Search results for: software development methodologies

Authors: M. Shah Alamgir, Jun Furuya, Shintaro Kobayashi, M. Abdus Salam

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Farmers’ environmental and economic situations are very diverse. In order to develop effective policies and technologies to improve farmers’ life standard, it is important to understand which factors induce the diversity of agricultural income. Analyze both primary and secondary data, this study applied descriptive, inferential statistical tools, and econometric techniques. From the study, farmers of Sylhet Division produce potato as one of the main cash crop with other seasonal crops. The total costs of potato production per hectare varied in different districts of Sylhet division in addition seed and hired labor cost has the biggest share of the full cost. To grasp the diversity of income, the study decomposes the variance of net income into different factors of potato production. Through this decomposition, seed cost is the important factors of income variability and it is the most important sector to induce total cost disparity for potato production. The result shows that 73% of net income variation is explained by gross income. It implies that potato yield or potato price (quality) or both vary widely among farmers. This finding is important of policymaking and technology development of agricultural farming in Bangladesh.

Keywords: agricultural income, seed, hired labor, technology development

Procedia PDF Downloads 418

Authors: Alieh Arasteh

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The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of parents and educators on the self-control of children in pre-primary schools in District 5 of Tehran. The method of this survey was a survey and post-correlation type. The statistical population of this study included all teachers and parents of children in preschool centers in the region. The 5th city of Tehran in 1397 was the number of kindergartens in 117 centers and the number of parents was 1872, the sample size of the parents was 320 and the sample size of the trainers was 76. The method of sampling in this study was randomized and clustered. The data gathering tool was Rosenbaum and Ronen (1992) self-control skills, a five-factor questionnaire NEO personality Costa and McCrae (1985) and a questionnaire on demographic characteristics, reliability using Cronbach's alpha, the data analysis was performed using the software spss24. The results of the research showed that the personality characteristics of parents, parents' socioeconomic status and personality traits of educators affect the self-control dimensions of pre-primary school children (P <0.05).

Keywords: self-control, pre-primary school, the effect of parents, couches

Procedia PDF Downloads 171

Authors: Jonas P. Reges, Jessyca A. Bessa, Auzuir R. Alexandria

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The research came up with the need of monitoring them of temperature and relative moisture in past work that enveloped the study of a greenhouse located in the Research and Extension Unit(UEPE). This research brought several unknowns that were resolved from bibliographical research. Based on the studies performed were found some monitoring methods, including the serial communication between the arduino and matlab which showed a great option due to the low cost. The project was conducted in two stages, the first, an algorithm was developed to the Arduino and Matlab, and second, the circuits were assembled and performed the monitoring tests the following variables: moisture, temperature, and distance. During testing it was possible to momentarily observe the change in the levels of monitored variables. The project showed satisfactory results, such as: real-time verification of the change of state variables, the low cost of acquisition of the prototype, possibility of easy change of programming for the execution of monitoring of other variables. Therefore, the project showed the possibility of monitoring through software and hardware that have easy programming and can be used in several areas. However, it is observed also the possibility of improving the project from a remote monitoring via Bluetooth or web server and through the control of monitored variables.

Keywords: automation, monitoring, programming, arduino, matlab

Procedia PDF Downloads 509

Authors: Endalew Jibat, Feyera Senbeta, Tesfaye Zeleke, Fitsum Hagos

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Institutions can play a key role in coordinating how natural resources are effectively used without over-exploitation. Institutions are the laws, policies, and organizational arrangements that permit, forbid or regulate human action. The aim of this study was to look into the roles of formal and informal institutions, as well as their interactions, in water resource governance in Ethiopia's Central Rift Valley (CRV), where water scarcity is a concern. Key informant interviews, group discussions, in depth-interview, and secondary data sources were used to generate relevant data. The study revealed that formal and informal institutions were involved in water resource governance in the study area. However, the influence of informal institutions on formal institutions or vice versa is trivial to change the action of water users. Lack of clear roles and responsibilities of actors, weak capacity and lack of meaningful decentralization and participation of key actors in policy development, lack of synergy and incongruence between formal and informal institutions, and absence of enforcement mechanisms including incentives are attributed to inefficient use of water resources in the CRV. Enhancing the interplay of formal and informal institutions in the water resource policy development and meaningful decentralization and key stakeholders' engagement is recommended for sustainable water use.

