Search results for: feedback amplifiers

Authors: Ali Amin

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This paper describes a flipped learning initiative which was trialed in the delivery of the course: structural analysis and modelling. A short series of interactive videos were developed, which introduced the key concepts of each topic. The purpose of the videos was to introduce concepts and give the students more time to develop their thoughts prior to the lecture. This allowed more time for face to face engagement during the lecture. As part of the initial study, videos were developed for half the topics covered. The videos included a short summary of the key concepts ( < 10 mins each) as well as fully worked-out examples (~30mins each). Qualitative feedback was attained from the students. On a scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree, students were rate statements such as 'The pre-class videos assisted your learning experience', 'I felt I could appreciate the content of the lecture more by watching the videos prior to class'. As a result of the pre-class engagement, the students formed more specific and targeted questions during class, and this generated greater comprehension of the material. The students also scored, on average, higher marks in questions pertaining to topics which had videos assigned to them.

Keywords: flipped learning, structural analysis, pre-class videos, engineering education

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Authors: Vasudeva Murthy Challakere Ramaswamy

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Background: Conventionally forensic pathology is learnt through autopsy demonstrations which carry various limitations such as unavailability of cases in the mortuary, medico-legal implication and infection. Over the years forensic pathology and science has undergone significant evolution in this digital world. Forensic imaging is a technology which can be effectively utilized for overcoming the current limitations in the undergraduate learning of forensic curriculum. Materials and methods: demonstration of forensic imaging was done using a novel technology of autopsy which has been recently introduced across the globe. Three sessions were conducted in international medical university for a total of 196 medical students. The innovative educational tool was evacuated by using quantitative questionnaire with the scoring scales between 1 to 10. Results: The mean score for acceptance of new tool was 82% and about 74% of the students recommended incorporation of the forensic imaging in the regular curriculum. 82% of students were keen on collaborative research and taking further training courses in forensic imaging. Conclusion: forensic imaging can be an effective tool and also a suitable alternative for teaching undergraduate students. This feedback also supports the fact that students favour the use of contemporary technologies in learning medicine.

Keywords: forensic imaging, forensic pathology, medical students, learning tool

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Authors: Sonja Giese, Tess N. Peacock

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South African based Innovation Edge is experimenting with technology to drive positive behavior change, enable data-driven decision making, and scale quality early years services. This paper uses five case studies to illustrate how technology can be used in resource-constrained environments to first, encourage parenting practices that build early language development (using a stage-based mobile messaging pilot, ChildConnect), secondly, to improve the quality of ECD programs (using a mobile application, CareUp), thirdly, how to affordably scale services for the early detection of visual and hearing impairments (using a mobile tool, HearX), fourthly, how to build a transparent and accountable system for the registration and funding of ECD (using a blockchain enabled platform, Amply), and finally enable rapid data collection and feedback to facilitate quality enhancement of programs at scale (the Early Learning Outcomes Measure). ChildConnect and CareUp were both developed using a design based iterative research approach. The usage and uptake of ChildConnect and CareUp was evaluated with qualitative and quantitative methods. Actual child outcomes were not measured in the initial pilots. Although parents who used and engaged on either platform felt more supported and informed, parent engagement and usage remains a challenge. This is contrast to ECD practitioners whose usage and knowledge with CareUp showed both sustained engagement and knowledge improvement. HearX is an easy-to-use tool to identify hearing loss and visual impairment. The tool was tested with 10000 children in an informal settlement. The feasibility of cost-effectively decentralising screening services was demonstrated. Practical and financial barriers remain with respect to parental consent and for successful referrals. Amply uses mobile and blockchain technology to increase impact and accountability of public services. In the pilot project, Amply is being used to replace an existing paper-based system to register children for a government-funded pre-school subsidy in South Africa. Early Learning Outcomes Measure defines what it means for a child to be developmentally ‘on track’ at aged 50-69 months. ELOM administration is enabled via a tablet which allows for easy and accurate data collection, transfer, analysis, and feedback. ELOM is being used extensively to drive quality enhancement of ECD programs across multiple modalities. The nature of ECD services in South Africa is that they are in large part provided by disconnected private individuals or Non-Governmental Organizations (in contrast to basic education which is publicly provided by the government). It is a disparate sector which means that scaling successful interventions is that much harder. All five interventions show the potential of technology to support and enhance a range of ECD services, but pathways to scale are still being tested.

