Search results for: visual communication design

Authors: A. Pietro Rimoldi, B. Anilkumar Gopinath, C. Minimol Korulla

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Coastal engineering structure is conventionally designed for a shorter planning horizon usually 20 years. These structures are subjected to different offshore climatic externalities like waves, tides, tsunamis etc. during the design life period. The probability of occurrence of these different offshore climatic externalities varies. The impact frequently caused by these externalities on the structures is of concern because it has a significant bearing on the capital /operating cost of the project. There can also be repeated short time occurrence of these externalities in the assumed planning horizon which can cause heavy damage to the conventional coastal structure which are mainly made of rock. A replacement of the damaged portion to prevent complete collapse is time consuming and expensive when dealing with hard rock structures. But if coastal structures are made of Geo-synthetic containment systems such replacement is quickly possible in the time period between two successive occurrences. In order to have a better knowledge and to enhance the predictive capacity of these occurrences, this study estimates risk of encounter within the design life period of various externalities based on the concept of exponential distribution. This gives an idea of the frequency of occurrences which in turn gives an indication of whether replacement is necessary and if so at what time interval such replacements have to be effected. To validate this theoretical finding, a pilot project has been taken up in the field so that the impact of the externalities can be studied both for a hard rock and a Geosynthetic tube structure. The paper brings out the salient feature of a case study which pertains to a project in which Geosynthetic tubes have been used for reformation of a seawall adjacent to a conventional rock structure in Alappuzha coast, Kerala, India. The effectiveness of the Geosystem in combatting the impact of the short-term externalities has been brought out.

Keywords: climatic externalities, exponential distribution, geosystems, planning horizon

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Authors: Y. Karbhari, A. Benamraoui, A. Fahmi Sheikh Hassan

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The study applies role theory to investigate the quality of the compliance review in Malaysia, which is perceived to have the most advanced Islamic banking governance framework in the Islamic world. Drawing from the questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews, our study reveals the existence of a well-established structure for compliance reviews which is found to be regulatory driven and contingent upon the level of commercial activity of individual Islamic bank’s. However, the compliance review process was found to be ceremonial and inadequately undertaken by some SBs with greater prominence placed on its advisory role. In particular, the study provides evidence of a lack of understanding on accounting issues when undertaking the compliance review. Problems in communication between SBs, board of directors and management were also reported to exist. Our findings raise concern over the quality and thus the credibility of the religious compliance assurance communicated in Islamic Banks annual reports.

Keywords: Islamic banks, religious compliance, Sharia board assurance, role theory

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Authors: Amani A. Saad, Ahmed A. El-Farag, El-Sayed A. Helali

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Cloud computing is an important and promising field in the recent decade. Cloud computing allows sharing resources, services and information among the people of the whole world. Although the advantages of using clouds are great, but there are many risks in a cloud. The data security is the most important and critical problem of cloud computing. In this research a new security model for cloud computing is proposed for ensuring secure communication system, hiding information from other users and saving the user's times. In this proposed model Blowfish encryption algorithm is used for exchanging information or data, and SHA-2 cryptographic hash algorithm is used for data integrity. For user authentication process a simple user-name and password is used, the password uses SHA-2 for one way encryption. The proposed system shows an improvement of the processing time of uploading and downloading files on the cloud in secure form.

Keywords: cloud computing, data security, SAAS, PAAS, IAAS, Blowfish

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Authors: Yu-Hsuan Chang, Jian-Hao Su, Chen-Yu Chen, Wei-Mon Yan

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In this work, the experimental measurement was applied to examine the membrane type and flow field design on the performance of a planar membrane humidifier. The performance indexes were used to evaluate the planar membrane humidifier. The performance indexes of the membrane humidifier include the dew point approach temperature (DPAT), water recovery ratio (WRR), water flux (J) and pressure loss (P). The experiments contain mainly three parts. In the first part, a single membrane humidifier was tested using different flow field under different dry-inlet temperatures. The measured results show that the dew point approach temperature decreases with increasing the depth of flow channel at the same width of flow channel. However, the WRR and J reduce with an increase in the dry air-inlet temperature. The pressure loss tests indicate that pressure loss decreases with increasing the hydraulic diameter of flow channel, resulting from an increase in Darcy friction. Owing to the comparison of humidifier performances and pressure losses, the flow channel of width W=1 and height H=1.5 was selected as the channel design of the multi-membrane humidifier in the second part of experiment. In the second part, the multi-membrane humidifier was used to evaluate the humidification performance under different relative humidity and flow rates. The measurement results indicate that the humidifier at both lower temperature and relative humidity of inlet dry air have higher DPAT but lower J and WRR. In addition, the counter flow approach has better mass and heat transfer performance than the parallel flow approach. Moreover, the effects of dry air temperature, relative humidity and humidification approach are not significant to the pressure loss in the planar membrane humidifier. For the third part, different membranes were tested in this work in order to find out which kind membrane is appropriate for humidifier.

Keywords: water management, planar membrane humidifier, heat and mass transfer, pressure loss, PEM fuel cell

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Authors: Shuen-Tai Wang, Hsi-Ya Chang

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Cloud virtualization technologies are becoming more and more prevalent, cloud users usually encounter the problem of how to access to the virtualized remote desktops easily over the web without requiring the installation of special clients. To resolve this issue, we took advantage of the HTML5 technology and developed web-based remote desktop. It permits users to access the terminal which running in our cloud platform from anywhere. We implemented a sketch of web interface following the cloud computing concept that seeks to enable collaboration and communication among users for high performance computing. Given the development of remote desktop virtualization, it allows to shift the user’s desktop from the traditional PC environment to the cloud platform, which is stored on a remote virtual machine rather than locally. This proposed effort has the potential to positively provide an efficient, resilience and elastic environment for online cloud service. This is also made possible by the low administrative costs as well as relatively inexpensive end-user terminals and reduced energy expenses.

