Search results for: board and audit committee characteristics

Authors: Aruna Kemisola Kehinde, Oyinloye Michael Ajide, Aboluje Oluwafemi Bolarinwa

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The development of the nation's overall growth is directly impacted by the vital substructure of the transportation system. The majority of developing countries experience issues with road transportation, including limited and low-quality infrastructure. The study assessed intra-city road infrastructure in Ado-Ekiti with a view to identifying its adequacy and functionality for efficient transport in the town. To this end, the study examined the locations of the road infrastructure, characteristics of the road infrastructure, and condition of the road infrastructure. A systematic random sampling method was adopted to select respondents for the study. Data were sourced from both primary and secondary sources. A 2.5% of 20,160 households, amounting to 503 households, was used as the sample size. Data analysis was based on responses from 500 questionnaires retrieved, and the data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results of this study showed that based on the locations of road infrastructure, disparity exists in the distribution of infrastructure amongst the major roads. Inferences from the results gathered also demonstrated that the infrastructure that is available is very much less than the non-available infrastructure. About 50% of the respondents are satisfied that the condition of road infrastructure in Ado-Ekiti is fair. The study's recommendations for the Ekiti state government include quantifying the number of existing road infrastructure, establishing a state maintenance board to expedite their renovation, and diversifying its goals for providing road infrastructure through public-private partnership (PPP) agreements with the private sector.

Keywords: road transportation, infrastructure, availability, intra-city

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Authors: B. Kriheli, E. Levner, T. C. E. Cheng, C. T. Ng

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During the last decades, research interest in planning, scheduling, and control of emergency response operations, especially people rescue and evacuation from the dangerous zone of marine accidents, has increased dramatically. Until the survivors (called ‘targets’) are found and saved, it may cause loss or damage whose extent depends on the location of the targets and the search duration. The problem is to efficiently search for and detect/rescue the targets as soon as possible with the help of intelligent mobile robots so as to maximize the number of saved people and/or minimize the search cost under restrictions on the amount of saved people within the allowable response time. We consider a special situation when the autonomous mobile robots (AMR), e.g., unmanned aerial vehicles and remote-controlled robo-ships have no operator on board as they are guided and completely controlled by on-board sensors and computer programs. We construct a mathematical model for the search process in an uncertain environment and provide a new fast algorithm for scheduling the activities of the autonomous robots during the search-and rescue missions after an accident at sea. We presume that in the unknown environments, the AMR’s search-and-rescue activity is subject to two types of error: (i) a 'false-negative' detection error where a target object is not discovered (‘overlooked') by the AMR’s sensors in spite that the AMR is in a close neighborhood of the latter and (ii) a 'false-positive' detection error, also known as ‘a false alarm’, in which a clean place or area is wrongly classified by the AMR’s sensors as a correct target. As the general resource-constrained discrete search problem is NP-hard, we restrict our study to finding local-optimal strategies. A specificity of the considered operational research problem in comparison with the traditional Kadane-De Groot-Stone search models is that in our model the probability of the successful search outcome depends not only on cost/time/probability parameters assigned to each individual location but, as well, on parameters characterizing the entire history of (unsuccessful) search before selecting any next location. We provide a fast approximation algorithm for finding the AMR route adopting a greedy search strategy in which, in each step, the on-board computer computes a current search effectiveness value for each location in the zone and sequentially searches for a location with the highest search effectiveness value. Extensive experiments with random and real-life data provide strong evidence in favor of the suggested operations research model and corresponding algorithm.

Keywords: disaster management, intelligent robots, scheduling algorithm, search-and-rescue at sea

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Authors: Rossukhon Makaramani, Supanan Sittilerd, Wipada Prasarnsaph

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The study aimed to 1) examine management status of a Program in Education at the Faculty of Education, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University (SSRU); 2) determine main components, indicators and criteria for constructing quality assessment framework; 3) assess quality of a SSRU Program in Education; and 4) provide recommendations to promote academic excellence. The program to be assessed was Bachelor of Education Program in Education (5 years), Revised Version 2009. Population and samples were stakeholders involving implementation of this program during an academic year 2012. Results were: 1) Management status of the Program in Education showed that the Faculty of Education depicted good level (4.20) in the third cycle of external quality assessment by the Office for National Education Standards and Quality Assessment (ONESQA). There were 1,192 students enrolling in the program, divided into 5 major fields of study. There were 50 faculty members, 37 holding master’s degrees and 13 holding doctorate degrees. Their academic position consisted of 35 lecturers, 10 assistant professors, and 5 associate professors. For program management, there was a committee of 5 members for the program and also a committee of 4 or 5 members for each major field of study. Among the faculty members, 41 persons taught in this program. The ratio between faculty and student was 1:26. The result of 2013 internal quality assessment indicated that system and mechanism of the program development and management was at fair level. However, the overall result yielded good level either by criteria of the Office of Higher Education Commission (4.29) or the NESQA (4.37); 2) Framework for assessing the quality of the program consisted of 4 dimensions and 15 indicators; 3) Assessment of the program yielded Good level of quality (4.04); 4) Recommendations to promote academic excellence included management and development of the program focusing on teacher reform toward highly recognized profession; cultivation of values, moral, ethics, and spirits of being a teacher; construction of specialized programs; development of faculty potentials; enhancement of the demonstration school’s readiness level; and provision of dormitories for learning.

