Search results for: Mutare urban timber processing factories

Authors: N. Dumitru, S. Dumitru, C. Copilusi, N. Ploscaru

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On this research, experimental analyses have been performed in order to determine the oil pump mechanism dynamics and stability from an oil unit mechanical structure. The experimental tests were focused on the vibrations which occur inside of the rod element during functionality of the oil pump unit. The oil pump mechanism dynamic parameters were measured and also determined through numerical computations. Entire research is based on the oil pump unit mechanical system virtual prototyping. For a complete analysis of the mechanism, the frequency dynamic response was identified, mainly for the mechanism driven element, based on two methods: processing and virtual simulations with MSC Adams aid and experimental analysis. In fact, through this research, a complete methodology is presented where numerical simulations of a mechanism with deformed elements are developed on a dynamic mode and these can be correlated with experimental tests.

Keywords: modal dynamic analysis, oil pump, vibrations, flexible elements, frequency response

Procedia PDF Downloads 319

Authors: R. Asmeda, A. Noorlaila, M. H. Norziah

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This research work was conducted to investigate the effects of different grinding techniques during the milling process of rice grains on physicochemical characteristics of rice flour produced. Dry grinding, semi-wet grinding, and wet grinding were employed to produce the rice flour. The results indicated that different grinding methods significantly (p ≤ 0.05) affected physicochemical and functional properties of starch except for the carbohydrate content, x-ray diffraction pattern and breakdown viscosity. Dry grinding technique caused highest percentage of starch damage compared to semi-wet and wet grinding. Protein, fat and ash content were highest in rice flour obtained by dry grinding. It was found that wet grinding produce flour with smallest average particle size (8.52 µm), resulting in highest process yield (73.14%). Pasting profiles revealed that dry grinding produce rice flour with significantly lowest pasting temperature and highest setback viscosity.

Keywords: average particle size, grinding techniques, physicochemical characteristics, rice flour

Procedia PDF Downloads 191

Authors: Kim Lytle, Tim Talty, Alan Michaels, Jeff Reed

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Implantable medical devices (IMDs) are medically necessary devices embedded in the human body that monitor chronic disorders or automatically deliver therapies. Most IMDs have wireless capabilities that allow them to share data with an offboard programming device to help medical providers monitor the patient’s health while giving the patient more insight into their condition. However, serious security concerns have arisen as researchers demonstrated these devices could be hacked to obtain sensitive information or harm the patient. Cooperative jamming can be used to prevent privileged information leaks by maintaining an adequate signal-to-noise ratio at the intended receiver while minimizing signal power elsewhere. This paper uses ray tracing to demonstrate how a low number of friendly nodes abiding by Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) transmission regulations can enhance IMD communication security in an office environment, which in turn may inform how companies and individuals can protect their proprietary and personal information.

Keywords: implantable biomedical devices, communication system security, array signal processing, ray tracing

Procedia PDF Downloads 114

Authors: Xiao Yihong, Yu Kexin, Burra Venkata Durga Kumar

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With the accelerating process of urbanization, the problem of urban road congestion is becoming more and more serious. Intelligent transportation system combining distributed and artificial intelligence has become a research hotspot. As the core development direction of the intelligent transportation system, Cooperative Intelligent Transportation System (C-ITS) integrates advanced information technology and communication methods and realizes the integration of humans, vehicle, roadside infrastructure, and other elements through the multi-agent distributed system. By analyzing the system architecture and technical characteristics of C-ITS, the report proposes a distributed multi-agent C-ITS. The system consists of Roadside Sub-system, Vehicle Sub-system, and Personal Sub-system. At the same time, we explore the scalability of the C-ITS and put forward incorporating local rewards in the centralized training decentralized execution paradigm, hoping to add a scalable value decomposition method. In addition, we also suggest introducing blockchain to improve the safety of the traffic information transmission process. The system is expected to improve vehicle capacity and traffic safety.

Keywords: distributed system, artificial intelligence, multi-agent, cooperative intelligent transportation system

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Authors: Ali Hesari, Arezoo Esmaeeli

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Regarding to dramatic changes of fertility and higher order births during recent decades in Iran, access to knowledge about affecting factors on different birth orders has crucial importance. In this study, According to hierarchical structure of many of social sciences data and the effect of variables of different levels of social phenomena that determine different birth orders in 365 days ending to 1390 census have been explored by multilevel approach. In this paper, 2% individual row data for 1390 census is analyzed by HLM software. Three different hierarchical linear regression models are estimated for data analysis of the first and second, third, fourth and more birth order. Research results displays different outcomes for three models. Individual level variables entered in equation are; region of residence (rural/urban), age, educational level and labor participation status and province level variable is GDP per capita. Results show that individual level variables have different effects in these three models and in second level we have different random and fixed effects in these models.