Keywords: institutions, governance, institutional interplay, water users

Procedia PDF Downloads 172

Authors: Andrey Makarov

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This article will focus on the development of antitrust policy in transition economies in the context of preventing explicit and tacit collusion. Experience of BRICS, CIS (Ukraine, Kazakhstan) and CEE countries (Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Estonia) in the creation of antitrust institutions was analyzed, including both legislation and enforcement practice. Most of these countries in the early 90th were forced to develop completely new legislation in the field of protection of competition and it is important to compare different ways of building antitrust institutions and policy results. The article proposes a special approach to evaluation of preventing collusion mechanisms. This approach takes into account such enforcement problems as: classification problems (tacit vs explicit collusion, vertical vs horizontal agreements), flexibility of prohibitions (the balance between “per se” vs “rule of reason” approaches de jure and in practice), design of sanctions, private enforcement challenge, leniency program mechanisms, the role of antitrust authorities etc. The analysis is conducted using both official data, published by competition authorities, and expert assessments. The paper will show how the integration process within the EU predetermined some aspects of the development of antitrust policy in CEE countries, including the trend of the use of "rule of reason" approach. Simultaneously was analyzed the experience of CEE countries in special mechanisms of government intervention. CIS countries in the development of antitrust policy followed more or less original ways, without such a great impact from the European Union, more attention will be given to Russian experience in this field, including the analysis of judicial decisions in antitrust cases. Main problems and challenges for transition economies in this field will be shown, including: Legal uncertainty problem; Problem of rigidity of prohibitions; Enforcement priorities of the regulator; Interaction of administrative and criminal law, limited effectiveness of criminal sanctions in the antitrust field; The effectiveness of leniency program design; Private enforcement challenge.

Keywords: collusion, antitrust policy, leniency program, transition economies, Russia, CEE

Procedia PDF Downloads 442

Authors: Nermine A. Harraz, Aliaa Abouali

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The retail stores put up for sale multiple items while the spaces in the backroom and display areas constitute a scarce resource. Availability, volume, and location of the product displayed in the showroom influence the customer’s demand. Managing these operations individually will result in sub-optimal overall retail store’s profit; therefore, a non-linear integer programming model (NLIP) is developed to determine the inventory replenishment and shelf space allocation decisions that together maximize the retailer’s profit under shelf space and backroom storage constraints taking into consideration that the demand rate is positively dependent on the amount and location of items displayed in the showroom. The developed model is solved using LINGO® software. The NLIP model is implemented in a real world case study in a large retail outlet providing a large variety of products. The proposed model is validated and shows logical results when using the experimental data collected from the market.

Keywords: retailing management, inventory replenishment, shelf space allocation, showroom, backroom

Procedia PDF Downloads 349

Authors: Richa Rai

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The purpose of this study is to analyze the role of the services sector in economic development of Indian economy, especially in the post reform period. Due to adoption of liberalization policy in developing economy like India, international transaction in services has been increased at a rapid pace which compensated to the current account of Balance of Payment which was in a pitiable condition. But this increased share of services in GDP is not commensurate with share in employment, which is a matter of great concern for Indian economy. Although the increased share of service in GDP indicates the advanced stage of growth of the economy, but this theory is not applicable in context of Indian economy completely. In the preliminary stage, this study finds a positive correlation between growth of services and export earnings and gross domestic product and this growth of services is not equal in terms of all aspects on Indian economy, and also all components of services has not been increased at an equal rate. This paper seeks to examine the impact of liberalization in post reform era on the growth of services in India. The analysis is done for the period of 1991 to 2013. Data has been collected from the secondary sources, especially from the website of Reserve Bank of India, World Trade Organization, and United Nation Conference on Trade and Development. The data has been analyzed with the help of appropriate statistical tools (Causality Relation and Group t-test).

Keywords: export earnings, GDP, gross domestic product, liberalization, services

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: H. Namazi, H. T. N. Kuan

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Brain activity can be measured by acquiring and analyzing EEG signals from an individual. In fact, the human brain response to external and internal stimuli is mapped in his EEG signals. During years some methods such as Fourier transform, wavelet transform, empirical mode decomposition, etc. have been used to analyze the EEG signals in order to find the effect of stimuli, especially external stimuli. But each of these methods has some weak points in analysis of EEG signals. For instance, Fourier transform and wavelet transform methods are linear signal analysis methods which are not good to be used for analysis of EEG signals as nonlinear signals. In this research we analyze the brain response to visual stimuli by extracting information in the form of various measures from EEG signals using a software developed by our research group. The used measures are Jeffrey’s measure, Fractal dimension and Hurst exponent. The results of these analyses are useful not only for fundamental understanding of brain response to visual stimuli but provide us with very good recommendations for clinical purposes.