Keywords: quality assessment, education program, Suan Sunandha Rajabhat University, academic excellence

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Authors: Babatunde Kasim Oladele

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This current study investigated students’ characteristics as factors that influence Mathematics Achievement of junior secondary school students. The study adopted a descriptive survey design. The population of the study was one hundred and twenty-three (123) JSS students of secondary schools in Ibadan North Local Government in Oyo State. A Mathematics achievement test and three questionnaires on student’s self-efficacy belief, attitude, and learning style were the instruments used. Prior to the administration of the constructed mathematics achievement test, 100-item mathematics was subjected to the expert review, and items analysis was carried out. Fifty items were retained. The Cronbach Alpha reliability coefficients of the instruments were 0.71, 0.76, and 0.83, respectively. Collected data were analysed using the frequency count, percentages, mean, standard deviation, and Path Analysis in Amos SPSS Version 20. Students characteristics: gender, age, self-efficacy, attitude and learning style had positive direct effects on students’ achievement in Mathematics as indicated by their respective beta weights (β = 0.36, 0.203, 0.92, 0.079, 0.69 p < 0.05). Consequently, the study concluded that student’s characteristics (Age, gender, and learning style) explained a significant part of the variability in students’ achievement in Mathematics.

Keywords: mathematics achievement, students’ characteristics, junior secondary school, Ibadan

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Authors: D. Heinemann, S. Schramm, S. Knabner, D. Baumgarten

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Purpose: Applying solder paste to printed circuit boards (PCB) with stencils has been the method of choice over the past years. A new method uses a jet printer to deposit tiny droplets of solder paste through an ejector mechanism onto the board. This allows for more flexible PCB layouts with smaller components. Due to the viscosity of the solder paste, air blisters can be trapped in the cartridge. This can lead to missing solder joints or deviations in the applied solder volume. Therefore, a built-in and real-time inspection of the printing process is needed to minimize uncertainties and increase the efficiency of the process by immediate correction. The objective of the current study is the design of an optimal imaging system and the development of an automatic algorithm for the detection of applied solder joints from optical from the captured images. Methods: In a first approach, a camera module connected to a microcomputer and LED strips are employed to capture images of the printed circuit board under four different illuminations (white, red, green and blue). Subsequently, an improved system including a ring light, an objective lens, and a monochromatic camera was set up to acquire higher quality images. The obtained images can be divided into three main components: the PCB itself (i.e., the background), the reflections induced by unsoldered positions or screw holes and the solder joints. Non-uniform illumination is corrected by estimating the background using a morphological opening and subtraction from the input image. Image sharpening is applied in order to prevent error pixels in the subsequent segmentation. The intensity thresholds which divide the main components are obtained from the multimodal histogram using three probability density functions. Determining the intersections delivers proper thresholds for the segmentation. Remaining edge gradients produces small error areas which are removed by another morphological opening. For quantitative analysis of the segmentation results, the dice coefficient is used. Results: The obtained PCB images show a significant gradient in all RGB channels, resulting from ambient light. Using different lightings and color channels 12 images of a single PCB are available. A visual inspection and the investigation of 27 specific points show the best differentiation between those points using a red lighting and a green color channel. Estimating two thresholds from analyzing the multimodal histogram of the corrected images and using them for segmentation precisely extracts the solder joints. The comparison of the results to manually segmented images yield high sensitivity and specificity values. Analyzing the overall result delivers a Dice coefficient of 0.89 which varies for single object segmentations between 0.96 for a good segmented solder joints and 0.25 for single negative outliers. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that the presented optical imaging system and the developed algorithm can robustly detect solder joints on printed circuit boards. Future work will comprise a modified lighting system which allows for more precise segmentation results using structure analysis.

Keywords: printed circuit board jet-printing, inspection, segmentation, solder paste detection

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Authors: Md. Samsuzzaman, M. T. Islam, J. S. Mandeep, N. Misran

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In this article, a compact simple structure modified Swastika shape patch multiband antenna on a substrate of available low cost polymer resin composite material is designed for Wi-Fi and WiMAX applications. The substrate material consists of an epoxy matrix reinforced by woven glass. The designed micro-strip line fed compact antenna comprises of a planar wide square slot ground with four slits and Swastika shape radiation patch with a rectangular slot. The effect of the different substrate materials on the reflection coefficients of the proposed antennas was also analyzed. It can be clearly seen that the proposed antenna provides a wider bandwidth and acceptable return loss value compared to other reported materials. The simulation results exhibits that the antenna has an impedance bandwidth with -10 dB return loss at 3.01-3.89 GHz and 4.88-6.10 GHz which can cover both the WLAN, WiMAX and public safety WLAN bands. The proposed swastika shape antenna was designed and analyzed by using a finite element method based simulator HFSS and designed on a low cost FR4 (polymer resin composite material) printed circuit board. The electrical performances and superior frequency characteristics make the proposed material antenna desirable for wireless communications.