Keywords: assessment, behavior change, communication, data, disabilities, mobile, scale, technology, quality

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Authors: Nan Ding, Motoki Shino, Nobuyasu Tomokuni, Genki Murata

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The wheelchair is the major means of transport for physically disabled people. However, it cannot overcome architectural barriers such as curbs and stairs. In this paper, the authors proposed a method to avoid falling down of a wheeled inverted pendulum type robotic wheelchair for climbing stairs. The problem of this system is that the feedback gain of the wheels cannot be set high due to modeling errors and gear backlash, which results in the movement of wheels. Therefore, the wheels slide down the stairs or collide with the side of the stairs, and finally the wheelchair falls down. To avoid falling down, the authors proposed a slider control strategy based on skyhook model in order to decrease the movement of wheels, and a rotary link control strategy based on the staircase dimensions in order to avoid collision or slide down. The effectiveness of the proposed fall avoidance control strategy was validated by ODE simulations and the prototype wheelchair.

Keywords: EPW, fall avoidance control, skyhook, wheeled inverted pendulum

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Authors: Deepak Choudhary

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COEP-Microgrid, a project by the students of College of Engineering Pune aims at establishing a micro grid in the college campus serving as a living laboratory for research and development of novel grid technologies. Proposed micro grid has an AC-bus and DC-bus, interconnected together with a tie line DC-AC converter. In grid-connected mode AC bus of microgrid is synchronized with utility grid. Synchronization with utility grid requires grid and AC bus to have synchronism in frequency, phase sequence and voltage. Power flow requires phase difference between grid and AC bus. Control System is required to effectively regulate power flow between the grid and AC bus. The grid synchronizing control system is composed of frequency and phase control for regulated power flow and voltage control system for reduction of reactive power flow. The control system involves automatic active power flow control. It takes the feedback of DC link Capacitor and changes the power angle accordingly. Control system incorporating voltage, phase and power control was developed for grid-tie inverter. This paper discusses the design, simulation and practical implementation of control system described in various micro grid scenarios.

Keywords: microgrid, Grid-tie inverter, voltage control, automatic power control

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Authors: Ming Wen, Nasim Nezamoddini

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Sophisticated numerical simulations like finite element analysis (FEA) involve a complicated process from model setup to post-processing tasks that require replication of time-consuming steps. Utilizing FEA automation program simplifies the complexity of the involved steps while minimizing human errors in analysis set up, calculations, and results processing. One of the main challenges in designing FEA automation programs is to identify user requirements and link them to possible design alternatives. This paper presents a decision-making framework to design a Python based FEA automation program for modal analysis, frequency response analysis, and random vibration fatigue (RVF) analysis procedures. Analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) are applied to evaluate design alternatives considering the feedback received from experts and program users.

Keywords: finite element analysis, FEA, random vibration fatigue, process automation, analytical hierarchy process, AHP, TOPSIS, multiple-criteria decision-making, MCDM

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Authors: Noor M. Abdulfattah, Ahmed M. Khalafallah, Nabil A. Kartam

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Despite the evident benefits of building information modeling (BIM) to the construction industry, it faces significant implementation challenges in the State of Kuwait. This study investigates the awareness of construction stakeholders of BIM implementation challenges, and identifies various solutions to overcome these challenges. Specifically, the main objectives of this study are to: (1) characterize the barriers that deter utilization of BIM, (2) examine the awareness of engineers, architects, and construction stakeholders of these barriers, and (3) identify practical solutions to facilitate BIM utilization. A questionnaire survey was designed to collect data on the aforementioned objectives from local companies and senior BIM experts. It was found that engineers are highly aware of BIM implementation barriers. In addition, it was concluded from the questionnaire that the biggest barrier is the lack of BIM training. Based on expert feedback, the study concluded with a number of recommendations on how to overcome the barriers of BIM utilization. This should prove useful to the construction industry stakeholders and can lead to significant changes to design and construction practices.