Keywords: fertility, birth order, hierarchical approach, fixe effects, random effects

Procedia PDF Downloads 339

Authors: Tikhanporn Punluekdej, Saowapa Phaithayawat

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The objectives of this research are: 1) to discover the mechanism in the restoration process of the old district, and 2) to study the people participation in the community with related units. This research utilizes qualitative research method together with the tools used in the study of historical and anthropological disciplines. The research revealed that the restoration process of the old district started with the needs of the local people in the community. These people are considered as a young generation in the community. The leading group of the community played a vital role in the restoration process by igniting the whole idea and followed by the help from those who have lived in the area of more than fifty years. The restoration process is the genuine desire of the local people without the intervention of the local politics. The core group would coordinate with the related units in which there were, for instance, the academic institutions in order to find out the most dominant historical features of the community including its settlement. The Crown Property Bureau, as the sole-owner of the land, joined the restoration in the physical development dimension. The restoration was possible due to the cooperation between local people and related units, under the designated plans, budget, and social activities.

Keywords: restoration, urban area, old district, people participation

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Mohammadi, Layegheh Daliri

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Introduction: Leishmaniasis occurs in infectious diseases of Leishmania protozoa in Afghanistan, anthroponotic leishmaniasis and common cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL). Anthroponotic skin leishmania tropica may cause urban diseases and transmitted by Phlebotomus Sergenti. In different parts of Afghanistan, different species of Leishmania are observed. We report the epidemiological characteristics of prevention and treatment in this study. Methods: This study examines the epidemiology and prevention of religious diseases in Afghanistan. Knowledge gaps were analyzed and collected with our own data. Results: In Afghanistan, most of the Lishmania Tropic seekers are Four species of Leishmania in northern Afghanistan, including Leishmania Tropica, L. Major and L. Donovani, cause skin lesions, but L. Donovani and L. infantum are visible. Even combined prevention can significantly reduce the amount of infection. Conclusion: Skinny, as well as visceral leishmaniasis, can occur among the returnees from Afghanistan. Unusual and poor skin lesions can be created by L. Donovani. In most pathogenic areas, the transmission of common diseases between humans and animals. Home dogs are the main reservoir, transferring in some areas such as India and Sudan.

Keywords: leishmania donovani, leishmania tropica, treatment, disease, epidemiology

Procedia PDF Downloads 182

Authors: Khalak Bin Khair, Saqib Jahir, Mohammed Ibrahim, Fahad Bin, Debajyoti Karmaker

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Object detection is a computer technology that deals with searching through digital images and videos for occurrences of semantic elements of a particular class. It is associated with image processing and computer vision. On top of object detection, we detect camouflage objects within an image using Deep Learning techniques. Deep learning may be a subset of machine learning that's essentially a three-layer neural network Over 6500 images that possess camouflage properties are gathered from various internet sources and divided into 4 categories to compare the result. Those images are labeled and then trained and tested using vgg16 architecture on the jupyter notebook using the TensorFlow platform. The architecture is further customized using Transfer Learning. Methods for transferring information from one or more of these source tasks to increase learning in a related target task are created through transfer learning. The purpose of this transfer of learning methodologies is to aid in the evolution of machine learning to the point where it is as efficient as human learning.

Keywords: deep learning, transfer learning, TensorFlow, camouflage, object detection, architecture, accuracy, model, VGG16

Procedia PDF Downloads 149

Authors: Mohamed Achehboune, Mohammed Khenfouch, Issam Boukhoubza, Bakang Mothudi, Izeddine Zorkani, Anouar Jorio

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Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nanostructures have been attracting growing interest in recent years; their optical and electrical properties make them useful as attractive and promising materials for optoelectronic applications. In this study, pure and Hafnium doped ZnO nanostructures were synthesized using a green processing method. The structural, optical and electrical properties of samples were investigated structural and optical spectroscopies and electrical measurements. The synthesis and chemical composition of pure and Hafnium doped ZnO were confirmed by SEM observation. The XRD studies of Hafnium doped ZnO demonstrate the formation of wurtzite structure with preferred c-axis orientation. Moreover, the optical and electrical properties of doped material have improved after the doping process. The experimental results obtained for our material show that Hf doped ZnO nanostructures could be a promising material in optoelectronic applications such as photovoltaic cell and light emitting diode devices.

Keywords: green synthesis, hafnium-doped-zinc oxide, nanostructures, optoelectronic

