Search results for: private technology park

Authors: Alejandra G. Barbón, José Vila, Dania Vazquez

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This study seeks to contribute to the advancement of library and archival sciences in the areas of records management, knowledge organization, and information architecture, particularly focusing on the enhancement of bibliographical description through the incorporation of visual interactive designs aimed to enrich the library users’ experience. In an era of heightened awareness about the legacy of hiddenness across special and rare collections in libraries and archives, along with the need for inclusivity in academia, the University of Miami Libraries has embarked on an innovative project that intersects the realms of print culture, decolonization, and digital technology. This proposal presents an exciting initiative to revitalize the study of Artists’ Books collections by employing digital visual representations to decolonize bibliographic records of some of the most unique materials and foster a more holistic understanding of cultural heritage. Artists' Books, a dynamic and interdisciplinary art form, challenge conventional bibliographic classification systems, making them ripe for the exploration of alternative approaches. This project involves the creation of a digital platform that combines multimedia elements for digital representations, interactive information retrieval systems, innovative information architecture, trending bibliographic cataloging and metadata initiatives, and collaborative curation to transform how we engage with and understand these collections. By embracing the potential of technology, we aim to transcend traditional constraints and address the historical biases that have influenced bibliographic practices. In essence, this study showcases a groundbreaking endeavor at the University of Miami Libraries that seeks to not only enhance bibliographic practices but also confront the legacy of hiddenness across special and rare collections in libraries and archives while strengthening conventional bibliographic description. By embracing digital visualizations, we aim to provide new pathways for understanding Artists' Books collections in a manner that is more inclusive, dynamic, and forward-looking. This project exemplifies the University’s dedication to fostering critical engagement, embracing technological innovation, and promoting diverse and equitable classifications and representations of cultural heritage.

Keywords: decolonizing bibliographic cataloging frameworks, digital visualizations information architecture platforms, collaborative curation and inclusivity for records management, engagement and accessibility increasing interaction design and user experience

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Authors: Emma Avoyan

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The safety standards for flood protection in the Netherlands have been revised recently. It is expected that all major flood-protection structures will have to be reinforced to meet the new standards. The Dutch Flood Protection Programme aims at accomplishing this task through innovative integrated projects such as construction of multi-functional flood defenses. In these projects, flood safety purposes will be combined with spatial planning, nature development, emergency management or other sectoral objectives. Therefore, implementation of dike reinforcement projects requires early involvement and collaboration between public and private sectors, different governmental actors and agencies. The development and implementation of such integrated projects has been an issue in Dutch flood risk management since long. Therefore, this article analyses how cross-sector collaboration within flood risk governance in the Netherlands has evolved over time, and how this development can be explained. The integrative framework for collaborative governance is applied as an analytical tool to map external factors framing possibilities as well as constraints for cross-sector collaboration in Dutch flood risk domain. Supported by an extensive document and literature analysis, the paper offers insights on how the system context and different drivers changing over time either promoted or hindered cross-sector collaboration between flood protection sector, urban development, nature conservation or any other sector involved in flood risk governance. The system context refers to the multi-layered and interrelated suite of conditions that influence the formation and performance of complex governance systems, such as collaborative governance regimes, whereas the drivers initiate and enable the overall process of collaboration. In addition, by applying a method of process tracing we identify a causal and chronological chain of events shaping cross-sectoral interaction in Dutch flood risk management. Our results indicate that in order to evaluate the performance of complex governance systems, it is important to firstly study the system context that shapes it. Clear understanding of the system conditions and drivers for collaboration gives insight into the possibilities of and constraints for effective performance of complex governance systems. The performance of the governance system is affected by the system conditions, while at the same time the governance system can also change the system conditions. Our results show that the sequence of changes within the system conditions and drivers over time affect how cross-sector interaction in Dutch flood risk governance system happens now. Moreover, we have traced the potential of this governance system to shape and change the system context.

Keywords: collaborative governance, cross-sector interaction, flood risk management, the Netherlands

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Authors: Pimporn Thongmuang

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The purpose of this research is to study sport and exercise behavior of students in Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University in September of 2012. The sample group used in this research was a group of regular students in undergraduate school enrolled in faculty of science and technology. This sample group consisted of 1,858 students. The research tool used to collect result was the checklist. The data was calculated by statistical percentage. From the research, it was discovered that most students did exercise in previous month. 71.6% of students exercised by running. 61.1% of students exercised in their neighborhood. 60.4% of students exercised in order to keep fit. 60.2% of students agreed that the result from this research can be educational and inspirational for students in campus in terms of living healthily by exercise.

Keywords: exercise behavior, sport behavior, students, health

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Authors: Pedro M. A. Vitoriano, Tito. G. Amaral

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Automated Optical Inspection (AOI) Systems are commonly used on Printed Circuit Boards (PCB) manufacturing. The use of this technology has been proven as highly efficient for process improvements and quality achievements. The correct extraction of the component for posterior analysis is a critical step of the AOI process. Nowadays, the Pattern Matching Algorithm is commonly used, although this algorithm requires extensive calculations and is time consuming. This paper will present an improved algorithm for the component localization process, with the capability of implementation in a parallel execution system.

