Search results for: Akaike Information Criteria

Authors: Simon J. Wilde, David M. Herold, Michael J. Bryant

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Social media networks have become the hotbed for advertising activities, due mainly to their increasing consumer/user base, and secondly, owing to the ability of marketers to accurately measure ad exposure and consumer-based insights on such networks. More than half of the world’s population (4.8 billion) now uses social media (60%), with 150 million new users having come online within the last 12 months (to June 2022). As the use of social media networks by users grows, key business strategies used for interacting with these potential customers have matured, especially social media advertising. Unlike other traditional media outlets, social media advertising is highly interactive and digital channel-specific. Social media advertisements are clearly targetable, providing marketers with an extremely powerful marketing tool. Yet despite the measurable benefits afforded to businesses engaged in social media advertising, recent controversies (such as the relationship between Facebook and Cambridge Analytica in 2018) have only heightened the role trust and privacy play within these social media networks. The purpose of this exploratory paper is to investigate the extent to which social media users trust social media advertising. Understanding this relationship will fundamentally assist marketers in better understanding social media interactions and their implications for society. Using a web-based quantitative survey instrument, survey participants were recruited via a reputable online panel survey site. Respondents to the survey represented social media users from all states and territories within Australia. Completed responses were received from a total of 258 social media users. Survey respondents represented all core age demographic groupings, including Gen Z/Millennials (18-45 years = 60.5% of respondents) and Gen X/Boomers (46-66+ years = 39.5% of respondents). An adapted ADTRUST scale, using a 20 item 7-point Likert scale, measured trust in social media advertising. The ADTRUST scale has been shown to be a valid measure of trust in advertising within traditional different media, such as broadcast media and print media, and more recently, the Internet (as a broader platform). The adapted scale was validated through exploratory factor analysis (EFA), resulting in a three-factor solution. These three factors were named reliability, usefulness and affect, and the willingness to rely on. Factor scores (weighted measures) were then calculated for these factors. Factor scores are estimates of the scores survey participants would have received on each of the factors had they been measured directly, with the following results recorded (Reliability = 4.68/7; Usefulness and Affect = 4.53/7; and Willingness to Rely On = 3.94/7). Further statistical analysis (independent samples t-test) determined the difference in factor scores between the factors when age (Gen Z/Millennials vs. Gen X/Boomers) was utilised as the independent, categorical variable. The results showed the difference in mean scores across all three factors to be statistically significant (p<0.05) for these two core age groupings: Gen Z/Millennials Reliability = 4.90/7 vs Gen X/Boomers Reliability = 4.34/7; Gen Z/Millennials Usefulness and Affect = 4.85/7 vs Gen X/Boomers Usefulness and Affect = 4.05/7; and Gen Z/Millennials Willingness to Rely On = 4.53/7 vs Gen X/Boomers Willingness to Rely On = 3.03/7. The results clearly indicate that older social media users lack trust in the quality of information conveyed in social media ads, when compared to younger, more social media-savvy consumers. This is especially evident with respect to Factor 3 (Willingness to Rely On), whose underlying variables reflect one’s behavioural intent to act based on the information conveyed in advertising. These findings can be useful to marketers, advertisers, and brand managers in that the results highlight a critical need to design ‘authentic’ advertisements on social media sites to better connect with these older users, in an attempt to foster positive behavioural responses from within this large demographic group – whose engagement with social media sites continues to increase year on year.

Keywords: social media advertising, trust, older consumers, online

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Authors: Mohamed Izzharif Abdul Halim, Niamh Nic Daeid

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Determining the source of pen inks used on a variety of documents is impartial for forensic document examiners. The examination of inks is often performed to differentiate between inks in order to evaluate the authenticity of a document. A ballpoint pen ink consists of synthetic dyes in (acidic and/or basic), pigments (organic and/or inorganic) and a range of additives. Inks of similar color may consist of different composition and are frequently the subjects of forensic examinations. This study emphasizes on blue ballpoint pen inks available in the market because it is reported that approximately 80% of questioned documents analysis involving ballpoint pen ink. Analytical techniques such as thin layer chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, UV-vis spectroscopy, luminescence spectroscopy and infrared spectroscopy have been used in the analysis of ink samples. In this study, application of Diamond Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) FTIR is straightforward but preferable in forensic science as it offers no sample preparation and minimal analysis time. The data obtained from these techniques were further analyzed using multivariate chemometric methods which enable extraction of more information based on the similarities and differences among samples in a dataset. It was indicated that some pens from the same manufactures can be similar in composition, however, discrete types can be significantly different.