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Authors: Alexandra Steed

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Alexandra Steed URBAN was commissioned to undertake the South Essex Green and Blue Infrastructure Study (SEGBI) on behalf of the Association of South Essex Local Authorities (ASELA): a partnership of seven neighboring councils within the Thames Estuary. Located on London’s doorstep, the 70,000-hectare region is under extraordinary pressure for regeneration, further development, and economic expansion, yet faces extreme challenges: sea-level rise and inadequate flood defenses, stormwater flooding and threatened infrastructure, loss of internationally important habitats, significant existing community deprivation, and lack of connectivity and access to green space. The brief was to embrace these challenges in the creation of a document that would form a key part of ASELA’s Joint Strategic Framework and feed into local plans and master plans. Thus, helping to tackle climate change, ecological collapse, and social inequity at a regional scale whilst creating a relationship and awareness between urban communities and the surrounding landscapes and nature. The SEGBI project applied a ‘land-based’ methodology, combined with a co-design approach involving numerous stakeholders, to explore how living infrastructure can address these significant issues, reshape future planning and development, and create thriving places for the whole community of life. It comprised three key stages, including Baseline Review; Green and Blue Infrastructure Assessment; and the final Green and Blue Infrastructure Report. The resulting proposals frame an ambitious vision for the delivery of a new regional South Essex Estuary (SEE) Park – 24,000 hectares of protected and connected landscapes. This unified parkland system will drive effective place-shaping and “leveling up” for the most deprived communities while providing large-scale nature recovery and biodiversity net gain. Comprehensive analysis and policy recommendations ensure best practices will be embedded within planning documents and decisions guiding future development. Furthermore, a Natural Capital Account was undertaken as part of the strategy showing the tremendous economic value of the natural assets. This strategy sets a pioneering precedent that demonstrates how the prioritisation of living infrastructure has the capacity to address climate change and ecological collapse, while also supporting sustainable housing, healthier communities, and resilient infrastructures. It was only achievable through a collaborative and cross-boundary approach to strategic planning and growth, with a shared vision of place, and a strong commitment to delivery. With joined-up thinking and a joined-up region, a more impactful plan for South Essex was developed that will lead to numerous environmental, social, and economic benefits across the region, and enhancing the landscape and natural environs on the periphery of one of the largest cities in the world.

Keywords: climate change, green and blue infrastructure, landscape architecture, master planning, regional planning, social equity

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Authors: Juan Manuel Macia

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The Montreal Port Authority (MPA) wanted to build a new road link via Souligny Avenue to increase the fluidity of goods transported by truck in the Viau Street area of Montreal and to mitigate the current traffic problems on Notre-Dame Street. With the purpose of having a better integration and acceptance of this project with the neighboring residential surroundings, this project needed to include an architectural integration, bringing some artistic components to the bridge design along with some landscaping components. The MPA is required primarily to provide direct truck access to Port of Montreal with a direct connection to the future Assomption Boulevard planned by the City of Montreal and, thus, direct access to Souligny Avenue. The MPA also required other key aspects to be considered for the proposal and development of the project, such as the layout of road and rail configurations, the reconstruction of underground structures, the relocation of power lines, the installation of lighting systems, the traffic signage and communication systems improvement, the construction of new access ramps, the pavement reconstruction and a summary assessment of the structural capacity of an existing service tunnel. The identification of the various possible scenarios began by identifying all the constraints related to the numerous infrastructures located in the area of the future link between the port and the future extension of Souligny Avenue, involving interaction with several disciplines and technical specialties. Several viaduct- and tunnel-type geometries were studied to link the port road to the right-of-way north of Notre-Dame Street and to improve traffic flow at the railway corridor. The proposed design took into account the existing access points to Port of Montreal, the built environment of the MPA site, the provincial and municipal rights-of-way, and the future Notre-Dame Street layout planned by the City of Montreal. These considerations required the installation of an engineering structure with a span of over 60 m to free up a corridor for the future urban fabric of Notre-Dame Street. The best option for crossing this span length was identified by the design and construction of a curved bridge over Notre-Dame Street, which is essentially a structure with a deck formed by a reinforced concrete slab on steel box girders with a single span of 63.5m. The foundation units were defined as pier-cap type abutments on drilled shafts to bedrock with rock sockets, with MSE-type walls at the approaches. The configuration of a single-span curved structure posed significant design and construction challenges, considering the major constraints of the project site, a design for durability approach, and the need to guarantee optimum performance over a 75-year service life in accordance with the client's needs and the recommendations and requirements defined by the standards used for the project. These aspects and the need to include architectural and artistic components in this project made it possible to design, build, and integrate a signature infrastructure project with a sustainable approach, from which the MPA, the commuters, and the city of Montreal and its residents will benefit.

Keywords: curved bridge, steel box girder, medium span, simply supported, industrial and urban environment, architectural integration, design for durability

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Authors: S. Mousavian, A. Abedianpour, A. Khanmohammadi, S. Hematian, Gh. Eidi Veisi

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Ionic liquids are finding a wide range of applications from reaction media to separations and materials processing. In these applications, Vapor–Liquid equilibrium (VLE) is the most important one. VLE for six systems at 353 K and activity coefficients at infinite dilution 〖(γ〗_i^∞) for various solutes (alkanes, alkenes, cycloalkanes, cycloalkenes, aromatics, alcohols, ketones, esters, ethers, and water) in the ionic liquids (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis (trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide [EMIM][BTI], 1-hexyl-3-methyl imidazolium bis (trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide [HMIM][BTI], 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide [OMIM][BTI], and 1-butyl-1-methylpyrrolidinium bis (trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide [BMPYR][BTI]) have been used to train neural networks in the temperature range from (303 to 333) K. Densities of the ionic liquids, Hildebrant constant of substances, and temperature were selected as input of neural networks. The networks with different hidden layers were examined. Networks with seven neurons in one hidden layer have minimum error and good agreement with experimental data.