Keywords: AOI, automated optical inspection, SMD, surface mounting devices, pattern matching, parallel execution

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Authors: Azadeh Afrasyabi, Ali Khaleghi, Aliakbar Alijarahi

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Training at an early age is so important, because of tremendous changes in adolescence, including the formation of character, physical changes and other factors. One of the most sensitive sectors in this field is the children with a disability and are somehow special children who have trouble in communicating with their environment. One of the emerging technologies in the field of education that can be effectively profitable called augmented reality, where the combination of real world and virtual images in real time produces new concepts that can facilitate learning. The purpose of this paper is to propose an effective training method for special and disabled children based on augmented reality. Of course, in particular, the efficiency of augmented reality in teaching children with autism will consider, also examine the various aspect of this disease and different learning methods in this area.

Keywords: technology in education, augmented reality, special education, teaching methods

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Authors: Fredrick Forster, Gareth Ward, Matthew Tubby, Pamela Lithgow, Anne Nortcliffe

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This paper presents the results from a research study of random adult participants accessing one of four different commercially available Virtual Reality (VR) Head Mounted Displays (HMDs) and completing a post user experience reflection questionnaire. The research sort to understand how inclusive commercially available VR HMDs are and identify any associated barriers that could impact the widespread adoption of the devices, specifically in Higher Education (HE). In the UK, education providers are legally required under the Equality Act 2010 to ensure all education facilities are inclusive and reasonable adjustments can be applied appropriately. The research specifically aimed to identify the considerations that academics and learning technologists need to make when adopting the use of commercial VR HMDs in HE classrooms, namely cybersickness, user comfort, Interpupillary Distance, inclusiveness, and user perceptions of VR. The research approach was designed to build upon previously published research on user reflections on presence, usability, and overall HMD comfort, using quantitative and qualitative research methods by way of a questionnaire. The quantitative data included the recording of physical characteristics such as the distance between eye pupils, known as Interpupillary Distance (IPD). VR HMDs require each user’s IPD measurement to enable the focusing of the VR HMDs virtual camera output to the right position in front of the eyes of the user. In addition, the questionnaire captured users’ qualitative reflections and evaluations of the broader accessibility characteristics of the VR HMDs. The initial research activity was accomplished by enabling a random sample of visitors, staff, and students at Canterbury Christ Church University, Kent to use a VR HMD for a set period of time and asking them to complete the post user experience questionnaire. The study identified that there is little correlation between users who experience cyber sickness and car sickness. Also, users with a smaller IPD than average (typically associated with females) were able to use the VR HMDs successfully; however, users with a larger than average IPD reported an impeded experience. This indicates that there is reduced inclusiveness for the tested VR HMDs for users with a higher-than-average IPD which is typically associated with males of certain ethnicities. As action education research, these initial findings will be used to refine the research method and conduct further investigations with the aim to provide verification and validation of the accessibility of current commercial VR HMDs. The conference presentation will report on the research results of the initial study and subsequent follow up studies with a larger variety of adult volunteers.

Keywords: virtual reality, education technology, inclusive technology, higher education

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Authors: Clifford De Raffaele, Luana Bugeja, Serengul Smith

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The adaptation of social networking sites within higher education has garnered significant interest in the recent years with numerous researches considering it as a possible shift from the traditional classroom based learning paradigm. Notwithstanding this increase in research and conducted studies however, the adaption of SNS based modules have failed to proliferate within Universities. This paper, commences its contribution by analyzing the various models and theories proposed in literature and amalgamates together various effective aspects for the inclusion of social technology within e-Learning. A three phased framework is further proposed which details the necessary considerations for the successful adaptation of SNS in enhancing the students learning experience. This proposal outlines the theoretical foundations which will be analyzed in practical implementation across international university campuses.

Keywords: eLearning, higher education, social network sites, student learning

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Authors: Sara Ignoto, Elena M. Scalisi, Carmen Sica, Martina Contino, Greta Ferruggia, Antonio Salvaggio, Santi C. Pavone, Gino Sorbello, Loreto Di Donato, Roberta Pecoraro, Maria V. Brundo

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The new fifth generation technology (5G), which should favor high data-rate connections (1Gbps) and latency times lower than the current ones (<1ms), has the characteristic of working on different frequency bands of the radio wave spectrum (700 MHz, 3.6-3.8 GHz and 26.5-27.5 GHz), thus also exploiting higher frequencies than previous mobile radio generations (1G-4G). The higher frequency waves, however, have a lower capacity to propagate in free space and therefore, in order to guarantee the capillary coverage of the territory for high reliability applications, it will be necessary to install a large number of repeaters. Following the introduction of this new technology, there has been growing concern in recent years about the possible harmful effects on human health and several studies were published using several animal models. This study aimed to observe the possible short-term effects induced by 5G-millimeter waves on heartbeat of early life stages of Danio rerio using DanioScope software (Noldus). DanioScope is the complete toolbox for measurements on zebrafish embryos and larvae. The effect of substances can be measured on the developing zebrafish embryo by a range of parameters: earliest activity of the embryo’s tail, activity of the developing heart, speed of blood flowing through the vein, length and diameters of body parts. Activity measurements, cardiovascular data, blood flow data and morphometric parameters can be combined in one single tool. Obtained data are elaborate and provided by the software both numerical as well as graphical. The experiments were performed at 27 GHz by a no commercial high gain pyramidal horn antenna. According to OECD guidelines, exposure to 5G-millimeter waves was tested by fish embryo toxicity test within 96 hours post fertilization, Observations were recorded every 24h, until the end of the short-term test (96h). The results have showed an increase of heartbeat rate on exposed embryos at 48h hpf than control group, but this increase has not been shown at 72-96 h hpf. Nowadays, there is a scant of literature data about this topic, so these results could be useful to approach new studies and also to evaluate potential cardiotoxic effects of mobile radiofrequency.