Keywords: building information modeling (BIM), construction, information technology, challenges

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Authors: Alexander Norbach

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The script in this paper describes the use of advanced simulation environment using electronic systems (Microcontroller, Operational Amplifiers, and FPGA). The simulation may be used for all dynamic systems with the diffusion and the ionisation behaviour also. By additionally required observer structure, the system works with parallel real-time simulation based on diffusion model and the state-space representation for other dynamics. The proposed deposited model may be used for electrodynamic effects, including ionising effects and eddy current distribution also. With the script and proposed method, it is possible to calculate the spatial distribution of the electromagnetic fields in real-time. For further purpose, the spatial temperature distribution may be used also. With upon system, the uncertainties, unknown initial states and disturbances may be determined. This provides the estimation of the more precise system states for the required system, and additionally, the estimation of the ionising disturbances that occur due to radiation effects. The results have shown that a system can be also developed and adopted specifically for space systems with the real-time calculation of the radiation effects only. Electronic systems can take damage caused by impacts with charged particle flux in space or radiation environment. In order to be able to react to these processes, it must be calculated within a shorter time that ionising radiation and dose is present. All available sensors shall be used to observe the spatial distributions. By measured value of size and known location of the sensors, the entire distribution can be calculated retroactively or more accurately. With the formation, the type of ionisation and the direct effect to the systems and thus possible prevent processes can be activated up to the shutdown. The results show possibilities to perform more qualitative and faster simulations independent of kind of systems space-systems and radiation environment also. The paper gives additionally an overview of the diffusion effects and their mechanisms. For the modelling and derivation of equations, the extended current equation is used. The size K represents the proposed charge density drifting vector. The extended diffusion equation was derived and shows the quantising character and has similar law like the Klein-Gordon equation. These kinds of PDE's (Partial Differential Equations) are analytically solvable by giving initial distribution conditions (Cauchy problem) and boundary conditions (Dirichlet boundary condition). For a simpler structure, a transfer function for B- and E- fields was analytically calculated. With known discretised responses g₁(k·Ts) and g₂(k·Ts), the electric current or voltage may be calculated using a convolution; g₁ is the direct function and g₂ is a recursive function. The analytical results are good enough for calculation of fields with diffusion effects. Within the scope of this work, a proposed model of the consideration of the electromagnetic diffusion effects of arbitrary current 'waveforms' has been developed. The advantage of the proposed calculation of diffusion is the real-time capability, which is not really possible with the FEM programs available today. It makes sense in the further course of research to use these methods and to investigate them thoroughly.

Keywords: advanced observer, electrodynamics, systems, diffusion, partial differential equations, solver

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Authors: Ciaran Friel, Jerry Suls, Patrick Robles, Frank Vicari, Joan Duer-Hefele, Karina W. Davidson

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Physical activity guidelines focus on increasing moderate intensity activity for older adults, but adherence to recommendations remains low. This is despite the fact that scientific evidence supports that any increase in physical activity is positively correlated with health benefits. Behavior change techniques (BCTs) have demonstrated effectiveness in reducing sedentary behavior and promoting physical activity. This pilot study uses a Personalized Trials (N-of-1) design to evaluate the efficacy of using four BCTs to promote an increase in low-intensity physical activity (2,000 steps of walking per day) in adults aged 45-75 years old. The 4 BCTs tested were goal setting, action planning, feedback, and self-monitoring. BCTs were tested in random order and delivered by text message prompts requiring participant response. The study recruited health system employees in the target age range, without mobility restrictions and demonstrating interest in increasing their daily activity by a minimum of 2,000 steps per day for a minimum of five days per week. Participants were sent a Fitbit Charge 4 fitness tracker with an established study account and password. Participants were recommended to wear the Fitbit device 24/7, but were required to wear it for a minimum of ten hours per day. Baseline physical activity was measured by the Fitbit for two weeks. Participants then engaged with a clinical research coordinator to review comprehension of the text message content and required actions for each of the BCTs to be tested. Participants then selected a consistent daily time in which they would receive their text message prompt. In the 8 week intervention phase of the study, participants received each of the four BCTs, in random order, for a two week period. Text message prompts were delivered daily at a time selected by the participant. All prompts required an interactive response from participants and may have included recording their detailed plan for walking or daily step goal (action planning, goal setting). Additionally, participants may have been directed to a study dashboard to view their step counts or compare themselves with peers (self-monitoring, feedback). At the end of each two week testing interval, participants were asked to complete the Self-Efficacy for Walking Scale (SEW_Dur), a validated measure that assesses the participant’s confidence in walking incremental distances and a survey measuring their satisfaction with the individual BCT that they tested. At the end of their trial, participants received a personalized summary of their step data in response to each individual BCT. Analysis will examine the novel individual-level heterogeneity of treatment effect made possible by N-of-1 design, and pool results across participants to efficiently estimate the overall efficacy of the selected behavioral change techniques in increasing low-intensity walking by 2,000 steps, 5 days per week. Self-efficacy will be explored as the likely mechanism of action prompting behavior change. This study will inform the providers and demonstrate the feasibility of N-of-1 study design to effectively promote physical activity as a component of healthy aging.