Keywords: ionic liquid, neural networks, VLE, dilute solution

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Authors: Elena F. Ruiz, Marina Vicario, Chadwick Carreto, Rubén Peredo

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One of the main obstacles in Mexico’s engineering programs is math comprehension, especially in the Derivative concept. Due to this, we present a study case that relates Mobile Computing and Classroom Learning in the “Escuela Superior de Cómputo”, based on the Educational model of the Instituto Politécnico Nacional (competence based work and problem solutions) in which we propose apps and activities to teach the concept of the Derivative. M- Learning is emphasized as one of its lines, as the objective is the use of mobile devices running an app that uses its components such as sensors, screen, camera and processing power in classroom work. In this paper, we employed Augmented Reality (ARRoC), based on the good results this technology has had in the field of learning. This proposal was developed using a qualitative research methodology supported by quantitative research. The methodological instruments used on this proposal are: observation, questionnaires, interviews and evaluations. We obtained positive results with a 40% increase using M-Learning, from the 20% increase using traditional means.

Keywords: augmented reality, classroom learning, educational research, mobile computing

Procedia PDF Downloads 360

Authors: P. Strakos, M. Jaros, T. Karasek, T. Kozubek, P. Vavra, T. Jonszta

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In medical imaging, segmentation of different areas of human body like bones, organs, tissues, etc. is an important issue. Image segmentation allows isolating the object of interest for further processing that can lead for example to 3D model reconstruction of whole organs. Difficulty of this procedure varies from trivial for bones to quite difficult for organs like liver. The liver is being considered as one of the most difficult human body organ to segment. It is mainly for its complexity, shape versatility and proximity of other organs and tissues. Due to this facts usually substantial user effort has to be applied to obtain satisfactory results of the image segmentation. Process of image segmentation then deteriorates from automatic or semi-automatic to fairly manual one. In this paper, overview of selected available software applications that can handle semi-automatic image segmentation with further 3D volume reconstruction of human liver is presented. The applications are being evaluated based on the segmentation results of several consecutive DICOM images covering the abdominal area of the human body.

Keywords: image segmentation, semi-automatic, software, 3D volumetric reconstruction

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Authors: Amel Hamma, Allesandro Pegoretti

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Kenaf fibres, with two aspect ratios, were melt compounded with two types of biopolymers named starch grafted polypropylene, and then blends compression molded to form plates of 1 mm thick. Results showed that processing induced variation of fibres length which is quantified by optical microscopy observations. Young modulus, stress at break and impact resistance values of starch-grafted-polypropylenes were remarkably improved by kenaf fibres for both matrixes and demonstrated best values when G906PJ were used as matrix. These results attest the good interfacial bonding between the matrix and fibres even in the absence of any interfacial modification. Vicat Softening Point and storage modules were also improved due to the reinforcing effect of fibres. Moreover, short-term tensile creep tests have proven that kenaf fibres remarkably improve the creep stability of composites. The creep behavior of the investigated materials was successfully modeled by the four parameters Burgers model.

Keywords: creep behaviour, kenaf fibres, mechanical properties, starch-grafted-polypropylene

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Authors: Artur Krukowski, Emmanouela Vogiatzaki

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The article presents an ongoing work in research projects such as SCAN4RECO or ARCH, both funded by the European Commission under Horizon 2020 program. The former one concerns multimodal and multispectral scanning of Cultural Heritage assets for their digitization and conservation via spatiotemporal reconstruction and 3D printing, while the latter one aims to better preserve areas of cultural heritage from hazards and risks. It co-creates tools that would help pilot cities to save cultural heritage from the effects of climate change. It develops a disaster risk management framework for assessing and improving the resilience of historic areas to climate change and natural hazards. Tools and methodologies are designed for local authorities and practitioners, urban population, as well as national and international expert communities, aiding authorities in knowledge-aware decision making. In this article we focus on 3D modelling of object geometry using primarily photogrammetric methods to achieve very high model accuracy using consumer types of devices, attractive both to professions and hobbyists alike.