Keywords: visual stimuli, brain response, EEG signal, fractal dimension, hurst exponent, Jeffrey’s measure

Procedia PDF Downloads 557

Authors: Xinge Liao, Francesc Xavier Roige Ventura, Dolores Sanchez Aguilera

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With the development of the Internet, the study of tourism behavior has rapidly expanded from the traditional physical market to the online market. Data on the Internet is characterized by dynamic changes, and new data appear all the time. In recent years the generation of a large volume of data was characterized, such as forums, blogs, and other sources, which have expanded over time and space, together they constitute large-scale Internet data, known as Big Data. This data of technological origin that derives from the use of devices and the activity of multiple users is becoming a source of great importance for the study of geography and the behavior of tourists. The study will focus on cultural heritage tourist practices in the context of Big Data. The research will focus on exploring the characteristics and behavior of Chinese tourists in relation to the cultural heritage of Catalonia. Geographical information, target image, perceptions in user-generated content will be studied through data analysis from Weibo -the largest social networks of blogs in China. Through the analysis of the behavior of heritage tourists in the Big Data environment, this study will understand the practices (activities, motivations, perceptions) of cultural tourists and then understand the needs and preferences of tourists in order to better guide the sustainable development of tourism in heritage sites.

Keywords: Barcelona, Big Data, Catalonia, cultural heritage, Chinese tourism market, tourists’ behavior

Procedia PDF Downloads 135

Authors: Ali Akber Jaffri, Asad Naseem, Javeria Khan, Zubair Hamza, Ishtiaq

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The purpose of this study is to determine safety stock, maximum inventory level, reordering point, and reordering quantity by rearranging lot sizes for supplier and customer in MRO (maintenance repair operations) warehouse of Engro Polymers & Chemicals. To achieve the aim, physical analysis method and excel commands were carried out to elicit the customer and supplier data provided by the company. Initially, we rearranged the current lot sizes and MOUs (measure of units) in SAP software. Due to change in lot sizes, we have to determine the new quantities for safety stock, maximum inventory, reordering point and reordering quantity as per company's demand. By proposed system, we saved extra cost in terms of reducing time of receiving from vendor and in issuance to customer, ease of material handling in MRO warehouse and also reduce human efforts.

Keywords: maintenance repair operation, maximum inventory, reorder quantity, safety stock

Procedia PDF Downloads 271

Authors: Kenichiro Hida, Shin-Ichi Kuribayashi

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In a conventional network, most network devices, such as routers, are dedicated devices that do not have much variation in capacity. In recent years, a new concept of network functions virtualisation (NFV) has come into use. The intention is to implement a variety of network functions with software on general-purpose servers and this allows the network operator to select their capacities and locations without any constraints. This paper focuses on the allocation of NFV-based routing functions which are one of critical network functions, and presents the virtual routing function allocation algorithm that minimizes the total power consumption. In addition, this study presents the useful allocation policy of virtual routing functions, based on an evaluation with a ladder-shaped network model. This policy takes the ratio of the power consumption of a routing function to that of a circuit and traffic distribution between areas into consideration. Furthermore, the present paper shows that there are cases where the use of NFV-based routing functions makes it possible to reduce the total power consumption dramatically, in comparison to a conventional network, in which it is not economically viable to distribute small-capacity routing functions.

Keywords: NFV, resource allocation, virtual routing function, minimum power consumption

Procedia PDF Downloads 338

Authors: Morteza Ghourchi, Meraj Jafari, Atena Soheilazizi

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Today, with the globalization of communications and the connection of countries within the framework of the global economy, free zones play the most important role as the engine of global economic development and globalization of countries. In this regard, corridors have a fundamental role in linking countries and free zones physically with each other. One of these corridors is the New Silk Road corridor (One Belt, One Road initiative), which is being built by China to connect with European countries. In connecting this corridor to European countries, Iran and Turkey are among the countries that play an important role in linking China to European countries through this corridor. The New Silk Road corridor, by connecting Iran’s free zones (Sarakhs and Maku) and Turkey’s free zones (Anatolia and Europe), can provide the best opportunity for expanding economic cooperation and regional development between Iran and Turkey. It can also provide economic links between Iran and Turkey with Central Asian countries and especially the port of Khorgos. On the other hand, it can expand Iran-Turkey economic relations more than ever before with Europe in a vast economic network. The research method was descriptive-analytical, using library resources, documents of Iranian free zones, and the Internet. In an interview with Fars News Agency, Mohammad Reza Kalaei, CEO of Sarakhs Free Zone, said that the main goal of Sarakhs Special Economic Zone is to connect Iran with the Middle East and create a transit corridor towards East Asian countries, including Turkey. Also, according to an interview with Hussein Gharousi, CEO of Maku Free Zone, the importance of this region is due to the fact that Maku Free Zone, due to its geographical location and its position on the China-Europe trade route, the East-West corridor, which is the closest point to the European Union through railway and transit routes, and also due to its proximity to Eurasian countries, is an ideal opportunity for industrial and technological companies. Creating a transit corridor towards East Asian countries, including Turkey, is one of the goals of this project Free zones between Iran and Turkey can sign an agreement within the framework of the New Silk Road to expand joint investments and economic cooperation towards regional convergence. The purpose of this research is to develop economic links between Iranian and Turkish free zones along the New Silk Road, which will lead to the expansion and development of regional cooperation between the two countries within the framework of neighboring policies. The findings of this research include the development of economic diplomacy between the Secretariat of the Supreme Council of Free Zones of Iran and the General Directorate of Free Zones of Turkey, the agreement to expand cooperation between the free zones of Sarakhs, Maku, Anatolia, and Europe, holding biennial conferences between Iranian free zones along the New Silk Road with Turkish free zones, creating a joint investment fund between Iran and Turkey in the field of developing free zones along the Silk Road, helping to attract tourism between Iranian and Turkish free zones located along the New Silk Road, improving transit infrastructure and transportation to better connect Iranian free zones to Turkish free zones, communicating with China, and creating joint collaborations between China’s dry ports and its free zones with Iranian and Turkish free zones.