Keywords: aging, exercise, habit, walking

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Authors: Ruwan Gunawardane

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Second language teaching and learning is a complex process in which various factors are identified as having a negative impact on the competency in English among undergraduates of Sri Lanka. One such issue is the lack of intrinsic motivation among them to learn English despite the fact that they all know the importance of English. This study attempted to ascertain how the intrinsic motivation of undergraduates to learn English can be improved through reading out of curiosity. Humans are curious by nature, and cognitive psychology says that curiosity facilitates learning, memory, and motivation. The researcher carried out this study during the closure of universities due to the outbreak of the coronavirus through ‘Online Reading Café’, an online reading programme introduced by himself. He invited 1166 students of the Faculty of Science, University of Ruhuna, to read 50 articles taken from CNN and the BBC and posted at least two to three articles on the LMS of the faculty almost every day over a period of 23 days. The themes of the articles were based on the universe, exploration of planets, scientific experiments, evolution, etc., and the students were encouraged to collect as many words, phrases, and sentence structures as possible while reading and to form meaningful sentences using them. The data obtained through the students’ feedback was qualitatively analyzed. It was found that these undergraduates were interested in reading something out of curiosity, due to which intrinsic motivation is enhanced, and it facilitates competence in L2.

Keywords: English, competence, reading, curiosity

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Authors: Azeddine Ghodbane, David Bensoussan, Maher Hammami

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An innovative approach for controlling unstable and invertible systems has demonstrated superior performance compared to conventional controllers. It has been successfully applied to a levitation system and drone control. Simulations have yielded satisfactory performances when applied to a satellite antenna controller. This design method, based on sensitivity analysis, has also been extended to handle multivariable unstable and invertible systems that exhibit dominant diagonal characteristics at high frequencies, enabling decentralized control. Furthermore, this control method has been expanded to the realm of adaptive control. In this study, we introduce an alternative adaptive architecture that enhances both time and frequency performance, helpfully mitigating the effects of disturbances from the input plant and external disturbances affecting the output. To facilitate superior performance in both the time and frequency domains, we have developed user-friendly interactive design methods using the GeoGebra platform.

Keywords: control theory, decentralized control, sensitivity theory, input-output stability theory, robust multivariable feedback control design

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Authors: Poom Thiparapkul, Tanat Jiravansirikul, Pakpoom Thongsari

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This study explores the design of electric vehicle (EV) dashboards with a focus on user interaction. Findings from a Thai sample reveal a preference for physical buttons over touch interfaces due to their immediate feedback. Touchscreens lack this assurance, leading to potential uncertainty. Users' smartphone experiences create a learning curve that doesn't translate well to in-car touch systems. Gender-wise, females exhibit slightly longer decision times. Designing EV dashboards should consider these factors, prioritizing user experience while avoiding overreliance on smartphone principles. A successful example is Subaru XV's design, which calculates screen angles and button positions for targeted users. In summary, EV dashboards should be intuitive, minimize touch dependency, and accommodate user habits. Balancing modernity with functionality can enhance driving experiences while ensuring safety. A user-centered approach, acknowledging gender differences, will yield efficient and safe driving environments.

Keywords: user experience design, user experience, electric vehicle, dashboard design, Thailand driver.

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Authors: Iván García-Magariño, Javier Bravo-Agapito, Marta López-Fernández

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Online judges have proven their utility in partial auto-evaluation of programming short exercises in the last decades. UnitJudge online judge has the advantage of facilitating the evaluation of separate units to provide more segregate and meaningful feedback to students in complex exercises and practices. This paper discusses the use of UnitUdge in advanced Java object-oriented programming exercises and web development practices. This later usage has been proposed by means of the Selenium Java library and classes to provide the web address. Consequently, UnitJudge is an online judge system that can be applied in several subjects, and therefore, many other students would take advantage of self-testing their exercises. This paper presents the experiments with a Java programming exercise for learning Java object-oriented classes with a generic type. Considering 10 students who voluntarily used UnitJudge, 80% successfully learned this concept, passing the judge exercise with correct results.