Keywords: 3D modelling, UAS, cultural heritage, preservation

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: Tristance Kee

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With an unprecedented increase in elderly population around the world, the severe lack of quality housing and health-and-safety provisions to serve this cohort cannot be ignored any longer. Many elderly citizens, especially singletons, live in unsafe housing conditions with poorly executed planning and design. Some suffer from deteriorating mobility, sight and general alertness and their sub-standard living conditions further hinder their daily existence. This research explains how concepts such as Universal Design and Co-Design operate in a high density city such as Hong Kong, China where innovative design can become an alternative solution where government and the private sector fail to provide quality elderly friendly facilities to promote a sustainable urban development. Unlike other elderly research which focuses more on housing policies, nursing care and theories, this research takes a more progressive approach by providing an in-depth impact assessment on how innovative design can be practical solutions for creating a more sustainable built environment. The research objectives are to: 1) explain the relationship between innovative design for elderly and a healthier and sustainable environment; 2) evaluate the impact of human ergonomics with the use of universal design; and 3) explain how innovation can enhance the sustainability of a city in improving citizen’s sight, sound, walkability and safety within the ageing population. The research adopts both qualitative and quantitative methodologies to examine ways to improve elderly population’s relationship to our built environment. In particular, the research utilizes collected data from questionnaire survey and focus group discussions to obtain inputs from various stakeholders, including designers, operators and managers related to public housing, community facilities and overall urban development. In addition to feedbacks from end-users and stakeholders, a thorough analysis on existing elderly housing facilities and Universal Design provisions are examined to evaluate their adequacy. To echo the theme of this conference on Innovation and Sustainable Development, this research examines the effectiveness of innovative design in a risk-benefit factor assessment. To test the hypothesis that innovation can cater for a sustainable development, the research evaluated the health improvement of a sample size of 150 elderly in a period of eight months. Their health performances, including mobility, speech and memory are monitored and recorded on a regular basis to assess if the use of innovation does trigger impact on improving health and home safety for an elderly cohort. This study was supported by district community centers under the auspices of Home Affairs Bureau to provide respondents for questionnaire survey, a standardized evaluation mechanism, and professional health care staff for evaluating the performance impact. The research findings will be integrated to formulate design solutions such as innovative home products to improve elderly daily experience and safety with a particular focus on the enhancement on sight, sound and mobility safety. Some policy recommendations and architectural planning recommendations related to Universal Design will also be incorporated into the research output for future planning of elderly housing and amenity provisions.

Keywords: elderly population, innovative design, sustainable built environment, universal design

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Authors: Yasuyuki Takahashi, Genta Hoshi, Kyoko Saito

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Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the reproducibility of I-123-N-ω-fluoropropyl-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4- iodophenyl) nortropane (I-123 FP-CIT) SPECT by using specific binding ratio (SBR) in phantom studies and Parkinson’s Disease (PD) patients. Methods: We made striatum phantom originally and confirmed reproducibility. The phantom studies changed head position and accumulation of FP-CIT, each. And image processing confirms influence on SBR by 30 cases. 30 PD received a SPECT for 3 hours post injection of I-123 FP-CIT 167MBq. Results: SBR decreased in rotatory direction by the patient position by the phantom studies. And, SBR improved the influence after the attenuation and the scatter correction in the cases (y=0.99x+0.57 r2=0.83). However, Stage II recognized dispersion in SBR by low accumulation. Conclusion: Than the phantom studies that assumed the normal cases, the SPECT image after the attenuation and scatter correction had better reproducibility.

Keywords: 123I-FP-CIT, specific binding ratio, Parkinson’s disease

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Authors: Mahasa Zahirnia

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The purpose of this paper is to explore new and effective ways of optimizing satellite images using artificial intelligence, and the process of implementing reinforcement learning to enhance the quality of data captured within the image. In our implementation of Bellman's Reinforcement Learning equations, associated state diagrams, and multi-stage image processing, we were able to enhance image quality, detect and define objects. Reinforcement learning is the differentiator in the area of artificial intelligence, and Q-Learning relies on trial and error to achieve its goals. The reward system that is embedded in Q-Learning allows the agent to self-evaluate its performance and decide on the best possible course of action based on the current and future environment. Results show that within a simulated environment, built on the images that are commercially available, the rate of detection was 40-90%. Reinforcement learning through Q-Learning algorithm is not just desired but required design criteria for image optimization and enhancements. The proposed methods presented are a cost effective method of resolving uncertainty of the data because reinforcement learning finds ideal policies to manage the process using a smaller sample of images.

Keywords: Q-learning, image optimization, reinforcement learning, Markov decision process

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Authors: Ayhan Kucukmanisa, Orhan Akbulut, Oguzhan Urhan

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Nowadays, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) have become popular, since they enable safe driving. Lane detection is a vital step for ADAS. The performance of the lane detection process is critical to obtain a high accuracy lane departure warning system (LDWS). Challenging factors such as road cracks, erosion of lane markings, weather conditions might affect the performance of a lane detection system. In this paper, 1-D weighted filter based on row filtering to detect lane marking is proposed. 2-D input image is filtered by 1-D weighted filter considering four-pixel values located symmetrically around the center of candidate pixel. Performance evaluation is carried out by two metrics which are true positive rate (TPR) and false positive rate (FPR). Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed approach provides better lane marking detection accuracy compared to the previous methods while providing real-time processing performance.