Keywords: virtualization, remote desktop, HTML5, cloud computing

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Authors: Kaili C. Zhang

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Mental well-being is an integral part of university students’ overall well-being and has been a matter of increasing concern in the UK. This study addressed the impact of university experience on students by investigating the changes students experience in their beliefs, lifestyles, and well-being during their first year of study, as well as the factors contributing to such changes. Using a longitudinal two-wave mixed method design, this project identified importantfactors that contribute to or inhibit these changes. Implications for universities across the UK are discussed.

Keywords: subjective well-being, beliefs, lifestyles, university students

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Authors: Lienjang Zeite

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Over the past few years, Turkish and Indian series have been distributed worldwide to countless households and have found ardent followers across different age group. The series have captured numerous hearts. Turkish and Indian series have become not only one of the best means of entertainment and relaxation but also a platform to learn and appreciate shared emotions and social messages. The popularity of the series has created a kind of interest in representing human emotions and stories like never before. The demands for such series have totally shifted the entertainment industry at a new level. The interest and vibe created by the series have had impacts on various departments spanning from technology to the fashion industry and it has also become the bridge to connect viewers across the globe. The series have amassed avid admirers who find solace in the beautiful visual representations of human relationships whether it is of lovers, family or friendship. The influence of Turkish and Indian series in many parts of the world has created a cultural phenomenon that has taken viewers beyond cultural and language differences. From China to Latin America, Arab countries and the Caucasus region, the series have been accepted and loved by millions of viewers. It has captivated audiences ranging from grandmothers to teenagers. Issues like language barrier are easily solved by means of translation or dubbing making it easier to understand and enjoy the series. Turkey and India are two different countries with their own unique culture and traditions. Both the countries are exporters of series in large scale. The series function as a platform to reveal the plots and shed lights on characters of all kinds. Both the countries produce series that are more or less similar in nature. However, there are also certain issues that are shown in different ways and light. The paper will discuss how emotions are represented in Turkish and Indian series. It will also discuss the ways the series have impacted the art of representing emotions and characters in the digital era. The representation of culture through Turkish and Indian series will be explored as well. The paper will also locate the issue of gender roles and how relationships are forged or abandoned in the series. The issue of character formation and importance of moral factors will be discussed. It will also examine the formula and ingredients of turning human emotions and characters into a much loved series.

Keywords: characters, cultural phenomenon, emotions, Turkish and Indian series

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Authors: A. Saha Chaudhuri, D. Sarkar

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In steel construction, there are two families of structural members. One is hot rolled steel and another is cold formed steel. Cold formed steel section includes steel sheet, strip, plate or flat bar. Cold formed steel section is manufactured in roll forming machine by press brake or bending operation. Cold formed steel (CFS), also known as Light Gauge Steel (LGS). As cold formed steel is a sustainable material, it is widely used in green building. Cold formed steel can be recycled and reused with no degradation in structural properties. Cold formed steel structures can earn credits for green building ratings such as LEED and similar programs. Cold formed steel construction satisfies international demand for better, more efficient and affordable buildings. Cold formed steel sections are used in building, car body, railway coach, various types of equipment, storage rack, grain bin, highway product, transmission tower, transmission pole, drainage facility, bridge construction etc. Various shapes of cold formed steel sections are available, such as C section, Z section, I section, T section, angle section, hat section, box section, square hollow section (SHS), rectangular hollow section (RHS), circular hollow section (CHS) etc. In building construction cold formed steel is used as eave strut, purlin, girt, stud, header, floor joist, brace, diaphragm and covering for roof, wall and floor. Cold formed steel has high strength to weight ratio and high stiffness. Cold formed steel is non shrinking and non creeping at ambient temperature, it is termite proof and rot proof. CFS is durable, dimensionally stable and non combustible material. CFS is economical in transportation and handling. At present days cold formed steel becomes a competitive building material. In this paper all these applications related present research work are described and how the CFS can be used as blast resistant structural system that is examined.

Keywords: cold form steel sections, applications, present research review, blast resistant design

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Authors: A. V. Varfolomeeva, N. S. Tkachenko, A. G. Tishchenko

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The problem of violation of internal validity in studies of psychological structures is considered. The role of epistemological attitudes of researchers in the planning of research within the methodology of the system-evolutionary approach is assessed. Alternative programs of psychological research involving representatives of different biological species are presented. On the example of the results of two research series the variants of solving the problem are discussed.