Keywords: network economy, new silk road (one belt, one road initiative), free zones (Sarakhs, Maku, Anatolia, Europe), regional development, neighborhood policies

Procedia PDF Downloads 57

Authors: Tharsinithevy Kirupananthan, Thivahary Geretharan

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Since creation of agricultural enterprises going to reflect the micro and macro level development of Sri Lanka, it is vey important to study the entrepreneurial trends of Agricultural Undergraduates. Likert scale scoring method was used to assess the responses of involvement, Role model effect, aware of demands, confidence and willingness. 37.8% were strongly agreed to do full time business. The average score for to do agriculture businesses were between agree and strongly agree. The average scores for role model effects were less than agree. Average score for aware of needs of society was less than agree. 75.7% of them were able to identify the demands of the society. The demands identified were human capital, self sufficient domestic production, safe and nutritional foods. The confidence of having enough skills score was less than agree. 64.1% of them were owned special skills to carry out entrepreneurial activities. Such skills were possession of different human capitals management skills. The willingness responses scores were more than agree. 61.5% of them were discussed their business plan. Their dream plans were development of new food products, Quality planting materials, harmless method of cultivation and floricultural industry. Those were supported by government policies and other related organizations.

Keywords: agricultural undergraduates, entrepreneurial trends, likert scale Sri Lanka

Procedia PDF Downloads 387

Authors: Edwin Forero-Garcia, Jaime Vitola, Brayan Cardenas, Johan Casagua

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This research article presents the integration of electronic and computer systems, which developed an ultrasonic signal processing system that performs the capture, adaptation, and analog-digital conversion to later carry out its processing and visualization. The capture and adaptation of the signal were carried out from the design and implementation of an analog electronic system distributed in stages: 1. Coupling of impedances; 2. Analog filter; 3. Signal amplifier. After the signal conditioning was carried out, the ultrasonic information was digitized using a digital microcontroller to carry out its respective processing. The digital processing of the signals was carried out in MATLAB software for the elaboration of A-Scan, B and D-Scan types of ultrasonic images. Then, advanced processing was performed using the SAFT technique to improve the resolution of the Scan-B-type images. Thus, the information from the ultrasonic images was displayed in a user interface developed in .Net with Visual Studio. For the validation of the system, ultrasonic signals were acquired, and in this way, the non-invasive inspection of the structures was carried out and thus able to identify the existing pathologies in them.

Keywords: acquisition, signal processing, ultrasound, SAFT, HMI

Procedia PDF Downloads 101

Authors: A. Kourou, A. Ioakeimidou, V. Avramea

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Planning for natural disasters and emergencies is something every school or educational institution must consider, regardless of its size or location. Preparedness is the key to save lives if a disaster strikes. School disaster management mirrors individual and family disaster prevention, and wider community disaster prevention efforts. This paper presents the usage of E-PreS System as a helpful, managerial tool during the school earthquake drill, in order to support schools in developing effective disaster and emergency plans specific to their local needs. The project comes up with a holistic methodology using real-time evaluation involving different categories of actors, districts, steps and metrics. The main outcomes of E-PreS project are the development of E-PreS web platform that host the needed data of school emergency planning; the development of E-PreS System; the implementation of disaster drills using E-PreS System in educational premises and local schools; and the evaluation of E-PreS System. Taking into consideration that every disaster drill aims to test and valid school plan and procedures; clarify and train personnel in roles and responsibilities; improve interagency coordination; identify gaps in resources; improve individual performance; and identify opportunities for improvement, E-PreS Project was submitted and approved by the European Commission (EC).