Keywords: ATR FTIR, ballpoint, multivariate chemometric, PCA

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Authors: Yeliz Sarı Nayim, B. N. Nayim

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Vertical natural gardens encountered in urban ecosystems are important elements contributing to urban ecology by raising the quality of urban life. This research covers the investigation of the semi-natural plant walls of Bartın city which is located on the western Black Sea coast of Turkey. Landscape analysis and evaluation as a result of land and office work have resulted in vertical garden ecosystems that have been processed in the urban habitat map, mostly in natural stone walls, wooden garden fences, garden entrance doors, historical buildings and building walls. Structural surfaces on old building facades, especially with abandoned or still in use with natural stone walls, have been found to have many natural vertical gardens over time. Parietaria judaica, Cymbalaria longipes and Hedera helix species were dominant, and other types of content were recorded, providing information on the current biotope potential, human activities and effects on them. It has been emphasized that the described vertical gardens together with the species they contain should be protected in terms of Bartin urban ecology and biodiversity. It has been stated that sustainable urban planning, design and management should be considered as a compensation for open and green area losses.

Keywords: semi-natural vertical gardens, urban ecology, sustainable urban planning and design, Bartın

Procedia PDF Downloads 338

Authors: Amna Batool

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Agile methodology is the current most popular technique in software development projects. Agile methods in software development bring optimistic impact on software performances, quality and customer satisfaction. There are some organizations and small-medium enterprises adopting agile into their local software development projects as well as in distributed software development projects. Adopting agile methods in local software development projects is valuable. However, agile global software deployment needs an attention. There are different key challenges in agile global software development that need to resolve and enhance the global software development cycles. The proposed systematic literature review investigates all key challenges of agile in global software development. Moreover, a quantitative methodology (an actual survey) targeted to present a real case scenario of these particular key challenges faced by one of the software houses that is BestWeb Malaysia. The outcomes of systematic literature and the results of quantitative methodology are compared with each other to evaluate if the key challenges pointed out in systematic review still exist. The proposed research and its exploratory results can assist small medium enterprises to avoid these challenges by adopting the best practices in their global software development projects. Moreover, it is helpful for novice researchers to get valuable information altogether.

Keywords: agile software development, ASD challenges, agile global software development, challenges in agile global software development

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Authors: Waleerak Sittisom

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The objectives of this research were to analyze transportation route management, to identify potential cost reductions in logistic operation. In-depth interview techniques and small group discussions were utilized with 25 participants from various backgrounds in the areas of logistics. The findings of this research revealed that there were four areas that companies are able to effectively manage a logistic cost reduction: managing the space within the transportation vehicles, managing transportation personnel, managing transportation cost, and managing control of transportation. On the other hand, there were four areas that companies were unable to effectively manage a logistic cost reduction: the working process of transportation, the route planning of transportation, the service point management, and technology management. There are five areas that cost reduction is feasible: personnel management, process of working, map planning, service point planning, and technology implementation. To be able to reduce costs, the transportation companies should suggest that customers use a file system to save truck space. Also, the transportation companies need to adopt new technology to manage their information system so that packages can be reached easy, safe, and fast. Staff needs to be trained regularly to increase knowledge and skills. Teamwork is required to effectively reduce the costs.

Keywords: cost reduction, management, logistics, transportation

Procedia PDF Downloads 489

Authors: Yaw Akoto

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The social construction of disability in a Ghanaian society has created a restriction on the development of the academic potentials of persons with disabilities. Ghanaian societal perceptions position persons with disabilities as needy, evil, feeble and 'abnormal' that a person with disability cannot contribute anything meaningful to their own development, society, and the nation as well. Almost all Ghanaian cultures believe the Gods visit evil people with disability as such they erect barriers that limit them to select and enroll in education. The few people with disabilities who gain admission to schools drop out due to these barriers erected by the society and institutions. However, there are very few of these students who are able to pursue their education at the higher education level despite these challenges. This qualitative study explores the motivation of students with disabilities to select and enroll in a Ghanaian university. The study used semi-structured interview to solicit information from students with disabilities in a Ghanaian university. Although the quality of students with disabilities experience was affected by culture, discrimination, marginalisation, and lack of support, the prospect of using themselves as role models, employment opportunities and family impingement were among others that pushed them to embark on their educational journey. The findings of this study have implications for societal and institutional levels for restructuring and refining societal perception and institutional policies on disabilities.