Keywords: online judges, programming skills, computer science education, auto-evaluation

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Authors: Giulio Mangano, Alberto De Marco, Giovanni Zenezini

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The concept of City Logistics (CL) has emerged to improve the impacts of last mile freight distribution in urban areas. In this paper, a System Dynamics (SD) model exploring the dynamics of the diffusion of a ICT platform for CL management across different populations is proposed. For the development of the model two sources have been used. On the one hand, the major diffusion variables and feedback loops are derived from a literature review of existing diffusion models. On the other hand, the parameters are represented by the value propositions delivered by the platform as a response to some of the users’ needs. To extract the most important value propositions the Business Model Canvas approach has been used. Such approach in fact focuses on understanding how a company can create value for her target customers. These variables and parameters are thus translated into a SD diffusion model with three different populations namely municipalities, logistics service providers, and own account carriers. Results show that, the three populations under analysis fully adopt the platform within the simulation time frame, highlighting a strong demand by different stakeholders for CL projects aiming at carrying out more efficient urban logistics operations.

Keywords: city logistics, simulation, system dynamics, business model

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Authors: Motlatjo Ntatamala, Natasha Ravyse, Michael Laubsher

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As much as students are being assessed through reflective activities, it is important to examine and check if those very same activities really assist in influencing and shaping both their writing and critical thinking skills. The skills which students will acquire from the reflective activities will not only be beneficial for the present or immediate moment, but they will also carry them over to their 4th year of writing a mini dissertation and in future for those who would want to explore their post-graduate studies. Thus, the only way to source the reliable and raw feedback on whether students think the reflective activities help them think about their writing and critical thinking skills is to get a direct students’ perspective by analysing their submitted reflective activities. Writing a research proposal implies that critical thinking is a talent that will grow in a holistic manner, as evidenced by previous studies. However, no research has been conducted to investigate the impact of critical thinking on legal writing skills in the South African setting. This study seeks to examine the effectiveness of the reflective activities in 3rd years’ students’ writing and towards their critical thinking. The proposed paper aims to examine the effectiveness of the reflection activities as an encouragement and motivation to their both writing and thinking skills. The paper will make use of students’ activities as a means of data collection and the activities will thus be analysed.

Keywords: reflection activities, writing skills, critical thinking skills, reflective thinking

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Authors: Ngoc T. Bui

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The key issue for teachers of a modern foreign language is the creation of a pedagogic environment, and this means that an understanding of context is vital. A pedagogic environment addresses the following: time, feedback, relations with other people, curriculum integration, forms of knowledge, resources and control in the pedagogic relationship. In this light, the multiple case study of the implementation of a modern foreign language curriculum focuses on exploring Vietnamese contexts and participants’ perceptions of factors that may affect their implementation process in order to examine thoroughly how the communicative language teaching (CLT) curriculum is being implemented in second language classrooms. A mixed methods approach is utilized to investigate contextual and personal factors that may affect teachers’ implementation of curriculum and pedagogical reform in Vietnam. This project therefore has the capability to inform stakeholders of useful information and identify further changes and measures to solve potential problems to ensure the achievement of the curriculum goals. The expected outcomes may also lead to intercultural language teaching guidelines to support english as a foreign language (EFL) teachers with curriculum design, planning and how to create pedagogic environment to best implement it.

Keywords: communicative language teaching, context, curriculum implementation, modern foreign language, pedagogic environment

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Authors: Melissa C. Monney

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Employee morale is an area in which many companies invest millions of dollars, time and effort. Whether these are attributed in benefits or additional monetary compensation, each year, such companies understand that human capital is one of their greatest assets to driving production and revenue. However, with the ever-changing economy, such emphasis on work and production may be counterproductive to employee morale as employees attempt to achieve a healthy work-life balance. A flexible work schedule may be the solution to both companies’ attempt at increasing employee morale and productivity, while affording employees the opportunity to maintain a healthy work-life balance. The information presented in this review derives mostly from research articles, in which the research conducted by means of direct employee feedback through surveys, telephone or face-to-face interviews, or a collection of both, attempted to corroborate (in one way or another) previous research on the largely debated topic of schedule flexibility as the dynamics of economies and families have over the years. This review endeavors to provide a holistic view of schedule flexibility policies, implementation, and perceptions from research in various industries in different countries.