Keywords: epistemological attitudes, experimental design, validity, psychological structure, learning

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Authors: Benoit Landi, Hervé Pingaud, Jean-Benoit Culie, Michel Galaup

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Serious games have been widely disseminated in the field of digital learning. They have proved their utility in improving skills through virtual environments that simulate the field where new competencies have to be improved and assessed. This paper describes how we created CLONE, a serious game whose purpose is to help nurses create an efficient work plan in a hospital care unit. In CLONE, the number of patients to take care of is similar to the reality of their job, going far beyond what is currently practiced in nurse school classrooms. This similarity with the operational field increases proportionally the number of activities to be scheduled. Moreover, very often, the team of nurses is composed of regular nurses and nurse assistants that must share the work with respect to the regulatory obligations. Therefore, on the one hand, building a short-term planning is a complex task with a large amount of data to deal with, and on the other, good clinical practices have to be systematically applied. We present how reference planning has been defined by addressing an optimization problem formulation using the expertise of teachers. This formulation ensures the gameplay feasibility for the scenario that has been produced and enhanced throughout the game design process. It was also crucial to steer a player toward a specific gaming strategy. As one of our most important learning outcomes is a clear understanding of the workload concept, its factual calculation for each caregiver along time and its inclusion in the nurse reasoning during planning elaboration are focal points. We will demonstrate how to modify the game scenario to create a digital environment in which these somewhat abstract principles can be understood and applied. Finally, we give input on an experience we had on a pilot of a thousand undergraduate nursing students.

Keywords: care planning, workload, game design, hospital nurse, organizational skills, digital learning, serious game

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Authors: Masato Koizumi, Yuya Oshio, Ikkoh Funaki

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Magnetoplasma Sail (MPS) is a future spacecraft propulsion that generates high levels of thrust by inducing an artificial magnetosphere to capture and deflect solar wind charged particles in order to transfer momentum to the spacecraft. By injecting plasma in the spacecraft’s magnetic field region, the ring current azimuthally drifts on the equatorial plane about the dipole magnetic field generated by the current flowing through the solenoid attached on board the spacecraft. This ring current results in magnetosphere inflation which improves the thrust performance of MPS spacecraft. In this present study, the ring current was experimentally measured using three Rogowski Current Probes positioned in a circular array about the laboratory model of MPS spacecraft. This investigation aims to determine the detailed structure of ring current through physical experimentation performed under two different magnetic field strengths engendered by varying the applied voltage on the solenoid with 300 V and 600 V. The expected outcome was that the three current probes would detect the same current since all three probes were positioned at equal radial distance of 63 mm from the center of the solenoid. Although experimental results were numerically implausible due to probable procedural error, the trends of the results revealed three pieces of perceptive evidence of the ring current behavior. The first aspect is that the drift direction of the ring current depended on the strength of the applied magnetic field. The second aspect is that the diamagnetic current developed at a radial distance not occupied by the three current probes under the presence of solar wind. The third aspect is that the ring current distribution varied along the circumferential path about the spacecraft’s magnetic field. Although this study yielded experimental evidence that differed from the original hypothesis, the three key findings of this study have informed two critical MPS design solutions that will potentially improve thrust performance. The first design solution is the positioning of the plasma injection point. Based on the implication of the first of the three aspects of ring current behavior, the plasma injection point must be located at a distance instead of at close proximity from the MPS Solenoid for the ring current to drift in the direction that will result in magnetosphere inflation. The second design solution, predicated by the third aspect of ring current behavior, is the symmetrical configuration of plasma injection points. In this study, an asymmetrical configuration of plasma injection points using one plasma source resulted in a non-uniform distribution of ring current along the azimuthal path. This distorts the geometry of the inflated magnetosphere which minimizes the deflection area for the solar wind. Therefore, to realize a ring current that best provides the maximum possible inflated magnetosphere, multiple plasma sources must be spaced evenly apart for the plasma to be injected evenly along its azimuthal path.

Keywords: Magnetoplasma Sail, magnetosphere inflation, ring current, spacecraft propulsion

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Authors: Mustafa Gulsen, Mitat Koz

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The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of lumbar stabilisation and proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) training on muscle strength and muscle endurance. The participants were 64 between the ages of 15-69 (53.04 ± 14.59), who were graded protrusion and bulging lumbar herniation according to 'Macnab Classification'. The participants were divided into four groups as each group had 16 participants: lumbar stabilitation training, PNF training, physical therapy and control groups. Sociodemographic features were recorded. Then their muscle strength tests (by isokinetic dynamometer (Cybex 770 Norm Lumex Inc, Ronkonkoma, NY, USA) were recorded. Before and after applications; visual analogue scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability İndex were applied by a physical therapist. The participants in lumbar stabilisation group performed 45 minutes, 5 days in a week for 4 weeks strength training with a physical therapist observation. The participants in PNF group performed 5 days in a week for 4 weeks with pelvic patterns of PNF by a physiotherapist. The participants in physical therapy group underwent Hotpack, Tens and Ultrasound therapy 5 days in a week for 4 weeks. The participants in control group didn’t take any training programme. After 4 weeks, the evaluations were repeated. There were significant increases in muscle strength and muscle endurance in lumbar stabilization training group. Also in pain intensity at rest and during activity in this group and in Oswestry disability index of patients, there were significant improvements (p < 0.05). In PNF training group likewise, there were significant improvements in muscle strength, muscle endurance, pain intensity at rest and with activity and in Oswestry disability index (p < 0.05). But improvements in the Lumbar Stabilization group was better than PNF Group. We found significant differences only in pain intensity at rest and with activity and in Oswestry disability index (p < 0.05). in the patients in Physical Therapy group. We think that appropriate physiotherapy and rehabilitation program which will be prepared for patients, to protect the waist circumference of patients with low muscle strength and low muscle endurance will increase muscle strength and muscle endurance. And it is expected that will reduce pain and will provide advances toward correcting functional disability of the patients.