Keywords: beliefs, Ghanaian university, social construction, students with disabilities

Procedia PDF Downloads 132

Authors: Sandra Sasikumar, Noorjahan AI, Aurine Anthony

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The background of this article is the frequently unacknowledged effects of corporal punishment in a child's life as they change into adulthood, how it may permutate into various dynamics and combinations and manifest in major areas like fear of intimacy and reactive and ineffective defending styles, which may eventually lead to much more interpersonal problems and in extreme cases psychopathology. Even though such studies require a longitudinal research design, there is a wealth of information on corporal punishment in the literature. Defense styles, or the coping mechanisms that individuals use to deal with stress and difficult emotions, can also be affected by corporal punishment. Individuals who have experienced corporal punishment may develop maladaptive defense styles, such as repression or denial, that can make it difficult for them to process and cope with their emotions. The fear of intimacy, or the fear of getting close to others, is another potential effect of corporal punishment. Individuals who have experienced physical discipline may develop a fear of physical touch, making it difficult for them to form close relationships. This fear can also lead to other mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression. It is important to note that not everyone who experiences corporal punishment will develop these issues, and other factors can contribute to the development of these problems. However, corporal punishment can have a significant impact on an individual's mental and emotional well-being.

Keywords: corporal punishment, fear of intimacy, defense styles, attachment

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Authors: Melodi Mbuyi Mata, Blessing Olamide Taiwo, Afolabi Ayodele David

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The purpose of this research is to create empirical models for assessing the profitability of granite aggregate production in Akure, Ondo state aggregate quarries. In addition, an artificial neural network (ANN) model and multivariate predicting models for granite profitability were developed in the study. A formal survey questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. The data extracted from the case study mine for this study includes granite marketing operations, royalty, production costs, and mine production information. The following methods were used to achieve the goal of this study: descriptive statistics, MATLAB 2017, and SPSS16.0 software in analyzing and modeling the data collected from granite traders in the study areas. The ANN and Multi Variant Regression models' prediction accuracy was compared using a coefficient of determination (R²), Root mean square error (RMSE), and mean square error (MSE). Due to the high prediction error, the model evaluation indices revealed that the ANN model was suitable for predicting generated profit in a typical quarry. More quarries in Nigeria's southwest region and other geopolitical zones should be considered to improve ANN prediction accuracy.

Keywords: national development, granite, profitability assessment, ANN models

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Authors: Vera Karla S. Caingles, Glen A. Lorenzo

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Soil, as the main material of landslides, plays a vital role in landslide assessment. An efficient and accurate method of doing an assessment is significantly important to prevent damage of properties and loss of lives. The study has two phases: to establish an empirical correlation of the residual soil thickness with the slope angle and to investigate the geotechnical characteristics of residual soil. Digital Elevation Model (DEM) in Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to establish the slope map and to program sampling points for field investigation. Physical and index property tests were undertaken on the 20 soil samples obtained from the area with Pliocene-Pleistocene geology and different slope angle in Kibawe, Bukidnon. The regression analysis result shows that the best fitting model that can describe the soil thickness-slope angle relationship is an exponential function. The physical property results revealed that soils contain a high percentage of clay and silts ranges from 41% - 99.52%. Based on the index properties test results, the soil exhibits a high degree of plasticity and expansion but not collapsible. It is deemed that this compendium will serve as primary data for slope stability analysis and deterministic landslide assessment.

Keywords: collapsibility, correlation, expansiveness, landslide, plasticity

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Authors: Nkosingiphile Mbusozayo Zungu

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The purpose of the current study is to adopt informetrics methods to analyse the research on phishing from 2012 to 2021 in three selected databases in order to contribute to global cybersecurity through impactful research. The study follows a quantitative research methodology. We opted for the positivist epistemology and objectivist ontology. The analysis focuses on: (i) the productivity of individual authors, institutions, and countries; (ii) the research contributions, using co-authorship as a measure of collaboration; (iii) the altmetrics of selected research contributions; (iv) the citation patterns and research impact of research on phishing; and (v) research contributions by keywords, to discover the concepts that are related to phishing. The preliminary findings favour developed countries in terms of quantity and quality of research in the domain. There are unique research trends and patterns in the developing countries, including those in Africa, that provide opportunities for research development in the domain in the region. This study explores an important research domain by using unexplored method in the region. The study supports the SDG Agenda 2030, such as ending abuse, exploitation, trafficking, and all other forms of violence and torture of children through the use of cyberspace (SDG 16). Further, the results from this study can inform research, teaching, and learning largely in Africa. Invariably, the study contributes to cybersecurity awareness that will mitigate cybersecurity threats against vulnerable communities.