Keywords: flexible scheduling, perceived flexibility, employee morale, productivity

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Authors: Tien Nguyen

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The relationship between mentors and mentees in teaching practicum has received the attention of researchers and been widely investigated. Mentors’ authority and power have captured a large and growing body of the literature in the field of teaching practicum. This article revisits mentor-mentee relationship and shifts the focus to mentees’ agency in planning and delivering lessons, an area which has been under-researched. Drawing on Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development and Harré’s Positioning Theory, this qualitative study examines how mentees responded to mentors’ instructions in practicum. Interviews and classroom observations were conducted with 20 participants including both mentors and mentees across two English language teacher education programs in two different geographical locations in Vietnam. The result indicates that regardless of the similarities and/or differences of the programs, mentees’ agency varied in accordance with their identities in specific contexts. Specifically, mentees follow or resist to mentors’ feedback and instruction in revising their lesson plans and delivery these lessons, depending on their professional identities and institutional conditions. This study contributes to the importance of supporting the agency of mentees in teacher education.

Keywords: mentors, mentees, relationship, agency, professional identity, teacher education

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Authors: Beilei Xu, Wencheng Wu, Lei Lin, Rachel Melnyk, Ahmed Ghazi

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In operating rooms, excessive cognitive stress can impede the performance of a surgeon, while low engagement can lead to unavoidable mistakes due to complacency. As a consequence, there is a strong desire in the surgical community to be able to monitor and quantify the cognitive stress of a surgeon while performing surgical procedures. Quantitative cognitiveload-based feedback can also provide valuable insights during surgical training to optimize training efficiency and effectiveness. Various physiological measures have been evaluated for quantifying cognitive stress for different mental challenges. In this paper, we present a study using the cognitive stress measured by the task evoked pupillary response extracted from the time series eye-tracking measurements to predict task difficulties in a virtual reality based robotic surgery training environment. In particular, we proposed a differential-task-difficulty scale, utilized a comprehensive feature extraction approach, and implemented a multitask learning framework and compared the regression accuracy between the conventional single-task-based and three multitask approaches across subjects.

Keywords: surgical metric, task evoked pupillary response, multitask learning, TSFresh

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Authors: Peyman Sindareh Esfahani, Jeffery Kurt Pieper

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In this paper, the problem of robust model predictive control (MPC) for discrete-time linear systems in linear fractional transformation form with structured uncertainty and norm-bounded disturbance is investigated. The problem of minimization of the cost function for MPC design is converted to minimization of the worst case of the cost function. Then, this problem is reduced to minimization of an upper bound of the cost function subject to a terminal inequality satisfying the l₂-norm of the closed loop system. The characteristic of the linear fractional transformation system is taken into account, and by using some mathematical tools, the robust predictive controller design problem is turned into a linear matrix inequality minimization problem. Afterwards, a formulation which includes an integrator to improve the performance of the proposed robust model predictive controller in steady state condition is studied. The validity of the approaches is illustrated through a robust control benchmark problem.

Keywords: linear fractional transformation, linear matrix inequality, robust model predictive control, state feedback control

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Authors: Aqleem Fatimah

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The purpose of study was to find out the impact of teachers’ gender on students’ score achievement. Focusing on primary level’s teachers & students, a survey research was conducted by using convenient sampling technique. All the students of grade four (1500) and fifty-six teachers (equally divided by gender) from the 50 randomly selected coeducational schools from Lahore were taken as sample. The academic performance was operationalized using a t-test on standardized achievement tests of the students in language, science mathematics and social studies. In addition, all those gender based characteristics of teachers that count a lot in classroom interactions (taking Multi-grade classes, classroom strategies, feedback strategies and evaluation method) that influence students’ achievement were also analyzed by using a questionnaire and an observation schedule. The results of the study showed better academic achievement of students (girl &boy) of female teachers comparatively to the students of male teachers. Therefore, as the female teachers’ number lacks in Pakistan, the study suggests policy makers to seek guidelines to induct more specialized and professionally competent female teachers because their induction will prove highly beneficial for the betterment of students’ score achievement.

Keywords: gender, teacher, competency, score achievement

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Authors: Migena Ceyhan, Zeynep Orhan, Dimitrios Karras

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People in modern societies are continuously sharing their experiences, emotions, and thoughts in different areas of life. The information reaches almost everyone in real-time and can have an important impact in shaping people’s way of living. This phenomenon is very well recognized and advantageously used by the market representatives, trying to earn the most from this means. Given the abundance of information, people and organizations are looking for efficient tools that filter the countless data into important information, ready to analyze. This paper is a modest contribution in this field, describing the process of automatically classifying social media comments in the Turkish language into positive or negative. Once data is gathered and preprocessed, feature sets of selected single words or groups of words are build according to the characteristics of language used in the texts. These features are used later to train, and test a system according to different machine learning algorithms (Naïve Bayes, Sequential Minimal Optimization, J48, and Bayesian Linear Regression). The resultant high accuracies can be important feedback for decision-makers to improve the business strategies accordingly.