Keywords: lane marking filter, lane detection, ADAS, LDWS

Procedia PDF Downloads 194

Authors: Alexander David Natanson

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This paper focuses on the effect of Sanctuary and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policies on local economies. "Sanctuary cities" refers to municipal jurisdictions that limit their cooperation with the federal government's efforts to enforce immigration. Using county-level data from the American Community Survey and ICE data on economic indicators from 2006 to 2018, this study isolates the effects of local immigration policies on U.S. counties. The investigation is accomplished by simultaneously studying the policies' effects in counties where immigrants' families are persecuted via collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in contrast to counties that provide protections. The analysis includes a difference-in-difference & two-way fixed effect model. Results are robust to nearest-neighbor matching, after the random assignment of treatment, after running estimations using different cutoffs for immigration policies, and with a regression discontinuity model comparing bordering counties with opposite policies. Results are also robust after restricting the data to a single-year policy adoption, using the Sun and Abraham estimator, and with event-study estimation to deal with the staggered treatment issue. In addition, the study reverses the estimation to understand what drives the decision to choose policies to detect the presence of reverse causality biases in the estimated policy impact on economic factors. The evidence demonstrates that providing protections to undocumented immigrants increases economic activity. The estimates show gains in per capita income ranging from 3.1 to 7.2, median wages between 1.7 to 2.6, and GDP between 2.4 to 4.1 percent. Regarding labor, sanctuary counties saw increases in total employment between 2.3 to 4 percent, and the unemployment rate declined from 12 to 17 percent. The data further shows that ICE policies have no statistically significant effects on income, median wages, or GDP but adverse effects on total employment, with declines from 1 to 2 percent, mostly in rural counties, and an increase in unemployment of around 7 percent in urban counties. In addition, results show a decline in the foreign-born population in ICE counties but no changes in sanctuary counties. The study also finds similar results for sanctuary counties when separating the data between urban, rural, educational attainment, gender, ethnic groups, economic quintiles, and the number of business establishments. The takeaway from this study is that institutional inclusion creates the dynamic nature of an economy, as inclusion allows for economic expansion due to the extension of fundamental freedoms to newcomers. Inclusive policies show positive effects on economic outcomes with no evident increase in population. To make sense of these results, the hypothesis and theoretical model propose that inclusive immigration policies play an essential role in conditioning the effect of immigration by decreasing uncertainties and constraints for immigrants' interaction in their communities, decreasing the cost from fear of deportation or the constant fear of criminalization and optimize their human capital.

Keywords: inclusive and exclusive institutions, post matching, fixed effect, time trend, regression discontinuity, difference-in-difference, randomization inference and sun, Abraham estimator

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Authors: Ava Salmanpour, Hanieh Saeedi, Payam Rouhi, Elahe Hamzeil, Shima Alimohammadi, Siamak Hossein Khalaj, Mohammad Asadian

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Software-defined network (SDN) is a network architecture designed to control network using software application in a central manner. This ability enables remote control of the whole network regardless of the network technology. In fact, in this architecture network intelligence is separated from physical infrastructure, it means that required network components can be implemented virtually using software applications. Today, power networks are characterized by a high range of complexity with a large number of intelligent devices, processing both huge amounts of data and important information. Therefore, reliable and secure communication networks are required. SDNs are the best choice to meet this issue. In this paper, SDN networks capabilities and characteristics will be reviewed and different basic controllers will be compared. The importance of using SDNs to escalate efficiency and reliability in utility power networks is going to be discussed and the comparison between the SDN-based power networks and traditional networks will be explained.

Keywords: software-defined network, SDNs, utility network, open flow, communication, gas and electricity, controller

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Authors: Zhou Xiaowen China, Zhang Sanming China

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Neighbourhood space as a very important part of city spaces, is an organic combination of material environment and spiritual achievement in people’ daily life, and has a real impact upon the sustainable development of the whole city. Looking back on the past 2014 World Architecture Festival (WAF), 4 out of 35winning buildings were neighbourhood designs, and all of them mentioned about space-sharing and sustainable development. In this paper, three award-winning cases were studied, including the world building of the year—the chapel (Vietnam, A21 studio), The Carve (Norway, A-Lab) and House for Trees (Vietnam, Vo Trong Nghia Architects). Urban context, planning, space construction and sustainable technology were discussed. Based on those, it was discovered that passive energy-saving technologies have been paid more and more attention, sharing space has been designed ingeniously, and the architectural forms of them reflect social inclusion and equity. This paper is aimed at summarizing the excellent works on the Festival and providing reference for the future design.

Keywords: neighbourhood design, 2014 World Architecture Festival (WAF), sustainable development, space-sharing

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Authors: Maryam Fallahpoor, Biswajeet Pradhan