Keywords: phishing, cybersecurity, informetrics, information security

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Authors: Belkacem Soundes, Guezouli Larbi

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This paper presents a robust and accurate method for text detection and localization over lecture videos. Frame regions are classified into text or background based on visual feature analysis. However, lecture video shows significant degradation mainly related to acquisition conditions, camera motion and environmental changes resulting in low quality videos. Hence, affecting feature extraction and description efficiency. Moreover, traditional text detection methods cannot be directly applied to lecture videos. Therefore, robust feature extraction methods dedicated to this specific video genre are required for robust and accurate text detection and extraction. Method consists of a three-step process: Slide region detection and segmentation; Feature extraction and non-text filtering. For robust and effective features extraction moment functions are used. Two distinct types of moments are used: orthogonal and non-orthogonal. For orthogonal Zernike Moments, both Pseudo Zernike moments are used, whereas for non-orthogonal ones Hu moments are used. Expressivity and description efficiency are given and discussed. Proposed approach shows that in general, orthogonal moments show high accuracy in comparison to the non-orthogonal one. Pseudo Zernike moments are more effective than Zernike with better computation time.

Keywords: text detection, text localization, lecture videos, pseudo zernike moments

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Authors: Griaznova Svetlana, Umedov Mekhroz

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The current healthcare facilities trend is the creation of multidisciplinary large-scale centers to provide the maximum possible services in one place, minimizing the number of possible instances in the path of patient treatment. The multifunctional medical centers are mainly designed in urban infrastructure for good accessibility. However, many functions and connections define the building shape, often make it inharmonious, that greatly destroys the city's appearance. The purpose of the research is to scientifically substantiate the factors influencing the shaping, the formation of architectural solutions principles, the formation of recommendations and principles for the multifunctional medical centers' design. The result of the research is the elaboration of architectural and planning solutions principles and the determination of factors affecting the multifunctional healthcare facilities shaping. Research method: Study and generalization of international experience in scientific research, literature, standards, teaching aids, and design materials on the topic of research. An integrated approach to the study of existing international experience of multidisciplinary medical centers. Elaboration of graphical analysis and diagrams based on the system analysis of the processed information. Identification of methods and principles of functional zoning of nuclear medicine centers.

Keywords: health care, multifunctionality, form, medical center, hospital, PET, CT scan

Procedia PDF Downloads 88

Authors: Na Xiao

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Animal metaphors have many different connotations, ranging from loving emotions to derogatory epithets, but gender expressions using animal metaphors are often imbalanced. Generally, animal metaphors related to females tend to be negative. Little known about the reasons for the negative expressions of animal female metaphors in Chinese contexts still have not been quantified. The Modern Chinese Corpus at the Center for Chinese Linguistics at Peking University (CCL Corpus) provided the data for this research, which aims to identify the influencing variables of gender differences in the description of animal metaphors mapping humans in Chinese by observing the percentage of "tiger" metaphor, which is based on the conceptual metaphor theory. A quantitative research method was used in this study to statistically examine the gender attitude percentage of the "tiger" metaphor using corpus data. This study has proved that the tiger metaphors associated with humans in the Chinese context tend to be negative. Importantly, this study has also shown that the high proportion of tiger metaphorical idioms is what causes the high proportion of negative tiger metaphors that are related to women. This finding can be used as crucial information for future studies on other gender-related animal metaphorical idioms and can offer additional insights for understanding trends in other animal metaphors.

Keywords: Chinese, CCL corpus, gender differences, metaphorical idioms, tigers

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Authors: Ajish Sreedharan

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Visual cryptography encodes a secret image into shares of random binary patterns. If the shares are exerted onto transparencies, the secret image can be visually decoded by superimposing a qualified subset of transparencies, but no secret information can be obtained from the superposition of a forbidden subset. The binary patterns of the shares, however, have no visual meaning and hinder the objectives of visual cryptography. In the Secret Message Transmission through Meaningful Shares a secret message to be transmitted is converted to grey scale image. Then (2,2) visual cryptographic shares are generated from this converted gray scale image. The shares are encrypted using A Chaos-Based Image Encryption Algorithm Using Wavelet Transform. Two separate color images which are of the same size of the shares, taken as cover image of the respective shares to hide the shares into them. The encrypted shares which are covered by meaningful images so that a potential eavesdropper wont know there is a message to be read. The meaningful shares are transmitted through two different transmission medium. During decoding shares are fetched from received meaningful images and decrypted using A Chaos-Based Image Encryption Algorithm Using Wavelet Transform. The shares are combined to regenerate the grey scale image from where the secret message is obtained.