Keywords: Danio rerio, DanioScope, cardiotoxicity, millimeter waves.

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Authors: Anna Dziubinska

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The applications of magnesium alloys in transport include all kinds of vehicle wheels for cars, motorcycles, bicycles, trolleys, etc. Modern technologies of manufacturing products from these materials have been noticeably improved recently, creating new possibilities for their application. Continuously developed technologies for forming Mg alloys must not be overlooked, which make it possible to manufacture products with better properties compared to those obtained by casting only. The article reviews the specialized literature on magnesium wheel forming and presents a concept of technology for forging magnesium wheels for light vehicles from cast preforms. The research leading to these results has received funding from the Norway Grants 2014-2021 via the National Centre for Research and Development.

Keywords: forming, forging, magnesium alloy, wheels, vehicles

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Authors: Muchun Yu, Xue Gao, Qian Chen

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As a novel passive vibration isolation technology, molecular spring isolator (MSI) is investigated in this paper. An MSI consists of water and hydrophobic zeolites as working medium. Under periodic excitation, water molecules intrude into hydrophobic pores of zeolites when the pressure rises and water molecules extrude from hydrophobic pores when pressure drops. At the same time, energy is stored, released and dissipated. An MSI of piston-cylinder structure was designed in this work. Experiments were conducted to investigate the stiffness properties of MSI. The results show that MSI exhibits high-static-low dynamic (HSLD) stiffness. Furthermore, factors such as the quantity of zeolites, temperature, and ions in water are proved to have an influence on the stiffness properties of MSI.

Keywords: hydrophobic zeolites, molecular spring, stiffness, vibration isolation

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Authors: M. Hemnath, S. Kannan, R. Kiran, K. Thanigaivelu

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This paper is based on exploring the possible opportunities and applications using Power Line Communication (PLC) for security and surveillance operations. Various research works are done for introducing PLC into onboard vehicle communication and networking (CAN, LIN etc.) and various international standards have been developed. Wireless power transfer (WPT) is also an emerging technology which is studied and tested for recharging purposes. In this work we present a system which embeds the detection and the response into one which eliminates the need for dedicated network for data transmission. Also we check the feasibility for integrating wireless power transfer system into this proposed security system for transmission of power to detection unit wirelessly from the response unit.

Keywords: power line communication, wireless power transfer, surveillance

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Authors: Mohammed Kafaji

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This paper aims to investigate the influence of quality of education and quality of research, provided by local educational institutions, on the adoption of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in managing business operations for companies in Saudi market. A model was developed and tested using data collected from 138 CEO’s of foreign companies in diverse business sectors. The data is analysed and managed using multivariate approaches through standard statistical packages. The results showed that educational quality has little contribution to the ICT adoption while research quality seems to play a more prominent role. These results are analysed in terms of business environment and market constraints and further extended to the perceived effectiveness of applied pedagogical approaches in schools and universities.

Keywords: quality of education, quality of research, mediation, domestic competition, ICT adoption

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Authors: Stephen Tullis, M. David DiDonato, Hong Sung Park

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Rowing boats (shells) are often steered by a small rudder operated by one of the backward-facing rowers; the attention required of that athlete then slightly decreases the power that that athlete can provide. Reducing the steering distraction would then increase the overall boat speed. Races are straight 2000 m courses with each boat in a 13.5 m wide lane marked by small (~15 cm) widely-spaced (~10 m) buoys, and the boat trajectory is affected by both cross-currents and winds. An optical buoy recognition and tracking system has been developed that provides the boat’s location and orientation with respect to the lane edges. This information is provided to the steering athlete as either: a simple overlay on a video display, or fed to a simplified autopilot system giving steering directions to the athlete or directly controlling the rudder. The system is then effectively a “lane-assist” device but with small, widely-spaced lane markers viewed from a very shallow angle due to constraints on camera height. The image is captured with a lightweight 1080p webcam, and most of the image analysis is done in OpenCV. The colour RGB-image is converted to a grayscale using the difference of the red and blue channels, which provides good contrast between the red/yellow buoys and the water, sky, land background and white reflections and noise. Buoy detection is done with thresholding within a tight mask applied to the image. Robust linear regression using Tukey’s biweight estimator of the previously detected buoy locations is used to develop the mask; this avoids the false detection of noise such as waves (reflections) and, in particular, buoys in other lanes. The robust regression also provides the current lane edges in the camera frame that are used to calculate the displacement of the boat from the lane centre (lane location), and its yaw angle. The interception of the detected lane edges provides a lane vanishing point, and yaw angle can be calculated simply based on the displacement of this vanishing point from the camera axis and the image plane distance. Lane location is simply based on the lateral displacement of the vanishing point from any horizontal cut through the lane edges. The boat lane position and yaw are currently fed what is essentially a stripped down marine auto-pilot system. Currently, only the lane location is used in a PID controller of a rudder actuator with integrator anti-windup to deal with saturation of the rudder angle. Low Kp and Kd values decrease unnecessarily fast return to lane centrelines and response to noise, and limiters can be used to avoid lane departure and disqualification. Yaw is not used as a control input, as cross-winds and currents can cause a straight course with considerable yaw or crab angle. Mapping of the controller with rudder angle “overall effectiveness” has not been finalized - very large rudder angles stall and have decreased turning moments, but at less extreme angles the increased rudder drag slows the boat and upsets boat balance. The full system has many features similar to automotive lane-assist systems, but with the added constraints of the lane markers, camera positioning, control response and noise increasing the challenge.