Keywords: feature selection, machine learning, natural language processing, sentiment analysis, social media reviews

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Authors: Enrique Barbieri

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The basic disease-spread model described by three states denoting the susceptible (S), infectious (I), and removed (recovered and deceased) (R) sub-groups of the total population N, or SIR model, has been considered. Heuristic mitigating action profiles of the pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical types may be developed in a control design setting for the purpose of reducing the transmission rate or improving the recovery rate parameters in the model. Even though the transmission and recovery rates are not control inputs in the traditional sense, a linear observer and feedback controller can be tuned to generate an asymptotic estimate of the transmission rate for a linearized, discrete-time version of the SIR model. Then, a set of mitigating actions is suggested to steer the basic reproduction number toward unity, in which case the disease does not spread, and the infected population state does not suffer from multiple waves. The special case of piecewise constant transmission rate is described and applied to a seventh-order SEIQRDP model, which segments the population into four additional states. The offline simulations in discrete time may be used to produce heuristic policies implemented by public health and government organizations.

Keywords: control of SIR, observer, SEIQRDP, disease spread

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Authors: N. D. Hiripitiya, H. V. H. De Soysa, H. S. U. Thrimavithana, B. R. Epitawala, K. A. D. D. Kuruppu, D. J. K. Lokupathirage

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This research was related to identify the reasons which lead for early wear and tear of aircraft tyres. Further this research focused to rectify those issues in tyres with some modifications. The aircraft tyres of Y12 aircraft was selected for the study as due to Y12 aircraft fly frequently. Self-structured questionnaire was prepared and it was distributed among Y12 aircraft technicians. Based on their feedback several issues were identified related to tyre wear and tear. One of the reasons was uneven tyre wearing. But it could rectify after interchanging the tyre sides after completion of 50 landings. Several modifications were done in order to rectify all the identified issues. Several devices were constructed in order to enhance the life time of the Y12 aircraft tyre. Mechanical properties were measured for the worn-out tyres. The properties were compared with the control tyre sample. It was found that there was an average increment of tensile strength by 38.14 % of control tyre, when compared with the worn-out tyres which were completed 50 number of landings. The suggested modifications are in the process of implementation. It is confident that above mentioned solutions will lead to increase the life span of tyres in Y12 aircraft.

Keywords: aircraft, devices, enhance life span, modifications for tyre wear

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Authors: M. Owlia, M. H. Azarsa, M. Khabbazan, A. Mirbagheri

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Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation exercises are a series of stretching techniques that are commonly used in rehabilitation and exercise therapy. Assessment of these exercises for true maneuvering requires extensive experience in this field and could not be down with patients themselves. In this paper, we developed software that uses Microsoft Kinect sensor, a spherical color marker, and real-time image processing methods to evaluate patient’s performance in generating true patterns of movements. The software also provides the patient with a visual feedback by showing his/her avatar in a Virtual Reality environment along with the correct path of moving hand, wrist and marker. Primary results during PNF exercise therapy of a patient in a room environment shows the ability of the system to identify any deviation of maneuvering path and direction of the hand from the one that has been performed by an expert physician.

Keywords: image processing, Microsoft Kinect, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, upper extremities assessment, virtual reality

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Authors: Sanu Muhammed C., Nihal Vadakkan, Sahil Athrij, Sasi Gopalan

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Currently, the content entertainment industry is dominated by mobile devices. As the trends slowly shift towards AR/VR applications, the user experience on these devices should be considered, and we are trying to improve user experience in VR. This paper proposes a survey-based solution to improve user experience in VR. By creating a VR environment where users can move a ball from one position to another using a remote controller and another VR environment where users can move a ball from one place to another using hand gestures/ By allowing a set of audience to use these two environments, we can get their feedback. There are two steps in this comparison, 1) Using Hand Gestures To Move Ball In VR Environment: Here, we create a VR environment where two baskets are there, and one ball will be there in a basket. Here users can transfer the ball to another basket using hand gestures. They will be able to move the ball using hand gestures. 2) Using Remote Control To Move Ball In VR Environment: Here, we create a VR environment where two baskets are there, and one ball will be there in a basket. Here users can transfer the ball to another basket using a remote control. They will be able to move the ball using a remote controller. The above two environments are given to users to experience, and their responses will be recorded to compare the user experience in the above two environments.