Keywords: disaster drills, earthquake preparedness, E-PreS System, school emergency plans

Procedia PDF Downloads 226

Authors: M. V. Chidananda Murthy, M. Z. Kurian, H. S. Guruprasad

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Image restoration in the process of communication is one of the emerging fields in the image processing. The motion analysis processing is the simplest case to detect motion in an image. Applications of motion analysis widely spread in many areas such as surveillance, remote sensing, film industry, navigation of autonomous vehicles, etc. The scene may contain multiple moving objects, by using motion analysis techniques the blur caused by the movement of the objects can be enhanced by filling-in occluded regions and reconstruction of transparent objects, and it also removes the motion blurring. This paper presents the design and comparison of various motion detection and enhancement filters. Median filter, Linear image deconvolution, Inverse filter, Pseudoinverse filter, Wiener filter, Lucy Richardson filter and Blind deconvolution filters are used to remove the blur. In this work, we have considered different types and different amount of blur for the analysis. Mean Square Error (MSE) and Peak Signal to Noise Ration (PSNR) are used to evaluate the performance of the filters. The designed system has been implemented in Matlab software and tested for synthetic and real-time images.

Keywords: image enhancement, motion analysis, motion detection, motion estimation

Procedia PDF Downloads 282

Authors: Farid Amidi Fazli

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Replacement of plastics used in the food industry seems to be a serious issue to overcome mainly the environmental problems in recent years. This study investigates the hydrophilicity and permeability properties of starch biopolymer which ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) (0-10%) and nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) (1 -15%) were used to enhance its properties. Starch -EVOH nanocomposites were prepared by casting method in different formulations. NCC production by acid hydrolysis was confirmed by scanning electron microscopy. Solubility, water vapor permeability, water vapor transmission rate and moisture absorbance were measured on each of the nanocomposites. The results were analyzed by SAS software. The lowest moisture absorbance was measured in pure starch nanocomposite containing 8% NCC. The lowest permeability to water vapor belongs to starch nanocomposite containing 8% NCC and the sample containing 7.8% EVOH and 13% NCC. Also, the lowest solubility was observed in the composite contains the highest amount of EVOH. Applied Process resulted in production of bio films which have good resistance to water vapor permeability and solubility in water. The use of NCC and EVOH leads to reduced moisture absorbance property of the biofilms.

Keywords: starch, EVOH, nanocrystalline cellulose, hydrophilicity

Procedia PDF Downloads 408

Authors: Fei Chen, Wei Lu, Jun Cai

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During the Twelve Five period, China promulgated industrial policies promoting the relocation of energy-intensive industries to coastal areas in order to utilize marine shipping resources. Consequently, some major state-owned steel and gas enterprises have relocated and resulted in a large-scale coastal area development. However, some land may have been over-exploited with seamless coastline projects. To balance between employment and housing, new industrial coastal towns were constructed to support the industrial-led development. In this paper, we adopt a case-study approach to closely examine the development of several new industrial coastal towns of Liaoning Province situated in the Bohai Bay area, which is currently under rapid economic growth. Our investigations reflect the common phenomenon of long distance commuting and a massive amount of vacant residences. More specifically, large plant relocation caused hundreds of kilometers of daily commute and enterprises had to provide housing subsidies and education incentives to motivate employees to relocate to coastal areas. Nonetheless, many employees still refuse to relocate due to job stability, diverse needs of family members and access to convenient services. These employees averaged 4 hours of commute daily and some who lived further had to reside in temporary industrial housing units and subject to long-term family separation. As a result, only a small portion of employees purchase new coastal residences but mostly for investment and retirement purposes, leading to massive vacancy and ghost-town phenomenon. In contrast to the low demand, coastal areas tend to develop large amount of residences prior to industrial relocation, which may be directly related to local government finances. Some local governments have sold residential land to developers to general revenue to support the subsequent industrial development. Subject to the strong preference of ocean-view, residential housing developers tend to select coast-line land to construct new residential towns, which further reduces the access of marine resources for major industrial enterprises. This violates the original intent of developing industrial coastal towns and drastically limits the availability of marine resources. Lastly, we analyze the co-existence of over-exploiting residential areas and massive vacancies in reference to the demand and supply of land, as well as the demand of residential housing units with the choice criteria of enterprise employees.

Keywords: coastal industry town, commuter traffic, employment-housing space, outer suburb industrial area

Procedia PDF Downloads 216

Authors: T. Yilmaz, N. Kirac

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Beam-column elements are defined as structural members subjected to a combination of axial and bending forces. Lateral torsional buckling is one of the major failure modes in which beam-columns that are bent about its strong axis may buckle out of the plane by deflecting laterally and twisting. This study presents a compact closed-form equation that it can be used for calculating critical lateral torsional-buckling load of beam-columns with monosymmetric sections in the presence of a known axial load. Lateral-torsional buckling behavior of beam-columns subjected to constant axial force and various transverse load cases are investigated by using Ritz method in order to establish proposed equation. Lateral-torsional buckling loads calculated by presented formula are compared to finite element model results. ABAQUS software is utilized to generate finite element models of beam-columns. It is found out that lateral-torsional buckling load of beam-columns with monosymmetric sections can be determined by proposed equation and can be safely used in design.