Keywords: epoxy resin polymer, multiband, swastika shaped, wide slot, WLAN/WiMAX

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Authors: R. Kerbachi, S. Chikhi, M. Boughedaoui

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The study presents an analysis of the Algerian vehicle fleet and resultant emissions. The emission measurement of air pollutants emitted by road transportation (CO, THC, NOX and CO2) was conducted on 17 light duty vehicles in real traffic. This sample is representative of the Algerian light vehicles in terms of fuel quality (gasoline, diesel and liquefied petroleum gas) and the technology quality (injection system and emission control). The experimental measurement methodology of unit emission of vehicles in real traffic situation is based on the use of the mini-Constant Volume Sampler for gas sampling and a set of gas analyzers for CO2, CO, NOx and THC, with an instrumentation to measure kinematics, gas temperature and pressure. The apparatus is also equipped with data logging instrument and data transfer. The results were compared with the database of the European light vehicles (Artemis). It was shown that the technological injection liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has significant impact on air pollutants emission. Therefore, with the exception of nitrogen oxide compounds, uncatalyzed LPG vehicles are more effective in reducing emissions unit of air pollutants compared to uncatalyzed gasoline vehicles. LPG performance seems to be lower under real driving conditions than expected on chassis dynamometer. On the other hand, the results show that uncatalyzed gasoline vehicles emit high levels of carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides. Overall, and in the absence of standards in Algeria, unit emissions are much higher than Euro 3. The enforcement of pollutant emission standard in developing countries is an important step towards introducing cleaner technology and reducing vehicular emissions.

Keywords: on-board measurements of unit emissions of CO, HC, NOx and CO2, light vehicles, mini-CVS, LPG-fuel, artemis, Algeria

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Authors: N. Benabdeslam, N. Bouzidi, F. Atmani, R. Boucif, A. Sakhri

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The objective of this study was to provide answers for a better understanding of the mechanisms involved during grinding. To obtain a phosphate powder, we carry out sieving - grinding circuits for each parameter influencing the process. The analysis of the average particle size of the different tests carried out served in the first place as a basis for the determination of the granulometric curve area, the characteristics and the granular coefficients, then the exploitation of the different results for the calculation of the energies consumed for the fragmentation of different ore types, the energy coefficients as well as the ability to grind. Indeed, a time of 5 to 10 minutes can be chosen as the optimal grinding time in a disc mill for a % in weight of the highest pass. However, grinding time can influence the granular characteristics of ore.

Keywords: characteristic granular, grinding, mineralogical composition, phosphate ore, parameters

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Authors: Arjun Kumar Rath, Titus Dhanasingh

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Embedded product development requires software to test hardware functionality during development and finding issues during manufacturing in larger quantities. As the components are getting integrated, the devices are tested for their full functionality using advanced software tools. Benchmarking tools are used to measure and compare the performance of product features. At present, these tests are based on a variety of methods involving varying hardware and software platforms. Typically, these tests are custom built for every product and remain unusable for other variants. A majority of the tests goes undocumented, not updated, unusable when the product is released. To bridge this gap, a solution accelerator in the form of a framework can address these issues for running all these tests from one place, using an off-the-shelf tests library in a continuous integration environment. There are many open-source test frameworks or tools (fuego. LAVA, AutoTest, KernelCI, etc.) designed for testing embedded system devices, with each one having several unique good features, but one single tool and framework may not satisfy all of the testing needs for embedded systems, thus an extensible framework with the multitude of tools. Embedded product testing includes board bring-up testing, test during manufacturing, firmware testing, application testing, and assembly testing. Traditional test methods include developing test libraries and support components for every new hardware platform that belongs to the same domain with identical hardware architecture. This approach will have drawbacks like non-reusability where platform-specific libraries cannot be reused, need to maintain source infrastructure for individual hardware platforms, and most importantly, time is taken to re-develop test cases for new hardware platforms. These limitations create challenges like environment set up for testing, scalability, and maintenance. A desirable strategy is certainly one that is focused on maximizing reusability, continuous integration, and leveraging artifacts across the complete development cycle during phases of testing and across family of products. To get over the stated challenges with the conventional method and offers benefits of embedded testing, an embedded test framework (ETF), a solution accelerator, is designed, which can be deployed in embedded system-related products with minimal customizations and maintenance to accelerate the hardware testing. Embedded test framework supports testing different hardwares including microprocessor and microcontroller. It offers benefits such as (1) Time-to-Market: Accelerates board brings up time with prepacked test suites supporting all necessary peripherals which can speed up the design and development stage(board bring up, manufacturing and device driver) (2) Reusability-framework components isolated from the platform-specific HW initialization and configuration makes the adaptability of test cases across various platform quick and simple (3) Effective build and test infrastructure with multiple test interface options and preintegrated with FUEGO framework (4) Continuos integration - pre-integrated with Jenkins which enabled continuous testing and automated software update feature. Applying the embedded test framework accelerator throughout the design and development phase enables to development of the well-tested systems before functional verification and improves time to market to a large extent.

Keywords: board diagnostics software, embedded system, hardware testing, test frameworks

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Authors: Daniel P. Clayton, Edward A. Ball

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This paper describes an investigation into the isolation characteristics and bandwidth performance of RF combiners that are used as part of Chireix PA architectures, designed for use in the X-Band range of frequencies. Combiner designs investigated are the typical Chireix and Wilkinson configurations which also include simulation of the Wilkinson using manufacturer’s data for the isolation resistor. Another simulation was the less common approach of using a Branchline coupler to form the combiner, as well as simulation results from adding an additional stage. This paper presents the findings of this investigation and compares the bandwidth performance and isolation characteristics to determine suitability.

