instructional media into distance learning courses are largely unexplored. In the present study, we critically examine the prospects of integration of instructional media into ODL courses for pedagogic and other benefits it portends for delivery via the distance learning mode. Although efforts to integrate media in ODL have been recorded before now, the reality has not matched the expectation so far in Nigeria. This does not mean that the existing instructional materials have not produced any significant positive results in improving the overall learning (and teaching) experience in its institutions; it implies that increased integration as suggested here will further improve the experience as well as bring up the new challenges. Obstacles and problems of instructional materials and media development that could have affected the open educational resource initiatives are well established. The first aspect of this paper recalls the revolutionary strides that ODL brought to delivery of education in Nigeria particularly. The other aspect is on what instructional media are, their role, prospects and challenges for ODL in Nigeria; these are examined vis a vis the challenges of development, production and distribution of print instructional materials as the major format of instructional delivery at Nigeria’s only single mode ODL institution, NOUN. In the third aspect, we justify the need and benefits of integrating instructional media into the courses and make recommendations.

Keywords: instructional delivery, instructional media, ODL, media integration, Nigeria, self-instructional materials

Procedia PDF Downloads 387

Authors: Aidan N. Smallwood, Celestine R. Weegenaar, Jack N. Evans

Abstract:

The intensive care unit (ICU) is a particularly resource heavy environment, in terms of staff, drugs and equipment required. Whilst many areas of the hospital are attempting to cut down on plastic use and minimise their impact on the environment, this has proven challenging within the confines of intensive care. Concurrently, as globalization has progressed over recent decades, there has been a tendency towards centralised manufacturing with international distribution networks for products, often covering large distances. In this study, we have modelled the standard consumption of plastic single-use items over the course of the first 24-hours of an average individual patient’s stay in a 12 bed ICU in the United Kingdom (UK). We have identified the country of manufacture and calculated the minimum possible distance travelled by each item from factory to patient. We have assumed direct transport via the shortest possible straight line from country of origin to the UK and have not accounted for transport within either country. Assuming an intubated patient with invasive haemodynamic monitoring and central venous access, there are a total of 52 distincts, largely plastic, disposable products which would reasonably be required in the first 24-hours after admission. Each product type has only been counted once to account for multiple items being shipped as one package. Travel distances from origin were summed to give the total distance combined for all 52 products. The minimum possible total distance travelled from country of origin to the UK for all types of product was 273,353 km, equivalent to 6.82 circumnavigations of the globe, or 71% of the way to the moon. The mean distance travelled was 5,256 km, approximately the distance from London to Mecca. With individual packaging for each item, the total weight of consumed products was 4.121 kg. The CO2 produced shipping these items by air freight would equate to 30.1 kg, however doing the same by sea would produce 0.2 kg CO2. Extrapolating these results to the 211,932 UK annual ICU admissions (2018-2019), even with the underestimates of distance and weight of our assumptions, air freight would account for 6586 tons CO2 emitted annually, approximately 130 times that of sea freight. Given the drive towards cost saving within the UK health service, and the decline of the local manufacturing industry, buying from intercontinental manufacturers is inevitable However, transporting all consumables by sea where feasible would be environmentally beneficial, as well as being less costly than air freight. At present, the NHS supply chain purchases from medical device companies, and there is no freely available information as to the transport mode used to deliver the product to the UK. This must be made available to purchasers in order to give a fuller picture of life cycle impact and allow for informed decision making in this regard.

Keywords: CO2, intensive care, plastic, transport

Procedia PDF Downloads 178

Authors: Siamak Dawazdah Emami, Amin Khodaei, Harith Bin Ahmad, Hairul A. Adbul-Rashid

Abstract:

The Fano resonance effect on plasmonic nanoparticle materials results in such materials possessing a number of unique optical properties, and the potential applicability for sensing, nonlinear devices and slow-light devices. A Fano resonance is a consequence of coherent interference between superradiant and subradiant hybridized plasmon modes. Incident light on subradiant modes will initiate excitation that results in superradiant modes, and these superradient modes possess zero or finite dipole moments alongside a comparable negligible coupling with light. This research work details the derivation of an electrodynamics coupling model for the interaction of dipolar transitions and radiation via plasmonic nanoclusters such as quadrimers, pentamers and heptamers. The directivity calculation is analyzed in order to qualify the redirection of emission. The geometry of a configured array of nanostructures strongly influenced the transmission and reflection properties, which subsequently resulted in the directivity of each antenna being related to the nanosphere size and gap distances between the nanospheres in each model’s structure. A well-separated configuration of nanospheres resulted in the structure behaving similarly to monomers, with spectra peaks of a broad superradiant mode being centered within the vicinity of 560 nm wavelength. Reducing the distance between ring nanospheres in pentamers and heptamers to 20~60 nm caused the coupling factor and charge distributions to increase and invoke a subradiant mode centered within the vicinity of 690 nm. Increasing the outside ring’s nanosphere distance from the centered nanospheres caused the coupling factor to decrease, with the coupling factor being inversely proportional to cubic of the distance between nanospheres. This phenomenon led to a dramatic decrease of the superradiant mode at a 200 nm distance between the central nanosphere and outer rings. Effects from a superradiant mode vanished beyond a 240 nm distance between central and outer ring nanospheres.

Keywords: fano resonance, optical antenna, plasmonic, nano-clusters

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Authors: Lukman Andi Priyatna, Vivi Fauzia, Ferry Anggoro Ardy Nugroho

Abstract:

Zinc oxide (ZnO) based nanostructures are ubiquitous in applications due to their favourable physicochemical properties and ease of fabrication. One widely accessible route to synthesize ZnO nanorods, which show promising performance in e.g. photoelectrochemical water splitting, is hydrothermal growth of ZnO seeds, obtained via an atomic nebulizer. Despite its popularity, study on the impact of the synthesis parameters in atomic nebulizer on the performance of the synthesized ZnO nanostructures is lacking. This study presents an investigation on the impact of the distance between substrates and atomic nebulizer nozzle on the photoelectrochemical water splitting performance of ZnO nanorods. Adjusting such a distance reveals an optimum separation which results in nanostructures with highest absorbance. Such high absorbance translates into improved photoelectrochemistry, as evaluated by higher photocurrent density, from 0.11 mA/cm² to 0.14 mA/cm² and higher Applied Bias Photon-to-Current Efficiency (ABPE) from 0.12% to 0.14%. These results underscore the importance of understanding and optimizing the experimental parameters during ZnO nanostructure synthesis. In a broader context, it advertises the need to carefully assess the corresponding fabrication parameters to optimize the performance of the obtained nanostructures.

Keywords: atomic nebulizer, photocurrent density, photoelectrochemical water splitting, ZnO nanorods

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Authors: Anatoly D. Pluzhnikov, Elena N. Pribludova, Alexander G. Ryndyk

Abstract:

In conjunction with the problem of the target selection on a clutter background, the analysis of the scanning rate influence on the spatial-temporal signal structure, the generalized multivariate correlation function and the quality of the resolution with the increase pulse repetition frequency is made. The possibility of the object space-distance resolution, which is conditioned by the range-to-angle conversion with an increased scanning rate, is substantiated. The calculations for the real cylindrical array at high scanning rate are presented. The high scanning rate let to get the signal to noise improvement of the order of 10 dB for the space-time signal processing.

Keywords: antenna pattern, array, signal processing, spatial resolution

Procedia PDF Downloads 180