Keywords: lateral-torsional buckling, stability, beam-column, monosymmetric section

Procedia PDF Downloads 322

Authors: David M Gilstrap

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In an online course with a large enrollment, the potential exists for the instructor to become overburdened with having to respond to students’ emails, which consequently decreases the instructor’s efficiency in teaching the course. Repetition of instructions is an effective way of reducing confusion among students, which in turn increases their efficiencies, as well. World of Turf is the largest online course at Michigan State University, which employs Brightspace as its management system (LMS) software. Recently, the LMS upgraded its capabilities to utilize agents, which are auto generated email notifications to students based on certain criteria. Agents are additional tools that can enhance course design. They can be run on-demand or according to a schedule. Agents can be timed to effectively remind students of approaching deadlines. The content of these generated emails can also include reinforced instructions. With a large online course, even a small percentage of students that either do not read or do not comprehend the course syllabus or do not notice instructions on course pages can result in numerous emails to the instructor, often near the deadlines for assignments. Utilizing agents to decrease the number of emails from students has enabled the instructor to efficiently instruct more than one thousand students per semester without any graduate student teaching assistants.

Keywords: agents, Brightspace, large enrollment, learning management system, repetition of instructions

Procedia PDF Downloads 200

Authors: Donald Wright

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The ultimate goal of this study is to reinvigorate the philosophical underpinnings the study of urbanization with scientific data with the goal of circumventing what seems an inevitable future clash between rural and urban populations. To that end urban infrastructure must be sustainable economically, politically and ecologically over the course of several generations as cities continue to grow with the incorporation of climate refugees. Our research will provide data concerning the projected increase in population over the coming two decades in Morocco, and the population will shift from rural areas to urban centers during that period of time. As a result, urban infrastructure will need to be adapted, developed or built to fit the demand of future internal migrations from rural to urban centers in Morocco. This paper will also examine how past experiences of internally displaced people give insight into the challenges faced by future migrants and, beyond the gathering of data, how people react to internal migration. This study employs four different sets of research tools. First, a large part of this study is archival, which involves compiling the relevant literature on the topic and its complex history. This step also includes gathering data bout migrations in Morocco from public data sources. Once the datasets are collected, the next part of the project involves populating the attribute fields and preprocessing the data to make it understandable and usable by machine learning algorithms. In tandem with the mathematical interpretation of data and projected migrations, this study benefits from a theoretical understanding of the critical apparatus existing around urban development of the 20th and 21st centuries that give us insight into past infrastructure development and the rationale behind it. Once the data is ready to be analyzed, different machine learning algorithms will be experimented (k-clustering, support vector regression, random forest analysis) and the results compared for visualization of the data. The final computational part of this study involves analyzing the data and determining what we can learn from it. This paper helps us to understand future trends of population movements within and between regions of North Africa, which will have an impact on various sectors such as urban development, food distribution and water purification, not to mention the creation of public policy in the countries of this region. One of the strengths of this project is the multi-pronged and cross-disciplinary methodology to the research question, which enables an interchange of knowledge and experiences to facilitate innovative solutions to this complex problem. Multiple and diverse intersecting viewpoints allow an exchange of methodological models that provide fresh and informed interpretations of otherwise objective data.

Keywords: climate change, machine learning, migration, Morocco, urban development

Procedia PDF Downloads 143

Authors: Alireza Ladan Moghaddam, Hadi Rezghi Shirsavar, Panteha Pirayandeh

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This study aimed to investigate the Relationship between Teachers' Empowerment and Personality Traits (Case Study: Tehran Public Schools of region 5). To achieve this objective, a descriptive research in correlation type has been used. The statistical population of this research includes all teachers and administrators in Tehran Public Schools of region 5. In this study, a five factor model of personality and a 49-item questionnaire to measure empowerment of teachers have been used to assess personality traits of administrators and the teachers' empowerment, respectively. The research hypotheses test has been done using SPSS and LISREL software. The results show that in general there is no significant relationship between personality traits of administrators and teachers' empowerment, and among the 5 dimensions of personality, there is only significant relationship between the characteristic of administrators' agreeableness and teachers' empowerment. The results suggested a way to improve knowledge and skills of teachers a top priority administrator consider. In addition, the performance of teachers affected by the performance of the executive directors, so it is necessary to improve their yield towering notice.

Keywords: personality traits, five factor model of personality, teacher, empowerment

Procedia PDF Downloads 359

Authors: Luyao Zhang, Tianyu Wu, Jiayi Li, Carlos-Gustavo Salas-Flores, Saad Lahrichi

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Recent advances in AI have made algorithmic trading a central role in finance. However, current research and applications are disconnected information islands. We propose a generally applicable pipeline for designing, programming, and evaluating algorithmic trading of stock and crypto tokens. Moreover, we provide comparative case studies for four conventional algorithms, including moving average crossover, volume-weighted average price, sentiment analysis, and statistical arbitrage. Our study offers a systematic way to program and compare different trading strategies. Moreover, we implement our algorithms by object-oriented programming in Python3, which serves as open-source software for future academic research and applications.