Keywords: bandwidth, Chireix, couplers, outphasing, power amplifiers, Wilkinson, X-Band

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Authors: Phusit Phukamchanoad, Bua Srikos

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Research aimed to study the characteristics of a community in the social, economical and cultural context. This research used interviews and surveys members in Patthana Soi Ranongklang community, Dusit District, Bangkok. The results are as follows: In terms of overall conditions and characteristics, Patthana Soi Ranongklang community is located on the property of Treasury Department. 50 years ago the location of this community consisted of paddy fields with limited convenience in terms of transportation. Rama V Road was only a small narrow road with only three-wheelers and no buses. The majority of community members moved in from Makkhawan Rangsan Bridge. Thus, most community members were either workers or government officials as they were not the owners of the land. Therefore, there were no primary occupations within this 7 acres of the community. The development of the community started in 1981. At present, the community is continuously being developed and modernization is rapidly flowing in. One of the reasons was because main roads were amended, especially Rama V Road that allows more convenient transportation, leading to heightened citizens’ convenience. In terms of the economy and society, the research found out that the development and expansion of Rama V Road cause a change in the conditions of the area and buildings. Some building were improved and changed along the time, as well as the development of new facilities that cause the community members to continually become more materialistic. Jobs within the community started to appear, and areas were improved to allow for new building and housing businesses. The trend of jobs become more in variety, in terms of both jobs at home, such as workers, merchandizing, and small own businesses, and jobs outside the community, which became much more convenient as car drivers are used to the narrow roads inside the community. The location of the community next to Rama V Road also allows helo from government agencies to reach the community with ease. Moreover, the welfare of the community was well taken care of by the community committee. In terms of education, the research found that there are two schools: Wat Pracharabuedham School and Wat Noi Noppakun School, that are providing education within the community. The majority of the community received Bachelor degrees. In areas of culture, the research found that the culture, traditions, and beliefs of people in the community were mainly transferred from the old community, especially beliefs in Buddhism as the majority are Bhuddists. The main reason is because the old community was situated near Wat Makut Kasattriyaram. Therefore, the community members have always had Buddhist temples as the center of the community. In later years, more citizens moved in and bring along culture, traditions, and beliefs with them. The community members also took part in building a Dharma hall named Wat Duang Jai 72 Years Ranong Klang. Traditions that community members adhere to since the establishment of the community are the New Year merit making and Songkran Tradition.

Keywords: social capital, culture, Patthana Soi Ranongklang community, way of life

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Authors: Boualem Chetti

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The dynamic characteristics of a three-lobe journal bearing lubricated with micropolar fluids are determined by the linear stability theory. Lubricating oil containing additives and contaminants is modeled as micropolar fluid. The modified Reynolds equation is obtained using the micropolar lubrication theory and the finite difference technique has been used to solve it. The dynamic characteristics in terms of stiffness, damping coefficients, the critical mass and whirl ratio are determined for various values of size of material characteristic length and the coupling number. The computed results show compared with Newtonian fluids, that micropolar fluid exhibits better stability.

Keywords: three-lobe bearings, micropolar fluid, dynamic characteristics, stability analysis

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Authors: Shazia Anwer

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This paper has discussed the unusual form of resistance in theatre against censorship board in Pakistan. The atypical approach of dramaturgy created massive space for performers and audiences to integrate and communicate. The social and religious absolutes creates suffocation in Pakistani society, strict control over all Fine and Performing Art has made art political, contemporary dramatics has started an amalgamated theatre to avoid censorship. Contemporary Punjabi theatre techniques are directly dependent on human cognition. The idea of indirect thought processing is not unique but dependent on spectators. The paper has provided an account of these techniques and their specific use for conveying specific messages across the audiences. For the Dramaturge of today, theatre space is an expression representing a linguistic formulation that includes qualities of experimental and non-traditional use of classical theatrical space in the context of fulfilling the concept of open theatre. Paper has explained the transformation of the theatrical experience into an event where the actor and the audience are co-existing and co-experiencing the dramatical experience. The denial of the existence of the 4th -Wall made two-way communication possible. This paper has elaborated that the previously marginalized genres such as naach, jugat, miras, are extensively included to counter the censorship board. Figurativeness, visual elements, allegory, scenic imagery are basic support system for contemporary Punjabi theatre. The body of the actor is used as a source for non-verbal communication, and for an escape from traditional theatrical space which by every means has every element that could be controlled and reprimanded by the controlling authority.

Keywords: communication, Punjabi theatre, figurativeness, censorship

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Authors: Abdelhalem Shahen

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The world is now experiencing a digital revolution and greatly accelerated technological developments, in addition to the transition from the economy in its traditional form to the digital economy, which has resulted in the emergence of new tools that are appropriate to those developments, and from this, this paper attempts to explore the economic characteristics of the bitcoin currency that circulated recently. Due to the many advantages that distinguish it from money in its traditional forms, which have a range of economic effects. The study found that Bitcoin is among the technological innovations, which contain a set of characteristics that are worth studying, those that make it the focus of attention, such as the digital currency, the peer-to-peer property, Lower and Faster Transaction Costs, transparency, decentralized control, privacy, and Double-Spending, as well as security and Cryptographic, and finally mining.