Keywords: auto-pilot, lane-assist, marine, optical, rowing

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Authors: S. Mahdi Sadatmansouri, Maryam Khalili

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World, nowadays, encounters serious water scarcity problem. During the past few years, by advent of Smart Energy and Water Meter (SEWM) and its installation at the electro-pumps of the water wells, one had believed that it could be the golden key to address the groundwater resources over-pumping issue. In fact, implementation of these Smart Meters managed to control the water table drawdown for short; but it was not a sustainable approach. SEWM has been considered as law enforcement facility at first; however, for solving a complex socioeconomic problem like shared groundwater resources management, more than just enforcement is required: participation to conserve common resources. The well owners or farmers, as water consumers, are the main and direct stakeholders of this system and other stakeholders could be government sectors, investors, technology providers, privet sectors or ordinary people. Designing a socio-technical system not only defines the role of each stakeholder but also can lubricate the communication to reach the system goals while benefits of each are considered and provided. Farmers, as the key participators for solving groundwater problem, do not trust governments but they would trust a fair system in which responsibilities, privileges and benefits are clear. Technology could help this system remained impartial and productive. Social aspects provide rules, regulations, social objects and etc. for the system and help it to be more human-centered. As the design methodology, Design Thinking provides probable solutions for the challenging problems and ongoing conflicts; it could enlighten the way in which the final system could be designed. Using Human Centered Design approach of IDEO helps to keep farmers in the center of the solution and provides a vision by which stakeholders’ requirements and needs are addressed effectively. Farmers would be considered to trust the system and participate in their groundwater resources management if they find the rules and tools of the system fair and effective. Besides, implementation of the socio-technical system could change farmers’ behavior in order that they concern more about their valuable shared water resources as well as their farm profit. This socio-technical system contains nine main subsystems: 1) Measurement and Monitoring system, 2) Legislation and Governmental system, 3) Information Sharing system, 4) Knowledge based NGOs, 5) Integrated Farm Management system (using IoT), 6) Water Market and Water Banking system, 7) Gamification, 8) Agribusiness ecosystem, 9) Investment system.

Keywords: human centered design, participatory management, smart energy and water meter (SEWM), social object, socio-technical system, water table drawdown

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Authors: Achim Kampker, Peter Burggräf, Moritz Krunke, Hanno Voet

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As a reaction to current challenges in factory planning, many companies think about introducing factory standards to lower planning times and decrease planning costs. If these factory standards are set-up with a high level of modularity, they are defined as modular factory systems. This paper deals with the main current problems in the application of modular factory systems in practice and presents a solution approach with its basic models. The methodology is based on methods from factory planning but also uses the tools of other disciplines like product development or technology management to deal with the high complexity, which the development of modular factory systems implies. The four basic models that such a methodology has to contain are introduced and pointed out.

Keywords: factory planning, modular factory systems, factory standards, cost-benefit analysis

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Authors: Amir Ngah, Masita Abdul Jalil, Zailani Abdullah

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The aim of software maintenance is to maintain the software system in accordance with advancement in software and hardware technology. One of the early works on software maintenance is to extract information at higher level of abstraction. In this paper, we present the process of how to design an information extraction tool for software maintenance. The tool can extract the basic information from old program such as about variables, based classes, derived classes, objects of classes, and functions. The tool have two main part; the lexical analyzer module that can read the input file character by character, and the searching module which is user can get the basic information from existing program. We implemented this tool for a patterned sub-C++ language as an input file.