Keywords: algorithmic trading, AI for finance, fintech, machine learning, moving average crossover, volume weighted average price, sentiment analysis, statistical arbitrage, pair trading, object-oriented programming, python3

Procedia PDF Downloads 136

Authors: Mohammad Mahdi Paydar, Armin Cheraghalipour, Mostafa Hajiaghaei-Keshteli

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Nowadays, in advanced countries, agriculture as one of the most significant sectors of the economy, plays an important role in its political and economic independence. Due to farmers' lack of information about products' demand and lack of proper planning for harvest time, annually the considerable amount of products is corrupted. Besides, in this paper, we attempt to improve these unfavorable conditions via designing an effective supply chain network that tries to minimize total costs of agricultural products along with minimizing shortage in demand points. To validate the proposed model, a stochastic optimization approach by using a branch and bound solver of the LINGO software is utilized. Furthermore, to accumulate the data of parameters, a case study in Mazandaran province placed in the north of Iran has been applied. Finally, using ɛ-constraint approach, a Pareto front is obtained and one of its Pareto solutions as best solution is selected. Then, related results of this solution are explained. Finally, conclusions and suggestions for the future research are presented.

Keywords: perishable products, stochastic optimization, agricultural supply chain, ɛ-constraint

Procedia PDF Downloads 357

Authors: P. S. Jagadeesh Kumar, S. Meenakshi Sundaram, Wenli Hu, Yang Yung

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In 3D video games, the dominance of production is unceasingly growing with a protruding level of affordability in terms of budget. Afterward, the automation of speech-lip synchronization technique is customarily onerous and has advanced a critical research subject in virtual reality based 3D video games. This paper presents one of these automatic tools, precisely riveted on the synchronization of the speech and the lip movement of the game characters. A robust and precise speech recognition segment that systematized with Algebraic Code Excited Linear Prediction method is developed which unconventionally delivers lip sync results. The Algebraic Code Excited Linear Prediction algorithm is constructed on that used in code-excited linear prediction, but Algebraic Code Excited Linear Prediction codebooks have an explicit algebraic structure levied upon them. This affords a quicker substitute to the software enactments of lip sync algorithms and thus advances the superiority of service factors abridged production cost.

Keywords: algebraic code excited linear prediction, speech-lip synchronization, video games, virtual reality

Procedia PDF Downloads 468

Authors: Tanja Ecken, Laura Fricke, Anika Wehling, Maren M. Michaelsen, Tobias Esch

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Studies and applied experiences evidence severe and traumatic accidents not only require physical rehabilitation and recovery but also necessitate a psychological adaption and reorganization to the changed living conditions. Neurobiological models underpinning the experience of happiness and satisfaction postulate life shocks to potentially enhance the experience of happiness and life satisfaction, i.e., posttraumatic growth (PTG). This present study aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the underlying psychological processes of PTG and to outline its consequences on subjective happiness and life satisfaction. To explore the aforementioned, Esch’s ABC Model was used as guidance for the development of a questionnaire assessing changes in happiness and life satisfaction and for a schematic model postulating the development of PTG in the context of paraplegia. Two-stage qualitative interview procedures explored participants’ experiences of paraplegia. Specifically, narrative, semi-structured interviews (N=28) focused on the time before and after the accident, the availability of supportive resources, and potential changes in the perception of happiness and life satisfaction. Qualitative analysis (Grounded Theory) indicated an initial phase of reorganization was followed by a gradual psychological adaption to novel, albeit reduced, opportunities in life. Participants reportedly experienced a ‘compelled’ slowing down and elements of mindfulness, subsequently instilling a sense of gratitude and joy in relation to life’s presumed trivialities. Despite physical limitations and difficulties, participants reported an enhanced ability to relate to oneself and others and a reduction of perceived everyday nuisances. Concluding, PTG can be experienced in response to severe, traumatic life events and has the potential to enrich the lives of affected persons in numerous, unexpected and yet challenging ways. PTG appears to be a spectrum comprised of an interplay of internal and external resources underpinned by neurobiological processes. Participants experienced PTG irrelevant of age, gender, marital status, income or level of education.