Keywords: disc herniation, endurance, lumbar stabilitation exercises, PNF, strength

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Authors: F. B. Masok, S. S Songdeg, R. R. Dawam

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Vision is an important process for learning and communication as man depends greatly on vision to sense his environment. Prevalence and variation of refractive errors conducted between December 2010 and May 2011 in Jos, revealed that 735 (77.50%) out 950 subjects examined for refractive error had various refractive errors. Myopia was observed in 373 (49.79%) of the subjects, the error in the right eyes was 263 (55.60%) while the error in the left was 210(44.39%). The mean myopic error was found to be -1.54± 3.32. Hyperopia was observed in 385 (40.53%) of the sampled population comprising 203(52.73%) of the right eyes and 182(47.27%). The mean hyperopic error was found to be +1.74± 3.13. Astigmatism accounted for 359 (38.84%) of the subjects, out of which 193(53.76%) were in the right eyes while 168(46.79%) were in the left eyes. Presbyopia was found in 404(42.53%) of the subjects, of this figure, 164(40.59%) were in the right eyes while 240(59.41%) were in left eyes. The number of right eyes and left eyes with refractive errors was observed in some age groups to increase with age and later had its peak within 60 – 69 age groups. This pattern of refractive errors could be attributed to exposure to various forms of light particularly the ultraviolet rays (e.g rays from television and computer screen). There was no remarkable differences between the mean Myopic error and mean Hyperopic error in the right eyes and in the left eyes which suggest the right eye and the left eye are similar.

Keywords: left eye, refractive errors, right eye, variation

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Authors: Diego Romero, Fabio Rojas, J. Alejandro Urrego

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The sounding rockets are aerospace vehicles that were developed in the mid-20th century, and Colombia has been involved in research that was carried out with the aim of innovating with this technology. The rockets are university research programs with the collaboration of the local government, with a simple strategy, develop and reduce the greatest costs associated with the production of a kind type of technology. In this way, in this document presents the failure analysis of a solid rocket motor, with the real compatibly to reach the thermosphere with a low-cost fuel. This solid rocket motor is the latest development of the Uniandes Aerospace Project (PUA for its Spanish acronym), an undergraduate and postgraduate research group at Universidad de los Andes (Bogotá, Colombia), dedicated to incurring in this type of technology. This motor has been carried out on Candy-type solid fuel, which is a compound of potassium nitrate and sorbitol, and the investigation has allowed the production of solid motors powerful enough to reach space, and which represents a unique technological advance in Latin America and an important development in experimental rocketry.To outline the main points the explosion in a static test is an important to explore and demonstrate the ways to develop technology, methodologies, production and manufacturing, being a solid rocket motor with 30 kN of thrust. In conclusion, this analysis explores different fields such as: design, manufacture, materials, production, first fire and more, with different engineering tools with principal objective find root failure. Following the engineering analysis methodology, was possible to design a new version of motor, with learned lessons new manufacturing specification, therefore, when publishing this project, it is intended to be a reference for future research in this field and benefit the industry.

Keywords: candy propellant, candy rockets, explosion, failure analysis, static test, solid rocket motor

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Authors: A. Akbarpour, M. R. Adib Ramezani, M. Zhian, N. Ghorbani Amirabad

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One way to improve the performance of structures against of earthquake is passive control which requires no external power source. In this research, tuned liquid column dampers which are among of systems with the capability to transfer energy between various modes of vibration, are used. For the first time, a liquid column damper for vibration control structure is presented. After modeling this structure in design building software and performing the static and dynamic analysis and obtaining the necessary parameters for the design of tuned liquid column damper, the whole structure will be analyzed in finite elements software. The tuned liquid column dampers are installed on the structure and nonlinear time-history analysis is done in two cases of structures; with and without dampers. Finally the seismic behavior of building in the two cases will be examined. In this study the nonlinear time-history analysis on a twelve-story steel structure equipped with damper subject to records of earthquake including Loma Prieta, Northridge, Imperiall Valley, Pertrolia and Landers was performed. The results of comparing between two cases show that these dampers have reduced lateral displacement and acceleration of levels on average of 10%. Roof displacement and acceleration also reduced respectively 5% and 12%. Due to structural asymmetric in the plan, the maximum displacements of surrounding structures as well as twisting were studied. The results show that the dampers lead to a 10% reduction in the maximum response of structure stories surrounding points. At the same time, placing the dampers, caused to reduce twisting on the floor plan of the structure, Base shear of structure in the different earthquakes also has been reduced on the average of 6%.

Keywords: retrofitting, passive control, tuned liquid column damper, finite element analysis

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Authors: Keunho Park, Sunghwan Jeong

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The 4th Industrial Revolution, the next-generation industrial revolution, which is made up of convergence of information and communication technology (ICT), is no exception to the livestock industry, and various studies are being conducted to apply the livestock smart farm. In order to monitor livestock using sensors, it is necessary to drill holes in the organs such as the nose, ears, and even the stomach of the livestock to wear or insert the sensor into the livestock. This increases the stress of livestock, which in turn lowers the quality of livestock products or raises the issue of animal ethics, which has become a major issue in recent years. In this paper, we conducted a study to monitor livestock activity based on vision technology, effectively monitoring livestock activity without increasing animal stress and violating animal ethics. The movement rate was calculated based on the difference images between the frames, and the livestock activity was evaluated. As a result, the average F1-score was 96.67.