Keywords: Digital Economics, Digital Currencies, Bitcoin, Features of Bitcoin

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Authors: Serges Mendomo Meye, Li Guowei, Shen Zhenzhong, Gan Lei, Xu Liqun

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Due to the characteristics of high-heap and large-volume, the complex layers of waste and the high-water level of leachate, environmental pollution, and slope instability are easily produced. It is therefore of great significance to research the heterogeneous seepage field and stability of landfills. This paper focuses on the heterogeneous characteristics of the landfill piles and analyzes the seepage field and slope stability of the landfill using statistical and numerical analysis methods. The calculated results are compared with the field measurement and literature research data to verify the reliability of the model, which may provide the basis for the design, safe, and eco-friendly operation of the landfill. The main innovations are as follows: (1) The saturated-unsaturated seepage equation of heterogeneous soil is derived theoretically. The heterogeneous landfill is regarded as composed of infinite layers of homogeneous waste, and a method for establishing the heterogeneous seepage model is proposed. Then the formation law of the stagnant water level of heterogeneous landfills is studied. It is found that the maximum stagnant water level of landfills is higher when considering the heterogeneous seepage characteristics, which harms the stability of landfills. (2) Considering the heterogeneity weight and strength characteristics of waste, a method of establishing a heterogeneous stability model is proposed, and it is extended to the three-dimensional stability study. It is found that the distribution of heterogeneous characteristics has a great influence on the stability of landfill slope. During the operation and management of the landfill, the reservoir bank should also be considered while considering the capacity of the landfill.

Keywords: heterogeneous characteristics, leachate levels, saturated-unsaturated seepage, seepage field, slope stability

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Authors: Salwa Abdelbaki

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This research investigated how leaders develop, asking whether they have been leaders due to their innate abilities or they gain leadership characteristics through interactions based on requirements of a situation. If the first is true, then a leader should be successful in any situation. Otherwise, a leader may succeed only in a specific situation. A series of experiments were carried out on three groups including of males and females. First; a group of 148 students with different specializations had to select a leader. Another group of 51 students had to recall their previous experiences and their knowledge of each other to identify who were leaders in different situations. Then a series of analytic tools were applied to the identified leaders and to the whole groups to find out how leaders were developed. A group of 40 young children was also experimented with to find young leaders among them and to analyze their characteristics.

Keywords: leadership, innate characteristics, situation, leadership theories

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Authors: Uma Krishnamoorthy, Vivienne Beavers, Janet Marshall

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Introduction: Cervical cytology showing features raising the suspicion of non cervical glandular neoplasia are reported as code 0 under the United Kingdom National Health Service Cervical screening programme ( NHSCSP). As the suspicion is regarding non cervical neoplasia, smear is reported as normal and patient informed that cervical screening result is normal. GP receives copy of results where it states further referral is indicated in small font within text of report. Background: There were several incidents of delayed diagnosis of endometrial cancer in Lancashire which prompted this Northwest Regional review to enable an understanding of underlying pathology outcome of code zero smears to raise awareness and also to review whether further action on wording of smear results was indicated to prevent such delay. Methodology: All Smears reported at the Manchester cytology centre who process cytology for Lancashire population from March 2013 to March 2014 were reviewed and histological diagnosis outcome of women in whom smear was reported as code zero was reviewed retrospectively . Results: Total smears reported by the cytology centre during this period was approximately 109400. Reports issued with result code 0 among this during this time period was 49.Results revealed that among three fourth (37) of women with code zero smear (N=49), evidence of underlying pathology of non cervical origin was confirmed. Of this, 73 % (36) were due to endometrial pathology with 49 % (24) endometrial carcinoma, 12 % (6)polyp, 4 % atypical endometrial hyperplasia (2), 6 % endometrial hyperplasia without atypia (3), and 2 % adenomyosis (1 case) and 2 % ( 1 case) due to ovarian adenocarcinoma. Conclusion: This review demonstrated that more than half (51 %) of women with a code 0 smear report were diagnosed with underlying carcinoma and 75 % had a confirmed underlying pathology contributory to code 0 smear findings. Recommendations and Action Plan: A local rapid access referral and management pathway for this group of women was implemented as a result of this in our unit. The findings and Pathway were shared with other regional units served by the cytology centre through the Pan Lancashire cervical screening board and through the Cytology centre. Locally, the smear report wording was updated to include a rubber stamp/ print in "Red Bold letters" stating that " URGENT REFERRAL TO GYNAECOLOGY IS INDICATED". Findings were also shared through the Pan Lancashire board with National cervical screening programme board, and revisions to wording of code zero smear reports to highlight the need for Urgent referral has now been agreed at National level to be implemented.

Keywords: code zero smears, endometrial cancer, non cervical glandular neoplasia, ovarian cancer

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Authors: Mary Esere, Mogbekeloluwa Fakokunde, Adetoun Idowu

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Background: Working in a military setting could elicit some amount of stressful doses into ones system because of the attendant peculiar characteristics found in the military environment. Thus, this study was carried out to find out the sources of occupational stress among teachers in various Command Secondary Schools within 2 Division of Nigerian Army. Method: The study employed a survey method. Simple random sampling technique was used to select the schools in the Division. A total of 200 respondents participated in the study. Sources of Teachers’ Occupational Stress Questionnaire (STOSQ) was administered to the respondents to collect relevant data. The t-test and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) statistics were used to test the hypotheses. Findings: From the study, it was discovered that teachers in this setting do experience occupational stress. Their major sources of stress bother on issues relating to salaries and allowances and staff welfare concerns. The findings also revealed that there were no significant differences in the sources of occupational stress among the teachers in respect to gender and marital status. Discussion: Based on these findings, it was recommended that the Appropriate Superior Authority (ASA) should reconstitute the proscribed Armed Forces Schools Management Board (AFSMB) where issues, such as staff salaries and welfare concerns for teachers working in the schools under the three services (Army, Navy, Airforce) will always be addressed. This will go a long way in enhancing the psychological well-being of the teachers.