Keywords: visual cryptography, wavelet transform, meaningful shares, grey scale image

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Authors: Kittichai Thanasupsin, Satis Sukniam

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Pavement marking is an essential task of road construction and maintenance. One of several benefits of pavement markings has been used to provide information about road alignment and road conditions ahead. In some cases, retro-reflectivity of road marking at night may not meet the standard. This degradation may be caused by internal factors such as the size of glass beads and the number of glass beads or external factors such as traffic volume, lane width, vehicle weight, and so on. This research aims to investigate the reflective efficiency of thermoplastic road marking with the glass beads. Ratios of glass beads, ranging from 359 to 553 grams per square meter on an asphaltic concrete, have been tested. The reflective efficiency data was collected at the beginning and at a specific time interval for a total of 8 months. It was found that the difference in glass beads quantity affects the rate of retro-reflectivity but does not affect the diffuse reflectivity. It was also found that other factors affect retro-reflectivity, such as duration, the position of road marking, traffic density, the quantity of glass beads, and dirt coating on top. The dirt coating on top is the most crucial factor that deteriorating retro-reflectivity.

Keywords: thermoplastic pavement marking, retro-reflectivity, diffuse reflectivity, asphalt concrete

Procedia PDF Downloads 117

Authors: Seyong Oh, Jin-Hong Park

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Recently, neuromorphic computing based on brain-inspired artificial neural networks (ANNs) has attracted huge amount of research interests due to the technological abilities to facilitate massively parallel, low-energy consuming, and event-driven computing. In particular, research on artificial synapse that imitate biological synapses responsible for human information processing and memory is in the spotlight. Here, we demonstrate a photosynaptic device, wherein a synaptic weight is governed by a mixed spike consisting of voltage and light spikes. Compared to the device operated only by the voltage spike, ∆G in the proposed photosynaptic device significantly increased from -2.32nS to 5.95nS with no degradation of nonlinearity (NL) (potentiation/depression values were changed from 4.24/8 to 5/8). Furthermore, the Modified National Institute of Standards and Technology (MNIST) digit pattern recognition rates improved from 36% and 49% to 50% and 62% in ANNs consisting of the synaptic devices with 20 and 100 weight states, respectively. We expect that the photosynaptic device technology processed by optoelectronic spike will play an important role in implementing the neuromorphic computing systems in the future.

Keywords: optoelectronic synapse, IGZO (Indium-Gallium-Zinc Oxide) photosynaptic device, optoelectronic spiking process, neuromorphic computing

Procedia PDF Downloads 159

Authors: Farhat Sultana

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Originality: TQM principles are considered the tools to enhance organizational performance for most organizations. The paper contributes to the literature on the social enterprise because social organizations are still far behind in implementing TQM as compared to other private, public, and nonprofit organizations. Study design: The study is based on the data and information provided by two case studies and one focus group of social enterprises. Purpose: The purpose of the study is to get a deep understating of TQM implementation and to recognize the enablers of TQM in social enterprises that enhance the organizational performance of social enterprises located in UAE. Findings: As per the findings of the study, key enablers of Total Quality management in the case enterprises are leadership support, strategic approach for quality, continuous improvement, process improvement, employee empowerment and customer focus practices, though some inhibitors for TQM implementation such as managerial structure for quality assurance and performance appraisal mechanism are also pointed out by the study. Research limitations: The study findings are only based on two case studies and one focus group, which is not enough to generalize the findings to all social organizations. Practical Implications: Identified TQM enablers can help management to implement TQM successfully in social enterprises. Social implications: The study provides enabling path for Social enterprises to implement TQM to seek quality output to build a better society.

Keywords: TQM, social enterprise, enablers of TQM, UAE

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Authors: Nyoman Wijana, Chandra Arha

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Disclosures of Intellectual Capital (IC) is a presentation of corporate information assets that are not recorded in the financial statements. This disclosures is very helpful because it provides inform corporate assets are intangible. In the new economic era, the company's intangible assets will determine company's competitive advantage. This study aimed to examine the effect of IC disclosures on market capitalization growth. Observational studies conducted over ten years in 2002-2011. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect for last ten years. One hundred samples of the company's largest market capitalization in 2011 traced back to last ten years. Data that used, are in 2011, 2008, 2005, and 2002 Method that’s used for acquiring the data is content analysis. The analytical method used is Ordinanary Least Square (OLS) and analysis tools are e views 7 This software using Pooled Least Square estimation parameters are specifically designed for panel data. The results of testing analysis showed inconsistent expression levels affect the growth of the market capitalization in each year of observation. The results of this study are expected to motivate the public company in Indonesia to do more voluntary IC disclosures and encourage regulators to make regulations in a comprehensive manner so that all categories of the IC must be disclosed by the company.