Keywords: extraction tool, software maintenance, reverse engineering, C++

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Authors: Olusegun F. Adebowale

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Research has confirmed that the emergence of information technology is significantly reflected in the field of psychology and its related disciplines due to its widespread use at reasonable price and its user-friendliness. It is consequently affecting ordinary life in many areas like shopping, advertising, corresponding and educating. Specifically the innovations of computer technology led to several new forms of communication, all with implications and applicability for counselling and psychotherapy practices. This is premise on which online counselling is based. Most institutions of higher learning in Nigeria have established their presence on the Internet and have deployed a variety of applications through ICT. Some are currently attempting to include counselling services in such applications with the belief that many counselling needs of students are likely to be met. This study therefore explored different challenges and preferences students present in online counselling interaction in a given Nigerian university with the view to guide new universities that may want to invest into these areas as to necessary preparations and referral requirements. The study is a mixed method research incorporating qualitative and quantitative methodologies to sample the preferences and concerns students express in online interaction. The sample comprised all the 876 students who visited the university online counselling platform either voluntarily, by invitation or by referral. The instrument for data collection was the online counselling platform of the university 'OAU Online counsellors'. The period of data collection spanned between January 2011 and October 2012. Data were analysed quantitatively (using percentages and Mann-Whitney U test) and qualitatively (using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA)). The results showed that the students seem to prefer real-time chatting as their online medium of communicating with the online counsellor. The majority of students resorted to e-mail when their effort to use real-time chatting were becoming thwarted. Also, students preferred to enter into online counselling relationships voluntarily to other modes of entry. The results further showed that the prevalent counselling needs presented by students during online counselling sessions were mainly in the areas of social interaction and academic/educational concerns. Academic concerns were found to be prevalent, in form of course offerings, studentship matters and academic finance matters. The personal/social concerns were in form of students’ welfare, career related concerns and relationship matters. The study concludes students’ preferences include voluntary entry into online counselling, communication by real-time chatting and a specific focus on their academic concerns. It also recommends that all efforts should be made to encourage students’ voluntary entry into online counselling through reliable and stable internet infrastructure that will be able to support real-time chatting.

Keywords: online, counselling, needs, preferences

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Authors: Reemiah Alotaibi, Muthu Ramachandran, Ah-Lian Kor, Amin Hosseinian-Far

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In the past decade, developers of Web 2.0 technologies have shown increasing interest in the topic of e-government. There has been a rapid growth in social media technology because of its significant role in backing up some essential social needs. Its importance and power is derived from its capacity to support two-way communication. Governments are curious to get engaged in these websites, hoping to benefit from the new forms of communication and interaction offered by such technology. Greater participation by the public can be viewed as a chief indicator of effective government communication. Yet, the level of public participation in government 2.0 is not quite satisfactory. In general, it is still at the early stage in most developing countries, including Saudi Arabia. Although it is a fact that Saudi people are among the most active in using social media, the number of people who use social media to communicate with the public institutions is not high. Furthermore, most of the governmental organisations are not using social media tools to communicate with the public. They use these platforms to disseminate information. Our study focuses on the factors affecting citizens’ adoption of social media in Saudi Arabia. Our research question is: what are the factors affecting Saudi citizens’ use of social media to communicate with the government? To answer this research question, the research aims to validate the UTAUT model for examining social media tools from the citizen perspective. An amendment will be proposed to fit the adoption of social media platforms as a communication channel in government by using a developed conceptual model which integrates constructs from the UTAUT model and others external variables based on the literature review. The set of potential factors that affect these citizens' decisions to adopt social media to communicate with their government has been identified as perceived encouragement, trust and cultural influence. The connection between the above-mentioned constructs from the basis for the research hypothesis will be examined in the light of a quantitative methodology. Data collection will be performed through a survey targeting a number of Saudi citizens who are social media users. The data collected from the primary survey will later be analysed by using statistical methods. The outcomes of this research project are argued to have potential contributions to the fields of social media and e-Government adoption, both on the theoretical and practical levels. It is believed that this research project is the first of its type that attempts to identify the factors that affect citizens’ adoption of social media to communicate with the government. The importance of identifying these factors stems from the potential use of them to enhance the government’s implementation of social media and help in making more accurate decisions and strategies based on comprehending the most important factors that affect citizens’ decisions.

Keywords: social media, adoption, citizen, UTAUT model

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Authors: Zi-Gui Huang, Shen-Hsien Hu

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This study proposes a fabrication of phononic-crystal acoustic wave device. A graphene-like atomic structure was adopted as the main research subject, and a graphene-like structure was designed using piezoelectric material zinc oxide and its periodic boundary conditions were defined using the finite element method. The effects of a hexagonal honeycomb structure were investigated regarding the band gap phenomenon. The use of micro-electromechanical systems process technology to make the film etched micron graphics, designed to produce four kinds of different piezoelectric structure (plat, periodic, single defect and double defects). Frequency response signals and phase change were also measured in this paper.

Keywords: MEMS, phononic crystal, piezoelectric material, Zinc oxide

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Authors: Isaac Kofi Mensah, Jianing Mi, Cheng Feng

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The patronage of e-government services (demand side of e-government) is vital to the successful implementation of e-government initiatives. The purpose of this study is to explore the predictors determining the willingness of African students in China to adopt and use e-government services. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) will be used as the theoretical foundation for this research. Research instrument will be developed and administered to 500 African students in China. Factors such as performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions and culture will be investigated to determine its significant impact on the willingness to use e-government services. This study is a research in progress. The outcome of this study will provide valuable recommendations to improve the provision of public services through e-government.