Keywords: Nigerian army, occupational stress, sources, teachers

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Authors: Norshaffika I. Zaiedy Nor, Andrew P. Smith

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Background: Training is essential to develop individuals’ expertise to meet current and future job demands and to improve work performance. At the same time, individuals’ well-being is crucial to ensure that they can fully and positively carry out their daily duties. In addition to the studies that have examined what constitutes well-being and the factors behind it, many researchers have investigated the predictors of training effectiveness and transfer of training. However, there has been very little integration between them. This study was an attempt to bridge the gap between training effectiveness predictors and well-being. Purpose: This research paper aimed to investigate the association between well-being among employees and psychosocial characteristics, together with training variables. Training variables consist of motivation to learn; learning; implementation intention; and cognitive dissonance. Methodology: In total, 210 workers who had undergone various training programs completed an online survey measuring various psychosocial characteristics, four training variables, and level of well-being. Findings: The results showed that certain types of positive psychosocial characteristics (e.g., positive personality, positive work behaviors, positive work and resources) predict motivation to learn, learning and implementation intention. Meanwhile, negative psychosocial characteristics (e.g. negative work demands and resources, negative coping) predict cognitive dissonance. Also, all the training variables had a moderate to high correlation with well-being. However, after controlling other variables (age, gender, education and psychosocial characteristics), none of the training variables predicted well-being. Self-determination theory, cognitive dissonance theory, and the DRIVE model were used to explain these findings. Conclusion: As there is limited research on the integration of training variables with well-being, this study gives a new perspective in the field of both training and well-being. Further investigations are needed to examine the relationships between them.

Keywords: cognitive dissonance, implementation intention, learning, motivation to learn, psychosocial characteristics, well-being

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Authors: Jimoh Olumide Yusuf

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Various factors have continued to bedevil the effective teaching and learning of English Language in Nigeria and prominent among these factors are learners’ characteristics. Unfortunately, these particular factors seem to have recorded paucity of research efforts by scholars and the problem of lack of proficiency in the target language continues to linger. This study therefore investigates the relationship between specific learners’ characteristics and effective teaching of English as a Second Language (ESL) in senior secondary schools in Nigeria. To this end, Self-Determination, and Integrative Motivation Theories were applied to investigate motivation, language learning, learners’ characteristics and its relationship to language proficiency. A survey of 500 students and 100 English Language teachers across 20 schools was conducted. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the data and findings revealed that; specific learners’ characteristics such as learners’ age, learning style and motivation significantly determine the performance of students in English Language. Specifically, students with appropriate school age, visual learning style and intrinsic motivation, demonstrated English Language proficiency; as they performed better than students with extrinsic motivation, audio and kinaesthetic learning styles. Moreover, teachers related factors such as teaching experience; teaching strategies and teachers’ extrinsic motivation also emerged as essential correlates of effective language teaching. The findings conclude that learning characteristics are significant factors that should be considered by the teachers and education planners for adequate, sequential and effective implementation of the ESL curriculum in Nigeria.

Keywords: senior secondary school, English as a second language, intrinsic motivation, Kinaesthetic learning style

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Authors: K. S. Agrawal

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The performance of jet ejector was studied in detail by different authors. Several authors have studied mass transfer characteristics like interfacial area, mass transfer coefficients etc. In this paper, we have made an attempt to develop PDE model by considering bubble properties and apply Lattice-Boltzmann technique for PDE model. We may present the results for the interfacial area which we have obtained from our numerical simulation. Later the results are compared with previous work.

Keywords: jet ejector, mass transfer characteristics, numerical simulation, Lattice-Boltzmann technique

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Authors: Jhe-Hao Huang, Kun-Da Wu, Wei-Cheng Shih, Jui-Pin Hung

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This study presented the investigation on the dynamic characteristics of a spindle tool system by experimental and finite element modeling approaches. As well known facts, the machining stability is greatly determined by the dynamic characteristics of the spindle tool system. Therefore, understanding the factors affecting dynamic behavior of a spindle tooling system is a prerequisite in dominating the final machining performance of machine tool system. To this purpose, a physical spindle unit was employed to assess the dynamic characteristics by vibration tests. Then, a three-dimensional finite element model of a high-speed spindle system integrated with tool holder was created to simulate the dynamic behaviors. For modeling the angular contact bearings, a series of spring elements were introduced between the inner and outer rings. The spring constant can be represented by the contact stiffness of the rolling bearing based on Hertz theory. The interface characteristic between spindle nose and tool holder taper can be quantified from the comparison of the measurements and predictions. According to the results obtained from experiments and finite element predictions, the vibration behavior of the spindle is dominated by the bending deformation of the spindle shaft in different modes, which is further determined by the stiffness of the bearings in spindle housing. Also, the spindle unit with tool holder shows a different dynamic behavior from that of spindle without tool holder. This indicates the interface property between tool holder and spindle nose plays an dominance on the dynamic characteristics the spindle tool system. Overall, the dynamic behaviors the spindle with and without tool holder can be successfully investigated through the finite element model proposed in this study. The prediction accuracy is determined by the modeling of the rolling interface of ball bearings in spindles and the interface characteristics between tool holder and spindle nose. Besides, identifications of the interface characteristics of a ball bearing and spindle tool holder are important for the refinement of the spindle tooling system to achieve the optimum machining performance.