Keywords: IC disclosures, market capitalization growth, analytical method, OLS

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Authors: Nicholas Lambert, Seungyeon Ryu, Mehmet Mulla, Albert Kim

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In this paper, an interactive in-car interface called HoloDash is presented. It is intended to provide information and infotainment in both autonomous vehicles and ‘connected cars’, vehicles equipped with Internet access via cellular services. The research focuses on the development of interactive avatars for this system and its gesture-based control system. This is a case study for the development of a possible human-centred means of presenting a connected or autonomous vehicle’s On-Board Diagnostics through a projected ‘holographic’ infotainment system. This system is termed a Holographic Human Vehicle Interface (HHIV), as it utilises a dashboard projection unit and gesture detection. The research also examines the suitability for gestures in an automotive environment, given that it might be used in both driver-controlled and driverless vehicles. Using Human Centred Design methods, questions were posed to test subjects and preferences discovered in terms of the gesture interface and the user experience for passengers within the vehicle. These affirm the benefits of this mode of visual communication for both connected and driverless cars.

Keywords: gesture, holographic interface, human-computer interaction, user-centered design

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Authors: Jing Yu Pan, Dahai Liu

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Airlines in the US have taken protective measures to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, with a mask mandate being the most important one, especially in the aircraft cabin. As the industry is recovering from the pandemic, mask-wearing will eventually become a personal choice during flight. Nevertheless, COVID-19 will continue to create uncertainty for a long time into the future, making it necessary to understand the attitude and voluntary use of masks by air travelers on airplanes even after masks are no longer mandatory. This study aimed to understand the relationship between demographic characteristics and mask-wearing intention in the US. For age, gender, income, educational, and ethnicity groups, this study examined three factors – subjective norms, risk avoidance, and information seeking and their influence on the mask-wearing intention onboard airplanes during COVID-19 and whether or not attitude toward masks was an important mediator. The results show that all demographic factors except gender could help to explain the group variations in factor impact and the mediating effect in mask-wearing intentions. In particular, Asian travelers had mask-wearing intentions that were not affected by attitude either directly or indirectly. These findings provide useful implications to enhance the health and safety of air travelers, especially in the US, where opposing views toward mask-wearing still widely exist.

Keywords: COVID-19, passenger demographics, aircraft cabin, mask-wearing intention, attitude as mediator

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Authors: Ali. Marjani, M. Farsi, M. Rahimizadeh

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Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the important grain legume crops in the world. However, drought stress is a serious threat to chickpea production, and development of drought-resistant varieties is a necessity. Field experiments were conducted to evaluate the response of 8 chickpea genotypes (MCC* 696, 537, 80, 283, 392, 361, 252, 397) and drought stress (S1: non-stress, S2: stress at vegetative growth stage, S3: stress at early bloom, S4: stress at early pod visible) at different growth stages. Experiment was arranged in split plot design with four replications. Difference among the drought stress time was found to be significant for investigated traits except biological yield. Differences were observed for genotypes in flowering time, pod information time, physiological maturation time and yield. Plant height reduced due to drought stress in vegetative growth stage. Stem dry weight reduced due to drought stress in pod visibly. Flowering time, maturation time, pod number, number of seed per plant and yield cause of drought stress in flowering was also reduced. The correlation between yield and number of seed per plant and biological yield was positive. The MCC283 and MCC696 were the high-tolerance genotypes. These results demonstrated that drought stress delayed phonological growth in chickpea and that flowering stage is sensitive.

Keywords: chickpea, drought stress, growth stage, tolerance

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Authors: Imed Mezghani, Yousra Ben Salah, Mohamed Chaieb

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Tricholaena teneriffae L. is a xerophytic perennial herb that belongs to the Poaceae family likely to be used for ecological restoration programs. It's a dominant and economically important species widely distributed in the Bou-Hedma National Park, Tunisia. Reintroduction and expansion of T. teneriffae depend solely on sexual reproduction. This makes the understanding of its germination requirements vital for conservation and management. To provide basic information for its conservation and reintroduction, we studied the influence of environmental factors on seed germination patterns. The germination responses of seeds were determined over a wide range of constant temperatures (15–35°C), polyethylene glycol solutions of different osmotic potentials (0 to −2 MPa) and salt solution (0 to 150 mM of NaCl). Results indicated that the optimum temperature germination was attained at 25°C which corresponds to temperatures prevailing during mid spring season in the Mediterranean area. Seeds germinated in Polyethylene Glycol solutions exhibited significantly lower germination than control especially when water potential fell below -0.6 MPa. Germination percentage and rate decreased with an increase NaCl concentration. Seeds germination was substantially delayed and reduced with an increase in NaCl to levels above 50 mM. T. teneriffae is moderately salt tolerant at germination stage.