Keywords: e-government, e-government services, predictors, UTAUT

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Authors: Adam Majczak, Grzegorz Barański, Marcin Szlachetka

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Environmental considerations necessitate the search for new energy sources. One of the available solutions is a partial replacement of diesel fuel by compressed natural gas (CNG) in the compression ignition engines. This type of the engines is used mainly in vans and trucks. These units are also gaining more and more popularity in the passenger car market. In Europe, this part of the market share reaches 50%. Diesel engines are also used in industry in such vehicles as ship or locomotives. Diesel engines have higher emissions of nitrogen oxides in comparison to spark ignition engines. This can be currently limited by optimizing the combustion process and the use of additional systems such as exhaust gas recirculation or AdBlue technology. As a result of the combustion process of diesel fuel also particulate matter (PM) that are harmful to the human health are emitted. Their emission is limited by the use of a particulate filter. One of the method for toxic components emission reduction may be the use of liquid gas fuel such as propane and butane (LPG) or compressed natural gas (CNG). In addition to the environmental aspects, there are also economic reasons for the use of gaseous fuels to power diesel engines. A total or partial replacement of diesel gas is possible. Depending on the used technology and the percentage of diesel fuel replacement, it is possible to reduce the content of nitrogen oxides in the exhaust gas even by 30%, particulate matter (PM) by 95 % carbon monoxide and by 20%, in relation to original diesel fuel. The research object is prototype gas injector designed for direct injection of compressed natural gas (CNG) in compression ignition engines. The construction of the injector allows for it positioning in the glow plug socket, so that the gas is injected directly into the combustion chamber. The cycle analysis of the four-cylinder Andoria ADCR engine with a capacity of 2.6 dm3 for different crankshaft rotational speeds allowed to determine the necessary time for fuel injection. Because of that, it was possible to determine the required mass flow rate of the injector, for replacing as much of the original fuel by gaseous fuel. To ensure a high value of flow inside the injector, supply pressure equal to 1 MPa was applied. High gas supply pressure requires high value of valve opening forces. For this purpose, an injector with hydraulic control system, using a liquid under pressure for the opening process was designed. On the basis of air pressure measurements in the flow line after the injector, the analysis of opening and closing of the valve was made. Measurements of outflow mass of the injector were also carried out. The results showed that the designed injector meets the requirements necessary to supply ADCR engine by the CNG fuel.

Keywords: CNG, diesel engine, gas flow, gas injector

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Authors: Shan Jiang

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China is a country with a distinct cultural system. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is the central factor for everything, which naturally includes culture. There are quite a lot of cultural policies in China. The same goes for TV dramas. This paper traces the evolution of Chinese TV drama policy since 1986, examines the realistic situation behind the changes, and explores the structure and role of the government in shaping the process. Using historical documents and media reports, it first analyzes four key time nodes: 1986, 2003, 2012, and 2022. It shows how the policy shifts from restricting private production to opening up to public participation, from imposing one censorship to another, and from promoting some content to restricting some other area. It finds that the policy process is not simply rectilinear but rather wandering between deregulation and strengthening control. Secondly, it divides the policies into "basic" policies that establish the overall layout and more refined "strategic" policies that respond to more refined needs. It argues that the "basic" policy process is caused by China's political, economic, and cultural system reform, and then the "strategic" policy process is affected by more environmental factors, such as the government's follow-up development strategy, industrial development, technological innovation, and specific situations. Thirdly, it analysis the main body of the 104 policies from 2000 to 2021 and puts these subjects into China's power structure and cultural system, revealing that the policy issuers are all under the highest leadership of the Chinese Central Committee. Further, the paper challenges the typical description of Chinese cultural policy, which focuses on state control exclusively, identifies the forces within and outside the system that participate in or affect the policy-making process, and reveals the inter-subjective mechanism of policy change. In conclusion, the paper reveals that China's TV drama policy is under the unified leadership of the Party and the government, which greatly guarantees the consistency of the overall direction of cultural policy, that is, the right to speak firmly in the hands. The forces within the system can sometimes promote policy changes due to common development needs. However, folk discourse is only the object of control: when it breeds a certain amount of industrial space, the government will strengthen control over this space, suppress its potential "adverse effects", and instead provide protection and create conditions for the cultivation and growth of its mainstream discourse. However, the policy combination of basic policy and strategic policy, while having a strong effect and emergency capacity, also inhibits the innovation and diversification of the TV drama market. However, the state's substantial regulation will continue to exist in the future.

Keywords: TV Policy, China, policy process, cultural policy, culture management

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Authors: Farouk Lawan Gambo, Hamada Mohammad

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Data compression shrinks files into fewer bits than their original presentation. It has more advantage on the internet because the smaller a file, the faster it can be transferred but learning most of the concepts in data compression are abstract in nature, therefore, making them difficult to digest by some students (engineers in particular). This paper studies the learning preference of engineering students who tend to have strong, active, sensing, visual and sequential learning preferences, the paper also studies the three shift of technology-aided that learning has experienced, which mobile learning has been considered to be the feature of learning that will integrate other form of the education process. Lastly, we propose a design and implementation of mobile learning application using software engineering methodology that will enhance the traditional teaching and learning of data compression techniques.