Keywords: contact stiffness, dynamic characteristics, spindle, tool holder interface

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Authors: S. Niamkaeo, O. Robert, O. Chaowalit

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In this investigation, we focus on discovering spatial relationship of drug smuggling along the northern border of Thailand. Thailand is no longer a drug production site, but Thailand is still one of the major drug trafficking hubs due to its topographic characteristics facilitating drug smuggling from neighboring countries. Our study areas cover three districts (Mae-jan, Mae-fahluang, and Mae-sai) in Chiangrai city and four districts (Chiangdao, Mae-eye, Chaiprakarn, and Wienghang) in Chiangmai city where drug smuggling of methamphetamine crystal and amphetamine occurs mostly. The data on drug smuggling incidents from 2011 to 2017 was collected from several national and local published news. Geo-spatial drug smuggling database was prepared. Decision tree algorithm was applied in order to discover the spatial relationship of factors related to drug smuggling, which was converted into rules using rule-based system. The factors including land use type, smuggling route, season and distance within 500 meters from check points were found that they were related to drug smuggling in terms of rules-based relationship. It was illustrated that drug smuggling was occurred mostly in forest area in winter. Drug smuggling exhibited was discovered mainly along topographic road where check points were not reachable. This spatial relationship of drug smuggling could support the Thai Office of Narcotics Control Board in surveillance drug smuggling.

Keywords: decision tree, drug smuggling, Geographic Information System, GIS knowledge discovery, rule-based system

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Authors: Abdelaziz Rabhi, Mohamed Amrani, Abderrazek Ziane, Nabil Belkadi, Abdelraouf Hocini

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In this paper, a bedimensional simulation program of the electric characteristics of reverse biased lateral polysilicon PIN diode is presented. In this case we have numerically solved the system of partial differential equations formed by Poisson's equation and both continuity equations that take into account the effect of impact ionization. Therefore we will obtain the current-voltage characteristics (I-V) of the reverse-biased structure which may include the effect of breakdown.The geometrical model assumes that the polysilicon layer is composed by a succession of defined mean grain size crystallites, separated by lateral grain boundaries which are parallel to the metallurgic junction.

Keywords: breakdown, polycrystalline silicon, PIN, grain, impact ionization

Procedia PDF Downloads 381

Authors: S. Yessengabulov, A. Uyzbayeva

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Residential buildings fund of Kazakhstan was built in the Soviet time about 35-60 years ago without considering energy efficiency measures. Currently, most of these buildings are in a rundown condition and fail to meet the minimum of hygienic, sanitary and comfortable living requirements. The paper aims to examine the reports of recent building energy survey activities in the country and provide a possible solution for retrofitting existing housing stock built before 1989 which could be applicable for building envelope in cold climate. Methodology also includes two-dimensional modeling of possible practical solutions and further recommendations.

Keywords: energy audit, energy efficient buildings in Kazakhstan, retrofit, two-dimensional conduction heat transfer analysis

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Authors: Dammak Saida, Mbarek Sonia

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This paper aims to examine the impact of public interest commitment, the attitude towards independence enforcement, and organizational ethical culture on auditors' ethical behavior. It also tests the moderating effect of gender diversity on these relationships. The sample consisted of 100 Tunisian chartered accountants. An online survey was used to collect the data. Data analysis techniques used to test hypotheses The findings of this study provide practical implications for accounting professionals, regulators, and audit firms as they help understand auditors' beliefs and behaviors, which implies more effective mechanisms for improving their ethical values.

Keywords: public interest, independence, organizational culture, professional behavior, Tunisian auditors

Procedia PDF Downloads 74

Authors: Ferit Çakıcı, M. Kemal Leblebicioğlu

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In this study, characteristics and flight test analysis of a fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with hover capability is analyzed. The base platform is chosen as a conventional airplane with throttle, ailerons, elevator and rudder control surfaces, that inherently allows level flight. Then this aircraft is mechanically modified by the integration of vertical propellers as in multi rotors in order to provide hover capability. The aircraft is modeled using basic aerodynamical principles and linear models are constructed utilizing small perturbation theory for trim conditions. Flight characteristics are analyzed by benefiting from linear control theory’s state space approach. Distinctive features of the aircraft are discussed based on analysis results with comparison to conventional aircraft platform types. A hybrid control system is proposed in order to reveal unique flight characteristics. The main approach includes design of different controllers for different modes of operation and a hand-over logic that makes flight in an enlarged flight envelope viable. Simulation tests are performed on mathematical models that verify asserted algorithms. Flight tests conducted in real world revealed the applicability of the proposed methods in exploiting fixed-wing and rotary wing characteristics of the aircraft, which provide agility, survivability and functionality.