Keywords: germination, temperature, Tricholaena teneriffae L., salt stress, water stress, rehabilitation

Procedia PDF Downloads 278

Authors: Asiri Wijesinghe, N. D. Kodikara, Damitha Sandaruwan

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The Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) is a rapidly growing interrogation around the world which can be annotated by abortive metabolism of glucose that causes long-term infection in human retina. This is one of the preliminary reason of visual impairment and blindness of adults. Information on retinal pathological mutation can be recognized using ocular fundus images. In this research, we are mainly focused on resurrecting an automated diagnosis system to detect DR anomalies such as severity level classification of DR patient (Non-proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy approach) and vessel tortuosity measurement of untwisted vessels to assessment of vessel anomalies (Proliferative Diabetic Retinopathy approach). Severity classification method is obtained better results according to the precision, recall, F-measure and accuracy (exceeds 94%) in all formats of cross validation. In ROC (Receiver Operating Characteristic) curves also visualized the higher AUC (Area Under Curve) percentage (exceeds 95%). User level evaluation of severity capturing is obtained higher accuracy (85%) result and fairly better values for each evaluation measurements. Untwisted vessel detection for tortuosity measurement also carried out the good results with respect to the sensitivity (85%), specificity (89%) and accuracy (87%).

Keywords: fundus image, exudates, microaneurisms, hemorrhages, tortuosity, diabetic retinopathy, optic disc, fovea

Procedia PDF Downloads 327

Authors: Kwang Chun, John Kemeny

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Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) has been a prevalent remote-sensing technology applied in the geological fields due to its high precision and ease of use. One of the major applications is to use the detailed geometrical information of underground structures as a basis for the generation of a three-dimensional numerical model that can be used in a geotechnical stability analysis such as FEM or DEM. To date, however, straightforward techniques in reconstructing the numerical model from the scanned data of the underground structures have not been well established or tested. In this paper, we propose a comprehensive approach integrating all the various processes, from LiDAR scanning to finite element numerical analysis. The study focuses on converting LiDAR 3D point clouds of geologic structures containing complex surface geometries into a finite element model. This methodology has been applied to Kartchner Caverns in Arizona, where detailed underground and surface point clouds can be used for the analysis of underground stability. Numerical simulations were performed using the finite element code Abaqus and presented by 3D computing visualization solution, ParaView. The results are useful in studying the stability of all types of underground excavations including underground mining and tunneling.

Keywords: finite element analysis, LiDAR, remote-sensing, scientific visualization, underground stability

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Authors: Jihad S. Daba, Jean-Pierre Dubois, Georges El Soury

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Fifth generation wireless networks guarantee significant capacity enhancement to suit more clients and services at higher information rates with better reliability while consuming less power. The deployment of massive multiple-input-multiple-output technology guarantees broadband wireless networks with the use of base station antenna arrays to serve a large number of users on the same frequency and time-slot channels. In this work, we evaluate the performance of massive multiple-input-multiple-output systems (MIMO) systems in 5^th generation cellular networks in terms of capacity and bit error rate. Several cases were considered and analyzed to compare the performance of massive MIMO systems while varying the number of antennas at both transmitting and receiving ends. We found that, unlike classical MIMO systems, reducing the number of transmit antennas while increasing the number of antennas at the receiver end provides a better solution to performance enhancement. In addition, enhanced orthogonal frequency division multiplexing and beam division multiple access schemes further improve the performance of massive MIMO systems and make them more reliable.

Keywords: beam division multiple access, D2D communication, enhanced OFDM, fifth generation broadband, massive MIMO

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Authors: Nor Wahiza Abdul Wahat, Nor Haniza Abdul Wahat, Siti Noormi Alias, Mohamad Sazali Shaari

Abstract:

This study prepares the groundwork for the development of a strategic model and instrument for workplace inclusivity for deaf and hard-of-hearing employees in Malaysia. In the past, scholars have discussed inclusivity of workplaces to the extent to which employees feel they are significantly part of the organizational processes. Such processes include access to information, connectedness to colleagues and team members as well as their ability to participate in and influence decision-making processes. A qualitative study was conducted to explore on experiences of employed deaf and hard-of-hearing employees in a few Malaysian organizations. Data were collected from two focus group discussions involving male and female deaf and hard of hearing employees. Three in-depth interviews were also conducted with employer representatives. Generated themes highlighted individual, and team approaches towards crafting workplace inclusivity for deaf and hard of hearing employees in Malaysia. The adaptiveness of deaf and hard-of-hearing employees and social inclusion by colleagues were among the emerged sub-themes. This study allowed the researchers to further develop workplace inclusivity instruments and models for the benefit of deaf and hard of hearing Malaysian employees, as well as their employers.