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Background: Artificial intelligence (AI) serves as a valuable tool in mitigating the scarcity of human resources required for the evaluation and categorization of vast quantities of medical imaging data. When AI operates with optimal precision, it minimizes the demand for human interpretations and, thereby, reduces the burden on radiologists. Among various AI approaches, deep learning (DL) stands out as it obviates the need for feature extraction, a process that can impede classification, especially with intricate datasets. The advent of DL models has ushered in a new era in medical imaging, particularly in the context of COVID-19 detection. Traditional 2D imaging techniques exhibit limitations when applied to volumetric data, such as Computed Tomography (CT) scans. Medical images predominantly exist in one of two formats: neuroimaging informatics technology initiative (NIfTI) and digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM). Purpose: This study aims to employ DL for the classification of COVID-19-infected pulmonary patients and normal cases based on 3D CT scans while investigating the impact of image format. Material and Methods: The dataset used for model training and testing consisted of 1245 patients from IranMehr Hospital. All scans shared a matrix size of 512 × 512, although they exhibited varying slice numbers. Consequently, after loading the DICOM CT scans, image resampling and interpolation were performed to standardize the slice count. All images underwent cropping and resampling, resulting in uniform dimensions of 128 × 128 × 60. Resolution uniformity was achieved through resampling to 1 mm × 1 mm × 1 mm, and image intensities were confined to the range of (−1000, 400) Hounsfield units (HU). For classification purposes, positive pulmonary COVID-19 involvement was designated as 1, while normal images were assigned a value of 0. Subsequently, a U-net-based lung segmentation module was applied to obtain 3D segmented lung regions. The pre-processing stage included normalization, zero-centering, and shuffling. Four distinct 3D CNN models (ResNet152, ResNet50, DensNet169, and DensNet201) were employed in this study. Results: The findings revealed that the segmentation technique yielded superior results for DICOM images, which could be attributed to the potential loss of information during the conversion of original DICOM images to NIFTI format. Notably, ResNet152 and ResNet50 exhibited the highest accuracy at 90.0%, and the same models achieved the best F1 score at 87%. ResNet152 also secured the highest Area under the Curve (AUC) at 0.932. Regarding sensitivity and specificity, DensNet201 achieved the highest values at 93% and 96%, respectively. Conclusion: This study underscores the capacity of deep learning to classify COVID-19 pulmonary involvement using real 3D hospital data. The results underscore the significance of employing DICOM format 3D CT images alongside appropriate pre-processing techniques when training DL models for COVID-19 detection. This approach enhances the accuracy and reliability of diagnostic systems for COVID-19 detection.

Keywords: deep learning, COVID-19 detection, NIFTI format, DICOM format

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Authors: Amirhossein Safi

Abstract:

Internet of things (IOT) is a kind of advanced information technology which has drawn societies’ attention. Sensors and stimulators are usually recognized as smart devices of our environment. Simultaneously, IOT security brings up new issues. Internet connection and possibility of interaction with smart devices cause those devices to involve more in human life. Therefore, safety is a fundamental requirement in designing IOT. IOT has three remarkable features: overall perception, reliable transmission, and intelligent processing. Because of IOT span, security of conveying data is an essential factor for system security. Hybrid encryption technique is a new model that can be used in IOT. This type of encryption generates strong security and low computation. In this paper, we have proposed a hybrid encryption algorithm which has been conducted in order to reduce safety risks and enhancing encryption's speed and less computational complexity. The purpose of this hybrid algorithm is information integrity, confidentiality, non-repudiation in data exchange for IOT. Eventually, the suggested encryption algorithm has been simulated by MATLAB software, and its speed and safety efficiency were evaluated in comparison with conventional encryption algorithm.

Keywords: internet of things, security, hybrid algorithm, privacy

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Authors: K. Bensafia, A. Mansour, G. Le Maillot, B. Clement, O. Reynet, P. Ariès, S. Haddab

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This paper presents a system designed for wireless acquisition, the recording of electrocardiogram (ECG) signals and the monitoring of the heart’s health during surgery. This wireless recording system allows us to visualize and monitor the state of the heart’s health during a surgery, even if the patient is moved from the operating theater to post anesthesia care unit. The acquired signal is transmitted via a Bluetooth unit to a PC where the data are displayed, stored and processed. To test the reliability of our system, a comparison between ECG signals processed by a conventional ECG monitoring system (Datex-Ohmeda) and by our wireless system is made. The comparison is based on the shape of the ECG signal, the duration of the QRS complex, the P and T waves, as well as the position of the ST segments with respect to the isoelectric line. The proposed system is presented and discussed. The results have confirmed that the use of Bluetooth during surgery does not affect the devices used and vice versa. Pre- and post-processing steps are briefly discussed. Experimental results are also provided.

Keywords: electrocardiography, monitoring, surgery, wireless system

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Authors: Barbara Heinisch, Mikael Snaprud

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A common, well understood language is crucial in critical situations like landing a plane. For e-Government solutions, a clear and common language is needed to allow users to successfully complete transactions online. Misunderstandings here may not risk a safe landing but can cause delays, resubmissions and drive costs. This holds also true for higher education, where misunderstandings can also arise due to inconsistent use of terminology. Thus, language barriers are a societal challenge that needs to be tackled. The major means to bridge language barriers is translation. However, achieving high-quality translation and making texts understandable and accessible require certain framework conditions. Therefore, the EU and individual projects take (strategic) actions. These actions include the identification, collection, processing, re-use and development of language resources. These language resources may be used for the development of machine translation systems and the provision of (public) services including higher education. This paper outlines some of the existing resources and indicate directions for further development to increase the quality and usage of these resources.