Keywords: barn monitoring, livestock, machine vision, smart farm

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Authors: Mohan Li

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Nowadays, intelligent research technology is more and more important than traditional research methods in urban research work, and this proportion will greatly increase in the next few decades. Frequently such analyzing work cannot be carried without some software engineering knowledge. And here, domain models of urban research will be necessary when applying software engineering knowledge to urban work. In many urban plan practice projects, making rational models, feeding reliable data, and providing enough computation all make indispensable assistance in producing good urban planning. During the whole work process, domain models can optimize workflow design. At present, human beings have entered the era of big data. The amount of digital data generated by cities every day will increase at an exponential rate, and new data forms are constantly emerging. How to select a suitable data set from the massive amount of data, manage and process it has become an ability that more and more planners and urban researchers need to possess. This paper summarizes and makes predictions of the emergence of technologies and technological iterations that may affect urban research in the future, discover urban problems, and implement targeted sustainable urban strategies. They are summarized into seven major domain models. They are urban and rural regional domain model, urban ecological domain model, urban industry domain model, development dynamic domain model, urban social and cultural domain model, urban traffic domain model, and urban space domain model. These seven domain models can be used to guide the construction of systematic urban research topics and help researchers organize a series of intelligent analytical tools, such as Python, R, GIS, etc. These seven models make full use of quantitative spatial analysis, machine learning, and other technologies to achieve higher efficiency and accuracy in urban research, assisting people in making reasonable decisions.

Keywords: big data, domain model, urban planning, urban quantitative analysis, machine learning, workflow design

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Authors: O.F. Akinmoladun, F.N. Fon, C.T. Mpendulo, O. Okoh

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The sustainability of livestock production is under threat as a result of water scarcity, fluctuating precipitation, and high environmental temperature. These combined stressors have impacted negatively on general animal production and welfare, necessitating a very reliable and cost-effective management practices, especially in arid and water-limited regions of the world. Instead of the above, this study was designed to investigate the growth performance and physiological response of water-restricted Xhosa ear-lobe goats fed diets supplemented with single or multiple vitamin C (VC) during summer. The total forty-eight goats used for the experiment were balanced for body weight and randomly assigned to the seven treatment groups (seven goats/treatment): GI (W100%); GII (W70%); GIII (W50%); GIV (W70%+3g/day VC); GV ((W50% +3g/day VC); GVI (W70%+3g/d VC+extra 5g on every eight-day); GVII (W50%+3g/d VC+extra 5g on every eight-day). The design was a complete randomized design and VC was administered per os. At the end of the 75-day feeding trial, GIII (W50%) animals were the most affected (P<0.05) and the effect was more pronounced in their body condition scores (BCs). Weight loss and depression in feed intake due to water restriction (P<0.05) were attenuated by VC treated groups (GIV-GVII). Changes in body thermal gradient (BTG) and rectal temperature (RcT) were similar (P>0.05) across the various experimental groups. The attenuation effect of VC was significant in responses to respiratory rate (RR) and cortisol. Supplementation of VC (either single or multiple) did not significantly (P>0.05) improve water restriction effect on body condition scores (BCs) and FAMACHA©. The current study found out that Xhosa ear lobe goats can adapt to the prevailing bioclimatic changes and limited water intake. However, supplementation of vitamin C can be beneficial at modulating these stressful stimuli. Continuous consistencies in the outcome of vitamin C on water-stressed animals can help validate recommendations especially to farmers in the arid and water-limited regions across the globe.

Keywords: vitamin C, Xhosa ear-lobe, thermotolerance, water stress

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Authors: Ibrahim M. Labouta, Gina N. Tageldin, Salwa M. Fahmy, Hayam M. Ashour, Mounir A. Khalil, Tamer M. Ibrahim, Nefertiti A. El-Nikhely

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Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) is a critical effector molecule in B cell antigen receptor (BCR) signaling transduction. It regulates B cell proliferation, development and survival. Since BTK is widely expressed in many B cell leukaemias and lymphomas, targeting BTK by small molecules inhibitors became an attractive idea as new treatment modalities for B cell mediated hematologic malignancies. Ibrutinib is the 1st generation BTK inhibitor, approved by FDA for treatment of relapsed mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) and chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). It binds irreversibly to the unique cysteine (Cys481) within the ATP-binding pocket of BTK. Besides ibrutinib, many irreversible covalent BTK inhibitors comprising pyrimidine nucleus such as spebrutinib (phase IIb) showed high selectivity and potency when compared to it. In this study, the designed compounds were based on 5-cyano-2-methylsulfanyl pyrimidine core and decorated with electrophilic warheads which are essential for the optimal activity for targeted covalent inhibition (TCI). However, modifications at pyrimidine C4 or C6 were made by introduction of substituted amines which are provided to behave differently. The synthesized derivatives were evaluated for their anticancer activity in leukemia cell lines (e.g. THP-1). Results showed that, some derivatives exhibited antiproliferative activity with IC50 ranged from 5-50 μM, The in vitro enzymatic inhibitory assay for these compounds against BTK is still under investigation. Nevertheless, we could conclude from the initial biological screening that, the synthesized 4 or 6-subsitituted aminopyrimidines represent promising and novel antileukemic agents. Meanwhile, further studies are still needed to attribute this activity through targeting BTK enzyme and inhibition of BCR signaling pathway.

Keywords: BTK inhibitors, hematologic malignancies, structure based drug design (SBDD), targeted covalent inhibitors (TCI)

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Authors: Dragan Kljajic, Nikola Djuric, Karolina Kasas-Lazetic, Danka Antic

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Wireless communications have been expanded very fast in recent decades. This technology relies on an extensive network of base stations and antennas, using radio frequency signals to transmit information. Devices that use wireless communication, while offering various services, basically act as sources of non-ionizing electromagnetic fields (EMF). Such devices are permanently present in the human vicinity and almost constantly radiate, causing EMF pollution of the environment. This fact has initiated development of modern systems for observation of the EMF pollution, as well as for risk assessment. This paper presents the Serbian electromagnetic field monitoring network – SEMONT, designed for automated, remote and continuous broadband monitoring of EMF in the environment. Measurement results of the SEMONT monitoring at one of the test locations, within the main campus of the University of Novi Sad, are presented and discussed, along with corresponding exposure assessment of the general population, regarding the Serbian legislation.