Keywords: deaf, hard of hearing, workplace inclusivity, disabilities

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Authors: I. Chebbi, L. Boudaya, L. Neifar

Abstract:

The bogue, Boops boops is an economically important fishery resource and commonly captured in the Mediterranean, and its diversity in parasites has been used as a tool to differentiate between stocks along with Tunisia since it is widely acceptable in fisheries management. In this study, a total of 90 fish are investigated from three localities off Tunisia, including Kelibia, Mahdia, and Zarzis. Fifteen species of parasites totaling 1270 individuals were harvested from B. boops, whereas ten parasites were used as biological tags. Based on Mahalanobis distance, each parasite species shows a great importance in the discrimination between groups. Tetraphyllidea larvae are the most influential parasites in determining the position of samples belonging to Kelibia. Monogenean species and Hysterothylacium sp. are the most important species for determining the position of samples from Mahdia. Specimens from Zarzis are characterized by the absence of the four Monogenean species and the Tetraphyllidea larvae. Parasites allocate B. boops population correctly to their origin communities with an accuracy of 83.3%. These results were corroborated by the discriminant analyses, highlighted the presence of three stocks, and improved that the parasitological method can be considered as a reliable key to provide imperative information for discriminating among B. boops stocks in Tunisian waters.

Keywords: biological marker, Boops boops, parasite, population structure

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Authors: Bel G Raggad

Abstract:

An e-Learning setting is a distributed computing environment where information resources can be connected to any public network. Public networks are very unsecure which can compromise the reliability of an e-Learning environment. This study is only concerned with the intrusion detection aspect of e-Learning security and how incident responses are planned. The literature reported great advances in intrusion detection system (ids) but neglected to study an important ids weakness: suspected events are detected but an intrusion is not determined because it is not defined in ids databases. We propose an incident response generator (DIRG) that produces incident responses when the working ids system suspects an event that does not correspond to a known intrusion. Data involved in intrusion detection when ample uncertainty is present is often not suitable to formal statistical models including Bayesian. We instead adopt Dempster and Shafer theory to process intrusion data for the unknown event. The DIRG engine transforms data into a belief structure using incident scenarios deduced by the security administrator. Belief values associated with various incident scenarios are then derived and evaluated to choose the most appropriate scenario for which an automatic incident response is generated. This article provides a numerical example demonstrating the working of the DIRG system.

Keywords: decision support system, distributed computing, e-Learning security, incident response, intrusion detection, security risk, statefull inspection

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Authors: Ceren Vardar Acar, Mine Caglar

Abstract:

In finance, the price of a volatile asset can be modeled using fractional Brownian motion (fBm) with Hurst parameter H>1/2. The Black-Scholes model for the values of returns of an asset using fBm is given as, 〖Y_t=Y_0 e^((r+μ)t+σB)〗_t^H, 0≤t≤T where Y_0 is the initial value, r is constant interest rate, μ is constant drift and σ is constant diffusion coefficient of fBm, which is denoted by B_t^H where t≥0. Black-Scholes model can be constructed with some Markov processes such as Brownian motion. The advantage of modeling with fBm to Markov processes is its capability of exposing the dependence between returns. The real life data for a volatile asset display long-range dependence property. For this reason, using fBm is a more realistic model compared to Markov processes. Investors would be interested in any kind of information on the risk in order to manage it or hedge it. The maximum possible loss is one way to measure highest possible risk. Therefore, it is an important variable for investors. In our study, we give some theoretical bounds on the distribution of maximum possible loss of fBm. We provide both asymptotical and strong estimates for the tail probability of maximum loss of standard fBm and fBm with drift and diffusion coefficients. In the investment point of view, these results explain, how large values of possible loss behave and its bounds.

Keywords: maximum drawdown, maximum loss, fractional brownian motion, large deviation, Gaussian process

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Authors: Maria Brás

Abstract:

The main purpose of the presentation is to identify the impacts and appropriate measures to prevent potential attacks, or minimize the risk of an attack in tourist destination. Terrorism has been growing in the shadow of unpredictability, however, is possible to minimize the danger of a terrorist attack by doing the: (1) recognition; (2); evaluation; (3) avoidance; (4) threat reduction. The vulnerability of tourism industry to terrorism is an undeniable fact, and terrorists know it. They use this advantage attacking tourists for very specific reasons, such as the: (1) international coverage by the media, “if it bleeds it leads” ; (2) chances of getting different nationalities at the same place and time; (3) possibility of destroyed the economy of a destination, or destinations (“terrorism contamination effect”), through the reduction of tourist demand; (4) psychological, and social disruption based on fear of negative consequences. Security incidents, such as terrorism, include different preventive measures that can be conducted in partnership with: tourism industry (hotels, airports, tourist attractions, among others); central government; public and/or private sector; local community; and media. The recovery strategies must be based on the dissemination of positive information to the media; in creating new marketing strategies that emphasize the social and cultural values of the destination; encourage domestic tourism; get government, or state, financial support.

Keywords: terrorism, tourism, safety, security, impacts, prevention, recovery

Procedia PDF Downloads 330