Keywords: language resources, machine translation, terminology, translation

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Authors: Rebecca Laycock

Abstract:

Many Urban Agriculture (UA) initiatives, including community/allotment gardens, Community Supported Agriculture, and community/social farms, depend on volunteers. However, initiatives supported or run by volunteers are often faced with a high turnover of labour as a result of the involvement of episodic volunteers (a term describing ad hoc, one-time, and seasonal volunteers), leading to challenges with maintaining project continuity and retaining skills/knowledge within the initiative. This is a notable challenge given that food growing is a knowledge intensive activity where the fruits of labour appear months or sometimes years after investment. Participatory Action Research (PAR) is increasingly advocated for in the field of UA as a solution-oriented approach to research, providing concrete results in addition to advancing theory. PAR is a cyclical methodological approach involving researchers and stakeholders collaboratively 'identifying' and 'theorising' an issue, 'planning' an action to address said issue, 'taking action', and 'reflecting' on the process. Through iterative cycles and prolonged engagement, the theory is developed and actions become better tailored to the issue. The demand for PAR in UA research means that understanding how to use PAR with episodic volunteers is of critical importance. The aim of this paper is to explore (1) the challenges of doing PAR in UA initiatives with episodic volunteers, and (2) how PAR can be harnessed to advance sustainable development of UA through theoretically-informed action. A 2.5 year qualitative PAR study on three English case study student-led food growing initiatives took place between 2014 and 2016. University UA initiatives were chosen as exemplars because most of their volunteers were episodic. Data were collected through 13 interviews, 6 workshops, and a research diary. The results were thematically analysed through eclectic coding using Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (NVivo). It was found that the challenges of doing PAR with transient participants were (1) a superficial understanding of issues by volunteers because of short term engagement, resulting in difficulties ‘identifying’/‘theorising’ issues to research; (2) difficulties implementing ‘actions’ given those involved in the ‘planning’ phase often left by the ‘action’ phase; (3) a lack of capacity of participants to engage in research given the ongoing challenge of maintaining participation; and (4) that the introduction of the researcher acted as an ‘intervention’. The involvement of a long-term stakeholder (the researcher) changed the group dynamics, prompted critical reflections that had not previously taken place, and improved continuity. This posed challenges for providing a genuine understanding the episodic volunteering PAR initiatives, and also challenged the notion of what constitutes an ‘intervention’ or ‘action’ in PAR. It is recommended that researchers working with episodic volunteers using PAR should (1) adopt a first-person approach by inquiring into the researcher’s own experience to enable depth in theoretical analysis to manage the potentially superficial understandings by short-term participants; and (2) establish safety mechanisms to address the potential for the research to impose artificial project continuity and knowledge retention that will end when the research does. Through these means, we can more effectively use PAR to conduct solution-oriented research about UA.

Keywords: community garden, continuity, first-person research, higher education, knowledge retention, project management, transience, university

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Authors: Hanna Lu, Sandra S. M. Chan, Linda C. W. Lam

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Objectives: Intra-individual variability (IIV) has been considered as a biomarker of healthy ageing. However, the composite role of IIV in attention, as an impending indicator for neurocognitive disorders warrants further exploration. This study aims to investigate the IIV, as well as their relationships with attention network functions in adults with neurocognitive disorders (NCD). Methods: 36adults with NCD due to Alzheimer’s disease(NCD-AD), 31adults with NCD due to vascular disease (NCD-vascular), and 137 healthy controls were recruited. Intraindividual standard deviations (iSD) and intraindividual coefficient of variation of reaction time (ICV-RT) were used to evaluate the IIV. Results: NCD groups showed greater IIV (iSD: F= 11.803, p < 0.001; ICV-RT:F= 9.07, p < 0.001). In ROC analyses, the indices of IIV could differentiateNCD-AD (iSD: AUC value = 0.687, p= 0.001; ICV-RT: AUC value = 0.677, p= 0.001) and NCD-vascular (iSD: AUC value = 0.631, p= 0.023;ICV-RT: AUC value = 0.615, p= 0.045) from healthy controls. Moreover, the processing speed could distinguish NCD-AD from NCD-vascular (AUC value = 0.647, p= 0.040). Discussion: Intra-individual variability in attention provides a stable measure of cognitive performance, and seems to help distinguish the senior adults with different cognitive status.

Keywords: intra-individual variability, attention network, neurocognitive disorders, ageing

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Authors: Mohammed Abed, Rita Nemes, Salem Nehme

Abstract:

The present study experimentally investigated the impact of incorporating unprocessed waste fly ash (UWFA) on the residual mechanical properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC) after exposure to elevated temperature. Three mixtures of SCC have been produced by replacing the cement mass by 0%, 15% and 30% of UWFA. Generally, the fire resistance of SCC has been enhanced by replacing the cement up to 15% of UWFA, especially in case of residual modulus of elasticity which considers more sensitive than other mechanical properties at elevated temperature. However, a strong linear relationship has been observed between the residual flexural strength and modulus of elasticity, where both of them affected significantly by the cracks appearance and propagation as a result of elevated temperature. Sustainable products could be produced by incorporating unprocessed waste powder materials in the production of concrete, where the waste materials, CO₂ emissions, and the energy needed for processing are reduced.

Keywords: self-compacting high-performance concrete, unprocessed waste fly ash, fire resistance, residual modulus of elasticity

Procedia PDF Downloads 135