Keywords: EMF monitoring, exposure assessment, sensor nodes, wireless network

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Authors: Adam Johnbull

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The paper discusses ICT in Education as a quest for quality learning in the 21st century. Education is the key that unlock the door to development, without adequate education of the citizenry, the development of a nation becomes a sham. Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) has revolutionized the way people work today and are now transforming education systems. As a result, if schools train children in yesterday’s skills and technologies they may not be effective and fit in tomorrow’s world. This is a sufficient reason for ICT’s to win global recognition and attention and thus ensure desire quality in our school system. Thus, the purpose of the paper is to discuss amongst others, what is ICT. The roles of ICT’s in education, limitation and key challenges of integrating ICT to education in the enhancement of student learning and experiences in other to encourage policy makers, school administrators and teachers pay the required attention to integrate this technology in the education system. The paper concludes that regardless of all the limitation characterizing it. ICT benefit education system to provide quality education in the 21st century.

Keywords: ICTs, quest, information, global, sham, century

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Authors: Seif Naoui, Lassaad Latrach, Ali Gharsallah

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This paper is specialized to highlight the method of miniaturization and improvement the patch antenna by using the complementary metamaterial. This method is presented by a simple technique is composed a structure of patch antenna integrated in its surface a cell of complementary split ring resonator. This resonator is placed at the middle of the radiating patch in parallel with the transmission line and with a variable angle of orientation. The objective is to find the ultimate angle where the best results are obtained on improving the characteristics of the considered antenna. This motif widespread at the traceability applications by wireless communication for RFID technology at the operation frequency 2.45 GHz. Our contribution is based on studies empirical often presented in this article. All simulation results were made by the CST Microwave Studio.

Keywords: complimentary split ring resonators, computer simulation technology microwave studio, metamaterials patch antennas, microstrip patch antenna, radio frequency identification

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Authors: Somchai Buaroong

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This research aims to investigating strong points and challenges in application of an online learning management system to an English course. Data were collected from observation, learners’ oral and written reports, and the teacher’s journals. A questionnaire was utilized as a tool to collect data. Statistics utilized in this research included frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and multiple regression analysis. The findings show that the system was an additional channel to enhance English language learning through written class assignments that were digitally accessible by any group members, and through communication between the teacher and learners and among learners themselves. Thus, the learning management system could be a promising tool for foreign language teachers. Also revealed in the study were difficulties in its use. The article ends with discussions of findings of the system for foreign language classes in association to pedagogy are also included and in the level of signification.

Keywords: english course, foreign language system, online learning management system, teacher’s journals

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Authors: E. Erdogan, M. Ulusoy

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In terms of tourism, the concept of sustainability can be defined as preserving and developing natural, historical, cultural, social, and aesthetic values and enabling their permanency. Sustainable tourism aims to preserve natural, historical, cultural, and social resources, also by supporting economic progress protecting economic development and environmental values that emerge as a consequence of tourism activities. Cultural tourism feeds on sustainable cultural treasures inherently and is the most effective touristic activity. Traditional configurations and structural characteristics play an important role in generating cultural tourism in a region. Sustainable cultural tourism is related to trips upon people who embark with the aim of visiting culturally rich regions, learning about and observing fast-disappearing lifestyles and collecting cultural values as memories. With its huge tourism potential, Karadağ is the most significant cultural asset of the Karaman province, possessing unique riches in terms of cultural world history. Host to one of the most important Byzantine cities in Anatolia, Karadağ is like an open-air museum with its unparalleled architectural structures. There is a village named Madenşehir in the plain at the outskirts of Karadağ, near to which are located the “Thousand and One Churches” ruins. The 80-household house is located near the ruins in an area that been declared a 1st degree historic preservation district. stones gathered from local churches were used in the construction of these households. A ministry has assigned a new residential site near the boundaries of the 2nd degree preservation district, and the decision has been made to move the occupants to this area. The most important issue here is to enable locals’ sociocultural and socioeconomic sustainability. It is also important to build these structures in a manner compatible with the historical visual look, ecological system and environmental awareness. Therefore this new site will be planned as touristic area in terms of sustainable cultural tourism and in these new plans, shall fulfill functions oriented toward both tourists and locals. It is very important that this change be sustainable and also support cultural tourism.