Keywords: data compression, learning preference, mobile learning, multimedia

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Authors: Haeng A. Seo, Changseok Oh, Seung Jun Yoo

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This study attempts to examine the disparities in S&T innovation capacity from 14 developing countries to discuss how to support specific features in national innovation systems. It includes East-Asian, Middle-Asian, Central American and African countries. Here, we particularly focus on five dimensions- resources, activities, network, environment and performance- with 37 indicators. They were derived as structuring components of the relevant diagnostic model, which encompasses the whole process of S&T innovation from the input of resources to the output of economically valuable results. For many developing nations, economic industries remain weaker than actual S&T capabilities, and relevant regulatory authorities may not exist. This paper will be helpful to provide basic evidence and to set directions for better national S&T Innovation capacities and toward national competitiveness.

Keywords: developing countries, measurement, NIS, S&T innovation capacity

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Authors: Faye Cosgrove, Donna Peacock

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This paper examines current state strategies for dealing with vulnerable people in police custody and identifies the underpinning discourses and practices which inform these strategies. It has previously been argued that the state has utilised contradictory and conflicting responses to the control of crime, by employing opposing strategies of denial and adaptation in order to simultaneously both display sovereignty and disclaim responsibility. This paper argues that these contradictory strategies are still being employed in contemporary criminal justice, although the focus and the purpose have now shifted. The focus is upon the ‘vulnerable’ suspect, whose social identity is as incongruous, complex and contradictory as his social environment, and the purpose is to redirect attention away from negative state practices, whilst simultaneously displaying a compassionate and benevolent countenance in order to appeal to the voting public. The findings presented here result from intensive qualitative research with police officers, with health care professionals, and with civilian volunteers who work within police custodial environments. The data has been gathered over a three-year period and includes observational and interview data which has been thematically analysed to expose the underpinning mechanisms from which the properties of the system emerge. What is revealed is evidence of contemporary state practices of denial relating to the harms of austerity and the structural relations of vulnerability, whilst simultaneously adapting through processes of ‘othering’ of the vulnerable, ‘responsibilisation’ of citizens, defining deviance down through diversionary practices, and managing success through redefining the aims of the system. The ‘vulnerable’ suspect is subject to individual pathologising, and yet the nature of risk is aggregated. ‘Vulnerable’ suspects are supported in police custody by private citizens, by multi-agency partnerships, and by for-profit organisations, while the state seeks to collate and control services, and thereby to retain a veneer of control. Late modern ambivalence to crime control and the associated contradictory practices of abjuration and adjustment have extended to state responses to vulnerable suspects. The support available in the custody environment operates to control and minimise operational and procedural risk, rather than for the welfare of the detained person, and in fact, the support available is discovered to be detrimental to the very people that it claims to benefit. The ‘vulnerable’ suspect is now subject to the bifurcated logics employed at the new limits of the sovereign state.

Keywords: custody, policing, sovereign state, vulnerability

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Authors: Jungyeol Hong, Dongjoo Park

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The primary purpose of this study is to develop a methodological framework to predict daily subway ridership at a station-level and to examine the association between subway ridership and bus demand incorporating commercial business facility in the vicinity of each subway station. The socio-economic characteristics, land-use, and built environment as factors may have an impact on subway ridership. However, it should be considered not only the endogenous relationship between bus and subway demand but also the characteristics of commercial business within a subway station’s sphere of influence, and integrated transit network topology. Regarding a statistical approach to estimate subway ridership at a station level, therefore it should be considered endogeneity and heteroscedastic issues which might have in the subway ridership prediction model. This study focused on both discovering the impacts of bus demand, commercial business characteristics, and network topology on subway ridership and developing more precise subway ridership estimation accounting for its statistical bias. The spatial scope of the study covers entire Seoul city in South Korea and includes 243 stations with the temporal scope set at twenty-four hours with one-hour interval time panels each. The data for subway and bus ridership was collected Seoul Smart Card data from 2015 and 2016. Three-Stage Least Square(3SLS) approach was applied to develop daily subway ridership model as capturing the endogeneity and heteroscedasticity between bus and subway demand. Independent variables incorporating in the modeling process were commercial business characteristics, social-economic characteristics, safety index, transit facility attributes, and dummies for seasons and time zone. As a result, it was found that bus ridership and subway ridership were endogenous each other and they had a significantly positive sign of coefficients which means one transit mode could increase another transportation mode’s ridership. In other words, two transit modes of subway and bus have a mutual relationship instead of the competitive relationship. The commercial business characteristics are the most critical dimension among the independent variables. The variables of commercial business facility rate in the paper containing six types; medical, educational, recreational, financial, food service, and shopping. From the model result, a higher rate in medical, financial buildings, shopping, and food service facility lead to increment of subway ridership at a station, while recreational and educational facility shows lower subway ridership. The complex network theory was applied for estimating integrated network topology measures that cover the entire Seoul transit network system, and a framework for seeking an impact on subway ridership. The centrality measures were found to be significant and showed a positive sign indicating higher centrality led to more subway ridership at a station level. The results of model accuracy tests by out of samples provided that 3SLS model has less mean square error rather than OLS and showed the methodological approach for the 3SLS model was plausible to estimate more accurate subway ridership. Acknowledgement: This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (2017R1C1B2010175).