Keywords: virtual reality, user experience, hand gestures, remote control

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Authors: Zhi Liu, Xian Peng, Monika Domanska, Lingyun Kang, Sannyuya Liu

Abstract:

Massive Open education has become increasingly popular among worldwide learners. An increasing number of course reviews are being generated in Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform, which offers an interactive feedback channel for learners to express opinions and feelings in learning. These reviews typically contain subjective emotion and topic information towards the courses. However, it is time-consuming to artificially detect these opinions. In this paper, we propose an emotion-oriented topic detection model to automatically detect the students’ opinioned aspects in course reviews. The known overall emotion orientation and emotional words in each review are used to guide the joint probabilistic modeling of emotion and aspects in reviews. Through the experiment on real-life review data, it is verified that the distribution of course-emotion-aspect can be calculated to capture the most significant opinioned topics in each course unit. This proposed technique helps in conducting intelligent learning analytics for teachers to improve pedagogies and for developers to promote user experiences.

Keywords: Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), course reviews, topic model, emotion recognition, topical aspects

Procedia PDF Downloads 247

Authors: Morfaw Bernice Njinju

Abstract:

The contribution of exporting and small businesses to an economy cannot be overemphasized. However, small firms in developing economies are characterized by resource deficiencies, which hinders their exporting abilities. As a result, export promotion programs are designed by the government as external resources that small firms can access to overcome export barriers and improve their exporting. Nevertheless, doubts still exist as to whether firms are aware of these programs and the extent to which they are utilizing it. To analyse the level of awareness and usage of these programs, the questionnaire was developed from the review of the literature. A pilot study was conducted to determine the ease of completing the questionnaire by respondent before incorporating feedback to produce the final questionnaire. Data were collected from 200 small businesses in Cameroon in the manufacturing and agricultural sector through random sampling and analysed using regression analysis. The results indicated that different programs had different levels of awareness than others. Programs to provide training to improve product quality was found to have the highest level of awareness while those providing findings had low levels of awareness. Despite these different levels of awareness, usage was very low, as firms do not want to open up to government scrutiny of their business. Implications to policy, practice, and direction for further research are also discussed.

Keywords: export promotion programs, exporting, small businesses, Cameroon

Procedia PDF Downloads 88

Authors: Fouzia Shersad, Sabeena Salam

Abstract:

Introduction: Quality assurance cycles like RADAR, PDCA, ADRI are cycles of planning, implementation, assessment and improvement. These cycles are required when institutions apply for reaccreditation to accreditation bodies and for adoption of holistic models of institutional quality. Method of Study: The adoption of these cycles at the higher education institutions under the Dubai Medical University is studied to explore the feasibility and the benefits in institutions outcomes. After adequate faculty training, these steps were incorporated in all new activities and embedded in every new initiative and approach undertaken at unit and institutional levels. Conclusions: Improvement in student satisfaction rates and performance levels has been achieved. Wherever weaknesses or deficits have been identified, improvement strategies are implemented in a timely manner. The feedback has become an incentive for faculty members to implement new ideas. Implementation of these cycles for core processes at micro and macro levels have ensured that a systematic mechanism for corrective actions existed. This has led to increasing adoption of innovative initiatives. Another outcome was the recognition through national level awards for the overall institutions which have been certified by external reviewers.

Keywords: higher education, quality, accreditation, institutional improvement

Procedia PDF Downloads 359

Authors: Quangyen Tran, YeZhuang Tian, Chengfeng Li

Abstract:

Psychological contract violations may lead to damaging an organization through losing its potential employees; it is a very significant concept in understanding the employment relationships. The authors selected contents of psychological contract violation scale based on the nine areas of violation most relevant to managerial samples (High pay, training, job security, career development, pay based on performance, promotion, feedback, expertise and quality of co-workers and support with personal problems), using regression analysis, the degree of psychological contract violations was measured by an adaptation of a multiplicative scale with Cronbach’s alpha as a measure of reliability. Through the regression analysis, psychological contract violations was found have a positive impact on employees’ job satisfaction, the frequency of psychological contract violations was more intense among male employees particularly in terms of training, job security and pay based on performance. Job dissatisfaction will lead to a lowering of employee commitment in the job, enterprises in Hanoi, Vietnam should therefore offer lucrative jobs in terms of salary and other emoluments to their employees.

Keywords: psychological contract, psychological contract violation, job satisfaction, subordinate employees, employers’ obligation

Procedia PDF Downloads 307