Keywords: cultural tourism, new village settlement, socio cultural sustainability, “thousand and one churches” site

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Authors: Azadeh Jafari, Farzin Ghanadi, Matthew J. Emes, Maziar Arjomandi, Benjamin S. Cazzolato

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The turbulence within the atmospheric boundary layer induces highly unsteady aerodynamic loads on structures. These loads, if not accounted for in the design process, will lead to structural failure and are therefore important for the design of the structures. For an accurate prediction of wind loads, understanding the correlation between atmospheric turbulence and the aerodynamic loads is necessary. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of turbulence within the atmospheric boundary layer on the surface pressure on a flat plate over a wide range of turbulence intensities and integral length scales. The flat plate is chosen as a fundamental geometry which represents structures such as solar panels and billboards. Experiments were conducted at the University of Adelaide large-scale wind tunnel. Two wind tunnel boundary layers with different intensities and length scales of turbulence were generated using two sets of spires with different dimensions and a fetch of roughness elements. Average longitudinal turbulence intensities of 13% and 26% were achieved in each boundary layer, and the longitudinal integral length scale within the three boundary layers was between 0.4 m and 1.22 m. The pressure distributions on a square flat plate at different elevation angles between 30° and 90° were measured within the two boundary layers with different turbulence intensities and integral length scales. It was found that the peak pressure coefficient on the flat plate increased with increasing turbulence intensity and integral length scale. For example, the peak pressure coefficient on a flat plate elevated at 90° increased from 1.2 to 3 with increasing turbulence intensity from 13% to 26%. Furthermore, both the mean and the peak pressure distribution on the flat plates varied with turbulence intensity and length scale. The results of this study can be used to provide a more accurate estimation of the unsteady wind loads on structures such as buildings and solar panels.

Keywords: atmospheric boundary layer, flat plate, pressure coefficient, turbulence

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Rachel Goh, Alexander McNab, Brent Alsop, David O'Hare

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In a busy airport, the decision whether to take passengers aside and search their luggage for dangerous items can have important consequences. If an officer fails to search and stop a bag containing a dangerous object, a life-threatening incident might occur. But stopping a bag unnecessarily means that the officer might lose time searching the bag and face an angry passenger. Passengers’ bags, however, are often cluttered with personal belongings of varying shapes and sizes. It can be difficult to determine what is dangerous or not, especially if the decisions must be made quickly in cases of busy flight schedules. Additionally, the decision to search bags is often made with input from the surrounding officers on duty. This scenario raises several questions: 1) Past findings suggest that humans are more reliant on an automated aid when under time pressure in a visual search task, but does this translate to human-human reliance? 2) Are humans more likely to agree with another person if the person is assumed to be an expert or a novice in these ambiguous situations? In the present study, forty-one participants performed a simulated luggage-screening task. They were partnered with an advisor of two different statuses (expert vs. novice), but of equal accuracy (90% correct). Participants made two choices each trial: their first choice with no advisor input, and their second choice after advisor input. The second choice was made within either 2 seconds or 8 seconds; failure to do so resulted in a long time-out period. Under the 2-second time pressure, participants were more likely to disagree with their own first choice and agree with the expert advisor, regardless of whether the expert was right or wrong, but especially when the expert suggested that the bag was safe. The findings indicate a tendency for people to assume less responsibility for their decisions and defer to their partner, especially when a quick decision is required. This over-reliance on others’ opinions might have negative consequences in real life, particularly when relying on fallible human judgments. More awareness is needed regarding how a stressful environment may influence reliance on other’s opinions, and how better techniques are needed to make the best decisions under high stress and time pressure.

Keywords: advisors, decision-making, time pressure, trust

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Authors: Hailu Kebede Bekele

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Construction delays are suitable where project events occur at a certain time expected due to causes related to the client, consultant, and contractor. Delay is the major cause of the cost overrun that leads to the poor efficiency of the project. The cost difference between completion and the originally estimated is known as cost overrun. The common ways of cost overruns are not simple issues that can be neglected, but more attention should be given to prevent the organization from being devastated to be failed, and financial expenses to be extended. The reasons that may raised in different studies show that the problem may arise in construction projects due to errors in budgeting, lack of favorable weather conditions, inefficient machinery, and the availability of extravagance. The study is focused on the pace of mega projects that can have a significant change in the cost overrun calculation.15 mega projects are identified to study the problem of the cost overrun in the site. The contractor, consultant, and client are the principal stakeholders in the mega projects. 20 people from each sector were selected to participate in the investigation of the current mega construction project. The main objective of the study on the construction cost overrun is to prioritize the major causes of the cost overrun problem. The methodology that was employed in the construction cost overrun is the qualitative methodology that mostly rates the causes of construction project cost overrun. Interviews, open-ended and closed-ended questions group discussions, and rating qualitative methods are the best methodologies to study construction projects overrun. The result shows that design mistakes, lack of labor, payment delay, old equipment and scheduling, weather conditions, lack of skilled labor, payment delays, transportation, inflation, and order variations, market price fluctuation, and people's thoughts and philosophies, the prior cause of the cost overrun that fail the project performance. The institute shall follow the scheduled activities to bring a positive forward in the project life.

Keywords: cost overrun, delay, mega projects, design

Procedia PDF Downloads 50

Authors: Z. Goosen, E. J. Cilliers

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Social sustainability, as an independent perspective of sustainable development, has gained some acknowledgement, becoming an important aspect in sustainable urban planning internationally. However, limited research aiming at promoting social sustainability within urban areas exists within the South African context. This is mainly due to the different perspectives of sustainable development (e.g., Environmental, Economic, and Social) not being equally prioritized by policy makers and supported by implementation strategies, guidelines, and planning frameworks. The enhancement of social sustainability within urban areas relies on urban dweller satisfaction and the quality of urban life. Inclusive cities with high-quality public spaces are proposed within this research through implementing the third place theory. Third places are introduced as any place other than our homes (first place) and work (second place) and have become an integrated part of sustainable urban planning. As Third Places consist of every place 'in between', the approach has taken on a large role of the everyday life of city residents, and the importance of planning for such places can only be measured through identifying and highlighting the social sustainability benefits thereof. The aim of this research paper is to introduce third place planning within the urban area to ultimately enhance social sustainability. Selected background planning approaches influencing the planning of third places will briefly be touched on, as the focus will be placed on the social sustainability benefits provided through third place planning within an urban setting. The study will commence by defining and introducing the concept of third places within urban areas as well as a discussion on social sustainability, acting as one of the three perspectives of sustainable development. This will gain the researcher an improved understanding on social sustainability in order for the study to flow into an integrated discussion of the benefits Third places provide in terms of social sustainability and the impact it has on improved quality of life within urban areas. Finally, a visual case study comparison of local and international examples of third places identified will be illustrated. These international case studies will contribute towards the conclusion of this study where a local gap analysis will be formulated, based on local third place evidence and international best practices in order to formulate a strategic planning framework on improving social sustainability through third place planning within the local South African context.