Keywords: post traumatic growth, happiness, life satisfaction, traumatic life events, paraplegia, ABC model, trauma

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Authors: Amirreza Niktash, B. P. Huynh

Abstract:

A windcatcher is a structure fitted on the roof of a building for providing natural ventilation by using wind power; it exhausts the inside stale air to the outside and supplies the outside fresh air into the interior space of the building working by pressure difference between outside and inside of the building and using ventilation principles of passive stacks and wind tower, respectively. In this paper, the effect of different heights of inlet/outlets’ ducts of a two-sided windcatcher on the flow rate, flow velocity and flow pattern through a three-dimensional room fitted with the windcatcher are investigated and analysed by using RANS CFD technique and applying standard K-ε turbulence model via a commercial computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software package. The achieved results show that the inlet/outlet ducts height strongly affects flow rate, flow velocity and flow pattern especially in the living area of the room when the wind velocity is not too low. The results are confirmed by the experimental test for constructed scaled model in the laboratory and it develops the two-sided windcatcher’s performance in ventilation applications.

Keywords: CFD, RANS, ventilation, windcatcher

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Authors: Zainuddin Abuhamid Muhammad Ghozali, Andrew Whitworth

Abstract:

Islamic boarding school or pesantren is a distinctive education institution in Indonesia focusing on religious teachings. Its stance in restricting access to the internet raises a question about its students’ development of digital literacy. Inspired by Luckin’s ecology of resource model, this study aims to map out the digital literacy situation of the institution based on the availability of learning resources, such as digital facilities, digital accessibility, and digital competence. This study was carried out through a survey method involving 50 teachers from pesantrens across the nation. The result shows that pesantrens have provided students with digital facilities at a moderate level, yet the accessibility to using them is still limited. They also incorporated digital competencies into their curriculum, with an emphasis on digital ethics. The study also identifies different patterns of pesantrens’ behavior based on types and educational levels, where certain school types and educational levels tend to give a stricter policy compared to others or vice versa. The restriction of digital resources in pesantren indicated that they had done a filtration process to design their learning environment. The filtration was mainly motivated by sociocultural factors, where they drew concern for the negative impact of the internet. Notably, this restriction also contributes to students’ poor development of digital literacy.

Keywords: digital literacy, ecology of resources, Indonesia, Islamic boarding school

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Authors: Nicolay Worren, Christopher A. Brown

Abstract:

Axiomatic design (AD) has mainly been applied to support the design of physical products and software solutions. However, it was intended as a general design approach that would also be applicable to the design of social systems, including organizations (i.e., organization design). In this article, we consider how AD may be successfully transferred to the field of organizational design. On the one hand, it provides a much-needed pragmatic approach that can help leaders clarify the link between the purpose and structure of their organizations, identify ineffective organizational structures, and increase the chance of achieving strategic goals. On the other hand, there are four conceptual challenges that may create uncertainty and resistance among scholars and practitioners educated in the social sciences: 1) The exclusive focus in AD on negative interdependencies ('coupling'); 2) No obvious way of representing the need for integration across design parameters (DPs); 3) A lack of principles for handling control processes that seem to require 'deliberate coupling' of FRs; and 4) A lack of principles for handling situations where conflicting FRs (i.e., coupling) might require integration rather than separation. We discuss alternative options for handling these challenges so that scholars and practitioners can make use of AD for organization design.

Keywords: axiomatic design, organization design, social systems, concept definitions

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Authors: Maria Tsouroufli, Andrea Mondokova, Subashini Suresh

Abstract:

Background: The under-representation of women and consequent failure to fulfil their potential contribution to Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths, and Medicine (STEMM) subjects in the UK is an issue that the Higher Education sector is being encouraged to address. Focus: The aim of this research is to investigate the barriers, facilitators, and incentives that influence diverse groups of women who have embarked upon a related career in STEMM subjects. The project will address a number of interconnected research questions: 1. How do participants perceive the barriers, facilitators and incentives for women in terms of research, teaching and management/leadership at each stage of their development towards forging a career in STEMM? 2. How might gender intersect with ethnicity, pregnancy/maternity and academic grade in the career experiences of women in STEMM? 3. How do participants perceive the example of female role models in emulating them as a career model? 4. How do successful females in STEMM see themselves as role models and what strategies do they employ to promote their careers? 5. How does institutional culture manifest itself as a barrier or facilitator for women in STEMM subjects in the institution? Methodology and Theoretical framework: A mixed-methodology will be employed in a case study of one university. The study will draw on extant quantitative data for context and involve conducting a qualitative inquiry to discover the perceptions of staff and students around the key concepts under study (career progression, sense of belonging and tenure, role-models, personal satisfaction, perceived gender in/equality, institutional culture). The analysis will be informed by an intersectionality framework, feminist and gender theory, and organisational psychology and human resource management perspectives. Implications: Preliminary findings will be collected in 2017. Conclusions will be drawn and used to inform recruitment and retention, and the development and implementation of initiatives to enhance the experiences and outcomes of women working and studying in STEMM subjects in Higher Education.

Keywords: under-representation, women, STEMM subjects, intersectionality

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