Keywords: flight test, flight characteristics, hybrid aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicle

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Authors: Tosin Deborah Akanbi

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The Building Information Modeling Execution Plan (BEP) is a document that manifests the specifications for the adoption and execution of building information modeling in the construction sector in an organized manner so as to attain the listed goals. In this regard, the study examined the barriers to the adoption of building information modeling, evaluated the effect of building information modeling adoption characteristics on the key elements of a building information modeling execution plan and developed a strategic framework for a BEP in the Lagos State construction industry. Data were gathered through a questionnaire survey with 332 construction professionals in the study area. Three online structured interviews were conducted to support and validate the findings of the quantitative analysis. The results showed the significant relationships and connections between the variables in the framework: BIM usage and model quality control (aBIMskill -> dMQ, Beta = 0.121, T statistics = 1.829), BIM adoption characteristics and information exchange (bBIM_CH -> dIE, Beta = 0.128, T statistics = 1.727), BIM adoption characteristics and process design (bBIM_CH -> dPD, Beta = 0.170, T statistics = 2.754), BIM adoption characteristics and roles and responsibilities (bBIM_CH -> dRR, Beta = 0.131, T statistics = 2.181), interest BIM barriers and BIM adoption characteristics (cBBIM_INT -> bBIM_CH, Beta = 0.137, T statistics = 2.309), legal BIM barriers and BIM adoption characteristics (cBBIM_LEG -> bBIM_CH, Beta = 0.168, T statistics = 2.818), professional BIM barriers and BIM adoption characteristics (cBBIM_PRO -> bBIM_CH, Beta = 0.152, T statistics = 2.645). The results also revealed that seven final themes were generated, namely: model structure and process design, BIM information exchange and collaboration procedures, project goals and deliverables, project model quality control, roles and responsibilities, reflect Lagos state construction industry and validity of the BEP framework. Thus, there is a need for the policy makers to direct interventions to promote, encourage and support the understanding and adoption of BIM by emphasizing the various benefits of using the technology in the Lagos state construction industry.

Keywords: building information modelling execution plan, BIM adoption characteristics, BEP framework, construction industry

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Authors: Iva Buchberger, Vesna Kovač

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Global education policy trends and recommendations underline the importance of (distributive) school leadership as a school effectiveness key factor. In this context, the broader aim of this research (supported by the Croatian Science Foundation) is to identify school leadership characteristics in Croatian schools and to examine the correlation between school leadership and school effectiveness. The aim of the proposed conference paper is to focus on the school leadership characteristics which are additionally explained with school leadership facilitators that contribute to (distributive) school leadership development. The aforementioned school leadership characteristics include the following dimensions: (a) participation in the process of making different types of decisions, (b) influence in the decision making process, (c) social interactions between different stakeholders in the decision making process in schools. Further, the school leadership facilitators are categorized as follows: (a) principal’s activities (such as providing support to different stakeholders and developing mutual trust among them), (b) stakeholders’ characteristics (such as developed stakeholders’ interest and competence to participate in decision-making process), (c) organizational and material resources (such as school material conditions, the necessary information and time as resources for making decisions). The data were collected by a constructed and validated questionnaire for examining the school leadership characteristics and facilitators from teachers’ perspective. The main population in this study consists of all primary schools in Croatia while the sample is comprised of 100 primary schools, selected by random sampling. Furthermore, the sample of teachers was selected by an additional procedure taking into consideration the independent variables of sex, work experience, etc. Data processing was performed by standard statistical methods of descriptive and inferential statistics. Statistical program IBM SPSS 20.0 was used for data processing. The results of this study show that there is a (positive) correlation between school leadership characteristics and school leadership facilitators. Specifically, it is noteworthy to mention that all the dimensions of school leadership characteristics are in positive correlation with the categories of school leadership facilitators. These results are indicative for the education policy creators who should ensure positive and supportive environment for the school leadership development including the development of school leadership characteristics and school leadership facilitators.

Keywords: distributive school leadership, school effectiveness , school leadership characteristics, school leadership facilitators

Procedia PDF Downloads 249

Authors: Cristina Bahón Arnaiz

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Many Asian languages, such as Korean and Japanese, are well-known for their wide use of sound symbolic words or ideophones. This is a very particular characteristic which enriches its lexicon hugely. Ideophones are a class of sound symbolic words that utilize sound symbolism to express aspects, states, emotions, or conditions that can be experienced through the senses, such as shape, color, smell, action or movement. Ideophones have very particular characteristics in terms of sound symbolism and morphology, which distinguish them from other words. The phonological characteristics of ideophones are vowel ablaut or vowel gradation and consonant mutation. In the case of Korean, there are light vowels and dark vowels. Depending on the type of vowel that is used, the meaning will slightly change. Consonant mutation, also known as consonant ablaut, contributes to the level of intensity, emphasis, and volume of an expression. In addition to these phonological characteristics, there is one main morphological singularity, which is reduplication and it carries the meaning of continuity, repetition, intensity, emphasis, and plurality. All these characteristics play an important role in both linguistics and literature as they enhance the meaning of what is trying to be expressed with incredible semantic detail, expressiveness, and rhythm. The following study will analyze the ideophones used in a single paragraph of a Korean novel, which add incredible yet subtle detail to the meaning of the words, and advance the expressiveness and rhythm of the text. The results from analyzing one paragraph from a novel, after presenting the phonological and morphological characteristics of Korean ideophones, will evidence the important role that ideophones play in literature. 

Keywords: ideophones, mimetic words, phonomimes, phenomimes, psychomimes, sound symbolism

Procedia PDF Downloads 149