Keywords: planning benefits, social sustainability, third places, urban area

Procedia PDF Downloads 257

Authors: Abdelkhalek Bouchikhi, Elyes Benmokhtar, Sebastien Saletzki

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The aeronautical field is experiencing issues with RF spectrum congestion due to the constant increase in the number of flights, aircrafts and telecom systems on board. In addition, these systems are bulky in size, weight and energy consumption. The cognitive radio helps particularly solving the spectrum congestion issue by its capacity to detect idle frequency channels then, allowing an opportunistic exploitation of the RF spectrum. The present work aims to propose a new use case for aeronautical spectrum sharing and to study the performances of three different detection techniques: energy detector, matched filter and cyclostationary detector within the aeronautical use case. The spectrum in the proposed cognitive radio is allocated dynamically where each cognitive radio follows a cognitive cycle. The spectrum sensing is a crucial step. The goal of the sensing is gathering data about the surrounding environment. Cognitive radio can use different sensors: antennas, cameras, accelerometer, thermometer, etc. In IEEE 802.22 standard, for example, a primary user (PU) has always the priority to communicate. When a frequency channel witch used by the primary user is idle, the secondary user (SU) is allowed to transmit in this channel. The Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) is composed of a UHF transmitter/receiver (interrogator) in the aircraft and a UHF receiver/transmitter on the ground. While the future cognitive radio will be used jointly to alleviate the spectrum congestion issue in the aeronautical field. LDACS, for example, is a good candidate; it provides two isolated data-links: ground-to-air and air-to-ground data-links. The first contribution of the present work is a strategy allowing sharing the L-band. The adopted spectrum sharing strategy is as follow: the DME will play the role of PU which is the licensed user and the LDACS1 systems will be the SUs. The SUs could use the L-band channels opportunely as long as they do not causing harmful interference signals which affect the QoS of the DME system. Although the spectrum sensing is a key step, it helps detecting holes by determining whether the primary signal is present or not in a given frequency channel. A missing detection on primary user presence creates interference between PU and SU and will affect seriously the QoS of the legacy radio. In this study, first brief definitions, concepts and the state of the art of cognitive radio will be presented. Then, a study of three communication channel detection algorithms in a cognitive radio context is carried out. The study is made from the point of view of functions, material requirements and signal detection capability in the aeronautical field. Then, we presented a modeling of the detection problem by three different methods (energy, adapted filter, and cyclostationary) as well as an algorithmic description of these detectors is done. Then, we study and compare the performance of the algorithms. Simulations were carried out using MATLAB software. We analyzed the results based on ROCs curves for SNR between -10dB and 20dB. The three detectors have been tested with a synthetics and real world signals.

Keywords: aeronautic, communication, navigation, surveillance systems, cognitive radio, spectrum sensing, software defined radio

Procedia PDF Downloads 159

Authors: Md Mizanur Rahman, Lotanna Micah Nneji, Adeola C. Adeniyi, Edem Archibong Eniang, Abiodun B. Onadeko, Felista Kasyoka Kilunda, Babatunde E. Adedeji, Ifeanyi C. Nneji, Adiaha A. A. Ugwumba, Jie-Qiong Jin, Min-Sheng Peng, Caroline Olory, Nsikan Eninekit, Jing Che

Abstract:

Nigeria contains a number of forest habitats that believed to host highly rich amphibian diversity. However, a dearth of herpetological studies has restricted information on the amphibian diversity in Nigeria. To cover the gap of knowledge, this study focused field surveys on relatively less studied forests–Afi Forest Reserve and Ikpan forest ecosystem. The goal of this study is to make a checklist and to investigate the habitat preferences of amphibians in these two forests. The study areas were surveyed between August 2018 and July 2019 following visual and acoustic methods. Individuals were identified using the morphological and molecular (16S ribosomal RNA) approach. Literature searches were conducted to document additional species that were not encountered during the current field surveys. Using the observational records and arrays of diversity indices, the patterns of species richness and abundance across habitat types were evaluated. Voucher specimens and tissue samples were deposited in the museums of the Department of Zoology, University of Ibadan Nigeria, and the remainder at the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China. The result of this study revealed the presence of 30 and 31 amphibian species from the Afi Forest Reserve and the Ikpan Forest Ecosystem, respectively. There were two unidentified species from AFR and one from IFE. In total, 324 individuals of amphibian species were observed from the two study areas. Forest and swamps showed high species diversity and richness than the agricultural field and savannah. Savannah and agricultural fields had the highest similarity in the species composition. Given the increased human disturbances and consequent threats to these forests, this study offers recommendations for the initiation of conservation plans immediately.

Keywords: biodiversity, conservation, cryptic species, ecology, integrated taxonomy, species inventory

Procedia PDF Downloads 150