Keywords: subway ridership, bus ridership, commercial business characteristic, endogeneity, network topology

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Authors: M. S. Mahmoud

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In this paper, the adsorption performance of a novel environmental friendly material, calcium alginate gel beads as a non-conventional technique for the successful removal of copper ions from aqueous solution are reported on. Batch equilibrium studies were carried out to evaluate the adsorption capacity and process parameters such as pH, adsorbent dosages, initial metal ion concentrations, stirring rates and contact times. It was observed that the optimum pH for maximum copper ions adsorption was at pH 5.0. For all contact times, an increase in copper ions concentration resulted in decrease in the percent of copper ions removal. Langmuir and Freundlich's isothermal models were used to describe the experimental adsorption. Adsorbent was characterization using Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

Keywords: adsorption, alginate polymer, isothermal models, equilibrium

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Authors: Chetra Mang, Ahmadali Tahmasebimoradi, Xavier Lorang

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Lattice structures are widely used in various applications, especially in aeronautic, aerospace, and medical applications because of their high performance properties. Thanks to advancement of the additive manufacturing technology, the lattice structures can be manufactured by different methods such as laser beam melting technology. However, the presence of geometric defects in the lattice structures is inevitable due to the manufacturing process. The geometric defects may have high impact on the mechanical strength of the structures. This work analyzes the correlation between the manufacturing parameters and the mechanical strengths of the lattice structures. To do that, two types of the lattice structures; body-centered cubic with z-struts (BCCZ) structures made of Inconel718, and body-centered cubic (BCC) structures made of Scalmalloy, are manufactured by laser melting beam machine using Taguchi design of experiment. Each structure is placed on the substrate with a specific position and orientation regarding the roller direction of deposed metal powder. The position and orientation are considered as the manufacturing parameters. The geometric defects of each beam in the lattice are characterized and used to build the geometric model in order to perform simulations. Then, the mechanical strengths are defined by the homogeneous response as Young's modulus and yield strength. The distribution of mechanical strengths is observed as a function of manufacturing parameters. The mechanical response of the BCCZ structure is stretch-dominated, i.e., the mechanical strengths are directly dependent on the strengths of the vertical beams. As the geometric defects of vertical beams are slightly changed based on their position/orientation on the manufacturing substrate, the mechanical strengths are less dispersed. The manufacturing parameters are less influenced on the mechanical strengths of the structure BCCZ. The mechanical response of the BCC structure is bending-dominated. The geometric defects of inclined beam are highly dispersed within a structure and also based on their position/orientation on the manufacturing substrate. For different position/orientation on the substrate, the mechanical responses are highly dispersed as well. This shows that the mechanical strengths are directly impacted by manufacturing parameters. In addition, this work is carried out to study the uncertainty propagation of the geometric defects on the mechanical strength of the BCC lattice structure made of Scalmalloy. To do that, we observe the distribution of mechanical strengths of the lattice according to the distribution of the geometric defects. A probability density law is determined based on a statistical hypothesis corresponding to the geometric defects of the inclined beams. The samples of inclined beams are then randomly drawn from the density law to build the lattice structure samples. The lattice samples are then used for simulation to characterize the mechanical strengths. The results reveal that the distribution of mechanical strengths of the structures with the same manufacturing parameters is less dispersed than one of the structures with different manufacturing parameters. Nevertheless, the dispersion of mechanical strengths due to the structures with the same manufacturing parameters are unneglectable.

Keywords: geometric defects, lattice structure, mechanical strength, uncertainty propagation

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Authors: Kyaw Zin Htut

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In this article, the synthesis of the efficiency of intelligent diagnostic system in the aircraft measuring devices is described. The technology developments of the diagnostic system are considered based on the model errors of the gyro instruments, which are used to measure the parameters of the aircraft. The synthesis of the diagnostic intelligent system is considered on the example of the problem of assessment and forecasting errors of the gyroscope devices on the onboard aircraft. The result of the system is to detect of faults of the aircraft measuring devices as well as the analysis of the measuring equipment to improve the efficiency of its work.

Keywords: diagnostic, dynamic system, errors of gyro instruments, model errors, assessment, prognosis

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Authors: J. Kosikova, B. Vacenovska, M. Vyhnankova

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The paper reports on the subject of recycling and further use of secondary raw materials obtained from solar panels, which is becoming a very up to date topic in recent years. Recycling these panels is very difficult and complex, and the use of resulting secondary raw materials is still not fully resolved. Within the research carried out at the Brno University of Technology, new polymer materials used for industrial floors are being developed. Secondary raw materials are incorporated into these polymers as fillers. One of the tested filler materials was glass obtained from solar panels. The following text describes procedures and results of the tests that were performed on these materials, confirming the possibility of the use of solar panel glass in industrial polymer flooring systems.

Keywords: fillers, industrial floors, recycling, secondary raw material, solar panel

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